Moving the Needle on Gender Diversity in Tech. Sasha Robinson

Gender diverse teams perform

15% better

Shifting from an all-male or

all-female office to one split evenly

along gender lines could increase

revenue by roughly 41%

Womanoperated, venture backed high tech companies average 12% higher in annual revenue.

And...it’s the right

thing to do.

Companies with more women in Sr. management delivered 35% higher on

ROE.

Without a structured diversity initiative, our first impressions and unconscious biases may perpetuate homogeneity.

THE FISCAL CASE FOR GENDER DIVERSITY.

The Challenge of Recruiting & Retaining Women in Tech

Implicit Bias & Sexism Myth of “Culture Fit”

High Attrition Rates

Implicit Bias & Sexism Implicit Bias refers to the attitudes or stereotypes that affect our understanding, actions, and decisions in an unconscious manner

Gendered Credibility: MIT found that investors preferred entrepreneurial ventures pitched by a man than an identical pitch from a woman by a rate of 68% to 32%Sexism in Hiring: A Stanford University study found that despite equal technical qualifications, men are hired over women a significant amount of the time

Implicit Bias: This same Stanford study found that 75% of white and Asian folks surveyed held implicit bias in favor of whites over blacks

Maternal Wall: Once women have children, they’re 79% less likely to be hired, half as likely to be promoted, and offered $11,000 less than their non-mother peers

The Myth of Culture Fit What is Culture Fit? “It is the bro/homegirl quality, the affability

borne out of similar backgrounds and similar experiences.” – The Billfold, Medium

“We seek spaces that provide the maximum amount of conviviality, from the right kind of city, to the right kind of neighborhood, to the right kind of friends and romantic

partners. But when this ethos is transferred into the workplace, it leads not just to a comfortable environment, but to an exclusionary one and a moribund one.” – The

Billfold, Medium

Justification

Seemingly minute actions—asking about surface level personal preferences, cultural, or social biases and failing to find common ground—use coded language to justify undue discrimination based on the idea of “culture fit”

Culture Fit vs Value Fit

A “culture fit” centers around surface level similarities, while “values fit” focuses on traits like honesty, initiative, kindness, determined etc

Retaining Female TalentStereotype ThreatMicro AggressionsBurn Out

Stereotype ThreatWhen a characteristic (race, gender, sexuality) is emphasized before a task, the outcome may be negatively affected by the fear of conforming to stereotypes about ones “group.”

Research on Stereotype Threat

Self Deprecating Action Affects Everyone Social Classifications

Women may self select out out of

STEM fields in fear of conforming to

stereotypes of women failing in math and

science.

White men may internalize the stereotype

that “white men can’t jump” within the context of a predominantly Black

NBA & perform worse than if they had jumped

without being reminded of the widely held

stereotype.

As the salience of one's social categorization increases, the more

likely they are to underperform in fear of negatively confirming

stereotypes about their social group or classification.

Microaggressions Otherwise known as aversive racism, occurs when “well-intentioned Whites (or members of dominant group) consciously believe in and profess equality, but unconsciously act in a racist manner.”

– Psychology Today

White woman clutching her purse unconsciously as she walks past a Black man on the street. Telling a non-white American that they “speak good English” suggesting they do not belong here. Women asserting dominance or leadership in the workplace results in a negative perception while this is typically not the case for men. Mistaking your female doctor for a nurse or a female CEO for the secretary because of widely perpetuated gender roles or norms.

Examples of Microaggressions

Retention & Attrition 41% of women leave the tech industry after ten years, relative to only 17% of men

Why Women Burn Out… Extra Tasks: Women are more often asked to do logistical work (plan parties, take notes, clean office, fetch coffee) and thus are more likely to feel emotionally exhausted.

Negative Perception: Women are expected to mentor young employees and take on extra projects. And if they refuse, they are rated 12% less favorably than than their male counterparts.

The Second Shift: Women are still expected to the bulk of childcare and housework, although this is changing, slowly but surely. The Bro/Techie Complex: Tech culture advertises free snacks, ping pong, & volleyball courts at work, alienating some focused on balancing both work and family who may prioritize paid maternity leave and flexible hours over other perks.

