PDX Girl Geek Dinner

drinks for those who are driving. We have a speaker or three on a subject of choice either based on a technical subject area or business area, or even on women and tech issues (such as mentoring). We keep the events informal and outside of lecture theatres or offices where possible solely to take the women (and the men… oh yes men are allowed to come, however they must have an invitation from a female attending the event!) into an informal and relaxed environment where they feel comfortable talking and interacting. We limit the number of male attendees by putting the balance of men to women in the hands of the attendees. This means that there can be a 50:50 split or anything up to that on the male side. Generally the more men in attendance, the more the dynamics of the event change. It is a learning experience for both the men and the women as men in tech aren’t used to interacting with women in tech on a technical level. Technical women are also not used to being technical with other women either… it’s a learning curve on all sides.