Cracks have started to appear in the male domination of the technology sector, with a new study showing that the average salaries for women leaders have moved ahead of men for the first time.
The finding has been revealed in a global study of almost 1,000 executive searches for top roles in technology, carried out by Odgers Berndtson since 2015. During this time, women’s share of top commercial roles - and their earnings - have doubled, with average salaries for women exceeding those for men for the first time in 2018.
Average pay differentials for women placed by Odgers Berndtson in top commercial roles in the tech sector have almost disappeared in the past five years, with average salaries for top female executives rising from £122,000 in 2013 (less than half the male average) to £330,000 in 2018.
This put average salaries for women in top commercial roles at technology companies ahead of those for men for the first time.
Meanhwhile, since 2015 women almost doubled their share of leadership placements in technology companies from 11% to over 20% of appointments.
However, the study also shows that significant challenges remain for women in many areas of the industry. For leadership roles including chief information officer and chief technology officer, men still dominate both in numbers and earning power, with significantly higher salary packages.
The number of women successfully placed as technology leaders is increasing, nonetheless. The study shows women placed in top technology roles like CIO and CTO almost doubled from 9% to 17% of total placements in 2018.
Odgers Berndtson head of the CIO and technology officers practice Caroline Sands said: “The gender gap in functional technology roles is not closing as quickly as we might hope. Although the most talented female technologists are now more likely to reach the top, in many specialist areas there won’t be gender parity until fundamental concerns of younger women over culture are addressed.”
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