Voici ma sélection d’événements marquants 2019, pour de bonnes ou de mauvaises raisons.
JANUARY
Hide this sex toy from me!
The Dare is a sex toy produced by Lora DiCarlo’s company. At CES 2019, a prestigious annual trade show organized by the Consumer Technology Association, the company presents its product. It wins the Innovation of the Year award in the Robotics and Drone category. The equivalent of an Oscar for an actress. But barely a month later, the committee contacts the entrepreneur and announces that sex toys are not allowed at CES. The committee withdrew the award and revoked authorization to exhibit again at CES. The consequences were terrible: a media crisis and the withdrawal of investors. In short, a huge blow for Lora DiCarlo. Five months later, she was presented (again) with the Innovation Award. The committee declares that they “didn’t manage this award properly”, leading to “important conversations” about sexual technology policies.
MARCH
The biggest campaign ever for women in technology
The first quarter is off to a great start, with the Board of Trade of Metropolitan Montreal and Ubisoft joining forces to launch a major campaign for women in technology. Quite simply, Quebec has never seen a campaign of this magnitude (read: a lot of money) to help close the gender gap in technology. The campaign includes several initiatives, such as bringing Randi Zuckerberg (sister of) to Place des Arts in Montreal. A delegation of women entrepreneurs and women in technology is also invited to San Francisco for a trade mission. And last but not least, three women in technology have been appointed as ambassadors for the program, touring Quebec to visit schools and promote these careers to young girls.
A must-read
A great book is coming out in 2019: Invisible Women: Data Bias in a World Designed for Men, by Caroline Criado Perez. In it, the author gathers together a plethora of aberrant data supporting the fact that our world is built by men for men. From the discomfort of holding a cell phone in a woman’s hand, to the queuing in women’s bathrooms, to fatal accidents even for those wearing seatbelts. The author doesn’t set out to prove a vast conspiracy, she just explains that if we don’t put measures in place to correct prejudice, the inequalities of our societies will persist. One way of correcting these prejudices is to have a more diverse technological workforce.
Abel Prize goes to a woman for the first time
Mathematician Karen Uhlenbeck becomes the first woman to win one of the most prestigious prizes in mathematics, the Abel Prize, awarded by the Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters. Karen Uhlenbeck, 73 and Professor Emerita at the University of Texas at Austin, has produced groundbreaking work in a number of disciplines. She is the first woman to win this award in its 16-year history.
APRIL
Nice effort Google, but it’s not enough!
Google publishes its first diversity report since 2014. Considering the recent scandals known by the company and the meteoric evolution of the industry, they were more than due for this publication. Making an annual diversity report public is part of Google’s drive for greater transparency. For the first time, the report includes data from employees with disabilities, as well as those who identify as LGBTQ2S+. The report reveals a slight increase in female hires across the company, but a significant lack of black, aboriginal and female employees in leadership positions. To really change the culture, there’s no quick fix. You have to establish a strategy spread over several years, which obviously requires a lot of work and is not valued by shareholders. Technology companies must continue to invest in hiring programs, develop better retention initiatives and get everyone, at every level of the company, to value and prioritize a diverse and inclusive workforce.
MAY
A new support group for women in technology in Montreal
Spring is here, and with it a new group of women in technology in Montreal: Persian Women in Tech. There are over thirty women-in-tech initiatives in Montreal, but this one is different. Persian Women in Tech has decided to focus on talent acquisition for companies. Indeed, since there is a significant shortage of IT talent in Canada, the organization is putting forward women’s profiles to help connect job seekers with the companies offering them. The scarcity of manpower and the strong presence of Persian women around the world are two essential components of the group’s growth. This is the first time I’ve heard of another women-in-technology initiative other than URelles that is taking the labor shortage angle to enable more women to join the industry. Are we seeing the birth of a new trend?
JUNE
Quotas, the solution?
