The current state of technology leaves a lot of people out - of innovation, education, the workforce, wealth and opportunity. This interactive workshop explores the current state for women and underrepresented minorities in tech, then delves into what each of us can do about it.
This workshop was given at Tech.co's Celebrate Tech Conference, and adapted from a talk I initially gave at AlterConf.
12. 11% of the US population is Black
16% of the US population is Latino
1% VC-backed founders are Black
1% VC-backed founders are Latino
The Current State | Underrepresented Minorities
27. Where are you in The Tech Ecosystem?
We lose people all along this path.
28. Biases. | We ALL have them. What do we do with them?
Go beyond your intuition
Exercise your empathy muscle
Create processes to counter them
Use data to check yourself & aim higher
Overcome your biases toward yourself
30. 1. Go beyond your intuition
❍ Intuition > Wait a beat to reflect > React
❍ Embrace and confront your discomfort
❍ Broaden your network circle
❍ Celebrate and reward unique viewpoints
32. 2. Exercise your empathy muscle
▶ Recognize when people feel like an outsider
▶ Invite others to speak and lead
▶ Mentor & sponsor
▶ Find the commonalities
(we’re 99.99999999…% the same!!)
34. 3. Create processes to counter biases
ü Do I typically hire the same type of person?
ü When I say a candidate is not the right fit, what do I mean?
ü What does my slate of candidates look like? Do I speak up if
it is not sufficiently diverse?
ü Who do I like to assign to work to—and lead—project teams?
Do I have the same go-to people all or most of the time?
ü Who do I take to important client or cross-team meetings?
ü Who do I encourage to lead or speak out at meetings? Am I
creating opportunities for those less extroverted to
demonstrate their capabilities?
ü How do I identify candidates for promotion and succession?
35. 4. Use data to check yourself and to aim higher
37. 5. Overcome your biases about yourself
✶ Imposter Syndrome
✶ Anxiety
✶ Get over what everyone said throughout your life
and be the person you want to be
38. Where are you in The Tech Ecosystem?
We lose people all along this path.
39. Whether an ally or an underrepresented entrepreneur,
You can make a difference.