Tech's Uneven Terrain: Navigating Gender Equity in 2025

This is your Women in Business podcast.

Welcome to Women in Business. If you’re tuning in today, you care about how women are shaping, leading, and transforming the tech industry against the backdrop of a complex, ever-shifting economy. I’m excited to dive straight in, because the story of women in tech in 2025 is a story of bold innovation, persistent barriers, and collective empowerment.

Let’s get right to it: There are more women in tech now than ever before, making up about 35% of the tech workforce—a steep climb from just 9% in the early 2000s. Progress is real, but beneath those numbers, the journey remains tough. The day-to-day reality? Women comprise less than 20% of tech leadership roles globally. In the U.S., women’s representation in tech roles hovers at 27%, with cities like San Jose standing out for high earnings, and southern metros such as Little Rock and Columbia, South Carolina, leading gains in gender diversity.

One of the most urgent talking points is the role of education and continuous learning. As industry giants like Skillsoft emphasize, upskilling, particularly in AI and emerging technologies, is essential to close the persistent gender gap. Their data reveals that 60% of women aren’t yet using AI at work. But among those who do, nearly three-quarters say they feel more productive. As companies ramp up investment in AI, ensuring women have access to these opportunities will define who holds power in tomorrow’s tech landscape.

The second major issue is the pay gap and advancement. A recent survey found that companies pay men more than women for 62% of jobs in tech. Even when women reach the CEO chair at startups, they earn $20,000 less on average than their male counterparts. Yet, interestingly, women are promoted at a slightly higher rate than men—so the barriers aren’t just about getting a seat at the table, but negotiating equal recognition and reward once you’re there.

Where are women finding the greatest opportunities? Data scientists, systems analysts, and web designers stand out, with women making up 46%, 39%, and 38% of these roles respectively. On the flip side, fields like cybersecurity and hardware engineering are still starkly male-dominated, with less than one in five positions held by women. These gaps matter when we talk about the future pipeline—and when we ask: Which doors are opening, and which remain shut?

Retention and burnout surfaced acutely during the pandemic. Remote work offered flexibility, yes, but it also blurred boundaries, and millions of women left tech by age 35. As leaders and organizations revisit flexible work policies, there’s a critical opportunity to build cultures that support rather than sideline women.

Finally, let’s talk about leadership and representation. Globally, only around 17% of tech companies have a woman as CEO. The numbers are even slimmer for CTO roles and founding teams with gender parity. Role models and networks—like the WomenTech Network and Women in Digital Australia—are pushing for more women-led startups and amplifying women’s voices in tech policy, but the glass ceiling persists into senior leadership.

If you’re navigating this landscape—whether as an entrepreneur, coder, data scientist, or policy advocate—know that your impact matters. By 2025, collaborative data projects, intersectional diversity, and the rise of women in emerging sectors are charting a new course. But progress depends on all of us demanding inclusive policies, championing each other’s careers, and telling these stories unapologetically.

Thanks for tuning in to Women in Business. If you found this discussion enlightening, please subscribe so you never miss an episode. This has been a Quiet Please production, for more check out quietplease dot ai.

For more http://www.quietplease.ai


Get the best deals https://amzn.to/3ODvOta

This content was created in partnership and with the help of Artificial Intelligence AI

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Welcome to women in business. If you're tuning in today,
you care about how women are shaping, leading, and transforming
the tech industry against the backdrop of a complex, ever
shifting economy. I'm excited to dive straight in because the
story of women in tech in twenty twenty five is
a story of bold innovation, persistent barriers, and collective empowerment.
Let's get right to it. There are more women in

(00:20):
tech now than ever before, making up about thirty five
percent of the tech workforce, a steep climb from just
nine percent in the early two thousand hundreds. Progress is real,
but beneath those numbers, the journey remains tough. The day
to day reality, women comprise less than twenty percent of
tech leadership roles globally. In the US, women's representation in

(00:41):
tech roles hovers at twenty seven percent, with cities like
San Jose standing out for high earnings and Southern metros
such as Little Rock in Columbia, South Carolina leading gains
in gender diversity. One of the most urgent talking points
is the role of education and continuous learning, as industry
giants like skillsoft emphasize upskilling, particularly in AI and emerging

(01:01):
technologies is essential to close the persistent gender gap. Their
data reveals that sixty percent of women aren' yet using
AI at work, but among those who do, nearly three
quarters say they feel more productive As companies ramp up
investment in AI, Ensuring women have access to these opportunities
will define who holds power intomorrow's tech landscape. The second

(01:21):
major issue is the pay gap and advancement. A recent
survey found that companies pay men more than women for
sixty two percent of jobs in tech. Even when women
reach the CEO chair at startups, they earn twenty thousand
dollars less on average than their male counterparts. Yet interestingly,
women are promoted at a slightly higher rate than men,
so the barriers aren't just about getting a seat at

(01:42):
the table, but negotiating equal recognition and reward. Wants your go?
Where are women finding the greatest opportunities? Data scientists, systems analysts,
and web designers stand out, with women making up forty
six percent, thirty nine percent, and thirty eight percent of
these roles respectively. On the flip side, fields life like
cybersecurity and hardware engineering are still starkly male dominated, with

(02:04):
less than one in five positions held by women. These
gaps matter when we talk about the future pipeline and
when we ask which doors are opening and which remain shut.
Retention and burnout surfaced acutely during the pandemic. Remote work
offered flexibility, yes, but it also blurred boundaries and millions
of women left tech by age thirty five. As leaders

(02:25):
and organizations revisit flexible work policies, there's a critical opportunity
to build cultures that support, rather than sideline women. Finally,
let's talk about leadership and representation. Globally, only around seventeen
percent of tech companies have a woman as CEO. The
numbers are even slimmer for CTO roles and founding teams
with gender parity. Role models and networks like the Women

(02:48):
Tech Network and Women in Digital Australia are pushing for
more women led startups and amplifying women's voices in tech policy.
But the glass ceiling persists into senior leadership. If you're
nowavigating this landscape, whether as an entrepreneur, coder, data scientist,
or policy advocate, know that your impact matters. By twenty

(03:08):
twenty five, collaborative data projects, intersectional diversity and the rise
of women in emerging sectors are charting a new course,
but progress depends on all of us demanding inclusive policies,
championing each other's careers, and telling these stories unapologetically. Thanks
for tuning in to women Business. If you found this

(03:29):
discussion in Lightning, please subscribe so you never miss an episode.
This has been a Quiet Police production. For more check
out Quiet Please dot ai