Women in Technology

In light of the recently passed International Women’s Day I thought it would be relevant to consider some of the challenges and issues faced by women in technical fields, where we remain drastically under-represented.

The cause of encouraging more women in technology, and STEM fields generally, has forged a bit of a community in Sydney. I often attend meet ups and conferences that discuss the industry and issues.

As an IT recruiter, I think to an extent I’m on the front line of this issue. As such I wonder if I’m in a unique position to offer some perspective and thoughts on some of the specifics of how we can encourage diversity in tech fields:

• Nurture the love – we need to encourage women to get involved in technology (and learn technical skills) from a young age. Studies have shown that gender stereotypes are embedded early on, and it can make all the difference.
• Bottom up and top down equality is key – in order to properly embrace diversity in a business, it’s got to be encouraged from both ends.
• It’s important to encourage those in hiring positions to consider strengths, weaknesses and a diversity of mindset when hiring their staff, rather than just gender. Inevitably, with this sort of approach, a diverse and talented workforce results.
• Language matters. Hiring managers need to be wary of the words they’re using and the way they’re communicating their jobs and needs, as it can unintentionally lean toward male or female.
• When looking at technology industries internationally, it’s interesting to see that Australia is the second highest for equality in the world (following Bulgaria) for women in technology. Unfortunately, the statistics are still incredibly skewed toward males – women are 30% of tech in Bulgaria, and 28% in Australia.
• It’s not just about representation. There’s also a significant wage gap that needs to be addressed across all levels of seniority, field and specialisation.  Across other industries the wage gap between male and female is 13%, while in technology it’s 20% – there’s a long way to go for women generally, but particularly in tech fields.

In the end, this battle that we’re fighting is for the benefit of everyone. Equality for women in tech fields will not only encourage more women to enter technical industries and provide a wider workforce of skills to draw form, it will also stimulate competition, encourage a diversity of opinions and ensure that careers in technology are long, fruitful and equal in opportunity for all.

If you want to chat about opportunities in technology, or find out more about the many events and discussions going on in Sydney about women in tech, drop me a message or give me a call!