-
Silicon Valley’s false feminist idol finally makes a peep
After an era of cowed silence, noted fair-weather feminist and Facebook demigod Sheryl Sandberg finally spoke up! Sandberg had not objected to the Trump administration — clearly an affront to her values, the values that have sold more than two million copies of Lean In — but late this week she posted on her platform of choice to decry Trump’s day one expanded global gag rule. Read More
-
Backstage Capital is raising a second fund to invest in as many women of color as possible
When Backstage Capital Founder and Managing Partner Arlan Hamilton first stumbled upon Silicon Valley — as an area and a state of mind — she realized she had found her people. But after spending some time there and sussing it out, she realized something that ultimately changed her path. “I noticed it was the land of opportunity, but not for everyone,” Hamilton told me. Read More
-
Crunch Network
What you need to know about the tech pay gap and job posts
We know there are more men than women in tech careers, and we know there’s a wage gap. But as professionals age, the gender gap decreases. The problem starts when professionals enter the field, and that means factors as early in the process as job posts can influence this trend. That’s right — job posts can launch and perpetuate the wage gap in tech. Here’s how. Read More
-
Twitter doesn’t have quite as many white employees as it did last year
But there are still a lot. Twitter just released its first diversity report since hiring Jeffrey Siminoff, the former director of worldwide inclusion and diversity at Apple, in December 2015. Overall, Twitter is 57% white, 32% Asian, 3% black, 4% Hispanic/Latinx, 3% multi-racial, less than one percent American Indian and Native Hawaiian in the U.S. and 37% female worldwide, up from 34% in… Read More
-
Tech employees protest in front of Palantir HQ over fears it will build Trump’s Muslim registry
Silicon Valley is no stranger to protests against tech companies. But it’s unusual when the tech workers themselves protest tech. Such was the case this morning in front of Palantir headquarters in Palo Alto where 50 people in the tech community came out in the pouring rain to demand the data mining startup take a firm stand against the makings of a Muslim registry. The organizers… Read More
-
How tech companies are honoring Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
Happy Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Day! In celebration of Dr. King’s birthday and his major contributions to the civil rights movement, Twitter, Asana, Etsy, Google, Box, Slack, GitHub and several other tech companies have closed their offices in honor of MLK Day, according to their employees. Some tech employees are taking that time to march in MLK Day parades. At Salesforce, the… Read More
-
Crunch Network
Hidden Figures: Inspiring STEM heroes for girls
There is a much-loved aphorism used by parents of all generations that says “you are what you eat.” I would also suggest that a similar phenomenon holds true for career choices: “You become what you see.” Unfortunately, cinema often does society a disservice in that very few strong, independent women present compelling career choices for our young girls. Read More
-
Crunch Network
Why white men are diversity’s missing stakeholders
We need to evolve the tech industry’s approach to diversity and inclusion. Despite the best of intentions, our expectations have been unrealistic — and Silicon Valley has started to recognize its own idealism. It’s time to get real, and that means acknowledging a very sobering fact: We need white men on our side and active in the diversity discussion if we’re ever going… Read More
-
Ellen Pao joins Kapor Capital as partner, and chief diversity and inclusion officer
Ellen Pao, the former interim Reddit CEO, former partner at Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers and co-founder of diversity and inclusion organization Project Include, has joined Kapor Center for Social Impact. More specifically, Pao will serve as Kapor Capital’s chief diversity and inclusion officer, as well as venture partner. To be clear, Kapor Capital is the venture firm inside of… Read More
-
Crunch Network
How male allies can support women in technology
There are so many reasons that men should get involved and be true allies to women in tech: It’s the right thing to do. It’s good for business. Diverse teams that reflect the end user create better results for customers. Male allies respect and appreciate their female teammates. They believe in equality. But you’re not a male ally until women in tech identify you as one. Read More
-
In light of discrimination concerns, Uber and Lyft defend their policies to show rider names and photos
Uber and Lyft have responded to Senator Al Franken’s questions regarding potential racial discrimination against passengers. Last month, Franken wondered why it’s necessary to include names and photos of passengers requesting rides, and what steps both companies can take to dissuade drivers from canceling rides on people with “black-sounding” names. In Uber and… Read More
-
Facebook temporarily banned a social justice activist for commenting on racism
Facebook removed content from social justice activist and co-founder of Safety Pin Box Leslie Mac, and banned her from the social network. The ban was originally in effect for 24 hours. Update: As of 11:50 a.m. PT, Facebook has restored the content and reinstated Mac’s abilities to use the social network.* “A member of our team accidentally removed something you posted on… Read More
-
Crunch Network
One barrier to diversity in tech is a culture of genius
It’s no secret that the tech industry struggles with diversity. While there are a number of factors limiting progress, one that’s often overlooked is the industry’s fixed mindset — its belief that intelligence, talent and abilities are fixed traits. This manifests as a culture that views brilliance as critical to success, and where some people are seen as inherently… Read More
-
Grace Hopper organizers finally release their own diversity report
After years of advocating for diversity and inclusion, and telling tech companies how to improve in that area, the Anita Borg Institute has released a diversity report of its own. The Anita Borg Institute, the organization behind the annual Grace Hopper Celebration of Women in Computing, is on par with the likes of the tech companies it critiques when it comes to diversity. The… Read More
-
With a bet on diversity, Blizzard reveals Overwatch’s queer character
After months of hinting, Blizzard finally revealed which member of Overwatch’s colorful cast of characters counts themselves part of the LGBTQ community. The much-anticipated reveal came in a seasonal digital comic centered around Tracer, the spritely Londoner with gravity-defying hair who proved to be an early fan favorite and the literal face of the game. The comic… Read More
-
HandUp just expanded its gift card program for homeless people in SF
HandUp, a startup combating homelessness, just announced the expansion of its gift card program in San Francisco. The $25 gift cards, which HandUp launched last August, enables homeless people to redeem them at Project Homeless Connect and Glide. Starting today, homeless people can also redeem the gift cards at the Mission Neighborhood Resource Center, MSC South Shelter in SOMA and the… Read More
-
Pinterest has lowered its hiring goals for women in engineering roles
Pinterest found that the 30% hiring rate it set for women in engineering roles was doing too much, so it’s lowering its 2017 goal to 25%, Pinterest disclosed on its blog today. “We still aspire to 30%—but realize it’s likely going to take more than 12 months to get there,” Pinterest CEO Ben Silbermann wrote on the company’s blog. Over the past year… Read More
-
Comparably’s new tool lets companies see how their culture stacks up against the competition’s
Comparably, a company and workplace culture review platform, is expanding its tools and offerings to employers that want to have a better understanding of how they can improve their workplaces for employees. Comparably’s culture analytics dashboard for employers lets companies easily see how they stack up against their competitors. The most impactful part of the dashboard is the ability… Read More
-
Dropbox is slightly more diverse than it was last year
Dropbox today released its latest diversity report, showing a slight increase in overall representation of underrepresented minorities at the company. Dropbox is now 3% black, up from 2% black last year, and 6% Latino, up from 5% last year. Regarding senior leadership roles, Dropbox increased the percentage of women in those roles from 21% last year to 27%. As you can see above, Dropbox… Read More
Message Us