Jessica Guynn

USA TODAY

SAN FRANCISCO — Ellen Pao, whose lawsuit against her former venture capital firm catapulted her into the heated debate over diversity in technology, is combining forces with two of the leaders in the push to bring more women and minorities into the industry.

Technology veterans Freada Kapor Klein and her husband Mitch Kapor have been at the forefront of narrowing the racial and gender gap in the tech industry, taking sharp aim at venture capital. They said Pao will be the chief diversity and inclusion officer for Kapor Center for Social Impact and a venture partner at Kapor Capital.

“We are thrilled to have Ellen on our team,” said Klein, partner at the Kapor Center. “While her long list of talents and accomplishments make her an excellent fit for this role, it is her values, her courage and her leadership skills that will prove enormously valuable.”

Kapor Capital institutes diversity pledge for its venture investments

For decades Silicon Valley has wrestled with its stark lack of racial and gender diversity. Nowhere is that more evident than in venture capital, which is dominated by white men who, by and large, fund very few start-ups founded by underrepresented minorities and women.

The clubby profession is under growing pressure to make significant changes in the wake of a closely watched gender-discrimination lawsuit against Kleiner Perkins, one of Silicon Valley's most famous firms. Pao lost her case, but international news coverage of the trial trained the spotlight on the stark lack of diversity in venture capital.

Women, African Americans and Latinos are significantly underrepresented in the profession, with few holding decision-making positions, according to a report from the National Venture Capital Association and Deloitte University Leadership Center for Inclusion. Women make up 45% of the venture capital workforce, mostly in administrative roles, but just 11% of investment partners, or the equivalent, on venture investment teams. African Americans make up 3% and Latinos 4% of the venture capital workforce. None of the 217 firms with more than 2,500 employees had an African-American investment partner.

Women tech activists launch Project Include

In an interview, Pao said her primary role will be as a chief diversity and inclusion officer, overseeing the Kapor Center's efforts to bring greater diversity to the tech industry. But she's also looking forward to reprising her role as a venture investor on a part-time basis.

As a senior member of the team, she will help Kapor Capital make seed-stage investments in a diverse array of tech companies that are focused on education, health care, economic inclusion and access to opportunity, she said. Pao worked for seven years as a venture investor and three years as an angel investor.

Venture capital is overwhelmingly white and male

"I've been a huge admirer in how they think, in their values and in how they bring the hard work to these hard problems," Pao said of the Kapors, with whom she shares the belief that diversity and inclusion can strengthen the tech industry.

"I see a lot of opportunity in diversity and inclusion," she said. "Bringing different genders and people of different races and ethnicities onto teams and onto boards has a huge impact on financial performance and improves your product."

Klein and Pao have collaborated before. Pao, the former chief executive of Reddit, recruited Klein and other tech leaders to join the founding team of Project Include, whose goal is to give chief executives recommendations and tools to change the white male-dominated tech culture in Silicon Valley and create more inclusive work environments.