Women in Tech
What impact does technology have in changing women’s roles in society?
According to women-in-tech statistics for 2020, women hold 20% of positions in the tech world although it isn’t as dreary as it seems.
Silicon Valley Bank says 60% of those startups have at least one woman in an executive position. More and more women are getting involved in these positions lately and are also launching startups.
Current Scenario
Even without statistically backed up data, it can be said that women still have a lesser role in tech when compared to men. This gender discrepancy has a huge impact on the role of women in tech. One way to counter this is to make people aware of the capabilities and the contribution of women in the world of tech. In recent times, there has been a lot of improvement in the number of opportunities being received by women although we still have a long way to go.
The term “technical” specifically refers to the person who can write a code. As much as technical skills are important, non-technical skills have a crucial role to play in the technology ecosystem. Keeping this apart, it’s really important to have more technical women in the industry as it can influence the later generations of women to take up coding and to establish their startups. This can be the stepping stone towards the empowerment of women in the tech industry. Since tech has already started to spread to all corners of the world, the demand for coders and problem solvers is also increasing. I’d say there’s no better time than right now for women to let the tech girl inside them blossom.
The influence of women employees
Gender equality plays a major role in growing businesses. Women remain unrecognized and underrepresented in a lot of sectors. Although a lot of evidence-based facts say that having more women in the industry is beneficial for the company, there still lies a sense of inequality. The percentage of women in the technology sector is significantly less due to lack of experience with STEM objects and also the disparity in STEM jobs.
According to a Forbes article, a few reasons for the need for women in tech are as follows:
- The more the merrier
Companies that are more gender-diverse have a better return on investment. Over the past few years, they have also surpassed their fellow companies which have a lesser gender-diversity. One simple way to understand why this is happening is that more diversity, more innovations.
- Different perspectives, more solutions
Exposure to a different set of ideas and perspectives can help people upgrade their problem-solving skills. People tend to accept and appreciate this diversity in opinions which eventually leads to the advancement of the business. This also helps in reducing the probability of failure of projects as it requires the approval of widely varying perspectives.
- Today’s struggle is tomorrow’s motivation
The growth of opportunities for women calls for them to give satisfactory results using their full potential. This indeed can be a source of motivation for the later generations. The empowerment of women in tech can influence young girls to take up computer science and to prove their capabilities.
Challenges for Women in Tech Industries
Keeping an eye out for opportunities but still getting none even with the required skill set is disappointing and discouraging. This inequality in opportunities can initiate self-doubt and also lower one’s self-esteem. Since the tech industry is male-dominated for the most part, it is slightly difficult to gain recognition and receive appreciation for the efforts made. Also, I believe, challenges can be converted into opportunities.
“Don’t let the fire burn you, instead, rise from the ashes.”
Resources:
1) For more information about women in tech statistics and trends, visit:
https://kommandotech.com/statistics/women-in-tech-statistics/
2) To get more insight into the current situations and why it is the way it is, refer to:
https://bthechange.com/why-its-time-to-increase-the-role-of-women-in-tech-44013b511061
3) To decipher the need of women in the tech industry, check out:
4) To get a perspective about women in tech, visit the page:
https://www.themuse.com/advice/why-we-need-to-rethink-women-in-tech
5) Have an insight into the struggles of women at the workplace:
https://www.information-age.com/women-in-tech-challenges-motivation-gap-123481068/
