FollowLast week we saw how Microsoft revealed their new Windows operating system, Windows 10, and we were all shocked to see that Microsoft skipped a number when naming their famous OS, as it was Windows 9 that was next in line. The reason behind is still unknown, but rumors are saying that the company wants to distance itself from the fiasco that Windows 8 was. Today, we’ve got some more Microsoft news: it appears that Microsoft’s CEO, Satya Nadella has given some not-so-nice advice to women at an all-women tech conference that has been drawing a lot of negative attention.
Nadella’s Advice to Women: Rely on Good Karma!
On Thursday, Satya Nadella, the CEO of Microsoft, addressed the one of the largest gatherings of women in technology to talk about tech and business related things. When he was asked about how someone (a woman) should approach the issue of a raise in salary, Nadella’s answer did not fail to be sexist:
It’s not really about asking for the raise but knowing and having faith that the system will actually give you the right raises as you go along. And that, I think, might be one of the additional superpowers that, quite frankly, women who don’t ask for raises have. Because that’s good karma. It’ll come back. Because somebody’s going to know: ‘That’s the kind of person that I want to trust. That’s the kind of person that I want to really give more responsibility to.’ And in the long-term efficiency, things catch up.
So, basically women should just wait to get a raise, because karma exists and it’s coming our way! After seeing the backlash that his comments generated, it took him less than a couple of hours to release a backtrack statement:
I answered that question completely wrong. […] And when it comes to career advice on getting a raise when you think it’s deserved, Maria’s advice was the right advice. If you think you deserve a raise, you should just ask.
Satya Nadella’s advice to women comes at a time when the tech industry is being criticized for the large gender gap.
What are your thoughts on Nadella’s advice to women? Share your comments with us in the section below.
