In the light of International Women’s Day, AppCentrica would like to celebrate and acknowledge the team of phenomenal women that forms an integral part of our company, enabling us to excel in the ICT sector, and Canada’s digital economy as a whole.
Women have been a cornerstone in the field of information technology since the beginning of the 19th century. Their work in the field has heavily shaped the industry and allowed it to become what it is today. Historically, women were among the first programmers and have been responsible for a myriad of innovations that served as the foundation of modern technology. Women like Ada Lovelace, who published the first algorithm intended to be executed by a computer, and Grace Hopper, who was the first to envision a compiler, are two of the many giants whose shoulders we stand on. One must also not forget to mention other giants like Mary Jackson, Katherine Johnson, Margaret Hamilton, Adele Goldberg, Karen Spärck Jones, Carol Shaw and many more whose contribution and tenacity in the face of adversity took humans to space and enabled developments like the search engine, apple computers, and video games.
However, as the field evolved, the role of women in it has changed, and the recorded history of the field has downplayed their achievements. Moving into the 1960s the role of women in the field was diminished, but women still continued to make significant contributions in the realm of IT. Today, the Canadian digital economy has been continuously expanding, and is predicted to continue expanding in the upcoming years, however, the female presence in the tech space has been visibly lagging behind. In 2017, women formed around 25% of the ICT workforce in Canada compared to 24.4% in 2007, this highlights the small amount of progress that has been made in terms of equality.
Today, no longer viewed in isolation technology has permeated all sectors of the Canadian economy. This change brings with it the need for digital talent. Considering this upward trend, the importance of ICT talent is clear and what better way to diversify the field and ensure its success than the inclusion of women.
Here at AppCentrica we believe that eliminating the aforementioned gender disparity in the tech workplace is paramount and we are continuously seeking ways to empower women in the field of technology. In the light of International Women’s Day, AppCentrica would like to celebrate and acknowledge the team of phenomenal women that forms an integral part of our company, enabling us to excel in the ICT sector, and Canada’s digital economy as a whole.
We are continuing to build our team and working toward a more equal representation of women at AppCentrica. A list of our current opportunities is available here: https://appcentrica.com/careers/
Sources:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Women_in_computing
https://mashable.com/2018/03/08/unsung-women-in-tech/#1PZuQ56U_kqj
