Twitter’s new diversity chief causes outcry
Twitter, under fire for the striking lack of women and minorities in its ranks, has set off a new controversy by hiring a white man to lead its diversity efforts.
Apple’s diversity chief Jeffrey Siminoff will replace Janet Van Huysse as Twitter’s vice president of diversity and inclusion, the San Francisco company said Monday on Twitter.
Siminoff, who co-founded Out Leadership, a lesbian, gay and transgender advocacy group, has promoted the inclusion of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender people in the business community.
Apple, like most major tech companies, has made little progress in increasing the portion of women and underrepresented minorities in its workforce.
Civil rights leader Rev. Jesse Jackson said in an interview that he is disappointed by Twitter’s choice for a new diversity chief.
“Blacks and Latinos over-index on using Twitter, but their board of directors and C-suite leadership remain all white,” Jackson said.
“Jeff has a big mountain to climb, a tough task ahead. We hope he and Twitter’s leadership is up to the challenge.”
Twitter did not respond to multiple requests for comment on the appointment.
Jackson has pressed Twitter and other tech companies to build workforces and leadership that better represent the U.S. population.
In November, Jackson expressed “grave concerns” that recent Twitter layoffs disproportionately affected African Americans and Hispanics.
Twitter is especially popular among African Americans.
More than a quarter of black Internet users in the U.S. are on Twitter, a rate higher than other ethnic groups, according to a 2013 study by the Pew Research Center. And “Black Twitter” — the flow of conversation about issues that matter to this online community — has become a cultural force capable of influencing the national dialogue and the course of events.
Yet Twitter’s workforce is not diverse: 2% African American and 4% Latino in the U.S. and 34% women globally.
Last month, the company’s highest-ranking African-American employee left Twitter and publicly criticized Twitter for its failure to hire more underrepresented minorities.
“Twitter needs someone with familiarity with the market it is pursuing,” Jackson said.
Diversity consultant Ellie Tumbuan said Twitter missed a “huge opportunity.”
“The choice that they made represents a potentially very challenging path ahead,” said Tumbuan, a principal with Vaya Consulting. “Had they chosen a woman of color, of which there are so many — there is an abundant pool of qualified leadership on this issue who already reflect Twitter’s largest user base — not only would that have sent a much more positive message, but we know the work of that person might be more effective in achieving the goals of a chief diversity officer.”
Twitter founder and chief executive Jack Dorsey has pledged his commitment to creating a more diverse workforce and more inclusive work culture.
Erica Baker, an engineer at Slack and a diversity advocate, called on Dorsey to take a more active role.
“Diversity and Inclusion should be a priority for all employees, but the person who leads the efforts and holds people accountable should be nobody but the CEO,” she wrote on Medium. “If Twitter wants to make sure Diversity and Inclusion is a priority at Twitter, the head of Diversity and Inclusion at Twitter should be Jack.”
A white man, Jeffrey Siminoff, will replace Janet Van Huysse as head of its diversity efforts.