Diversity in tech is an issue that has been a hot topic in Philadelphia’s tech scene in recent months. Diversity can mean many things, but it generally describes a group of people that come from differing backgrounds. The tech industry has a diversity problem because people from certain demographics are more likely to pursue a career in tech, and the challenges for them to stay working in tech, once there, are enormous. If the talent pool doesn’t appear to be diverse, it’s difficult to build a diverse workforce. Let’s talk about why it’s important to find diverse candidates and build a diversity in any company.

Let me start by telling a story about what happens when there is a lack of diversity. I lived in South Korea on a rural island for years. In my workplace and neighborhood there, I was the only non-Asian, non-Korean person, normally. I liked it. However, at times I witnessed situations where a bit of diversity would have done a lot of good. For instance, when I walked down the street in front of my apartment building, sometimes kids would point at me and yell “look at the foreigner!” and their parents would just laugh. When there is no diversity, it is hard to build empathy for others who aren’t like you. My neighbors had few opportunities to interact with foreigners from outside their community on the island. They couldn’t possibly have known how it felt to be the “different” one, or that it may be hurtful to yell about people who weren’t like them. Sometimes in an environment where there is little empathy for differences, it feels hostile for someone from a wildly different background and mindset to exist there.

What does that story have to do with diversity in tech? Well, I came back to the United States and into the tech industry, and it shocked me that such progressive companies in such a diverse nation wouldn’t have very diverse workforces. Philadelphia especially has a very diverse demographic. As you walk through Centre City, you are surrounded by lively diversity and people from all kinds of backgrounds. It’s super exciting. Yet, when you walk into a tech company in downtown Philly, the demographics do not seem to often transfer over. Something needs to be done about this. For one thing, it hurts the company if the workforce isn’t diverse. Lack of diversity prevents a company from producing useful solutions for diverse audiences with empathy.

Diversity in a company allows many perspectives to come into play during a project, which is a great a strength. This was pointed out by NYCDA graduate Charmel Sippio’s presentation at Ela Conf 2017, Leveraging The Power of “We.” Different perspectives enrich the solutions that a company produces so that teams can anticipate needs of clients and customers with more experience to draw on. Companies that have gender and ethnic diversity perform better financially by 15% to 35%. A more diverse group of people who work well together and embrace each others’ backgrounds will come up with ideas that can have a global impact. Where there are more personalities who have overcome varying obstacles in life, there is strength. The more diverse coworkers a person has, the more experience that person will have with accepting differences. That makes strong teams and is conducive to empathy.

More than all of this, diversity is fun. When there are more stories to be told, it makes life interesting. In communities where people from wildly different backgrounds overcome differences to work on a team (like the communities you can find in coding bootcamps), it’s just inspiring. It’s an experience that tech companies should want to provide for their valuable employees. The more rich the experience, the more likely it will be that those employees will stay, and the more diverse candidates the company can attract.

My advice to tech companies: tap into the diverse talent in the community around you!