(Photo: Kleiner Perkins)

Kleiner Perkins partner Ellen Pao, who made headlines last year for suing the company in a widely publicized gender discrimination suit, is gainfully employed once more. After reportedly being fired from KPCB in October 2012, she has now taken a gig at community site Reddit, where she'll be "helping us build strategic partnerships that benefit the community."

Reddit announced the hiring in a blog post published to its site by CEO Yishan Wong. In the post, Mr. Wong states that Ms. Pao has been a "formal and informal advisor to reddit for more than a year." Reddit's general manager Erik Martin said that though Ms. Pao was an advisor, she did not formally invest in Reddit through Kleiner Perkins.

When last we heard from Ms. Pao, she wrote on the question and answer site Quora that she had been fired from KPCB:

“I have been terminated from my job at KPCB. On Monday afternoon, senior management told me to clean out my office, leave, and not come back.

Thank you, Quora community, for your support.”

It's interesting to note that Ms. Pao, who is embroiled in a gender discrimination suit, has opted to work for a community whose relationship to women is rather hostile, but Mr. Martin said Ms. Pao's current legal matters had no bearing either way on the company's decision to hire her. "Ellen is extremely qualified," he told Betabeat.

For its part, Reddit's small team employs a fair amount of women, including Jena Donlin, its senior manager of business operations, and community manager Alex Angel. Mr. Martin said that nine out of 25 of the staff are women.

Ms. Pao (Photo: Kleiner Perkins)

When last we left Ellen Pao's gender discrimination case against venture capital firm Kleiner Perkins, matters had reached the inevitable long, slow legal slog to determine whether the suit would ever see court. However, Ms. Pao was still getting up and going to what must've been the most awkward office environment since M.A.S.H, as per a June Quora answer.

However, she's now returned to the Q&A site and added an update, first spotted by AllThingsD:

"I have been terminated from my job at KPCB. On Monday afternoon, senior management told me to clean out my office, leave, and not come back.

Thank you, Quora community, for your support."

AllThingsD reached out to Kleiner Perkins for comment and were told that Ms. Pao is actually being eased inexorably out the door over issues completely and totally unrelated to the lawsuit:

"Ms. Pao’s Quora post is misleading.  She remains an employee of the firm.  Because of long standing issues having no relationship or bearing on the litigation, Kleiner approached Ms. Pao to facilitate her transition, over an extended period of time, out of the firm."

Sure, okay.

Ms. Pao's next move remains to be seen, but a Kleiner spokesperson told AllThingsD that the proposed terms of her departure "are generous, fair and intended to support Ms. Pao in a successful career transition."

(Photo: about.me/mathonan)

After Mat Honan's "epic hacking," an anonymous Apple employee leaked word that the company has temporarily stopped processing password changes over the phone while it figures out if its security policy needs to be altered. Amazon already updated theirs. [Wired]

Don't let Mr. Honan's loss be in vain. Time to enable "two-factor authentication" on your Gmail account. [Gawker]

Our founding fathers forgot to add Facebook "likes" as a First Amendment right, the company argued in Federal court. [Mashable]

Researchers are developing precog algorithms to predict where crimes will occur by tracking smartphones. Just as long as everyone heeds the minority report, okay? [Forbes]

Kleiner Perkins is still trying to keep its dirty laundry out of the courts. The company filed an appeal to keep Ellen Pao's sexual discrimination case in arbitration. Kleiner's attorney is arguing that an arbitration will be more efficient, but of course the VC firm's appeal could take months to decide. [Mercury News]

Facebook launches its first non-social ad on mobile devices. Developers can now pay for an ad that sends users to Apple's App Store or Google Play to buy their app—that is, if anyone has the patience to wait for Facebook's painfully slow app to load. [TechCrunch]

Ms. Pao (Photo: Kleiner Perkins)

Ellen Pao's gender discrimination case: Still headed for the courtroom. Eventually. Maybe.

When last we checked in with the legal wrangling over Ellen Pao's gender discrimination suit against Kleiner Perkins, San Francisco Superior Court Judge Harold Kahn had rejected the storied VC firm's arguments for arbitration but invited the firm to ask again in a hearing scheduled for today.

But it sounds like Kleiner's legal representatives couldn't quite close the deal. Reuters reports that, rather than ruling, Judge Kahn told Kleiner Perkins he didn't buy their arguments and added that they had the option of appealing if they wanted.

