Does Diversity Add Value in Engineering or Just Complexity?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Does anyone believe diversity is valuable in most engineering or tech fields outside of corporate settings?

I lead a team of about 20 software engineers, and I struggle to see the value in diversity as it is currently being pushed at the corporate level. In some cases, it feels like it introduces challenges, particularly around communication, language, and cultural differences, which can add overhead to collaboration.

I can see where diversity makes sense in areas like outreach or programs focused on learning about and working across different cultures. I also see value when a tech company is serving a specific country or industry, where having a subject matter expert who understands that market can help guide the team. But that does not necessarily mean those individuals need to be embedded directly on the core engineering team.

In core engineering roles, I question whether diversity provides meaningful benefits beyond corporate talking points or checkboxes. In certain industries outside of tech, like power line workers and other roles where clear communication is critical for safety, these challenges could even pose risks.

Am I off base here? It sometimes feels like what is labeled as diversity in the tech industry is actually driven by cost considerations, such as hiring through visa programs, rather than a genuine focus on diverse perspectives.

When results matter, only merit has value. Someone mentioned the diversity of experience. That’s absolutely valid, and is a compliment to merit. However, in 99.9% of cases we know what is meant by “diversity.”

You mentioned that diversity adds unnecessary overhead in your case, and I believe that is the point. It is done to create an industry focused on implementing diversity. Hence, this type of diversity adds to product costs etc.

Merit should rule. That’s how success is built.

Unfortunately no diversity most often means less merited individuals advance. That has been apparent on the national stage the past couple of years.

[Anonymous]

This is a very bizarre question. I am African American and I work in computational fluid dynamics. All my colleagues understand the same models I do. We use the same technical terms etc. We interpret the results similarly. I am kind of puzzled about OP's question.

For example if I hated the right geometry for a project or tell the CAD guy, are you saying that based on their gender/race/sexual orientation they will understand it differently?

Lol some of you need a life seriously. Anyone who has gone through an engineering program and work as an engineer knows that you can't take it. And if you do, they will just find a way to put you way from engineering into other kind of work instead.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This is a very bizarre question. I am African American and I work in computational fluid dynamics. All my colleagues understand the same models I do. We use the same technical terms etc. We interpret the results similarly. I am kind of puzzled about OP's question.

For example if I hated the right geometry for a project or tell the CAD guy, are you saying that based on their gender/race/sexual orientation they will understand it differently?

Lol some of you need a life seriously. Anyone who has gone through an engineering program and work as an engineer knows that you can't take it. And if you do, they will just find a way to put you way from engineering into other kind of work instead.

I have a degree in pure math. I honestly saw zero differences in the way my other classmates solved problems. And I was in a very diverse school. My Topology teacher for example required students to present the topics and he just steps in to reinforce concepts etc. We were so immersed in the subject that we didn't see anything else.

Some people just like to think others don't believe in the same space as them. Usually these people need someone else to blame for failing to achieve whatever they thought they "deserved".

Having said that as a White man I'll say I have come across more clueless White men in my career that I wonder how on earth they got this far. We are these men every single day we go to work lol.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Tech companies have a self serving view of diversity, patting themselves on the back for their large number of H1B staff.

Really, they are trying to take advantage of the power differential between them and these workers, who have limited ability to find jobs with competitors due to visa issues.

Diversity can be wonderful, bringing an array of perspectives to the table. But if it’s simply being used to rah rah H1B hiring, there might be other factors at play.

My department, other than myself, is 100% a single national origin. Somehow that counts as “diversity”.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:This is a very bizarre question. I am African American and I work in computational fluid dynamics. All my colleagues understand the same models I do. We use the same technical terms etc. We interpret the results similarly. I am kind of puzzled about OP's question.

For example if I hated the right geometry for a project or tell the CAD guy, are you saying that based on their gender/race/sexual orientation they will understand it differently?

Lol some of you need a life seriously. Anyone who has gone through an engineering program and work as an engineer knows that you can't take it. And if you do, they will just find a way to put you way from engineering into other kind of work instead.

Did you hear what happened in Flint Michigan ?

African American communities Public water supply are more likely to get contaminated than whites one. Maybe if there were more black engineers in those industries then that issue would much less often.