It is a widely observed fact that women are significantly under-represented in technology positions and, in particular, among technology executives. Although survey data from the past three years varies enormously, it continues to support this perspective, suggesting that female representation at the CIO level runs at anything between 7% and 24%.

Certainly, the gender imbalance is more pronounced in some industries than in others, and in some countries more than others. In the US’s higher education sector, for instance, women in IT leadership roles are better represented than is typical for the IT profession as a whole – but some of the latest research* underscores the scale of the challenge ahead for the profession if it is to raise the participation of women at the CIO level, let alone prevent erosion of existing numbers

The headline figures certainly present cause for concern. While the data on CIOs indicates that the top IT position is held by women at 23% of US colleges and universities, that figure has been declining in recent years; in 2008 it stood at 26%.

However, these figures contrast with the technology leaders in the next organisational layer down from the CIO – the group of IT managers likely to produce the next generation of female CIOs. Here, the declining picture is actually reversed: the 2010 research shows that 37% of such non-CIO technology leaders (TLs) were women, compared to 33% in the previous year.

But what really jumps out of the research is the indication that this pool of future female CIOs is destined to decline sharply.

Who wants to be a CIO?

There are several factors at play here. Firstly, not every female TL has a burning desire to move up to the top position. Our 2010 research showed that the percentage of women who want to become a CIO is significantly less than for their male counterparts. Only 45% of the female TLs questioned expressed an interest in becoming a CIO, versus 76% of men.

A look at the 2009 data underscores that point: of those who wanted to be CIOs, 72% were men and only 28% women. Secondly, a large proportion of women choose to leave the technology workforce in their late 30s – one study found that more than 50% of these females quit while they were middle managers.

Various business and academic studies have explored the reasons that might lie behind this. In the corporate world, for instance, interview results suggest that elements of corporate culture – such as a lack of mentors, the macho culture, and the often-extreme commitment levels required in IT jobs, as well as differences between men and women in leadership style and the burdens of family responsibilities – led to female departures from the field, especially in that key “flight or fight” time around 35 to 40 years old.

Compounding this, our 2010 research showed a greater desire from women TLs to bow out early. In the sample, 36% of the women said they were planning to retire in the next 10 years versus 20% of the men. Those plans to retire at a higher rate were also evident in the 2009 survey.

What makes this perplexing is that women are the more highly educated of the group: 73% of the TL women surveyed had an advanced degree versus 62% of the men. However, the type of degree might be a key factor here. While 58% of the male TLs surveyed had a technology or a business degree (34% and 24%, respectively), only 47% of women fitted that profile (29% and 18%).

Vital role for role models

Several other studies have indicated the positive role of a significant number of women in top positions on the retention decisions of young women in the profession, emphasising the importance of working to keep female leadership levels from falling. A 2008 Harvard Business Review research report found that one aspect of isolation reported by women in corporate technology was the lack of role models (40%), mentors (47%) and sponsors (84%).

Our 2009 research backs up the view that mentoring plays a vital part in preparing women for the role – at least in the higher education sector. While the number-one answer to the question, “Who is helping you prepare to become a CIO?” was “no one” (38%), when the responses from men and women are separated out, the “no one” answer increases to 43% for the men and drops to 23% for the women.

The two most likely groups to provide help to a TL in his or her pursuit of the CIO position are the TL’s own CIO or a CIO from another institution. However, the selection of a CIO mentor was almost twice as common among women (79% versus 41% for men).

A final point to note, however, is that once women reach the CIO’s role, they tend to want to stay just as long as men: about half of each gender group (49% of women versus 46% of men) were predicting retirement in the next ten years.

Overall, higher education appears to be a more favourable environment for the development of female IT leaders than the technology field in general. If more female technologists in higher education are staying in the profession and becoming CIOs, it may be due to differences in culture that make the workplace more comfortable 
for women. We need to better understand the reasons for it, both to share with the larger technology community and to ensure that we can continue to improve even further.

* 2010 Higher Education Technology Leadership Study: The Chief Information Officers of the Future and related research by Dr Wayne Brown for the Center for Higher Education Chief Information Officer Studies Inc.

• Wayne Brown is VP for information technology at Excelsior College, the US’s “first virtual university”, and the founder of the Center for Higher Education Chief Information Officer Studies.

• Polley McClure is VP for information technologies and professor of ecology and evolutionary biology, emeritus, at Cornell University.

See also our in-depth report, A Question of Gender – and sign into the Members' Area to download our Data Feed charting the under-representation of women in IT.