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Who Run The World?
- 1. “Who Run the World?” Ruby Rios
- 2. Who run the world?
- 3. Who run the world? 1. Beyonce, clearly.
- 4. Who run the world? 1. Beyonce, clearly. 2. You!
- 5. Who run the world? 1. Beyonce, clearly. 2. You! And wouldn’t it be be great to live in a world run by both genders?
- 6. Roadmap 1. History of the gender gap in tech. 2. What’s happening to fix this. 3. Why this matters. 4. Is the problem really being solved? 5. What we can all do now.
- 7. Part 1: “If I Were A Boy” The History
- 8. Back in the 1970s "Boys become doctors and girls become nurses."
- 9. Females in medical school, law school, & physical sciences
- 11. What happened in the 1980s? The microcomputer revolution
- 12. What happened in the 1980s? Computers & videogames marketed towards boys
- 13. What happened in the 1980s? Hollywood creates the male computer nerd stereotype
- 14. Where do we stand today? Decades later, the stereotype continues!
- 15. What's happening today? Some women in tech face workplace challenges
- 16. Where do we stand today? Girls lose interest in computing before reaching college. (Credit: GirlsWhoCode.com)
- 17. Takeaways: 1. The 1980s brought shifts in technology and negative stereotypes, kicking off a decline of girls in tech. 2. These stereotypes have persisted, and today, too few girls are considering tech careers today. 3. We could debate how much of this is biological vs. sociological (“nature vs. nurture”), but we still have a need for women in technology (more on this coming up!)
- 18. Part 2: “Ladies, Let’s Get in Formation” What’s happening to fix this issue
- 19. Many people are talking about this I’m not the first one with this idea...
- 20. Some good news LOTS of organizations working on this!
- 22. Yes, progress is being made! Kansas City in particular is doing good things!
- 23. Diversity Fatigue When progress is happening slowly, or when news stories make you feel like we’re taking a step backwards, it can feel exhausting/overwhelming. But that doesn’t mean we should give up!
- 24. A few takeaways: 1. This issue is getting a lot of attention. 2. We are making progress, especially here in KC! 3. This may take a long time, so if you’re in, stay in for the long haul.
- 25. Part 3: “Independent Women” Why this issue matters
- 26. Does this matter? • Women in other industries may have it worse. • Despite challenges, women in tech still get to have relatively lucrative careers.
- 27. Does this matter? • Women in other industries may have it worse. • Despite challenges, women in tech still get to have relatively lucrative careers. • But shouldn't tech be leading other industries?
- 28. (Source: “Everyone's a Bit Biased” at Cerner DevCon)
- 29. credit: Karen Catlin @betterallies • Better problem solving. (MIT/Carnegie Mellon study) • Better decision making. (Cloverpop) • Better financial performance. (Catalyst) • Larger candidate pool. We have a lot of tech jobs to fill, so why not cast the widest possible net? Just a few reasons why this matters
- 30. My story: “You must not know ‘bout me”
- 31. My story: “You must not know ‘bout me”
- 32. “You must not know ‘bout me”
- 33. Takeaways: 1. It can be demonstrated that greater diversity in the STEM workplace leads to more success. 2. Arising opportunities for Girls in Technology are not only helping them to decide on STEM fields, but are also helping them to improve their communities.
- 34. Part 4: “Check On It” Is the problem really being solved?
- 35. So, now what? • "Girls in Tech" orgs focus on bringing girls in to the tech pipeline. Is the "Girls in Tech" problem basically solved?
- 36. So, now what? • "Girls in Tech" orgs focus on bringing girls in to the tech pipeline. • Now we need to focus on supporting girls once they are in those male-dominated environments. Is the "Girls in Tech" problem basically solved?
- 37. So, now what? It's still a challenge to be "the only girl in the classroom" or "the only girl on the team". Is the "Girls in Tech" problem basically solved?
- 38. Why I’m here I’ve been alive during the big “girls in STEM” revolution. I’ve been a part of many STEM programs. And I’m worried that the next generation of girls entering STEM will still have difficulty in the workplace.
