Tech diversity champions launches course to boost female tech careers

Tech diversity champions Code First Girls have today launched their Mid-Level Accelerator (MLA) course, aimed to develop and accelerate women’s technology careers.

Currently, women make up 19 per cent of Information Technology and 30 per cent of web design professionals in the UK - but this drops to just 5 per cent when it comes to women holding leadership positions in the sector.

Research shows that men are more likely to be given growth tasks versus women. With 70 per cent of women believing the best way for companies to support women in tech teams and promote retention is through upskilling, having equitable growth opportunities through projects or training is fundamental to ensuring the industry is as diverse as it can be.

To counter this, Code First Girls is introducing a new 12-week MLA course, aimed at those with over two years of experience in tech, that will support women to upskill and progress into a mid-level Engineering or Developer roles whilst also having the opportunity to re-skill to a new specialism or develop mid-level specialist tech skills.

By directly answering this industry need, the course also aims to improve companies’ ‘Developer Velocity’- removing points of friction for developers to innovate - which leads to a 4 - 5x revenue growth.

Over the 12 weeks, candidates will develop technical professional skills across a full modern software development lifecycle, interspersed with “future-tech” thinking and innovation, and further enhanced through career progression support.

Anna Brailsford, CEO of Code First Girls said: “Getting women into tech is just the first hurdle - retaining them in the industry and ultimately seeing them lead it are the next ones. With many women coders leaving their roles due to no clear pathway or progression, the MLA course will be fundamental in helping businesses to retain the female tech talent they desperately need.”

Hannah Williams, Head of Talent & Reward at Ordnance Survey, said: “At OS we recognise that gender diversity enables us to be more creative, more connected, and more powerful.

“We are excited about the MLA because it adds to our offer with a mid-career level route for women to accelerate their development. Traditionally this mid-career stage can be a real challenge for women so this new offer will help us respond to that.

“Code First Girls’ commitment to learning linked to employment and their focus on T-shaped skills was particularly important to us, along with its sponsorship approach which means learning is free for students. We’re excited to be working with Code First Girls to welcome our first cohort of Mid Level Accelerator students.”

Kirsten Booth, Talent, Learning & Culture Specialist at Thales said: “The UK’s education system is failing to support women from more diverse backgrounds into tech. As a result, there remains a lack of female role models in the industry which reinforces the perception that tech is not a realistic career choice for women.

“In our partnership with Code First Girls, we have seen first-hand the difference that they have on hiring practices, biases and recruiting on potential and behaviours. Code First Girls’ mid-level accelerator is a unique pathway aimed at accelerating women’s careers, which will give women the opportunity to advance and develop their skills, helping them to become role models for other women in the industry.

“The programme will enable women in tech to mentor and coach female talent, while helping businesses draw on the widest possible range of voices and insights to ensure the tech industry is as strong as it can be.”

By Mark Adair – Correspondent, Bdaily

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