Women Leading The Blockchain Revolution:” There is nothing that should deter a woman from being a part of this new digital age of data transfer and finances”
With Mia Sumra co-founder of Scroll
Although, the majority of crypto holders are men, women involved in blockchain technology have grown in the past year. The computing pioneers were women and those studying the computer science field in the 1970s were predominately women as well. We are working together to establish blockchain technology and there is nothing that should deter a woman from being a part of this new digital age of data transfer and finances.
I had the pleasure of interviewing Mia Sumra is a co-founder and the COO of Scroll, a tech company that is pioneering the scalability and storage capabilities of blockchain. Blockchain is still an infant technology as we have not seen industry leaders migrating to blockchain just yet. Mia’s day to day efforts ensures the elegant adoption of this technology, making sure the company is scaling accordingly, and company resources are focusing on the success of blockchain projects. As the company develops, it is important that the Scroll blockchain software suite is compliant with industry standards and there is proper legislation to regulate and promote blockchain quality assurance. To accomplish this, Mia is working to ease the integration of blockchain services in businesses to supply the platform of Connecticut businesses to sustain continual blockchain usage.
Thank you so much for doing this with us! Can you share with us the story of how you decided to pursue this career path? What lessons can others learn from your story?
I have always been interested in the sciences because I believe that all advances (technological or otherwise) originate from curiosity. I believe that the logical representation of the ultimate “how to be innovative?” is achieved by being a skeptic with just as much zeal to develop new solutions in response to recurrent problems. That being said, there is something fascinating about learning how the world works and being observant to how you can contribute by being proactively attentive and building a strong team with varying perspectives. During my time in college, I studied economics with a focus on risk management during data breaches. What resonated with me most, was the challenge of changing the “data breaches are inevitable” notion. During this time, one of my colleagues approached me about starting a company focused on secure decentralized file transfer which gives the everyday user a more secure and easier alternative to the traditional centralized file hosting methods. Leveraging blockchain technology quickly followed suit due to our prioritization of data security, data validity, and data forensic solutions. Turning an interest into a career has led me to this amazing opportunity to pursue blockchain.
Can you tell me about the most interesting projects you are working on now?
Currently, what interests me most is moving away from the fintech space that is so commonplace in the blockchain industry today. The most dangerous situation in the advent of a supply chain data breach is not even being aware of the breach. Our on-chain supply chain solution, Aster, is designed to ensure the integrity of data that is being utilized in machining of products and defect reporting in a supply chain system. Aster’s auditing tool removes the risk of destroyed products, inaccurate reporting, and even endangered personnel by alerting users of unauthorized modifications to utilized data.
None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person who you are grateful towards who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story about that?
There have been many people to whom I am grateful towards for helping me get to where I am today, but among them, one truly does stand out; Dr. Andrea Motto from the EVOLUTIONS program (Evoking Learning and Understanding Through the Investigation of Natural Sciences). The program is dedicated to invigorate participants in pioneering the fields they research, exhibit, and expand upon. During EVOLUTIONS, Dr. Motto was my mentor and she explained the importance of influence in the understanding of the world around you. With this influence, one needs to be able to communicate a complex idea to those with little to no exposure in all aspects and perceptions this idea may embody. Dr. Motto and the EVOLUTIONS program both have sharpened my communication skills necessary to educate those in the new era of data distribution that is blockchain.
What are the 5 things that most excite you about blockchain and crypto? Why?
1. It excites me just how new blockchain technology is and the opportunities we have today to contribute to integrating blockchain technology with existing technologies, such as IoT and data base management systems.
2. Women pioneering and changing the male-dominated tech industry. I already see this, not just in my company, but with our partners and our network as a whole. The number of women that are determined not to be left behind in the blockchain race is growing. For instance, here at Scroll, our Director of Emerging Technologies, Arielle Telesmanic, has influenced the direction of our company and technology to facilitate the migration to this new technology.
