Female member of IT industry tells conference of the
need for greater gender equality in computing jobs.
Businesses are more likely to be productive if they have an equal number of male and female employees, according to a member of the IT industry.
Kate Craig-Wood, managing director of internet services provider Memset, called for more efforts to address the gender imbalance currently seen in IT and computing jobs.
Speaking at the Intellect Annual Regent Conference 2009, she claimed that major IT firms could become significantly more productive by encouraging more women to join their teams.
"We have slightly different skills and fortes and when we mix them together, that's when we are at our most productive," Ms Craig-Wood commented.
She went on to cite a recent study which revealed that "companies with a good gender balance at the top level perform 34 per cent better in terms of internal equity", further emphasising the importance of a well-mixed workforce.
"I think just common sense dictates as well that gender balanced teams work better," Ms Craig-Wood added.
The Intellect Annual Regent Conference took place at the Millennium Gloucester Hotel in London on February 10th and was chaired by the BBC's Jeremy Paxman.
Other speakers at the event included IDC's chief research officer John Gantz and Tudor Aw, technology partner at KPMG.
According to the British Computer Society, salaries in the IT industry are still affected by gender inequality.
The organisation recently cited figures from e-skills UK which reveal that the average weekly wage for male professionals working in IT and telecoms jobs is about £720, compared with £500 for women.
