Skip to main content
SpringerLink
Log in
Book cover

Handbook on Well-Being of Working Women pp 297–315Cite as

Still Alone at the Table? Women Working in Technology Organizations

  • Chapter

  • 4266 Accesses

Part of the book series: International Handbooks of Quality-of-Life ((IHQL))

Abstract

Women working in information technology (IT) organizations experience a variety of challenges related to traditionally male dominated IT organizational cultures. As competition for IT staff has become global, IT organizations must realize that a great source for staff can be found in women. Unfortunately, the gendered elements of organizations, particularly IT environments, tend to promote male traditions, processes, and environments. Organizations must start reducing barriers, becoming more diverse, and invest in creating opportunities for women to enter and succeed in IT professions. Women seeking IT careers and advancement must understand gendered hegemonies and pursue actions to address and overcome challenges they encounter so they are no longer alone at the table.

Over the years, women working in information technology (IT) organizations have often been “alone at the table” as a female in the IT workforce. Just within the past year, I can recall several instances in which I was in a meeting and thought to myself: “Why do I continue to be the lone woman ‘at the table’ after 30 years in IT? Where are the women? After all the years of the proliferation of IT in organizations and in personal use, can’t we get past the obstacles that continue to prevent women from being in technical work roles or technology leadership roles that would put them ‘at the table?’”

This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution.

Chapter
USD   29.95
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
eBook
USD   219.00
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Available as EPUB and PDF
  • Read on any device
  • Instant download
  • Own it forever
Softcover Book
USD   279.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Compact, lightweight edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info
Hardcover Book
USD   279.99
Price excludes VAT (USA)
  • Durable hardcover edition
  • Dispatched in 3 to 5 business days
  • Free shipping worldwide - see info

Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout

Purchases are for personal use only

Learn about institutional subscriptions

References

  • Acker, J. (1993). Hierarchies, jobs, and bodies: A theory of gendered organizations. In J. S. Glazer, E. M. Bensimon, & B. K. Townsend (Eds.), Women in higher education: A feminist perspective (pp. 81–95). Needham Heights: Ginn Press. (Reprinted from Gender and Society, 4(2), June 1990)

    Google Scholar 

  • Ashcraft, C., Eger, E., & Friend, M. (2012). Girls in IT: The facts (NCWIT report). Retrieved from http://www.ncwit.org/resources/girls-it-facts. Accessed 3 Sept 2012.

  • Aspray, W., & Freeman, P. A. (2002). The supply of IT workers in the United States. In B. L. Hawkins, J. A. Rudy, & W. H. Wallace (Eds.), Technology everywhere: A campus agenda for educating and managing workers in the digital age (pp. 3–23). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ausejo, L. (1993). Women administrators’ emerging personal and professional concerns. In P. T. Mitchell (Ed.), Cracking the wall: Women in higher education administration (pp. 71–87). Washington, DC: The College and University Personnel Association.

    Google Scholar 

  • Auster, E. R. (1993, Summer). Demystifying the glass ceiling: Organizational and interpersonal dynamics of gender bias. Business & The Contemporary World, 5, 47–68.

    Google Scholar 

  • Barker, L. J., & Aspray, W. (2006). The state of research on girls and IT. In J. M. Cohoon & W. Aspray (Eds.), Women and information technology: Research on underrepresentation (pp. 3–54). Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Barsh, J., & Yee, L. (2011, April). Unlocking the full potential of women in the U.S. economy. McKinsey & Company. Retrieved from http://www.mckinsey.com/client_service/organization/latest_thinking/unlocking_the_full_potential. Accessed 5 Oct 2011.

  • Bechky, B. A. (2003, November). Object lessons: Workplace artifacts as representations of occupational jurisdiction [Electronic Version]. American Journal of Sociology, 109(3), 720–752.

    Google Scholar 

  • Beninger, A., & Carter, N. (2013). The great debate: Flexibility vs. face time. Retrieved from http://www.catalyst.org/knowledge/great-debate-flexibility-vs-face-time-busting-myths-behind-flexible-work-arrangements. Accessed 25 Sept 2013.

  • Brown, W. A. (2006). CIO effectiveness in higher education. Educause Quarterly, 29(1), 48–53.

    Google Scholar 

  • Brown, W. (2013). The chief information officer in higher education, 2013 reports (Research report). Albany: Center for Higher Education Chief Information Officer Studies, Inc.

    Google Scholar 

  • Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor. (2012). Occupational outlook handbook, 2012–13 edition, projections overview. Retrieved from http://www.bls.gov/ooh/about/projections-overview.htm. Accessed 30 Sept 2013.

  • Carter, N. M., & Silva, C. (2011). The myth of the ideal worker: Does doing all the right things really get women ahead? Retrieved from http://www.catalyst.org/knowledge/myth-ideal-worker-does-doing-all-right-things-really-get-women-ahead. Accessed 30 Aug 2012.