It sounds like the firm has every intention of taking him up on that other. A Kleiner Perkins spokesperson provided the following statement, declaring its intention to appeal the case:

KPCB is disappointed in Judge Kahn’s decision and intends to file an appeal believing it has strong arguments and precedent to move the matter to arbitration.  Ms. Pao, like other partners, signed a variety of standard agreements and it is these agreements with the managing LLCs that govern her claims and  require, among other things, that disputes be resolved through arbitration.  We expect arbitration to be a more efficient and speedier dispute resolution process than trying a matter before a jury years down the line in the San Francisco Superior Court.

It's starting to sound like this case could drag on for years--unless, of course, the warring parties reach an out-of-court settlement.

Ms. Pao (Photo: Kleiner Perkins)

San Francisco Superior Court Judge Harold Kahn kept his word today and ruled against Kleiner Perkins' motion for arbitration in Ellen Pao's gender discrimination suit.

However, he did rule that the storied VC firm may ask again for arbitration at an upcoming hearing scheduled for July 20th, meaning that the case could still be arbitrated by a third party.

A Kleiner Perkins spokesperson sent the following statement to Betabeat:

KPCB is encouraged by Judge Kahn’s willingness to hear our arguments on third party beneficiary and equitable estoppel claims.  The firm will file its motions by July 13th to be heard in a supplementary hearing on July 20th.   KPCB continues to believe it has strong arguments and precedent to move the matter to arbitration.  Ms. Pao, like other partners, signed a variety of standard agreements requiring, among other things, that all disputes be resolved through arbitration.  We expect arbitration to be a more efficient and speedier dispute resolution process than trying a matter before a jury years down the line in the San Francisco Superior Court.

We assume the "na na na poo poo" was cut from the above statement.

Ms. Pao (kpcb.com)

When VC firm Kleiner Perkins filed its response to partner Ellen Pao's gender discrimination suit (nearly a month ago now), included in the flurry of legal documents were requests to require Ms. Pao to submit to binding arbitration.

Now the Mercury News reports that the presiding judge has spoken--tentatively, at least--and she'll be required to do no such thing. Kleiner argued that partners signed arbitration agreements with each of the firm's new funds; Ms. Pao's lawyer rejoined that only an umbrella agreement would do, and his logic apparently carried the day.

Of course, we should also note that lawyers for both sides are still due at a hearing today, where Kleiner has a chance to try talking the judge into reversing his ruling. Maybe somebody's got an ace up his sleeve?

It wasn't all bad news for Kleiner Perkins, however, as the judge did grant the firm's request to keep partner compensation information--which is, of course, crucial to Ms. Pao's allegations--quiet. And here we were getting so excited about poring over those spreadsheets and figuring out who had the most pocket money.

Anyone hoping for courtroom dramatics may still be disappointed, though, as this makes an out-of-court settlement a distinct possibility. And if the VC firm has any inclination to keep things quiet, that might be its last option.

(Photo: KPCB)

The gender discrimination suit filed by Kleiner Perkins partner Ellen Pao against her employer has hit a potential snag. The hedge fund run by Ms. Pao's husband, Alphonse "Buddy" Fletcher, has filed for bankruptcy, according to Dan Primack at Fortune.

Mr. Primack points out that while the bankruptcy and the suit could easily be unrelated, the possibility of family financial disaster could provide a motive for Ms. Pao seeking damages against the company.

He writes:

If Kleiner Perkins did what Pao claims, then its motivation for lying would be fairly obvious: Protect its reputation and its assets.

If Pao is the one making up stories, now we have a possible explanation as for why: She needs a big, and quick, payday to help salvage her family's deteriorating financial situation.

Mr. Fletcher also has as somewhat litigious past, a fact some proponents of Kleiner Perkins have brought up in defense of the firm.

Of course, this could mean nothing and everything, but both points do make the landmark lawsuit rather murky.

Ms. Pao and KP peers.

Compensation is central to the discrimination case filed against Kleiner Perkins Caulfield & Byer by junior partner Ellen Pao, which alleges among other things that women are paid less than men. So far, no details about compensation have been made public either by the plaintiff or the defendant, and Kleiner Perkins would like to keep it that way. 

The documents that would prove or disprove Ms. Pao's claim have been filed in the San Francisco Supreme Court, but they are sealed unless the judge decides otherwise at a hearing on July 10.

The documents will put KP at a competitive disadvantage, the firm's lawyer argued. (The San Jose Mercury News found an anonymous venture capitalist to say otherwise, for whatever that's worth. Hardly anyone in the industry, including tech news blog PandoDaily, seems to want to go on record about this case until it's been hashed out in front of a judge--although superangel Dave McClure voiced public support with a "hang in there ellen" on Quora.)

