Apple's diversity efforts are 'selfish & practical' says head of developer relations
Apple's head of developer relations, Susan Prescott, says the company continues to focus on inclusion and diversity and promises new features at WWDC 2023.
Apple continues efforts on diversity and inclusion
Speaking at a recent event at Apple's new offices in Battersea, London, Prescott talked to an audience of female founders who went through the company's App Store Foundations program. Launched in 2022, the program is meant to support female developers.
Prescott explained that the company's dedication to inclusivity and diversity is motivated by a "selfish and practical" perspective. She believes that to create the best products for all consumers, they must be developed by a diverse team of individuals, according to a report from The Independent.
She continued by saying that increasing the participation of "historically underrepresented groups, including women, is super important to us." And although the App Store Foundations program was for women developers, Prescott said it and other projects were meant to increase diversity and inclusion in the App Store overall.
According to the founders who spoke with Prescott during the event, the technology industry still presents obstacles that make it challenging for women founders to succeed. For example, they highlighted the difficulties associated with obtaining funding from venture capital firms, which they found typically have a bias towards men.
Although other speakers at the event acknowledged the obstacles faced by women in the technology industry, they expressed optimism about the future. For example, Jo Goodall, the co-founder of the health app Luna for teens, noted that her interactions with young people had revealed a growing trend of young women showing interest in pursuing careers in technology.
"I'm actually sort of quietly confident a positive for the future that actually it will be normal for girls to go into tech," she said during the event.
Apple has other initiatives to promote diversity as well. For example, it announced on April 24 the third year of the Impact Accelerator program. It aims to help Black, Indigenous, and Hispanic/Latino entrepreneurs in green industries.
Prescott's remarks were made in anticipation of Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference, scheduled for June, where the company will unveil software updates for all of its products. Prescott guaranteed that the event will showcase "new features, new capabilities, new methods of engaging with Apple, and new approaches to obtaining answers."
Read on AppleInsider
Apple continues efforts on diversity and inclusion
Speaking at a recent event at Apple's new offices in Battersea, London, Prescott talked to an audience of female founders who went through the company's App Store Foundations program. Launched in 2022, the program is meant to support female developers.
Prescott explained that the company's dedication to inclusivity and diversity is motivated by a "selfish and practical" perspective. She believes that to create the best products for all consumers, they must be developed by a diverse team of individuals, according to a report from The Independent.
She continued by saying that increasing the participation of "historically underrepresented groups, including women, is super important to us." And although the App Store Foundations program was for women developers, Prescott said it and other projects were meant to increase diversity and inclusion in the App Store overall.
According to the founders who spoke with Prescott during the event, the technology industry still presents obstacles that make it challenging for women founders to succeed. For example, they highlighted the difficulties associated with obtaining funding from venture capital firms, which they found typically have a bias towards men.
Although other speakers at the event acknowledged the obstacles faced by women in the technology industry, they expressed optimism about the future. For example, Jo Goodall, the co-founder of the health app Luna for teens, noted that her interactions with young people had revealed a growing trend of young women showing interest in pursuing careers in technology.
"I'm actually sort of quietly confident a positive for the future that actually it will be normal for girls to go into tech," she said during the event.
Apple has other initiatives to promote diversity as well. For example, it announced on April 24 the third year of the Impact Accelerator program. It aims to help Black, Indigenous, and Hispanic/Latino entrepreneurs in green industries.
Prescott's remarks were made in anticipation of Apple's Worldwide Developers Conference, scheduled for June, where the company will unveil software updates for all of its products. Prescott guaranteed that the event will showcase "new features, new capabilities, new methods of engaging with Apple, and new approaches to obtaining answers."
Read on AppleInsider
Comments
Bottom line for me is that labeling someone a fascist is getting old and useless because of the history it conjures up, no different than labeling someone as a Naziif you don;t like what they are saying. To me the right and left of are of the same ilk, both seeking to control the individual’s thoughts, behavior, speech, to become slaves to their respective ideologies.
So bottom line, you have no business calling De Santis a fascist when your own ideology does the same damn thing to individual ideals they don’t like.
So how do you like them Apples?
I don’t agree. To create the best products for all consumers, they must be developed by a competent team with diverse skills and perspectives. Why are they so focused on the gender and race of a developer? How many users actually care about this? I believe close to zero — instead, they just want something to work as intended and what they expected. If diversity over quality has been driving decisions at Apple, this could explain the state of software quality at the company.
I'm sure Apple are still back filling lots of positions every week even with reported the slow down. I'm sure they drawing from a highly talented pool of applicants most beyond the minimum experience needed. Seems to me all they are saying is they'll take on someone of less "traditional" experience if they have other more rounding experience if that helps round the team. Either way they are getting competence but picking the value add above that that will value add.
If you go for a job at Apple then don't treat other interests as something people say to sound human.
I’ll bet any amount of money you care to lose that you’d never say the same thing about the NRA.
Hitler sought to emulate Mussolini, whose regime predated Hitler’s by 11 years.
The Italians know a thing or two about the matter; their word for it is “nazifascismo”.
These are just some very basic facts about the matter. I could put together a reading list for you if you like.
oh, and… Asian men don’t make “brilliant engineers.” Asian educational standards and family values turn their sons into those brilliant engineers. The same forces and opportunities applied to any kids would produce the same. Apple’s stance, I would argue, is that there’s a potentially brilliant engineer, or designer, etc, in any child from any background if given sufficient opportunity and motivation. Again, it takes a generation, a generation Apple is willing to put in to prove those assertions.
Because he’s been spewing his fascist, racist, white supremacist bile here for years.
What you typed actually sounds like something you'd hear on right-wing talk shows.
Your post highlights one glaring issue, it's not what is said, it's WHO says it that matters.
It's too bad the world is this way now.