talent

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.

For the second straight year, SEMICON China, among the world’s largest and most influential semiconductor industry events, was the first local tradeshow of its scale held in-person, reflecting China’s rising prominence in the semiconductor industry. After securing approval from the Chinese government to hold large events, SEMI staged SEMICON China 2020 and 2021 with advanced protections against COVID-19 in place. There were no reported infections at either event. Highlights from SEMICON China 2021: Large Scale: Attendance of over 92,000, including more than 66,000 visitors and 25,000 exhibitors. Expo hall totaled 84,500 square meters with about 1,100 exhibiting companies and over 4,000 booths. World-Class Thought Leaders: Strong industry support from key foundries, OSATs, equipment and materials suppliers. Keynote speeches featured world-class industry leaders and head of China’s IC industry fund and global investment consulting agency, who explored the latest global business, technology and market trends and hot domestic investment topics. Concurrent Forums: Forums included SIIP China: SEMI Innovation Investment; Smart Manufacturing; Advanced Manufacturing; Advanced Packaging; Memory; Power Compound Semiconductor; China Display Conference; the all-new Advanced Materials Forum; and China Semiconductor Technology International Conference (CSTIC). Rich Digital Content: SEMICON China’s digital platform provided a rich array of content to attendees around the world including the Grand Opening Keynote and CSTIC, which were broadcast live online. Workforce Development: SEMI China worked closely with industry and government partners to promote SEMI Workforce Development programs to help attract and retain talent for China’s semiconductor industry. SEMICON China again featured the SEMI Workforce Pavilion and SEMI Workforce CXO Talent Forum. Outstanding COVID-19 Protective Measures: SEMICON China deployed advanced testing and monitoring equipment and implemented strict COVID-19 preventative measures to ensure a safe environment for all attendees to network and conduct business. Looking Ahead With the resounding success of SEMICON China 2021, optimism is growing that more physical events will be held with travel restrictions set to ease later this year. The more than 2,500 SEMI members around the world are eager to again network and collaborate face-to-face with customers, suppliers and partners to solve challenges in the microelectronics industry and drive semiconductor innovation that continues to transform how we work and live. That very innovation made many businesses more resilient as the virus spread and enabled people worldwide to work, learn, and shop from home. As SEMI starts to stage other events in-person, we will put in place advanced protective measures against COVID-19 to ensure the safety and well-being of all attendees. As the vaccination roll-out continues worldwide and new COVID-19 strains emerge, SEMI’s flagship SEMICON events are evolving in several ways, most notably with a larger digital presence. In this new era, we offer an international platform for SEMI members and partners across the microelectronics supply chain to collaborate, discuss industry trends, solve common challenges, network, and accelerate business growth through physical, virtual, and hybrid formats. Hybrid events – on-site exhibitions and conferences featuring a digital presence – allow the face-to-face connections so important to the semiconductor industry but also improve the attendee experience by offering an online option with the following benefits: More international accessibility to content live or on-demand Robust interactivity with live-streamed events, allowing more people to participate Greater cost effectiveness to enable companies and people under tight budgets to take advantage of world-class content, including keynote presentations, panel discussions, and technical sessions. In a recent survey of advanced manufacturing businesses, Informa Markets, a multinational publishing, business intelligence, and exhibitions group, found that 93% of respondents are likely to return to in-person events between August and December 2021, signaling a widespread eagerness for the return of live events and face-to-face connections. SEMICONs Scheduled for 2021 In a normal year, each of the seven regions where SEMI operates stages a SEMICON, with the exhibitions spread throughout the year. With the world continuing to combat COVID-19, more SEMICONs have been moved to the second half of 2021 – most of them with a hybrid format so exhibitors and attendees can take advantage of the increasing popularity of online events. After last year’s disruptions to the SEMICON schedule – and with more experience in the new normal – SEMI is excited to welcome the businesses and peers who couldn’t attend the 2020 events back to the in-person and hybrid shows. Innovation never sleeps. And SEMI will continue to evolve its events to help you form the partnerships and make the connections vital to the growth of your company and the industry. For more information about regional SEMICONs, please visit the SEMI events page. About the Author David Ghodsizadeh is the Director of Global Product Marketing at SEMI, where he develops customer-centric strategies to market SEMI Membership, Market Data, Expositions, Smart Initiatives, and Technology Communities to members, partners, and industry peers. Connect with David on LinkedIn.