- 39. “Brave, not perfect” ● Reshma Saujani, the founder of “Girls Who Code”, says we should teach our girls to be brave, not perfect. ● This will help girls succeed in tech, but it’s not always easy to be brave in this environment. ● And shouldn’t the guys have to learn something new, too? Is the "Girls in Tech" problem basically solved?
- 40. So, now what? • We need more Isaacs. • #BeLikeIke Is the "Girls in Tech" problem basically solved?
- 41. So, now what? • We need more Isaacs. • #BeLikeIke Is the "Girls in Tech" problem basically solved?
- 42. So, now what? • Let's teach our girls in tech to be brave (and not perfect), and Let's teach our boys in tech to be kind. Here's what we need next!
- 43. Takeaways: 1. While ongoing efforts to support girls in technology are helping, we need to continue with our support. 2. The next area in which we really need to support our girls in STEM is in the workplace.
- 44. Part 5: “Run the World” What we can ALL do now
- 45. Networking • Most of us have "Just Like Me" networks, based on common interests, similar upbringings. • Many of us spend time with our networks outside of work or outside of school. We tend to form "Just Like Me" networks
- 46. Networking • Most of us have "Just Like Me" networks, based on common interests, similar upbringings. • Many of us spend time with our networks outside of work or outside of school. • But recognize that this creates a barrier for people who didn't have same upbringing or interests. We tend to form "Just Like Me" networks
- 47. Networking Make small, simple changes • Think about how you can increase the diversity of your network. (Credit: Karen Catlin, @betterallies)
- 48. Networking Make small, simple changes • Think about how you can increase the diversity of your network. • Get to know someone who isn't "Just Like Me". Eat lunch with, connect on social media or LinkedIn. (Credit: Karen Catlin, @betterallies)
- 49. Networking Make small, simple changes • Think about how you can increase the diversity of your network. • Get to know someone who isn't "Just Like Me". Eat lunch with, connect on social media or LinkedIn. • If you're a leader, consider giving "stretch assignments" to people who aren't necessarily like you. (Credit: Karen Catlin, @betterallies)
- 50. How NOT to communicate Meetings, group projects, and group chats • Man-terruptions Male talks over female, doesn't let finish thought.
- 51. How NOT to communicate Meetings, group projects, and group chats • Man-terruptions Male talks over female, doesn't let finish thought. • Bro-propriations Male restates female's thought as if it was his.
- 52. How NOT to communicate Meetings, group projects, and group chats • Man-terruptions Male talks over female, doesn't let finish thought. • Bro-propriations Male restates female's thought as if it was his. • Redirections Male directs question to another male instead of to the female with expertise.
- 53. How NOT to communicate Meetings, group projects, and group chats • Man-terruptions Male talks over female, doesn't let finish thought. • Bro-propriations Male restates female's thought as if it was his. • Redirections Male directs question to another male instead of to the female with expertise. • Sexist jokes • Over time, these can build up, cause females to question staying in tech.
- 54. Try these in meetings and group chats Make small, simple changes • "I like what Chayanne said, and I think..." • "I'd like to hear Emma finish what she was saying before." • "Yes, that was the point Anna made earlier." • "Maya is the expert, let's ask her." • Think of the joke, then choose to not say it. (Credit: Karen Catlin, @betterallies)
- 55. Office Housework • Asking the female to do lower-level tasks that the males aren't asked to do. • Taking notes! • Ordering/bringing food • Scheduling meetings • Organizing celebrations (getting signatures on cards, collecting money, cleaning up afterwards) What do I mean by "housework"?
- 56. Office Housework • If it happens to be her main job function, no problem! • If not, make it a shared responsibility. Take turns, setup a rotation. • Don't let the guys wriggle out of their turn. ("I'd better not take notes, you wouldn't be able to read my writing.") Make small, simple changes (Credit: Karen Catlin, @betterallies)
- 57. Your Superpower • Learning to code and learning about technology is your superpower! • Ability to change the world • Better than a comic-book superpower because it can be shared. Some closing thoughts
- 58. Your Superpower • By acquiring this power, you have a more powerful voice than others. • Own it. • Speak, act, and make decisions on behalf of those who don't have this power. • Be brave, be kind, and be persistent. Some closing thoughts
- 59. TITANIUM SPONSORS Platinum Sponsors Gold Sponsors
- 60. Thank you! Instagram: @ruby_rios_ Twitter: @ruby_rios_ Questions? Comments? Concerns?
