Author: Paula Diaz

ITJ’s Bootcamp: Empowering the Next Generation of Young Software Engineers

Posted on | by Paula Diaz | 1 Comment on ITJ’s Bootcamp: Empowering the Next Generation of Young Software Engineers

As a spearhead for software engineering and nearshoring in Mexico, ITJ firmly holds the mission to offer mentorship and career development to a new generation of software engineers. The company recently held its first quarterly iOS Mobile Developer Bootcamp in Tijuana. The 2021 event hosted professionals and students in their last semester in Computers and Software Engineering, Software Development, and other engineering majors that are seeking to jumpstart their career as mobile developers.

Over one hundred young IT professionals and students from different states of Mexico and Latin America registered to attend this immersive, two-weekend hybrid program both online and on-site at the BIT Center in Tijuana.

The Bootcamp is highly attractive for young software engineers because it allows attendees to learn from industry experts at ITJ. The program covers the basic skills needed to become an iOS native mobile developer. After the completion of the Bootcamp, attendees are equipped and prepared with everything they need to create applications for mobile environments running the Apple operating system – iOS. 

While explaining the purpose of the Bootcamp, Maritza Diaz, CEO of ITJ, states that “Mexico is booming with young engineering talent. At ITJ, we want to empower the next generation of software engineers with the right tools, technology, and resources to become world-class at their craft. In these young tech mentees, we have seen the potential and talent that, with the appropriate mentoring, creates software engineers suited to solve some of the most challenging problems of the future. Through the Bootcamp, we want to push this new generation forward and help it reach its full potential.”

The first quarterly Bootcamp consisted of two full-day weekend events ranging from July 24-25th to August 1st. Each day is divided into 30% of the time for technical knowledge and 70% for hands-on building experience in labs developing a real native mobile app. Each day is 7 hours long with one-hour lunch time and 15 min breaks every two hours to recharge.

During the event, ITJ staff offered job interviews to qualified attendees as part of its commitment to provide this young talent pool with the opportunity to boost their careers.  

The event was hosted by ITJ and sponsored by the BIT Center, Tijuana EDC, and Mexico’s National Chamber of Electronics, Telecommunications, and Information Technologies Industry (CANIETI).

To get access to ITJ’s other learning opportunities, visit www.itj.com. You can also follow ITJ on LinkedIn to learn about educational opportunities as they are announced.

EY Announces Maritza Diaz of ITJ as an Entrepreneur Of The Year® 2021 Pacific Southwest – San Diego Award Finalist

Posted on | by Paula Diaz | 1 Comment on EY Announces Maritza Diaz of ITJ as an Entrepreneur Of The Year® 2021 Pacific Southwest – San Diego Award Finalist

Celebrating the 35th class of unstoppable entrepreneurs who transform the Pacific Southwest and beyond

San Diego, July 13 – Ernst & Young LLP (EY US) today announced that Chief Executive Officer Maritza Diaz of ITJ was named an Entrepreneur Of The Year® 2021 Pacific Southwest – San Diego Award finalist. Now in its 35th year, the Entrepreneur Of The Year program honors unstoppable business leaders whose ambition, ingenuity and courage in the face of adversity help catapult us from the now to next and beyond.

Maritza was selected by a panel of independent judges. Award winners will be announced during a special virtual celebration on August 5, 2021 and will become lifetime members of an esteemed community of Entrepreneur Of The Year alumni from around the world.

Entrepreneur Of The Year is one of the preeminent competitive award programs for entrepreneurs and leaders of high-growth companies. The nominees are evaluated based on six criteria: entrepreneurial leadership; talent management; degree of difficulty; financial performance; societal impact and building a values-based company; and originality, innovation and future plans. Since its launch, the program has expanded to recognize business leaders in more than 145 cities in over 60 countries around the world. 

Founded in 2019, ITJ’s mission is to help its clients create “technology centers of excellence” in Tijuana. “I started ITJ with a simple mission,” said Diaz, founder and chief executive officer. “We want to enable companies to create their Software Centers of Excellence in Tijuana, leveraging Baja California’s wealth of world-class engineering talent.”

Regional award winners are eligible for consideration for the Entrepreneur Of The Year National Awards, to be announced in November at the Strategic Growth Forum®, one of the nation’s most prestigious gatherings of high-growth, market-leading companies. The Entrepreneur Of The Year National Overall Award winner will then move on to compete for the EY World Entrepreneur Of The Year™ Award in June 2022. 