Silicon Valley’s “tech bros” culture highlights the cultural barrier to entry for women.

Female participation in Computer Science has declined to 18% from a

37% peak in the mid- 1980s

Recruiting & Retaining Female TalentSexism & The Pipeline Problem

It is NOT Just a Pipeline Problem It’s the culture.

Equal Interest in CS/STEM across Gender

50%Yet 2x as many men as women work in STEM

2:1

There are equal numbers of boys and girls participating in high school STEM electives and Stanford and Berkeley report gender parity in introductory computer science classes.

- Forbes, Bonnie Marcus

Women are leaving tech in droves. Why? Age, sex, sexuality, and pregnancy discrimination. Inflexible work arrangements, gender wage gap, unsupportive work environment.

- Forbes, Bonnie Marcus

Women make 78 cents (White), 64 cents (Black), 54 cents (Hispanic) on the White, male dollar

At a closer look, the disparity in female leadership (higher paying roles) highly contributes to the gender pay gap

In salary negations, women ask for $7,000 less than men. When women do ask for a pay raise they’re seen as bossy and mean, while the same behavior rarely reflects poorly on men

THE CHALLENGE OF RECRUITING

& RETAINING WOMEN IN TECH

Actionable Steps

Standardize the interview process

Eliminate “salary negotiable” from job postingsIncorporate paid maternity & paternity leave

Base raises and promotions on performance rather than charisma

Reduce the number of hires from internal referral programs

Prioritize hiring diverse talent

References & Additional Reading● http://htl.li/YmVhf● https://thebillfold.com/diversity-hiring-and-the-concept-of-fit-4ef9949da430#.kh74maxke● http://www.businessinsider.com/subtle-sexism-women-face-in-the-workplace-2015-4 ● https://medium.com/tech-diversity-files/if-you-think-women-in-tech-is-just-a-pipeline-problem-you-haven-t-

been-paying-attention-cb7a2073b996#.997px09nj

● http://www.techrepublic.com/article/the-state-of-women-in-technology-15-data-points-you-should-know/● http://www.rbc.com/diversity/why-does-diversity-matter.html● https://hbr.org/2014/10/hacking-techs-diversity-problem● https://modelviewculture.com/pieces/an-open-letter-on-feminism-in-tech● http://www.foxbusiness.com/features/2014/06/23/marissa-mayer-overslept-for-big-meeting.html● http://www.people.hbs.edu/acuddy/2002,%20fiske,%20cuddy,%20glick,%20&%20xu,%20JPSP.pdf● http://www.ncwit.org/sites/default/files/legacy/pdf/NCWIT_TheFacts_rev2010.pdf● http://www.nber.org/papers/w18511● http://gas.sagepub.com/content/24/5/616.abstract● http://www.nytimes.com/2012/08/23/technology/in-googles-inner-circle-a-falling-number-of-women.html?p

agewanted=all&_r=2&&gwh=D8613D82AC38E9433AFC6286062A1925&gwt=pay● http://www.forbes.com/sites/bonniemarcus/2015/08/12/the-lack-of-diversity-in-tech-is-a-cultural-issue/#49

72998d3577● https://hbr.org/2016/07/why-diversity-programs-fail

References & Additional Reading ● https://hbr.org/2016/04/if-theres-only-one-woman-in-your-candidate-pool-theres-statistically-no-chance-she

ll-be-hired

● http://www.economist.com/blogs/freeexchange/2015/11/women-workplace● http://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2015/09/readers-defend-the-rise-of-the-microaggressions-fram

ework/405772/

● http://www.npr.org/sections/alltechconsidered/2015/07/26/426364306/more-than-a-pipeline-problem-in-search-of-diversity-in-silicon-valley

● http://www.reducingstereotypethreat.org/definition.html● http://www.theatlantic.com/past/issues/99aug/9908stereotype.htm● http://www.forbes.com/sites/jeannemeister/2015/10/08/women-in-the-workplace-three-questions-to-ask-yo

ur-leaders/#79f69b1168ff

● http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/casual-sexism-workplace_us_55e47b11e4b0c818f61882d3 ● https://business.linkedin.com/talent-solutions/blog/diversity/2016/5-bold-steps-facebook-is-taking-to-beco

me-more-diverse