Google Too White, Male, Executive Says

A senior executive at Google thinks his company has a serious racial diversity problem. Recent statistics released by the high-profile technology firm, which reveal that just 2 per cent of Google's workforce is black, appear to support that claim.

Google Overwhelmingly Male, White, Stats Show

Earlier this week Google released diversity numbers which show that 61 per cent of the company's workforce is white while 30 per cent are Asian. Only 2 and 3 per cent of Google's employees are black and Hispanic, respectively.

Google is also overwhelmingly male, with men making up 70 per cent of the company's workforce. That means less than one in every three Google employees is a woman. Men also currently dominate Google's upper echelons, representing 79 per cent of high-ranking employees. The stats also show that 72 per cent of Google's top-ranking employees are white. (Source: theregister.co.uk)

Google Executive: It's Time for a Change

Lazlo Bock, Google's senior vice president of people operations, thinks it's time for that to change.

Bock, who helped to compile the recently released diversity numbers, says that "being totally clear about the extent of the problem is a really important part of the solution." In an effort to change those numbers, Bock says Google is funding computer science education for historically underrepresented groups, like women, blacks, and Hispanics.

But Google is hardly the only high-tech firm dominated by white men. Four years ago the National Science Board revealed that women held just 28 per cent of science and engineering jobs, with visible minorities -- such as Hispanics, blacks, and Native Americans -- holding just ten per cent of these positions.

Another report focusing on the years 2000 to 2010 shows that the number of blacks and Hispanics working in the San Francisco Bay Area increased by a tiny margin, while jobs for whites increased by roughly 10 per cent. Interestingly, the number of jobs held by Asians decreased significantly over that same period.

Population Changes Will Force Companies to Adapt, Expert Says

It's worth noting that racism may not be the only factor behind these statistics. Laura Weidman Powers, an executive director at a San Francisco-area non-profit that promotes racial diversity in Silicon Valley, says there are other factors to consider. "Referrals are a huge source of inbound talent for these companies, even when you look at a company as large as a Google or a Facebook," Powers said.

Of course, as the population of visible minorities grows, many tech companies will be forced to adapt. "For any company that has a consumer-facing product ... the communities that use that product will look different," Powers added. (Source: motherjones.com)

What's Your Opinion?

Do you think Silicon Valley has a racial diversity problem, as suggested by Lazlo Bock? If so, do you think major tech companies are doing enough to change the situation? Do you agree with Powers that it's only a matter of time before companies are forced to change their hiring practices, or do you think they will remain relatively unchanged in years to come?