Plenary: NBMBAA® Takes On ... Diversity in the Tech Industry
Silicon Valley, the home of the California tech industry, has long been criticized for its lack of diversity. Almost two years after major companies, led by Google and Intel, started to publicize their diversity numbers, the ethnic and gender makeup of the industry’s work force remains almost the same. "The lack of diversity is at the forefront of the tech industry and our goal is to explore these complex issues today and beyond," said moderator Selin Song, managing director, Global GMS (Google Marketing Solutions) in a panel discussion on the topic. "We still have a lot of room for improvement," responded Wayne Davis, senior vice president, Human Resources, Technology + Product, Comcast when asked his opinion on the state of diversity. "It would a misnomer to just talk about how we increase representation within our firms, talk about how we can be incubators, pathways to partnerships with small and large minority businesses that want to be suppliers to our tech companies. That’s where diversity needs to headed, it’s much more ubiquitous than solely looking at representation inside the firm." "We have to look at a variety of different ways of how to engage communities much sooner and once you recruit the talent, retain it, foster it," believes Gerard E. Morisseau, internal audit director, Microsoft Cybersecurity, Microsoft IT, Retail Stores, and Application Services Group (ASG). "You can’t be a global company designing for a few, you need to understand the diversity in your customer base and their differences, you have to bring different perspectives to the table." Heightened visibility in publishing diversity reports now makes companies more accountable. "We now have people looking at us which is a really important, positive factor," added Morisseau. "As leaders the reports show us we have serious challenges that will help guide decisions that perpetuate biases, everything now is front and center." |
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