There’s much to celebrate on International Women’s Day, and the future looks incredibly bright.

It’s been exactly 100 years since women were granted the right to vote in the United States by means of the 19th Amendment. Just 50 years ago, a woman could be fired for becoming pregnant and couldn’t get a credit card on her own in the United States. Sobering, right? We’ve certainly come a long way since then!

Within the IT realm, women continue to occupy a small percentage of the workforce. The number of women continues to increase, but this industry is dominated by men.

The Citrix Technology Advocate (CTA) program now boasts four women, which is one more than last year. And five years ago, three women — Esther Barthel, Theresa Miller, and myself — were recognized as Citrix Technology Professionals (CTPs) and have subsequently been bestowed this prestigious award annually. Despite these successes, this equates to fewer than 5 percent of these awardees being women.

Of course, no woman should be granted either of these awards unless fully deserved. The requirements for both awards focus on Citrix community impact and contributions, and as more women increase their involvement within the technical community, the numbers will continue to increase.

Women in Technology Mentorship Program

Four years ago, the female CTPs initiated the Women in Technology mentorship program, and 24 women worldwide have taken advantage of this program. During the first year, only three mentees were accepted into the program, and the program has expanded each year due to additional strong female role models within the Citrix community becoming mentors, as well some mentees stepping up to become mentors. Slow and steady growth has yielded success within the program.

One of the greatest challenges for the mentees is typically related to confidence. By pairing each mentee with a strong-willed female leader, mentees are given the opportunity to talk through workplace situations, as well as exploring if/then scenarios. Similar to how team athletes practice numerous plays to ensure that each player knows exactly how to tackle specific situations, being prepared and rehearsed enables the mentees to proactively and reactively address various circumstances within the workplace.

We’ve seen quite a few women blossom as part of the CUGC Women in Technology mentorship program, which accepts new candidates in September of each year. We invite women to take advantage of this new program.

What You Can Do

Women in IT are tough and resilient, but sometimes our male counterparts don’t understand the challenges. We know that you’re trying, but here are three items to note in your everyday work life:

  • Women aren’t “the girls in the office.”
  • Women should be referenced by both their given and surnames (not just their given names), in the same way as men. The ask here is that if you introduce someone as John Smith, you also introduce the woman in the room as Samantha Davis, not just Samantha.
  • And women aren’t “you guys.” Because the English language doesn’t have a plural form of “you,” this phrase is often substituted. Women ≠ Guys.

The Future

The future is bright and exciting for women because there are more opportunities and social acceptance than our mothers and grandmothers even dreamed about. As we honor International Women’s Day 2020, let’s set our sights on creating even more success!