Inclusion and diversity play a crucial role within the tech sector when it comes to developing services and solutions that work for everybody.
Evi has been with the company for ten years, and through her management role she is focused on the recruitment of female leaders and technological specialists. As a mentor and sponsor, she is a strong advocate for diversity and inclusion, and she works actively to encourage girls to pursue a career in IT and technology.
Social equity is crucial for the future of tech because it ensures that technology is developed and used in a way that benefits everyone, regardless of their gender, sexuality, race, age, socioeconomic status, or other factors.
According to Evi, it is important to commit to working stategically towards long-term change regarding gender balance and social equity more broadly within the sector because the solutions being developed need to work for all social groups. When people with different life experiences are a part of the process, the value for the end user becomes much higher.
Evi highlights the importance of working towards greater gender balance within the sector as a key factor towards greater social equity on a societal level. Right now, the average gender split within the industry is 30% women and 70% men.
According to the Confederation of Norwegian Enterprise, NHO, women in industrialised countries only account for 1 of 3 finished degrees within STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering & Mathematics). In a Norwegian context it has been made apparent that while girls generally have better results in these subjects, they are less likely to pursue this when entering upper secondary school.
A study by Tietoevry shows that only 14% of girls between the age of 15-25 considers an education or career within tech, in contrast to 44% of boys. Evi explains that a vital part of changing this is to rethink the way we talk about technology.
Evi notes that “due to the increased digitization of all areas of public and private life, technology is a necessary dimension for almost all areas of work and interest”. Therefore, technology is not just about the gritty specifications, but also the ethical considerations, usage, and societal role. Working in tech can mean that you work with care, education, and politics, she continues.
A love for computers, games, and science fiction can be an amazing entry point towards an education in tech - as it has been and still are for people of all genders.
Evi further emphasizes that there are other ways into technology as well, and that you don´t necessarily have to have a background from the average tech perspective. If you are passionate about creating a better educational system, better healthcare, or reducing climate change you can pursue this through specializing in IT and tech. “We live in a technological society, and social sustainability does therefore have to be at the core of what we do,” she explains.
“Technology could, and should, be a part of creating a better society. We must be open to both being challenged and about the way we are actively working to create change!”
From her 10 years at Tietoevry, Evi has a lot of experience with promoting inclusion within the company. When asked if she has some concrete tips from a management perspective, she gives the following advice:
“People are different, and this is an asset” Evi continues. We therefore have to reconsider how we talk about technology and our approach to management training and gender balance. These practices must be transparent and measurable!
If you are attending this year’s SHE conference, make sure you don’t miss the panel discussion on embedding social sustainability in the Workplace.