Break Bread & Battle Bias

One meal you won't want to skip

Gender bias rears its ugly head more often than it should, which is never. But the truth is, it’s happening in the workplace and it’s holding women and minorities back.

What is bias?

During a recent Lean In Energy TED Talk, Sociology Professor Shelley Correll says bias is not always a sexist or racist term. "It's simply an error in judgment," says the Stanford professor and director of the Michelle R. Clayman Institute for Gender Research.

Reena Batra, CEO of Software Professionals, Inc. started her company in 1992. She says women still faced bias from a male-dominated industry, despite 1992 being proclaimed the "year of the woman."

"In my experience," says Sarah Derdowski from the CU Denver Business School, "Bias is generally not meant to be offensive. Most people do not even realize they are doing it."

Just because it’s not deliberate, doesn’t mean it’s non-existent.

Globally, the oil and gas sector ranks second only to construction as the worst for gender equality, and those numbers don't seem to be changing. Last fall, the Lean In Women in the Workplace study found that while women are doing their part, companies still have a long way to do theirs.

Make no mistake, bias makes it harder for the underrepresented to get hired and promoted, which can lead to a pretty miserable work environment on a day-to-day basis.

HERWorld19 puts bias on the lunch table.

During the upcoming global energy forum, this topic will be addressed at lunchtime in all three cities and online. It will be less of a lunch break and more of a lunch TAKE-away. The interactive experience is based on a new Lean In Energy program called 50 Ways to Fight Bias.

"Lean in Energy believes that empowering women in energy and closing the gender leadership gap are imperative for companies that want to perform on the highest level."

Rita Hausken, Lean In Energy/United Kingdom

The 50 Ways program pairs a card-based activity with a short video series that highlights very specific examples of gender bias in the workplace. It encourages groups to brainstorm solutions together and offers research-backed recommendations for what to do. The HERWorld19 lunch will be a live version of the web-based program.

Lunch sponsors include CU Denver Business School Global Energy Management in Denver, Lean In UK in London, and Software Professionals, Inc. in Houston.

“At CU Denver GEM, we work hard to make sure we support all of our students, but especially women and minorities. A quarter of our faculty is female and growing, and our Executive in Residence Program has featured several prominent C-level women. We have made a conscious effort to keep diversity at the forefront.”

Sarah Derdowski, Director, Strategic Development & Operations

Lean In Energy global lunch facilitators include

Amanda Accardo, Global Communications Chair, Lean In Energy, External Affairs Manager, Shell
Debo Harris, Lean In England Founder
Rita Hausken, Lean In Energy, Europe
Chad Libertus, Head of the KPMG Pride Network
Evelyn MacLean-Quick, CPO and Head of Supply Chain, Hess
Colleen Scholl, Board of Directors, Lean In Energy, Senior Vice President of Engineering, HDR
Alyssa Volk, Transformation Leader, Baker Hughes GE

"In order to work toward a more gender equal workplace, women need to mentor each other. There is power in numbers and strength in unity."

Reena Batra, CEO/Software Professionals, Inc.

Lean In Energy is the industry's first global mentoring initiative aimed at leveling the playing field for women. A portion of the proceeds from HERWorld19 will be donated back to the organization to fund its programs.