Many thanks to all those who came out last night for the first Boston Women in SharePoint Chapter meeting, and to Leanne Bateman for organizing! We had a great discussion at MeadHall in Cambridge about the reality of being a woman in tech and in SharePoint specifically. As a follow-up I wanted to share some resources that I keep in mind when facing challenging situations at work.
Read McKinsey's research on the potential of women in the U.S. economy. "In its 2011 research, Catalyst found a 26% difference in return on invested capital (ROIC) between the top-quartile companies (with 19-44% women board representation) and bottom quartile companies (with zero woman directors)."
Watch Helen Greiner's speech when she accepted the Women in Vision award in 2008. She shares challenges ("Growing up, not one person told me that I should be an engineer"), presents a compelling case for diversity of perspective in technology, and provides suggestions for things to say to ANY young person (starting at 6:18).
Contemplate yesterday's spot on NPR "Boys Are At The Back Of The Class," as well as Newsweek's article on the "Mancession."
For inspiration, read Seth Godin. He has a way of making positive outcomes seem possible.
Addition 2/14/13 - read HBR's research report "The Athena Factor: Reversing the Brain Drain in Science, Engineering, and Technology." (Thanks to Pam Parker for the link to this great report!)
Hope to see you at the next chapter meeting in 4 months! Join the Boston Women in SP LinkedIn group to receive updates on the group's activity.
