Too Few Women in Tech? Stop Playing the Blame Game

We have a rampant problem in
the tech world. It’s called the blame game. Here’s how it works. You ask the
question, “Why aren’t there enough women in tech or launching startups?” From
some you get answers like, “Because it’s an exclusive white boys club.” But
others say, “Not true! It’s because women don’t promote their expertise enough
and they are more risk averse.” How can we
truly address the lack of women in tech and startups and develop realistic
solutions if we continue to play this silly blame game?

Yesterday, Michael Arrington
of TechCrunch wrote a blog post saying, “It doesn’t matter how old you are,
what sex you are, what politics you support or what color you are. If your idea
rocks and you can execute, you can change the world and/or get really, stinking
rich.”

That’s a nice idea and if it
were true then the amount of wealthy entrepreneurs would better match our population’s racial and gender demographics. The fact remains
that in 2009 angel investors dished out $17.6 billion to fund startups. Wonder
how many funded startups were women-run? 9.4%, according to the 2009 angel
investor report from Center for Venture Research at University of New Hampshire. And
only 6% of investor money funded startups run by people of color.

Yet Arrington says it’s
because women just don’t want it enough and that he is sick and tired of being
blamed for it. He also says TechCrunch has “beg[ged] women to come and speak” and
participate in their events and reached out to communities but many women still
decline.

Since launching the Women
Who Tech TeleSummit three years ago (which is coming up on September
15th featuring an all-star lineup of over 30 women in tech and
social media like Rashmi Sinha of SlideShare, Kaliya Hamlin of Shes Geeky, Shireen Mitchell of Digital Sistas and who recently wrote about her experiences after being recognized by AlwaysOn, Mary Hodder who is working on her second startup,
Irene Au of Google, Amy Jo Kim of ShuffleBrain, Heather Harde of Tech Crunch, and Lynne d. Johnson, formerly of Fast Company and now with the Advertising Research Foundation)
I have heard the uproar from both sides and have written about it extensively. Want to know my secret for organizing thought-provoking,
women-led panels discussing topics such as launching your own startup or women
and open source and identity?

• I’m actively
  involved in several communities and not just when I have open call for entries.
• I have expanded
  my network and spend time listening as well as engaging and building relationships with diverse
  people.
• I believe we squash
  innovation when we don’t have diverse tech teams and I practice what I preach.
• I’m a fighter. I
  advocate for what I believe in and don’t easily give up when I don’t succeed or
  meet a goal.

And that is exactly what
people like Arrington and others who are in a position of power need to do too.
The tech world has some of the most creative, tenacious and resourceful people
who have profited from these very qualities. Giving up is not part of their
nature when they really care about achieving a goal that is important to them.
Instead of the playing the blame game, lets develop an action plan together to
get more women launching startups and involved in tech.

Here’s a Start:

1. Build Meaningful Relationships
   with Organizations: Don’t just approach women in tech organizations when you need
   suggestions. If you truly want to reach their memberships, you need to carve
   out time to get involved with the organization, attend their conferences and
   cultivate relationships. Here are few good organizations to connect with. Anita Borg Institute, She’s Geeky, Women Who Tech, The National Center
   for Women and IT, National Women of
   Color Technology Conference, Women 2.0, Women In Technology
   International, Girls In
   Tech and BlogHer who have featured over 500 women speakers at their conferences over the past few years.
2. Break Out of your Comfort Zone: “If you spend time in a homogeneous social network like Silicon Valley’s VC community, then you will only get white, male ventured back candidates,” said Geoff Livingston who has organized several conferences such as Blog Potomac. “It’s your job to go beyond the comfort zone. Victimization maybe an easy out, but it won’t stop the criticism of your inability to break out of limited social circles.”
3. It’s a Numbers Game: Ask
   for Several Suggestions: If you’re a conference organizer and someone declines a speaking invitation, ask for 3-4 suggestions of other women who would be a good fit. Likewise, if you’re invited to speak at a conference, but aren’t able to participate, recommend 3-4 good women speakers.
4. Share the Spotlight: Diversify those top 10
   lists. “Reach
   deeper and rotate fresh names through,” said Cathy Brooks who hosts the Social Media Hour.
5. Diversify Your Rolodex: Be proactive and follow and engage with
   more women in tech. There are several women in tech lists on Twitter, Fanpages, and LinkedIn groups.
6. Start Organizing: Organize a series of Reverse-Pitch Parties for women entrepreneurs at SXSW and in different
   cities.

Have more ideas to add to the list? Comment below.

Allyson Kapin is the Founder of the Web firm Rad Campaign, Women Who Tech, and the Blogger-in-Chief for Care2’s Frogloop blog. You can follow her on Twitter at @WomenWhoTech.