"IT is not just for male nerds, women have numerous career options in the industry"

Why is the IT sector still predominantly a man’s world? How do you experience that?

Stefanie De Smet (Senior Manager and Lead of the Managed Services division of delaware Belux): ‘In my opinion, this is mainly due to a wrong perception. Our sector does not only employ programmers or people with a technical specialization. The IT sector offers a wide range of positions and depending on their interests and talents, people work in analysis, project management, research, data processing, cloud solutions, consulting and much more.’

Andy Stynen (CEO at Ausy BeLux and chief Digital Officer at Ausy Group): ‘In the highly technical functions such as IT development and IT architecture, there are indeed more men than women. In the so-called communication roles – that provide the translation between business and IT, such as analysts, business process managers and project managers – I see more women than in the past. In support services, such as IT recruitment and human resources, the number of women within our company amounts 70 percent. Women tend to be strong in communication.’

Julie Scherpenseel (Chief Strategy Officer at ML6): ‘In the early days of IT, a number of stereotypes emerged that are still present, but completely outdated now. Our industry is not dominated by nerdy men with a video game addiction that lock themselves away in their garage or basement. That image is currently changing, but it will take a while before we see the effects translated on the labor market and are able to attract more women.’

What can education do better? The 2021 STEM Monitor calculated that 42 percent of enrollend students are women, which is a slight increase in comparison to 2020. However, that effect is not yet visible in IT degrees or careers.

Tony Janssens (Strategic Recruitment Manager at Egov Select): ‘'The way IT is taught in secondary school could be a lot better and more elaborate. The lectures are often limited to learning how to work with a word processor, an electronic spreadsheet and a mail program. That's not IT, that’s basic elementary knowledge and social education. What IT really is about, is not mentioned. In this way, secondary education creates a false perception about technology. This is a dangerous tendency, as perception is often seen as the ultimate truth and that’s how prejudice and misconceptions are created.'

Stefanie De Smet: ‘My daughter studies STEM with three girls and 37 boys. This is the living proof that there is still a lot to be done. We should clarify to students and parents what STEM involves and what career opportunities it offers. We should raise awareness that IT and technology are ubiquitous in our daily lives.’

Andy Stynen: ‘For many young people, IT is still very abstract and companies, the government and education have a shared responsibility to make IT more concrete. My colleagues and I stand in front of a classroom a few times a year to let youngsters realize what is possible with technology. Telling them that they are dealing with IT on a daily basis – when they use the TV remote or their smartphone – already sparks their interest in technology.’

Stefanie De Smet: ‘My daughter studies STEM with three girls and 37 boys. This is the living proof that there is still a lot to be done. We should clarify to students and parents what STEM involves and what career opportunities it offers. We should raise awareness that IT and technology are ubiquitous in our daily lives.’

Andy Stynen: ‘For many young people, IT is still very abstract and companies, the government and education have a shared responsibility to make IT more concrete. My colleagues and I stand in front of a classroom a few times a year to let youngsters realize what is possible with technology. Telling them that they are dealing with IT on a daily basis – when they use the TV remote or their smartphone – already sparks their interest in technology.’

Stefanie De Smet: ‘Every year, delaware welcomes a number of students on Youca action day to work one day within our organization and the money they earn is then donated to charity. We notice students draw inspiration from this experience.’

Julie Scherpenseel: ‘Often, women want a job with social impact and choose a study accordingly. However, the technology sector has an immense social impact today and in the near future, as innovation is the driver of societal progress. So, women do not necessarily have to become doctors or nurses to be able to help people – it is also possible through technology.’

Are there too few female role models, IT women who inspire other ladies to follow in their footsteps?

Andy Stynen: ‘In my opinion, there are enough female role models in our industry, but they they do not get to speak enough or they do not get enough opportunity to be in the spotlight. In other words: we need to give them more opportunities to inspire other people.'

Julie Scherpenseel: ‘I interpret the idea of female role models broadly. They do not necessarily have to be top women – like Françoise Chombar for example – teachers and mothers can also be role models. My math teacher was a strong and intelligent woman. I spent two hours a day in her class and that influenced me: she helped shape my career and how I look at certain things in life.’

