Women in Tech: 10 Stats and Facts You Need to Know

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Here Are Ten Facts You Should Know About the State of Women in the Tech Industry

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1) Women are divided on whether remote work has helped women in tech

Source: TrustRadius

About 57% of women in tech feel they are more productive working remotely than working in the office, while only 17% say productivity has decreased. Overall, 53% of women in Engineering and IT perceive that working from home has helped women in tech to be more effective.

Although it is likely to be perceived differently by men and women in leadership positions, and even women working at lower levels, statistics suggest that the playing ground is better leveled. Stats abound on hiring and retaining talents remotely that illustrate how much remote work is taking over industries in the 21st century.

2) Women are still outnumbered in the tech industry

Source: Techjury

In 2021, statistics shows that about 72% of women are outnumbered by a 2:1 ratio by their male counterparts in company meetings. What’s worse, about 23% of women reported being outnumbered by a staggering 5:1 ratio in many meetings. zt

Female employees in the most prominent companies are making up a small portion of the workforce. For instance, Microsoft has female employees making up about 28% of the total workforce, while Amazon fares a bit better with 42% of female employees. For women in tech looking to find better remote jobs at companies that perhaps have a more balanced distribution, check out our article on the ten best remote job boards to find tech talent.

3) 48% of women in STEM jobs report discrimination in the recruitment process

Source: Built in

STEM is an abbreviation for science, technology, engineering, and mathematics. These disciplines are closely connected because they share a lot of similarities in theory and practice.

Women have a massive barrier at the entry-level for STEM jobs for many reasons. Women of color make up only about 18% of entry-level positions. White women and men make up about 30% and 35%, respectively.

Statistics also show that these barriers faced by women at the entry level put them at a huge disadvantage when trying to get promoted.

4) 57% of women in the tech industry feel burned out at work

Source: TrustRadius

According to a survey, about 43% of women take on extra responsibilities at their workplace. This rate is high in comparison to just 33% of their male counterparts. About 29% of women have a more significant burden of childcare, whereas only some 19% of men take on that burden.

This, therefore, increases the chances of women feeling burned out at work compared to men. Especially with the effects of the pandemic and remote work forcing women to sometimes take on child care while performing work tasks.

5) Only about 37% of tech startups have at least one woman on the board of directors.

Source: SVB

In other industries, over half of the titles go to both men and women. The most notorious in this regard is the health sector. However, female executives in male-founded tech companies are less likely to hold a position on the board of directors in the tech industry.

They are instead more likely to head HR and other leadership positions. This occurrence is not surprising given the recent study, which found out that women sat on less than 19% of corporate boards.

6) 72% of women have faced “bro culture” at their current or past jobs

Source: TrustRadius

Last year, about 71% of women made reports of experiencing “bro culture.” That percentage rose to 72 this year. Only 41% of men felt the same way. This culture manifests in a variety of ways across the tech industry.

Similarly, women continue to experience sexual harassment, assault, and sometimes highly uncomfortable work environments. It is also noteworthy that this problem is perceived differently by both genders. While men may find it hard to recognize the issues with this form of dominance because they occupy positions of power, it is not so hard for women.

7) Women are 3.5 times more likely to be 35 years old and still be in low-ranking tech positions.

Source: Mckinsey & Co.

The “Women in the Workplace” 2016 Study carried out by Leanln.org and McKinsey & Co., found out that for every 100 women that are promoted to managerial positions, about 130 men were encouraged for such positions.

Also, researchers in 2018 found out that only 79 women received similar posts for every 100 men promoted to an administrative role.

The study also noted that only 1 in 5 senior executives is a woman. This comparison goes on to suggest that men are far less likely to stay juniors for long.

8) Women in tech have to work harder to demonstrate their worth

Source: TrustRadius

Women are more likely to be perceived as incompetent compared to their counterparts. Women continue to face a lack of trust in their abilities from their managers. In fact, about 78% of women feel that they have to work harder to prove their worth in their workplace. Sadly, only about 54% of men think the same way.

This discrepancy emphasizes how much pressure women face in trying to prove their worth compared to men. This is evident in the struggle for qualifying for leadership positions.

Women in leadership positions are especially likely to feel this pressure, but men generally do not.

9) Women are less likely to get promotions in the tech industry

Source: TrustRadius

There are a variety of reasons for this likelihood. Women in tech are four times more likely than men to perceive gender bias as an obstacle to promotion. Hispanics and blacks perceive racial discrimination as a barrier to upgrading because they believe they are less likely to be promoted than their white counterparts.  

Women of color are less confident than their white counterparts about promotion prospects. This gap has increased three times over the past year.

Also, about 29% of women feel that the lack of trust in their competence is an obstacle to their promotion. 41% of women identified the absence of an advisor as a reason for not getting promoted, and 66% of women observed no clear path for them in the company.

10) The quit rate of women in technology is almost twice as high as that of men

Source: Techjury

About 50% of women quit their jobs before the age of 35. Reasons for this can include weak management support, work-life balance, bias and discrimination on many grounds, as well as pressure at the workplace.
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This compilation of stats and facts reveals some perceptions about how women are faring in tech, the diversity in the tech industry, and the prospects for women. Arguments often put forward for these impediments against women in tech include the difficulty of accessing creative positions of responsibility, the impression of being blocked in their career advancement, among many other factors.

Those in positions of authority continue to hope that the tech industry will be more favorable in time. But, the corporate planning trend continues to show little or no effort towards the free inclusion of women in the tech industry. The world must make sure that women do not miss the boat for the jobs of tomorrow.