Maggie Nelson: Battling Gender Bias In The Tech Industry

At an early age Maggie Nelson knew that she wanted to make an impact on the online world. To that end she started teaching herself HTML in the late 90’s so that she could build websites for herself and her friends. However this hobby soon became a passion, which lead her to learn ever more, starting with Javascript, and then moving on to Perl, before eventually enrolling in New York University where she earned a bachelors in computer science. After leaving school she moved to San Francisco in 2010 in order to pursue a career as a software engineer. However she quickly realized that there was a systematic demographic bias in hiring among tech companies. This made her more aware of the Feminist Matrix, a concept which she had ignored in her 20’s, but which now plagued her personal and professional life. That in turn motivated her to try and find a way to fix the issue, both for herself, and for other women trying to break into the field. Understanding the importance of working with others, Maggie started seeking out professional groups dedicated to promoting gender equality, while educating and supporting women trying to transition into tech careers. That’s when she discovered Women Who Code. There she was able to develop a network of friends and acquaintances that had the same goals, values, and concerns as she did. That helped to reinforce her confidence in her own abilities, making it easier for her to deal with a biased industry. When asked about the impact that WWCode has had on her life and the tech world in general, Maggie remarked, “It's very important to have organizations we can join to feel like we're not the only one. I love that WWCode exists because no matter what happens, I know there is some sort of a support network for me. I also think it's great to have a very vocal and well-recognized voice in the community.” Maggie Nelson has had a stellar career, working for a variety of top companies including Amazon, Flickr, and Major League Baseball. Today she is the VP of engineering for Findery, a company that allows users to post notes to different locations on a world map. There she promotes gender equal hiring practices, working with interviewers to make them aware of biases they may be employing when making personnel decisions. This has led to the development of a more open, non-homogenous workforce. She also continues to support Women Who Code, advocating equality across the entire field. Follow Maggie Nelson on Twitter.

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Media Contact: Neal Brown | Chief of Staff Address: Women Who Code HQ, 44 Tehama St, 5th Floor San Francisco, CA 94105 Email: press@womenwhocode.com