As a female, this is disappointing. The best candidates should be hired based on skills and qualifications, not a metric. It's going to make the whole lot of us (women, other minorities) seem less qualified because we were hired to meet a quota, not because we were best for a job. Eventually that will show and it'll hurt the reputation of those of us who were hired for the right reasons. I'm the only female at my current job (15 pilot part 91 gig) and I appreciate that I was hired for the quality of work I do and not to check a box. I'm sure my colleagues appreciate it, too.
This a step backwards, IMO.