  • Catalyst. (2013, March 8). High tech employment in the U.S.: Women and men employed in select high tech occupations in the U.S., 2012. Retrieved from http://www.catalyst.org/knowledge/women-high-tech-globally. Accessed 30 Sept 2013.

  • Chapple, K. (2006). Low-income women, short-term job training programs, and IT careers. In J. M. Cohoon & W. Aspray (Eds.), Women and information technology: Research on underrepresentation (pp. 439–470). Cambridge, MA: The MIT Press.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Clark, E. (2013, September). Gender diversity among higher education CIOs (Research report). Louisville: EDUCAUSE Center for Analysis and Research. Retrieved from http://www.educause.edu/ecar. Accessed 25 Sept 2013.

  • Collins, P. H. (1986). Learning from the outsider within: The sociological significance of black feminist thought [electronic version]. Social Problems, 33(6), S14–S30.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Cozza, M. (2011). Bridging gender gaps, networking in computer science. Gender, Technology and Development, 15(2), 319–337.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Csorny, L. (2013, April). Careers in the growing field of information technology services. Beyond the Numbers: Employment & Unemployment, 2(9), U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. Retrieved from http://www.bls.gov/opub/btn/volume-2/careers-in-growing-field-of-information-technology-services.htm. Accessed 5 Oct 2013.

  • Drury, M. (2010). You gotta be determined to get in there: Voices of women higher education technology leaders. The Journal of Women in Educational Leadership, 8(2), 59–80.

    Google Scholar 

  • Drury, M. (2011). Women technology leaders: Gender issues in higher education information technology. NASPA Journal About Women in Higher Education, 4(1), 96–123.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Eagly, A. H., & Carli, L. L. (2007). Through the labyrinth: The truth about how women become leaders. Boston: Harvard Business School Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Flax, J. (1983). Political philosophy and the patriarchal unconscious: A psychoanalytic perspective on epistemology and metaphysics. In S. Harding & M. B. Hintikka (Eds.), Discovering reality (pp. 245–281). Dordrecht: D. Reidel Publishing Company.

    Google Scholar 

  • Foust-Cummings, H., Sabattini, L., & Carter, N. (2008). Women in technology: Maximizing talent, minimizing barriers. Retrieved from http://www.catalyst.org/knowledge/women-technology-maximizing-talent-minimizing-barriers. Accessed 15 Mar 2012.

  • Foust-Cummings, H., Dinolfo, S., & Kohler, J. (2011). Sponsoring women to success. Retrieved from http://www.catalyst.org/knowledge/sponsoring-women-success. Accessed 15 Mar 2012.

  • Gang, V. (2013, September 7). Women want work-life balance more than a big paycheck. Retrieved from http://www.businessinsider.com/women-want-work-life-balance-more-than-a-big-paycheck-2013-9. Accessed 20 Sept 2013.

  • Gillenwater, S. (2012). F-250 female chief information officers approaching 20%. Retrieved from http://boardroominsiders.com/news/?p=270. Accessed 10 Apr 2012.

  • Gropp, R. E. (2006). National academy of sciences issues gender equity plan. BioScience, 56(11), 888.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Harris, K., Morello, D., & Raskino, M. (2007, March 20). Women and men in IT: Breaking through sexual stereotypes (Research Report ID#: G00146320). Retrieved from http://www.gartner.com. Accessed 9 June 2008.

  • Hartsock, N. C. (1983). The feminist standpoint: Developing the ground for a specifically feminist historical materialism. In S. Harding & M. B. Hintikka (Eds.), Discovering reality (pp. 283–310). Dordrecht: D. Reidel Publishing Company.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hewlett, S. A., & Luce, C. B. (2005, March). Off-ramps and on-ramps: Keeping talented women on the road to success. Harvard Business Review, 86(6), 22–24.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hewlett, S. A., Luce, C. B., & Servon, L. J. (2008, June). Stopping the exodus of women in science. Harvard Business Review, 86(6), 22–24.

    Google Scholar 

  • Hymowitz, C., & Schellhardt, T. D. (1986, March 24). The corporate woman (A special report): Cover—The glass ceiling: Why women can’t seem to break the invisible barrier that blocks them from the top jobs [Electronic Version]. The Wall Street Journal, 1.

    Google Scholar 

  • Ibarra, H., Carter, N. M., & Silva, C. (2010, September). Why men still get more promotions than women, Harvard Business Review, 88(9), 80–85.

    Google Scholar 

  • Intel. (2010). 2010 corporate responsibility report. Retrieved from http://www.intel.com/content/dam/doc/report/corporate-responsibility-2010-report.pdf. Accessed 30 Sept 2013.

  • Katz, R. N., Kvavik, R. B., Penrod, J. I., Pirani, J. A., Nelson, M. R., & Salaway, G. (Eds.). (2004). Information technology leadership in higher education: The condition of the community. Boulder: Educause Center for Applied Research ECAR.

