STEM

The theme of the 6th annual Women in Semiconductors (WiS) program, held in conjunction with ASMC 2022, was inclusion, mentorship, and networking. The presentations at this year’s program were authentic and personal, prompting honest dialogue and responses from attendees.

A 2018 longitudinal study of SEMI's High Tech U participants showed the program’s deep influence: 82% of SEMI HTU graduates followed a path to higher education, 78% completed STEM degrees, and 70% reported that the program influenced their choice of field or career.

On February 15, the Science Research and Technology Subcommittee, one of five subcommittees of the United States House Committee on Science, Space, and Technology, held a timely hearing to explore semiconductor legislation and the industry’s workforce needs.

On February 4, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the America Creating Opportunities for Manufacturing, Pre-Eminence in Technology, and Economic Strength (COMPETES) Act by a vote of 222-210. The bill was introduced on January 25 as the House companion to the Senate’s USICA.

Considering the history of computing and the low expectations for women that were once widespread in academia and the workplace, little wonder that women continue to face significant hurdles in the microelectronics industry. Today, women make up less than 25% of the computing workforce.

On June 8, the White House released its report directed under the February 24 Executive Order 14017 to secure America’s supply chains. Among those critical products, the Department of Commerce conducted the review of semiconductor manufacturing and advanced packaging.

Dr. Mousumi Bhat, senior director of External Manufacturing at Micron Technology and first female member of the SEMI Southeast Asia Regional Advisory Board, discusses her passion for sustainable business practices and her work driving the transformation of Micron’s manufacturing plant in Singapore.

“The most important work you can do in the coming year is to start engaging allies.” This is how Dr. Joanne Kamens, Executive Director of Addgene, began her keynote at this year’s Women in Semiconductors (WiS) program in early May. Diversity and inclusion challenges in the workplace are not a “woman problem, they’re a people problem,” she noted.After a one-year hiatus due to COVID-19, WiS reconvened in a virtual format. Dr. Kamens, who has been working on diversity and inclusion efforts for two decades, discussed how the events of the last 14 months continue to impact women disproportionately. In addition to setting the stage for breakout topics following her presentation, Dr. Kamens’ keynote, Driving Change for Inclusion: The Leaders You Want and Want to Be, addressed the underlying issues that prevent not only women but under-represented and under-recognized groups from advancing in STEM fields.Why now? Dr. Kamens pointed to the perfect storm of social and racial events over the last several years in addition to getting a view into each other’s personal lives because of work from home – babies on Zoom, cats interrupting Microsoft Teams meetings – that has exposed our humanity. The most important take-home message from her presentation? “People are people. They’re your most valuable resource.” At the beginning of the COVID-19 shutdown, Dr. Kamens was quick to implement measures to support and allow time for self-care and ensure well-being for all her people, recognizing an immediate need for support and encouragement. To her, this was something obvious to do as a leader. Unfortunately, this is not the case in many organizations.Dr. Kamens noted that when times are stressful, “we go to ground,” falling back on biases. Everyone has biases. However, stressful situations cause us to go back to our defaults – which often means disregarding the needs of underrepresented groups. Implicit biases in both men and women often cause women to be treated differently. Biases create “schema” that impact vital decision-making and can backfire when brought into the workplace. They can lead to inequities in hiring and promotion, or worse.Dr. Kamens also talked about leaders, and how sometimes people are promoted to management because they are good at their jobs, not because they are skilled at managing people. Good managers seek honest feedback, learn from other people, provide opportunities for growth and development and delegate effectively. Dr. Kamens suggested that a good way to drive greater inclusion and better management is to do away with annual reviews, which are a “hot bed for bias,” she said, and are incredibly problematic from an inclusion and leadership perspective.Why did Dr. Kamens focus on leaders? Because change “must come from the top. No company’s culture will change if leadership is not involved in driving and espousing the needed change.”Dr. Kamens stressed that leaders need to promote others. “A leader’s job is to help lift others into the spotlight,” she said. Also, we must lead with humanity. This pandemic has shown that people need different things to do their best work. Finally, who you hire is who your company is, and how it is seen. “Don’t keep jerks, don’t foster jerks and don’t hire jerks,” she advised.Dr. Kamens talked about what really makes people happy.Flexible work scheduleStrong sense of engagement at workFeeling of being appreciated and valuedHaving a high degree of freedom and diversity built into their jobsGood relationships with clients and colleaguesHowever, she insisted that the happiness “sweet spot” is different for everyone.In conclusion, Dr. Kamens stated that good leaders hold everyone accountable, are intentional about the culture they want to create, empower everyone to call out bias and remove barriers to the good work of others.Following Dr. Kamens’ keynote, the program pivoted to breakout sessions on several topics inspired by workplace challenges resulting from the pandemic. These robust conversations resulted in the elevation of common themes, and recommendations for any company looking to better support their employees:Working with Hybrid (in person and online) Teams: There are so many ways to communicate (text, calls, video calls, emails) and it is important to determine what is best for your team. Choose quick phone calls or Slack/Teams chats when full meetings aren’t necessary. Most importantly, make a concerted effort to actively facilitate the meetings so everyone can participate, whether people are on-site or remote.Leading Remotely: Consider that some one-on-one check-ins with direct reports could be done while both of you are on a walk instead of on a computer to allow for a different environment. Make deadlines and expectations crystal clear. Allow frequent breaks from meetings to alleviate video meeting fatigue. Consider virtual coffee chats, lunch breaks with colleagues, casual conversations and happy hours.Mental Well-Being: Companies need to provide the infrastructure for employees to work from home, while protecting people who must work on-site. Consider creating dedicated teams for socially distanced and virtual activities. Remind employees about employee assistance programs for those who are struggling. Consider providing free meals for people working in the office. Remind employees to take breaks (away from the computer), take PTO, and practice self-care. Back-to-back meetings, often at all hours due to time zone differences, can cause significant stress and fatigue. Consider allowing employees more flexibility to manage their calendars, and allow extra time in meetings to socialize.Networking/Team Building: It can be difficult for people new to a company or a team to truly connect with new co-workers. Leaders can schedule meetings with new hires and seasoned employees, using a “speed-dating” format, trivia, or other ice-breaker activities. Encourage new team members to communicate with coworkers and managers and invite people who are struggling to reach out. If you are a new employee, have the courage to ask for what you need, be it a mentor, a check-in, or an afternoon off. If you are looking for individuals in other companies to connect with, find affinity groups and directly email people doing similar work with a request to connect.The most important takeaway from the whole event was: Trust your employees. Give them the flexibility in their schedules and communication styles to do their best work. If the pandemic has shown one thing, it’s that employees can be trusted to work remotely and get the job done. The challenge of juggling work, home and everything in between is unique to everyone. Careers and lives have different phases, and everyone needs to find the balance that works for them within current circumstances. Women especially need to be able to ask for support and flexibility or we risk losing even more of them from our companies.Women in Semiconductors is an important event for professionals across our industry. It was wonderful to share the space with brilliant thinkers and creators and to have such a rich discussion around the issues women face. We are grateful for WiS committee members, sponsors and everyone who participated for contributing to an excellent discussion. Mark your calendars for May 2, 2022, when the event returns to Saratoga Springs, New York.Margaret Kindling is senior program manager, Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, at SEMI; Priya Mukundhan, Ph.D. is metrology product manager at Onto Innovation; and Hannah Rosen is EHS equipment integration engineer at TEL.

