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TechQuiet 3d · day 3

Tech workers share methods for navigating workplace power dynamics

Discussion emerges on Mastodon about identifying and managing gender and other power imbalances in tech teams.

newest coverage 2d agosummary written 2d ago3 pieces764 likes & upvotes25 comments Mastodon

What to know

  • A Mastodon discussion surfaced methods for identifying misogyny and power imbalances in tech workplaces.
  • Former Twitter employee cited systematic power dynamic screening across gender, race, and seniority as a cultural red flag in hiring.
  • Users debated the paradox of workplace invisibility—how marginalization can sometimes provide strategic advantage.
some voices

Power dynamics should be actively identified and screened as red flags in hiring and culture work.

  • “Absolutely something we did at Twitter, but we extended this to any kind of "power dynamic". Gender, yes, but also race, seniority, etc.”

    petrillic · Mastodon ↗
some voices

Awareness of marginalization and power imbalances can be strategically useful in professional contexts.

  • “It's like having the power of invisibility. It can be really useful.”

    futurebird · Mastodon ↗

benroyce Mastodon userfuturebird Mastodon userpetrillic Former Twitter employee

Tech workers share methods for navigating workplace power dynamics
mastodon.social

How it unfolded 3 developments, newest first · click a bar or a number to jump posts

Peak 1 piece in one hour at Sep 20, 11 PM; 3 pieces over 3 days (3 posts) Sep 20, 11 PM — 1 piece · 1 post — Mastodon 1Sep 21, 12 AM — quietSep 21, 1 AM — quietSep 21, 2 AM — quietSep 21, 3 AM — 1 piece · 1 post — Mastodon 1Sep 21, 4 AM — quietSep 21, 5 AM — quietSep 21, 6 AM — quietSep 21, 7 AM — quietSep 21, 8 AM — quietSep 21, 9 AM — quietSep 21, 10 AM — quietSep 21, 11 AM — quietSep 21, 12 PM — quietSep 21, 1 PM — quietSep 21, 2 PM — quietSep 21, 3 PM — quietSep 21, 4 PM — quietSep 21, 5 PM — quietSep 21, 6 PM — quietSep 21, 7 PM — 1 piece · 1 post — Mastodon 1Sep 21, 8 PM — quietSep 21, 9 PM — quietSep 21, 10 PM — quietSep 21, 11 PM — quietSep 22, 12 AM — quietSep 22, 1 AM — quietSep 22, 2 AM — quietSep 22, 3 AM — quietSep 22, 4 AM — quietSep 22, 5 AM — quietSep 22, 6 AM — quietSep 22, 7 AM — quietSep 22, 8 AM — quietSep 22, 9 AM — quietSep 22, 10 AM — quietSep 22, 11 AM — quietSep 22, 12 PM — quietSep 22, 1 PM — quietSep 22, 2 PM — quietSep 22, 3 PM — quietSep 22, 4 PM — quietSep 22, 5 PM — quietSep 22, 6 PM — quietSep 22, 7 PM — quietSep 22, 8 PM — quietSep 22, 9 PM — quietSep 22, 10 PM — quietSep 22, 11 PM — quietYesterday, 12 AM — quietYesterday, 1 AM — quietYesterday, 2 AM — quietYesterday, 3 AM — quietYesterday, 4 AM — quietYesterday, 5 AM — quietYesterday, 6 AM — quietYesterday, 7 AM — quietYesterday, 8 AM — quietYesterday, 9 AM — quietYesterday, 10 AM — quietYesterday, 11 AM — quietYesterday, 12 PM — quietYesterday, 1 PM — quietYesterday, 2 PM — quietYesterday, 3 PM — quietYesterday, 4 PM — quietYesterday, 5 PM — quietYesterday, 6 PM — quietYesterday, 7 PM — quietYesterday, 8 PM — quietYesterday, 9 PM — quietYesterday, 10 PM — quietYesterday, 11 PM — quietToday, 12 AM — quietToday, 1 AM — quietToday, 2 AM — quietToday, 3 AM — quietToday, 4 AM — quietToday, 5 AM — quietToday, 6 AM — quietToday, 7 AM — quietToday, 8 AM — quiet 123
Sep 21Sep 22yesterdaynow · 9:44 AM ET
  1. 3

    petrillic describes Twitter's approach to power dynamic screening

    A former Twitter employee shares that the company used power dynamic assessment as a red flag indicator, extending beyond gender to include race and seniority, though acknowledging this requires a diverse team to implement effectively.

    “Absolutely something we did at Twitter, but we extended this to any kind of "power dynamic". Gender, yes, but also race, seniority, etc.”
    — petrillic

    • RE: https:// mastodon.social/@benroyce/1173 07005469458400 Absolutely something we did at Twitter, but we extended this to any kind of "power dynamic". Gender, yes, but also race, seniority, etc. But that requires you to have a reasonably diverse team to start with. But it was absolutely one of the red flags we looked for.

      petrillic@hachyderm.ioMastodon2d ago8▲view on Mastodon ↗
  2. 2

    futurebird reflects on strategic uses of workplace invisibility

    A commenter notes the post is 'funny and kind of neat' but reflects on how awareness of being overlooked can sometimes be strategically useful in getting questions answered.

    “It's like having the power of invisibility. It can be really useful.”
    — futurebird
    • futurebird@sauropods.win

      RE: https:// mastodon.social/@benroyce/1173 07005469458400 This is very funny and kind of neat but it makes me think about how often I've asked a question I want some guy to answer knowing that this would happen. It's like having the power of invisibility. It can be really useful.

      futurebird@sauropods.winMastodon3d ago16▲view on Mastodon ↗
  3. 1

    benroyce posts about misogyny recognition in tech

    A Mastodon user posts about methods for identifying misogyny in tech workplace culture, framing it as a 'techbro' problem.

    “Nice method # techbros # techbro # misogyny…”
    — benroyce, Mastodon user · source

What people are saying 0 voices from 0 sites · best of 3 · verbatim