Many technology leaders believe in having more women and people of color in technical and leadership positions in their organizations while still exhibiting reverence for the lone genius, almost always male, that they believe is imperative to their innovative future. They hold these two ideals as separate.
Why? According to Telle Whitney, cofounder of the Grace Hopper Celebration of Women in Computing, tech leaders want to talk about inclusivity, but few fundamentally change their culture to dismantle the unwelcoming environment, fearful that doing so will compromise innovation. Women and people of color pay the price, facing exclusive and even hostile workplaces. They're held back from professional growth and in many cases, choose to leave the industry altogether.
But there is a solution. In Rebooting Tech Culture, Whitney explains that the same values at the heart of a culture of innovation—creativity, courage, confidence, curiosity, communication, and community—can also foster a culture that is welcoming to all employees. Drawing on more than fifty interviews with tech executives and a survey of 1,000 people in tech, she shows how these "six Cs" can power real change in technology organizations, creating workplaces where anyone can be successful and where innovation thrives.