Shari Liss, executive director of the SEMI Foundation, is determined to help more people discover careers in the microelectronics industry. As a woman and longtime leader in both education and tech, she has a keen understanding of how chip industry jobs are often not visible or accessible to many people. To address this, she is spearheading the SEMI Foundation’s Industry Image and Awareness Campaign. I asked Shari to tell me about herself, her passion for this work, and this important campaign.Williams: When did you join SEMI? What were you doing before? What is your background?Liss: I joined the SEMI Foundation as executive director in September of 2019. I came to SEMI from Ignited, where as CEO I recruited, trained, and placed more than 400 educators in summer fellowships at top companies for transformative professional development that grew the Bay Area’s STEM talent pool and workforce pipelines. I'm an educator, a math geek, a mom, a musician, and a passionate advocate for a stronger, more diverse workforce.Williams: What is the Industry Image and Awareness Campaign?Liss: The Industry Image and Awareness Campaign, which SEMI has been running for several years, aims to dramatically increase awareness of the huge breadth of careers in the microelectronics industry and build its talent pipeline. The current campaign includes national media exposure and education that highlights careers in the U.S. microelectronics industry. It has two main components: a PBS documentary about our industry that will reach up to 60 million households, and an interactive website that will walk visitors through STEM career pathways and provide resources that increase industry awareness and interest, particularly among women, veterans and people of color. Integrated with SEMI’s Global Workforce Development Initiative, the website will help connect prospective talent to job openings while also focusing on the industry’s long-term workforce needs. The platform will function as a seamless point of contact, supporting recruiting and retention for employers while also serving those in need of upskilling or reskilling. It will target current industry workers as well as prospective employees, including students, veterans, and workers in other occupations.The two components will be integrated, with video content from the documentary series embedded on the website to provide inspiring stories from people already working in the industry.Williams: Why is this campaign important? What problem is it trying to solve in our industry?Liss: Currently, SEMI member companies have tens of thousands of open positions. These can only be filled if we aggressively and purposely attack the talent gaps. When we talk with students, soldiers and other diverse communities, they have little awareness of the kind of work there is in microelectronics, the jobs that await them, and the industry itself. Our industry generally does not have the same name recognition or understanding as social media or software companies, and many potential workers don't know about us.Students understand what’s on their phones and tablets – Google, Amazon, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram, TikTok – but they don’t know that microelectronics technology powers all of it! STEM talent is already tough to find. Our industry’s relative invisibility makes it even more difficult to find the workers we need. This campaign aims to enlighten and inspire a new generation of innovative workers to join the microelectronics industry. Williams: Why does the microelectronics industry need a more diverse talent pipeline?Liss: The workforce development challenges we face as an industry are layered. We all know that our industry – and our need for a skilled workforce – will continue to grow. We also know that women and people of color are widely underrepresented. They face systemic barriers that start in grade school and continue through each individual’s professional journey. This is not only a significant problem from a social justice and equity standpoint, but it also hampers our companies and our industry.A large body of research shows that more diverse companies are more innovative, productive, competitive, and profitable. They also have less absenteeism, better retention, and greater company and customer loyalty. Our industry cannot fully thrive without a diverse workforce. That’s why reversing this trend is a priority and will take significant investments and systemic changes throughout the entire workforce pipeline. If we do that, we’ll have more successful companies and a dramatically improved industry over the next decade.Williams: Who are our partners in this effort?Liss: We are working with Roadtrip Nation and CAEL, both affiliates of Strada Education.Roadtrip Nation is an Emmy Award-winning media and career guidance nonprofit, whose mission is to empower people to define their own roads in life. Each year, Roadtrip Nation selects socially relevant topics for its narrative-based storytelling projects. Content from these “roadtrips” is then disseminated across a wide range of education and media channels to inspire the next generation with a more