The Rise of Women in Technology: A New Era of Equality

She is a mother of four, a wife, she works long hours throughout the day, sometimes probably even nights along with taking care of her kids, and yet has a fresh and smiling face every morning. I sometimes feel like being pulled down by my work, my life, but she motivates me. She keeps her team at work bonded together. She is my mother, and I am proud to say that she is a figure to look up to in my life. Women in Technology can be such an invaluable asset to have, as it is not only necessary to have an unbiased opinion but also involvement from all gender of people using Technology. With job demands rising in the tech world day by day, we are leaving out a large talent pool in the form of women dropping out of technical corporate jobs.

“Technology is the evolution of human biology”- Ray Kurzweil, Eminent Futurist

And very rightly so! We have reached such a stage that technology has been imbibed into the lives of every individual. More than 85% of the world population (85.88 %) have a smartphone in their pockets, and lately of which there has been a considerable rise in women having access to the latest tech. And with a large proportion of humankind being exposed to the technology, the decision-makers in it should also include equally diverse participation. However, the involvement of women has declined in the past 20 years in the technology arena. We could go on ranting about the reasons for the fall being lack of opportunities, the social stigma, and many more but let us talk about how women in the tech industry can lead to holistic and sustainable growth.

But before that, an interesting stat. A considerable number of women are graduating with engineering degrees but are not ending up being a part of the demand for technology professionals in the market. Around 30-40% of women are passing out with college degrees, but when we see the leadership stats, it drops down to 14%. It is a staggering difference! Where are we missing out? Every woman has a different story, some of whom we know very well like, Vandana Luthra (Founder VLCC), Falguni Nayar (Founder Nykaa), and while some of them left in an abyss far from being revived.

When we talk about women in the STEM disciplines, the Bollywood movie Mission Mangal comes to my mind wherein a woman’s ideas that were related to basic home science contributed to the success of such a big project. It also portrayed how diversity in the team created a better work environment. A woman’s life is different than a male in a lot of dimensions, the problems we face, the kind of work we are involved in, and many more. Diversity brings a fresh perspective to any team. ‘Women in Technology’ is starting to become a revolution, and we should be proud that we are a part of it.

There have been numerous women-centric start-ups springing up lately as a result of providing solutions to the problems faced by women. To name some: Nykaa, Zivame, etc., have been in the market, and who better than a woman herself to understand the needs of another. Technology in today’s world does not ‘need’ women, but it wants them to be a part of the workforce and contribute to the development of the latest and greatest in tech.

And for this, we need to closely analyze the reasons for the women to opt-out of a tech career. Is it family, the society, the peers? Is it still the sexual stereotype of ‘beta hoga toh engineer

aur beti hogi toh doctor’? Is it the pressure of balancing kids and work together? Is it the lack of role models in the field? These are not questions, but the answers to how we can make more women join the tech community. It is easier said than done, and the first push should come from the homes where a girl should be allowed to make her choices. The role of the schools and colleges come into play as a conducive environment for the development of everyone. And finally, the workplace should be adaptive enough for all the women. And history has witnessed, once women step into a field, they leave a mark. Role-models will automatically spring up once more women start their tech journey.

And honestly, a lot of it is already happening, but all the administrative changes render useless if the thought process of people does not move in the right direction. And by people, I would be wrong to blame the ‘society’ for it. It is we, the women, who need to change and take a step towards our development. After all, it is the evolution of the human race, and it is incomplete without a mother to nurture its growth.