Stanford University has long been a bedrock part of Silicon Valley, feeding talent and ideas to the tech industry. But its business school has recently been engulfed in a well-chronicled scandal that led to the resignation of the school’s dean last month, and now David Streitfeld finds that the hubbub has revealed issues at another part of Stanford, the Hoover Institution.
The business school and Hoover incidents both involve management issues with women. They come against a backdrop where Silicon Valley has been debating — and flagellating itself — for the lack of gender diversity in tech.
Over the past few years, Silicon Valley technology companies have reported data on the diversity of their workforce. The numbers have shown the lack of women in technology roles and little progress has been achieved in closing the gap.
Add to that a number of other episodes at Silicon Valley firms where the role of women has been spotlighted, including Ellen Pao’s high-profile suit for gender discrimination against her former employer, venture capital firm Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers. While Ms. Pao’s claims were rejected by a jury, the trial over the suit gave a peek into the old boys’ behavior that can permeate Silicon Valley.
The issues at Hoover and Stanford’s business school may now play into the same debate.