Recode Decode: Why tech is "flunking" the diversity test

Robert Hohman, the co-founder and CEO of company-reviewing site Glassdoor, talks about how the company has evolved since its early days, when Hohman wanted to merge employer transparency with the gaming sensibilities of World of Warcraft. He explains why letting employees and ex-employees rate a company's CEO was so successful, and why Glassdoor nixed a planned feature to let them rate their direct managers. Hohman also talks about the rules the company put in place to moderate publicly-shared reviews, including what happens when an employee alleges that a manager has sexually harassed them. Plus: Why there's a strong correlation between employees who have a bad work/life balance and CEOs with high approval ratings. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

15 Aug 201851min

Jen Gunter, an OB/GYN and pain medicine physician, talks with Recode's Kara Swisher about how celebrity wellness brands have been overtaken by "medical conspiracy theories" and dangerous recommendations — for example, that bras cause breast cancer. After Gunter disputed that claim, made by a writer for Gwyneth Paltrow's company, Goop, it accused her of "being in the pocket of big lingerie." She also talks about the larger problems with finding reliable health information online and how regular people without medical degrees can be smarter skeptics of what their doctors say. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

13 Aug 201854min

If you enjoy Recode Decode, we think you'd also like the Eater Upsell. Here's a recent episode of the show: Jason Droege, the man in charge of Uber Eats, talks with Eater's Dan Geneen about how the service started, how it interfaces with restaurants, and what he sees as the future of the brand. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

8 Aug 201847min

Sidecar co-founder Sunil Paul talks with Recode's Kara Swisher about his popular guest column for Recode, “The scooter wars will be a bloodbath, and Uber will win.” He elaborates on why that is and shares his thoughts about the broader transportation industry, including self-driving cars, bike-sharing and vertical lift and take-off vehicles like Larry Page’s Kitty Hawk “flying car.” Now primarily an investor, Paul also talks about why Sidecar couldn’t compete with Uber and Lyft — even though it created ride-hailing features that are now popular parts of their products. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

6 Aug 201857min

Hooi Ling Tan, the co-founder of southeast Asian ride-hailing company Grab, talks with Recode's Kara Swisher at the 2018 Rise conference in Hong Kong. Tan says Grab is opening up a platform for more services beyond ride-hailing because it wants to address not just transportation needs, but every worry its customers may have, including groceries and payments. She also talks about how the company is working with 27 percent-shareholder Uber and its newest board member, Toyota, which in June invested $1 billion into Grab. Plus: Tan explains why the company doesn't have to worry about diversity. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

1 Aug 201828min

Sarah Kerruish and Matt Maude talk with Recode's Kara Swisher about their new documentary, "General Magic," which tells the story of a pioneering tech startup that tried and failed to invent a smartphone in the 1990s. Swisher appears in the documentary, which posits that although few people know the name General Magic today, the company’s failure paved the way for the Silicon Valley we know today. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

30 Juli 201847min

Journalist James Crabtree talks with Recode's Kara Swisher about his new book, "The Billionaire Raj: A Journey Through India's New Gilded Age." Crabtree says India's development of a super-rich billionaire class has heightened the country's already-intense problem with inequality. He also talks about why its "fantastic entrepreneurial culture" has not been able to foster a Silicon Valley-esque tech hub and how he weighs the positive impact of technologies like the mobile phone against negatives such as the recent spate of lynchings that some have linked to Facebook-owned messaging app WhatsApp. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

28 Juli 201846min

Matt Mullenweg, the co-founder of WordPress, talks with Recode's Kara Swisher about how the blogging platform has evolved in the 13 years since it launched, powering a huge number of websites that included AllThingsD and an earlier version of Recode.net. Mullenweg also talks about WordPress' recent acquisition of a mobile journalism startup, the Atavist; how he manages 750 employees without an official corporate office; and why "every tech company should have an editorial team." Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

25 Juli 201857min