– By Rashim Mogha
Once a male-dominated sector in India, a career in the IT industry has become the most sought-after option for women. In fact, the number of women enrolling in B-Tech courses across various tech institutes has doubled. According to the ministry of education, entries went up from eight per cent to 19.72 per cent between 2016 and 2021. Additionally, there are more Indian female graduates in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) at tertiary level than in developed nations like the US, UK, Germany and France yet there are fewer women tech leaders, role models, and tech startups run by women today.
The very few who managed to reach the top had to overcome numerous long standing challenges. The hurdles women face often look different from those their male counterparts face. According to Skillsoft’s 2022 Women in Tech Report – India Region, only seven percent of the 1,004 women tech professionals surveyed held executive-level positions (CIO, CXO, CISO), while 13 percent held managing director-level positions.
Let’s address the pressing reasons for the underrepresentation of women leaders in tech.
Lack of equity in opportunities
While women have the skillset to excel in tech roles, the biases in organizations and society are barriers to opportunities. A theme of systemic gender imbalance emerges as the topmost challenge for women in tech. Notably, the challenge of lack of equity in opportunities is more starkly resonant among those who have been in their careers longer. 66 percent of the women surveyed said that men outnumber them in their organization for leadership roles at ratios of 2-to-1 or greater. The ratio of men outnumbering women by 2-to-1 or greater is higher for those working in tech companies (72 per cent) than non-tech companies (66 per cent), suggesting that tech companies see a starker gender imbalance. According to the same report, 47 percent cite a lack of equity in opportunities as the biggest challenge women face in pursuing a tech-related career (Skillsoft Women in Tech Report 2022). Even in non-tech companies today, there are different standards set for them versus the men in their field, while women tech professionals continue to encounter inequity compared to their male peers on multiple levels. Organizations must promote and create more women role models to usher in real change towards gender balance.
Pressure to do it all
The expectations from women when it comes to caregiving (children and elders) and managing the home front are different from the expectations from men. While women are expected to shoulder all or most of these responsibilities, men are often not expected to help at home. To add, there is an ideal woman image who does it all – a hard working professional, a nurturing mother, a caring daughter and daughter-in-law and a supporting wife. Trying to live up to this image with not enough women role models who have done things differently leads to women feeling overwhelmed without much support. In turn, this becomes a cause for not enough women in tech making it to leadership positions, thus completing a vicious cycle that needs urgent addressing. The lack of support is problematic for organizations and the women involved because it eliminates their valuable perspectives and reinforces inequity and skills gaps — all of which impact the way organizations perform.
Lack of sufficient professional skill development programs
While organizations are making learning and development (L&D) a priority, they need to launch training programs that cater to the specific needs of women learners. Women are eager to learn and grow so much that they prefer training opportunities over a big paycheck. According to the Skillsoft Women in Tech Report 2022, 52 percent of women working in core tech companies ranked professional development/training opportunities as one of the top five incentives from their organizations compared to 42 percent of non-tech companies. It’s a clear call for L&D leaders to revisit their plans and tailor them to meet the needs of women in tech professionals.
These above-mentioned challenges are bound to slow down the growth potential of women in tech at all levels resulting in a handful of women holding leadership positions. It is known that an organization with a gender-diverse workforce with greater representation of women in any industry positively contributes to its bottom line. As more organizations recognize the merit of hiring and developing women leaders, the percentage will grow further. It all boils down to organizations and leadership ensuring that women in tech are recognized, trained, supported, and given opportunities to grow in their careers to bridge the gender gap and create a genuinely inclusive industry.
(Rashim Mogha is the GM for Leadership & Business at Skillsoft)
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