That's neither anti-White nor misandry; its not saying there is a problem with either whites or men, but that there is a problem if your careers page and/or exec team bio seem to indicate both that its all white men and also there is no signal of recognition that diversity matter.
Note that the end of the paragraph containing those two sentences is this: When you’re a small team and those are the cards you’re dealt, it’s harder to get around that. But you can always put a statement on this page explaining the fact you want to diversify your team and why. Another trick I’ve seen is having a clearly female silhouette saying “This could be you!”.
i.e., if you want to attract people that aren't white men, you need to show that you want to attract people that aren't white men, rather than showing signals that you are a bunch of white men looking for more white men.
> there is no signal of recognition that diversity matter.
It's a company though, I don't see how diversity is important. The goal is to make money and they should hire the best people that apply, unrelated to the color of their skin.
I work for a company which is very diverse and I like it, I just don't see how it matters as a company goal (assuming that having "only white men" works for them currently).
say there's five companies attracting just men, and there's one company attracting both men and women, all six are competing for the men, but only one gets the best women
I believe having employees who understand the cultural norms, beliefs, psychology and expectations of different ethnic/gender groups will definitely get you much farther with expansion and acceptance as opposed to simply having all of your employees in one gender/ethnic group. It's not an issue to start out with all team members in one category, but eventually hiring a diverse group may very well be in your best interest.
> It's a company though, I don't see how diversity is important.
Sure, lots of people don't. And that's why they do the kind of things that the author talks about that signal "we're all like this here and we're looking for people just like us".
But, when you do that, you should be aware that that is exactly what you are signalling.
That is only what you are signaling to Leftist ideologues who take any departure from Social Justice doctrine as an excuse to construct straw man caricatures.
So you are basically saying that if I see a Ford TV ad featuring a black male with a white woman, I'm justified not to buy a Ford because it signals they just want black males and white women as customers.
that's a weird extrapolation, considering both "white" and "men" are represented in your commercial.
If a company was showing off that their engineers quit within their first week, would you consider that a justification against taking a job there?
There's information provided in promotional material lacking in women: the company isn't good at attracting and keeping women. If you're a woman then, it's reasonable to think that this might not be the right job.
Diversity of ideas, abilities/skills and experience are what matters. Skin color, sex and gender only matter if you acknowledge there are differences in abilities based on those criteria, which would defy the premise of non-discrimination.
Maybe the most qualified people were all white men. Maybe hiring a woman or minority simply for the sake of having a woman or minority is just racist or sexist.
As an old white guy with a beard, let me say that I also like to see diversity in the pictures of the current leadership and staff. I wear Hawaiian shirts -- not flannel, but otherwise I share many of the same red flags as the OP. Unfortunately, I also set off many of the same red flags.
I guess the part about not wanting to work for the demographic that currently dominates the industry...
"If it’s plastered with pictures of white guys in flannel with beards, that’s a red flag. If the exec team is all white men who look like they could be my father that’s another one."
Granted, flannel shirted beardo's set off red flags for me too.
Not to mention that those descriptions don't judge people by their abilities or the content of their character. She's simply demonstrating prejudice, which is okay as long as she accepts others should be embraced for doing the same, like if a company full of men doesn't want to hire a woman, or gays, or lesbians, or trans because of their perception of them for things completely unrelated to their abilities or the content of their character.
The wishlist was a bit arrogant. If it is so difficult to get women to work in tech may be it's not worth the effort for the founders to make it happen. It's already difficult to get people to work together and then you get a list of demands like this, it's just too much to handle for 90% of companies.
You had me at "Help me fight my imposter syndrome".
What about the people that don't want that help? I sure don't. My own psychological issues and state are my business.
Will the author inform their manager specifically about this line item or will she hope they can read her mind (or wave around that blog article before they hire her?)
I am currently co-developing a tech project with a woman. We have extremely disparate communication styles and we struggle at times. But because we both share common values, such as putting the customer's and team's interests over our own, it provides a foundation for mutual respect. We also both agreed to continuous improvement of our technical and communication abilities and now trust each other when providing constructive criticism.
It is absurd that it took decades before I had an opportunity to work this closely with a woman. I am now a better communicator, a better leader, happier, calmer, and a better follower. We need more women in tech.
I am rooting for this author and women in general, but you don't fight dysfunction with dysfunction. It's as if author wishes to replace "bro" culture with "me" culture. And beliefs like, "I don't care about your culture" can outright destroy a company. Perhaps I am taking that last statement it out of context. But I wouldn't hire Alan Turing if he said something like that and meant it literally.
