Men In Promoting Diversity At Work: Part 1

The newest scandal caused by the memorandum of a Google engineer was a major blow to efforts aimed at enforcing diversity in workplaces. This article led to many people criticising the employee for making an injurious generalisation that has perpetuated women’s stereotypes that have lasted for decades: non-technical, non-scientific workers who are not capable of coding, engineering or any form of technology necessary in today’s economy.

Instead of reopening the debate over something we already know to be true, let's spend some time thinking about how we can increase real diversity in today's workforce and help businesses grow and continue to make profits.

Charitable organisations are uniquely positioned to support this cause and work with for-profit companies on developing innovative projects that genuinely address complicated workplace problems such as inclusivity or diversity. Inclusion and diversity resonate well with me and my team because I am a leader at a company where minority groups and women are priority concerns. Nonetheless, irrespective of their area of operation there is a place for other NGOs too.

The Society of Women Engineers (SWE) takes a distinctly female-oriented approach to focus on a practical solution. But what we have discovered through experience may surprise you: Males, and especially white men, are the key to workplace diversity.

It might sound strange coming from someone who works with The Society of Women Engineers (SWE), but as we strive harder for more diverse populations it becomes clearer how vital males are in achieving this objective.

Before going deeper into this subject matter, I would like to clarify that this is not an attempt at reversing all gains made by minorities and women; neither is it intended as “get out jail free” card for men who created these entire gender barriers which women around the world struggle hard every day to break down. Men will find no appeal in this essay.

However, if your business targets or even sells goods or services primarily to women and other underrepresented populations, then this article is for you.

Men as Diversity Partners is a program that SWE has put in place with the fundamental tenet that men would have to be willing members in this endeavour if the business is to fulfil the promise of diversity. We spoke with a lot of guys about workplace diversity and listened to them in order to develop this answer. These guys have executive positions in businesses that are a part of the Corporate Partnership Council of SWE. They have assisted in leading diversity initiatives at some of the biggest and most intricate businesses in the sector.