The global technology talent shortage has many businesses struggling to fill roles in the information and communications technology (ICT) industry. A 2022 CIO report found that 86% of organizations are challenged with recruiting and retaining workers, with more than a third suffering project delays, missed opportunities, and productivity issues due to a lack of talent. Many believe that women who comprise 57% of the global workforce and hold only 26% of technology jobs are a key under-represented group that can help address the skills gap. Computer Weekly’s 2023 annual survey found that 67% of UK tech workers believe recruiting women into the industry is the answer to the workforce shortage.
While the rapid growth of digitalization and demand for talent presents significant opportunities for women in the booming ICT industry, it remains an uphill battle. Women are still underpaid, passed over for promotions, and faced with everyday discrimination. Despite the challenges, plenty of women in technology are thriving, most of whom attribute their success to the support of women-focused industry groups that provide career development, networking, motivation, empowerment, and recognition. In a recent survey by Chief, a community that connects and supports senior executive women, more than 90% rate professional networking groups, events, and industry associations as adding the most value to their careers. There are dozens of formalized industry organizations working to champion girls and women in tech, and most ICT industry associations include a women’s initiative—some of which are upping the ante with multiple programs backed by supportive leadership.
What’s good for women is good for business
Industry associations actively working to cultivate the professional development of women aren’t just providing an opportunity for women to create strong professional networks, learn from experienced mentors, and gain recognition. They’re also benefiting their members and the industry as a whole—especially considering that women control or influence 85% of consumer spending and account for 40% of the supply chain workforce, including buyers and procurement and contracts officers, according to Gartner’s annual Women in Supply Chain survey.
“Women are by far the drivers of what technology and consumer broadband plans are purchased, and that’s an important voice to have at the table within our association,” says Shirley Bloomfield, CEO of NTCA—The Rural Broadband Association—and champion for the association’s Women in Telecom program that includes events, a mentoring program, a video series, and a Telecom Listserv resource for women to connect and share stories and challenges. “I am a huge believer that more diverse voices lead to better outcomes.” Shirley is excited that NTCA now has three female board members and points out that numerous studies show that organizations with more women on their boards outperform those with all-male boards. A McKinsey report on 366 public companies across various industries in Canada, Latin America, the UK, and the US found that companies in the top quartile for gender diversity were 15% more likely to have financial returns above their industry mean.
Elli Reges, Ph.D., director of learning and development for the Security Industry Association (SIA), agrees that it’s essential for women to be at the table. “We want our association to reflect the industry and communities we serve. Our members are developing devices and providing services for consumers, of which women make up the majority,” she says. “We have to keep our customers in mind, and input from women is only going to help our members remain agile and competitive in the market.” SIA’s Women in Security Forum offers professional development opportunities, networking events, a speakers bureau, scholarships, awards, and other initiatives to support women’s involvement in the security industry. The group holds keynote events at the International Security Conference & Expositions (ISC East and ISC West), and their inaugural Security LeadHER event hosted in conjunction with ASIS International this year brought together more than 300 women across the security industry.
AVIXA is another industry association focusing on women through its Women’s Council. Since its founding in 2015, the Women’s Council has grown exponentially to 1,038 members with yearly events at InfoComm, webinars, a CTS study group, and other regional events throughout the year. AVIXA also has an elAVate scholarship to support the growth of women in the AV industry, the AV Industry Pledge for an Equitable Future, and a “pass the mic” initiative to bring diverse voices to industry events, which resulted in a speaker lineup at InfoComm 2023 comprising 27% female or non-binary and 28% minorities.
“Seven out of our twelve members on AVIXA’s Board of Directors are women, four out of nine members on our senior leadership team are women, and five of our volunteer council and committees are chaired by women,” says Sarah Joyce, chief global officer for AVIXA. “I fundamentally believe that business must reflect the society around it. Women add diversity of thinking, innovation of ideas or product development, understanding and representation of the client base, and ultimately improved financial performance. Only through inclusive work practices and culture can we attract talent and have the lens to provide solutions that meet business needs.”
