Stemming Challenges in STEM
If you work in tech, the next time you walk into the office take a minute to look around and count the number of under-represented engineers that work with you. Is it zero? Do you want to know why? You should — because it could be your fault.
While there are numerous reasons for the lack of female and under-represented minorities working in tech, in this post I want to focus on how we can all be part of the solution by discussing three very common reasons: 1) lack of computer science education in schools; 2) intolerable environments upon workforce entry; and 3) lack of fair and commensurate pay.
Earlier I said abrasively that the lack of diversity in Tech could be your fault; to be fair, it could be mine too. Each of us must take an active and vocal role to affect the change we need. By being complicit or complacent we are part of the problem. By being a “nice guy” but only standing by we are part of the problem. By being a “good manager” but not a sponsor we are part of the problem. Here is the greatest part: with just a margin of your time (“spare change”) you can have a large impact. Imagine what we could accomplish if we all put our “spare change” toward advancing greater diversity and inclusion in the workplace?
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“Change will not come if we wait for some other person or some other time,” said Barack Obama, so let’s talk about how we can get started the next time you walk into the office.
First, we need to continue to address the fact that from an early age computer science (CS) is not available equally to all students. There are many admirable organizations globally that are advancing this critical mission to make sure that every student, in every school, in every country has access to computer science education. Early access to education is critical for young people to have the opportunity to learn that they can love coding, that they can be awesome at writing games and applications, and that this combination of passion and talent can be unified to change the world. What can you do? Encourage your kids, your friends’ kids, any kid to take a chance to learn CS in school. Once they start, share positive and constructive feedback and encouragement. Build their confidence so they keep on learning and stay excited. It is a simple thing to share a few words that support a young child, but the impact is powerful. Another way to have an impact is to support organizations that are furthering the mission toward global CS education, like https://code.org/help or https://girlswhocode.com/volunteer.
Second, women who start in tech, and that percentage is already super low, often do not stay due to mistreatment, disrespect, and harassment. This harming behavior is real. It happens; and if you say you don’t see it then chances are you are either part of the problem or you are not looking hard enough. What can you do? The most important thing you can do is to get your eyes checked; get calibrated. In optometry there are eye charts and optometrists that help us determine how bad our vision is and help us correct it. As it relates to creating the right culture for your teams and organization, there are lots of “charts” online that can help create awareness and calibrate on what “good” and “right” behavior looks like. If you are still not sure, and you happen to work with someone that falls into an under-represented group, ask them how you can be a better advocate. Do not use them as an excuse to not do your own homework and reading on this subject; if were to do that you would be practicing the very bad behavior you were trying to learn about. Next, stand up, take action, and say something if you see someone acting in an ignorant, belligerent, or otherwise inappropriate manner. If you were driving down the road and saw your friend on the wayside in need of help, you would take action. Why is it any different here? Friends protect friends. Here are a couple of other points I recommend keeping in mind: if you’re considering sending a message to someone and based on its contents you wouldn’t send it publicly, just don’t send it; and, if you are wondering why none of your friends seem to be well-calibrated on this topic, change your friends.
Third, women and minorities in tech tend to not be paid fairly. From a recent LeanIn.org report, this past year April 10 was Equal Pay Day; that means that women had to work all of 2017 and until this day in 2018 to catch up with what men earned in 2017 alone. Take a moment and think about that; now think about how long you would stay at your current employer if they offered you that deal. Resignation letter signed, right? Well, that company doing this to your female colleague is likely your company too. What can you do? If you are a manager or you are responsible for the compensation budget within your organization, make sure you are looking at wage allocations with unconscious bias. Would you like a suggestion on how to do that? Look at your team’s compensation sorted from high to low with the employee name hidden; focus on demographics that define performance, experience, or gender and focus on identifying anomalies. If you find some interesting data, fix it. If you don’t think you can, ask for help. Ask your manager; ask your manager to ask their manager. Just keep asking until you fix the problem. Sound like a lot of work? Want to consider another option? You can work for free from January to April of next year like you might be asking your colleague to do if you choose to not be part of the solution. What if you are not a manager; what can you do? You might consider sharing your compensation, if asked, so that your colleagues can understand and discuss pay equity with their manager. Is your colleague working hard, getting a lot done, growing quickly, showing great ownership, delivering results? Tell their manager; then tell their managers manager. Sound like a lot of work? I think you would appreciate if your colleague did the same for you.
There are never enough words to be said on this topic, but I’ll leave you with these final words from Sheryl Sandberg: “What would you do if you weren’t afraid?” Make a difference. Take action in your workplace and social circles to advocate for education change, an inclusive culture, and equity in currency.
