Persistent gender gaps keep women away from STEM careers and innovation

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Women can play a crucial role in the innovation economy, contributing to diversity that impacts all demographics. But persistent gender gaps in Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) have stifled their impact. In the United States, women represent only 21% of majors in engineering and 19% in computer and information science. Women are also significantly underpaid compared to their male counterparts. Men in STEM receive around $15,000 more than women in annual salaries. The gap worsens with race as Latina and Black women working in STEM earn around $33,000 less than their male colleagues. STEM fields have been historically dominated by men. Although efforts have been made to change this situation, the male-dominated culture perpetuates inflexible and exclusionary work and school place environments that are not supportive of or attractive to women and minorities.

Often discouragement from pursuing STEM careers starts for a girl in her early childhood, a pattern that persists throughout her educational and professional development. In a male-dominated culture, girls are more likely to lose confidence in their math skills during elementary school, while boys are more likely to express strength in math. Societies still deal with mistaken gender stereotypes that place women in professions related to caring and other human-centered activities while men should be in technical and math-intensive fields.

It is essential to provide young girls with female inspiration, role models and mentors. Not only can role models and mentors help broaden the perspectives of who can work in the STEM field, but they also expand students’ perceptions of their potential. Exposing girls to women with established careers in these fields and having them share their personal experiences can serve as encouragement. Studies indicate that exposure to role models could double the number of girls interested in STEM.

In addition to addressing the STEM and culture gap, women need to be given equal opportunities to actualize their ideas and innovations through patents. As pointed out by Dr. Paul Roben, Associate Vice-Chancellor Office of Innovation and Commercialization University of California San Diego, at the GFCC Frame the Future of Intellectual Property, women are severely underrepresented in patent filing, representing only 13% of patent holders in the United States. This imbalance impacts how innovation addresses women’s needs since female inventors are 35% more likely to file patents for female consumers. The more inclusive the patent system can become, the more society benefits.

Not including women in the innovation economy is a missed opportunity, with potential inventions and benefits for all parts of society being lost. Investing in diversity can drive innovation since having mixed-gender teams benefit all. Diverse teams are more effective at problem-solving when different voices, viewpoints, expertise and life experiences are exchanged and used to solve problems.

What Our Members are Doing

Throughout their careers, GFCC leaders have supported the advancement of women in STEM-related fields by being role models, giving women a platform to speak and promoting inclusive policies. Women in the GFCC network are actively advocating for more women in STEM across the world. Ms. Gianna Sagazio has led this agenda in Brazil through her work with the Brazilian National Confederation of Industry (CNI). In Saudi Arabia, as the head of the Omnipreneurship Lab, Dr. Ghadah Al-Dabbagh, a top expert in AI; the Internet of Things; Machine Learning; and 5G, uses her position and knowledge to engage and encourage women in STEM. Both Ms. Sagazio and Dr. Al-Dabbagh were part of the Frame the Future online conversation series, representing a crucial voice in the innovation ecosystem: women in STEM. GFCC President, the Hon. Deborah Wince-Smith, committed to driving U.S. competitiveness, advocates for the inclusion of women in STEM to achieve greater prosperity. Under her leadership, bringing women to the forefront of the innovation economy has been a top priority.