Like it or not, culture is a top-down phenomena. Assuming the culture isn't totally broken, first learn it, then master it, then earn respect, then rise, then change it. There are no short cuts to influence regardless of gender.
I'm afraid you'll have to put up with the discussion of their "amazing culture", and what innovators they are. Even non-Tech companies give speils like that these days.
So, she wants to be at a company that makes her feel welcome, supports her, helps her grow her skills. Why is any of that arrogant, selfish, dysfunctional or unrealistic?
For years now, I've been reading about how people in IT are expecting more than just a salary out of the companies they choose to work for ... why is it arrogant when a woman does it?
maybe if a "man in tech" would post things like "If it’s plastered with pictures of white girly girls in dress with lipstick, that’s a red flag. If the exec team is all white women who look like they could be my mother that’s another one." it would be seen as arrogant?
She seems to think she's speaking on behalf of "women in tech", yet she's only speaking for herself... She's really just hiding behind "her" social group to be very demanding.
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[ 3.6 ms ] story [ 108 ms ] threadNote that the end of the paragraph containing those two sentences is this: When you’re a small team and those are the cards you’re dealt, it’s harder to get around that. But you can always put a statement on this page explaining the fact you want to diversify your team and why. Another trick I’ve seen is having a clearly female silhouette saying “This could be you!”.
i.e., if you want to attract people that aren't white men, you need to show that you want to attract people that aren't white men, rather than showing signals that you are a bunch of white men looking for more white men.
It's a company though, I don't see how diversity is important. The goal is to make money and they should hire the best people that apply, unrelated to the color of their skin.
I work for a company which is very diverse and I like it, I just don't see how it matters as a company goal (assuming that having "only white men" works for them currently).
say there's five companies attracting just men, and there's one company attracting both men and women, all six are competing for the men, but only one gets the best women
The second company might however have a really hard time hiring if it's limiting itself to a small subset of the hiring pool.
Sure, lots of people don't. And that's why they do the kind of things that the author talks about that signal "we're all like this here and we're looking for people just like us".
But, when you do that, you should be aware that that is exactly what you are signalling.
And that's OK, because these people are toxic.
If a company was showing off that their engineers quit within their first week, would you consider that a justification against taking a job there?
There's information provided in promotional material lacking in women: the company isn't good at attracting and keeping women. If you're a woman then, it's reasonable to think that this might not be the right job.
Maybe the most qualified people were all white men. Maybe hiring a woman or minority simply for the sake of having a woman or minority is just racist or sexist.
If she had said, "If your About Page is plastered with brown people in turbans, that's a red flag", would you think differently?
>if you want to attract people that aren't white men
How do I go about attracting "good people" of no specific race/gender?
"If it’s plastered with pictures of white guys in flannel with beards, that’s a red flag. If the exec team is all white men who look like they could be my father that’s another one."
Granted, flannel shirted beardo's set off red flags for me too.
1 white 1 black 1 indian 1 asian 1 hispanic, with a mix of ages and gender.
BTW, why'd you choose use the word "demands" to describe this list? That's not the word I'd use.
What about the people that don't want that help? I sure don't. My own psychological issues and state are my business.
Will the author inform their manager specifically about this line item or will she hope they can read her mind (or wave around that blog article before they hire her?)
It is absurd that it took decades before I had an opportunity to work this closely with a woman. I am now a better communicator, a better leader, happier, calmer, and a better follower. We need more women in tech.
I am rooting for this author and women in general, but you don't fight dysfunction with dysfunction. It's as if author wishes to replace "bro" culture with "me" culture. And beliefs like, "I don't care about your culture" can outright destroy a company. Perhaps I am taking that last statement it out of context. But I wouldn't hire Alan Turing if he said something like that and meant it literally.
Like it or not, culture is a top-down phenomena. Assuming the culture isn't totally broken, first learn it, then master it, then earn respect, then rise, then change it. There are no short cuts to influence regardless of gender.
You just described what seems to be the entire premise of women's rights movements these days.
What does imposter syndrome and hating amazing culture have to do with being a women?
I think they have confused 'me' culture with feminism.
I'm not sure it's wise to use quite so much "I want..." and "I demand.." without making it clear what's being offered in return.
The implied "But I'm a woman so obviously you want me around" probably isn't going to impress many people.
For years now, I've been reading about how people in IT are expecting more than just a salary out of the companies they choose to work for ... why is it arrogant when a woman does it?
So does everyone else on the planet.
>why is it arrogant when a woman does it?
It's not arrogant when "a woman does it". I'm failing to understand what any of it has to do with being a woman.
It's an abuse of HN to use the site primarily for ideological battle.
That was a cringy read.