Jason Cerrato, a Champion for Women and Minorities in STEM
For this month’s Why Advocate, we talked to Jason Cerrato, Sr. Director, Talent Acquisition & Leadership
Development Programs at United Technologies Corporation, a long-standing SWE Corporate Partnership Council member. Cerrato has been involved with SWE for more than six years as a CPC representative and has proven himself a champion for women in engineering and the Society.
“My job is to find the highest caliber talent for all positions across all functions at UTC locations across the globe,” said Cerrato. “In doing so, I make sure to engage everyone – providing opportunity to be involved and have a seat at the table no matter what your background may be. My job is all about opening doors and being inclusive across all career opportunities within our organization.”
Closing the Gender Gap
With low representation of women in STEM, advocating for women engineers is a must if we want to close the gender gap. But with the unconscious bias phenomenon, it doesn’t always come easy. Having individuals like Cerrato in talent acquisition positions at major engineering firms across the globe brings us one giant leap closer to providing more opportunities for women and other minorities.
“It’s really easy to be an advocate for women in engineering when you’re able to partner with such strong, goal-oriented organizations such as SWE,” Cerrato said. “The staff at UTC holds me accountable to be an advocate for women in engineering, and our partner organizations make it possible.”
Sponsoring FIRST Robotics Teams
Cerrato’s approach to advocate for women and minorities and be inclusive in the talent acquisition process includes strategic partnerships with multiple organizations across the globe. One of UTC’s largest employee volunteerism efforts is sponsoring more than 50 FIRST Robotics Teams. The teams can apply for grants and they receive mentorship from engineers on the UTC staff.
“We leverage other professional organizations similar to SWE,” Cerrato explained. “We’re also highly involved with universities. We partner with student organizations and if there are none that are a fit, we create new programs on campuses. We recently started an engineering ambassadors program aimed at women and minority engineers on campus. The students receive special training in leadership and professional development, and they are trained to provide STEM talks to high school students.”
Cerrato believes advocating for women in STEM isn’t just about targeting the professional workforce.
“It’s a full circle effort that requires engagement across the board from young middle school kids to professionals in engineering who are approaching retirement,” Cerrato said. “To change the perception of STEM, we need everyone to get involved.”
Many Ways to Advocate for Women in STEM
Cerrato explains that there are many ways to advocate for women in STEM; some direct and some indirect.
“To advocate, you can be a sponsor, a mentor or a champion. All of these roles are very different, and sometimes you can serve roles across all three. As a sponsor, you’re an open supporter, becoming part of on-boarding, development and training. Doing everything you can to make sure that person is successful. You can take that one step further as a mentor, getting directly involved and helping people develop skills and learn new things. And, you can be a champion, advocating for others by nominating them in the workplace, bringing up their name in discussions and making sure they’re included. This is one of the most important roles as an advocate. A champion can support women and minorities without them even knowing. A champion overcomes unconscious bias and makes sure that competent women and minorities are included in workplace conversations where they have an opportunity to advance.”
