3 ms·

The quickest way to get a cultural shift in a technical office is to go from 98% male to 70% male. Things get real different real quick. There's no reason to le

The quickest way to get a cultural shift in a technical office is to go from 98% male to 70% male. Things get real different real quick. There's no reason to leave gender out of culture shifts, except that you don't like it.

toomuchtodo 7y ago
> There's no reason to leave gender out of culture shifts, except that you don't like it. Or that it's illegal in many jurisdictions to select a candidate because of their gender. Can't speak for others, but if I see evidence of this happening in writing, I have no qualms about forwarding the docs/emails/whatever off to the Dept of Labor and a labor attorney to pursue this discriminatory behavior (discrimination is discrimination, whether "anti" a specific gender or "pro") by an employer. Culture shifts should be a byproduct of effective, non-discriminatory hiring practices (which includes blinding to protected classes).
- brnt 7y ago
  > Culture shifts should be a byproduct of effective, non-discriminatory hiring practices (which includes blinding to protected classes). Good idea, but nearly nobody does it (removing socioeconomic indicators such as name/gender/address from CVs). It is also difficult to insulate yourself from your network when hiring, as well as controlling for other items on a CV (you want Ivy League? Hello bias!). Which is why I think some active thought on the subject of diversity is essential when hiring. You will never remove bias completely, so we might as well acknowledge the 800 pound gorilla and deal with it directly.
weberc2 7y ago
I would really like any sort of supporting evidence for this claim. I imagine churning 28% of your employee base regardless of gender would produce a culture shift--probably a very negative one. Even more negative if you're targeting people based on their immutable characteristics--and that's before the (rightful) discrimination lawsuits start pouring in. Maybe start with free catered lunches on Fridays or something.

toomuchtodo 7y ago

> There's no reason to leave gender out of culture shifts, except that you don't like it. Or that it's illegal in many jurisdictions to select a candidate because of their gender. Can't speak for others, but if I see evidence of this happening in writing, I have no qualms about forwarding the docs/emails/whatever off to the Dept of Labor and a labor attorney to pursue this discriminatory behavior (discrimination is discrimination, whether "anti" a specific gender or "pro") by an employer. Culture shifts should be a byproduct of effective, non-discriminatory hiring practices (which includes blinding to protected classes).

brnt 7y ago
> Culture shifts should be a byproduct of effective, non-discriminatory hiring practices (which includes blinding to protected classes). Good idea, but nearly nobody does it (removing socioeconomic indicators such as name/gender/address from CVs). It is also difficult to insulate yourself from your network when hiring, as well as controlling for other items on a CV (you want Ivy League? Hello bias!). Which is why I think some active thought on the subject of diversity is essential when hiring. You will never remove bias completely, so we might as well acknowledge the 800 pound gorilla and deal with it directly.

weberc2 7y ago

I would really like any sort of supporting evidence for this claim. I imagine churning 28% of your employee base regardless of gender would produce a culture shift--probably a very negative one. Even more negative if you're targeting people based on their immutable characteristics--and that's before the (rightful) discrimination lawsuits start pouring in. Maybe start with free catered lunches on Fridays or something.