Women in the Australian IT workforce Associate Professor Julie Fisher Monash University, Melbourne Melbourne Women in the Australian IT workforce - 1
Agenda Defining ICT in Australia Overview of women in the Australian ICT workforce Where women work Findings from our research on the issues for women in the Australian ICT workforce Women in the Australian IT workforce - 2
Where the data came from Australian Computer Society (Women) ICT Statistical Compendium 2010. Bandias, S and Warne, L (2009) Women in ICT Retain and Sustain: An overview of the ACS-W Survey, Australasian Conference on Information Systems, Melbourne. Victorian ICT for Women Network survey 2008 (124 respondents, 18% response rate) Interviews with 22 Victorian women 2009 Lang, C., A. Craig, J. Fisher and H. Forgasz (2010). Dualisms: what women say about working in ICT, Australasian Conference on Information Systems (ACIS). Brisbane Women in the Australian IT workforce - 3
ICT employment groups providers of ICT goods - services (ICT industry). purchasers /users of ICT goods - services ICT trainers, teachers, researchers people providing technical support to ICT, but could, be categorised as electrical or electronics specialists people working in call-centres, or in desk-top publishing and graphics design Women in the Australian IT workforce - 4
Background statistics In 2006 15% of the ICT workforce in Australia were women In 2009 18% of the ICT workforce were women IT was not the first career for most women (79%). Women in the Australian IT workforce - 5
Some demographics Majority of women (55%) working in IT are younger than 40 13% are more than 50 years old Women have extensive IT experience: -75% with 5+ years - 45% > 15 years Most women have at least a bachelor s degree (73%) but not necessarily in IT Unemployment rates for all ICT workers (Nov 2010) Aged: 20-29 5.3%, 30-39 3%, 40-69 3.2% Women in the Australian IT workforce - 6
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Issues identified by the ACS The ACS W survey in 2009 identified that: 31% of women reported that they do not have the same level of remuneration compared with male counterparts. Gender differences were reported in the salary negotiation process, women reported they are reluctant to ask for pay increases. Work life balance is an issue with 57% of women reporting significant unpaid hours of over time Rural women are more isolated and face more adverse working conditions and culture than women in the cities. Australian Women in IT Conference, 2009 Women in the Australian IT workforce - 9
Background studies Some of the issues raised in the literature in relation to women in the workforce include: Trauth (2002) found women often held to a higher standard Courtney, Lankshear, Timms and Anderson (2009) survey found that women in ICT often perceive themselves to be going against the norm. Adam et al (2005) found that women were excluded from core activities in the workplace, women's status was lower. Nielsen and von Hellens (2006) found a dualism in skills and IT work and how women view these in terms of themselves. Women in the Australian IT workforce - 10
Research findings We interviewed 22 women working in IT from a variety of organisations (government, large corporations and small businesses). 124 women responded to an online survey (18% response rate) We were interested in: why women chose ICT women s experience in the ICT workforce issues they have the organisational culture in which women work what would help women succeed Australian Women in IT Conference, 2009 Women in the Australian IT workforce - 11
ICT workplaces are male dominated >50% of women work in an area where fewer than 25% of workers are women. 24% of women work where there are fewer than 10% women 12% work in a predominantly female environment Does it matter? it does make a difference if you have a female above you who can support you and understands the difficulties of managing a house of small children and workload. I find it good having a lot of females around, my manager is a fantastic role model. She s a really strong female and she s not afraid to voice her opinion, so that s fantastic for me rather than having to learn off a man when we don t operate in the same way Australian Women in IT Conference, 2009 Women in the Australian IT workforce - 12
Why IT? Few women said IT was their first career choice, most switched later. One women worked in HR dealing with the office IT system when a vacancy arose ; Another had a degree in politics, became involved in website management, decided she wanted to take it further what drew me to this part of government was that ICT was where a lot of innovative activity was taking place An accountant, through her work discovered IT that was where I wanted to be My growing love of technology as I was introduced to it is what spurred me into going back to school to study IT and move into the industry Australian Women in IT Conference, 2009 Women in the Australian IT workforce - 13
Workplace: chilly / boys club? 26 women said yes the environment was chilly and a boys club 9 women recognised the boys club culture but said it was not chilly 28 women were positive about their workplace culture indicating they found it neither chilly nor a boys club 16 women mentioned there were senior women in their workplace, the workplace was predominantly female or their boss/leader CEO was female so there were no issues Women in the Australian IT workforce - 14
A chilly workplace The women who said their workplace was chilly said: not accepting of equality in technical knowledge. I fought for two years for credibility. Boys club fits with my current employer. Swearing is prolific - the boys are given 'games' to play during the day ie 'darts', fooz ball and the like Boys club - seems to be that as team leaders are male and most of the graduates from IT courses are male, the proportions will continue to be unbalanced in favour of males. The greater proportion of males tends to be perpetuated by the informal 'boys activities' and social gatherings I moved out of development because I felt excluded by the boys. It seemed my female opinion was not as weighty as a male opinion Women in the Australian IT workforce - 15