“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.

With IP the lifeblood of today’s globally integrated microelectronics supply chain, protecting confidential information is vital to electronics companies around the world. Additionally, the industry’s central role in ensuring the national security and economic competitiveness of every country ups the ante. Yet the supply chain is fraught with security risks. Malicious actors never rest in their work to infiltrate factory systems or human resources databases with the intent to steal IP, disrupt production or embed malicious software that can open the door to future attacks. Cyberattacks in the financial and retail sectors typically draw much more public attention than IT security breaches in the semiconductor industry. While large microelectronics companies are not immune to these threats, they tend to deploy some of the world’s strongest security systems and implement robust security policies and protocols to help mitigate risks. Many of their small and mid-sized counterparts with modest IT budgets and limited expertise, on the other hand, struggle to maintain a similar level of cyberhealth – a critical gap in the microelectronics industry, one of the most strategically important in the world. SEMI is out to help change that by collaborating with cybersecurity experts to help members strengthen their cybersecurity defenses. SEMI plans to increase cybersecurity awareness within the microelectronics workforce and offer cybersecurity assessments to member companies through a third-party provider as part of its SEMI Works® program. Working with experts, SEMI will add cybersecurity-related competencies to the SEMI Works® Skills Portal database to help ensure educational and training programs address these skills. As part of SEMI’s recently launched Curated Content Initiative, member companies will have access to workforce training courses on how to raise awareness of cybersecurity risks and mitigate them. Strengthening IP protections across smart technologies and industries driving the next wave of microelectronics industry growth such as artificial intelligence (AI), 5G, medtech and mobility starts in chip design and extends through fabrication to packaging and ultimately end-use applications. Helping to establish a baseline understanding and awareness of cybersecurity risks and how to mitigate them throughout the supply chain is critical. Bolstering cyber protections at small and mid-sized member companies is a key step in that direction. Commercial success, national security and the security of the ubiquitous IT infrastructures at the center of how we work and live depend on it. Mike Russo is vice president of Industry Advancement and Government Programs at SEMI.

This February, the U.S. celebrates the 45th anniversary of Black History Month, which highlights the achievements and contributions of Black Americans to our country. It is an important celebration, since those contributions have been historically ignored, marginalized or simply unknown. Their stories, however, abound. Black Americans have contributed tremendously to the technology industry, from Garrett Morgan, who invented the gas masks that protected our soldiers in World War I, to James West, who co-invented microphone technology that is ubiquitous in our electronics.Black History Month is also a complicated celebration, and long criticized for its limited scale. Why would we highlight Black contributions for only one month a year, and why would we separate Black contributions from American contributions? As Morgan Freeman famously said, “Black history is American history.” As a country, we should be elevating the stories and achievements of Black people year-round and using those stories to move our country toward more equity and justice for Black Americans.The origins* of Black History Month are grounded in good intentions. It’s expression, however, can be divisive. But there are many ways we can counteract this.First, we can commit to elevating and celebrating the work, stories, and advancements of Black Americans year-round. Second, we can immerse ourselves in Black history and culture through the eyes of Black Americans. There are extraordinary writers to read – Colson Whitehead’s The Underground Railroad is a masterpiece. Poets like Amanda Gorman are top of mind. And consider artists like Kehinde Wiley, whose portraits hang in the Smithsonian. We can seek out Black voices on our social media feeds and look for Black writers and directors when we next binge on Netflix.We can also consider the experience of Black people within SEMI, and our industry. Black people comprise less than 5% of the U.S. tech workforce, and there are zero – yes, zero – Black CEOs of Fortune 500 tech companies. While this lack of Black representation and leadership undercuts our industry’s capacity for innovation, creativity, and productivity, it is, more importantly, unjust. We will explore the reasons behind this in future blogs.There are extraordinary Black leaders and others in our industry who are leading the charge to create greater diversity, equity and inclusion, but that work should be shouldered by the people who have benefitted from these inequities, not the people who have been held back by them.This February, for Black History Month, I invite you to discover and explore the work of Black creators and thinkers. I also invite you to consider the structures and systems that have led to the inequities in our own industry – and how you can be part of dismantling and rebuilding those systems to create a more just workplace and society.A great place to start is exploring the resources on the Crucial Conversations on the SEMI website. And then, I invite you to consider how we as individuals and how our industry can practice acknowledging and celebrating the contributions of Black Americans throughout the year.* Impactree.com has an excellent short version of the events:“In 1915, historian Carter G. Woodson was frustrated with the underrepresentation of Black Americans in university history classes. Woodson knew Black people had tremendous influence over the infrastructure, culture and history of America, yet their role was solely relegated to that of enslaved people. Along with Jesse E. Moorland, Woodson founded the Association for the Study of Negro Life and History – now called the Association for the Study of African America Life and History (ASALH) – to motivate the inclusion of Black Americans in historical textbooks and discussion. 11 years later, Woodson and the ASALH proposed the second week of February be declared Negro History Week, coinciding with the birthdates of Fredrick Douglass and Abraham Lincoln.50 years later, during the United States’ 1976 Bicentennial, President Gerald Ford recognized Black History Month as a nationally celebrated event to be observed every February. Growing from Negro History Week, Black History Month’s goals echo Woodson’s desire for a more inclusive version of history. In Woodson’s own words, ‘What we need is not a history of selected races or nations, but the history of the world void of national bias, race hate, and religious prejudice.’”Michelle Williams is deputy director of the SEMI Foundation.

