Women in Technology - Inspiring the Next Generation

A presentation for parents on inspiring young women to go after careers in high tech.

Also available with animations @ http://docs.com/AFKE

1. Women in Technology Inspiring the Next Generation Derick Campbell Director of Engineering Microsoft Research (My inspiration: Jane Prey)

2. Women in Technology Agenda Opportunity Ahead Why a High Tech Career? Challenges for Women The Business Imperative Inspiring the Next Generation 2 Note: stats and research are US-based unless stated otherwise.

3. But first – Who is this guy? Places of Work Microsoft Lucent Technologies AT&T Toronto Police Services Crown Life Insurance AdScan The Unicorn Pub The Bombshelter Chuck E. Cheese Variety of Roles Software Engineering Management Program Management Product Marketing Consulting Management Consulting IT Management IT Architecture Software Development Helpdesk Technician Data Entry Clerk Bouncer Pizza Chef, Pizza Delivery Cartoon Rat 3 Canadian. IT veteran. Not a diversity expert. Father.

4. Video: New Data on the Rise of Women Video thanks to: Click to open Web page

5. Grade Point Average in High School Mathematics and Science (Combined), by Gender, 1990–2005 Women Earn Higher GPAs in Math and Science

6. Opportunity Ahead “ The number of scientists and engineers in the U.S. workforce who are eligible for retirement will triple .” — National Science Board, Science and Engineering Indicators, 2006 “By 2012 there will be a six million person gap between the number of college graduates and the number of people needed to cover job growth and replace retirees. ” — Employment Policy Foundation 6

7. Why Consider a High Tech Career? 7 Government Healthcare Education Manufacturing Information Services Financial Insurance Telecommunications Computer Software Computer Services Banking Consulting Retail Aerospace/Defense Any Industry Anywhere Any Personality Type Many Educational Backgrounds Brevity, Results Outgoing, Interactive Casual, Harmonious Formal, Logical Business Education Languages Liberal arts Humanities Psychology Social sciences History Mathematics Science Engineering Any Time – Any Place Technology Flex Work High tech companies are changing the world we live, work, and play in

8. How do the largest US jobs compare to jobs in High Tech? Core Tech fields (STEM-D): Science Technology Engineering Math Design Let’s use IT as one example Salaries Compared Occupation Annual mean wage ($US) General and operations managers 110,550 Registered nurses 66,530 Elementary school teachers, except special education 53,150 Truck drivers, heavy and tractor-trailer 39,260 Bookkeeping, accounting, and auditing clerks 34,750 Customer service representatives 32,410 Secretaries, except legal, medical, and executive 31,060 Office clerks, general 27,700 Laborers and freight, stock, and material movers, hand 25,290 Retail salespersons 24,630 Janitors and cleaners, except maids and housekeeping cleaners 24,120 Stock clerks and order fillers 23,460 Waiters and waitresses 20,380 Cashiers 19,030 Combined food preparation and serving workers, including fast food 18,120 Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics, May 2009 Occupational Employment Statistics 8 Almost 35 million jobs, or over one-quarter of U.S. employment, are found in these 15 largest occupations . 12 of the largest 15 occupations earn less than any average profession in IT. IT Positions Salary ($US) CIO 136,600 IT Director 100,900 IT Consultant 96,300 Project Manager 93,200 IT Project Manager 90,500 IT Manager 88,200 Computer Software Engineer 81,600 Database Administrator 81,000 Business Analyst 79,900 Systems Engineer 78,200 Network Engineer 77,700 IT Supervisor 77,000 IT Analyst 67,700 IT Specialist 65,200 Systems Administrator 65,200 IT Administrator 63,100 Computer Security Specialist 59,200 Network Administrator 58,700 IT Technician 49,300 Help Desk Support 46,500 Source: 2009 IT Skills and Salary Report from Global Knowledge and TechRepublic . Great career growth potential “ IT jobs will be among the fastest-growing and highest-paying over the next decade .” - U.S. Department of Labor prediction

9. Challenges for Women It’s an imperfect world 9 Stereotyping Gender bias Less women pursue high tech careers Fewer women in executive positions

10. Stereotyping in Action If told a boy was hitting another boy: Adults did not disapprove “Boys will be boys ” If told a boy was hitting a girl, or a girl was hitting anyone: Adults gave a negative response 10 Adults are shown a photo* of a child throwing a snowball at another child. * Not this photo Photo credit: Dean Shareski (Flickr) Other examples:

11. Women as IT Entrepreneurs: Heidi Roizen , A Case Study from Columbia Business School BA and MBA from Stanford VP at Apple Computer Venture capitalist, Managing Director of Mobius VC Co-founder of T/Maker Company ( software company founded in 1983, acquired in 1994) and SkinnySongs Students receive identical case studies identified with the name Heidi Roizen or Howard Roizen

12. Gender Bias in the Real World Even today’s youth can be uncomfortable when women don’t conform to standard gender roles The “backlash” effect The effect is reduced when you know someone personally 12

13. Less Women Pursue STEM Careers Why so few women? Classroom climate Lack of role models Lack of encouragement Loss of confidence Bias and stereotypes Gender differences in attitude toward STEM surface in middle school 13

14. Fewer Women in Executive Positions 14 Women make up just 1 in 10 top paid executives Only 1 in 5 Board Members are women Of the 100 CEOs in the survey, 92 were Caucasian males . — Examining the Cracks in the Ceiling: A Survey of Corporate Diversity Practices of the S&P 100 Study by: Women in Leadership Positions: High Tech Industry

15. The Business Imperative Women Make Teams and Business Stronger Innovation suffers without diversity Diverse businesses are more successful High tech employers are responding to the needs of women 15

16. Innovation Suffers Without Diversity

17. Diverse Businesses are More Successful 17 “Measured as a percent of revenues, profits at Fortune 500 firms that most aggressively promoted women were 34 percent higher than industry medians.” Pepperdine University, 2001 study “European firms with the highest proportion of women in power saw their stock value climb by 64 percent over two years, compared with an average of 47 percent.” McKinsey and Company, 2007 study “Teams with equal numbers of women and men were more likely to experiment, be creative, share knowledge, and fulfill tasks .” London Business School, Innovative potential: Men and women in teams .

18. High Tech Employers are Responding to the Needs of Women Growing strong mentoring cultures Diversity awareness training Offering transparent career paths Flexible work arrangements Special hours Part-time Shared jobs Work from home options Career ladders  career lattices Family benefits Childcare Family leave Commitment to career returns Increased business focus on social impact Men benefit too! 18

19. Summary Woman have become the majority of the workforce Women control the majority of spending Women earn more degrees (57%) Millions of jobs for college grads are opening as baby boomers retire Women do better in math and science STEM-D careers offer: Higher salaries Diverse industries and locations Greater work flexibility Opportunity for worldwide impact Plus - high tech business needs more women Evolving to attract them However: Women don’t pursue high tech degrees and careers as much as men Fewer women hold executive positions Our girls are influenced by gender bias, stereotypes, limited role models and more… How can we, as parents, affect this? 19

20. Inspiring The Next Generation Call To Action It all starts with us – parents ! Watch for gender bias and stereotypes We do it, others too Understand and mitigate Encourage higher education Discuss careers in STEM-D R&D is really cool! Bring home heroines Wear gender glasses Talk about sexism and gender bias Be a source of encouragement and inspiration Nurture participation in technical activities and groups Most important: Be the role model they need us to be! 20

21. Recommended Reading Raising Kids, Careers, Women and Technology 21

22. Video: I Am A Technical Woman Video thanks to: Click to open Web page

23. Appendix A Few Award Winning Technical Women