Emily Dalton Smith, Vice President of Product Management and Social Impact at Meta, joins ChedHER to discuss how she's leading the way for social impact in the Metaverse.

chedHER

How This Meta VP is Defining the Future of the Internet

Alright, let's switch gears to our first guest. The term metaverse has been quite the buzz word lately, you know that in fact the term has been searched online over 2.6 million times our next guest is making sure women are at the forefront of all of this, supporting other women building for the metaverse, joining us now, Emily dalton smith, vice president of project management and social impact for meta. Emily, welcome to the show, this is such a buzzword, So many people are talking about metal, I'd love to have you here, tell us more about your role at meta. What does your team build and create? Well, thank you. It's a super exciting time. Our team works on products that help our community make a difference in the areas that matter most to them. So that looks like products for helping people make charitable donations to causes they care about to getting information about navigating the pandemic. Um and then we're also working on areas like equity and climate, which we know are really going to be important to the next generation. What are some key social issues you mentioned climate that you are seeing, people want to get involved and they want the tools to get involved. We certainly see a tremendous amount of interest in climate because we know how important it is today and tomorrow into the entire world. Um we see people support causes like blood donations. Um we see people support causes like food shelters, homelessness, we see a huge range of support and that's really about what matters to to an individual and so you know, our tools that people support any cause they care about and they also help people make a difference and get back and get engaged in their community. I am curious here as we learn about the metaverse, what does social impact look like in this world? Well, you know what, that's something we're going to build and define together, um as you know, it's super early days, they were all talking a lot about it, but you know, we think um that one is going to have a huge focus on people's well being um to, we're going to have a big focus on equity and we've talked a lot about the importance of making sure that everyone has a high quality experience and that we're building for equity in the metaverse. Um and I think three, we're going to carry forward all the good that people have been doing on our platforms already, you know, people have raised more than $6 billion for causes they care about. We've had more than 100 million people sign up across the world to donate blood. Um and so, you know, we want to make sure that all of that is built into the metaverse from day one, how does it feel to be part of the team of women that are building the metaverse, this is historic, Emily I have to be honest, it feels pretty amazing, you know, it's a um it's hard work and there is no one I would rather be doing this work with, we have an incredible community of women leaders here at meta. Um and it's one of the reasons, you know, I've been here for seven years and I'm excited for my next seven. Um and in addition to that, we have incredible male allies who are supporting women and mentoring and coaching and creating opportunities. So you know, it's, it's a pretty amazing place to work outside of metal. What opportunities do you think this presents for women in tech? Well, you know, I think this is really about defining the future. Um you know, the internet was largely defined and envisioned and created by men, starting with the very first computers. My grandfather actually worked on designing uh one of the very first home computers and well that's amazing. I think something that would make him really proud and that I want to carry forward is that I'm working on defining the future of the internet and I really hope my daughter who's almost four, we'll be leading that future. And so I think for all of us, you know, it's the time to get more involved and to, to actually shape the world that we want to live in, we want our kids to live in, we want to work in. Um and to really live and and build a women's world as well as a man's world, what advice do you have for other women who are trying to advance their careers as you and I know it's not the easiest path, it's not, you know, I think there are two things that I've learned and that I tried to carry forward. One is don't be daunted, it's gonna be really hard and you're going to encounter all sorts of obstacles and really difficult things. Um and you know, just don't be daunted, I think about, you know, giving that advice to my daughter um who started, who started even in preschool to to, you know, get set back. Um and we've all got to remember that and then to I think asked for help. You know, I I actually worked before met it um in education for a long time and we found that the kids who got the most help were actually the kids who were doing the best and they wanted to do a little bit better and the kids who are hardest to get help for the kids who needed more support. And so, you know, I try to carry that forward, The people who are most successful asked for tons of help and they're not ashamed about it and we should all be out there asking for help from our friends, our family, our mentors, our sponsors are bosses, um and and not feel bad about that in the least, that it's gonna make us all more successful? I really think that's fantastic advice in your career. What challenges have you seen that a lot of women face that maybe men don't in this field? You know of course motherhood which takes a different bird, a different toll on women. Um It's a really tough burden and and physically emotionally, but I think we've got a new generation of men stepping up and we certainly have a generation of women who are telling their partners men or women, but you know this isn't a one sided thing. And then you know, the other thing is I think men tend to talk more about their compensation about their opportunities. They talk a lot more about whether they're unhappy or they feel like they're not being given the opportunities that they want. Um And women have historically not done that. So I try to talk about with my friends about my compensation, about my job opportunities. I try to talk with my manager a lot about where I want to grow even when it's super uncomfortable and I find that the times it's most uncomfortable or actually the times that I need to be in there more and be more vocal about what I need and how I want my career to progress. Well, it's such a pleasure talking to you. Here's to the metaverse, Emily dalton smith, vice president of project management and social impact for meta