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Description
In this fireside chat, Kong’s Sandeep Singh Kohli sits down with the founder and CEO of CodePath.org, Michael Ellison, to discuss the trends and common pitfalls of workforce diversity initiatives in the tech industry.
Check the Guide to Building Racial Equality and Inclusivity in the Tech Workplace: https://bit.ly/387k8uJ
A
A
A
B
B
B
So
and-
and
you
know
that
luck
is
something
that
is
not
common
for
people
from
backgrounds
like
mine,
which
is
why
at
codepath
we're
so
focused
on
increasing
diversity,
but
with
a
strong
lens
of.
Are
we
serving
first
generation
call
students?
Are
we
serving
students
from
low-income
backgrounds?
Are
we
reaching
the
students
that
are
often
the
last
ones
in
and
the
first
ones
out
when
we're
talking
about
technical
hiring?
B
We
also
care
very
much
about
how
we're
influencing
the
system
itself.
How
are
we
in?
How
are
we
changing
the
equation
on
college
campuses
and
in
the
cs
talent
pipeline,
so
that
our
students
don't
have
to
get
lucky
in
order
to
be
introduced
to
tech,
to
be
able
to
have
access
and
exposure
to
the
technologies
that
are
in
demand
in
the
industry
and,
ultimately,
to
not
just
have
a
foot
in
the
door
but
to
be
able
to
have
a
seat
at
the
table
in
terms
of
opportunities
for
tech,
leadership
positions?
B
I'll
give
you
an
idea
of
so
some
things,
I'm
very
excited
about
with
our
work.
91
of
black
computer
science.
Students
are
still
working
in
tech
as
alumni,
and
this
is
compared
to
only
12
of
black
cf.
Students
are
still
working
in
tech
after
they
graduate.
We
have
a
crisis
in
this
country
where,
just
because
you're
pursuing
a
cs
degree,
it
doesn't
mean
you're
going
to
become
a
software
engineer,
and
last
year
we
saw
only
eight
percent
of
black
computer
science.
Students
nationwide
actually
ended
up
becoming
software
engineers.
Eight
percent.
A
B
You
know
you
have
a
given
example,
so
we're
running
courses
and
supporting
students
at
multiple
schools
and
two
schools,
purdue
university
and
san
jose
state
university,
two
schools
that
we're
at
at
purdue
students
will
apply
to
12
companies
and
they
hear
back
from
all
12.
over
at
san
jose
state
students
supply
to
800
companies,
and
they
hear
back
from
maybe
a
dozen.
B
So
I
mean
you
know
it
depends
on
your
persistence,
but
if
you're
invisible
to
employers,
even
if
you
have
the
skills,
how
are
you
going
to
make
a
profession?
Out
of
this?
We
see
a
lot
of
students
that
are
graduating
without
previous
internship
experience
and
they're
graduating
without
having
the
signals
which
are
the
gatekeepers
to
get
into
a
tech
company
in
the
first
place,
and
then
they
end
up
taking
whatever
type
of
jobs
and
positions
that
they
can.
B
A
Right
right
makes
sense,
makes
sense.
Kong's
alicia
group
recently
had
organized
a
session
with
the
race,
scholar
and
activist
kelly
watkins
view
on
building
racial
equality
and
inclusivity
in
the
tech
works
workspace,
and
it
was
interesting
that
that
that
panel
and
that
discussion
was
essentially
in
two
parts.
A
B
Employers
need
to
talk
about
numbers.
Talking
about
hiring
is
one
thing:
making
a
pledge
is
one
thing
actually
having
a
plan
that
is
going
to
lead
to
you
meaningfully.
Diversifying
your
workforce
is
a
completely
separate
piece
and
we
need
more
employers
that
are
going
to
focus
on
rebuilding
the
pipeline
vote
versus
just
thinking
about
pledges
and
commitments.
B
B
B
You
have
engineers,
guess
what
your
engineers
can
participate
in
panels
and
workshops.
