Closing the gender gap in South Africa’s tech sector
Leonie Stanley, Operations Director, Euphoria Telecom
The telecommunications industry is built on the brilliance of women. Dr Marian Croak invented Voice over IP technology. Dr Shirley Jackson’s work made the touch-tone telephone, caller ID, and call waiting technology possible and Hedy Lamar is responsible for the technology that Bluetooth, Wi-Fi, and GPS are based on.
But despite these pioneers, the tech industry remains male-dominated. Deloitte estimates that women accounted for less than a third of the total workforce and 25% of technical roles in large tech companies in 2022. In South Africa, World Bank data shows that 38.43% of tertiary graduates in ICT programmes are women.
A 2020 report by Accenture and Girls Who Code found that half of women in tech roles in the USA leave them by the age of 35. Despite this, just 38% of HR leaders identified building a more inclusive culture as a way to retain women in tech roles.
We don’t have similar data for South Africa, but Women in Tech ZA estimates that just 23% of tech roles in the country are held by women. How can businesses change this?
Diversity at the top
McKinsey research found that the biggest hurdle women face in their careers is not the glass ceiling but the “broken rung”. The broken rung refers to women encountering hurdles at the first step up to becoming a manager. In 2022, McKinsey found that across all industries and roles, 86 women were promoted to manager for every 100 men. In tech roles, this number dropped to 52 for every 100 men.
Diversity in senior leadership not only provides role models and mentors for people coming up the ranks, but it makes business sense. A Boston Consulting Group study found that companies with diverse leadership teams reported average innovation revenue of 19 percentage points higher than those without.
Let women show what they’re capable of
Giving women opportunities to showcase what they’re capable of helps to create inclusive workplaces and support their career advancement.
Learnerships and internships provide excellent opportunities for young women to get a foot in the door but women should have the opportunity to demonstrate their capabilities at every level. Businesses that do this well give women opportunities to lead projects to show their management abilities, let them showcase their skills to upper management, and create space for idea sharing across departments.
This ensures women feel supported and empowered, plus, businesses might be surprised to discover the level of talent and skill that is flying under the radar.
Cultural reset
Company culture is more than pool tables and free pizza. It’s how you create environments that people feel equal and supported in.
Understanding bias is the first step towards a more inclusive workplace. Unconscious bias training for everyone in the organisation is an excellent way to uncover hidden attitudes and increase awareness about how people respond to issues around gender, race, age, ability, and more.
The Accenture report shows the impact of specific company culture practices on retaining women in tech roles. One of these practices is simply adjusting the times of networking events to allow everyone to attend, which could help retain 190,000 women in tech by 2030.
Consider business breakfasts for example – which are often difficult for parents navigating the school run. Shifting events like these by an hour or two could make a world of difference for any team members with children.
In South Africa, where our industry is already battling severe talent shortages, we should be doing everything possible to foster inclusivity, create opportunities, and nurture a supportive culture. It’s time to rewrite the narrative and create a tech industry where everyone, regardless of gender, has the opportunity to build the digital future.
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