Viewing Female Representation in Tech as a Journey, Not a Destination

This is a complex problem and accordingly there are no simple answers The Female Quotient hosted a series of virtual panels grappling with this and related issues the week of March 9 just before the nowcanceled SXSW was supposed to beginThough these stats continue to be damning the panelists on FQ39s quotBuilding a Movement to Recruit Female Technologistsquot had some empowering words to shareThe wakeup call for Pam Jeffords partner workforce of the future diversity and inclusion at PwC actually came 12 years ago The first batch of modern stats regarding women in tech had come out and after more than a decade of leading groups and events for women in her workplaces Jeffords realized that what she was doing just wasn39t enoughquotCan I call myself a leader if no one39s following mequot she asked herself So she got out of sales and into research to understand what actually drives progress and then guide others in what actions to takeBroadening the concept of quotwomen in techquot is a counterintuitive but crucial step to achieving real inclusiveness said Asha Varghese president of Caterpillar Foundation The foundation is the philanthropic arm of Caterpillar which most of us know from its yellow construction equipment This gives Varghese a groundfloor view of how tech is changing manual laborEven as supply chain and infrastructure jobs shift from manual labor to tech though Varghese has noticed not just a dearth of women in those roles but also a lack of interestquotHow do you build an educated workforce that can handle the work of the futurequot Varghese asked quotIf you39re at the table how can you pull up a chair for someone else and do that at scalequotOne way to do this is to quotupskillquot the female employees already at these companies said Ali Levitan head of global strategic business development and innovation at General Assembly Doing so gives them skill sets that match the new jobs that need filling thanks to technological advances This opportunity comes with a significant challenge timequotEveryone wants more diversity within tech but it39s really hard for organizations to take people out of their workforce to reskill themquot Levitan added So she cocreated Code for Good an initiative that takes nontech workers at companies such as Union Pacific Railroad and turns them into software engineers with a threemonth boot campThere are certain skills that leaders in tech also need and in some cases do not possess These are often called quotsoft skillsquot but Jeffords objects to that terminology because it makes them sound inferior to quothard skillsquot He views soft skills as quotcorequot skills fundamental to any job versus quotjobspecificquot hard skills eg certifications or programming knowledgeSoft skills include knowing how to speak with people at all levels of an organization and run a meeting in which everyone feels empowered to contribute Jeffords has clients who will cancel calls if they haven39t received an agenda 48 hours beforehand to help ensure that they39re prepared to bring their full selves and voices into a meetingIt39s possible to train individuals in these core skills but Jeffords is seeing a pivot to simply promoting individuals who already have them amp8212 especially those who have an inclusive mindsetCultivating an entire generation of talent with this mindset however has to start with the broader culture according to Joanna Popper global head of virtual reality and locationbased entertainment at HPquotIn media the stories that are told impressions people have and how they understand the world amp8212 it39s important to tell those stories and bring media and tech together to create an environment where everyone can be who they arequot Popper said quotMedia has such a deep lasting effect on how we selfidentify how we see our place of belonging in the worldquotThe stakes are high But looking at the lack of adequate representation in tech as a single problem to be solved misses the point Varghese noted quotUnderstand this is not a oneanddone thingquot she said quotbut a journeyquotDon39t stop now Stay in the know on women39s advancement and equality in advertising media and marketing with more from Women AdvancingClick the social buttons to share this story with colleagues and friendsThe opinions expressed here are the author39s views and do not necessarily represent the views of MediaVillagecomMyersBizNet

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Viewing Female Representation in Tech as a Journey, Not a Destination

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Oriana Schwindt

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