ChannelTrends: How 'Advancing Women in IT' Will Help the Industry Thrive

The IT community is rich with career opportunities, despite dismal overall job growth projections and many companies continuing to struggle with economic challenges. There seems to be no shortage of open positions in IT for the properly prepared individual, whether their skills are more technology-oriented or focused on the business side. As the business community relies more and more on IT to run and improve their operations, demand for qualified and trainable professionals will continue to grow.

While that’s good news for those job seekers looking to fill available roles, it presents a challenge for those looking to recruit new talent in areas where the pool of prospects is less than stellar. Good employees with solid technical skills are hard to find, even in the most heavily populated regions with higher-than-average unemployment rates. Demand far outpaces the supply – even with steady growth of the amount of certified and well-trained IT professionals.

One of the largest problems here is the number of women in the tech field, which may take some time to improve. While the industry labor pool continues to expand, the percentage of women in the IT profession has declined over the past several years. The National Center for Women & Information Technology points out that the high water mark for the computer industry was back in 1991, when 36 percent of the workforce was female. That number dropped to just 25 percent by 2009, with the negative trend expected to continue.

Whether that gender disparity is the result of career obstacles or simple perceptions, the industry is missing out on a growing pool of educated professionals. While just 18 percent of undergraduate computer science degrees went to women in 2009, they garnered 57 percent of all undergraduate degrees that year. The challenge for the IT community is to gain a greater understanding of what’s causing this imbalance. Is there a single, addressable issue preventing women from entering computer sciences and tech careers or are there deeper-rooted problems?

Either way, the disparity is not something that can be overcome in a matter of weeks or months, but it is surely contributing to the lack of skilled IT professionals holding back many channel companies. In order to tackle that problem with actionable activities and programs, the CompTIA Advancing Women in IT (AWIT) Community was formed last year. Its goals include empowering women with the knowledge and skills necessary to help their pursuit of successful IT careers, inspiring prospective job seekers and teens to explore a career in technology.

AWIT members hope to boost the representation of women in tech fields by creating educational and mentoring programs to boost the prospects for aspiring women. The group intends to leverage influential industry leaders – both men and women – in its efforts to appeal to high school and college students, as well as women returning to work or looking for a career change. Peers are often the key to attracting new talent, which is why many companies ask high profile executives and experts to serve as guides or mentors during the corporate recruitment process. Whether providing one-to-one counseling or participating in webinars and training videos, these individuals can help prospective IT professionals understand what it takes to succeed – and inspire them to set the bar high.

Men are encouraged to participate in the discussion and join the CompTIA group as well. If a larger percentage of women enter the IT workforce, the expanded labor pool will improve business prospects and innovation. Research has shown that men and women often have different priorities and work habits. In general, female leaders are more supportive, compassionate and rewarding to their subordinates than their male counterparts, who are typically better at delegating and coaching. That’s why companies with a diverse workforce have a breadth of management styles and other critical skills.

But to create an environment in which women thrive, companies must foster work-life balance; overcome perceived, visible, and underlying gender discrimination; build an industry network for job opportunities and advancement; and make available female role models.

Are you interested in helping the AWIT Community promote these practices with new initiatives and programs, or just in joining the next monthly online conversation? The members are actively engaged in a variety of projects and would welcome your participation. Just contact group director Cathy Alper at [email protected] and let her know how you’d like to help.

Brian Sherman is founder of Tech Success Communications, specializing in editorial content and consulting for the IT channel. His previous roles include chief editor at Business Solutions magazine and senior director of industry alliances with Autotask. Contact Brian at [email protected].