{"id":32996,"date":"2022-11-14T15:35:35","date_gmt":"2022-11-14T15:35:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/digileaders.com\/?p=32996"},"modified":"2022-11-17T16:01:41","modified_gmt":"2022-11-17T16:01:41","slug":"the-diverse-world-of-women-in-tech","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/digileaders.com\/the-diverse-world-of-women-in-tech\/","title":{"rendered":"The diverse world of women in tech"},"content":{"rendered":"

I\u2019m not a super techie person and yet I spend at least 35 hours every week working in technical teams, designing and building digital public services. Beyond\u00a0my day job as a Delivery Lead at dxw<\/a>, I mentor, write, and speak about a range of business, career, and female empowerment topics, including women in tech.<\/p>\n

I certainly consider myself to be a woman in tech, however, this wasn\u2019t always the case. Until recently, I used to believe women in tech were exclusively those with a STEM (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics) background. I\u2019m not the only one to feel this way. There\u2019s still a lack of clarity on who women in tech are, alongside a limited representation of their various experiences.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s why I decided to take advantage of\u00a0Ada Lovelace Day<\/a>\u00a0and dedicate some time to sharing just how diverse the world of women in tech can be. I want to help push the inclusion of females in tech a step further, and make sure all women feel included regardless of their personal or professional backgrounds.<\/p>\n

We need to make the technology industry, workplaces, and society in general more inclusive, and therefore happier and more productive places.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Am I a woman in tech?<\/h3>\n

Following my earlier career in a range of roles, companies, and sectors, from retail to international development, I jumped into the world of tech. It\u2019s been a couple of years now, but it\u2019s only lately that I started to see myself as a woman in tech. Why is that?<\/p>\n

For a while, I thought my non-STEM education and professional experience meant I didn\u2019t belong as part of the \u201cwomen in tech\u201d group. It wasn\u2019t a completely unsupported assumption. Many activities and initiatives to increase female involvement in tech are centred around attracting women to STEM related qualifications and positions across the industry. This is applaudable (and overdue) because until not long ago, those opportunities didn\u2019t really exist.<\/p>\n

But what about all the females working in tech that don\u2019t have a STEM background and\/or don\u2019t work in technical roles within the industry? Are they also women in tech? It\u2019s a very clear yes from me. But we\u2019re not always clear about that, both as individuals and institutions.<\/p>\n

Only last week, for example, I joined a launch session for a \u201cwomen in tech\u201d mentoring programme. An expert in marketing asked whether she could be involved as a mentor because she didn\u2019t have a technology background. She was not only reassured she could add significant value, but also surprised to find out she was in fact a woman in tech. The group reminded her that most marketing now happens online via social media and is \u201cquite techie\u201d.<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

So who are the women in tech?<\/h3>\n

I come across situations like the one above fairly regularly. I consider this lack of clarity about who women in tech are, a blind spot in the opportunities and support offered to promote female inclusion across the technology industry. A good starting point in tackling this is bringing attention to the diversity of experiences women in tech have.<\/p>\n

I\u2019ve been lucky to meet and hear stories from women in tech that come from a great range of backgrounds. And yet, until recently, I assumed there were 2 main female (stereo)types in tech \u2013 the STEM women in tech roles and those without a STEM background working in \u201cnon-tech\u201d positions (like myself).<\/p>\n

Pretty straightforward, right? At least it was, until I heard one of my colleagues speaking about her education and early career within the STEM field, before transitioning into the \u201cnon-technical\u201d role she currently holds. After the initial, \u201cWow, mind blowing!\u201d moment, it got me thinking. Just as women with non-tech backgrounds can train up to take on and grow into high level senior technical positions, it\u2019s equally possible for females to shift from STEM roles into less technical ones throughout their careers.<\/p>\n

In short, women in tech really do have surprisingly varied and unique career paths and experiences. And we don\u2019t talk enough about that. We should!<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

What\u2019s next?<\/h3>\n

Personally, I\u2019d never considered that I could one day work in the technology industry until I got hired for a role in a digital technology innovation centre through a recruitment agency. Had I known what the position or the company was, I probably wouldn\u2019t have applied. Why? Because I would have taken it for granted that I needed a STEM background to succeed. And in doing so, I would have missed out big time.<\/p>\n

By being thrown into the tech world, I proved my own unconscious assumptions wrong before even realising I had them.<\/p>\n

Sharing our individual stories and experiences as women in tech with different professional and personal backgrounds can make a huge difference to other females, both those already within the technology industry and those who might work in it one day. Beyond offering the, \u201cOh, it\u2019s not just me then\u2026\u201d kind of realisations, it also helps us uncover where we need to pay extra attention and make more effort to progress.<\/p>\n

And that\u2019s how I\u2019d like to wrap this post up \u2013 by encouraging not only my fellow dxw colleagues, but all other women in tech to celebrate Ada Lovelace Day by sharing their stories and the journeys that led them to a career in tech. I can\u2019t wait to hear them!<\/p>\n

\n

Originally posted here<\/a><\/p>\n

More thought leadership <\/i><\/a><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

I\u2019m not a super techie person and yet I spend at least 35 hours every week working in technical teams, designing and building digital public services. 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