Editor's Notes
- Hello! My name is Ruby Rios, and I’m a 2018 graduate of Bishop Miege High School, and a rising freshman Computer Science Major at UMKC. I am here today to ask you a very important question:
- Who run the world? The first answer is very clearly Beyonce.
- She is a queen, after all. But she is followed closely by YOU
- ! The technology industry absolutely runs the world today, and that’s not even a matter of debate. And wouldn’t it be great to live in a world that is run by BOTH genders?
- Unfortunately, that hasn’t been the case in our tech world, so today I’d like to have a conversation about that.
- So let’s talk about this gender gap in STEM and how we fix that. First, let’s look at how this all started and dive into the history of this gender gap. Then, let’s examine what’s currently happening to fix this. After that, we’ll talk about why this issue matters. Let’s follow that up with a deeper look into whether our current solutions are really working. And finally, we’ll go into what we can all do to help resolve this gender gap.
- So we’ll start with the history, but not with the gender gap in technology specifically. Instead, let’s look at the gender gap in a different STEM field.
- If you were born in say, the 1960s, you might have grown up thinking that the idea of a female doctor was crazy. The expectation was that boys become doctors and girls become nurses. And the statistics supported this idea: in 1970, less than 10% of doctors in the U.S. were female. Even worse, plenty of people believed that girls SHOULDN’T become doctors. Negative stereotypes said that women were too emotional, would not be able to handle seeing people in pain, and that men were generally better suited at being doctors.
- But what has happened since then? The number of females graduating from medical school has steadily increased, and these days, about 50% of medical school graduates are female. And I’m betting that most of you here don’t think there’s anything weird or silly about female doctors. It seems pretty clear that we have disproven those negative stereotypes about females in the medical field. So why do I bring this up? The history of the gender gap in computer science, Because when we add computer science to this graph, it’s a completely different story.
- According to the National Center for Women & Information Technology, the number of females studying computer science has mostly declined since about 1984. And in 2017, only 26% of professional computing occupations in the U.S. were held by women. So why did this happen? To figure that out, let’s look at what happened during the 1980s.
- For one thing, this was around the time that microcomputers began replacing giant IBM mainframe computers. That photo on the left shows the first 11 employees at Microsoft. And while yes, two of them are female, one of them was the documentation writer, and the other was the bookkeeper.
- Another thing that happened in the 1980s was the beginning of video gamer culture. These games were marketed heavily towards boys, giving males more confidence with technology.
- And then the movies of the 1980s introduced this new stereotype of the computer nerd: socially inept boys who use to their tech know-how to get whatever they want. Hey, let’s take a quick run-through of these, shall we? Over there on the left is WarGames, a movie in which a boy uses his computer to steal games and change his grades, while the female looks on approvingly. On the right is Weird Science, in which two boys use a computer to create a woman. Listen to how ridiculous this plot description WikiPedia sounds: “After hooking electrodes to a doll and hacking into a government computer system for more power, a power surge creates Lisa, a beautiful and intelligent woman with seemingly endless powers.” REALLY?? And on the bottom is a *personal* favorite, Revenge of the Nerds . This movie is REALLY problematic for a few scenes: when the nerds put a tv camera in a sorority shower, when they sell pies with a sorority girl’s topless photo printed onto each tin, and when one nerd tricks that same girl into sex by disguising as her boyfriend.And while today’s entertainment isn’t usually so explicitly sexist, I’m not sure anything could top that.
- So what’s happening today? Sadly, the old stereotype of the male computer nerd has persisted. “The Big Bang Theory” started out as a show about smart guys who didn’t know how to interact with the hot girl across the hall. “Silicon Valley” focuses on the male programmers, with girls as very minor characters. And “Ready Player One” featured the character of James Halliday, an eccentric computer genius whose biggest fear was kissing a girl. Hollywood still can’t resist this idea that, if you’re good with computers, you must be terrible with girls.
