<p><a href=“http://www.collegian.psu.edu/archive/2007/07/20/officials_ist_increasingly_a_m.aspx[/url]”>http://www.collegian.psu.edu/archive/2007/07/20/officials_ist_increasingly_a_m.aspx</a>
Women are decreasing in #'s in IT majors.</p>
<p>I have done business with a number of high end IT firms–and the level of aggressive one-upmanship is very masculine. </p>
<p>wonder what alumother and jmmom think.</p>
<p>Back in my 19-yr IT career, I never saw the 37 percent of women that was cited as the high % level…and the percentage of women in IT management was slim also. I was shocked when D signed up for the high school level Computer Programming II class 3 years ago and was the only female in the class. She and I took great pride that she got the highest grade in the class, BTW!! It’s most assuredly a career that you need to be comfortable standing up for yourself and being outnumbered by your male counterparts. (One positive—at IT-related conventions, etc. the lines at the women’s room aren’t so bad!!!)</p>
<p>Hmmmn…well I have over 30 yrs in this field/industry… and there aren’t as many women now as there were in the late 80’s and early 90’s… I actually attribute a lot of it to the hours and the travel. Once things started to get outsourced to India, China… it became open season on stateside employees… so much IT work is done on weekends… or at nite… and the #1 requirement in IT sales is your ability to be mobile and flexible… work here for 3 days… go there for 6 days… my current mgr’s wife had to travel to India from NY for a 3 hr meeting… it is hard to comprehend any meeting that merits that amount of travel… </p>
<p>I did recently glance thru a story that seemed to say that math was not crucial for IT… rather logic was key…which is a different skill… should not be a limiting factor for gals…</p>
<p>I think the challenges are not unlike higher ed… and women in research. Very difficult to do all this stuff and raise kids and be social directors for their families. </p>
<p>I will also say that the level of aggressive one-upmanship is tied to the constant evolution of technology… every 18 mos or so, computer chips can do twice what they did for less $$$$ … if the auto industry kept up with IT developments, we would all be flying stealth jets 500 mph 1 inch above the ground… </p>
<p>it is a tough field on many levels…the intriguing thing is that I know a lot about a lot of industries, companies… and it has been a fun trip overall when I think about my customers… not sure what else I could have been involved with that would have exposed me to sooo much… and provided me with some autonomy… if I had it to do over again, I would chose differently but, I have done well and don’t have major regrets… there have been very few customers that won’t deal with women… a few, but that hasn’t happened in years either…</p>
<p>It’s funny to be out here breaking through glass ceilings–only to look behind and realize the younger set isn’t behind you!</p>
<p>The women abandoned IT for the software industry. They’re all working 20 hours a day as program managers at Microsoft.</p>
<p>It’s a difficult field to compete in. Women are very detail oriented and can multitask well, which makes them ideal candidates for IT jobs. However, the competition is brutal, especially given the downsizing, outsourcing and mergers that have taken place over the last decade. </p>
<p>When the industry was growing and jobs were plentiful and in demand, it was a great career. However, at the first sign of downsizing or merger, the female’s territory is the first to be attacked. This often happens because male alliances are formed socially after work, on the golf course, softball games, etc. Often times, discussions about new ideas and integrating technologies takes place after work at happy hour bar.</p>
<p>Also, men prefer having major tactical meetings at the “witching hour” - usually after 5:00 PM when the female prefers to be home with her family. That is always when the “crisis arises that must be resolved” before the next day.</p>
<p>And men prefer the “hero” approach to getting work done. The female will carefully plan out a project and steadily keep it on track. Men on the other hand, often dive in to get the job done. They get immediate results, and sometimes take unplanned risks, which often result in working extra hours to undo their mistakes. But this is perceived by management to be heroic - “Oh he worked all weekend to get that bug fixed”. While the female’s planning would have avoided the problem in the first place.</p>
<p>Which is why women make good project managers. Let the nitty-gritty “heroics” to the guys.</p>