The compensation details are spelled out in the legal agreements, which were drawn up when KP raised each of its funds starting in 2005. The firm just raised a $525 million new fund last month. KP says these agreements also require partners, including Ms. Pao, to seek arbitration outside of court instead of litigation in the event of a dispute.

Ms. Pao (kpcb.com)

Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers has filed a response to partner Ellen Pao's allegations of gender discrimination and boy howdy, they did not hold back. We've obtained a copy, and here's the meat and potatoes:

"KPCB generally denies each and every material allegation of the Complaint and further denies that Plaintiff has been damaged in the manner alleged, or in any manner or amount."

The firm also "vigorously denies" that it discriminated or retaliated against Ms. Pao, as well as claiming that Ms. Pao never reported anything prior to 2011, and they also deny that she complained in 2007.

The response goes into great detail, refuting many of Ms. Pao's accusations point-by-point:

• When she did complain in late 2011/early 2012, Ms. Pao was already represented by a lawyer, the filing claims.
• KP retained an outside investigator, who interviewed 17 partners, including every then-current KPCB female partner. The independent investigator concluded that her discrimination and retaliation complaints were without merit.
• KPCB denies that Raymond Lane pressured Ms. Pao to marry Mr. Nazre.
• She told Mr. Lane that she was putting the relationship with Mr. Nazre behind her, says the filing.
• That was in late 2011/early 2012, and that was the last any of the senior partners claim to have heard of the incident.
• In regards to the racy book she originally claimed to have received from Mr. Komisar, the response claims--well, it's worth quoting in full: "That book [which the response identifies as The Book of Longing] was reviewed by the New York Times as 'profound'  and having 'exceptional range.'" The document also claims it was purchased as a gift for Ms. Pao by Mr. Komisar's wife, and that Ms. Pao "never returned or objected to the gift in the many years after receiving it.

Regarding her performance reviews:

• In her 2009 self evaluation, she singled out the help she'd received from Komisar and other partners, saying that they are "supportive mentors and advisors." She also "specifically requested Komisar review her performance after the incidents she alleges as harassment," according to the filing.
• Initially, according to the filing, her reviews were encouraging: "Plaintiff's 2009 review encouraged Plaintiff to speak up more effectively and influentially, step out more in a leading role, present more new investment ideas, and take more risks by incubating a high potential venture and owning it--hardly retaliatory input." But it also "encouraged her to focus on her interpersonal and 'EQ' skills to more effectively direct and motivate teams." Then, in 2010, her review "advised Plaintiff that she was too 'territorial', that others did not 'trust her motivations'  and that she had a 'sense of  entitlement rather than earning her position via contribution, expertise, and making her fellow partners successful.'"

Regarding the party Ms. Pao alleges she was not invited to, lest she kill the buzz:

• KPCB denies that Ms. Pao was ever excluded from any company activities based on her gender.
• The dinner Ms. Pao alleges she was not invited to because she was a woman did in fact have female partners in attendance.
• KPCB also denies that it "excluded women from two dinners in San Francisco in 2011 or that any KPCB event was marred or motivated by gender animus or discrimination."

The also firm asserts that Ms. Pao was contractually obligated to seek third-party arbitration, and that by lodging a public suit, she has breached her contract. KPCB also claims that Ms. Pao was failed to competently perform the duties of her job.

KPCB is requesting "the Complaint be dismissed with prejudice and that Plaintiff take nothing," "That judgment be entered in favor of KPCB on all claims; That KPCB be awarded its attorneys' fees and costs of suit."

Besides the answer to Ms. Pao's complaint, documents filed include a motion to compel arbitration and a motion "to seal records lodged with the court filed by the defendant Kleiner Perkins." There's a hearing set for both issues on July 10.

Today was the deadline for KPCB to file a response, but they could have responded with a request for an extension. Instead, they've chosen to answer Ms. Pao's allegations. Until now, the storied VC firm had been largely silent, except for a strongly worded (though largely detail-free) statement from John Doerr, which called Ms. Pao's allegations false. Now we have a lot more details.

As of last week, Ms. Pao was still working at Kleiner Perkins.

Here's the full document:

Ms. Kunst.

Minority report is a guest column by Sarah Kunst, who does business development and product at fashion app Kaleidoscope. She's a black, non-engineer female in tech, but plans to IPO anyway.

The big question on everyone’s mind in the wake of Ellen Pao’s allegations of sexual harassment and discrimination against venture capital powerhouse firm KPCB: “There are women not named Mary Meeker in VC?”