They
can
become
mentors.
They
can
do
mock
interviewing,
there's
so
much
that
we
can
do.
Unfortunately,
a
lot
of
companies
will
think
about
it.
As
great
who
can
I
hire
that's
already?
A
junior
or
senior
when
you
already
have
70
to
80
of
the
potential
population
has
already
dropped
out.
B
It's
early
engagement
and
then
I'm
a
really
big
fan
of
various
programs
that
have
tried
to
in
us
more
structural
mentorship.
Structural
exposure
to
the
industry
have
gone
earlier,
google's
howard
west,
which
they
now
call
their
tech
exchange
program
they
partner
with
multiple
hbcus.
They
fly
students
over
to
silicon
valley
on
their
campus
they're,
targeting
freshmen
sophomores.
B
They
are
providing
an
early
exposure.
That
is
not
just
inspiration,
but
it's
also
going
deep
to
connect
with
engineers
there's
various
programs
that
we
have
been
a
part
of.
For
example.
Facebook
university
is
a
sophomore
level
program
and
if
you
can
unlock
that
first
ever
technical
work,
opportunity
that
is
game,
changing
for
a
lot
of
these
students,
yeah.
A
Exactly
it's
that
first
step
right,
getting
them
that
on
the
staircase,
so
that
then
they
can
climb
up.
You
know
getting
them
to
the
stack
is
usually
a
challenge.
Michael,
there
are
biases
all
around
us.
There
are
vices
I
face
as
a
turban
wearing
sick
mayo,
michael
as
a
black
man
entering
into
the
tech
scene.
A
B
About
journey
yeah
I
mean
it's,
the
journey
is
a
lifetime
right,
as
you
know,
it's
it's
not
one
thing,
it's
a
lot
of
things
and
there's
not
one
challenge
to
overcome.
It's
it's
constant
and
it
and
it
doesn't
end
back.
When
I
was
in
high
school,
some
teachers
we
had
were
pretty
good
and
some
teachers
we
had
were
you
know,
maybe
they
missed
mark
a
little
bit.
I
had
a
honors
english
teacher
where
we
didn't
what
we
didn't
read
books.
B
I
ended
up
dropping
out
of
cs
when
I
was
in
school.
When
I
was
when
I
was
a
freshman,
I
did
well
in
math
people
thought
I
should
pursue
that.
I
was
always
interested
in
tech,
but
I
was
coming
in
behind
and
when
I,
when
I
did
the
calculation
in
my
mind
of
like
okay,
it's
taking
me
30
hours
to
complete
this
assignment
in
this
one
class
versus
you
know.
I
can
just
take
you
know
other
courses
in
math
or
whatever,
and
so
it
ended
up.
B
You
know
that
was
maybe
the
first
element
of
it
coming
in,
behind
which
a
lot
of
students
from
underrepresented
backgrounds
are
also
first
generation
college
students,
low
income
backgrounds.
You
can't
really
separate
the
two
you
need
to
be
thinking
about
both
of
those.
When
I
was,
I
started
my
first
company
when
I
was
19.
and
you
don't
have
a
network.
B
This
was
in
boston
and
I
would
I
would
approach
investors.
I
would,
I
would
see
the
difference
when
I
met
with
them
when
they
saw
what
I
looked
like
and
often
it
was
subtle.
It
was
just
a
complete
change
in
tone,
even
if
there's
a
good
introduction,
but
sometimes
it
was
actually
pretty
intense.
There
was
one
example
I
was
at
a
boston
celtics.
I
found
a
way
to
get
into
box
this
box
seat
with
all
these
potential
investors.
B
There's
one
person
in
particular
who
was
a
big
philanthropist
in
boston,
and
he
made
a
comment
to
me:
he's
like
hey,
don't
you
wish
the
nba
would
go
back
to
how
it
used
to
be,
and
I'm
like
what
do
you?
