More and more women are taking up space in the workplace. Take the information technology (IT) sector, for instance. More women now work as software developers, computer network engineers, and database administrators, among other positions. And they do it well.
However, the IT industry is still largely a world built for men by men. So, aside from having to demonstrate considerable technical skills, women also have to contend with an environment that won’t always suit them as well as their male counterparts.
So while women are starting to gain momentum in the IT industry, data shows that they’re still underrepresented.
But there are ways to hire AND retain more women in tech. Here are just a handful of them:
Evaluate Your Organisation’s Culture
What does it look like? Do you have a collaborative environment that empowers everyone to share ideas and information? Or is it rife with divisive silos that operate separately?
If you see that your employees generally work well with new people just as well as they do with their respective teams (or independently), that’s great. Ideally, you want a culture of shared work that welcomes people from different backgrounds – especially women.
Furthermore, today’s work environment prizes higher emotional intelligence (EQ). And regardless of whether your industry is in IT or engineering, you need employees who are collaborative, positive, and expressive – which women are known to be.
Make an Effort to Understand Women’s Struggles
The best way to understand women’s struggles is to experience them. However, that’s not always possible. (Duh.)
So, what’s the next best thing? It’s to listen, and I mean, truly listen.
Ask your women employees to share their experiences about what it’s like to work in a male-dominated industry through virtual discussions and workshops. More importantly, encourage others to ask questions, reach out, and connect.
Doing so will help your organisation gain a deeper understanding of women’s struggles – and how they can create a more supportive environment for everyone.
Furthermore, these discussions can help shatter prejudice, which is usually what fuels the discrimination against women in the workplace.
Welcome Non-Traditional Paths
When you’re hiring remotely, it’s highly likely that your candidates will come from different backgrounds. Despite lots of companies acknowledging this fact, women are still at a disadvantage compared to their male counterparts.
Why is this so?
Many women who choose to have kids usually re-enter the workforce after a few years, when their children are old enough to go to school. Thus, they often find that the industry has moved on significantly in the intervening years.
Worse still, employers are wary to hire them back due to the sizable employment gap.
So it’s important to bear in mind that candidates are more than their CV’s. There are many professionals who take a break to raise families, prioritise their health, and even pursue further learning via new experiences or learning different skills.
Though IT is constantly evolving, it’s never impossible for someone to catch up on new codes and software they’re willing to put in the work and effort.
Thus, if you want an inclusive and progressive work environment, welcome candidates with non-linear career paths.
Be Flexible and Provide Support
Life outside work doesn’t stop from 9 AM to 5 PM (however much we want it to). Your employees may also be parents and are likely to encounter emergencies at home that they need to attend to at some point in time. (This goes for fathers too, btw.)
Rather than fight against it, accept it as part of an adult’s working life and make space for it.
In other words, be flexible with work arrangements for working parents, even more so for single working mothers. As long as their ability to turn in their deliverables on time isn’t affected, a flexible work schedule shouldn’t be an issue.
Additionally, if you’re welcoming more women in the workplace, it would be better to introduce them to people they might be able to relate to. Think of a senior female leader who has been with the company for a year or more, for example. Doing so, especially in the beginning, will prevent your new hires from feeling out of place or out of their depth.
Looking to hire more female tech experts?
Remote Staff has been the go-to hiring partner of Australian SMEs and entrepreneurs when it comes to skilled remote workers from the Philippines for the last 15 years. Hence, if you’re looking to add more women in tech, our rich and diverse talent pool’s got you covered.
Call us today or schedule a call back so we can get started.
Serena has been working remotely and writing content for the better part of the last decade. To date, she's written for Pepper.ph and Mabuhay Magazine, among others, and has churned out more than a thousand articles on everything from The Basics of Stock Market Investing to How to Make Milk Tea-Flavored Taho at home.
