[skywhopper]

Did the person (being quoted from three steps away, I'll note) actually say that "70% women is more diverse than 60% women" or are you just assuming that's what was meant because the person agreed with the general statement that more women would improve diversity? In most workplaces that is true.

[thaumasiotes]

As the story was told to me, the question was specifically probed of passing 50% women, which is obviously the tipping point at which additional women make you less "diverse" in the dictionary sense. I provided the particular numbers 70% and 60% so my comment would read better, since I can't recall the exact wording as it was told to me. Very true that I can't personally attest to this. You'll have to judge for yourself whether it's more likely that my roommate's dad (an engineer at Raytheon, if it helps you one way or the other) made it up to have something to complain about to his family, or whether he noticed something ridiculous, tested it, and complained to his family.

[jjoonathan]

> the question was specifically probed of passing 50% women

Over what organizational unit? It makes a crucial difference: diversity within a team (more generally: a gerrymeandered division of the company) can fall at the same time as the total diversity across the encompassing company rises.

> You'll have to judge for yourself whether it's more likely that my roommate's dad made it up... or whether he noticed something ridiculous

3rd possibility: something seemed ridiculous because he didn't understand it.

[rhino369]

Some colleges are now actually giving men a diversity boost so that their schools aren't 65% female.