Real-World Insights on Gender Diversity in IT Leadership Hiring

I rarely post about DE&I, mostly because I feel I should rather listen than talk when it comes to this topic.

But sharing real-world data from a recent project is perhaps the most effective way for me to contribute to the discussion.

Recently, I had the opportunity to collaborate with a client, a 600 FTE company with a strong commitment to diversity, on filling an IT Director position. From the outset, it was clear that the company’s commitment to diversity was more than just rhetoric; it was deeply ingrained in their organizational values. Together, we set our targets: a longlist comprising at least 33% female candidates, and a requirement of at least 2 female candidates progressing to the second round of interviews. We wouldn’t proceed to last-round interviews before we reached these targets.

Those plans are always nice on paper, but reality isn’t always as predictable. We depend on people on those longlists to be actually interested in the role, have time for interviews, etc. This might sound mundane, but the day-to-day reality of the people we work with has a huge impact on how our wonderful plans actually work out. That perfect mix of candidates in the first round doesn’t necessarily convert to a perfect mix in the second round. We’re working with small numbers, one candidate who decides to drop out of the procedure can tilt your metrics.

Back to the data.

I performed an initial, broad search, resulting in a couple hundred profiles. 16% of these were female. This meant that if I didn’t give it special attention, my longlist would most likely not hit the agreed 33% target. So I put some extra hours into my search, making sure to reach the right mix.

However, the process of approaching candidates also revealed disparities. My response rate with male candidates was simply higher than with female candidates. And yes, I did consult various linguistic tools to make sure my text wasn’t gender-biased. I’ve spoken with various industry experts on this topic, and for a variety of reasons, women in tech seem less open to exploring new opportunities. This is something I couldn’t fix in the short term. So my solution was to put extra hours into searching and approaching more female candidates than the targeted 33% longlist, to compensate for the difference in response rate. Encouragingly, my intake calls revealed no significant differences in compensation packages between male and female candidates—a positive indication that equal pay is being upheld in this specific sector.

Moving into the interview phase, I was confident in the client's commitment to fostering an inclusive environment. With female representation in (tech)  leadership roles and a well-trained interviewing panel, the process was designed to provide a level playing field for all candidates. As a result, we maintained a diverse slate when we proceeded to the later-stage interviews. Whether or not the client would end up hiring a female candidate (in this case, they did), wouldn’t really determine the success of our approach. We had reached our goals.

Reflecting on this experience, it's evident that while achieving gender diversity in tech leadership hiring requires effort, it is indeed achievable. By prioritizing a fair selection process and investing extra resources in candidate outreach, organizations can move closer to building diverse teams. However, we have to commit to this effort and avoid the path of least resistance. I hope that despite the changing labor market, more and more organizations keep making this effort.

I would love to hear your insights and best practices!