women in technology: supporting diversity in a technical workplace

Women in Technology: Supporting Diversity

in a Technical Workplace

August 11, 2016

Laura Grit, Sr. Principal Technologist, AWS

Sarah Zamith, Software Development Manager, AWS

Neha Shetty, Software Development Engineer, AWS

Why is diversity important?

Amazon retail flywheel

GrowthCustomer

ExperienceSellers

Traffic

Selection

AWS: unleashing untapped potential

Growth of

AWS

Innovators

Career development

for innovatorsRole models attract

more innovators

Innovation

leaders

What is a

Diversity Circle?

Circle structure

Circle members – employees at relatively the same stages

in their career (or other commonalities)

Sponsor – senior employee typically 1-2 levels above circle

members

Circle membership

Common

• All women

• All part of the same organization

Diverse

• Diverse levels of experience

• Diverse roles: managers, product managers, software

engineers, systems engineers

• Diverse cultural backgrounds

Circle member responsibilities

Circles are member-led

• Schedule meetings

• Define agenda

• Lead discussions

• Plan activities

Sponsor responsibilities

Create environment where people are comfortable

expressing thoughts, sharing experiences, and asking

questions

Creating trust in the circle

Create a safe environment for learning

Develop strong relationships among members

Facilitating the circle

Hold regular meetings



Leverage existing resources




Establish circle members as leaders




Establish circle members as leaders

Provide feedback, encouragement

Circle Sponsor Perspective

Launching a circle

Determine your motivation

Identify sponsor & members

Allocate time for members

Learnings: Circle structure development

Stay connected

Adjust circle formula to meet the needs of your circle

Allocate a budget

Make time for retrospectives

Learnings: Circle member development

Advocate for each other

Develop circle members as leaders

Limit the size of the circle

Continue other types of mentoring and development

Learnings: Circle sponsor development

Build relationships

Accelerate the virtuous cycle of growth

Fuel passion for myself and others

Have fun!

Get members out of normal work environment

• Blackberry picking

• Happy hour

• Lunches

• Pottery painting

• Hiking

Circle Member Experiences and

Learnings

Types of meetings

Inspiration

Knowledge

Practice

Retrospective

Inspiration

Learning from experiences

Practice

Example:

Design reviews

What we did:

Technical presentation practice

Knowledge

Technical and

career development

Personal learning: Communication strategies

Communication changes impact perceptions

Remove lessing language

• Just

• Sorry

• Try

Retrospective

Reflect back

Brainstorm topics for future sessions

Personal learning: Gaining confidence

Previously

• Limited participation in meetings

• Being a follower instead of leader

Personal learning: Gaining confidence

Currently

• Organizing circle sessions

• More involved with hiring

• Mentoring

• Host for Amazon S3 tech talks

Measuring success

Career path

Growing influence

Start your own circle

Remember to complete

your evaluations!

Thank you!