8 Women Stars of the Tech World on How the Pandemic Changed Everything From disruptions in healthcare and finance to new modes of human connection, here is what eight women tech leaders see for the future of technology.

"The pandemic showed us the power of community, and our ability to shift from in-person to digital and social engagement. Digital community accelerates the flywheel of education, facilitates fast information sharing, crowdsources knowledge, and is capable of highlighting and surfacing personal and authentic stories, at scale. Technology leaders can't afford to not think about how to engage their community. This transformation will enable the next generation of great companies to be not only vendors but economic platforms of opportunity." — Linda Lian, Founder, Common Room, a customer journey platform

"Consumer shopping patterns have shifted, and so have expectations of the checkout-and-­payments experience. When I first arrived in the payment processing industry, I was constantly told, "That is how things have always been done.' That was music to my ears. I quickly discovered that merchants were lost in the wilderness of payments complexity. So we focused on building a customer service infrastructure that allows us to deliver personalized, proactive service that simplifies the complex payments environment." — Samantha Ettus, Founder and CEO, Park Place Payments, a payment processor supporting women reentering the workforce

Related: 4 Ways to Attract and Retain Top Female Talent in Tech