Chilly workplace It is difficult communicating with males they assume I don t understand technical things. I had to work hard to justify my position it took 2 yrs to convince the males. Organisation does try to negate discrimination, like bullying... I m used to it. Not really although it can be, women in IT can not 'afford' to be overly sensitive Boys club - seems to be that as team leaders are male and most of the graduates from IT related courses are male, the proportions will continue to be unbalanced in favour of males - the greater proportion of males tends to be perpetuated by the informal 'boy's activities' and social gatherings. Women in the Australian IT workforce - 16
Impact of senior women No, enough women for there to be a good balance No, because I am one of the business owners and it is not a culture we support. No. Aside from the Technical Director/founder of the company, the most technical person in the office is female. There is a lot of respect and acknowledgement Not any more (leadership female dominated of late as opposed to being totally male) No. I guess there is a fairly even spread of females across each area of the company and also everyone seems to be quite respectful of one another Women in the Australian IT workforce - 17
The dualism Most women agreed the workplace was a boys club however they also liked where they worked: It is inclusive. We have a lot of forums to celebrate women in the workplace the company I work for makes a big effort, giving women you know a fair opportunity at work and being flexible. Everyone is regarded as a professional, regardless of gender. Everyone is provided with career support, again regardless of gender. the "Values and Behaviours" the company have instilled into the staff have insured that employees do not act like it is a "boys club". I have had an experience where a group of contractors that were employed held these opinions - it was soon stepped on and corrected Women in the Australian IT workforce - 18
A dualism? Despite the concerns of women around pay, conditions, the boys club, chilly environment, the fight for credibility. Women are still overwhelmingly positive about their work and what they do. Helping others Variety Changing Career opportunities Technically challenging variety Mentally stimulating Fast paced environment Constantly learning Feel lucky Travel Dynamic Diverse Exciting $$ Interesting Resolve problems for people Women in the Australian IT workforce - 19
What do women want? Most women want improved career progression (29) Work life balance was the next most important thing (18) Mentoring was seen as valuable (17) Opportunities to network (14) Flexible working conditions mentioned by women (10) Salary differences and career opportunities are issues Many work many hours of unpaid overtime The need to talk with other women important Child care is an issue Women in the Australian IT workforce - 20
What women want and need Advice, how do you put forth ideas, and how do you get to a new position, and how do you suggest that you re right for a position? It s kind of walking in the dark. I ve got a friend who s worked in SAP for 9 years, so I get a lot of advice from her, and she gives me a lot of hints, but if I didn t have her, where would I get that information from? I know the room is full of women with good experience in various roles. It would be good to know who to consult with. For example who is an expert in coding, who is an expert in planning, who can I consult with? Women in the Australian IT workforce - 21
Discussion Most of the women described a chain of events, of taking advantage of a series of chance offerings, or a happenstance leading to their current position An ICT career is challenging, exciting, rewarding and compelling and women clearly love working in IT. An ICT career, according to the participants is often the opposite of the narrow perceptions held in wider society. There is a dualism in women s experiences in the work force and their view of IT as a career. Australian Women in IT Conference, 2009 Women in the Australian IT workforce - 22
Discussion Our interviews and survey explored the themes of workplace climate and acceptability of the career path adding to earlier research by assessing the effect of positive choices by women in the ICT profession. However, the workplace culture and experience of women is still a problem. The boys club mentality is alive and well. Women need to work with, connect with, be supervised by more women. This is a clear message. Women in the Australian IT workforce - 23
Where to from here? Our results inevitably lead to further questions: If women aren t thinking about IT when they leave school why now? Have the women accepted and adapted to a maleoriented ICT workplace? Have workplaces changed as a result of the differing focus of what an ICT career is and the increasing level of women s participation? How do we explain the apparent dualism of women s experiences? Women in the Australian IT workforce - 24
Conclusion Ignorance and a general lack of awareness of the scope of ICT careers appear to be an impediment to increasing the gender mix of those in the profession. There is a real sense of contradiction, technology permeates contemporary society, yet there remains a struggle to define its workplace identity and communicate this adequately and accurately to those considering future career options. Australian Women in IT Conference, 2009 Women in the Australian IT workforce - 25