This year, the theme of International Women’s Day was ‘Embrace Equity’. This banner called for us all to step up and create a world free from bias, stereotypes, and discrimination.
The technology industry hasn’t always been successful when it comes to female representation or pay equity. According to the latest figures, the tech industry’s gender pay gap stands at 16%. This is higher than the national average of 11.6%.
Over the last few years, there has been a growing awareness and recognition of the need for greater equality and inclusion in various industries. Broadly, things have become more equal, but more equal isn’t equal enough. This is true across many sectors – tech included.
What does ‘tech’ think?
90% of tech professionals believe that the tech sector would benefit from having a more gender-equal workforce. However, according to TechNation, only 26% of the people working in tech are women. In 2019, this number stood at 19%.
Despite this lift, there is still work to be done. When respondents were asked; “What percentage of your tech team is female?” The average answer was 32%.
Organisations appear to be recognising this disparity. 61% of people surveyed say that their organisation is actively working on gender balance in their workforces.
Through the promotion of women in tech, providing training opportunities, introducing flexible working models, and revisiting recruitment practices; organisations are actively attempting to recruiting more women in tech roles.
70% of the people that TechNation surveyed stated that there is a gender imbalance in their current or most recent organisation or team. Conversely, 14% of people said that there was no gender imbalance.
The surveys’ respondents were split equally across large, medium, and small businesses so it would appear that gender representation is perceived similarly across the entire sector.
Gender discrimination at work.
Respondents to the survey were asked, “Have you ever experienced gender bias or discrimination whilst working in a tech role?”
76% of respondents reported having experienced gender bias or discrimination at least once in their tech careers. Approximately, 30% of people said that this happened “all the time” and 50% said, “once or twice”.
On the flip side, 15% of respondents said gender discrimination had “never” happened to them while just over 5% said they “didn’t know”.
Where does gender bias stem from?
As part of the TechNation survey, people were asked where they believed gender bias in tech stems from.
- 38% believe it comes from wider society.
- 18% believe it comes from employers.
- 15% think it starts from schools.
- 14% responded it comes from an inherent natural perception.
- 10% think it starts at universities.
- and 4% think it comes from the government.
Who is responsible to make a change?
The sample was also asked who they believe is responsible for addressing the imbalance of women in tech. The majority believe that the responsibility lies with schools (31%) and employers (30%). 21% think the government is responsible, and 13% place the responsibility on universities.
Respondents also believed that organisational culture was inherent in changing attitudes. One senior female respondent believes that we must embrace a new and revived willingness to understand that women can empower change and innovation. She goes on to say that,
“if the company culture values and respects the contributions of women in its core, a lot of the (change) can happen organically.”
Cultural shifts.
Although the attitudes of individuals and organisations are important, many believe that the change must come from the tech culture first and foremost.
As part of the report, high-performing women from tech were surveyed about their career routes. Some report a “struggle” to get to where they were. They have had to “push on many closed doors”. Others have had to “prove my worth and argue my point” on the way to their current role.
Why are women “put off” tech?
With such an abundance of tech roles on offer, why else might women be put off a career in tech? Is it purely because of gender disparity and discrimination or are there other issues at play?
When asked what they think is putting women off tech, most people (22%) said early misconceptions arising from a lack of education in young girls were to blame. The next most popular option was the fact that the sector is male-heavy. Women reported not seeing themselves as ‘welcome’.
The remaining cohort cited other reasons such as a lack of confidence, an inexposure to tech from a young age, and the limitations of family responsibilities.
This lack of self-belief is something that has been echoed by longer-form responses. One respondent claimed:
“I think one of the biggest obstacles women face is a lack of self-belief. Many don’t think that they can conquer the big challenges that they may face in senior positions, but I know that women are more than capable of taking on difficult positions, tasks, and responsibilities.”
What would attract more women to tech?
When thinking about attracting women into tech careers, it seems the answer lies in both policy and procedure and organisational culture.
84% of people reported they’d be more drawn to a company that speaks about being diverse & inclusive. Respondents were also asked to rank the benefits that would be most attractive to them. Family-friendly working arrangements such as flexible and hybrid working came out top, especially for women. This indicates that women value being able to manage the work/life balance.
Career breaks and returnships.
A returnship is a programme implemented to help experienced professionals get back into their roles after a career break. They have become more common over the last 5 years.
A PWC report investigated the impact of career breaks on women. It found that 3 in 5 women go back to lower-skilled or lower-paid jobs after a career break. Company initiatives such as returnships have been introduced to help address this disparity.
In 2019, the TechNation study asked its respondents about the use of returnships in their organisations. At that stage, 29% of people said they didn’t know what they were and 38% said that they were extremely beneficial.
In 2023, the same question was asked. 4 years on, 48% of people said that they are extremely beneficial and only 11% had never heard of them. This indicates that more people are accessing this support and they are being more widely communicated within organisations.
The future.
Technology is becoming more and more ingrained in everything we do. It’s touching every area of modern life, and therefore it’s essential that women have as much of a say in its evolution as men do. For this to happen we need female input in the development of future technology.
“How long will it be before we can expect gender parity to reach the tech sector?”
When asked this question, the survey’s respondents overwhelmingly believe that we can expect equal gender representation in tech within 6-10 years (34%). 16% said they believe it’ll be at least 25 years, while 8% are not so hopeful. This cohort thinks we will never see gender parity within the tech sector.
Career Advice site, Women in Tech features the latest job opportunities, event listings, mentorships, and guides for women working in technology. They predict that the current rate at which gender diversity in tech is increasing means that the battle will need to be fought for some time yet.
Regarding the gender pay gap in tech, the time frame also looks bleak. It’s estimated that if things continue at the current rate, it will be 30 years before the gender pay gap in tech closes.
Are you a woman in tech?
We’d love to hear about your experiences. Leave your thoughts in the comments section below.
