Proportion of women in the ICT industry growing slowly

At that time, women made up 24 percent of the total workforce of IT companies. This is the result of a study on the labor market for IT professionals, as announced by the digital association Bitkom on the occasion of International Women's Day.

More than 700 managing directors and HR managers from ICT companies were surveyed for the representative survey. The proportion of women in top management is also rising steadily, but only sluggishly.

Three years ago, 5 percent of all top managers were women, but this figure has now risen to 7 percent. The proportion of women in middle management increased by one percentage point, with women now accounting for 8 percent. Women now account for 17 percent of IT specialists, up from 15 percent in 2015.

"The proportion of female specialists in ICT companies has risen steadily in recent years. This shows that we are on the right track. Companies have recognized that female specialists and managers are urgently needed for lasting economic success."

says Uta Menges, Chair of the Bitkom Expert Committee

"Women in ICT. "Nevertheless, there is still a lot to be done here. Bitkom is making an important contribution to this with its university network, which promotes female students in computer science courses."

Special MINT women's degree programs in Germany are also intended to ensure that the digital industry attracts more women to specialist and, above all, management positions.

In the STEM field, the experience to date with women's degree programs has been very positive, as evidenced, for example, by an above-average success rate, without any compromises in the study and examination regulations compared to traditional degree programs.

According to Bitkom, close cooperation with companies also contributes to this, resulting in a high level of practical relevance. Women's degree programs have the same technical requirements as other degree programs, but they change the rules of the game in learning teams and lower the barriers to entry for women in IT.

Also because they often take into account the specific needs of female students who have family responsibilities, for example by coordinating mandatory courses with daycare opening times. In this way, they create more equal opportunities and put the focus back on professional skills.

Women's degree programs are currently offered by the Berlin University of Applied Sciences, Bremen University of Applied Sciences, Furtwangen University of Applied Sciences, and Jade University of Applied Sciences Wilhelmshaven, among others.

Note on methodology:

The data is based on a representative survey conducted by Bitkom Research on behalf of the digital association Bitkom. In September 2017, 701 managing directors and HR managers of ICT companies with three or more employees were surveyed.