1. Unconscious Bias and You
Touchy & True:
Unconscious Bias and You
Catherine Ashcraft
Senior Research Scientist, University of Colorado
Stephanie Cox
Manager Virtualization Services, Indiana University
Michele Kelmer
IT Strategy Business Analyst, Indiana University
Cathy O’Bryan
Director Client Support, Indiana University
AND YOU!

2. Diversity In Tech: The Facts

3. Diversity in Tech: The Facts
Black & Hispanic Professionals Comprise 16% of U.S. Professional Occupations, but 30% of U.S. Population
Black & Hispanic Men Hold 9% of U.S. Computing Jobs
--Breakdown is 9% black and 7% Hispanic for Professional
--4% black men computing and 5% Hispanic men computing
--3% and 1% Hispanic women
Black & Hispanic Women Hold 4% of U.S. Computing Jobs
Source: U.S. Dept of Labor Statistics, 2012 Current Population Survey

4. We’re Losing The Diversity Already There:
An Unnecessary Corporate Brain Drain
74% love work
56% leave
80% stay in workforce
This one is specific to women
Sources: Athena Factor, 2008

5. Why Diversity Matters
Going to highlight a few studies here, a little more emphasis on women, since we are NCWIT, but will highlight some on other kinds of diversity as well….

6. Diversity Improves Productivity, Competitiveness & Bottom Line
Increased sales revenue, bigger market share
Higher-than-average profitability
Greater return on equity and to shareholders
This slide here summarizes the main findings of many of these recent studies
First, a study of 500 U.S. based companies
Higher levels of racial & gender diversity associated with increased sales revenue, more customers, greater market share & greater relative profits
RACIAL diversity, in particular, was one of the most important PREDICTORS of a company’s COMPETITIVE STANDING within its industry
ADDITIONAL STUDIES indicate that teams with higher levels of thought diversity or functional diversity were more innovative than teams with shared mindset.
Check out Scott Page the Difference for an excellent summary of additional research that shows how diverse teams consistently outperform “highest-ability” teams.
A study by the London Business School of 100 teams at 21 different companies found that …..
TEAMS with EQUAL numbers of women and men……were more innovative, more productive
Even more recent research builds on this work, finding that one of the predictors of collective intelligence of a team was the number of women on the team.
Sources: Workplace Diversity Pays, American Sociological Review (2009), Capitalizing on Thought Diversity, Research-Technology Management (2009), The Difference, Scott Page (2007), Innovative Potential, London Business School (2007), The Bottom Line, Catalyst (2004).

7. What the Research Says
We are going to roll through a ton of social science research in 10 minutes – we won’t do it justice. First, 3 caveats……

8. Let’s Cut to the Chase
Minority Groups Aren’t Broken Majority Groups Aren’t The Enemy Culprit = Societal Biases We All Share We Can Take Action Together
Two…..a lot of chit chat in social media – not productive – this is not about blame and it is not about pitting groups against each other….as we shall see
ALL share these biases – good news is we can work together to reduce them…..

9. What do you see?
This and the next slide are the two short interactive pieces to illustrate unconscious biases

10. Notice anything odd about this lung scan?
Photo:

11. We Bring Unconscious Bias to Work
Society
Organizational Culture
Subtle Dynamics
Institutional
Barriers
Schemas/
Unconscious
Biases
Employees

12. Turn to the action piece of this.

13. Industry Change Model for Inclusive Cultures

14. What interested you in the study of Unconscious Bias in the Workplace
What interested you in the study of Unconscious Bias in the Workplace? And/or what personal experiences have you had with unconscious bias?

15. What are some strategies you’ve tried when it comes to recruitment and what have been the successes and challenges?

16. What are some strategies you’ve tried to address biases in the work environment and to better retain underrepresented groups? And what have been the successes and challenges?

17. What role can biases play when members of a dominant culture seek to be a mentor or ally?

18. How can members of a dominant culture not only be aware of bias but also their own privilege?

19. How can we interrupt unconscious biases if we feel we are being subjected to it, or if we see it in a group decision-making process?

20. How might you respond if someone suggests that you are exhibiting biases?

21.   Are there situations where bias is attributed for what are essentially unskilled communication?  How do you empower individuals who become entangled in such situations?

22. How should one (and how do the panelists) employ techniques to actively combat their own potential biases?