- And just like several decades ago with doctors, there are currently people who believe that men are simply better suited than women to tech work. Last year’s infamous Google memo literally said that. And for the females who ARE currently working in or studying this field, many are having to deal with not being taken seriously, with being overlooked for leadership roles, or even worse, with forms of harassment. Clearly, our industry needs to improve.
- So these stereotypes and these issues have had an effect on females interested in computing, and it’s led to this. Girls in elementary school show a strong interest in studying computing, but nearly all of them lose this interest by the time they reach college. By that point, they've become convinced that this field is not a good fit for them. And many parents today don’t feel comfortable recommending a STEM career to their daughter. According to Harris Interactive for the American Society of Quality, 21% of girls say that their parents encourage them to become an ACTRESS, while only 10% of girls say that their parents have encouraged tem to think about an engineering career.
- So to review the history: (read slides, then). Yes, there are claims that this issue is biological instead of sociological. I’m not going to spend a lot of time arguing that. If you’re interested in reading more, NCWIT just published a fantastic piece about this debate. What I will say is that, regardless of nature vs. nurture, we still have a need for women in tech, and I’ll explain why in a few minutes.
- Let’s next talk about what’s happening to fix this issue.
- First, I’ll mention that I’m nowhere near the only person speaking about this issue. Many people are talking publicly about the need for more women in technology. What you’re looking at are just SOME of the search results for TED talks about women in technology. Two of those are my own TED talks.
- There are also a LOT of organizations working to turn the tide. These include Girls Who Code, which offers summer immersion programs and after school programs for girls interested in coding, the National Center for Women and Information Technology, which offers award to students at both the high school and collegiate level for computing, and Kansas City’s own Girls in Tech KC movement, which offers camps and other opportunities for girls right here in Kansas City.
- Even the Girl Scouts of America is working towards resolving this -- they introduced 23 new STEM related badges last year, covering everything from programming to robotics to cybersecurity.
- And this movement to bring more girls into technology has gained a lot of traction, and there have been some success stories. Girls Who Code annual report, released this month said: "We are on track to achieve gender parity in entry level computer science jobs by 2027". Kansas City in particular deserves a pat on the back, for the 3rd year in a row, Kansas City was rated by personal finance company SmartAsset as the #2 city for women to work in tech.
- I bring this good news up with you, because I know for many of you in here, this isn’t your first time hearing about this issue, and some of you are probably dreading hearing this again. It can be tiring to frequently have uncomfortable conversations with others about the experiences of women in tech. And if you’ve been in the trenches on this issue for a while, stories like the Google memo and the sexual harassment in Silicon Valley can make you feel exhausted. But it’s important for us to keep working to support women in STEM. I know I would not be where I am without the work of individuals like yourself who have supported girls in tech. For those of you who have heard this message before and are getting tired of it, remember that we are making progress. Focus on small, simple goals – redirect your energy towards changing the culture of your own team. Teach a few individuals and encourage them to take small steps. Then, women who work with these people in the future are more likely to feel like they belong. Work on progress from the bottom up, not the top down.
- So to recap, this issue is getting a lot of attention, and people are working to solve it. And our efforts are working! So for those of you who are tired of working to get more girls in tech, fear not. We need to continue our efforts, but 2027 will be coming soon as long as we don’t blow up first.
- So now that we’ve looked at what is happening today to solve the gender gap, I want to get into why it matters that we’re doing the work that we’re doing.
- But first, I want to answer a question I get asked a lot: Does this matter? People have argued with me that women in technology aren’t as bad off as we could be. While our numbers are low, women in tech have relatively lucrative careers. They say that we don’t face as many challenges as women in other industries like the entertainment industry and the military.
- But technology is literally about leading society towards a better future. So why can’t our industry be LEADING all other industries when it comes to diversity in our workplaces? I don’t want to speak to whether women in technology have it better or worse than women in other industries. I don’t feel that I can tell the stories of other women in technology for them, I can only speak to my own very limited experience. And I don’t feel as if I can speak too directly to what issues women in technology have, as every women in technology has different experiences, It’s not my place to try to define a very complicated issue.
