Pluralsight and Women Who Code Survey Women in Technology Careers, Release Report About Workplace Challenges

Report Indicates that Women in Technology Careers Yearn for Female
Role Models and Flexibility in the Workplace, Aren’t Advocating for
Themselves Enough

SALT LAKE CITY–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Pluralsight, the global leader in online learning for technology
professionals, and Women Who Code, a global non-profit dedicated to
inspiring women to excel in technology careers, today announced the
results of a joint survey indexing the attitudes of women in technology
careers. The survey was conducted in an effort to better understand what
challenges women in technology professions face in the workplace, and
what changes might help solve those problems.

The survey, which polled more than 1,500 women working in technology
fields, indicated that they would benefit from more female role models.
Responses also showed that women in tech careers are running into a
number of obstacles in climbing the corporate ladder, which may be
impacting their salary and long-term career trajectory.

When asked to rank the biggest challenges in their careers, respondents
listed lack of opportunities for advancement first, followed closely by
lack of female role models and lack of mentorship at work. More than 60
percent of female leaders agreed or strongly agreed with the statement
that having more women on their teams would be beneficial.

“In the next decade, more than 75
percent of jobs in the U.S. will require technology skills,” said
Alaina Percival, CEO of Women Who Code. “It’s imperative that the
industry as a whole become a more welcoming and inclusive place for
women who have been drastically underrepresented to date. Providing
women every available opportunity and resource to succeed is crucial –
both for their well being, and for the stability of the economy.”

When asked what issues they felt were holding them back in their career,
respondents ranked lack of confidence as the most concerning, followed
by male-dominated work environments. While 20 percent of respondents in
their 20s and 30s aspire to a vice president or C-level position, more
than 50 percent felt uncomfortable asking for a raise and nearly 50
percent felt uncomfortable asking for a promotion.

In addition to highlighting challenges women face once they enter
technology careers, the study also looked at what needs to be done to
get women into technology fields in the first place. Most notably,
nearly 80 percent of women who took the survey listed flexible work
hours as important to them and one in four respondents said flexible
work hours was the most important factor when considering a career in
tech.

“We commissioned this study to help shed light on what obstacles women
working in technical roles are currently facing in the workplace,” said
Aaron Skonnard, CEO of Pluralsight. “Having more women in tech has been
shown to create better business results. It’s our job as an industry to
create an environment in which women have access to female role models,
mentors and more opportunities for advancement.”

Additional key findings of the report include:

• Women in leadership roles reported being held back by male-dominated
  work environments at more than twice the rate of women in mid-level
  positions or below (19 percent vs. 8 percent).
• Nearly half of respondents ages 21-49 feel that male colleagues are
  more likely to get promoted than female.
• 50 percent of all respondents agree that balancing their career and
  personal life is challenging.
• Only 8 percent of respondents said a startup was the “ideal
  organization” for them, but nearly 50 percent indicated that working
  in a mid-sized organization would be ideal.

The full report can be accessed here.

About Pluralsight

Founded in 2004, Pluralsight is the global leader in online learning for
professional software developers, IT specialists and creative
technologists. As the world’s largest curated professional development
platform, the company offers instant access to more than 4,700 courses
authored by top experts. With customers in more than 150 countries,
Pluralsight serves as a career catalyst, delivering hands-on, practical
training for the most in-demand and understaffed jobs of today. For more
information, visit pluralsight.com.

Contacts

Pluralsight PR
Megan Herrick, 801-784-9135
VP of Communications
megan-herrick@pluralsight.com
or
for
Pluralsight
Katy Kenealy, 801-828-6056
katy@methodcommunications.com