When it comes to the role of women in technology, it’s helpful to speak with a woman who has been very successful in the field, and to get her impressions of how we can improve the working lives of women and, by extension, men as well.

Anna Patterson, vice president of engineering for artificial intelligence at Google and winner of the ABIE Technical Leadership Award, joined Rebecca Knight (@knightrm) and John Furrier (@furrier), co-hosts of theCUBE from the SiliconANGLE Media team, during the Grace Hopper Celebration of Women in Computing, held at the George R. Brown Convention Center in Houston, TX. She talked about how she helps her employees to grow and the role of women in technology.

Taking risks, growing into new roles

Furrier asked about how Patterson manages her people, especially when it’s time to move them into new areas of responsibility. “I will often look around … and let an employee know ahead of time that I’m thinking of a new assignment for them, and how they can grow into it,” said Patterson.

Regarding her advice for helping her employees manage risk, “Usually, I tell people … nobody knows everything. … I tell them to study at night; be humble, ask questions, consult books,” she stated. “So if you don’t know about a new technology, go ahead, check out the code; sit down with the engineers, and have them tutor you. It’s not always comfortable.”

The importance of connections

Regarding some tech companies’ cultures that are dominated by male coders and engineers, Furrier asked how women could succeed there. “I think people see themselves as living in the world of the mind, of ideas. You’re an engineer first, then an employee … you think of yourself as a women, down the list … people are just engineers,” said Patterson.

Knight asked if Google has a specific strategy to help women. Patterson spoke of the Women@Google organization, part of Google’s diversity outreach program, and how the emphasis is placed on communication, connection and development. “People, men and women, are happier at work with the more connections they have, a sounding board outside their scope of work,” said Patterson.

She also advised, “One of the biggest things to do to get ready for [a career in technology], give talks. Especially scientific talks; the audience will give you critical, honest feedback. If people are being hard on you, they think you’re competent.”

Photo by SiliconANGLE