True or False:
Technology is dominated by men, guys, dudes, nerds with funny glasses, who live for online gaming, energy drinks, and relentless bonding with the computer screen.
Yea, it is totally true. It will probably stay that way for a quite some time.
But, its changing. In fits and starts, perhaps, but it is changing. There are many people, granted late comers as the fields have continued to evolve and expand, who fit none of the labels above that play big parts in technology development and execution. They are not adhesively bound to a computer screen. They are into the books, ledgers, and strategy talks as much, or moire than any classic business model of yesteryear. Yesteryear being circa 1990 or earlier.
Business, after all, is ultimately made, grown (or broken) by the presence (or lack) of management skill, marketing and branding decisions, and communication.
Ironically, the increase in female engagement in technology has drawn mores scrutiny among equalists, to determine if there is fair play going on in the hiring patterns of the largest tech companies. This is a sign that activity is growing however it manifests.
What’s interesting is not so much the observance of women involved in technology en masse, but how many there are in powerful positions.
In Google’s Inner Circle, a Falling Number of Women
Susan Wojcicki is the only woman in Larry Page’s circle of advisers.
By Claire Cain Miller
MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. — At Google, data is king. Now the company is using data to figure out if it can anoint a few queens.
The company hopes its famous algorithms can solve one of the most vexing problems facing Silicon Valley: how to recruit and retain more women. Google has generally been considered a place where women have thrived, but it wants to figure out how to compete even more vigorously for the relatively few women working in technology.
Executives had been concerned that too many women dropped out in the interviewing process or were not promoted at the same rate as men, so they created algorithms to pinpoint exactly when the company lost women and to figure out how to keep them. Simple steps like making sure prospective hires meet other women during their interviews and extending maternity leaves seem to be producing results — at least among the rank and file.
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Photo: Asa Mathat/All Things Digital, via Reuters