For International Women’s Equality Day, let’s take a look at women in Tech which is an industry exploding with growth.

As a Tech startup we pride ourselves in inclusion. We believe that women’s equality in the work place plays a crucial role in a Tech startup’s success.

Let’s see how gender equality fares in the rest of the Tech world…

This year’s fastest growing industries all come from the Technology sector. From Cybersecurity to A.I. the Tech industry is simply booming. And yet, women’s share of computer-based technology jobs has actually decreased since the 1980s.

In the U.S., home to Silicon Valley and most of the world’s largest tech and internet companies, women make up less than 20% of all Tech jobs nationally and account for a mere 11% of executive positions in Silicon Valley.

So where have all the ladies gone?

If you look at the ultra-competitive high-tech industry, women’s quit rate is more than double that of mens’. Ladies quit rate is a whopping 41%. This is evidence of the harsh reality many women in the industry face. You see, the Tech industry’s male-dominated culture has gender discrimination lurking in its shadows.

Look no further than the Tech mecca of California for proof. It is where the term “brogrammer” was first born. It describes someone who is both a “bro” and a programmer. Bros have their roots in American fraternity culture. Which besides fostering brotherhood and supporting charities, all-male fraternities have also made international headlines hazing practices and lude behavior towards women.

Despite women’s equality lagging in the Tech industry, female run companies throughout other industries have proven profitable indeed. A Scandinavian Bank, Nordea, discovered that women lead companies reported a 12% increase in year-over-year revenue growth relative to male lead companies.

So, the Tech industry might find it more than advantageous to encourage women to join its ranks.

Some Tech companies are certainly moving into modern times with female leadership. From Sheryl Sandberg as Facebook’s COO and Susan Wojcicki and the CEO of YouTube, there’s quite a few women serving a major players in the Tech world.

Gender equality is still a major problem in the Tech industry and most major companies are not making enough headway to solve the problem internally. However, we are seeing grassroot solutions popping up such as “Girls Who Code” summer camps in Canada.

We hope that these kinds of organizations, as well as encouragement from major Tech corporations, will help push women to pursue futures in Tech. With more women in integral roles in the international Tech industry, we will likely see dramatic innovations in the industry. We hope someday soon to learn what those innovations might be.