Durham University have received a $3.5m donation from graduate Dr Neil Hunt, Former Chief Product ... [+]
The Forbes annual Billionaire list is an indicator of the companies and people are successful globally, and more generally the industries that are booming. In the first ever Forbes Billionaire list, in 1987, CEOs in real estate, manufacturing and retail dominated the list– with not one technology founder featuring.
Fast-forward to thelatest list, in March this year, and half of the top ten richest billionaires in the world are tied to the technology industry, such as Jeff Bezos, Bill Gates and Mark Zuckerberg. This dramatic change over the last three decades depicts the massive digital transformation that virtually all industries have undergone, and the now importance and value of the technology industry as a whole.
One thing that hasn’t dramatically changed over the last 30 years, however, is the representation of women in this list. Female billionaires are scarce. In the technology industry in fact, not one of the top 50 richest people are women, and only 4 women feature in the top 100 – a dire statistic. This is just a representation of a wider systemic issue in the technology industry, in which, according to a PwC report only 5% of leadership positions in the technology sector are held by women.
Dr Neil Hunt, the former Chief Product Officer of Netflix, graduated with a Computer Science (CS) degree from Durham University, one of the U.K.’s leading Universities in 1985 – two years before the Forbes Billionaire list was created. Working in the technology industry since then, Neil has seen the dramatic boom in technology across all industries, and the expansion of large tech firms – including, of course, Netflix, whose flourishing subscription-based streaming service no longer relies on the U.S. Postal Service for the delivery of DVDs, consuming an estimated 15% of the world’s internet bandwidth streaming video to over 150 million users.
Something Neil Hunt hasn’t witnessed in the tech sector is a commensurate rise in the number of women, and diversity more generally - especially in leadership positions. In fact, he says that, “when recruiting, I found the pool of talent, especially at senior levels, to have been thinned by the adverse experiences of women and minorities throughout their careers.”
Dr Hunt believes that the issues and reasons behind a lack of diversity in the tech sector begin in high school and university. “Women and minority students are steered away from exciting careers in STEM by subtle (or blatant) cues and signals from society. In fact, women as a percentage of CS graduating classes are only 15% (and falling). This cries out for correction.”
And correcting this is something Neil is actively looking to do. Durham University has just announced that Neil Hunt is donating $3.5 million to his alma mater, to specifically tackle the lack of diversity and representation in technology. Neil’s donation is specifically to the Computer Science department, where Neil spent five years studying himself.
Neil says he’s been fortunate enough in most of his career to work in companies that valued and promoted diversity, bringing great value to their teams. “I have seen the positive effects of encouraging and building confidence in women technical staff.” However, has also seen the negative effects of inappropriate work environments, and the dramatic wins in many dimensions through correcting such environments.
The donation to Durham University is a reflection of the blend of rigorous academics and unusual, but highly effective opportunities to engage with industry that Hunt enjoyed through internships and co-operative research. Neil Hunt believes that it was a key stepping stone to the success in his career, and now wants to maximise opportunities for other students, who are walking in the same path as him 35 years on. In fact, Neil even attributes his education directly to his income, explaining that “the opportunities that come with an education such as mine at Durham, compared to anywhere else I could have studied, add at least 10% or 20% to my lifetime earnings, and I believe I should contribute a big fraction of that back to future students.”
As a successful Durham University Computer Science graduate, Neil Hunt became the first ever Chief ... [+]
The Hunt Programme will be used to create new scholarships to support students from low income and underrepresented backgrounds, ensuring talented prospective students can access Durham’s degree programmes regardless of their background or circumstance. The $3.5 million donation expands significantly Durham’s AMI Women in Technology programme - named after Anne-Marie Imafidon MBE, CEO of Stemettes - for promising young women in technology, including a focus on careers and internships opportunities for students that Neil Hunt valued so highly during his time at the university.
William Russell, incoming Lord Mayor of London and member of the Campaign Board at Durham University says, “It’s inspiring to see Silicon Valley tech giants like Neil investing generously in the future leaders of this sector, especially here in one of the U.K.’s most distinctive universities which is developing an excellent profile in this space. The Campaign Board working on behalf of Durham hope to see this donation leverage a great future for many women currently underrepresented within this crucial field.”
Stepping away from Netflix two years ago to become Chief Strategy Officer at Curai, an AI-healthcare company, Neil says that “today's high-tech industry is fiercely competitive for talent, and we cannot afford to shut out half or more of the potential from even getting to the starting gate”. Initiatives like the Hunt programme at Durham, are hoping to ensure that technology in the future is a more diverse and balanced industry – and a career path that everyone, regardless of gender or economic background can pursue.
So what advice does Neil Hunt have for any young graduate starting their career in tech? “Seize opportunities,” he says emphatically. “I had no notion of where my career would take me, but if I had to do it over, the only thing I would change would be the alacrity with which I jumped at new possibilities!”
But always seek to understand the broader context of your work. Neil loved the innocent mission of sharing culture through films and series at Netflix, but now truly values the opportunity to bring the world's best healthcare to everyone in his work with Curai.
“Ask ‘Why?’ and ‘What for?’ and ‘What if?’ Technology has potential for great benefit or great harm to society, and in my mind, self-value comes from contributing positively.”
