Remember the last newsletter when we mentioned that maybe WeWork could have avoided some of its "issues" if it had more women in charge? Here's one of those "case-in-point" points: Ousted CEO Adam Neumann's former chief of staff Medina Bardhi filed a discrimination claim against the co-working company alleging she was demoted twice because she was pregnant and that a male hired to replace her was paid twice as much. Bardhi also claimed that WeWork fostered a sexist workplace culture and that maternity leave was referred to as "vacation" at the company. W. T. F. Please compare and contrast images to the left and right and let us know what conclusion you come to, Adam, who has like a bazillion children and should know from Adam.
Moving right along, Google has updated its definition of Googleyness — assumedly that je ne sais quoi combo of smarts and forward-thinking that makes someone a good fit for them — in an effort to stave off bias in the hiring process. Apparently the old definition still stands, but Google added instructions to its hiring guide advising employees to "avoid confusing Googleyness with culture fit, which can leave room for bias." The thinking is that the once en vogue "culture fit" requirement leads to the hiring of staffers who mirror the existing employee base and does not foster diversity. It's all kind of confusing, and it seems some Googlers agree, according to this article from The Information.
We'd be remiss if we didn't include some super sad stats for you, so here comes a few: Women still hold just 16.9 percent of board seats worldwide — 30 years to parity at this point! — and men hold 94.7 percent of board chair positions and 95.6 percent of CEO roles. Also, just three of the 28 lawyers set to argue in front of the Supreme Court in November are women, and five of those 25 men have already done so this term.
But let's end on a (questionably) high note! Aspiring attorney Kim Kardashian dressed up as Elle Woods for Halloween and she really went for it, recreating the beloved law school character’s video application to Harvard Law. Wow. Thanks for reading, and have a great weekend!
NEWS JUST FOR YOU... IN TECH & ENGINEERING...Former Google employee Chelsey Glasson — who sent a memo that went viral titled, “I’m Not Returning to Google After Maternity Leave, and Here is Why” — filed an official complaint with the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) alleging bias. Glasson spoke to Fast Company about what she’s been going through since her story went public, including lawyers telling her, “Google’s going to eat you alive, and they’re going to use their vast resources to try to discredit you. Your whole life is going to be up for critique"...Who is Jennifer Arcuri, the U.S. tech businesswoman who’s making big headlines in the U.K. because of her “friendship” with Prime Minister Boris Johnson?...Vimeo CEO Anjali Sud talks about pivoting the company away from the pricey streaming content game (or “wars,” as they’re referred to every five seconds) in favor of becoming a Software as a Service provider...READ ALL
AND ELSEWHERE IN BIG BUSINESS... IN ADVERTISING & MEDIA...Laura Wagner was one of at least nine (so far) Deadspin journalists who quit this week in protest of a mandate by the new owners...Connie Chung, who has anchored for ABC, CBS and CNN, said there needs to be more “cleaning” at TV news networks to combat sexual misconduct in the industry...Motivated by the turmoil at NBC News following accusations that the network killed Ronan Farrow’s Harvey Weinstein story to protect Matt Lauer — and the network’s failure to launch an independent investigation into that — among other claims, digital staffers at the network are forming a union...The Daytime Emmys announced Thursday that it's allowing actors to enter their preferred gender categories...Top ad industry exec Jo Ann Ross will run ad sales at ViacomCBS, making her the first woman to do so for a broadcast network...MSNBC’s senior director of news Betsy Korona has been promoted to executive director of news for MSNBC and NBC News Now...READ ALL
IN FINANCE...A proposed class action suit is looking to stop financial services advertisers and Facebook from allegedly targeting ads for bank accounts, loans, investments and other products away from women and people 40 and over...Lori Van Dusen, founder and CEO of LVW Advisors and a former top 1-percent producer and managing director at Smith Barney (where she had the ear of Jamie Dimon), has been a trailblazer for women on Wall Street. In this interview she discusses talking maternity leave with Dimon, how the investment landscape has evolved since she started...READ ALL
IN LAW...Allegations are coming from all sides in the mess at DLA Piper surrounding ousted senior partner Louis Lehot, who was accused of sexual misconduct by firm junior partner Vanina Guerrero and two other women. DLA Piper said Guerrero — who was herself put on leave because of unrelated misconduct claims levied against her by another colleague — was a “willing participant in a lengthy emotional flirtation with Mr. Lehot that she orchestrated to advance her career"...The life of legal consultant and activist Erin Brockovich — made famous by the movie of the same name starring Julia Roberts — is coming to the small screen...The proposed class-action gender bias suit against Jones Day has "fatal holes" and must be dismissed, the firm told a D.C. court...Kelley Drye & Warren has announced Dana Rosenfeld as its next managing partner, putting her in a role that’s still rare for women...READ ALL
IN MANUFACTURING & RETAIL...“Don’t call it a comeback, I’ve been here for years” could be the mantra for the struggling 117-year-old retailer J.C. Penney, but CEO Jill Soltau seems pretty comfortable saying that things have not been working for the department store chain for quite a while as she looks to engineer a turnaround...Barney’s New York, led by CEO Daniella Vitale, is, as we know it, (pretty much) officially no more. A bankruptcy judge approved the $270 million bid from Authentic Brands Group and B. Riley Financial for the department store’s intellectual property...Stitch Fix CEO Katrina Lake is looking to increased personalization to increase revenue for the clothing subscription service...READ ALL
IN REAL ESTATE...Warburg Realty’s Clelia Peters was appointed to the board of Side, a virtual brokerage based in San Francisco that provides operational support for top agents looking to grow their personal brands. The VC-backed firm has 500 agents in California and Texas and generates $5 billion in annual sales, according to the company...READ ALL
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