Sean Kelly, technical director for Light Brigade, agrees that bringing women into the industry is vital, and he believes they have the skills to help close the workforce gap. “We have taught roughly 4300 female students over the years and have consistently seen that women make excellent fiber techs due to their dexterity, often with better termination and testing yields than their male counterparts,” he says. “The bottom line is that if women can turn a blind eye and ear to stereotypical male behavior on the job site, they will succeed and be top performers.”
The Fiber Broadband Association (FBA) also sees women as vital to filling the workforce gap, and its Women in Fiber committee includes a STEM subcommittee to help prepare students for careers in STEM. “Women often get steered towards marketing or human resources, but if we are going to fill the workforce gap in our industry, we need to get women and minorities involved,” comments Trish Ehlers, VP of membership, industry affairs, and operations for the FBA. At their recent 2023 Fiber Connect conference, Women in Fiber hosted ten girls from Tech Sassy Girlz, a nonprofit organization that empowers girls to pursue STEM. Ehlers says, “The girls had an exhibit hall tour with hands-on opportunities to splice and connect fiber, followed by a panel of committee leaders discussing the importance of bringing young women into the field.” Ehlers is also excited that Women in Fiber will conduct an annual research study to track progress and provide valuable information. The study will examine where women are today and where they are in their careers, salaries, length of time in the industry, and what companies have women in leadership positions.
Leadership support is essential to success
While women’s industry initiatives are on the rise, these programs take leadership support to thrive and fulfill their missions—leaders like SIA’s CEO, Don Erickson, who proposed the Women in Security Forum to SIA’s Board of Directors in 2017.
“I recommended that SIA create this new community for a few reasons. By that point in my career at SIA, I was inspired by women from member companies who cared about our association, were willing to share their expertise, and were incredibly effective at getting things accomplished for the industry. While getting to know these women leaders, they shared their stories about their career challenges in a male-dominated industry and how they succeeded. My instinct was that a gap existed that could be filled by SIA,” says Erickson. “I also wanted to show my 11-year-old daughter that men can and should be advocates for women in business. For me, advocating for this SIA forum was about her future, too. Whatever she chooses to do in life, I hope she has a forum such as this to help her learn and succeed.”
Leadership has also been instrumental in supporting FBA’s Women in Fiber committee, enabling the expansion of the initiative to include a luncheon at the annual Fiber Connect conference, regional networking events, professional development, ongoing webinars, recognition, and a mentoring program to help identify, develop, and promote women in the industry. It doesn’t hurt that eight of FBA’s twelve staff members are women, including all three VPs. Gary Bolton, FBA’s CEO and President, is also a proponent. He teamed up with Ehlers in 2021 to create the official board-approved committee.
“We initially launched our Women in Fiber initiative to extend support to women in the industry through networking and leadership tools. As interest soared, we formalized the committee to increase engagement with women across a wider spectrum and highlight the benefits that a career in fiber broadband provides,” says Bolton. “It's a pivotal time in our industry, as more fiber networks will be built in the next few years than ever before, and we encourage more women to help lead that effort and take advantage of the opportunities.”
Emerging ICT industry professional Kevallyn Paskos, RCDD, who founded her own consulting business and serves as vice chair of BICSI's official Women in BICSI Workgroup, believes that leadership will make all the difference in her ability to make an impact. "I truly believe that having leadership that supports women and leads with a mentorship mentality will allow me to help advance the industry," she says. "With that being said, like family, you can't always choose your leadership. It's important to do your research and keep your eyes wide open. Organizations that don't work to empower and support women are at risk of a negative reputation, deterring more than half of the population from seeking opportunities and offering their time, expertise, and influence."
Bringing men into the fold
Bringing male colleagues into the fold as allies and mentors is also vital for women to succeed in the male-dominated ICT industry. SIA recently updated its governance structure with a new SupportHER committee that carves out a space for male allies to participate. "Attracting men to participate is where we still need to grow, and our new SupportHER committee is responsible for male allyship through intentional, positive, and conscious actions," says Reges.
