Men still greatly outnumber women in software development. Google claim that 17% of their technical employees are women; Facebook say 15%. In 2013, Pinterest engineer Tracy Chou’s independent survey concluded that women represented only 12% of software engineers in major tech organisations. But big industries aside, in a 2015 developer survey by Stack Overflow, of over 26,000 programmers from 157 countries, 92.1% of respondents said they were male; just 5.8 percent female (and the rest chose “other” or didn’t answer).
Technology is the future. Every company will be a tech company eventually, so it is vital for girls and women to develop relevant skills if they are to have an impact, influence solutions, gain equal pay, and take up all the opportunities open to them. It’s essential for more girls to consider careers in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM), and steps are being taken towards this, but the percentage of female developers in tech companies is still disproportionately low.
“We’ve done lots of research on why young women don’t choose tech careers and number one is they think it’s not interesting. Number two, they think they wouldn’t be good at it. Number three, they think they will be working with a number of people that they just wouldn’t feel comfortable or happy working alongside.”
Maria Klawe, (President: Harvey Mudd, California)
The solution is to shift perception, challenge stereotypes and promote the real benefits.
Career. Software engineering careers offer incomparably great opportunities in salary, advancement and flexibility. Software developers regularly top the best jobs lists. Tech companies are so desperate for talent that many offer high salaries and benefits like free meals, autonomy and flexible working – from home or anywhere in the world. Software developers with experience of as little as three (or more) years are considered to be senior engineers, and there are many success routes – as director, vice president, CTO, entrepreneur, architect… the list goes on.
Capability. Clear evidence proves that women are as capable as men in technology and other fields. We have to challenge views that argue the opposite, not only to girls, but to everyone. “A true male ally is a man who is willing to defend women when there are no women in the room.”
Social & collaborative. There’s sometimes a perception that software engineering is for solitary geeks with no social skills – the opposite of what many girls (and boys!) want. But it’s not lonely – most projects necessitate collaboration to create solutions; some encouraging or requiring pair programming – people working side-by-side, taking turns to code and review solutions. It’s a chance to work on your passions, with like-minded people from all over the world. There are also a growing number of networks for women in technology, many of them offering support and social experiences – from ‘Lean In’ circles, started by Facebook’s Sheryl Sandberg, to groups on LinkedIn, to regular brunch events in major cities.
Creativity & Diversity. Contrary to popular belief, software development isn’t dull and tedious. It requires you to think creatively, solve problems and to constantly learn, adapt and grow. You can specialise or diversify, from creating software solutions for social housing landlords, to games, to medical research. Other non-coding roles like product management, business analysis, user experience and user interface design all require an understanding of consumer psychology, marketing, brand and communications – like many other career paths – but still within the vibrant, constantly changing world of technology..
This is the one industry that most directly affects people’s lives today – in every respect. I’ve worked with some technically brilliant and personally inspiring women in my career so far – from developers and testers to BAs, software product leaders and VR specialists. I’ve not yet worked with a female CTO, but give it time!
I’d love to hear from women in technology – women who code, women who write specs and design products, women who lead and inspire. If you are, or you’ve worked with, a brilliant woman in tech, please get in touch.