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Should we make some changes to the online community for the IET Women's Network?

Lisa Miles
Hello Women’s Network!


We’ve noticed that this online community isn’t as active and engaged as it once was so we’d appreciate your thoughts on how we can turn that around. Why do you think that it’s not very active? Is it something about the group itself or the technology that stops you from participating? 


The team and I, along with Jo Foster our Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Manager, have had a few ideas and suggestions that we’d like feedback on so please have a read through and let us know which of these ideas you think we should implement. Or of course if you have any suggestions of your own please get in touch and let us know.


We could:


1.    Close the online community group for the IET Women’s Network and move the discussions to a new overarching category on the theme of diversity and inclusion hosted in our site-wide public forum space. The new category would also include discussions from the LGBTQ+ group and other existing groups that also come under the banner of diversity and inclusion. Conversations in the new forum category will be visible to the general public and therefore have the opportunity to attract a wider audience and increased engagement. 


2.    Keep the group exactly as it is but be more active within it. Currently the group is a public group within the online community so all discussions etc can be read by the public but as they are within a group, you only find out about the discussions if you visit the group itself.  


3.    Keep the group but change it to a private group (so you need approval by an admin to join it and content within is only visible to members of the group) So you can discuss topics etc that you’d prefer not to be visible to the public but then have a site-wide forum area as well for topics that you don’t mind discussing in public. We could also restrict access to the private group for ‘Women Only’ if preferred. 


We’ve also created a poll on the group homepage for you to indicate which of our suggestions you’d prefer. 


Happy to take private feedback either by PM,  via my email address of Lmiles@theiet.org  or by reply to this forum post! 


If you have any questions at all then please don’t hesitate to get in touch.


Lisa

  • 0
    Would there be scope for an "Ask Calvin" style anonymous session for women in engineering to ask questions that they may not be comfortable posting publically or for wider diversity issues?  I feel like a top level discussion forum would see more traffic, and locked down areas don't tend to get footfall required but this may provider a safer space - could also be used by those scared to make a faux pas in diversity settings to ask questions that they can't ask in a general office space - thinking things like how to ask someone if they have preferred pronouns, how to deal with neurodiversity etc.
  • 0
    Hi Kathryn


    We're looking to make some changes re 'Ask Calvin' in that they'll no longer be in their own forum category and will be used across the entire forum, posting into whichever forum category is most relevant. So yes indeed if anyone wishes to ask a completely anonymous question in the forum that isn't linked to their own profile then they can 'Ask Calvin' to post it for them. ? 


    If you have something you'd prefer to ask anonymously then email AskCalvin@theiet.org with your question.
    Please note, Ask Calvin is only to be used for asking questions and not for making anonymous 'statements' as a whole.




  • 0
    Hi Lisa,

    I'd really like the IET to hold on to the Women's Network and keep it separate from a general diversity and inclusion discussion. The issues relating to sex (whether it be sexism, or related to maternity leave, or even why young girls are not studying STEM for example) are distinct, and significant, enough that they should be acknowledged and treated separately. I think we can see from other social media discussions in this sort of area that conflating all D&I issues together probably won't work out well.


    I wonder if anonymity might help - in that asking questions that might reflect issues within an individual's company may put them off from posting, but your responses regarding Ask Calvin may address this, and this also ties in with your third option as well.


    Thanks

    Maria

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    It would be nice to keep it, although I haven't been very active myself on here. I tend to use social media (twitter/ linkedin) to read articles, give my own opinions, or see whats happening when it comes to women in engineering things so maybe some way of having more of a link between those platforms and this network would increase activity?

    Or if it had a function thats not currently available on other platforms, such as networking events, webinars etc ? I used to check on here a lot when there were regular big women's network events such as Goldiblox founder talk at Savoy place, and some networking events. It seems now the focus is on the annual IET YWE event, which I imagine requires a lot of prep.

    I'd like to get involved in something within the womens group that encourages women to go forward more as technical speakers in their field. I'm always open to talking/presenting about encouraging women into STEM but am nervous of conducting technical presentations - so that might be a good angle too as something the network could support (ie the training to become a great technical speaker). That might work best within a private group.
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    I favour option 1 – move the Women’s Network to the public forum space under the banner of diversity and inclusion.

    When you have a women’s something there are always those who say ‘where is the men’s?’ Then there are others who say there is nothing for their situation. I think a diversity and inclusion forum would be the right way forward. Yes, we want to reach women who are underrepresented, but we want to reach all underrepresented people.

    Currently, the women’s network is part of communities. Communities tend to be very specialist or niche (such as The Canadian Prairies Group of Chartered Engineers!) Women shouldn’t really be tucked away on page 18 of the communities, they really aren’t that unusual! I think the discussion would be better used if people came across it while browsing the site – they won’t find it there, and certainly won’t find it if it is private, but they will find it if it is moved to forums.

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