For a long time, tech culture has focused too narrowly on technical skills; this has resulted in a tech community that too often puts companies and code over people. Greater Than Code is a podcast that invites the voices of people who are not heard from enough in tech: women, people of color, trans and/or queer folks, to talk about the human side of software development and technology. Greater Than Code is providing a vital platform for these conversations, and developing new ideas of what it means to be a technologist beyond just the code. Featuring an ongoing panel of racially and gender diverse tech panelists, the majority of podcast guests so far have been women in tech! We’ve covered topics including imposter syndrome, mental illness, sexuality, unconscious bias and social justice. We also have a major focus on skill sets that tech too often devalues, like team-building, hiring, community organizing, mentorship and empathy. Each episode also includes a transcript. We have an active Slack community that members can join by pledging as little as $1 per month via Patreon. (https://www.patreon.com/greaterthancode)
Episode 003: Hiring People For Diversity with LaToya Allen of SheNomads
00:16 – Welcome to “Well, Technically...” …we mean, “Greater Than Code!”
01:34 – LaToya Allen’s Introduction
03:18 – Dear Tech Companies: Focus on Diversity, Not Foosball
08:14 – How does “the team photo” reflect on you and your company?
10:33 – Article Backlash; Interviewing/Hiring People for Diversity
Mental health Bechdel test for women in male-dominated fields: Have *I* talked to another woman today about something related to my work?
— amy nguyen (@amyngyn) October 10, 2016
15:11 – The Talking-Over-People Culture
17:37 – Improving Job Postings; How do you find a company to work for that’s good?
“Save your ninja moves for the alley!” ~ Jessica Kerr
23:16 – What is something that your company or coworkers or someone at work did that made you feel included?
26:18 – “Signaling”
30:54 – The SheNomads Job Board and the Vetting Process
- Commitment to diversity inclusion
- Provide meaningful work
- Offer reasonable pay
33:33 – #talkpay
Salary Negotiation with Ashley Powell
- Use Google / Indeed.com
- Talk to recruiters
- Talk to your peers
35:56 – SheNomads and Remote Work
Reflections:
Dave: Thinking more about signaling.
Astrid: I’m not the only person turned off by ninja-stuff.
Coraline: Bringing marketing personas into the recruiting process.
Sam: Recognizing the impulse to interrupt and taking a step back.
LaToya: Thank you for Greater Than Code!
Jessica: Gratitude for remote work and diversity and inclusion in the workplace.
Listener Call to Action:
If you are not a remote worker, talk to management and see if you can work from home one day per week to introduce the idea of remote work and prove that you are effective and efficient even if you are not present in the office.
If you are in a management position, go work from home yourself at least one day per week, so you can build some empathy for what it’s like to be on the other side of those tools and that divide, so you can more effectively incorporate your more distributed teammates.
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Special Guest: LaToya Allen.