I meet Johanne Duhaime, Hydro-Québec’s Vice-President of Information and Communications Technology (CIO), who explains the need for quotas in technology. She says: “I’ve come to think that we need quotas. 5 to 10 years ago, I wasn’t in favor, but I think that without quotas, things don’t change, or only anecdotally. We need to take concrete action to really promote women. Everyone has good will, but good will doesn’t change the world. It’s up to all of us.” Quotas are far from being a universally accepted solution. Every time I mention them on a panel or in a group discussion, there are inevitably those for and, above all, those against. Being for quotas remains a strong militant act in 2019, which is why I was so surprised that the IOC of one of Quebec’s most important organizations was pro-quota. That’s when I knew we were entering a new era, one in which we’ve realized the seriousness of the situation and are ready to implement solutions that measure up.
A French school doubles its number of women
The same month, I also had the opportunity to chat with Sophie Vigier, the director of the famous French computer school, École 42. She explained to me that, in 6 months, she had managed to increase the percentage of female students from 15% to 26%. That’s a lot, considering the school had 5% women when it opened in 2013. How did she do it? Quite simply, she surrounded herself with people who, like her, felt that the harassment and bullying women were subjected to at the school would no longer take place. The message went from the management to the students. The management now has zero tolerance for such behaviour. The students had no choice but to comply, and the presence of women increased.
No women? No problem!
Also this summer, GQ magazine reports that a group of influential Silicon Valley technologists, including Jeff Bezos, set off to meet Italian designer Brunello Cucinelli in his home country. Reporter Ryan Mac notices something peculiar about one of the photos used in the article. The only two women present appear to have been added, a fact confirmed by everyone present, including the two women. When there’s a shortage of women in Silicon Valley, all you have to do is add them via Photoshop…
JULY
Lesbians ≠ pornography
Before July 18, 2019, the word “lesbian” entered on Google only displayed pornography. This error has now been corrected. The Silicon Valley company has decided to modify the algorithm so that this bias is no longer represented. Why was it a problem that Google’s search results displayed porn if you typed in the word “lesbian”? Firstly, because access to information on lesbianism was becoming extremely difficult, Google being the number one search engine for the French population. But also because these results contributed to a sexualization of women’s bodies and a highly restrictive definition of sexual orientation.
NOVEMBER
Technovation turns 6!
Technovation Montréal celebrates its sixth anniversary . Technovation is a nonprofit that brings together girls aged 10 to 18 to create a mobile application. For six months, these young girls meet weekly to build an app, from ideation to marketing. Admittedly, Technovation is nothing new – URelles had already written about the organization in May 2017 – but the longevity of a nonprofit held together by a 100% volunteer team dedicated heart and soul to the success of these young girls is something to note and celebrate. Bravo ladies and gentlemen for your tenacity!
DECEMBER
Sexism at NASA
In October, astronauts Christina Koch and Jessica Meir completed the first all-female spacewalk. Christina Koch is also on track to be the longest-serving woman on the International Space Station. There have also been high-profile appointments and other record-breaking feats. However, women remain an overwhelming minority at the US space agency. They make up only about a third of NASA’s workforce. And sexism is still rife.
Forbes recognizes 20 women in tech
This year’s Forbes Power Women list features 20 tech stars whose influence continues to grow, from CEOs to founders of some of the world’s biggest companies. While the percentage of female CEOs remained stable between 2018 and 2019, the number of women in the C-suite rose from 23% to 25%. A discreet increase, but an increase nonetheless. Note also, that this victory is bittersweet as it was also Forbes, who earlier in the year published a list of the world’s 100 greatest innovators and only one woman featured.
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What will the future bring?
In technology, we’re investing heavily in the next generation. We hope that our mistakes won’t be perpetuated, we hope that our girls will be paid the same as our boys, we hope that the “Women in Technology” movement will disappear in the medium term. In short, we want to believe that things will get better. I’m an eternal optimist, and that’s what keeps me doing my job. HackRank ‘s report confirms all this. For the second year running, the competition platform that brings companies and developers together has published its report on women in technology. After interviewing over 12,000 self-identified female developers, they found some particularly interesting information, especially about Generation Z (born after 1997), the only generation born into the Web age who learned to code at a younger age than those who came before them. Generation Z women know two of the three most in-demand programming languages, and plan to quickly learn the others they don’t yet know. That’s the kind of news I like to read. All in all, 2019 was a good year. Admittedly, there have still been blunders and parity has not yet been achieved, but the industry is making efforts and it seems that slowly but surely, we are moving towards more equity.