The next time you are on a Microsoft Teams call or write a group email that includes a female colleague, consider this: The next time you pick up the phone to contact her, she might be gone. According to the Women in the Workplace 2020 study by McKinsey Company and LeanIn.org, one in four women are considering leaving their workplaces or downshifting their careers due to work-life challenges stemming from COVID-19, leading to the potential loss of two million women from the American workforce. What is making work so untenable for many women?First, consider the overall U.S. workforce, across all sectors: The industries hardest hit by the pandemic are those dominated by women and people of color: healthcare, retail and hospitality, notably restaurants. These two demographics have been losing their jobs in staggering numbers. In December 2020 alone, according to the National Women’s Law Center, women accounted for 100% of the 156,000 jobs lost that month in the U.S. Second, the double whammy of the closure of daycares and the shift to remote schooling saddled mothers with overwhelming responsibilities. In the tech industry, women faced significant challenges before COVID-19 hit. Although women represent about 47% of entry-level workers in tech, that number dwindles to 20% in C-Suite jobs, with women of color accounting for just 2% of these executive roles. This leads to the challenges of being an “Only” – the only woman or person of color in a team, department or meeting. “Onlys” experience isolation, disengagement and pressure to out-perform male, white colleagues simply to be seen as equals. Women report feeling more exhausted, burned out and excluded than their male colleagues.Layer on the pressures of a pandemic and you’ve got a seriously overstressed female workforce at the breaking point. Fathers and partners are not taking on a fair share of the burden. Fully 40% of working mothers are spending 15+ more hours weekly on household duties than they did prior to the COVID-19 crisis and are more than twice as likely as fathers to worry that their performance at work is being negatively judged because of their caregiving responsibilities. And a survey by Chief, a private club for women executives, reports that, irrespective of added responsibilities at home, 70% of women report that they have taken on more duties at work since the COVID-19 crisis began. So, on top of the anxieties around keeping themselves and their families healthy during a worldwide pandemic, women are simultaneously working more, and doing more at home.Women are critically important in workplaces for a host of reasons. Women in senior-level roles have a profound effect on workplace culture. According to the McKinsey study, women are more likely to embrace and champion employee-friendly policies and programs and to take a stand for gender and racial equity at work. Women also mentor and sponsor other women more than men. If senior-level women leave the workforce, women at all levels will lose their strongest allies. Research also shows that gender-diverse teams – and companies – are more innovative, creative and productive. Inclusive workplaces tend to have higher retention rates and better recruitment rates. To sum up, companies where women are well-represented in leadership are 50% more likely to outperform their peers.As indicated by McKinsey, companies are at a critical crossroads. The choices managers, teams and companies make now will influence the workplace for decades to come. The authors of the study say it best: “If companies recognize the scale of these problems and do all they can to address them, they can help their employees get through this difficult time and even reinvent the way they work so it’s more flexible and sustainable for everyone. If not, the consequences could badly hurt women, business and the economy as a whole. This moment requires long-term thinking, creativity, strong leadership and a laser focus on the value of women to their organizations.”What can managers, teams and companies do? Women in the Workplace 2020 features an excellent Framework for Action, which includes everything from making work more sustainable, to minimizing gender biases, to strengthening employee communications. It is an important resource for any individual, team or company that wants to strengthen their support and retention of women. And – small steps can make a big difference. McKinsey encourages companies to ask a few important questions:Consider the workflow of your team: Is it flexible in a way that supports working parents and care-givers?Are performance expectations equitable across genders?Do the women on your team feel as though they can express difficulties or take PTO if they need to in order to take care of family obligations?Finally, simply acknowledging the realities women are facing is a great first step. For instance, if there are women on your team, you could forward them this article and say, “I didn’t realize how significant this issue was. If there are ways I can further help you navigate this time, please feel free to talk with me about it.” None of us want to find out what happens to our companies if we lose 25% of our female colleagues. We have the opportunity and obligation to reverse this troubling trend, if we act deliberately and intentionally to support the women around us. I invite you to dig into the Women in the Workplace 2020 study, to discuss it with your colleagues, and to determine how all of us can make our workplaces more supportive and inclusive for everyone, for the benefit of female workers and their employers everywhere.We encourage your company to participate in McKinsey’s 2021 Women in the Workplace study and make your voice heard. To enroll, visit Women in the Workplace.For information about the SEMI Foundation’s work in Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, or if your team would like to support the industry in creating a more equitable workplace, please visit us at www.semifoundation.org, or contact Michelle at [email protected] Williams is deputy director of the SEMI Foundation.

