MENLO PARK, Calif. — Facebook and LinkedIn want to boost dwindling numbers of women studying engineering and computer science with a collaborative initiative announced Friday that they hope eventually will fill thousands of lucrative Silicon Valley jobs long dominated by men.
In an exclusive joint interview with The Associated Press, Facebook chief operating officer Sheryl Sandberg and LinkedIn chief executive Jeffrey Weiner said they’re launching mentoring and support programs at colleges to get more women involved in studying technology in general, but also as future employees for their companies.
Fifteen percent of Facebook’s employees working in tech jobs and 31 percent of employees overall are women, according to diversity figures the company released last year. At LinkedIn, women make up 17 percent of its tech employees and 39 percent overall. Most Silicon Valley companies have similar demographics.
Telle Whitney, president and chief executive of the Anita Borg Institute, a partner in the initiative, said diversity brings greater innovation in technology.
