After repeatedly being told that she ‘did not look like’ an engineer, Gail Su of Google hails the launch of a new diversity and inclusion platform for IP professionals
Even after almost 15 years, I can still remember the buzz of adrenaline flowing through me as I waited for my first in-person interview with a partner at a large international law firm. The door opened, right on time. The partner looked at me, tilted his head, and said, “You aren’t what I expected.”
On paper, I am an engineer and a patent attorney with over 10 years of experience. However, for the average person I meet, the fact that my background is in engineering or that I am an attorney is surprising. In their minds, I should look like James Stewart from “Anatomy of a Murder”, rather than a small Asian woman.
I have lost track of the number of times that someone has told me, “you don’t look like an engineer”, or “are you really an attorney?” let alone a competent one. When I share these sentiments with the people around me, they nod in understanding because that’s how ingrained the stereotype of a successful attorney is in society.
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Diversity, ADAPT, Google, diversity and inclusion, Gail Su