The turn of the New Year means new opportunities for the microelectronic industry as SEMI continues to focus on a top priority for companies across the microelectronics design and manufacturing supply chain and SEMI members – supporting the development of the talent pipeline. Regardless of a member company’s role within microelectronics, ensuring a continued, robust flow of qualified talent for what is a cross-cutting, foundational industry sector is of high strategic importance. Skilled workers are essential to advances in areas such as artificial intelligence (AI), smart manufacturing, medtech, transportation and communications. In order to satisfy the world’s insatiable appetite for technology, we need a qualified workforce that can design and manufacture cutting-edge microelectronic devices. Launched in 2019 by SEMI’s Government Programs Office, SEMI Works™ is a holistic approach to developing and maintaining the talent pipeline. 2020 focused on building the all-important infrastructure, engaging member companies to identify required skills and developing a Unified Competency Model to catalog these workforce requirements. SEMI Works™ accomplished several firsts for the microelectronics industry: First dynamic, data informed workforce training standard adopted and published by the U.S. Department of Labor Employment Training Administration (USDOL-ETA) First SEMI Certified college program for technicians First Industry Approved Apprenticeship Program for Technicians, adopted and endorsed by the U.S. Department of Labor Member inputs anchor the SEMI Works™ portal, which enables connections among talent, employers and training/education providers. The portal’s initial phase of development is on track for completion in the first quarter of this year, marking the point when it will begin to be populated with specific job information, individual (talent) profiles and applicable training courses. Once SEMI Works™ is fully operational, it will be optimized to further support talent development and acquisition, providing a comprehensive platform for learning management, e-learning and career advancement. Throughout 2021 SEMI will be engaging members, training providers and job seekers to ensure the portal’s capabilities and user interface meets their needs. We’ll also move forward with several other SEMI Work’s programs including the Curated Content Initiative, which will enable SEMI members to identify non-proprietary courses, a SEMI member job board and an interactive career map to help job seekers plan their future in the industry. The microelectronics industry will only fulfill its tremendous promise for innovation and growth with the right talent. SEMI looks forward to working with members in 2021 to expand SEMI Works™ and help lay the groundwork for the next wave of technology advances. Mike Russo is vice president of Industry Advancement and Government Programs at SEMI.