What You Need to Know About the Shatter List

The race is on to make Silicon Slopes, and the technology industry in general, a more welcoming place for women. What is the Shatter List and did your company make the cut?

Recently, the Women Tech Council released the list of 46 Utah tech companies that actively employ programs and measures to shatter that glass ceiling, especially in technology.

The Shatter List was compiled by scoring companies on four factors critical to building inclusive cultures with meaningful measures. Data was gathered, evaluated, and mapped to the following factors:

Executive engagement (active support from the CEO, executive team and all leadership)
Company programming (currently has women in leadership executive positions and proactively implements programs to support women in technology)
Community investment (active participation with the broader community to learn from and share best practices regarding culture and inclusion)
Women’s or diversity and inclusion group (formal programs to support women internally)

A number of well-meaning initiatives designed to encourage young girls to pursue careers in technology may seem like a step in the right direction. However, all of the programs in the world can’t help if women don’t stick with tech jobs long-term. We must work on all fronts, and focus on what is happening today in our company’s culture.

Research has shown that companies with high gender diversity are more profitable and less volatile than those with low gender diversity. Business leaders throughout Salt Lake City are working to shed a light on what sort of cultures of diversity and inclusion we are creating now:

“The goal of the Shatter List is to recognize the programs and practices that are actively creating inclusive cultures from top to bottom to help change the culture of the technology industry and shatter the glass ceiling. The strong presence of these programs among so many Utah companies shows the dedication of many in Silicon Slopes to accelerating positive changes in the technology sector that will increase the number of women in technology and drive all those within the organization to succeed.” – Cydni Tetro, Women Tech Council President

“The benefit and impact of increased diversity in the workplace to O.C. Tanner is imperative to identifying and highlighting the strengths and innovation that can only come from differing values, experiences, and backgrounds. We’re excited to be named on this list and look forward to furthering our involvement and commitment within our communities. – Amy Knapp, O.C. Tanner VP of Information Security and Service Delivery

“The Shatter List affirms the great work that is already happening within companies in Salt Lake City and throughout Utah, and it serves as a model for other companies wanting to do the same.” – Todd Davis, FranklinCovey Chief People Officer, and Author of “Get Better” (contributor of both quotes)