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Technology recruitment, diversity and language

Petra Jenner at data platform Splunk asks whether the language businesses use is alienating women from technology roles

 

As a woman in the technology industry, I’ve faced my fair share of challenges. From encountering biases and outdated attitudes during hiring processes, to often being literally the ‘first woman in the room’. I remember once when a manager in a previous company even told me outright that he wasn’t sure about reporting to a woman.

 

Although more companies are addressing the gender gap in technology, women still only account for around a quarter of people working in IT. This signals that while progress may be happening, the shift is too incremental.

 

It’s high time we shift the focus in our industry from ’fixing female employees’ or making them fit in with the ethos of male-dominated workplaces, to fixing the fundamental structures that hold us, both men and women, back from achieving a more equitable workplace.

 

Ensuring diversity in hiring language

The challenges for women start even before they reach the first level of management, and the gap continues to widen as careers progress. A recent LinkedIn survey, for example, found that, at entry level, 46% of roles globally are held by women, dropping to 35% for manager roles and just 25% of C-Suite roles. These stats should feel shocking to us.

 

I have made it very clear to the teams I’ve worked with over the years that the recruitment process can be a major touchpoint in terms of where problems begin to manifest. Women are 16% less likely than men to apply for a job after viewing it (in any sector), and on the whole, they apply for 20% fewer jobs than men.

 

The reason is that in order to apply for a job, women feel they need to meet every element of the criteria, while men more commonly apply after meeting most of the requirements, but not all of them.

 

In my view, a part of the issue is the language we use in job ads. Language is a powerful tool and even when we are aware and cautious of that power, it’s still possible to wield it incorrectly.

 

A US university conducted a study which showed that, in the case of a nurse position, when the job description contained words more commonly found in male applications, for example ‘determined’ and ‘superior’, women were significantly deterred from applying, as they perceived the role to be for males only.

 

In my view, the technology industry lags in this regard. More time and input needs to be factored into the language businesses use in job descriptions to encourage women to see the diversity of roles a technology company offers.

 

Too often the focus is on listing a plethora of technical skills. But what about business, writing, sales and leadership skills? These types of roles are all crucial in today’s technology business, and becoming more critical every day. Today’s workforces need to reflect this.

 

We also know that in today’s post-pandemic climate, flexibility and working from home is important. A women in tech survey revealed that 63% of women said they look for jobs which offer flexibility and working from home. This is backed by evidence from McKinsey which shows that seeking out flexible work environments is the third reason why people search for new jobs.

 

Companies must explain how they will improve working from home set ups, offer flexible work schedules and also provide support for those employees at home with children, if they want to attract and retain strong female talent.

 

Connecting with the next generation

We need to consider the role of language when engaging women at the beginning of their career too. Especially when research from McKinsey shows a significant drop in the percentage of women focusing on STEM at the following stages: down 18% during the transition from education to university, and dropping by 15% during the transition from university to the workforce. 

 

There is a job to communicate with women at these crucial stages to show the development and progression opportunities for technology employees. Skills in writing and expression, for example, may help candidates better communicate with stakeholders and more clearly articulate user problems and designs.

 

Technology companies should ensure the language used to promote early talent programmes, graduate schemes and internships reflect this diversity and don’t contain gender bias.

 

A survey from last year’s London Tech Week found that 57% of women see a lack of role models as a barrier to entering the industry. As part of employee engagement, businesses should promote case studies of women who have had success within the technology industry and provide effective mentorship in STEM. We take for granted the power this has in inspiring people to apply for roles and envision themselves working for that company.

 

Equality goes hand in hand with equity

Something reinforced through this year’s International Women’s Day was that equality in the workforce cannot happen without embracing equity, i.e. recognising the individual circumstances underpinning equality to achieve a more equal outcome overall.

 

That is why the approach of my current company is ‘DEIB’ (Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging). We have committed to growing the representation of women at all levels, especially in leadership, but also ensuring that our language, systems and processes are inclusive, fair and equitable for everyone.

 

As a data company, we have a clear responsibility to set and track progress on diversity, equity and inclusion across all functions and geographies, implementing processes, tools and education to try to prevent unconscious bias across our hiring and talent recruitment frameworks.

 

Businesses need to be intentional with both their words and actions to create a culture that supports women and the diverse groups that are its constituents. Only then can we move towards a working environment that uses language and leadership to empower everyone to thrive and succeed. 

 


 

Petra Jenner is Senior Vice President and General Manager EMEA at data platform Splunk

 

Main image courtesy of iStockPhoto.com

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