14 DAY TRIAL // The role of women in the tech industry is a sensitive topic, mainly because many still feel that this sector is not cut out for them. However, a new study by Frost & Sullivan on behalf of (ISC)2 shows that women are exactly what the security industry needs in order to grow.
Currently, women represent only 11% of the cyber security workforce despite the fact that this is a growing industry. However, the small number of women in the industry isn’t due to the fact that they don’t have what it takes – on the contrary.
Over 5,800 people have taken part in the (ISC)2’s survey. 3,466 of them are “leaders,” such as executives, strategic advisors and managers, while 2,348 of them are “doers.” This second category is represented by compliance auditors, security analysts and people with other such job titles.
The study shows that in the “leaders” category, while there are more women in consultant and advisor positions, when it comes to networks security and software architects, there are more than twice as many men than women.
In the “doers” category, 38% of the women respondents and 27% of the men respondents are security analysts. On the other hand, there are more men with job titles such as security engineer and network administrator.
So why are women the key to taking the security industry to the next level? Mainly because, unlike most men, they believe that it takes more than just technical skills to be a successful IT security professional.
The key attributes listed by women include leadership skills, business management skills, communications skills, awareness and understanding of security threats, a broad understanding of the IT security field, and security policy formulation and application.
The study shows that both men and women leaders have an average annual salary of $105,000 (€76,000). When it comes to experience, women have spent a bit less in this field compared to men (13.5 years vs 13.6 years).
On the other hand, 91% of women hold a bachelor’s, master’s or a doctoral degree, while only 89% of men leaders can say the same.
The complete “Agents of Change: Women in the Information Security Profession” report is available on the (ISC)2 Foundation’s website.