The UK’s campaign for greater gender balance in STEM careers – WISE – has launched an investigation into why the representation of women in tech remains ‘stubbornly low’.
Women represent just 16.4% of IT professionals; a figure that has hardly budged over the last decade, according to WISE. So it has launched a tech landscape survey that will provide much-needed insights to help close the digital skills gap.
The organisation is inviting people working at all levels of the technology sector to tell them about their experiences. This UK-wide survey aims to quantify the different routes into tech based on age, gender, nationality and other characteristics. It will examine the current landscape including what qualifications tech employees hold, as well as employers’ training requirements and best practices.
LACK OF WOMEN IN STEM
“The ongoing lack of women in tech is a real concern given that we have an enormous skills gap in these roles across all organisations; not just in the tech sector,” stated Kay Hussain, WISE’s Chief Executive. “Our project will help to shine a spotlight on what is going on in tech, the barriers and enablers for women and provide the first step in supporting employers to close their digital skills gap.”
WISE recently highlighted the opportunity and need for more women to play their part in tackling climate change, at its recent annual conference on the topic of skills for climate change. “It is essential that we encourage game-changing female talent into STEM roles, and in particular tech roles,” added Hussain. “A diverse workforce will help deliver the creativity and innovation required to address the climate crisis; one of the most challenging issues of our lifetime.”
WISE will report its findings at the WISE Tech Roundtable in June 2021. More information about the survey, or take part, click here. Check out the recent research on the ‘worsening’ gender gap in tech here.
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