โWhile women are gaining an ever-strong standing in the Technology workforce, more work is needed to ensure that they enjoy equal opportunity, compensation, and career growth opportunities.
According to Deloitte's Women @ Work: A Global Outlook report, while women are becoming better represented in the sector, they still experience non-inclusive behaviors, with 44% of respondents noting that they experienced micro-aggressions or harassment in the workplace in 2023.
In this article, we will explore how Tech organizations can empower women, improve their hiring strategies to include more female talent where available, and create a workplace culture that nurtures and supports women in Tech.
The importance of diversity in the workplace
Diverse and inclusive workplaces build high-performing teams and motivated, goal-oriented individuals. Todayโs candidates also prioritize and seek out diverse workforces in which they will be accepted, supported, and provided with sufficient growth and development opportunities.
Creating a diverse workplace that includes women in the Tech industry will help to create stronger problem-solving approaches and bring new and innovative ideas to your organization.
Eliminate unconscious bias in role descriptions
An important, but often overlooked, factor that contributes to biases in the hiring process is unconscious bias in job titles and role descriptions. Unconscious bias perpetuates assumptions and stereotypes of certain genders, ethnicities, races, ages, and social classes, among other factors. Ensure that you re-frame role descriptions that contain any outdated or gender-biased language to create space for diversity in your hiring process.
Use gender neutral pronouns, check your descriptions for biased language, and avoid presenting a โtoxicโ or gender-prejudiced work culture during interviews and communications with applicants.
Involve female employees throughout the hiring process
Where possible, introducing your female candidates to current female employees during the hiring and interview processes will assist you in portraying your organization as a diverse and inclusive one.
It may also help to improve the hiring experience for female candidates and could help you to attract referrals in the future.
Promote family-friendly policies
According to Deloitte, women bear the largest responsibility for household tasks. While 88% of the respondents worked full time, almost half of the women polled by Deloitte were also primarily responsible for household tasks such as cooking, cleaning, shopping, or providing care for dependents.
Including flexible and family-friendly policies in your hiring process can help to create a more supportive and inclusive work environment for women in the tech industry. Over half of women have noted that working from home has made them more productive, and offering remote working policies could assist your talent in striking a healthier and more sustainable work-life balance while driving your organization forward.
Highlight learning and development opportunities
Career development is a leading priority for women in tech. Your organizationโs learning and development opportunities and upskilling programs should be highlighted in role descriptions and throughout the hiring process to attract more valuable female candidates.
Providing clear pathways for advancement and promoting a culture that values skill development also demonstrates that your company values the career progression and long-term success of its employees.
Retaining your workforce
Once you have built a more diverse and inclusive workforce, itโs important to focus on retaining your diverse spectrum of talent. Some of the most significant challenges in retaining talent in the technology industry include a lack of advancement opportunities and a poor work-life balance.
To address these concerns, ensure that you provide sufficient career development opportunities and actively promote equal opportunities for advancement into leadership roles for all employees, including women. Additionally, promoting work-life balance through flexible working arrangements and a supportive company culture can help create an environment where current employees feel supported.
Find diverse talent with Glocomms
Glocomms specializes in assisting technology organizations to secure leading talent for their open roles.
Submit a vacancy or request a call back to partner with us and find the right people to support your future in tech.