- But putting everything else aside, getting girls into technology matters for the bare minimum reason of the importance of diversity. It doesn’t make sense that a key part of the population is missing from work that is changing our future.
- And there are a lot more reasons than this, but here are just a few more concrete reasons that women’s advocate Karen Caitlin gives for why we need more women in technology: Better problem solving. An MIT, Carnegie Mellon, and Union College study found that when more women are a part of a team, it’s more effective at problem solving. Better decision making. Diverse teams make better decisions 60% of the time that lead to better business results, according to a Cloverpop study. Better financial performance. According to a Catalyst study, companies with the most women in senior leadership were financially better off than companies with the least. Larger Candidate Pool. Girls Who Code found that by 2020, there will be 1.4 million jobs available in computing related fields. And while US grads are on track to fill 29% of those jobs, women are only on track to fill 3%. There are a lot of tech jobs to fill, and with a lack of women entering the field, it makes sense to get more girls into technology. But there are a lot more reasons to get girls involved in technology, I told you earlier that I can only speak to my own experience, and I feel that doing so might shed some light on the importance of getting girls into technology.
- I’ve spent my whole life in Kansas City, the farthest I’ve ever moved was literally across the street. And despite what that picture on the left might lead you to believe, as a child, I wasn’t the kid you would expect to go into a STEM career. I liked art, dancing, and singing, stuff that you wouldn’t necessarily relate to a STEM career. I got into this field out of luck, my Dad worked in IT and believed that it was important that I learn those skills. He signed me up for a 1 week girls only app development camp, where I learned how to combine my love of the arts with computing. And I had such a positive experience at that camp that I went on to go to more camps and classes. Despite many times being the only girl in the room, I constantly reminded myself of how fun that initial coding experience was. So later, when the opportunity presented itself, I went back and volunteered at those initial camps that helped me to get my start in tech. And after a summer of helping them, the KC STEM Alliance offered me the opportunity to meet Malala, the Nobel Peace Prize winner. Malala won her Nobel Peace Prize because she stood up for girl’s rights to be educated, and she inspired to do more in my own community. So I started 2 Girls Who Code clubs in the Kansas City area.
- And after that, I continued to have some cool experiences. With the help of Julie Wilson, the Chief People Officer at Cerner, I figured out how to leave school 2 hours early every day and work an internship here at Cerner. I worked with all of those guys in that bottom photo in cybersecurity. And with the help of my friend Erin Smith, I co-founded KC STEMinists, which is a group that helps girls learn not only about technology, but entrepreneurship and global issues.
- And I’ve because of all the STEM work I did in Kansas City, I was able to have some national and international recognition. I was selected as 1 of 20 girls to attend the WiSci Girls STEAM Camp in Malawi Africa, where I spent around 3 weeks studying under organizations like google, nasa, intel, the department of state, the un’s girl up campaign, and the national society of microbiology, among others. I have told my story on the TEDxYouthKC, the TEDxWomenKC, and the TEDxPittsburg state stages. I was a 2018 she plus plus include fellow and National Center for Women and Information Technology Aspirations in Computing National Award Winner. And because of all of this, I was named Kansas City’s youngest ever 30 under 30.
- So to recap, we need to get more women in tech, if not because it’s important to make sure that women feel like equals, then because the diversity we can get from getting women in tech leads to more successes. And when we help create opportunities for girls in tech, there are rewards beyond diversity as well.
- So now that we’ve looked at why it’s important to get girls in technology, let’s look at whether our solutions are really working. Is the problem really being solved?
- To answer very bluntly, I’m going to say no. Organizations for Girls in STEM focus specifically on bringing more girls into the tech pipeline, but not necessarily on retention.
- Now we need to focus on supporting girls once they are in the tech pipeline, and supporting girls once they are in those male-dominated environments.
