Why We Must Double Down on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in Tech
This week we hosted our 10th Diversity in Tech conference in partnership with Computer Weekly at LinkedIn’s offices.
This really is a highlight of the year, bringing together remarkable speakers and technologists, to discuss the critical importance of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) in the tech industry and announcing the winner of the Most Influential Woman in UK Tech.
Anyone who knows me knows just how passionate I am about this topic. But now more than ever I feel that we need to double down on our efforts to create a more inclusive and equitable tech landscape. The pace of change is just too slow.
There’s a real need for representation across all domains, especially as AI, automation, and robotics become integral to our daily lives. Without diverse perspectives, the tools we create will only reflect a narrow portion of the world's ideas and experiences, and we learned first-hand of the awful consequences of what happens when we don’t include diversity of thought from Jo Hamilton, former subpostmistress at the heart of the Horizon scandal.
This year’s conference really focused in on the human element of tech, and the need to ensure that when developing tech, we need to ensure the end user is always central to it. And the only way to do that is by having true representation and diversity. This was brought to life by the fantastic speakers:
Maria Axente, Head of AI public policy and ethics, PWC highlighted the importance of designing technology with the understanding that data represents people’s lives, not just numbers on a screen, and the significant contribution women technologists are making in this field. Her call to action: we must ensure that AI is developed and implemented in ways that protect privacy and prevent harm.
Emma Wright, partner at Harbottle & Lewis, UK lead of investHer, recounted her experience with the "investHER" campaign, which highlighted what happens when diverse voices aren’t included in decision making, and launched a campaign to address gender disparities in angel investment. Her call to action: build strong networks to enact change.
Beckie Taylor, CEO and co-founder of TechReturners, spoke about the challenges women face when returning to the workforce after career breaks. Beckie highlighted the need for better representation in software development teams to produce more reliable and commercially valuable software. She shared a cautionary tale about Amazon's AI recruitment tool, which inadvertently created bias against female applicants due to the lack of diverse data inputs. Beckie's message was a reminder that human oversight is crucial in the development and deployment of AI systems.
Jasmin Guthmann, CO-VP, MACH Alliance inspired us to ensure diverse voices are sought, encouraged to contribute and the role of allies to ensure that even when those diverse voices are not in a room, they are not forgotten. Her call to action: Be that ally!
And let’s not forget the winner of this year’s most influential woman in UK tech Award, Sheridan Ash, founder of Tech She Can – who, through her organisation has reached more than 130,000 children, showing them just how amazing an industry tech is.
My own call to action, let’s continue to be at the heart of this change. Whether we are working with clients to build solutions or help them hire their dream team, let’s continue to be that ally, let’s continue to champion diversity, let’s continue to drive that change.