Being a Woman in Tech Can Be Difficult — 3 Women Share How Their Employer is Making It Easier

The business reasons for increasing diversity are well documented. According to research, non-homogeneous teams are smarter than homogeneous ones and a diverse workforce generates more revenue and accelerates business ingenuity.  As the world grows ever more diverse, it only makes sense for companies to expand representation to serve these markets more effectively.

But at Intel, diversity is more than the bottom line. We envision a future where the people who imagine and build technology mirror the people and societies for whom they build it.

From modifying hiring practices, implementing support and retention programs to adding incentives for working with diverse suppliers and more, prioritizing diversity and realizing our vision requires not only a change in behaviors on the part of the company, but its employees as well.

As Intel takes the initiative to lead with respect to parity in representation, we employees must champion the changes from within. Read our stories to learn what this looks like in action and the impact it has had on our lives.

Being a Filipino-American engineer and a single mom with two amazing daughters, it is important for me to evolve with and witness the transformation of the technical opportunities at Intel. Knowing my daughters will have a diverse workplace in the future provides me comfort and assurance that they will have equal opportunity to have their voices heard based on their intelligence, work experience and work ethics.

Intel also changed my life through dragon boat racing. I have paddled for Team Intel Blue since 2016. I would never have tried this water sport in a million years if I hadn’t been selected to participate in Team Intel Blue as part of Intel’s Great Place to Work program. Since then, our team has won the Corporate A Division, and we are three-time defending champions. Because of a workplace initiative, I am now a year-round paddler for Arizona Women’s and Mixed Teams and compete in local, nationwide and global races.

I went from being one of only three women in a class of more than 60 (5%) as a physics undergraduate to a group with 28.6% women as a new employee at Intel. While there have always been other technical women in the groups I’ve worked in, I’ve noticed an increase in the past three years. Women Fellows have increased ninefold since 2015. Intel has always had a policy of inclusion, but with the additional focus, I have a better sense that I am valued as an employee. I help foster inclusion in my organization by supporting new employee integration by volunteering as a ‘buddy.’ I also lead a mentoring circle of technical women.

Coming from a midsize town in India and being one of only two girls in an engineering class of 30, I was not sure what career options I would have until I joined Intel 13 years ago. I have seen an amazing transformation since then with our growing workforce. We now have 30 employee resource groups organized around race, national origin, religious beliefs, gender, sexual orientation and parenthood. These groups help foster diversity and inclusion and create enthusiasm for Intel as a great place to work. Positive organization behavior has helped employees like me create connections and strengthen work commitments. Leaders and managers seek my perspective to solve problems, and I am empowered to take on challenges in my areas of interest. This has also helped me be a positive parental role model—my kids take pride in associating with Intel.

At Intel, we accept, embrace, and believe in diversity. Here, people from all walks of life have a voice that is heard and respected. We are remarkable, talented, and brilliant people. We have innovative ideas. We have something special to offer because of our different backgrounds, ethnicities, and heritages. This is what makes us unique and extraordinary. This is what makes us able to push possible forward—together.

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