As the world shifts to become more technology and innovation-oriented, hoping to continue progression in inventing new technologies to support the human race, Asian Americans have found ways to contribute to these novel advancements, holding notable positions at global tech giants, including Google, Microsoft, Nvidia, AMD, and many more. For instance, the CEO of both Nvidia and AMD are Asian Americans.
Despite these successes, the development of Asian Americans in tech is marked by both progress and challenges. According to a study by the Ascend Foundation, while Asian Americans represent a large portion of the workforce, they are often underrepresented in senior leadership roles. For example, in Silicon Valley, Asian Americans account for more than 27% of the workforce but hold only about 19% of managerial positions and 14% of executive positions. On the other hand, the majority of the tech industry is dominated by white representation, especially considering managerial and executive positions, where white people hold 73% and 80% of the jobs, respectively.
However, it’s important to consider that Asian Americans are not facing the most underrepresentation, as other groups, such as African Americans and Hispanic Americans, face severe underrepresentation, holding around or less than 10% of the positions in the tech industry combined.
Maintaining diversity is essential in workplaces to ensure broader perspectives and more efficiency. Diverse employees also have unique skill sets that are valuable to the company, with certain people being more skilled in specific areas.
As Asian Americans continue to enter the tech industry and take on more influential and leadership roles, the industry can become more successful through its diverse environment. However, a future where Asian Americans and other ethnic minorities are fully represented at all levels of the industry will require both individual efforts and collective action to dismantle systemic biases.