Why are ‘DEI Engineers’ to Blame for CrowdStrike’s Mistake?

This month, Microsoft laid off its entire internal diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) team, citing “changing business needs”.

The move was highly criticised, both internally and externally, as many pointed out how Microsoft had promised to double the number of people of colour (POCs) in leadership positions by 2025.

This double standard seems to have been reflected across the board with DEI initiatives, particularly in the tech industry. Such initiatives are being scaled back regularly, while companies maintain that they are on the side of giving minorities equal opportunities within their companies.

This is evidenced by the fact that Meta, Google, and even Zoom, scaled back their DEI initiatives and laid off staff within these teams in the last year alone.

DEI initiatives seem to have been demonised over the years. Unsurprisingly, even the recent widespread CrowdStrike outage was blamed on DEI hiring practices, rather than a failure of quality assurance.

Apart from xAI head Elon Musk himself, several others have pointed to CrowdStrike’s DEI initiative as the cause for the outage, alleging that a “DEI engineer” was likely responsible for the update that caused the mishap. Though, this has been proved wrong.

One would be quick to believe that DEI initiatives within the tech sector are rampant. But the reality is that opinions are far from changed, making these initiatives all talk and no action. Which is the same case in the Indian tech sector, as evidenced by Ola founder Bhavish Aggarwal’s recent “pronoun illness” debacle, wherein the prime targets seem to be from the LGBTQIA+ community.

DEI and Indian Tech

Speaking with AIM, Roshni R, who works as an assistant manager at Omega Healthcare, said that her experience as a trans woman at the company has been wrought with nothing but support. However, she acknowledged that this might not be the case everywhere.

“Many companies have implemented diversity and inclusion initiatives, and there is increased visibility of LGBTQIA+ individuals. However, I have noticed that discrimination, harassment, and stigma still persist, making it difficult for these individuals to feel fully accepted and supported in their careers,” she said.

Others have also echoed this sentiment. Sumit Chejara, a senior people specialist for Mastercard and part of the LGBTQIA+ community, stated that his first experience coming out at a previous workplace led to bullying from his coworkers and an overall hostile workplace.

“This experience forced me to leave that job. For a long time, I felt the need to hide my identity, which was emotionally exhausting and isolating. It wasn’t until I joined Mastercard that I felt safe and supported enough to be open about who I am,” he told AIM.

This clearly means that people from this minority community need to leave it up to chance as to whether a company will treat them right. They realise this only after they become a part of the workforce.

“The Indian tech ecosystem has made significant strides in LGBTQIA+ inclusion, with many companies actively promoting diversity and implementing supportive policies.

Despite these steps, challenges persist. In many companies with conservative cultures, discrimination and harassment still occur which lead to LGBTQIA+ individuals facing obstacles in career advancement, visibility, and inclusion,” said Chejara.

How Do You Make it Less of a Minefield?

It’s safe to say that the tech sector is still difficult to navigate for individuals from the LGBTQIA+ community.

Companies like Omega Healthcare and Mastercard, both of which are global companies that offer technology-enabled services in their respective fields of healthcare and finance, have facilitated a welcoming environment in addition to a host of DEI initiatives.

But the same cannot be said for all tech companies.

However, experiences with current employers highlight that there is a way to ensure that tech companies can have their cake and eat it as well, ensuring that these DEI initiatives are followed throughout companies.

Apart from addressing unconscious biases and ensuring comprehensive policies, Joel D’Souza, who works as an implementation specialist for Mastercard, said that change needs to start from the top going down.

“I faced challenges due to a lack of acceptance, as my previous companies did not have policies promoting safety or inclusion. To address these issues, it is essential to educate the management and senior executives,” D’Souza, who identifies as non-binary, said.

Similarly, while there is a legal framework in India to support LGBTQIA+ folks, the same is not reflected on the ground. “Personally, I believe that legal protections are crucial, but enforcement can be lacking, which may leave LGBTQIA+ individuals vulnerable in the workplace.

According to me, tech companies, policymakers and society can work together to promote diversity and inclusion,” said Roshni.