Diverse workplaces generate creative friction to deliver exemplary products, foster an environment of inclusivity, and principally, prevent the workplace from remaining a boys club that acts to silence the voices of “out groups” through unconscious bias, stereotype threat, gendered and racialized discrimination, and general isolation via the myth of “culture fit.”

1. Moving the Needle on
Gender Diversity in Tech.
Sasha Robinson

2. 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%
Woman
operated,
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.

3. The Challenge of Recruiting
& Retaining Women in Tech
Implicit Bias & Sexism
Myth of “Culture Fit”
High Attrition Rates

4. 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

5. 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

6. Retaining Female Talent
Stereotype Threat
Micro Aggressions
Burn Out

7. Stereotype Threat
When 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.”

8. 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.

9. 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

10. 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

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

12. 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.

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

14. Female participation in Computer
Science has declined to 18% from a
37% peak in the mid- 1980s

15. Recruiting & Retaining Female Talent
Sexism & 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

16. 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

17. Actionable Steps
Standardize the interview process
Eliminate “salary negotiable” from job postings
Incorporate 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

18. 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?pagewanted=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/#4972998d3577
● https://hbr.org/2016/07/why-diversity-programs-fail

19. References & Additional Reading
● https://hbr.org/2016/04/if-theres-only-one-woman-in-your-candidate-pool-theres-statistically-no-chance-shell-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-
framework/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-your-
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-become-
more-diverse