POWERED BY
Embrace gender
diversity in security and
risk management roles
Diverse teams provide an immediate and long-lasting solution to the global
shortage of security talent says Roberta Witty, VP Analyst, Gartner.
F
or every 100 security and risk
management (SRM) executives, only
about a quarter of them are women.
The good news is that as the benefits of
diversity are more widely realised, that
number will increase by nearly 15% by 2020. qualified candidates and provides
professional support for gender parity.
Gartner recommends that companies
target women while they’re still in school
to sell them on a career in security and
risk management. “While this makes for pretty sober reading,
the good news is that the general workforce
pipeline has a more balanced male-to-
female ratio, meaning that over time, it’s
likely that there will be more female leaders
in the discipline,” said Roberta Witty, VP
Analyst, Gartner. “Grow the general workforce pipeline for
security and risk management by partnering
with primary, secondary and higher
educational institutions to introduce young
women to the security and risk management
professions,” said Witty. Respondents believe sponsoring and
mentoring high-potential women will
improve the recruitment and retention of
women in security and risk management.
Diversity task forces are extremely important,
but mandatory diversity training, job tests
and grievance systems are not perceived as
beneficial for organisational diversity.
“Do not focus only on technical educational
programmes; approach liberal arts and
communications academic programmes to
ensure that females understand the value of a
security and risk management career choice.” People want to work where
they know they will be accepted
and respected for their
unique background
Gender-diverse and inclusive teams
outperform gender-homogeneous,
less-inclusive teams by an average
of 50%
The Gartner Gender Diversity in Security
and Risk Management Survey explored how
gender diversity impacts the ability of an
organisation to manage its security and risk
management objectives.
Retain diverse talent
Women find security and risk management
professions to be excellent career paths,
Recruit diverse teams and
outperform others
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INTELLIGENTCIO
Implement gender-blind recruiting
practices and training to mitigate gender
discrimination and use retention practices
that promote women to top leadership and
executive positions.
Providing work–life balance practices such
as flexible work hours is a competitive
differentiator in the labour market that
can improve the retention and recruitment
of women.
Gender-diverse and inclusive teams
outperform gender-homogeneous,
less-inclusive teams by an average of
50%. Recent Gartner research found
that managers of inclusive technology
teams were more likely to say their teams
outperformed non-inclusive teams in
all seven measures studied, including
implementing new ideas and making
timely decisions.
Early exposure to security and risk
management disciplines develops more
according to the survey. However, concerted
efforts must be taken to retain them;
otherwise, women may leave their positions
to find a transparent and supportive work
environment elsewhere.
People want to work where they know they
will be accepted and respected for their
unique background, skills and knowledge. It
is a win-win situation for all parties.
Roberta Witty, VP Analyst, Gartner
These efforts will contribute to the vast
majority of organisations that will exceed
their financial targets through 2022 by
equipping frontline decision-making teams
with a diverse and inclusive culture. n
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