Tony Janssens: ‘We need to empower women within our society and organizations to take on that IT role, by giving them the necessary space to be able to do so. However, it must remain a free choice.’

Julie Scherpenseel, you became the 2020 Young ICT Lady of the Year: what has that nomination meant for your career – do you think you have become a role model?

Julie Scherpenseel: ‘The title gave me more credibility outside the sector and it functioned as a platform that allowed me to have more of an impact. By sharing my story in the media and speaking at events and for students, I was able to reach more people. After an interview in Flair, I received an insane amount of messages from girls saying I had inspired them and that they are considering a technology-related study.’

Tony Janssens: ‘If such a nomination is widely shared through the appropriate channels, then this is definitely a great way to bring the IT world to the attention of women and to increase the female influx into the industry.'

Women in the IT sector sometimes experience prejudice – how do they best deal with it?

Andy Stynen: ‘Indeed, I notice that women in technical positions sometimes face prejudice, which is tremendously unfortunate and unfounded. I always try to encourage women around me to not care about the prejudice and just go for the job that makes them happy. In addition, I believe that everyone in the business world faces prejudice at some point. For example, I became CEO of a large company when I was 34 years old. Most of the people in the organization were a lot older and I could read the room: what is this brat doing here? I feel like you have to prove yourself twice during the first months and years.'

Julie Scherpenseel: ‘There have been some moments when I felt I had to prove myself more than my male colleagues, but I learned from that and it has definitely made me stronger. Studies show that women are under pressure to prove themselves within ICT in the United States, but in Europe and Belgium that problem is less prevalent. If you still suffer from gender prejudices, then change companies, because there are plenty of organizations where it is not the case.'

Is your organization taking specific steps to attract female ICT talent or get women into top positions?

Stefanie De Smet: ‘At delaware, thirty percent of the employees are women, regarding our technical functions that proportion is a lot smaller, though. We strongly believe our company benefits from diversity. We interpret diversity broadly: it goes beyond gender. Additionally, we are convinced that different opinions and contributions are necessary for an organization to make the right decisions and to be able to grow. That way, more women are encouraged to move on to management positions.'

Tony Janssens: ‘One in seven employees within our company is a woman. Unfortunately, we have no female managers. However, we always choose the best candidate and we don’t let gender play a part in that. The job goes to the person with the most appropriate competencies and the best cultural fit.'

Andy Stynen: ‘Forty percent of our 1.300 employees is women. If we look at our technical profiles, that number decreases to 16 percent. We do not have a specific approach to attract women. I believe a lot depends on the senior management: a diverse senior management is always better. It has been scientifically proven that companies realize higher earnings if both men and women are in the board of directors.’

Julie Scherpenseel: ‘In total, our scale-up employs a hundred people, comprising twenty percent women. Our management consists for half of women. This is largely due to our people policy: we offer each employee a personal career path and we have a very flexible work environment and inclusive culture. This ensures that people – including women – stay longer in our organization and are encouraged to take on leadership roles.’

Do quotas help get more women into management positions?

Tony Janssens: ‘Diversity should be about everything: diverse opinions, backgrounds, nationalities, religions, sexual orientations, gender, you name it. But this should also be pursued outside our sector. For example, why is it rarely mentioned that there are few men working in midwifery and nursing? My point is: I actually don't believe in quotas and they should not be necessary.'

Julie Scherpenseel: I think it is less clear-cut. Yes, the right person has to be be in the right place and skills and passions are the most important elements. But quotas can help drawing attention to gender bias, which is not to say that people should get a particular job because they are women.'

What tip or advice would you give to women considering an ICT career?

Stefanie De Smet: ‘IT Is a very broad domain: there are numerous functions, roles and jobs to start, grow and evolve in. You have nothing to lose.’

Andy Stynen: Indeed, take a leap of faith. Try it. It cannot go wrong, as there are enough opportunities, jobs and employers in IT to choose from.

Tony Janssens: ‘It should be a fit. Do not force anything: look for a cultural fit at an employer and the rest of your career path will follow.

Julie Scherpenseel: ‘Just do it: working in IT is fascinating, dynamic, challenging and you have a social impact!’

Bron: Lees meer op tijd.be/itervandetoekomst