Women prospering in high-tech careers

According to The Status Project, a statistical survey conducted by the Denver-based Women’s Foundation of Colorado, women hold only 29 percent of all technical jobs in Colorado.

Women in high-tech positions earn an average of $57,780 annually, which is more than what women in other industries earn, according to the survey published in February. According to the survey, technology jobs not only pay women well but are satisfying, and 60 percent of these women feel positive about their chances for advancement.

So why don’t more women go into technology fields? “A lot of it’s a pipeline issue,´ said Cynthia Stone, communications director for The Women’s Foundation. “Not as many women go into it because they’re not taking the right career paths.”

These career paths begin in school. “It is a total disservice to not have women in math, science and technical classes,´ said Jill Tietjen, past national president of the Society of Women Engineers and currently a Denver-based consulting electrical engineer for electric utilities.

Stone agreed. “Most girls are discouraged from taking advanced classes in technical subjects.”

This doesn’t mean that women’s skills aren’t needed in the technology industry. “Women have a tendency to talk to people and share with a team,´ said Sheri Leopard, owner of Boulder-based Leopard Communications. Although both men and women use this skill set, Leopard believes that women’s mastery of teamwork makes it a valuable asset for them.

“The tech world is pretty diverse,” Tietjen said. “Engineers are now very involved in social, environmental and social needs.

“They’re not isolated in their little cubicles,” she said. “There are huge verbal and written communication skills required, and women excel at these.”

Lisa Schaeffer, founder and chief executive of Rocky Mountain Ram, a Boulder-based manufacturer and distributor of random access memory (RAM) for a wide range of products, began her high-tech career in sales in 1989 after working in real estate. For six years she learned the ins and outs of the volatile RAM marketplace, and in 1995 she started her own company. Today the privately held company regularly employs between 18 and 24 people and has sales of between $8 million and $24 million, Schaeffer said.

“I learned as I went along,” she said. “It’s a living that demands a lot of your time. It’s exhausting and the competition is incredible.”

Schaeffer said the challenges of her career — running a business while staying on top of quickly changing technology and market conditions — could dissuade some women who want to balance family and career.

“It’s been hard,´ said the mother of two who is in her mid-40s. “You need to have an incredible amount of family support, and your kids will suffer.”

Still, Schaeffer said she ha seen more women in technology jobs since she started Rocky Mountain RAM, and women as a whole have made strides in increasing their gender’s share of the jobs available in technology. This leaves many to wonder how the sluggish economy and the instability caused by the terrorist attacks will impact women in the technology world.

“At technology companies, there are more women working in marketing and human resources than in sales and engineering,´ said Teresa Szczurek, chief executive officer of Technology and Management Solutions in Boulder.

“In the first round of layoffs, women were hurt worse because marketing was hit,” she said of a colleague’s software company. “Then engineering and sales were also cut back.

“Firms protect engineering staff because they represent intellectual property, and these people enable companies to have a technological edge,” Szczurek said. “Initially, women are hurt worse because they are in certain function areas, but eventually it will even out.”

Like their male counterparts, women in technology need to stay up-to-date to help secure their positions. “In a time of economic downturn, being male or female is even less important,” Leopard said. “We’re looking for competence.”

For some technologists, this could mean hitting the books or getting experience elsewhere. “There are some people who learn in the classroom with books, and others who learn by doing,” Leopard said. “I’d be better off to learn by volunteering part-time, learning by the pressure of figuring it out.”

Said Rhonda Grassi, owner of Louisville-based CADCO Inc., “Experience holds as much weight as education in the IT world because it changes so fast.”

Tech employees need to give their companies obvious benefit. “Make yourself valued,´ said Mary Beth Laughery, and Design in Boulder. “Be an added value to the company in whatever way that takes. If you’re skills aren’t needed in one area, see if they’re needed in another.”

Being solution-oriented makes an employee valuable. “Identify a problem that’s important to your company and solve it,” Leopard said. “Look at things you’re doing and say, ‘Does this make sense or do we do it this way because we always do it this way?’ “

Grassi offers a back-to-basics approach. “It’s all about attitude,” she said. “Someone who’s willing to work and will stay until the end of the day will keep their job. There’s enough mediocrity out there.”

Women who have been laid off from tech companies should “network, get their names out there, and get their resumes as strong as they can,” Laughery said.

Leopard encourages women to stick with the industry, but also to be picky about the company. “If you’re in tech and love tech, go find a job in the field even if you take a lower position or pay cut,” she said. “Look for good leadership and good management teams.

“Look for someone you can follow into battle,” Leopard said. “You’ll be rolling up your sleeves helping these people solve complicated problems. You should want to work with them.”

On-the-job flexibility also can help in the tech job hunt. “We look for someone who can wear a lot of hats,” Grassi said. “We like someone who understands both hardware and software.”

A surprising number of women who have been laid off from technology jobs are striking out on their own, according to The Status Project. These women are “taking greater control of their careers, gaining more flexibility and, in some cases, finding a way to get beyond a still-present glass ceiling,” The Status Project said.

“Sometimes this kind of shakeup is an opportunity in disguise,” Szczurek said.

Sheri Leopard struck out on her own during a slow period in the mid-’80s. Leopard Communications grew from her freelancing efforts to a 70-employee company. “Just because companies have laid people off doesn’t mean that there’s no work,” she said. “If you’re willing to take the risk, this is a great time to hang a shingle and freelance.

“People are looking to cut fixed costs,” Leopard said, “but projects still need to get done.”

The war on terrorism could even boost women’s role in the technology field. “Based on what I found in writing my books, war has always helped women’s engineering careers,” Tietjen said. Tietjen’s third book, “Setting the Record Straight: the History and Evolution of Women’s Professional Achievements in Engineering,” was printed in June.

“Engineers will rebuild the World Trade Center — our whole infrastructure is all done by engineers,” she said. “How big the war gets will decide the war’s impact on women. It’s a horrible thing, because women in general hate war, but there are more career opportunities because of it.”

Hailing back to the days of Rosie the Riveter in World War II, women tend to take over positions vacated by men needed elsewhere by a war. Women also can take advantage of the fact that there are more positions available because of wartime’s increased demand for military equipment and supplies.

“It’s a very challenging field,” Grassi said. “You’re constantly facing something to be solved. I love that.”

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