I have said it a million times, but I am quite used to being one of only a few women around when I go to some industry events for work. AV is one of the last tech fields that is still mostly men. For the most part, though, the guys aren't cavemen and I am able to succeed and be taken seriously. I will, however, still occasionally wander into an event that catches me off guard. That happened today.
Because I am an altruistic type, I would like to offer 3 suggestions for anyone looking to put on an AV industry event...especially if you expect even 1 or 2 women to show up.
1. If you would like to demo your extremely expensive projector, highlighting how bright it is and how accurately it presents color, I assure you there are better video clips to use than the Victoria Secret fashion show. It will make the group of men staring at a model's ass uncomfortable when I walk up to ask a question. It will also make you very uncomfortable when you realize that you are talking to me about image resolution while pointing at a woman in a rhinestone bra and a wrap that looks like an over-sized pair of open lips. Also, a heads up...I can tell the exact moment you realized the rhinestone bra clip might not have been the best choice, no matter how much you think you played it off.
2. If you would like to demo your extremely expensive video switching and scaling system to show how smoothly it displays high motion video, again I assure you that there are better clips to use than a loop of 3 attractive women in tight shirts flinging their hair around in slow motion. Perhaps an action movie or sports clip? Or maybe a loop of a cute guy in a speedo jumping around...that wouldn't make you uncomfortable to stare at for a few hours, would it?
3. If you would like to impress me with how easy your project management software is to use, the phrase "even the women I have shown it to can figure it out" is not going to close the sale for you. I would like to say I could catch the moment he realized how laughably insulting the thing he had just said was. Sadly, he couldn't have looked prouder of how he had managed to connect with me. A woman. Who had already chatted with him about being a programmer. Who could write similar software. In my sleep.
Hopefully that helps you out as you plan your next event. Best of luck and see you next time!
4 comments:
Ugh. AV really is a boys' club, isn't it? I thought that computer science was bad, but it was an estrogen-fest compared to the AV world.
I've been insulted quite a few times in my day, but never that bad.
I would have been tempted to say something seriously snarky to the guy who said "even a woman can figure it out." Or punch him.
It really does suck that we have to work so hard to prove that we know our stuff. I was at a Digital Media training and someone came up to me and said something like, "I bet you're pretty confused now, huh?" Grrrr.
AV, huh? You know, Heather, on this side of the world, it's a completely different industry--and dominated by women! ;-D
I can hardly believe you held your tongue. I understand the professionalism with which you restrained yourself, but...just let 'em have it! Send 'em home with a cracked reality! Ganbatte! :-)
Haha! When guys are so naive as to treat me as "simple" simply because I have a vagina sometimes I find it fun to put on my best "oh you big strong man" voice and ask them obviously stupid questions until they realize what an idiot they've been. The bright ones get it pretty quickly and this technique helps weed out the useless ones rather nicely.
Wow.... He seriously said "Even a woman can understand it" right to you? That dude was smack-worthy for sure. What's the official company policy on thumping a potential vendor in the head?
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