This.

That extends this I wrote about a few weeks ago.

This is pissing me the hell off! All that. It all needs to stop.

How are some of the brightest minds on the internet not seeing the harm in how we collectively perceive women, women in tech, women in our industry?

How is it funny to send nude photos of women to a prospective boss and get hired as a result?

How is it humorous to make jokes about “gangbang interviews” in a professional presentation?

How is this okay?

In the context of discussion around this article, someone said something to the effect of, “Well, you know, most resumés I get are from guys so I just hire best available.”

Bullshit. Recruitment is everything, especially when small. And not just for gender equality. You always want to find the best and sometimes the best are working for another company. Sometimes the best are working for themselves and they need to be convinced to come work for you. You have to be proactive to find who you want. If you take the passive approach, you’ll almost always get mediocre talent.

I’ve always proactively recruited as a hiring manager. We were reminiscing yesterday about the “vintage” days of b5media (which was just acquired, congrats!) when Brian Layman posted an old article describing his interview. We eventually hired him (because I personally recruited and hand-picked him) and he ended up being one of the best developers the company ever had.

If you want women in your company, don’t be a douche, go out and find them and hire them. Pay them top salaries along with all your guys.

I will eventually be a hiring manager again and I pledge that I will make every good faith effort to hire at least one woman for every man I hire. Obviously, I’m not naive. It may not always be possible. But to the best of my ability, I will do this.

Hey industry, we need to stop paying lip service to feminism. Let’s be feminists and practice what we preach.