The FBA's Women in Fiber committee also encourages men to participate. "We think it's important for men to hear from women about their challenges. At our last luncheon, we asked women in the room about being impacted negatively in their career by sexism. Many stood up and brought their stories to light," says Ehlers. "The men in the room were taken aback by the sheer number of stories that were shared and the trends that we're seeing throughout our industry."
AVIXA's Women's Council is also open to all and leverages the support of men to ensure inclusive corporate cultures that attract women. "I see increasingly more men purposefully acting as allies at AVIXA events and across the industry," says Joyce. "I have the pleasure of attending all our trade shows around the world, and every year, more men introduce me to their female colleagues and invite them to come to the Women's Council to connect with other women in the industry."
Bloomfield of the NTCA agrees that involving men is vital, and visibility is one way to garner their support. To address the skilled workforce shortage, NTCA recently joined forces with Wisconsin's Northwood Technical College to offer member companies online access to Broadband Academy courses and its Digital Badging program. The program's first graduate was a woman, whom the association featured in an online blog post.
"One of our member companies based out of Virginia was also one of the first to have a female line worker, and we did a story about her as well," says Bloomfield. "The more we normalize it by sharing these stories, the more women we can attract to the industry and the more our male counterparts will become cheerleaders."
Persevering in the face of lingering adversity
Despite overall greater gender equality awareness, women still face adversity in the male-dominated ICT industry where their expertise is often challenged, and their contributions are not always well received. A 2023 report on women in the workplace by McKinsey & Company calls out microaggression as having a significant impact, with women twice as likely as men to be mistaken for someone junior and hear comments on their emotional state or appearance. The lack of female mentors and women in leadership positions—estimated at as little as 5%—only adds to the discouragement. A staggering 56% of women leave the industry 10 to 20 years into their careers, with several surveys indicating a lack of support and unfair treatment as the primary reasons.
Joyce of AVIXA agrees. "Many of us have had the situation of being the most senior person in a room but with all the conversations directed to our male colleagues. Unfortunately, sexism and discrimination still exist, whether casual or overt," she says. "Sometimes there is an opportunity for education, but sometimes behavior that crosses a line simply needs to be called out. Thankfully, diversity, equity, and inclusion are core values at AVIXA, and we have policies in place within our association and at all our events to support and protect people from any form of discrimination." AVIXA also provides a wealth of materials to help organizations and individuals in the AV industry understand unconscious bias, including a downloadable AV Industry Inclusive Language Guide.
Unfortunately, there are also historical aspects of society that women need to overcome. Studies show that men will apply for jobs when they only meet 60% of the qualifications, and women typically only apply when they meet 100%. "We run an executive recruiting service to place CEOs for our member companies. We'll get resumes from men who work at Target, but when we reach out to executive women, they often say they're not qualified. That's a pressure that we put on ourselves," says Bloomfield. "One piece of advice that I forced myself to follow early in my career was always to speak up and add at least one contribution in every meeting. Forcing yourself to do so puts you at the table."
Reges of SIA concurs that women need to speak up. "There's always that uphill battle, but you have to be confident to be an all-star and not afraid to ask for what you want," she says. "If an organization doesn't recognize your contribution and you don't see that changing, it may be time to explore your options. I advise looking at organizations with formal women's initiatives that can provide a common community. These groups make us stronger in numbers. But the best way to really determine if an organization supports women is to ask another woman."
Paskos, who has encountered plenty of adversity as a young woman in the ICT industry, believes that it’s important for women to find organizations where they can thrive. "The industry hasn't always been kind to me, and I've had to work very hard and fight for what I deserve," she says. "But even then, there were times when I faced so much adversity that I ended up leaving a job I loved. I now choose to only partner with companies that have a positive and inclusive culture."
Betty Bezos, PE, PMP, RCDD, ESS, OSP, DCDC, a long-time ICT industry consultant and trainer, has twice encountered male bullies in her career that compelled her to resign from a position, which opened new doors. "In general, I have felt that my consulting engagements were based on my experience and certifications. But bullies will always exist," she says. "While it's important to make organizations aware of their actions, sometimes it is better to move on, look for another opportunity, create your own future, and leave the bullies behind to be defeated by themselves."