Men and women bring different perspectives to the workplace which is important in trying to run the world properly. Women experience the world differently and employing women at the board, management, and leadership levels provides the broader lens needed for problem solving. However, many women in the field have taken a stance against women in IT initiatives stating that calculus does not care about chromosomes and that it should simply be people in IT, some of whom are women.
There is a huge debate over candidate merits vs. simply trying to fill a gender quota. Companies absolutely need to ensure merit is driving selections, however the quota is to ensure women are given equal opportunity and bias is not preventing them being selected when they have the merits. Companies need to address the backlash, by raising awareness that merit is always a priority for candidates rather than simply trying to fill a gender quota. However without quotas change doesn’t happen and women won’t be given the same opportunities. The quota is striving to create a balanced and fairer process.
iSAW Sharp Summary: iSAW
iSAW, international Strategic Accelerator for Women
Source: Forbes: Gender Diversity In The Software Industry, Why It Matters
