The technology industry has spent years encouraging more women to pursue careers in the sector. From initiatives aimed at getting girls interested in STEM to recruitment campaigns designed to attract more diverse talent, considerable effort has gone into addressing the gender gap. But increasing representation at the point of entry is only part of the challenge. Employers must also create the conditions in which women can progress, take on leadership responsibilities and build lasting careers.
Women are leaving technology at twice the rate of men, and the Lovelace Report estimates that weaknesses in career development structures cost the industry between £2 billion and £3.5 billion annually. This should be a wake-up call for employers. Attracting women into technology is essential, but if businesses cannot offer them meaningful and accessible opportunities to progress, they risk losing valuable experience and talent.
Having spent more than 20 years working in technology, including in cybersecurity and customer trust, I've seen first-hand how the industry has evolved. Yet some of the assumptions and structural barriers facing women have proved much harder to change. In security, we regularly challenge established assumptions, test whether controls work in practice and act on evidence. We should apply the same discipline to career development and inclusion.
Challenge the assumptions holding women back
One of the biggest barriers to progression is the persistence of outdated assumptions about who belongs in technology, particularly in traditionally male-dominated fields such as cybersecurity.
When I studied business informatics, I was one of only three women on my course. Throughout my career, I have often found myself the only woman in the room. Even today, I occasionally encounter surprise from customers or industry peers when they discover that the person leading a technical security discussion is a woman.
While these experiences may appear relatively minor in isolation, they reflect wider assumptions that can influence how women are perceived in the workplace. When people make assumptions about technical expertise or leadership based on gender, women can find themselves having to work harder to establish the credibility that others are automatically afforded.
“The real measure of progress will not simply be how many women enter technology, but how many are given the opportunity to build successful, lasting careers within it.”
— Patricia Leppert, Team Manager of Customer Trust and Security at TeamViewer
Employers need to recognise that these biases do not always manifest as overt discrimination. They can influence who is encouraged to apply for promotions and who is considered ready for leadership.
For HR teams, a practical starting point is to review how promotion decisions are made. Establishing clear assessment criteria and ensuring managers can explain their decisions can help reduce the influence of unconscious assumptions. Organisations should define the skills, behaviours and experience expected at each level, communicate them before decisions are made, and require managers to explain recommendations against those criteria. This does not remove judgement, but it makes decisions more consistent and gives employees a clearer understanding of what development looks like.
Make career progression a continuous conversation
Career development should not be something employees only discuss during annual performance reviews. For women to see a future within an organisation, they need to understand what progression looks like and feel confident that opportunities are accessible.
My own career at TeamViewer has taken several unexpected, but very welcome, turns. I joined the company in 2016 as a Scrum Master in Research & Development before moving into Product Security following parental leave in 2018. From there, I expanded my responsibilities across security and compliance, eventually becoming Team Manager of Customer Trust and Security.
It wasn't a career path I had initially planned, but being open to new challenges presented to me allowed me to develop expertise and take ownership in an area where I could make a broader impact. This experience reinforced my belief that career progression doesn't always follow a straight line.
Employers should create space for employees to explore opportunities outside their immediate roles, rather than assuming everyone must follow a predetermined career path. HR teams can support this by making internal opportunities more visible and encouraging managers to have regular conversations about employees' longer-term ambitions.
This is particularly important following parental leave or another career break. Managers should not assume that an employee’s ambitions have changed. They should ask what support is needed, discuss development goals openly and ensure that meaningful opportunities remain visible and accessible. Employees should also feel able to express their ambitions without worrying that flexibility or a career break will count against them.
However, these conversations can only be effective if employees feel comfortable being open about their ambitions, challenges and experiences. Creating that environment is just as important as providing opportunities for progression.
Build a culture where people feel heard
Having clear development opportunities is one thing, but employees also need to feel that their voices are valued if they are to see a long-term future within an organisation.
As a team leader, I've always believed in being visible and approachable. Creating an environment where people feel comfortable raising challenges or sharing different perspectives is essential, particularly when working in complex areas such as cybersecurity.
For employers, this starts with the relationship between managers and their teams. Employees need to know that raising concerns about their development or workplace experiences will lead to constructive conversations rather than negative consequences.
HR teams should equip managers to have these conversations and provide opportunities for employees to share feedback outside of formal performance reviews. Regular discussions about career ambitions can help identify frustrations before they become reasons to leave.
Importantly, organisations also need to demonstrate that employee feedback leads to meaningful change. Asking for feedback is only the first step. Trust is built when people can see that their input has been considered, decisions are explained and meaningful action follows.
Retention must become a measure of success
Creating a culture where women feel heard is an important step, but employers also need to understand whether these efforts are helping women stay and progress within their organisations.
The technology industry cannot afford to treat gender diversity as a recruitment exercise. When experienced women leave, organisations lose technical expertise and potential future leaders, impacting their ability to build strong teams.
For HR leaders, this means looking beyond the proportion of women joining the business. Retention should be assessed alongside promotion rates, time spent at each career level, access to development opportunities, internal mobility and the reasons people choose to leave. Together, these indicators provide a more meaningful picture of whether women can build sustainable careers within the organisation.
Not every departure can or should be prevented. However, organisations should examine whether women leave disproportionately at particular career stages, after career breaks or when moving toward leadership roles. Exit feedback, promotion data and recurring themes from development conversations can help identify structural barriers and support targeted improvements. Understanding these patterns allows employers to make targeted improvements rather than relying on broad commitments to diversity.
I've often said that I don't want to be the exception anymore. I want women to be commonplace in the technology industry, including in technical and senior leadership positions.
Achieving that will require sustained commitment from employers and a willingness to challenge established ways of working. The real measure of progress will not simply be how many women enter technology, but how many are given the opportunity to build successful, lasting careers within it.
