Tech Diversity: 12 Things Allies Can Do
In my work at Change Catalyst developing an inclusive tech ecosystem, the number one question I am asked is: “What can allies do to help?” As the awareness and urgency to diversify the tech industry continues to grow, I’m asked this question more and more. It’s exciting!
First and foremost, thank you for asking. Traditionally marginalized or underrepresented people can’t advocate for this change alone — we need you and we appreciate your getting involved.
Second, know that you’ll make mistakes and that’s ok. There is room for each of us to learn, grow our empathy muscles and create change together. Make mistakes, apologize, ask questions, learn and continue being an ally!
Third, even if you are from an underrepresented group, there is room for you to be an ally too. All of us can play a role in correcting historic and systemic racism, sexism, xenophobia, bigotry, ablism, persecution, discrimination, bias, other-ness, and more. If you are a man, straight, white, cisgender, speak English, wealthy, a person without a disability, and/or living in the Western Hemisphere, you are probably in a place where being an ally to others can help.
If you are new to diversity and inclusion, please start with #1–3 (in order) before you do anything else. This will help you advocate for others in a beneficial way.
Here Are 12 Things You Can Do As An Ally in Tech:
- Understand how we got here. Read books, watch documentaries, and learn about the history of marginalized people. Historically we have left out and kept out people for a long time: in our education, hiring, promotion, wealth-generation, history, storytelling (TV, film, books, video games) and press. We have also literally and figuratively shot down underrepresented people, through slavery, racist and segregationist laws, bigoted and misogynistic laws, prejudiced and biased policies, wars and more. Sadly, we haven’t come very far — most of this is still happening today. Keep reading and learning. When you do this, allow yourself time to grieve, to let go of holding onto the idea of a meritocracy — it sucks, we should have a meritocracy, but we don’t right now. Remember to strive toward that meritocracy in #4–6, someday we may have a real meritocracy if we all work hard enough at it.
- Understand how you can change your own way of doing things. Call it unconscious bias, hidden bias, just bias or anything else — we all act and react based on our history, knowledge and upbringing. Sometimes we default to “the way it has always been done,” but that means it’s probably being done in a way that was made by white men and for white men. So how can you help change that? Channel your inner three year old and start asking “why” again: Why did you make that decision? Why are our job descriptions written a certain way? Why does your colleague always feel nervous before a presentation? Why does the only woman in the room never speak up… and how can you change that? How can you make space for others, help them be more comfortable and empowered, help make decisions that take into account every type of person not just the people who look like the decision-makers? Why…?
- Get to know yourself better — it will help you have greater empathy for others. Find an executive coach who can work with you to lead with greater empathy. Meditate and/or explore other mindfulness practices. Work on your emotional intelligence skills. Learn about your own biases, conscious and unconscious, and learn how to counteract them. The more we know about ourselves, how and why we are who we are, the deeper we understand each other.
- Develop greater empathy and understanding of different life experiences. Expose yourself to new people and perspectives, go outside your comfort zone, change what you experience as “normal.” Read about empathy and compassion, attend diverse events, travel to new places, talk with different people.
- Be an advocate for diversity and inclusion programs at your company. Advocate for awareness-building, education, and strategic programs that correct biases and create an inclusive, supportive culture across your company or organization.
- When people say they don’t feel included, listen and support them. Validate and respect other perspectives and feelings, and make sure you make room for people to voice them. If appropriate, ask questions to learn more about why they feel this way so you can help create change in the culture.
- Build a diverse team. You may not have the ability to change the whole company, but you can build a diverse team around you. Diverse teams are more productive, innovative and show greater profitability. Understand how your department’s work is enhanced by diverse perspectives and let your team know why it matters to you. Create an open, supportive and inclusive environment where everyone feels comfortable being their full self at work.
- When you’re hiring and you aren’t finding good diverse candidates, know it’s probably you not them. Spend the time to understand why you’re not finding diverse candidates. Here are a few things we consistently encounter in the tech industry: you may not be sourcing candidates in the right places, your job descriptions — and/or your brand — may not be attracting the right people, you might be looking for a cookie cutter person rather than a new type of person that can bring unique perspectives and experiences. You may need to put additional time and resources into changing your recruiting strategy and open up to new networks. This work will pay off in the long run, so invest now before your team grows bigger and is even harder to change.
- Talk to other allies about what you’re doing and why. We need more allies to help change the status quo. Please talk to others, be vocal, be confident in your support as an ally. Share what works and what doesn’t, and even consider teaming up together to have greater power as advocates.
- Be a mentor or better yet, a sponsor. Many underrepresented people in tech are one of the few people like them in a company. That means they are less likely to have someone who helps them rise inside a company and inside the industry. Go out on a limb for a diverse person you believe in, help them achieve their goals.
- Take care of yourself. Practice self-care so you can be there for others. Exercise, eat healthy, drink water. Meditation and/or other mindful activities can help clear your head, develop greater compassion and get to know yourself better. Encourage others to practice self-care as well.
- Always continue to learn. Read, discuss, ask questions, listen, be open, advocate for greater diversity and inclusion.
This is not an exclusive list, please add your ideas in the comments!!
It takes all of us to make tech an industry where everyone can thrive. Thank you for being involved.
For more information about Change Catalyst and the work we do, visit changecatalyst.co.
About Change Catalyst:
Change Catalyst empowers diverse, inclusive and sustainable tech innovation — through education, community engagement and mentorship. Change Catalyst is a Certified B Corp, winning the “Best for the World” award for community impact in 2014 and “Best in the World” overall in 2015
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