Facebook sets new targets for global women workforce

Social media giant sets new targets for global women workforce in its annual diversity report. Women currently make up 36.9 per cent of Facebook employees.

Facebook sets new targets for global women workforce

Facebook aims to double the percentage of women working at the social media giant around the world over the next five years, while setting new diversity goals for the organisation.

“We envision a company where in five years, at least fifty-per cent of our workforce is made up of women, people who are Black, Hispanic, Native American, Pacific Islanders, people with two or more ethnicities, people with disabilities and veterans,” Maxine Williams, Facebook’s chief diversity officer, wrote in a blog post.

Facebook released the new targets alongside its annual diversity report, which details the ethnic and gender breakdown of its workforce.
“In doing this, we aim to double our number of women globally. It will be a company that reflects and better serves the people on our platforms, services and products,” she added.

In the report, the company said women currently make up 36.9 per cent of staff, up from 36.3 per cent last year and 31 per cent in 2014. At senior leadership level, women account for 32.6 per cent of staff, up from 30 per cent last year.

Williams said the company had “achieved higher representation of global women in leadership by focusing on hiring and growing female leaders”. In technical roles, though, women account for just 23 per cent of staff.

Facebook has put the most effort into diversifying its technical workforce, “so there is an irony and a frustration on our part that we have not been able to grow more,” she added.