SMEs urged to help women into tech roles

Small businesses still have much to do in developing women in tech-related roles, a leading industry networking group has stressed.

Women in Technology, an association for the Queensland tech industry, says that start-ups can learn from the winners of its recent annual awards.

The Employer of Choice Award was given to GBST, a provider of technology to the financial services industry.

The business conducts twice-yearly pay equality reviews and has clear career pathways for women seeking executive positions.

“These initiatives have brought us far, with female employees now making up nearly a third of our total staff, an excellent result for an IT company,” says Stephen Lake, CEO of GBST.

“However we won’t rest on our laurels – we’re looking to further improve this balance with the right programs to ensure we have the best talent, no matter their gender.”

Janine Nguyen, WiT operations manager, says that small businesses have room for improvement when it comes to women in tech roles.

“A lot of women don’t feel much support, as it’s a male-dominated industry still,” she says.

“Women often have babies and then don’t come back to the job. In a fast-moving area like IT, you get left behind if you’re out of the workforce for a long time.”

“GBST does things like hold roles for women who have had babies for 12 months and is supportive of women in the business.”

“The trends are getting better. More women are entering the ICT industry. But there’s still a lot to do – the number of women on boards is very small.”