LTX 2018 | Latinx In Tech

Client Overview

The Kapor Center is an Oakland-based organization that aims to make the national tech ecosystem more diverse and inclusive. Their focus is on historically underserved communities with limited access to opportunities and influence.

Challenge:

How might we increase engagement and representation for LatinX employees in the tech industry for them to retain their position?

Team

Program Lead: Lili Gangas,
Program Manager: Joshua Torres,
Graphic Designer: Marcus Creel
Digital Engagement Director: Cliff Worley,
Event Manager: Antoinette Ray

My Role

Brand Designer, Presentation & Graphic Designer.

Duration

4 Months

Research

According to the 2010 Census, Latin Americans are the second-largest ethnic community in the United States; however, they only attribute to 16% of the tech workforce. This poses a question: what is the cause of a low percentage? To better understand the lack of representation, The Kapor Center conducted a first-of-its-kind study to understand why people of color are turning away from their careers in the tech industry.

From their findings, "23% of underrepresented people of color experienced being stereotyped in their former company, [while] 30% of women of color were most likely to be passed over for promotions". This reveals the unfair bias that thrives in the current tech culture with people of color portrayed as a victim.

These top factors were generated from their poll that would encourage them to stay with their previous company.

Improved company leadership and management (73%)

Promotion and better job title (69%)
More meaningful work (66%)
More work-life balance (65%)
More fair and inclusive culture (64%)
More positive respectful work environment (63%)

Solution

To satisfy these factors, Kapor Center commissioned me to help brand a 2-day event: the LatinX in Tech Summit. Sponsored by Comcast and Google Cloud for Startups, this summit was composed of workshops and lectures with diverse leaders in business and technology. At a turnout of over 300 attendees, this event inspires fellowship and connections with other Latinx employees of various companies. Helping develop a community among their own demographic will help in diversifying the tech industry's prominent white male demographic.

Process: "Breaking the Norm"

From phase 1, this summit symbolized broken barriers of the status quo for the tech industry. We created an identity that Latinx individuals would want to stand behind. We used the "X" in LatinX to break the patriarchal construct of the Spanish language. Since more women are entering tech, the gender-neutral term was deemed appropriate by the team.

The same approach was also practiced when determining color. Early on, we researched what were the most common colors used in tech companies. The results read that blues, blacks, and greens were most common.In Color Psychology, black represents sophistication, green represents stability, and blue represents trust & responsibility. To deride from the norm, our team decided to go with a combination of Gold and Purple. Purple represents compassion, while gold represents opportunity and enthusiasm. Research shows these two colors were used the least in tech.