A Geek Diary

There is a lot of effort being put into getting more females into IT at the moment, both academically, at school, college, University etc. and into the industry as a career choice.

On one hand – I understand where this is coming from. I have had it explained to me that there have been studies which have shown that mixed gender teams work better and are more productive, and that it will therefore be of great benefit to the industry, and probably to the nation economically if a better gender balance can be achived. Brilliant – no problems there.

On the other – I worry a lot about where this is all going for a number of reasons.

1) I worry that I will be given a job because a company is short on female team members rather than because I am the most suitable candidate. While this would of course be of benefit to me personally in the jobs market and therefore potentially financially – I don’t want this. This isn’t equality.  I want to know that I’ve earned my place and that I got to where I am because I’m the best – not just because I lack Y chromasomes and “will do” for the role.

2) Ever more “girls-only” stuff is appearing. Girls only coding-events. Pink themed websites which are set up “just for girls”. Girls only “Geek Girl Dinners” Stuff like that. I don’t want this either. It’s like the pink PlayStation malarkey all over again. It isn’t equality. It’s well-intentioned, but personally I find it patronising. If there were coding events, dinners, etc. from which women were barred access as men are to some of these “girls only” things – there would be media outcry and rightly so.  Equality has to work both ways – otherwise it isn’t equality at all. As far as I can see – there is nothing  positive about “positive discrimination”.

3) So much is being made of the “male-culture” in the IT industry in the media (the Microsoft “Big Boobs” hex code thing being an example) that men are going to start (if they are not already) tiptoing around female colleagues as if they are a media-storm waiting to happen. Does anyone want to work in an environment where they inspire nothing but the fear of disciplinary proceedings – just because they have breasts? I worry that I’m going to step into my next office and find an atmosphere so tense that the whole team is on the verge of snapping – because they’re worried about saying the wrong thing and worried about accidentally excluding me, etc etc. all at the same time. We won’t have mixed teams if this carries on. We’ll have female teams and male teams, and each will be terrified of saying the wrong thing or making the wrong gesture or whatever in front of the other.

There will be more another day, however I’m tired after a long day of bumping library books around in bulk!  I will also write a separate post on what I think I would do to help to rectify the gender balance while avoiding what I see as the pitfalls in the current attempts.  I know that, as a female who has spent my academic and working life in IT – I am something of a “solved problem” and so may have a different perspective on it to some.   In the meantime – I’d be interested to read your thoughts and comments on the above!  Thanks.