3. Being able to create new business models on a global scale as the preface of sustaining revenues from a decentralized distributed network. That includes the need to estimate and prepare for a market influenced by a utility.
4. I am excited to redefine trust and to support the development of blockchain solutions that provide one version of truth, therefore, providing this new source of accountability in both the government and financial sectors.
5. Digital assets such as cryptocurrencies allow for new unaccredited investors to support start-up companies, which also allows anyone to follow a project in its early stages.
What are the 5 things worry you about blockchain and crypto? Why?
1. The legitimacy of the space — Because of the lack of time displaced since Nakamoto’s white paper, there are a lot of naysayers. There are scammers and frauds around crypto and people are extra weary of the space. Due to all of this, it is hard to get people to understand the potential the technology holds.
2. This leads to the issue of mass adoption, especially in a public decentralized blockchain environment. The motive to hold a cryptocurrency needs to be more calculated than the fear of missing out. It is of utmost importance for a consumer based, decentralized network to educate their future users, estimate the market outreach appropriately and to ensure retention and continuous adoption of the technology that the token is backing in the first place. How would a complex ecosystem thrive if your token holders are blindly accumulating the currency that needs to run the network sustained by these ill-prepared or uninterested users? This is why our team is constantly educating both our token holders and business-centric communities.
3. The regulatory environments in the U.S. and across the world are not keeping up with the technology, making mass adoption hard to achieve. The gap between government regulators and blockchain technologists continues to grow, so getting them to understand how blockchain works and how it can help streamline business is going to be tough. Right now, with every country disagreeing on the position of blockchain usage and cryptocurrency, there is a delay in the opportunity to collaborate internationally, thus limiting its innovation.
4. The environmental cost that comes with the computing power to mining and maintaining networks. For example, there was a recent article posted about the impact Bitcoin has and how it will continue to have an effect on climate change (Bendix). There are some studies that say Bitcoin emissions alone could push global warming above 2-degree Celsius. This is why I hope blockchain solutions, without the dependence of miners, holds the majority in the future.
5. There is a shortage of blockchain engineers and programmers — the advancement of the technology is moving quickly, but there are not enough engineers and programmers to meet the demand. There is an unequal distribution of blockchain engineers in the U.S, as most can be found on the west coast.
How have you used your success to bring goodness to the world? Can you share a story?
At this time, I feel I have much more work to do and hope that by being a part of the blockchain space I will be influential to those working in a space without regulation, assist in the direction of regulation, business protocols, and other key business components yet to be ironed out.
As you know there are not that many women in your industry. Can you share 3 things that you would you advise to other women in the blockchain space to thrive? Can you advise what is needed to engage more women into the blockchain industry?
Although, the majority of crypto holders are men, women involved in blockchain technology have grown in the past year. The computing pioneers were women and those studying the computer science field in the 1970s were predominately women as well. We are working together to establish blockchain technology and there is nothing that should deter a woman from being a part of this new digital age of data transfer and finances.
What is your favorite “Life Lesson Quote”? Can you share a story of how that had relevance to your own life?
Meet the Robinsons was my favorite movie growing up. It kept me motivated through tough times and failures. It taught me that a failure is just one step closer to success and every time you fall, you shouldn’t give up. Get right back up and KEEP MOVING FORWARD.
Around here, however, we don’t look backwards for very long. We KEEP MOVING FORWARD, opening up new doors and doing new things, because we’re curious…and “curiosity keeps leading us down new paths” — Walt Disney
At Scroll, we live by this quote. From not placing an entrepreneurship competition when we first founded our company, to securing clients and seed funding. We will continue to move further and further forward.
How can our readers follow you on social media?
Twitter: @OfficialScroll
https://twitter.com/OfficialScroll
@mia_sumra
Facebook: OfficialScroll
https://www.facebook.com/OfficialScroll/
Instagram: @Scroll
https://www.instagram.com/scroll/
LinkedIn: scrollnetwork
https://www.linkedin.com/company/scrollnetwork/
https://www.linkedin.com/in/miasumra/
