Why we need more women in the digital sector.

Women are in the minority in the tech sector in general and in the digital industry in particular. There are many reasons why this is the case. Measures to change this distribution are slow to take effect. It’s time for us to change this. And by we, I mean us, men with decision-making powers in companies.

Flimsy, petty justifications vs. self-image

I could go on at length in this article to explain why women are needed in the digital sector. For example, that women are just as good programmers, project managers and testers. Or that there are no biological differences that prevent women from working in the digital industry.

Or that we need to ensure that training in the technical field is made more attractive to women. Or that we should create additional opportunities in companies for women who have children. Or that it is simply much more pleasant when women are part of the team. Or that women generally make the more balanced decisions in companies.

I could do all that. But I don’t, because all this fussing about details misses the point completely.

And above all, because there is only one halfway correct answer to this question: In today’s society, that is simply the right thing to do. Period.

More women in the technology sector

So how do we reach more female employees in our industry? First of all, we could look at what is being done. For example, the various political initiatives. A demand for fixed quotas has been under discussion for years and is probably the nightmare of almost every entrepreneur.

Who wants to hire a woman just because she is a woman if there are better male candidates in the specific case? Ideally, more equality is not possible. We don’t want to go from one evil to another evil. And if I were a woman, I wouldn’t want to be hired because of my gender. The motives for such initiatives are probably noble. The effects alone are rather counterproductive.

Bottom-Up

If we want to change this situation, then we, the decision-makers in the industry, have to do something about it. Basically, that means, well, hiring more women. To get enough women into tech, we need to start breaking down the stereotypes.

There are many women in the tech sector today. Almost 100% at the reception desk of digital companies.

So we could, for example, start to consistently fill typical women’s jobs in tech companies, such as management secretaries or administrative positions, with men. As you have certainly recognized, this will not initially lead to a higher proportion of women. But it does help to break up the image of the typical gender distribution. And that is the most important thing in the medium term.

In Switzerland, a network of women for women in the tech sector has also been established under the name “WE SHAPE TECH”. It’s a great and forward-looking initiative that could easily come to Germany and Austria. There is certainly enough demand.

Something else that I think also deserves attention is the selection of female panelists at events. Organizers have a duty to include more women. Patrick Comboeuf, a pioneer and leader in digital transformation in Switzerland, tweets incessantly for more female participation when discussion panels at events are only made up of men. It is precisely these messages from thought leaders that shape the self-image of gender equality among the next generation. We should all do the same, and not just on Twitter.

Making jobs “father-compatible”

Another measure is that we give our male employees more time and flexibility to fulfill their role as fathers. For example, by promoting part-time work. Every father who can take an active role in bringing up children “leaves behind” a mother, so to speak, who has more time for work. And nowadays, more fathers than we realize want to take on this active role.

Bet on mothers

Personally, mothers are worth a lot to me as employees. Quite simply because they have already been through something in their lives. They’ve usually already reached their limits and know where they lie. And most of them are pretty good at keeping a cool head.

In contrast to graduates who are just learning what is important to them in life, mothers are very reliable. I’ve had really incredibly good experiences. As a manager, you have to be flexible: children get sick, there are all sorts of children’s appointments where mom can’t be absent. In return, you get employees who are fully motivated, experienced and an asset to any company.

Who, if not us

I am convinced that the problem will solve itself sooner or later. However, I believe that we entrepreneurs and decision-makers in the digital sector are the only ones who really have the leverage to accelerate this solution. Each one of us might have a small one. But as always, it’s the masses that do it. So let’s start tomorrow. So that our grandchildren can work in a world in which gender no longer plays a role.

This article originally appeared as part of my “Transformed!” column on t3n.