Former Apple and Meta (Facebook) recruiter starts Female for Tech
By Jennifer Le
In 2019, I had the honor to serve as Mrs. World. During that year, I traveled to 10 countries, advocated for women in tech and had the opportunity to partner with organizations, such as Girls Who Code, She Tech Italy, Black Girls Code, and Women in Tech Vietnam. With this platform, I was also able to raise awareness of Female for Tech, a nonprofit that I founded a year prior.
During my travels, I was often asked about the story behind Female for Tech. Let me share with you the two things that inspired me to start this organization — they’re both quite personal.
In 2017 I joined Meta (Facebook) as a PhD Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning recruiter. I was enchanted by all the employee benefits — from shuttle transportation, to the free breakfast, lunch and dinner. However, after a year and a half, I resigned from my job. Everyone around me thought I was crazy and, honestly, I questioned my sanity as well. After all, I loved working with candidates, my colleagues were more like my friends, pay was great and the employee benefits were unbeatable.
At the time I was going through a lot in my personal life.
Jennifer Le
I was supporting my dad who was fighting liver cancer and just diagnosed with end-stage renal disease. As much as I tried to stay calm and strong for him, inside I was completely terrified. Accompanying him to his appointments and having to translate to him that his body is deteriorating was painful and heartbreaking.
At home, I felt very overwhelmed with my role as wife, mom and breadwinner. I didn't want to admit it but I was burnt out. From juggling a full-time job to raising a child and managing family life, I was mentally, physically, and emotionally drained. But it wasn’t the exhaustion that was the worst part, it was the resentment that I felt and it only grew as time went on. I reached a point where I realized that no one was going to save me and I had to do something.
“I reached a point where I realized that no one was going to save me and I had to do something. ”
I decided to step away from work. It was not an easy decision but I knew it was what I needed. This break allowed me to focus on my family, support my parents and even pursue my own personal interests and passion — something I neglected for years as a new mom. The biggest lesson I learned during this period in my life was the importance of self-care. It’s become such a buzzword these days but truly, it is so critical to put yourself first. It is important for everyone, but especially for women, to understand that self-care is not selfish, it is absolutely necessary. My life transformed for the better when I realized that by filling my own cup, I am able to pour into others with energy and enthusiasm.
It was during this hiatus that I felt inspired to start a nonprofit. I had clarity and felt a sense of purpose for the first time in a long while. I decided to leverage my background and experience, to make an impact.
I recalled my time at Meta as a recruiter, witnessing the glaring gender gap, especially within engineering. Although tech companies understand the value of a diverse workforce and certainly many are taking the right action, the reality is that as a society, we still have a lot of work to do in order to close the gap. Not only do we need to support the women currently in tech, but it's also important for us to support the young women pursuing this path, as well as changing the narrative and eliminating the stereotype so that girls can see a career in tech as an attractive option.
Working at Meta certainly inspired me but what motivated me to take action actually goes back to my childhood. I share my story here on my LinkedIn, but in essence, I grew up very poor and was incredibly grateful to have received a 4-year scholarship from the BIll and Melinda Gates Foundation. This scholarship changed my life in so many ways. After graduating from the University of Washington, I felt very compelled to give back in some way. At the time I didn’t know the ‘what’ or the ‘how’ – I just knew that one day I’d pay it forward.
“Fast forward to 7 years later and Female for Tech was born with the mission to help close the gender gap in tech by getting young girls excited about technology at an early age”
Fast forward to 7 years later and Female for Tech was born with the mission to help close the gender gap in tech by getting young girls excited about technology at an early age. We introduce girls to coding through fun exercises and game building. It's incredible to see how excited and amazed the girls are by what they're able to build and create. In addition to free coding workshops, we also offer scholarships to students from underserved areas. I'm so proud to announce that this fall, we awarded 6 new scholarships.
I want to extend a sincere thank you to Apple, Meta and Accenture. I am so grateful for the opportunity to have worked at these amazing companies, alongside so many brilliant individuals. My experience as a recruiter has been invaluable in shaping the current and future strategy, plans and programs for Female for Tech, specifically around mentorship, job candidacy and career development. Being able to help cultivate the next generation of female engineers and technologists is a duty and privilege.
To learn more about Female for Tech and how you can get involved, you can visit femalefortech.org or send an email to jennifer@femalefortech.org. If you're interested in making a tax-deductible donation, please visit the website or you can find them on your corporate giving platform (ID: 833911817).
“You can’t connect the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards. So you have to trust that the dots will somehow connect in your future.”