Women in Tech Leadership Growth - Why It Matters

​Take a moment and reflect on tech leadership in our society; what is one of the first things that comes to your mind? If it is the fact that it is predominantly made up of males in those roles, you’re correct. Women are just as impactful in tech leadership positions than their male counterparts. In this short blog post, we’re going to show you just how impactful they really are and why businesses should focus more on giving women the opportunity to lead their organizations.

Significance of Women in Tech Leadership
 
It goes without saying that women in tech leadership positions make an impact that is far bigger than what people may realize. Their impacts are numerous, too. For example, women in these roles can increase earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) by 3.50% for every 10% of gender diversity that a given firm has (Martin, Capstick, & Rench, 2018). To get there, though, there needs to be some transparency with what is actually happening in the real world. Leading the way are strong results from a study that shows exactly how many women hold jobs in different leadership positions. From a high of 28.8% at entry level, all the way down to just over 14% for executive positions, these statistics show a new opportunity (Davis-Ali, 2018). A final thought on this subject turns our lens to Silicon Valley. Male dominance at tech firms is affirmed from Gray’s research results. That study shows that just 9% of IT management positions and 14% of senior management positions within Silicon Valley are held by women.
 
So, what does this all boil down to? In truth, it shows a greater need for women in leadership positions that has largely been ignored as the tech industry blossomed over the last 30-plus years. Companies need to do a much better job in focusing on recruiting and retaining female professionals in tech leadership positions. One of the biggest challenges that comes about is the lack of companies wanting to dedicate resources to groom, train, and advance leaders of this demographic, as well as other underrepresented demographics. As technology becomes more and more complex, it is certain that the need for leadership personnel will rise in tandem with other positions within the tech sphere. Author Catlin commented that by 2022, 1.2 million additional computer scientists will be needed to meet current and future technology demands according to a study by the National Center for Women in Technology (NCWIT) (2014). A number of these professionals will need to be in leadership positions naturally in order to help coach, train, and support the workforce.

The Impact of Networking & Genuity
 
Another challenge that seems to be facing women in tech leadership positions is the fact that they feel as though they need to wear a mask of some kind to properly blend into a male-dominated workplace. Imposter syndrome, a commonly-used term, is a situation where women in tech leadership positions feel like they have to be someone who they are not, in order to keep their role or grow into a new one. There are several classifications of this which all have their respective challenges to overcome. What is true, though, is that women aspiring to go into tech leadership positions or ones already within them must be aware that they need to be themselves. There’s no reason to have to wear a mask. In fact, networking with others within and outside of the tech industry can reduce the reliance of imposter syndromes. The support structures built within networking opportunities are huge and can potentially land someone their next career role (Clark, (2018); DiGeronimo (2018); Hancock (2016); Morris (2018), & Petruzalek (2018)). Short and sweet; women in tech leadership positions were beneficial in the past and certainly are in the present and future.
 
Conclusion
 
Women in tech leadership positions are poised to help move the technology industry into bigger and brighter things than ever before. As they help dictate the way we live, work, play, and communicate, it is without a doubt that the need for equality between them and male leadership at tech companies is higher than ever. One of the specialties of Integrity Management and Consulting Group (ICG) is that we offer a six-week course online on how women and tech leaders can position themselves for sustaining their career and growing it well into the future. Alternately, an in-person workshop session (limitations apply) is also available. If you’d like to know more about the course, check out our website. Women in tech leadership are amazing individuals and they will continue to shape our future in many unique and exciting ways for decades to come.

References

• Catlin, K. (2014). Women in Tech: The Missing Force. Retrieved from https://medium.com/women-in-tech/women-in-tech-the-missing-force-e4709f348610.
• Clark, D. (2018). How Women Can Develop – and Promote – Their Personal Brand. Retrieved February 17, 2019 from https://hbr.org/2018/03/how-women-can-develop-and-promote-their-personal-brand.
• Davis-Ali, S. (2017). Advancing Women Technologies Into Positions of Leadership – Strategies for cultivating confident women leaders. Retrieved February 16, 2019 from http://anitab.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/advancing-women-technologists-leaders.pdf. 
• DiGeronimo, J.J. (2018). Professional Strategies for Women in Technology. Retrieved February 18, 2019 from https://www.techsavvywomen.net/professional-strategies-for-women-in-technology/.
• Gray, G. (2018). Women In Technology – Best Practices for Making The Most of Your Career. Retrieved February 18, 2019 from https://a.sfdcstatic.com/content/dam/www/ocms/assets/pdf/misc/Women_in_Technology.pdf.
• Hancock, A. (2016). How The Rhetoric of Imposter Syndrome Is Used to Gashlight Women in Tech. Retrieved February 16, 2019 from https://modelviewculture.com/pieces/how-the-rhetoric-of-imposter-syndrome-is-used-to-gaslight-women-in-tech.
• Martin, C., Capstick, F., & Rench, S. (2018). Why women in tech are more important than ever…. Retrieved February 17, 2019 from https://transformationblog.ey.com/2018/03/07/why-women-in-tech-are-more-important-than-ever/.
• Morris, S. (2018). How to Fake It Till You Make It in Tech. Retrieved February 18, 2019 from https://blog.powertofly.com/dealing-with-tech-imposter-syndrome-2598766967.html.
• Petruzalek, D. (2018). How to Overcome the Imposter Syndrome. Retrieved February 17, 2019 from https://hackernoon.com/talk-overcoming-impostor-syndrome-at-lwt-2018-7cf4b610cc62.