Communications of the ACM
Addressing Gender Imbalance in the It Industry: Kaylene O'brien
"We've allowed a situation to occur where the image of what an IT careers means is way too narrow and isn't representative of the breadth of the exciting and interesting sorts of careers," says Deloitte Consulting's Kaylene O'Brien.
Credit: Computerworld Australia
To address the gender imbalance in information technology (IT), the industry needs to rid its "geeky kind of boy's job" image and better promote the diversity of IT careers to attract women into the industry, says Deloitte Consulting's Kaylene O'Brien.
O'Brien says there is still a gender imbalance in the industry because "we've allowed a situation to occur where the image of what an IT career means is way too narrow and isn't representative of the breadth of the exciting and interesting sorts of careers." People who can be more business-focused in their role, or more creative, frequently end up succeeding in an IT career, O'Brien notes.
The lack of flexibility is another reason to why women might not be moving toward careers in IT. O'Brien points out the proportion of women at entry levels, particularly in IT, are very low and the gender imbalance tends to worsen as they become more senior. Nevertheless, she notes there has been some recent positive responses from women in the industry who volunteer their time to support and encourage other women to take IT up as a career.
From Computerworld Australia
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