Sheryl Sandberg Sets A New Goal For Facebook

And it's got everything to do with gender diversity.

sheryl sandberg
(Image credit: Archives)

Facebook's Chief Operating Officer Sheryl Sandberg just tasked the social media giant with a lofty goal: get their employee demographics up to 50-50 male/female. Right now, the number of female employees at Facebook is measly: Women make up just 31 percent of the company's demographics. This means that a huge majority: over two-thirds of all of Facebook's employees are male. When asked by USA Today if the Lean In author had a goal in mind for the company's gender diversity, she told them: "Yes, I want half, half, half across the board. Fifty percent."

But Sandberg doesn't think there's a problem that needs to be fixed only at her office. Today, 18 percent of computer science degrees are earned by women, a minute number compared to the percent of women who are earning college degrees overall: 58 percent. Obviously, this gap impacts the number of women hired into tech-related jobs. She would like to see the number of women earning computer science degrees increase to match those numbers, as well. She believes the root of the gender diversity problem comes from low expectations about the numbers of women in tech. We need to work for greater representation, and then the demographics will reflect that.

Sandberg isn't the only one who wants greater diversity at Facebook. She says that Facebook's founder and CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, also values diversity and hopes to create a more equal Facebook going forward. With two of the most powerful tech tycoons behind growing gender diversity in tech, we can only hope that results aren't too far behind. Be a part of the growth at Facebook yourself. Follow these tips and send your resume off to Sheryl, Mark and co.

Diana Pearl
Editor

I'm an Associate Editor at the Business of Fashion, where I edit and write stories about the fashion and beauty industries. Previously, I was the brand editor at Adweek, where I was the lead editor for Adweek's brand and retail coverage. Before my switch to business journalism, I was a writer/reporter at PEOPLE.com, where I wrote news posts, galleries and articles for PEOPLE magazine's website. My work has been published on TheAtlantic.com, ELLE.com, MarieClaire.com, PEOPLE.com, GoodHousekeeping.com and in Every Day with Rachael Ray. It has been syndicated by Cosmopolitan.com, TIME.com, TravelandLeisure.com and GoodHousekeeping.com, among other publications. Previously, I've worked at VOGUE.com, ELLE.com, and MarieClaire.com.