As part of Inclusive Boards increasing work within the UK Tech sector we are releasing a briefing about the current landscape. We have found that there is a distinct lack of available data in regards to BAME diversity in tech. Whilst data in relation to gender diversity in tech is more readily available, the figures and experiences make for depressing reading. Pat 2 of our briefing is below:
Key Facts – Gender Diversity in Leadership:
* The Fintech Census stated 17% of senior executives in UK Fintech are women. Women make up 29% of staff in the whole sector. 7/10 staff were male at the 245 Fintech businesses surveyed o Only 4% of UK software developers are women.
* 30% of 450 technology executives stated their groups had no women in leadership positions o A 2016 McKinsey report revealed that women make 37% of entry-level roles in tech, 25% advance to senior management roles and 15% reach the C-suite o At Amazon, only 25% of women are in tech roles but none are in leadership
* Of eight industry tech giants including Google, Facebook and Microsoft, none have reached equal gender representation
* A study by the British Computer Society found that women account for a mere 17% of the technical in the technology industry
Barriers to Gender Diversity
Less Women than Men Studying STEM Related Degrees o PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC) interviewed 2,000 British college` and university students to investigate the gender disparity. They found that only 27% of female students said they would consider a career in technology, compared with 61% of males, and only 3% said it would be their first choice
* World Economic Forum 2016 global Gender Gap Report shows that 30% of all male students graduate from STEM
* In 2014, a report by Women in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics showed that the male-dominated undergraduate degrees are Engineering and Technology (86% male) and Computer Science (83% male). This results in less girls graduating with STEM qualifications, thus, less female graduates have the skills required for tech roles
* 35% of women highlight unequal pay between men and women for the same skills
* Gender bias includes being overlooked in meetings, ideas dismissed or usurped by male colleagues later etc.
* Lack of visible role models for girls
* ISACA study shows that the two biggest barriers women say they face in the tech sector are the lack of a mentor
(48%) and lack of a female role model (42%) Motherhood
* Similar to other sectors, women express the difficulty of being a mother and having a career in tech
* They do not feel supported by their employers. There are inflexible work hours. They felt pressures to return to work and to attend work meetings abroad while leaving home their nursing babies
* Many felt that the maternity salary was inadequate to pay for childcare
