Women in technology

Over the last few years, the Information Technology industry has been growing at an unprecedented rate owing to rapid developments and innovation in disruptive technologies. However, there is a challenge of gender inequality prevailing in the industry. The disparity is also witnessed in top management, founders and entrepreneurs. Considering reports, female founders received just 2.8 percent of venture capital investment in 2019. However, that number grows to 12 percent if the organization is led by a male founder.

In a report from the National Center for Women & Information Technology, nearly 57 percent of all professional jobs are held by women in 2015, in which 25 percent of jobs were computer-related. Over 75 percent of jobs by young women engineers, computer scientists, and other technologists were described as very ambitious, while 85 percent are seeking promotion in the next three years, with 62 percent aspiring to become an executive.

Several reasons that lead this gender inequality in a business include gender differences in terms of social and financial capital; disparities in men and women's culturally constructed perceptions about the abilities and risks associated with entrepreneurship; and variations in opportunities and incentives that men and women experience in workplaces and in families to become entrepreneurs.

In the last couple of years, the number of participations from women in STEM discipline has significantly waned that can also be a major reason for gender inequality in tech. The deficiency of women in technology can lead to a decrease in performance and profits, creating a missed opportunity for businesses.

More women in the workplace, specifically participating in teams and leadership roles, exhibit the need for and impact of having more women in technology. Greater gender diversity in technology can influence businesses’ bottom lines. Moreover, the demand for more female participation in the economy has augmented, often based on political or cultural arguments founded on fairness. Often, women entrepreneurs face a delicate bias from investors based on stereotypes and assumptions about ability, knowledge of the sector, questions about personal life, and comments about personality and appearance.

Thus, to bridge the gender gap within an organization, executives need to meticulously review and update their diversity and inclusion initiatives. They must train people about gender bias, practices and behaviors. They can even support female leadership programs that assist women to take greater risks, experiment and create communities of support and challenge.

Organizations also need to consider investing in formalized support and development actions that can support women with STEM expertise and are tailored to their needs.

Encouraging Women Leadership

To understand how entrepreneurship program supports women, it is essential that entrepreneurial outcomes must be gleaned and reported by gender. Both men and women often think about their readiness for new opportunities in several ways. But leaders need to find ways to learn new skills and connect with new people to grow professionally.

Women have the abilities to build gender-inclusive events that attract more female entrepreneurs when they are leaders at organizations. They can also use their networks to help women entrepreneurs access mentors and financial capital. To become an entrepreneur in the tech domain, a woman must drive business acumen, have negotiation skills, as well as be politically savvy. Women must receive more opportunities with a focus on these unyielding leadership skills.

Moreover, women engineers also need to ensure they are successful with opportunities and that they get credit for them. They also need trusted colleagues to provide honest feedback without feeling that by asking for support, they are revealing weaknesses which might hurt their possibilities for growth. However, in this regard, women must find a way to quell those inner voices and make sure they get the support they need to be successful that can help accomplish their goals.