Are young women hesitant to pursue a career in tech?

The tech sector has a poor reputation when it comes to gender diversity

Are young women hesitant to pursue a career in tech?

Despite efforts to improve gender diversity and inclusivity in the technology sector, there is a pervasive notion that tech companies aren’t really interested in hiring women.

That’s based on the views of 43% of young female talent surveyed by SAP Canada.

More than half of young women (54%) believe the industry has acquired a poor reputation in its attempt at gender diversity.

But women choosing to stay out of the tech sector isn’t just a question of employer reputation. It’s also about the kind of support they are given to explore opportunities in the field.

Some respondents (48%) admit they are uncertain about how to develop their skills in order to break into the industry – and how to navigate their way.

READ MORE: This CEO is determined to smash tech’s glass ceiling

Amid calls to increase the representation of women in the ‘hard’ disciplines, one in three respondents (35%), in fact, choose to pursue a career or advanced studies in the areas of science, tech, engineering and mathematics (STEM).

Still, a third of women in STEM go into the field without having a female role model to emulate.

“Young women are hesitating on even considering a career in technology because they don’t believe technology companies sincerely want to give them a chance,” said Kim Gastle, vice-president of SAP Canada.

“We want to shine a light on this issue and raise this concern because we recognize that a well-rounded workforce brings together stronger ideas. When we have diversity in our teams, we can reflect our customers better, come up with a greater mix of ideas and spur innovation.”

Recent articles & video

Manitoba government reinstates 1:1 apprenticeship ratio

Two-thirds of Canadian organizations expecting cybersecurity incident

Training leaders to address chronic pain issues

Employee relocation to another province

Most Read Articles

RCMP called after suspected employee fraud in federal government

Province introducing paid sick leave as of Oct. 1

Lecturer fired for misogynistic paper published in his name