New Brunswick's Gender Equity Playbook A Study of Women in Tech
The intention of this playbook is to share the successes, challenges, and stories of women in tech in New Brunswick and their ideas to support actionable change within the tech community. Download the full study, Canada’s Gender Equity Roadmap, at www.womenintechworld.com.
Driving WinTech is a community-based research initiative that brought together diverse stakeholders from Canada’s tech communities in order to uncover the experiences and stories of women in tech. The initiative featured a series of research activities, including Community Conversations engaging participants in individual and group discussion.
Primary Research Questions • Who are women in the technology sector in Canada? • What are the successes and barriers experienced by women in the technology sector in Canada? • What are community-driven recommendations for creating more gender-diverse and inclusive technology communities across Canada?
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Voices from Canadian Tech Communities: Research Participants Our research participants are from over 30 tech communities across Canada, large and small. This playbook represents a subsection of the research outlining what was said by participants in New Brunswick. This snapshot represents the voices of 60 research participants in the New Brunswick tech community. While it gives us an important glimpse into the community, we recognize that the findings may not be reflective of all views.
Driving WinTech, we invited participants that self-selected into one of the following groups: (a) woman currently working in tech (technical or nontechnical role), (b) woman who recently left the tech industry, (c) ally or advocate of women in tech, or (d) other stakeholder in the tech industry. Our full approach and results are outlined within Canada’s Gender Equity Roadmap: A Study of Women in Tech.
Throughout the research, the term “women” includes all womenidentified people. For the purpose of
Participants' Positions (Primary Domain) Ma rketing / Communications, 6.5%
Mul ti ple, 3.2%
Bus iness Development / Sa l es, 9.7%
I identify as a/an: Sta keholder i n the tech i ndustry (i ncluding government, non-profit, educational organizations or s ervi ce providers), 16.1%
Woma n who recently left the tech i ndustry wi thin the l a st 5 yea rs, 3.2%
Woma n working i n the tech i ndustry (tech or non-tech role), 45.2%
Advoca te / ally for women in technology, 16.1%
Prefer not to a ns wer, 19.4%
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WOMEN IN TECH WORLD - CANADA'S GENDER EQUITY ROADMAP
CEO, 3.2%
Product Ma na gement, 3.2% Technical Role, 29.0%
Project Ma na gement, 9.7%
Prefer not to a ns wer, 12.9%
Other, 22.6%
What's Working: Regional Perspective New Brunswick • • • • •
Communication and leadership training Online resources and blogs to support women Women-focused networking Tech workshops for women to learn to code Women mentors in the community
While these supports vary across the Saskatoon tech community, the list is extremely valuable.
What's Not Working: Regional Perspective New Brunswick • Lack of guidance; family, parents, teachers and guidance counsellors telling girls they are incapable • Limited industry exposure for girls; path to learning out of reach • Lack of confidence exacerbated by a sense of isolation in a male-dominated industry • Sexual harassment and discrimination • Lack of visible and relatable role models
When I started to consider the career pivot [into tech], I did informational interviews. I very quickly made it to (some of) the hubs of the tech network even though I was actually aiming for the spokes, the people actually doing the work I was considering. In some ways this is fun (I feel like a big fish in a small pond sometimes), but in other ways, it feels limiting.
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When I chose to enter the tech sector, I was terrified of failure. Coming back to school, I shocked myself with my immediate achievements, while at the same time confirming things I already knew about myself. It's really empowered me to push on and work harder.
I'm fresh out of high school and I've been coding for 6 years. I had very few times in highschool when I could explore my interest and meet people like myself. This should change.
I have over 20 years experience as a software developer [....] In my experience, and those of my female peers, female developers tend to be assigned work requiring good analysis and troubleshooting which usually leads to maintenance work that does not merit advancement even though this work is vital to a business.
Build Your Plan: Ideas from the Road New Brunswick 1. Create regular opportunities for women-focused learning and networking including monthly community events and meetups. 2. Consult tech organizations to determine relevant school curricula. Invite companies to visit schools and talk to students; feature women tech founders and employees. 3. Host conversations at school and in the workplace to challenge stereotypes. 4. Provide formal and accessible mentorship programs for women and girls, e.g, programs with job shadowing across career stages and fields. 5. Organize leadership programs for young women in tech so they can move into leadership roles in their companies and be examples and mentors for future generations. 6. Build communities. Online, local or regional, to foster connections and discussions; e.g., Facebook groups, monthly gatherings. 4
WOMEN IN TECH WORLD - CANADA'S GENDER EQUITY ROADMAP
Acknowledgements
Publishing Information
Canada’s Gender Equity Roadmap: A Study of Women in Tech is a testament to the Canada's tech communities and we want to acknowledge everyone who shared their expertise and time to build it. From our incredible community of volunteers, women in tech, and allies who dedicated thousands of hours to #DrivingWinTech Canada, to our community partners, sponsors, and crowd funders for the generous support. We thank you all.
No part of this study may be reproduced in any manner whatsoever without written permission, except in the case of brief passages quoted in critical articles and reviews with citation. For more information, visit our full study at www.womenintechworld. com. Date of Issue October 2018
Supporting Women in Tech World To learn how you can support Women in Tech World, please contact: Partnerships, Women in Tech World Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada e: partnerships@womenintechworld.com w: womenintechworld.com/donate
Thank You To Our Local Sponsors
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