Pao bias case risks setting back cause of tech sector women

The gender discrimination trial that transfixed Silicon Valley for much of this spring risks setting back the cause of women in the tech industry, some senior women in the start-up world have warned.

Ellen Pao, a former junior partner at venture capital firm Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers claimed discrimination and retaliation but lost her case late last month. By making broad allegations of gender bias based on weak evidence, Ms Pao has created a false impression of the state of sexual politics in Silicon Valley and created the risk of a backlash, the senior women claim.

However, they and others also acknowledge that the Pao trial has helped to draw more attention to the lack of gender diversity in tech, highlighting the complexity of the issue for the industry. The resulting discussion has also raised questions about whether the small venture capital firms and start-ups that populate Silicon Valley have paid enough attention to the gender issues that have kept the senior ranks of tech almost exclusively male.

A jury found against Ms Pao on all counts but she used a television interview this week to paint her case as part of a wider fight against gender discrimination in tech. She has not said if she plans an appeal.

Donna Dubinsky, co-founder of the pioneering handset firms Palm and Handspring, agreed that the case exposed the small slights and "unconscious bias" often faced by women but she said Ms Pao's depiction of Silicon Valley as a place of blatant discrimination was a serious distortion.

"Part of the trial was Ellen Pao arguing about these silly little things," Ms Dubinsky said. "If you're going to get anything done in the work environment, you've got to get thick-skinned."

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As part of its case, Kleiner presented evidence of a series of career reviews that consistently raised questions about Ms Pao's suitability to become a senior partner, helping to convince the jury that it had not discriminated against her.

The kinds of situations brought up in the trial showed that "there's too much grey area in this gender bias issue" to be dealt with in court, said Tracy DiNunzio, chief executive officer of Tradesy, a start-up whose backers include Kleiner.

"The issue [of discrimination] was talked about in damaging ways - I found the case upsetting from beginning to end," Ms DiNunzio said. "I don't feel Ellen Pao represents me as a woman in tech."

Ms DiNunzio said that the case had created uncertainty by making male tech executives less sure about how to deal with female employees if they fear they may face legal action.

<>For her part, Ms Dubinsky said, "I worry about whether there will be a backlash". But she added, that the tech industry's demand for talent was so great that the case was unlikely to affect hiring decisions.

However, they and others said that drawing more attention to the position of women in tech could also have positive results. "We just don't know what will happen yet from this - it may be that we will get more productive things happening as a result," said Mari Baker, a serial entrepreneur who once worked at Kleiner Perkins as an executive in residence.

Ms Dubinsky, one of whose start-ups has received an investment from Kleiner in the past, said that the case had raised questions about whether small VC firms and tech start-ups had sufficient procedures to protect against discrimination. "If anything, what it showed about Kleiner was weak processes," she said.

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