inclusive view of the future of work. Roadtrip Nation is creating the video content and the PBS documentary series focuses on the microelectronics industry.The Council for Adult and Experiential Learning (CAEL) is a nonprofit that helps forge a clear, viable bridge between education and career success, providing solutions that promote sustainable and equitable economic growth. CAEL is creating our interactive online platform that will clarify career pathways and guide users in navigating the learning opportunities that connect them to industry jobs and enable upward mobility and access to leadership roles.Williams: How are we engaging our member companies in this work?Liss: Our members and their talent needs are at the core of this work and informing it every step of the way. We are ensuring that the campaign meets these needs as well as those of our university partners, students and workforce development peers in the industry. Through multiple discovery sessions, we are capturing our members’ ideas, hiring challenges, skill gaps and other insights. The campaign’s member-based steering committee is guiding the project.Williams: What kinds of companies and leadership have been involved so far?Liss: Participation has already been incredible, with 38 member companies having joined us for more than 15 hours of discovery sessions and brainstorming. A dozen member companies participate in the steering committee, which is currently defining career pathways and industry needs.Williams: What are the participating companies saying so far?Liss: The response has been amazing! It is truly an unprecedented collaboration. Participants have been effusive about the experience. Here are some of their observations:“It was such a valuable and meaningful discussion. I was so glad to see that so many people from this industry are on the same page – perception, challenge, target audience, action items.”“I enjoyed the sessions very much and the insights from all participants, it is a valuable and meaningful cause.”“These are complex challenges that our industry faces, but kudos to you and SEMI for delving into the big issues and formulating a way forward to raise visibility and elevate perception for the next generation of leadership!”“This project will turn out great in the end! I am amazed at the progress in just a few days.”“I’m excited to see where this project can lead our industry! Thank you for all your hard work and leadership.”“The sequence of events was well structured, organized and focused. I strongly believe that these will be of great benefit to the industry!”Williams: What is the end result we’re working toward?Liss: Through powerful storytelling, amazing networking opportunities, and targeted marketing and outreach tools, we will reach millions of potential employees and open their eyes to the terrific jobs and careers in our industry. The awareness campaign, the website, the videos and the documentary series are all tools that will also reach parents, teachers, school counselors, and industry influences, all while supporting our member companies in hiring.Williams: When can the industry expect to begin to see results of the campaign?Liss: The Roadtrip Nation documentary series will likely air in the first half of 2022, and we anticipate the CAEL website to be live by mid-2022.Williams: What’s the most interesting or powerful lesson you’ve learned so far?Liss: The most powerful thing that I’ve learned is that no matter the company, the leader, or the employee, they all agree on the critical importance of attracting and retaining talent to sustain innovation and industry growth. Because industry awareness and image is such a vital challenge, it’s creating a shared passion across companies and participants. It’s been exciting to see this alignment.Williams: Why are you such a champion of this? What does it mean to you personally?Liss: Throughout my career, I have sought opportunities to grow and scale my impact in STEM education. From being an educator, to an administrator, to running a California-based STEM education nonprofit supporting educators, and now in my work at SEMI, I have always looked for ways to reach more educators and students. As my career progressed, my roles shifted to not just education content, but how to align industry and education. I am passionate about providing students with learning environments that help them understand how the subject matter applies to the real world. When we connect abstract concepts to real-world applications, the lessons tend to be so much more tangible and accessible to kids. It inspires them to want to keep learning those subjects and makes it more likely that they will be excited about what they are studying.At SEMI, I love that I can help form partnerships between the industry and education providers to amplify these messages. I look forward to working with industry stakeholders to provide career opportunities for diverse populations, for soldiers, and for women returning to work.For more information about the Industry Image and Awareness Campaign, contact Shari at [email protected]. Michelle Williams is deputy director of the SEMI Foundation.

