Throughout my work I’ve repeatedly seen gender biases negatively effect web development teams. The subtle rules of gender socialization creep in quick and suddenly like an ever-present fog. Yet, this subject is rarely discussed openly.
Often men take a default position of authority even when a woman holds a higher organizational position. Women respond by huddling together in a defensive place, fawning towards the men to improve their positioning, or embracing the very same callouness. Invisible cues take over and every one plays their assigned roles with little direction.
In the past, software programming was seen as women’s work while men did the more “serious” jobs of building and maintaining hardware. Development teams can’t really be successful unless they spend ample time on addressing gender and racial bias. And by success, I mean creating safe and equitable working spaces rather than maximizing the profitability of the products and services.