Prevalent gender discrimination, from a lack of promotional opportunities to the everyday perception that they’re incapable of doing their jobs, can have an intensely detrimental impact on a technologist’s career. According to Dice’s latest Equality in Tech Report, technologists who identify as women feel there’s much work to be done when it comes to organizations’ DEI (diversity, equality, and inclusion) policies.
While companies claim they’ve been making changes to policies and workplace culture to promote gender equality and stamp out any traces of discrimination, only four in 10 technologists who identify as women are either moderately or extremely impressed by their organization’s gender-based DEI efforts, slightly behind technologists who identify as men at 44 percent. And that’s despite nearly two-thirds of women technologists believing such efforts are important.
For organizations everywhere, implementing a successful DEI policy is more than just checking a box. At a time when organizations everywhere are scrambling to secure the tech talent they need to accomplish their strategic aims, an impactful commitment to DEI and resulting programs and progress can make both prospective and current employees feel happier, more secure and in a better position to do their best work. Nearly two-thirds of technologists who identified as women said a company’s DEI-related reputation was a factor in their decision to work there, along with 46 percent of technologists identifying as men (up from 42 percent last year).
In addition, 69 percent of women respondents felt a good DEI policy boosted company morale and innovation; 43 percent thought it was beneficial to company profits; and 71 percent thought it contributed to collaboration. If a company wants to position itself as a great place to work (especially among younger technologists), as well as an excellent brand that consumers and clients want to associate with, DEI is quite simply an organizational imperative. Specifically, we’re talking about non-performative DEI; too many organizations made commitments in 2020, and in years prior, without backing those claims with tangible internal or external movement.
As these numbers suggest, there is still much work to do in the years ahead. Standardizing hiring and devoting more attention to the career progression of technologists who identify as women is just the start; executives must ensure that everything from salaries to projects to management opportunities are all executed with gender equity in mind.
Dice’s Equality in Tech report offers much more on the current state of diversity, equity and inclusion within tech. Read it for crucial insights into how DEI policies and diverse thinking can help lead the industry to a more equitable future.
