Women in Technology

The Boston Chapter of the Society for Information Management (SIM) recently held a “Women in Technology” session. The session consisted of four female CIO’s sitting on a panel and sharing their experiences in climbing the IT ladder. The women were an impressive bunch and the room was packed with women and men.  

Other regions have held similar sessions and the rooms are always packed full. Why? Why is there always such a draw to hear about the trials and tribulations of women CIOs?  

I bet it is for a few reasons.  

Organizations have finally caught on that diversity translates into strength on a number of fronts. If you have the same people who think, look and talk alike all sitting around the room, then you are basically going to get the same old thing all the same old time. Pulling in people of different mindsets, perspectives, ways of approaching problems brings with it creativity, innovation, and all of that translates into an advantage for an organization.  

Organizations are still learning how to attract and retain women and they are hungry to learn more. What do women care about most? How do you create an environment where they will thrive? What can you put in place to have women choose your company over another? We all know that the most successful companies are the ones that win at the talent war.  

These sessions are also packed because women need and want to learn from other women. While great strides have been made over the years in terms of equality in the workplace there is still much more that needs to be done. Most women look up and see mostly men in the upper management positions or they peak into the board room and can’t find a woman anywhere. This translates into a dearth of role models for how to achieve those upper positions so it is no surprise that when you put four women “who have made it” on a panel, other women show up in droves to listen and learn.

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