The gender gap within the ICT sector is nothing new and not isolated to South Africa. Women are underrepresented in leadership positions at the top big tech firms globally.
In South Africa, we are seeing positive growth of women joining the industry – The Commission for Employment Equity reported that in 2023 there were 41,3% women employees in the industry, up from 39,5% from the previous year.
“It is very positive to see this growth, however the onus is now on organisations to not only increase this number but to attract, retain and engage top women in IT,” says Bizmod director Seugnet van den Berg.
Companies need a different employment strategy if they are going to attract women to apply for roles and for them to stay with the organisation and to keep them engaged. She says that what women are looking for from organisations is vastly different to men.
IT Online – August 2024