Betabeat crunched the numbers and came up with a Female Equality Metric, or FEM - the percentage of VC partners who are female. The number: 8.3 percent. Guess they’re not going to rename it “Sandra” Hill Road anytime soon.

For women who want to write big checks, this can seem like a pretty daunting statistic. But the refrain in the tech world is that there aren’t a lot of women, because not enough qualified women apply. What does it take to fill the hiring funnel with estrogen? We pulled together some job listings, stats and empirical evidence to provide a fast and dirty look into the world of who makes it to partner.

Kinda entry level? An old Union Square Ventures job post requests that, alongside being a strong communicator and interpersonal relationship guru, you also have:

• Deep understanding of the ecosystem of web and mobile services
• Familiarity with web technologies—you know the difference between the LAMP stack and a stack of lamps
• Comfort modeling in Excel (writer's note: this is not the same as modeling at Raise Cache)
• Ideally, prior design or programming experience or work in an investment or internet-related position

If you're that pre-MBA whiz in finance AND tech, you're set.

Got a little less green and want to start with some real power in the title? The National Venture Capital Association has some thoughts on where you should be coming from: "Many venture capitalists come to the industry after successful careers as scientists, engineers, doctors or entrepreneurs..."

Hmm, we'll assume that in tech, the backgrounds are on heavy on the science, engineering and entrepreneurship. Perfect, grab your press clippings from your days as a 30 Under 30 CEO, score a 1600 on the SAT, or be Matt Cohler—and remember to ask for carry structure based on which partner brought in the deal. Congrats, you are now a VC.

Is the path really that simple? If you're a technical mind with a pretty solid understanding of math and the right connections, it can be. Most VCs seem to be former founders or investment bankers, but a quick peek at who has those qualifications reveals something a bit... penile... about the demographic most in that particular niche. How so? Well...

According to a recent Georgetown University study, 69 percent of computers and mathematics majors rock the Y (chromosome, that is). Sixty-four percent of finance majors are Jacks, not Jills. A whopping 84 percent of engineering majors will need a prostate exam.

But that's just college. A major isn't binding, right? The average person changes career paths five times, after all. Girls have time to get she to a hacker dojo and learn some black hat tricks or polish their pitch deck before the next VC fund closes.

However, like all funnels, there's a narrowing over time. Those female tech and finance majors who stand the best chance of making it to partner status? By the time they're hiking Sand Hill Road and stalking the booths at New York's Coffee Shop, they represent a scant 11 percent of companies that will take venture money and can lay claim to a female CEO or founder, according to Dow Jones VentureSource.

The Startup Genome Project’s data reflects the same general sentiment: Silicon Valley founders (likely candidates to go on to jobs in VC) are about 20 percent female and in New York that percentage hovers somewhere above 30 percent.

Are you part of the subset on subset on subset of women still in the funnel? Awesome. Now it's time to get serious about where you want to venture. One solid way to get into a firm with the best deal flow and hottest reputation is to be an Entrepreneur in Residence (EIR). This gig varies from firm to firm, but expect to have landed a big win in previous positions and lots of exsisting relationships with tech thought leaders. Plan to follow it up with a six figure salary (and in some cases up to half a million dollars to experiment with) that pays the sky high rents in SoMa or SoHo while you spitball ideas and whiteboard your way into a brand new, ready-to-be-funded company. These jobs are pretty fluid and basically never advertised, so it's hard to pin down exact data on how many of these paid-to-play positions exist.

Luckily, I'm one of three people who still use Google Reader and a search of RSS feeds including Techcrunch, SAI and Betabeat yielded 47 mentions of the term "EIR." Exactly twice does the term refer to a woman (no, not a typo; both articles are about the same person, Padma Rao). So if you want to leverage your EIR gig into a solid VC role it's vital that you are, in fact, Padma Rao. Given those (wildly generalized but fairly accurate) odds, it's kind of mind-blowing that the FEM score hovers at even a lowly 8.3 percent.

What needs to change and how to change it? This isn't a TED talk, so there's no grand denouement. But all the usual suspects help. Encourage girls to code and take AP Calculus. Raise your hand and lean forward Sheryl Sandberg-style as a woman in the corporate world, and then reach back down the ladder to help the next generation. If you're not on the tech side but still kicking ass in product management, user acquisition or business development, make sure you're getting the equity and recognition that will keep you in the funnel. And if, after all that, you still find yourself squeezed out of the funnel solely because you’re a woman, that’s when you call a lawyer.