As the global economy is constantly transformed, the need for new skills has never been higher. The microelectronics industry is thoroughly affected by this urgent need. To develop a workforce fit for the future, it is crucial to invest not only in reskilling and upskilling, but also in skills anticipation and inclusivity. To tackle this need, the European microelectronics ecosystem has adopted many bottom-up initiatives and good practices supporting lifelong learning. Many companies collaborate with universities and training institutes to offer work-based training, and numerous events take place to support women participation in STEM and to attract more young talent to a microelectronics career. Despite these great efforts, further pooling of investments is necessary if Europe is to develop efficient lifelong learning programs. Creating strong skills partnerships is vital for sustainable upskilling and reskilling initiatives. According to the World Economic Forum (2021), greater private-public collaboration on large-scale upskilling and reskilling initiatives could boost global GDP by $6.5 trillion and lead to the creation of 5.3 million net new jobs by 2030. What is the Skills Partnership? Against this backdrop, SEMI Europe is launching the Skills Partnership for Microelectronics. The partnership brings together industrial and education partners from the microelectronics ecosystem to implement the Pact for Skills, an EU initiative which aims to boost upskilling and reskilling investments in key ecosystems for Europe’s competitiveness. Following the high-level roundtable with SEMI Europe’s Advisory Board, hosted by European Commissioners Thierry Breton and Nicolas Schmit, the microelectronics sector was selected in November 2020 as one of the key ecosystems for the first wave of implementation of the Pact, alongside automotive and aerospace/defense. Read more details about the October 2020 roundtable. 59 partners have already endorsed the Pact for Skills for Microelectronics. The Skills Partnership for Microelectronics aims to: Exchange good practices of upskilling and reskilling initiatives of the microelectronics industry Develop sustainable collaboration mechanisms that will monitor microelectronics skill needs, learning from the examples of the METIS blueprint project Promote the microelectronics sector as a career choice Boost the presence of women and other under-represented groups in the sector. The partners will have the opportunity to liaise not only with European, but also with national and regional authorities and clusters, so that a pan-European holistic approach to microelectronics skills development is achieved, and a significant flux of public and private investments on skills is mobilized. To launch this ambitious partnership, SEMI Europe held an initial workshop on March 17. Participants included representatives from the European Commission’s DG Connect, DG Employment and DG Grow, national and regional authorities, and over 70 industry and education partners. The workshop opened with representatives from the European Commission informing all stakeholders about the Pact for Skills initiative, as well as about EU skills-related funding opportunities. In the framework of the Pact for Skills, the Commission will support the ecosystems with a Networking Hub, a Knowledge Hub and a Guidance Resources Hub. These platforms will be available later in 2021 and will act as a one-stop-shop to support the partners and provide information on EU policies and funding opportunities. Other presentations went on to set the scene, presenting the main priorities of the partnership. Françoise Chombar, CEO of Melexis, highlighted the skills challenge experienced by the microelectronics industry. She emphasized the importance of lifelong learning and the danger of the gender disbalance in the sector and underlined the huge innovation potential and profitability that could be unleashed for Europe if the gender gap is successfully addressed. Moreover, the preliminary results of the METIS Microelectronics Skills Strategy were presented, to offer the basis for the partnership’s approach to skills anticipation. The partnership will establish working groups that will investigate the industry needs, leading to a better connection with the offer of education and training programs. Last but not least, the partnership aims to promote national and regional funding of upskilling and reskilling initiatives. In this regard, representatives from national and regional authorities and clusters participated in the meeting. The government of the Basque region had an active role, presenting the region’s priorities, incentives and main actions on promotion of lifelong learning initiatives. The next steps The meeting concluded with an overview of the next steps for the newly launched partnership. In the next workshop, the partners will align on the specific KPIs, as well as on the focus areas where they would like to engage (skills anticipation in semiconductor manufacturing, skills anticipation in semiconductor design, gender balance, etc.). In that framework, the executive board will be established, as well as the working groups that will lead the work of the partnership and set targeted objectives. If you want to take active part in the creation of this large-scale initiative, please fill in your details here. To learn more about the initiative, click here or contact [email protected]. Stefania Gavra is public affairs manager at SEMI Europe.