Women in Tech - Have you considered the importance of attraction?

Diversity is a very prevalent topic now, and it is finally getting some deserved airtime. There are many underrepresented minority groups within the average workplace in Australia and the appetite to create a more diverse & inclusive workforce has increased. But, how much of it is just paying lip service to a hot topic?

In technology, most of our clients are looking to balance the gender scales within their teams, which means focusing on more hiring of women.

But the question is:

• ?WHY should she join your company?
• What are you doing to make it an inclusive workplace?
• What policies do you have in place that would make women feel equal, accepted, and empowered?
• What are you offering that sets you apart from another employer?

These questions are often the ones that many company haven’t thought about or even considered, let alone addressed especially as part of their hiring strategy.

Globally, Australia was one of the pioneers when it came to legislating for equal pay in 1969 and 1972, and then with gender equality reporting since 1986. Since 2014 unfortunately, the gap has significantly increased.

Perhaps it is because The Workplace Gender Equality Act 2012 only requires non-public sector employers?with 100 or more employees to report on their gender equality polices?

?So many companies are idealist and believe that they can go to market and get a female engineer just because they have a maternity leave policy or because they promote a healthy work/life balance and “it’s a great place to work”. Let’s be real here, not every woman wants to become a mother and not every woman is looking for a slower pace or only the average 9-5.

?I believe there needs to be more work done earlier on in education. But also, later on in life with continued education for women who want a career change.

One example that comes to mind: There is a tech product company in Australia that has set up a women in a tech buddying program for Year 12 female students. Over a 12-week program the students will work with the engineers onsite to really get a better understanding of the role and indeed other roles within tech. Once they graduate they are then invited back to join the grad program. This is a great opportunity for the students to gain knowledge and confidence to pursue the career path.

According to data released by LinkedIn in 2019, women are 16% less likely to apply to a role than men and 20% fewer women apply to roles overall. The LinkedIn data states that women feel they need to meet?100% of the criteria ?while men usually apply after meeting about 60%.

So, if that is true then what are you doing to encourage candidates to apply even if they don’t meet all the criteria? Are you posting a shopping list of requirements with all the nice to have in the world? But no mention of what training and support you might offer someone that didn’t meet the entire list?

There are a few powerful tools that can be used that might subconsciously attract more females to your company, team, and roles:

• Public data and reporting that details the company gender policy including transparency on pay
• ?Commitments and accountability – setting a commitment that all new hires or internal promotions will be a certain number of women in the next 12 months
• ?Public examples of training programs and support offered with case studies or even public case studies of promotions and progression
• ?Women in leadership roles and them being part of the interview process
• ?Actively partnering with schools & universities and even retraining centres
• ?Take a more holistic view to hiring – not just looking at what they have accomplished but seeing and recognising their potential along with what they can bring to the team – you should be hiring based on not just ability but also attitude and potential, not seeking out people that have been there done that

Just having a need or desire for more females in your team isn't enough. You really need to think about the WHY and HOW you intend to make it happen.