The more I’ve used Pinterest, the more I’ve come to understand women. Here are the results of my very non-scientific study: Women are generous. We want to share how to DIY a shabby-chic bookcase or how to get your toddler to use the dang toilet. Women are also candid. We aren’t afraid to disclose that our so-called homemade brownies are actually made from a box with some butterscotch chips tossed in.
Today, whatever your level of Pinterest craftiness, share something. Let yourself be vulnerable. Give someone your go-to recipe or email a few of your favorite quotes to a friend.
WOMEN IN NUMBERS: 30 Percent
While many of the websites and apps us ladies use every day seem like they were created and are run by women, most of them aren’t. Pretty sneaky, huh? According to a recent Reuters study, 30 percent of the 450 tech executives interviewed said they don’t have any women in leadership roles.
Yeah, that number got me pretty bummed. But we don’t have to accept that. One way you can help change that sad statistic is by encouraging more girls to get involved in the fields of science, technology, engineering and math. Google “girls in STEM,” along with your city or state and you’ll find plenty of nonprofits in your area through which you can help make a difference.
WOMAN TO WATCH: Candice Morgan, Head of Diversity at Pinterest
When life hands you depressing lemons like the number I just mentioned, you make lemonade and raise a toast to the women leaders who are making a difference. One such woman is Candice Morgan, the first person to ever hold the position of head of diversity at Pinterest.
Candice is in charge of recruiting and retaining employees by fostering diversity. That means more underrepresented minorities and women are getting hired for leadership roles, and once they’re hired on, Candice works to ensure they feel empowered and safe on the job.
As a kid and throughout college, Candice was always interested in what it means to be human, that we all have different experiences and backgrounds that shape who we are and what we can bring to the table. At 16, she traveled to Spain and embraced the cultural differences, and in college, she studied cross-cultural psychology, examining social patterns in various cultures. While writing her thesis on women of color in business, Candice stumbled upon some research from global diversity nonprofit Catalyst, which would later offer her a job. After multiple promotions, Candice found herself working as a director in Switzerland, in charge of big clients like Coca-Cola.
After about a decade with Catalyst, Candice took the position at Pinterest head-on. But she says she’s in a job that has no easy fix. There isn’t a solutions manual that notes “How to be diverse and inclusive in three easy steps.”
In order for diversity and inclusion to be successful, formal programs must be in place. One such program is the Pinterest Engage Freshman Internship Program, which encourages underrepresented students who are interested in STEM to intern at the company the summer after their freshman year. Talk about a dream job!
Thanks to Candice, more and more tech companies are awakening to the issue of diversity and starting to implement programs to ensure they’re hiring and keeping a diverse array of employees. And when tech companies say they have trouble finding diverse job candidates, as Candice says, “We help them look harder!”
QUITE THE QUOTE
Candice Morgan's favorite quote is by an unknown author, who said:
"Nobody said that it'd be easy. They just promised it would be worth it."
This is Melinda Garvey signing off until next time. Remember, ladies, empowered women empower other women. Share On the Dot so more women can have a voice. Thanks for getting ready with us.
To learn more about our conversation, check us out at OnTheDotWoman.com and talk to us @OnTheDotWoman on Twitter and Instagram. We’d love to hear your voice.