4 ways that we’re bucking the trends of women in STEM and some ways we could do better
Women make up 49% of the global workforce, but only 29% of the STEM workforce. This serious underrepresentation isn't just a numbers problem, but a missed opportunity. I’m proud to say that The Developer Society is bucking this trend - here’s how:
- 57% of our team are women.
In a historically male-dominated industry, we’re defying this cycle. We got here by pushing for progressive hiring practices and keeping diversity at the forefront of our agenda.
- 58% of our production team are women.
In the UK, only 12% of engineering roles are held by women - but within our production team a huge 58% of roles are filled by women.
- Our working practises are supportive of working mothers
We’re pro flexible working - but in a big way. We create space for school runs, parent events and we’re not thrown by children cameo-ing on a call here or there. We try to make it completely normalised that working parents (women and men!) have the space to balance work life and home life.
- Our sick leave policy recognises that menstrual pain, menopause symptoms, or related conditions are valid reasons for sick leave.
Our sick leave policy explicitly points to menstrual pain and menopause symptoms being valid reasons for sick leave - this progressive approach to sick leave encourages long-term wellbeing and also recognises reality.
But with this being said, we can all do better. It’s always important to reflect on where we are falling short. Despite our team being 58% women - our senior leadership is only 33% women. This is actually falling behind the FTSE 350, where in 2024, 35.3% of their leadership is women. In fact, 50 of the largest UK private companies had 36.8% female leadership in 2023.
Ensuring that women are represented is crucial when 76% of women working in technology have experienced gender bias or discrimination in the workplace - and one of the ways that we combat this is by normalising women being promoted, represented and given a seat at the table.
So, how does your company stack up against this trend? Where do you feel like you could go further to close the gap for women in STEM?
