Based on the successful Dream IT campaign stateside, the UK Channel Community is creating similar resource — specific to the UK — that will inspire more girls and women to enter IT. At the UK Channel Community meeting in Bristol, CompTIA’s Cathy Alper and Leanne Johnson led a Dream IT workshop to go over the initiative and introduce various tools of the program, like the Career Resource Centre from CompTIA’s Advancing Women in IT Community.
Diversity in the Industry
Women make up just 17 percent of the IT industry, according to PCR, and as an industry, we need to do more to break the stereotypes that keep women away. This includes showcasing the multitude of roles within the sector, and that IT is more made up of more than just solitary programmers.
The industry’s in dire need of project coordinators, for example, plus managers, consultants and trainers who excel at roles that are built around engaging with the customer. Women excel in these roles, particularly when it comes to leadership.
Help Define Dream IT for the UK
We’re relying on our members to lead the redesign of the AWIT resources. You’re the one on the ground facing these issues on a daily basis, and the one who knows what resonates with our audience. These insights are crucial to getting more women into IT.
At the session in Bristol, members split up into groups and looked at the existing materials online and discussed how things could be updated for the UK audience. Members discussed editing the video content for UK audiences and to make it more relevant for younger people. Since parents are the biggest influencers over teenagers, we should make sure the parents are getting the right information. Because school curriculum portrays IT as a somewhat dull sector, more needs to be done to help people understand what it can actually be like.
If these positive messages can be communicated by schools, parents and the industry, then there is nothing to stop women advancing in the industry. Couple that with the global skills gap and you’ll see there’s never been a better time show that IT is a job for everyone.
For more on Dream IT and how it’s growing in the UK, contact Leanne Johnson or visit the Dream IT site.
