Comments on: Maybe It’s Just Me… A Perspective from One Woman in IT

By: Data Inspirations » PASS Summit 2010: Epilogue

Data Inspirations » PASS Summit 2010: Epilogue — Mon, 15 Nov 2010 20:37:29 +0000

[...] increasing the numbers of women in technology. The numbers are diminishing at a deplorable rate (as I discussed in a previous post). It seems to me that to foster change we need to start laying the groundwork with our children. By [...]

By: Annmaria

Annmaria — Sat, 28 Aug 2010 17:48:13 +0000

Maybe it’s just me but I experienced quite a bit of those attitudes when I graduated in 1978. I was also VERY young – graduated college at 19- and barely 100 lbs so I looked about 16. Now I experience very little of that as a woman but as a Hispanic woman I have often been in meetings where the only other Hispanic women in the building are cleaning the floors. Often people who have appointments with me think I am the secretary and offer to wait until Dr. De Mars returns. With rare exceptions, once I start talking they are quite happy to be discussing what needs to be done to solve their tech problems. I DO very very rarely run into someone who thinks a Latina grandmother could not possibly be doing my job.

I see subtle racism as a big problem. People who are Hispanic, black, Native American who are very competent are passed over unless they are outstanding . I also see those employees getting less mentoring – I could go on but maybe I’ll write a blog post on it !

By: Kimberly L. Tripp

Kimberly L. Tripp — Sat, 14 Aug 2010 05:25:28 +0000

Hey there Stacia – OK, I started to write a long comment but ultimately I turned it into a small blog post. I hope it brings about a couple of new readers as I think this is such an important topic.

Here’s my post: http://www.sqlskills.com/BLOGS/KIMBERLY/post/Women-in-Tech-a-great-post-by-Stacia-Misner.aspx

Cheers to you!
Kimberly

By: Stacia Misner

Stacia Misner — Thu, 12 Aug 2010 03:59:36 +0000

Thanks, Dave. I remember a time when women in the military – period – were a curiosity, let alone women in technology. I can imagine different organizational dynamics in play in the military that would slow down the rate of acceptance as compared to non-military organizations. But that’s just supposition on my part. I’d love to hear from women in the military provide some perspective.

By: Stacia Misner

Stacia Misner — Thu, 12 Aug 2010 03:56:18 +0000

Thanks for your perspective, William. I’m one of those who’d be right there with you working round the clock, so I hear you loud and clear. I also know quite a few guys who marked their 8 hours in the office and didn’t give a bit more time without complaining. It is odd to me to hear about girls in CIS who weren’t interested in technology. Obviously it’s one of the most fascinating fields to be in! The unfortunate thing I find about our society is the pressure put on kids to decide what they want to be when they grow up (or pick a career) by having to choose a major when they’re 18-21. It seems to be that should be a time to explore what one’s interests are, without having to make a commitment. I always assumed I would do something in the tech field – both of my parents were programmers back in the day when most folks didn’t know what that was. Couple that with growing up in the space industry and a fascination with science fiction literature, I just know I’d do something with computers – I just had no idea where it would land me because it didn’t exist when I was 18-21. At that time, I thought I’d be an accountant and so I dutifully took my accounting classes. It wound up serving me well in the long run, but my point is that it’s a shame that we force education on young people without giving them a chance to try a few things in life first. Meanwhile, I hope you do get a chance to work with some females in IT. We just have to rustle some more up!

By: Stacia Misner

Stacia Misner — Thu, 12 Aug 2010 03:43:49 +0000

Thanks, Susan – I’m really glad to know it’s NOT just me! I’m hearing from many women who echo the same sentiments that you have.

By: Stacia Misner

Stacia Misner — Thu, 12 Aug 2010 03:41:56 +0000

Hi Tony – We’ll blame Jason for stereotyping about basements. I’m sure your dad is glad to have you there! And I’m glad to hear you’ve had a positive experience with females. I’m wondering how to get more of them into the field!

By: Stacia Misner

Stacia Misner — Thu, 12 Aug 2010 03:38:23 +0000

Hi Kathy – thanks for the comment. Great story about switching careers. Sounds like you’ve been involved with SQL Servers long as me. So if we agree there’s not a problem with men in our field, why isn’t the industry doing a better job of bringing young women in?

By: Kathy Greene

Kathy Greene — Wed, 11 Aug 2010 16:33:42 +0000

After working as a secretary for 5 years, I decided to go back to school in 1979. Originally, my intent was to major in engineering. But after exposure to computers (1981), I switched majors. I’m still in the same job that gave me that exposure — a fusion research project. Talk about male-dominated: all physicists are male and nearly all scientists and engineers are male. But my computer group has been between 25 – 50% female during my time with them.

I can’t really say that I have encountered that kind of stereotypical male bias against women. They wanted 2 years of experience/schooling when I applied for the position, but I had only 1.5 years. Yet, I was hired. I was assigned database work in 1999, and have done nothing but database (SQL Server / ASP / ASP.NET) since 2000. I have attended DevConnections conference for the last 6 years. No such encounters there, either. But then, I’m not a highly social person and generally keep to myself (that’s my very introverted nature showing itself). On the other hand, if the kind of attitude referred to in the blog post that sparked this conversation were as pervasive as the blogger seemed to think, I should have still encountered it somewhere.

By: Tony Lewis

Tony Lewis — Wed, 11 Aug 2010 14:16:31 +0000

Jason says “A lot of us are really just shy. It’s probably from spending all that time in our parents’ basements, but that’s a whole other stereotype.”

I’m typing this as a 55-year old, working out of my parents’ basement! (Helping Dad through Parkinson’s Disease)

However, I’ve often found female coworkers in the industry much easier to deal with – I wish that there were more of them!