With respect to the argument that “traits exhibited more by women are what makes a good engineer” I find both some truth in that statement, and blatant false stereotyping.
Good communication skills, understanding of the customer, and empathy can be valuable skills in engineering especially at the more senior levels. They key is ‘can.’
I think both the author of the memo and those stating the above are assuming there’s only one path and set of skills related to being an engineer. IMHO, that is absolutely not true.
In my experience, its not the individual engineer that matters. Its the team. And a great engineering team is built upon the understanding that diversity results in a wide set of abilities and skills.
Perhaps ‘great’ engineers are those who understand this, who understand their own strengths and weaknesses, and who seek to create or be on teams that are diverse, where each member contributes something different.
