Tech companies roll up sleeves to get more women into STEM jobs
Accenture, Cisco, HCL Tech, Dell, Uber and Flipkart are pulling out the stops to move the needle on female representation in their tech workforce through initiatives like reaching out to Tier-2 and Tier-3 cities for talent; inclusive AI-powered skill-based hiring practices to help reduce unconscious biases in recruitment; mentoring and career development initiatives; caregiving support structures, and returnship programmes.
As of 2023, women account for 27% of India’s STEM workforce, compared to 32% of the non-STEM workforce, according to the recent Global Gender Gap Report 2023 by the World Economic Forum.
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Flipkart and Dell are focusing on reaching out to girl students and providing opportunities for women from low to mid-socio-economic backgrounds.
Flipkart’s 'Girls Wanna Code' programme aims to identify and increase female participation from Tier-2 and Tier-3 cities, expanding beyond Tier-1 campuses. Great talent can come from any part of the country, said Krishna Raghavan, chief people officer. The recently concluded fourth edition saw a 2x increase in registrations compared to previous editions.
Dell recently relaunched its Dell Resident Program —