What
do
you
mean
he's
like
you
know
like
all
these?
All
these
black
gorillas
on
the
floor
really
destroyed
the
sport,
and
so
you-
and
he
was
so
he
was
very
overtly
racist.
B
He
was
just
messing
with
me
and,
and
he
was
being
very
clear
like
you're,
it's
not
just
that
you're
not
worth
my
time.
I
don't
respect
you,
I'm
not
going
to
respect
you
and
I'm
going
to
try
to
belittle
you.
So
so
you
know
it
and
it's
it's
never
an
even
even
in
san
francisco.
I
have
had
the
cops
called
on
me
twice.
I
I
you
know
think
the
way
I'm
dressed
probably
doesn't
look
like.
B
I'm
gonna
steal
something,
but
it's
every
black
person
every
black
male,
especially
that
I've
chatted
with
you,
have
run
in
the
cops
multiple
times
and
so
so
there's
always
challenges
there's
always
bias.
I
do
believe,
though,
that
there's
an
opportunity
when
people
are
looking
down
on
you
or
people
underestimate
you,
there's
always
an
opportunity
to
surprise
them.
So
I
so
that's
how
I
kind
of
interpret
that
as
an
entrepreneur,
there's
always
a
way
to
turn
the
situation
into.
How
can
I
make
this
work
out
to
my
advantage.
A
B
I
I
mentioned
the
before
about
rebuilding
the
pipeline.
A
lot
of
tech
companies
are
thinking
about
diversity
quarter
to
quarter
and
they
see
their
recruiters.
As
what
numbers
can
you
produce
right
now
that
incentivizes
a
certain
type
of
short-term
thinking
and
behavior,
which
means
that
they're
only
going
to
look
at
the
small
number
of
students
who
have
already
made
it
past
everything
and
probably
are
and
are
still
attending
the
schools
that
they
already
recruit.
Out
of
that
doesn't
do
anything
for
the
community.
B
You're
not
gonna,
hit
your
diversity
targets
and
numbers,
because
the
numbers
are
so
small.
Give
you
an
idea
out
of
the
seven
thousand
three
hundred
sixty
black
cs
or
black
cs
graduates
in
2019,
only
eight
percent
588
ended
up
becoming
software
engineers.
It's
just
not
enough.
There's
there's
not
enough!
So
thinking
beyond
quarter
to
quarter
and
you
could
have
lightweight
programs.
Some
companies
will
have.
B
Facebook
has
a
abc's
program
where
it's
a
couple
of
weeks
of
technical
interviewing
with
mock
interviews,
something
like
that
moves,
the
needle
it
increases
the
pool,
that's
possible
for
you
to
recruit
out
of
workshops,
I
would
say:
are
they're
not
bad,
but
but
try
to
think
of
more
support
over
more
time.
If
you
could
think
of
hitting
your
diversity
goals
in
you
know
two
or
three
years
and
think
of
building
that
pipeline.
B
Think
of
investing
in
early
career
programs,
even
if
they're
small
scale
programs
that
engage
students
in
a
work
related
type
of
experience
freshman
year
sophomore
year,
this
is
going
to
be
the
most
impactful
and
then
you'll
also
see
a
conversion
rate
to
your
core
internship
program
and
then
a
conversion
rate
to
your
your
course.
Your
software
engineers,
your
entry-level
software
engineers,
so
I
think
companies
need
to
go
beyond
that
and
if
all
this
sounds
crazy.
A
Exactly
you
know
be
the
one,
and
in
general
I
like
your
thinking
and
what
your
organization
is
doing,
your
michael,
which
is
not
a
bandage
support,
getting
to
the
root
cause
and
addressing
the
things
at
the
systemic
level,
and
I
really
appreciate
that
in
what
you're
doing
and
more
conversations,
and
thank
you
so
much
for
spending
this
time
with
us
today
and
and
and
having
our
audience.
You
know
getting
these
tips
and
solutions.