There's a shortage of women in science, technology, engineering and math. And there's still a 17 percent gender gap in pay—across the board—in all of legal (18 percent at Big Law). But within the legal technology community are many women with thriving careers. This month as part of the Women in Legal Tech series, Monica Bay interviews Kelly Twigger.

Education: Washington University in St. Louis, Bachelor of Arts, A.B. in English, 1993. Marquette University Law School, J.D., Cum Laude, 1997. Admitted in Wisconsin and Colorado.

Current job: I am the principal at ESI Attorneys and CEO of eDiscovery Assistant. ESI Attorneys is a U.S. law firm dedicated to electronic discovery and information law. We act as both discovery counsel for our clients and advise them on issues in the management, retention and production of electronically stored information. Our clients include individuals, law firms, municipalities and Fortune 250 companies.

As part of our practice, we needed to know the rules and e-discovery case law from judges across the country, so we developed eDiscovery Assistant in 2012. Colleagues asked for access, so we rolled it out as a subscription-based web tool in 2017.

Your first paid job? I worked for a company that built clone computers. I cut open boxes of cables after climbing to the top of the warehouse in the summer heat. I quickly moved up to installing chips on motherboards and hard drives into the clones. I learned to configure and test the machines; to identify the various parts of computers; the error messages; and how delicate RAM chips can be. I saw how a small business is run and how thin margins were in the business.

Your “first seat at the table.” As a young female attorney, I had to prove myself every time I walked into a room. The way I dressed, the way I spoke and when I spoke—they all mattered. (I once made the mistake of pointing out the error of a GC's statement in a meeting. She did not appreciate it, and she never let me forget it.) I was lucky to get a seat in significant litigation matters for clients who are household names. I ran the discovery, and I knew every element. I was in meetings with responsible attorneys, general counsel and chief executive officers, for “bet the company” litigation. Those early experiences taught me the 98 percent rule—that a matter is 2 percent about the law and 98 percent about all the other intangibles that come into play.

First obstacle you overcame: At one firm, the attorneys submitted evaluations on each associate. One lawyer wrote that I didn't always think through ideas before I raised them. I went his office and asked him to explain what he meant. He recounted a few times where we discussed a case. I realized that I process ideas by talking out loud—throwing out an idea and then dismissing it once I'd analyzed all the variables. He didn't appreciate my processing technique. We discussed it, he understood the difference, and I learned how to balance my way with his way.

Most flagrant sexism you encountered and how you addressed it? I'll go with the earliest (there are many). As a summer associate at a large law firm, I was attending my first deposition. I had written an outline for a preliminary injunction hearing that the partner used at oral argument to defeat the motion. I knew the case well and was looking forward to the deposition. I walked into the conference room at my firm—I was the first to arrive from our team. As I entered, two men from the opposing side turned to look at me, and one said, “He's the unmarried guy over there,” then pointed across the conference room. I refused to look across the room and acknowledge his dismissal of me. I looked at him, raised my eyebrow, introduced myself and said “I'm counsel for X. I'm here for a deposition, not a date, so if you guys will take your seats, we can get started.” Fortunately, the partner walked in immediately after that, sat down and started asking questions. So my bluff played out.

Secrets to your success: 1) The ability to form relationships. I try to work at those relationships regularly. Thankfully, technology facilitates that these days. 2) I'm direct. People always know where they stand with me. 3) The ability to see the big picture and make decisions quickly.

Five favorite technology tools: 1) Google Apps, especially Google Docs and Sheets. 2) Evernote. Note taking, clipping and saving articles. 3) My iPhone. In a pinch I can run both my businesses and my family from it. 4) Slack, Stride and iMessage. 5) Alexa and Jira.

Book that inspired you: The E-Myth Revisited, by Michael Gerber. I recommend it to all lawyers, because no matter what size firm or practice you are in, it's a mini-business.

Favorite quote: “Lights, lights would be good here,” from Pretty Woman.

Your mantra: Every challenge is an opportunity to create something amazing.