Introduction
Workforce, Marketing & Community. 3 words that consume a lot of time, energy and passion for Jill St. Thomas. She is working tirelessly to grow the technology jobs, awareness and connectedness in Tampa Bay. And we should be thankful that she has chosen us. As a more-than-qualified technology executive, St Thomas could easily land a senior executive role with a large company. Instead she spends her time elevating our whole community and has been especially instrumental in encouraging young women to choose technology as a career path. It is with great appreciation that we recognize the far reaching influence of Jill St Thomas across Tampa Bay.
Years in St. Pete
Since 1993
Organizations involved in
Aside from TBT, The Jesuit Mother’s Club, Lamplighters
What gets you out of bed every day?
My family for sure – 2 boys, a step son and a great husband – making sure they feel loved and supported, and that I make them proud.
Why St. Pete?
Tampa Bay was a really easy choice. I grew up in the northeast, went to school in Boston. At the time I graduated, jobs were really scarce in the branding and advertising field I was in. So when an opportunity popped up down here, I thought why not go to 364 days of sunshine every year. It was a pretty easy move and I found the community to be very welcoming.
What is one habit that you keep?
I keep a lot of habits. I’m very type A. I keep a gratitude journal. Every morning I write down the things I’m expecting to happen during the day. And then I close the day reflecting on what I wrote earlier and what I could have done differently to make the day better.
Who are some people that influence you?
John Irivng, Anne Lamott. I feel like I constantly strive to be a better writer and so I’m constantly reading and trying to find better ways to articulate my thoughts.
What is one piece of insight - a book, methodology, practice - that you would share with our readers?
Gratitude – for me that is such a key to keeping a positive outlook on life. It’s very easy as a parent, as someone who works full time – working in a nonprofit – you can have a lot of challenges. It can be easy to get mired down in the negatives so that constant search and concentrating on the positives has really helped me.
What is one thing you wish you knew about your work 3 years ago?
It’s a constant challenge to balance all of the things in the tech community that need our attention. The most challenging thing is finding all of the time to put the focus where we want it to be and that changes week by week.
What’s next?
Tampa Bay Tech is growing the way that we engage with the community. We know there are around 55,000 technologists working in Tampa Bay and we’d love to find connection points with each and every one of those folks. Whether it’s taking our tech festival that we put on every year and making it phenomenal and huge or tying it that with some other partners – finding ways to amp up our awards show and turning that into a celebration for the community – that’s where we’d love to go. The more we engage with our members the more they want to give back in the places we need them. So that’s my big goal.