Sponsors

Founded and produced by Ernst & Young LLP, the Entrepreneur Of The Year Awards are nationally sponsored by SAP America.

In the Pacific Southwest- San Diego Region sponsors also include Marsh & McLennan Agency, LLC (Premium Sponsor), Cooley (Supporting Sponsor) and PNC Bank, N.A (Supporting Sponsor).

About Entrepreneur Of The Year® 

Entrepreneur Of The Year® is the world’s most prestigious business awards program for unstoppable entrepreneurs. These visionary leaders deliver innovation, growth and prosperity that transform our world. The program engages entrepreneurs with insights and experiences that foster growth. It connects them with their peers to strengthen entrepreneurship around the world. Entrepreneur Of The Year is the first and only truly global awards program of its kind. It celebrates entrepreneurs through regional and national awards programs in more than 145 cities in over 60 countries. National Overall winners go on to compete for the EY World Entrepreneur Of The Year™ title. ey.com/us/eoy

About EY Private 

As Advisors to the ambitious™, EY Private professionals possess the experience and passion to support private businesses and their owners in unlocking the full potential of their ambitions. EY Private teams offer distinct insights born from the long EY history of working with business owners and entrepreneurs. These teams support the full spectrum of private enterprises including private capital managers and investors and the portfolio businesses they fund, business owners, family businesses, family offices and entrepreneurs. Visit ey.com/us/private

About EY

EY exists to build a better working world, helping create long-term value for clients, people and society and build trust in the capital markets.

Enabled by data and technology, diverse EY teams in over 150 countries provide trust through assurance and help clients grow, transform and operate.

Working across assurance, consulting, law, strategy, tax and transactions, EY teams ask better questions to find new answers for the complex issues facing our world today.

EY refers to the global organization, and may refer to one or more, of the member firms of Ernst & Young Global Limited, each of which is a separate legal entity. Ernst & Young Global Limited, a UK company limited by guarantee, does not provide services to clients. Information about how EY collects and uses personal data and a description of the rights individuals have under data protection legislation are available via ey.com/privacy. EY member firms do not practice law where prohibited by local laws. For more information about our organization, please visit ey.com.

Join us for the virtual award celebration

On Thursday, August 5 at 5:00 p.m. PT, EY will recognize the 2021 finalists and announce the Pacific Southwest – San Diego award winners. Register here: https://lnkd.in/gthEXQu

SDBJ CEO of the Year 2021

Maritza Diaz Named 2021 CEO of the Year Rising Star by the San Diego Business Journal

Posted on | by Paula Diaz | 5 Comments on Maritza Diaz Named 2021 CEO of the Year Rising Star by the San Diego Business Journal

San Diego, June 24, 2021 – ITJ, a tech services company based in San Diego that enables customers to create technology centers of excellence in Tijuana is pleased to announce that Maritza Diaz, Chief Executive Officer of ITJ, has been recognized as the San Diego Business Journal 2021 CEO of the Year awards winner in the category of Rising Star. This award recognizes local industry leaders’ great achievements within their companies and in the community. The winners and finalists are lauded for demonstrating determination and insight yielding huge successes for their organizations.

This year only, Maritza Diaz was also honored by the San Diego Business Journal as Women of Influence in Technology, setting an exciting year of success and growth for her company. This award represents a major stepping stone on her goal of leveraging the strength of the CaliBaja region to build a thriving innovation economy that leads the digital transformation for companies in California.

“My team represents the amazing digital talent that is available in our region. Engineers that are helping our customers solve very difficult problems of the future. Problems that are very impactful and rewarding at the same time. My team, this award is for you.”

About Maritza Diaz 

Maritza Diaz is a talented and seasoned technology executive with over 25 years of experience in IT and Software Engineering. She is a member of the Forbes Technology Council and is a member of the board of directors of the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco where she represents San Diego. Prior to becoming the Chief Executive Officer of ITJ, Maritza served as Sr. Director at Thermo Fisher Scientific where she was responsible for growing the company’s digital capabilities in North America, India, and Mexico. In this role, she successfully managed the digital and agile transformation of an organization composed of 800 software professionals; today this organization is considered one of the finest software organizations in the industry.

About the Award

The San Diego Business Journal’s 2021 CEO of the Year Awards recognizes local industry leaders’ great achievements within their companies and in the community. The winners and finalists are lauded for demonstrating determination and insight yielding huge successes for their organizations. These executives have taken the lead in driving their businesses and the local economy.