Subject line of the email in my inbox: “Special membership offer from WITI.”
The acro didn’t register immediately, so I opened it up to take a look:
Dear Paul:
When I started WITI in 1989, I had 4 objectives:
1.Advancing women by providing direct access to a global network of professional, tech-savvy women committed to collaboration, not competition;
2.Transforming corporate environments to level the playing field for women;
3.Increasing the number of women at top executive levels; and,
4.Encouraging girls to select careers in technology.
Hmmm, admirable goals all, But, me? A member of Women in Technology International?
Perhaps there was some mistake; maybe the e-mail was intended for a Paula McNamara, not Paul (it’s happened) … or this was a prank and someone was once again casting aspersions on my masculinity (like the reader who recently called me a “pantywaist, candy-ass,” for example).
The e-mail continues:
“WITI is totally committed to helping you succeed at every level – we offer you the platform for building your brand, providing you the connections, information and resources to succeed – the only thing we ask of you is to show up. We offer a supportive, woman-rich environment to help you break through to the next level.”
But, but, but … the e-mail offers nothing to assuage my concern that maybe they’re targeting the wrong demographic here. No notation that “Men are welcome, too, of course.” Or, “Fellas, don’t be shy.”
So I went to the organization’s Web site looking for such a sign of inclusiveness, and, while it took some searching, there it was buried deep within the “About WITI” section under “WITI demographics.”
(103,000 registered users, statistics as of July 2005)
Gender Breakdown:
Female: 94.2%
Male: 5.8%
First thought: Yes, men can join. Second thought: They aren’t kidding about the “woman-rich environment” — that’s just shy of 20 to 1 by my reckoning.
Is the headline on this post making sense now?
It gets better, at least if you’re the type of man who enjoys interacting with smart, successful women in both professional and perhaps personal settings: 4 in 10 WITI members hold advanced educational degrees, about half own their own businesses or hold executive positions … and an equal number earn six-figure salaries.
Now I know what some of you are thinking: How dare this cad turn something as serious and important as WITI into just another excuse to make advances?
Try not to judge me so harshly. For one thing, I’m a happily married father of three who’s not joining anything any time soon except maybe the PTA. And I am quite certain that the 5.8 percent of the WITI membership that is male had nothing but the purest of professional motivations for joining.
I’m just saying … if you’re a single IT guy … and you’re looking for a professional organization to join to round out the resume … you could do a lot worse.
