I would have fired him too!

Plenty of pixels have been expended on the diversity memo from a Google engineer who argues that efforts to improve diversity were a waste of time.  I have followed the arguments and spoken with friends about the dust-up.  I realized that this question is not about diversity versus political correctness.  The entire affair is about teamwork and being a jerk to your colleagues.  The memo's author is not free-thinking but uses pseudoscience to justify biased views.  As an agilest and leader, there is no room for these individuals in your organization.

Over the years, I have been critical of the “brogrammer” culture.  I have also been critical of engineers who think gender is a disqualifying factor to work in technology.  Last week, I lamented the lack of women in the development profession.  I placed much of the blame on a feedback loop of men pursuing computer science careers and providing a leg up to other men in the industry.  It is also apparent to me that working in technology gives specific individuals the license to be an asshole to others.

One of my favorite business books is “The No Asshole Rule,” by Robert I. Sutton, Ph.D.  Sutton does a fantastic job providing a scholarly definition of what an asshole is and reasons why you do not want them in your business.  It should be required reading for any business person, along with  “The Five Dysfunctions of a Team” by Partick Lencioni.  

According to Sutton, an Asshole has two traits:

• Test One: After talking to the alleged asshole, does the “target” feel oppressed, humiliated, de-energized, or belittled by the person?  In particular, does the target feel worse about him- or herself?
• Test Two: Does the alleged asshole aim his or her venom at people who are less powerful rather than those individuals who are more powerful.

Based on the above criteria, it is evident to me that the author of the Google memo is an asshole.  The author considers himself and those like him intellectually and morally superior.  Since they are superior, they should not have to debase themselves by having to educate, mentor, or collaborate with those people.  This"other" could be women, ethnic minorities, and people living different lives.

A modern office is not an environment for this kind of thinking.  Women make up a large percentage of the workforce and fill senior leadership positions.  There are also countless people of color working as professionals.  Finally, individuals who are gay, lesbian, bisexual, or transgender are collaborating with those who are not.  Anyone who considers themselves superior to others not like them will create tension and undermine collaboration in the office.  Eventually, behavior like this will trickle down to the bottom line.  From an agile perspective, individuals who feel this sense of superiority will resist continuous improvement.  It is not a surprise the author of the diversity memo wrote this after attending a workshop on the bias.

As a manager and agilest, I would have fired the author of the Google memo.  He was a distraction to the firm and advocated a position the company had openly rejected.  Finally, his attitude toward co-workers who were different from him was toxic.  It is better to remove a polyp than deal with cancer, which could kill your organization.

Until next time.