    Google Scholar 

  • Kekelis, L. S., Ancheta, R. W., & Heber, E. (2005). Hurdles in the pipeline. Frontiers: A Journal of Women Studies, 26(1), 99–109.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Lorber, J. (1994). Paradoxes of gender. New Haven: Yale University Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • Maier, M. (1999). On the gendered substructure of organization. In G. N. Powell (Ed.), Handbook of gender & work (pp. 69–93). Thousand Oaks: Sage.

    Chapter  Google Scholar 

  • Martin, P. Y. (2003, June). ‘Said and done’ versus ‘saying and doing’: Gendering practices, practicing gender at work. Gender and Society, 17(3), 342–366.

    Google Scholar 

  • Maume, D. J. (1999, November). Glass ceilings and glass escalators: Occupational segregation and race and sex differences in managerial promotions. Work and Occupations, 26(4), 483–509.

    Google Scholar 

  • Merton, R. K. (1972). Insiders and outsiders: A chapter in the sociology of knowledge. The American Journal of Sociology, 78(1), 9–47.

    Article  Google Scholar 

  • Nash, H. (2012, May). Harvey Nash CIO Survey 2012. Retrieved from www.harveynash.com/ciosurvey/. Accessed 10 Sept 2013.

  • National Center for Education Statistics. (2012). Digest of education statistics, 2012: Table 317: Bachelor’s, master’s, and doctor’s degrees conferred by degree-granting institutions, by sex of student and discipline division: 2010–11. Retrieved from http://nces.ed.gov/programs/digest/d12/tables/dt12_317.asp. Accessed 6 Sept 2013.

  • NCWIT. (2009, September 30). Women in IT: The facts. Retrieved from http://www.ncwit.org/resources/women-it-facts. Accessed 20 Jan 2011.

  • NCWIT. (2013, February 27). Women in IT: By the numbers. Retrieved from www.ncwit.org/bythenumbers. Accessed 5 Oct 2013.

  • Sandberg, S. (2013). Lean in. New York: Knopf.

    Google Scholar 

  • Simard, C., & Gammal, D. (2012). Solutions to recruit technical women. Retrieved from http://anitaborg.org/files/Anita-Borg-Inst-Solutions-To-Recruit-Technical-Women.pdf. Accessed 15 Mar 2013.

  • Simard, C., Henderson, A. D., Gilmartin, S. K., Schiebinger, L., & Whitney, T. (2008). Climbing the technical ladder: Obstacles and solutions for mid-level women in technology. National Science Foundation Grant #0413538 through NCWIT & Anita Borg Institute for Women and Technology.

    Google Scholar 

  • Sprague, J., & Zimmerman, M. K. (1993). Overcoming dualisms: A feminist agenda for sociological methodology. In P. England (Ed.), Theory on gender/feminism on theory (pp. 255–280). New York: Aldine De Gruyter.

    Google Scholar 

  • Valian, V. (2006). Beyond gender schemas: Improving the advancement of women in academia. In J. M. Bystydzienski, & S. R. Bird (Eds.), Removing barriers: Women in academic science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (pp. 320–332).

    Google Scholar 

  • Wasburn, M. H., & Miller, S. G. (2006). Still a chilly climate for women students in technology: A case study. In M. F. Fox, D. G. Johnson, & S. V. Rosser (Eds.), Women, gender, and technology (pp. 60–79). Urbana: University of Illinois Press.

    Google Scholar 

  • WIAReport. (2013, October 16). University of Nebraska Omaha seeks to increase women in information technology fields. Retrieved from http://www.wiareport.com/2013/10/university-of-nebraska-omaha-seeks-to-increase-women-in-information-technology-fields/. Accessed 23 Oct 2013.

  • Williams, C. L. (1992, August). The glass escalator: Hidden advantages for men in the “female” professions. Social Problems, 39(3), 253–267.

    Google Scholar 

Download references

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Emeritus, ITS Educational Technology, University of Northern Iowa, Cedar Falls, IA, 50614, USA

    Marilyn Drury Ed.D. (Director)

Authors
  1. Marilyn Drury Ed.D.
    View author publications

    You can also search for this author in PubMed Google Scholar

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Marilyn Drury Ed.D. .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Management College of Business Administration, University of Northern Iowa, Cedar Falls, Iowa, USA

    Mary L. Connerley

  2. Department of Management and Marketing School of Management, Rhode Island College, Providence, Rhode Island, USA

    Jiyun Wu

Rights and permissions

Reprints and permissions

Copyright information

© 2016 Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht

About this chapter

Cite this chapter

Drury, M. (2016). Still Alone at the Table? Women Working in Technology Organizations. In: Connerley, M., Wu, J. (eds) Handbook on Well-Being of Working Women. International Handbooks of Quality-of-Life. Springer, Dordrecht. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-017-9897-6_18

Download citation

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-94-017-9897-6_18

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Dordrecht

  • Print ISBN: 978-94-017-9896-9

  • Online ISBN: 978-94-017-9897-6

  • eBook Packages: Social SciencesSocial Sciences (R0)

Publish with us

Policies and ethics

Search

Navigation