A blonde in heels will turn heads at any engineering event. Women are rare. But walking the aisles of SOLIDWORKS World, escorted by "user group guy" Richard Doyle, was no ordinary blonde. Here was Lynn Allen, Queen of CAD, entertainer and educator for a whole generation of AutoCAD users. Her Autodesk University classes were standing room only. Her presence on the main stage was cheered. Her columns in CADENCE magazine, then Cadalyst and her personal attention to her fans had made her a celebrity in the CAD world.
Lynn had also become the most recognized face of Autodesk. Carol Bartz, previous CEO, was rumored to have been jealous.
Lynn Allen, formerly of Autodesk, and Richard Doyle, "user group guy" at SOLIDWORKS.
Her latest role as Autodesk evangelist had her travelling all over the world, but her role at Autodesk University, had been reduced over the years. Once the master of ceremonies at CAD’s biggest show, she was left with one class -- though it was the most popular one. Her 60 AutoCAD Tips in 60 Minutes routinely sold out, a crowd of 700 leaving standing room only.
“My last day was Friday," she says. “I’m a free agent now.”
So 24 years at Autodesk comes to an end. Free agency may mean she goes to the highest bidder, perhaps SOLIDWORKS. Or a career in real estate and property management.
Casualties at Autodesk
While Lynn may have been the most prominent, others include Heidi Hewitt, Joseph Wurcher, Jay Tedeschi, Justin Hoey, Bill Glennie and Noah Cole, as noted by Steven Johnson in CAD Nauseum. This was part of Autodesk's biggest layoff ever in the company’s history, a 13% cut (1,150 people) cut before Christmas.