- We put so much attention in these programs on teaching some basic tech skills, and that's great. But once girls need to advance onwards in STEM, they WILL be in classrooms where they are in the minority, and they will be joining teams where they are the only girl. And we need to prepare them for that experience, because it's still a challenge to be the only girl in the room. Let me share a couple of examples from my own experience, Just this year, my school started a program called STREAM nights, which is a night for Science, Technology, Religion, Engineering, Art, and Mathematics. Don’t ask me why people keep needing to add letters to the STEM acronym, I heard the acronym HAMSTER the other day and I just gave up. But these STREAM nights are to encourage junior high students to take on engineering projects after school in groups. I attended the first meeting as an observer, and I was disappointed to see that EVERY attendee was male – about 20 guys in the room and no girls. However, my hopes returned 15 minutes later, as 2 girls walked in late. So now there's 1 female out of every 11 people in the room. Not terrible in comparison to a lot of STEM classrooms. But during that meeting, they formed 2 groups to brainstorm projects, and the 2 girls were split up. A couple weeks later, the principal of my school approached me. He told me the 2 girls had left the STREAM program. Apparently, one girl felt awkward walking in late, and then later got frustrated by the guys in her group not listening to her ideas, and she just didn’t want to attend anymore. The other girl, not wanting to be the only girl in the room, also left. He asked me to talk to them about my own story as a way of encouragement. See, that left me really disheartened, because it reminded me of my own experiences. I too have walked in late to a coding classroom and felt out of place. When I was in 7th grade, I went through the exact same struggle of not feeling like I was being listened to in a group full of guys. But I was in the 7th grade a little over 5 years ago. You can’t tell me that the problem is going away when 5 years later, girls are still experiencing the same issues in tech that I faced. And it reminded me that just bringing in girls won't fix this.
- And that’s the reason I’m here today. I’m worried that the same thing will happen in our workplaces if we don’t start to change them. We focus so much on getting girls in STEM. But it won’t mean anything if those girls don’t stay in STEM once they enter the workforce. Women working in STEM fields are far more likely to leave their jobs than women working in other professional fields. After about 12 years, 50% of women who originally worked in STEM have left, compared to only 20% of professional women. The majority of moves out of STEM occurred in the first five years. A study from professors at UT Austin and Cornell And I bring this up because this is a fear of my own. Despite having been in male dominated STEM classrooms before, I’m a bit scared to start that again in the fall. And I’m debating whether or not I want a programming job, in part because of the stories I hear from women in the field. If I’m having this fear, I’m sure that I am not the only one.
- There’s a quote that I’m taking with me to my dorm room, one that says “Be brave, not perfect”. This quote from the founder of girls who code is one I try to live by. As both girls and women, we have to continuously focus on being brave, standing up for ourselves, and being willing to make mistakes, and not perfect. But it’s still not easy to be brave in the male dominated environment all the time. Therefore, I’m proposing an addition to this quote, one that focuses on the opposite gender.
- To explain this, let me introduce you to my Girls Who Code club from a couple years ago. The club got smaller as the year went on, but we had a base of members who showed up every week. Now, you might have noticed something about that photo -- in our Girls Who Code club, we had a dude named Isaac. See, our club was promoted to girls but not limited to girls. And Isaac was the perfect example of a male ally. I think Isaac is going to solve our girls in tech problem. Not him exactly per se, but he will be part of the solution. Girls supporting each other, yes, but boys also supporting girls. Isaac learned how to do that. In those club meetings, we talked about the problems girls might face in tech, and Isaac was there to listen.
- So that was last year. And this year, we have even more guys in our club, but nothing has changed. The guys don't get any more of a say in projects than girls do. Everyone respects each other, and we don't interrupt each other. So, to really solve this girls in tech issue, I think we need a couple of things:
- We need people who are cognizant of the stereotypes and the problems in tech and stand up against them. We need people who are willing to make small, simple changes to their behavior, whether it's in your computer science classroom or your tech meeting room. We need to teach our girls in tech to be brave (not perfect), AND we need to teach our boys to be kind.
- So to recap, while our ongoing efforts to support girls in STEM are helping and we need to continue with our support in this area, we also need to put attention into changing our workplaces to make them a more friendly environment for future women.
- So now that we’ve really addressed all aspects of the gender gap issue, let’s look at how we can help girls to run the world. What can we all do now to support girls in tech? As I said before, it’s all about small, simple things. Making little changes in our behaviors to support our women in the workforce from the bottom up.
