Women in eLearning: A Brave New Digital World

What defines a woman in tech? 

You might think that this question brings us back to basics in aninsignificant way, but it needs asking. The obvious and most succinct answerwould be that a woman in tech is any woman working in STEM fields. Given today’sgrowing digital landscape, and the ways in which tech careers are constantlyevolving and changing, this definition no longer suffices.  

One of the biggest challenges women face in technology today is beingvalued appropriately for skills that might not fall neatly under the STEMumbrella, but which are definitely technology based and should be considered so.

Backto the future

In the past, to be considered a woman in tech, you had to have a computer science degree and/or be able to code and/orbe able to hack into any computer system known to man (I blame the ‘90s forthat last train of thought. Hello Hackers).

There have been numerous discussions about the issues facing women intech, but in my mind the biggest issue is how we define women in tech. Womenare often told to change their behavior with such cliché advice as “learn tocode” or “hang in there,” but let’s face it, tech careers are drasticallychanging, and continuing to offer advice along these lines is perpetuating theissue. We need to value women for their contribution and engagement in techroles rather than having them change their behavior to fit an archaic model ofwhat working in tech means.

It’s refreshing to see articles such as Meet ELLE’s Women in Tech. Althoughthey do admit to this being their first time celebrating influential women intech, it’s nice to see different representations of what a woman working intech can look like in today’s world.

Bravenew world

There are very real gender issues facing women in tech, one of thembeing that tech roles have opened up to mean so much more. Take for example therise of hybrid roles and theirimpact on companies. These nouveau roles demand multiple skill sets fromindividuals. One example of such a role might be a tech, marketing, and designhybrid. When women take on these hybrid roles, often the tech aspects of thejob are completely undervalued. Just because you are bringing design andmarketing skills to the table, doesn’t mean that the tech aspects should bevalued less or that the role is not technical.

Let me offer a few personal examples. When I first started designing anddeveloping digital learning for a company a few years back, I didn’t evenrealize I was a “woman in tech.” In my past roles, which I deemed to be strictly creative at the time,I was managing and developing technical projects without even realizing that Iwas a “woman in tech.” See a pattern here?

There is often a divide between the analytical and the creative that blursthe lines of defining a technical role even further. We need to place value onthis blend of design and tech, as it is becoming an increasingly popular hybridrole. Think of eLearning—in and of itself, individuals must wear many hats tobe successful in the industry. This could include anything from creativedirecting, graphic design, digital development, animation, project management,digital strategy, audio editing, programming … and the list goes on. These hybridroles are drastically changing the ways in which people, and women inparticular, are engaging with and innovating in technology.

Thecompany you keep  

Gender equality doesn’t stop at hybrid roles. A lot of companies are workingtowards a future that is diverse, equal, and fair for women in tech. BuzzFeed recentlynoted that the tech industry is full of female entrepreneurs who are actively redefining what itmeans to create, engineer, and innovate, and that number’s only set to grow. FromEtsy to Facebook to IBM, there is a definite collective progression forward forwomen in tech, but what happens in the meantime? How do you, how do I, how dowe make changes?

Educateand advocate

It is important to constantly educate those around you and speak up (orlean in) to make a change. Right now educating and advocating for a definition changeof what it means to be a woman in technology is the most important thing forwomen to be doing. Put yourself out there. Describe your work in detail. Don’tbe afraid to ask for that raise based on the value of your tech skills. Mentorothers. Redefine your definition ofwhat a woman in tech is. Wear your tech badge proudly. Simple changes can go along way.

It is an extremely exciting and innovative time in technology, but it’s notwithout its challenges. In this brave new digital landscape, women are oftenutilizing and mastering technology but are not necessarily being valued forthose skills. How do we expect women to collectively champion for change ifthey can’t even define that they are, indeed, a woman working in tech. With thedigital world growing at amazing speeds, the definition and value placed onwomen in tech needs to change to truly represent the sector.