Women in the tech industry have rejected a study that found 80% of men surveyed in the industry said there was gender equality. Here's what women think about how to improve the situation.
advertisementAccording to a recent survey, about 80% of men working at technology companies believe that women are treated equally in their industry.
The findings challenge years of data and experiences of women in the industry.
For Hannah Samano, CEO and founder of femtech company Unfabled, the idea that the tech ecosystem is open to anyone who wants to play is completely untrue, she says.
“There are invisible structural challenges that are currently impeding equality. If you're a man and you've never faced these, you probably don't know they exist,” she told Euronews. told Next.
According to a survey by recruitment firm Nigel Frank International, part of cloud recruitment firm Tenth Revolution Group, only 6 per cent of male participants disagreed with gender equality, while 14 per cent said they neither agreed nor disagreed.
More than 1,300 men involved in enterprise cloud computing using Amazon Web Services, Salesforce, Microsoft 365, Microsoft Azure, and Microsoft Business Applications participated in the study.
“It’s common for people who don’t experience inequality to ignore or deny its prevalence. What we need is more engagement, observation, listening, and ultimately is an alliance,” said James Lloyd Townsend, Chairman and CEO of Nigel Frank International.
Anna McDougall, director of products and engineering at Axel Springer National Media & Tech, said the number of women working in technology is slowly increasing, but it's not just about adding more women to the industry.
“It's not just about including women, it's about creating an environment where they feel like they belong and are actively welcomed,” she told Euronews Next.
A 2023 survey of women in technology by technology event and software company WebSummit found an increase in reports of gender inequality compared to 2022, with more than 50 percent of 500 female participants of respondents said they had experienced sex discrimination at work.
Meanwhile, nearly half believe their workplace is not taking adequate steps to address gender inequality, increasing from 26% in 2022 to 47% in 2023.
McDougall said ignorance, apathy and a lack of belief could be the reason why some men are unaware of the issues facing women in the tech industry, but seeking opportunities for women He pointed out that they may be the ones fighting the hardest.
“I think a lot of men right now feel very defensive about their identity. They feel like they need to justify their success and deny their privilege in order to protect their sense of self. I am.”
we need more role models
Evelyn Adjei-Mensah, founder of French deep tech company Trust in Isotopes, says some men are unaware of the inequalities in technology.
“You ask them. [men] Can you name a woman in the tech industry? They realize that they don't know many women in the tech industry,” she told Euronews Next. Another problem is that even recruiters don't know where to find women. She added that the company is struggling to hire more women.
According to McKinsey research, only 22% of all technical roles across European companies are held by women. If current trends continue, the percentage of women in the technology industry could drop to 21% by 2027.
Mr Mensah said this was causing problems because there was a lack of role models for children to look up to.
“I remember when I was a kid, there was no one who looked like me running a company. So to identify it or even think it was possible… It was very difficult. I think we need to raise awareness of children.
advertisement“That's why, as a Black woman working in science and technology, I'm speaking in front of young girls and young boys to help them understand that it's possible.”
What can men, businesses and decision makers do?
McDougall said the first thing men can do is hire women and pay them properly, adding that if they're not in a position to hire them, they should keep their eyes and ears open.
“If someone on your team says something inappropriate or makes her uncomfortable, take a moment afterwards to pull her aside and make sure she's okay. Even better. , to say it out loud when you hear sexist jokes or comments,” she said.
For companies, it recommends that they “pass the atmosphere check.” This means asking questions such as whether there is a good atmosphere, whether women are actively participating in decision-making, what the maternity leave policy is, and what percentage of leadership is held by women. do.
For Samano, the issue of equality all comes down to a question of funding.
advertisement“Women in the technology industry face tremendous challenges when trying to raise venture funding. a male limited partner (LP),” she said.
“Venture capitalists may appear to have diverse teams, but this is an illusion as the majority of women tend to be in junior roles.
“Until more women join investment committees and invest in funds themselves as LPs, I don’t think this problem will change.”
According to Atomico, around 98% of European VC funding went to companies founded by men in 2023.
“Going through the funding journey, we female founders have to struggle quite a bit to raise the funds we need to scale our business. And unlike our male founders, we , family life and age are often under scrutiny,” said Karoli Hindriks, CEO and co-founder of Jobbatical, a global mobility platform for businesses.
advertisement“Companies with diverse founding teams perform 2.5 times better than those without, she told Euronews Next. study.
“The needle has hardly moved over the past five years,” she told Euronews Next.
“We need more female VCs, angels, and male allies to ensure that great business is not held back by conscious and unconscious bias.”
