An interesting article brought to you by the comments of Satya Nadella, the Microsoft CEO, regarding his answer to the question, "what do you advise women who are interested in advancing their careers, but not comfortable...with asking for a raise?":
http://mashable.com/2014/10/09/microsoft-ceo-women-karma-raises/
(video and transcript of his response are included in the article)
Although he has since apologized, he praised women who do not ask for raises for their "good karma" and that they have a "superpower"... at a conference that is supposed to celebrate women in computing.
Moderator (and HMC President) Maria Klawe was quick to disagree with Nadella's comment and provided the audience with a much more satisfying answer.
Ooph.
ReplyDeleteI think it's important to place this conversation in the broader context of women in business and more notably, women in big business. If you want to be really surprised (in the worst way possible), check out this link:
http://www.businessinsider.com/sheryl-sandberg-presents-mind-blowing-stats-about-how-and-why-women-hold-themselves-back-2013-2?op=1
One of the things I found most interesting in relation to Nadella's remarks is the fact that half as many women as man say they want to be CEO one day. Why is that? Does it stem from the same place as not wanting to ask for a raise?
Looking forward to reading Sandberg's book at the end of the semester!
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ReplyDeleteMaria Klawe's advice to do our homework was particularly powerful. Nadella's answer deserves criticism, but I think what he said was just a reflection of what we hear from the world all the time. He simply articulated the lesson we have internalized: trust the system. I am glad that we have people that can testify to the fact that this is wrong, and we must fight against it with conscious and intentional effort.
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