Tech Managers: Time to Grow Up and Manage Like Humans

I read Technology's Man Problem in the New York Times this weekend. I thought those days were long gone—but they're not.

Since when is it acceptable to make any comment about anybody's body part at work? Hello? Are we in the 7th grade? I thought “men” were past that. The gentlemen I know are past that nonsense. So are the gentlewomen. There are reasons I call you my “gentle readers.”

Did you see the statistics in the article?

Among the women who join the field, 56 percent leave by midcareer, a startling attrition rate that is double that for men, according to research from the Harvard Business School.

Unacceptable. Why would you remove half the people who can make your products better? Did you read Here are all the quantifiable reasons you should hire more women? Does that sound like what we do in high-tech:

• Create more innovative outcomes
• Stronger financial performance
• More diverse teams have a lower turnover rate
• Teams with women have patents cited more often

We need to hire better.

What Successful Hiring Managers Do

The technical managers I know, know how to write ads that are gender neutral. They know how to interview for cultural fit. They understand that culture is what you can discuss, what you reward, and how you treat each other. Not only that, but these hiring managers offer jobs that are opportunities, not a long list of tools. (They have read Hiring Geeks That Fit.)

Technical managers, you can be savvy. You can hire people of all kinds. They don't have to look like you. They can be women, men, young, old, whatever. The more innovation you need in your product, the more diverse you need your team.

You need people who can get along enough with each other to work together, and who can do the work. You don't need people who are carbon copies of each other.

No other industry would tolerate this sexism or bigotry. Let's stop it now.

If you are an unseasoned manager, learn how to manage and how hire. It's not a problem to admit you don't know. It's a problem to continue to do it badly.

If you work in an environment where there is sexism or bigotry, stop allowing it. You can stop creating a culture that doesn't allow women to thrive. You can do your part.

Let's create an environment in which every person can do great work. No matter who they are. It's time to manage as if we are all human. The last time I looked, we are.