The tech industry gender gap is not just an equality issue. It is a business performance issue. Companies with greater gender diversity consistently outperform less diverse competitors on revenue, innovation, and decision making. Here is why closing the gap matters and what needs to change.

What is the Tech Industry Gender Gap?

The tech industry gender gap refers to the significant underrepresentation of women in technology roles. Despite women making up more than half of the overall workforce, only one in five employees in the tech industry is a woman. What makes this more striking is that the percentage of women in tech was actually higher in the 1980s than it is today.

This is not just an issue of fairness. It is an issue that affects business outcomes, economic growth, and the quality of technology being built for everyone.

Why Does the Tech Gender Gap Exist?

The gap persists due to a combination of factors including limited pathways for women entering STEM education, recruiting and hiring processes that favour male candidates, fewer female role models in senior tech positions, and workplace cultures that make it harder for women to stay and grow. Research shows that 33% of women in tech consider switching careers, and women leave the industry at a 45% higher rate than their male counterparts.

Why Should Businesses Care About Gender Diversity in Tech?

There are four compelling business reasons to close the gender gap in tech:

1. Diversity Drives Innovation

Forbes, McKinsey, and Harvard Business School all point to workforce diversity as a key driver of innovation and business growth. The benefits include increased creativity, better problem solving, richer brainstorming, and stronger decision making. In a fast-changing industry like tech, this is not optional. It is a competitive necessity.

2. Gender Diverse Companies Generate More Revenue

The financial case is clear. High-gender-diverse companies have outperformed less diverse companies over the past five years. Fortune 500 companies with at least three women in leadership positions saw a 66% increase in ROI. A McKinsey study found companies were 21% more likely to achieve above-average profits when gender diversity among executives was in the top quartile.

3. Women Bring Different and Valuable Perspectives

Men and women approach problems differently. This difference in perspective leads to better solutions, more thorough analysis, and stronger outcomes at the business unit level. When diverse viewpoints are present, teams naturally work harder to reach consensus, which improves the quality of decisions.

4. Female Role Models Create a Stronger Talent Pipeline

Celebrating and promoting women in tech encourages more girls to pursue STEM education and careers. This grows the overall talent pool and reduces the self-reinforcing cycle where fewer women in tech makes women less likely to enter the field. Women in senior roles also create accountability for gender equity from the inside.

What Needs to Change to Close the Gender Gap in Tech?

Four actions are needed now:

Encourage more women into STEM education. This starts at school level, encouraging girls to continue studies in science and maths, and continues through tertiary STEM programs. This is already a growing priority in countries including Vietnam and the Philippines.

Fix recruiting and hiring processes. Businesses need to understand what women look for in a role compared to male candidates and ensure hiring processes are free from gender bias. Questions about marital status, family life, or children that would not be asked of male candidates have no place in an interview.

Create equal promotion opportunities. An Indeed study found that only 53% of women in tech felt they had the same advancement opportunities as men. A perceived lack of career growth leads to 28% of women quitting their tech jobs entirely.

Change workplace culture from the top down. A gender-neutral position must exist across all areas of business operations, from how meetings are run to how social events are organised. Major tech companies still have a long way to go, with women holding only 23% of tech jobs at Apple, 21% at Google, and 20% at Microsoft.

How Sharesource Approaches Gender Diversity

Sharesource has taken a proactive gender-neutral approach across all areas of its operations since founding, including how roles are advertised, how interviews are conducted, and what ongoing support is provided to team members.

The result is a workforce that is 51% female and 49% male overall, with tech-specific roles at a 36% female to 64% male ratio. That is well above the industry average and a reflection of what is possible when diversity is built into company culture from day one.

For all of us at Sharesource, women in tech matter so that future generations of women will not only join but lead the industry. If you are interested in working with remote, gender-diverse teams that can help boost your business performance, get in touch with us.

Frequently Asked Questions About the Tech Industry Gender Gap

Why are there so few women in tech? The underrepresentation of women in tech is the result of multiple factors including limited encouragement in STEM education, biased hiring processes, lack of female role models in senior roles, and workplace cultures that make it difficult for women to stay and advance. These factors create a self-reinforcing cycle that requires deliberate action to break.

Does gender diversity actually improve business performance? Yes. Research from Forbes, McKinsey, and Harvard Business School consistently shows that gender-diverse companies outperform less diverse competitors on revenue, innovation, and profitability. Fortune 500 companies with at least three women in leadership roles saw a 66% increase in ROI.

What percentage of tech jobs are held by women? Globally, only about one in five tech industry employees is a woman. At major tech companies the numbers are even lower, with women holding 23% of tech jobs at Apple, 21% at Google, and 20% at Microsoft.

What can companies do to attract and retain women in tech? Companies can improve gender diversity by reviewing hiring and recruiting processes for bias, creating clear pathways for career advancement, building inclusive workplace cultures, and actively promoting women into senior and leadership roles.

Why do women leave the tech industry at higher rates than men? Women leave tech at a 45% higher rate than men, primarily due to a perceived lack of career growth opportunities, feeling undervalued, and experiencing a workplace culture that does not support them equally. Addressing these factors through policy and culture change is key to improving retention.

At Sharesource, gender diversity is not a target. It is how we operate. Learn more about our team and culture.

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