SAN FRANCISCO — Speak up — but don’t talk too much. Light up the room — but don’t overshadow others. Be confident and critical — but not cocky or negative.

Ellen Pao got a lot of advice about how to succeed in the clubby, hypercompetitive, overwhelmingly male world of venture capital. Her annual evaluations were filled with suggestions about how she could improve and perhaps even advance to the inner circle of Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers, the blue-chip firm where she was a junior partner. She would be paid millions and be at the red-hot center of the crucible of the tech economy.

Ms. Pao did not make it. Exactly why is the subject of a lawsuit she filed against Kleiner, which is now being heard in civil court here. Ms. Pao contends she was discriminated against. Kleiner says she failed to improve despite all that coaching and was terminated.

The money she might win if Kleiner is found liable is probably trivial in a world where start-up geniuses are worth billions. What is really under examination in this trial is the question of why there are so few women in leadership positions in Silicon Valley. At stake is any hope that the tech world can claim to be a progressive place, or even a fair one.