- Let's begin by talking about networking, or us students call it: “socializing” . Most people tend to form what we'll call "Just Like Me" networks. We form relationships based on having common interests, common hobbies, or similar upbringings. And many of us spend time with our networks outside of work or outside of school. I'm not placing blame here, this tends to happen pretty naturally.
- But, we need to recognize that this behavior creates a barrier for people who aren't "just like me". People who didn't have similar upbringings, or similar interests and hobbies. And if we're not careful, it can limit who gets chosen as our new leaders.
- But there are a few small, simple changes we can do about this. First, think about how you can increase the diversity of your network.
- Get to know people who aren't "just like me". It takes a little more effort, but it's not that difficult. Introduce yourself, make conversations and get to know them. Have lunch with them, connect with them on social media and LinkedIn.
- And if you happen to be in a leadership role, think about who you give the "stretch assignments" to, since it's those stretch assignments that often lead to career advancement.
- Ok, now let's talk about meeting rooms. In the workplace, we have a LOT of meetings. In the classroom, not so much, but we do have group projects and group chats. Let's talk about how to communicate in these spaces, and especially how we should NOT communicate. There's a term that gets used occasionally called "man-terruptions". It's when, in a group discussion, a male talks over a female and doesn't let her finish her thought. And this photo is probably the most famous man-terruption, when Kanye West interrupted Taylor Swift while she was accepting an award, because he believed he knew better than she did about who deserved an award.
- Another problem that happens occasionally is "bro-propriations". This is when a male restates a female's idea as if it were his idea.
- Next is "redirections". This is when, in a meeting, a male directs his question to another male, even when it's clear that the female in the room is the one with expertise.
- And lastly, there are sexist jokes and sexist comments. They might be funny, and you might think that the female in the room can take the joke. But it's unnecessary, and it hurts the work environment if people think this behavior is ok. Over time all these things can build up, and they really do cause females ot question whether to stay in tech.
- So what can we do about these? Again, we're talking about small, simple changes. Try some of these in your next meeting... (read examples) Or even better, if you hear someone making sexist comments or jokes in the workplace, call them out. Pull the person aside and say “we don’t do that here”. There’s a great quote from General David Morrison of the Australian Army: “The standard that you walk past is the standard that you accept”. So don’t walk past it.
- Next, let's talk about "office housework". What do I mean by this? …. (Review bullets) Many times, the guys will assume that the female in the group doesn't mind doing these things, but that doesn't make it fair. In fact, when you regularly make the female take the notes or organize celebrations, it sends a message to the team that she's not an equal member.
- Now if taking the notes or scheduling the meetings happens to be the female's main job function, it's no problem. However, if it's not, then make this a shared responsibility. Take turns, setup a rotation. And don't let the guys wriggle out of their turns. "I don't have good handwriting" is not an excuse to get out of it. Call it a "stretch assignment" for them.
- So to conclude, I want you to think about something. I’m a little bit of a geek, so I’m a big fan of super heros. But when we look at the powers of superheros, with the use of technology, we are pretty close to achieving a lot of the superhuman feats our favorite comic book heros have. Flying? We can do that. Super strength? Check. Mind reading. Pretty gosh darn close. You might not think that you are a superhero everyday when you get into work. I sure don’t when I go to my internship. But the knowledge we have is a superpower. We can control technology, and with that power, we have the 100% no joke ability to change the world. And we’re maybe better than the superheroes, because we can share our power. We can teach others to be superheros as well. We can pass down our knowledge of technology and the technology we use. And while we might not have an equal number of male and female superheros on screen, we can in real life.
- And as superheros, we need to use our power, and our voice responsibly. You probably have heard the quote before “With great power comes great responsibility.” We need to help the people in need, and speak, act, and make decisions on behalf of those who don’t have this power. Be brave, be kind, and be persistent. In the 1970’s, they never believed that a girl could be a doctor. Now we wouldn’t doubt it and don’t think twice about it. Today, we need to make sure that no girl doubts again that they can be a computer scientist. And I’d love to see the day where we don’t think twice about that either.
- Thank you so much for choosing to spend part of your day here. I hope you found it worthwhile. I’d be glad to take your questions or comments. Go out and run the world!