Software engineer and diversity advocate Tracy Chou spoke about inclusion in engineering at Inspirefest 2017.

At Inspirefest 2017, Project Include co-founder Tracy Chou explained how the tech industry can tackle diversity using the same method it applies to other challenges: data-driven decision-making.

Chou first broached this idea in 2013 when she wrote a Medium post that challenged tech employers to reveal the number of women engineers they had on staff. Chou was certain that by putting a spotlight on this data, she could effect change in the gender balance of her industry.

“Without data, there was no language for describing the magnitude and the pervasiveness of the problem, and it was too easy to dismiss,” she said.

Words by Elaine Burke