Shifting gender stereotypes: ten years of Girls Rock-IT

Ten years in the past, Cisco Networking Academy launched the Girls Rock-IT initiative within the APJC area to assist deal with the gender imbalance within the tech trade.

This system was designed to indicate younger ladies that there’s a future for them in tech, with actions together with Study-A-Thons, volunteer occasions, and dwell digital broadcasts that includes distinguished ladies in IT who might function inspiring role-models for Girls Rock-IT individuals. Throughout this time, Girls Rock-IT has hosted 82 broadcast occasions with 141 audio system, seen by over 2 million viewers, leading to 868,481 course registrations.

Present LinkedIn information suggests ladies compromise simply 29.2% of all Science Expertise Engineering Math (STEM) staff. As a result of this underrepresentation of girls within the STEM workforce at present reinforces an underrepresentation sooner or later, it’s vital we deal with this problem.

At Cisco our company goal is to energy an inclusive future for all, and addressing a gender imbalance in STEM is an integral a part of that.

Attracting ladies to tech

I’m thrilled to report that efforts like Girls Rock-IT are paying off. Over the previous ten years, we’ve elevated the presence of girls and women in Cisco Networking Academy programs from 20 % to 27 %, globally. Clearly, we’ve got additional to go, however a 35 % enhance in participation of girls in this system is a major achievement that speaks volumes about our collective dedication.

Large points

Yearly for the reason that inception of Girls Rock-IT in 2013, ladies on the slicing fringe of technological innovation talk about their expertise within the subject. Contributors achieve invaluable insights about how ladies can thrive in what continues to be too incessantly seen as a male area.

From its first regional APJC speaker Monica Morrow who, on the time, was the area’s Chief Technical Officer and spoke about having a seat on the desk, to final yr’s inspiring world panel broadcasting on efficiently making use of know-how to local weather tech challenges, Girls Rock-IT individuals get to listen to from those that have cast significant careers in tech, addressing urgent problems with the day.

Women in ICT Day: a marquee Girls Rock-IT occasion

The annual marquee occasion of Girls Rock-IT aligns with Worldwide Women in ICT Day. This yr, the Girls Rock-IT program addressed Synthetic Intelligence (AI), which has the potential to vary all the pieces, together with its inherent moral challenges.

AI is about to vary the world, and tomorrow’s IT workforce must be AI-literate. In our Q2 FY24 Cisco Networking Academy Pupil Consequence Survey of 1,400 college students, 63 % of Cisco Networking Academy college students inform us they’re utilizing AI at present and 17 % have already got superior abilities on this space.

We’re proud our college students are at the forefront of know-how studying. Actually, 88 % of our college students imagine Cisco Networking Academy is on the forefront of this quickly evolving tech world.

Our current Cisco Networking Academy pupil survey reveals that 53 % of males are already harnessing AI at work, in comparison with simply 44 % of females, however that extra ladies than males are anticipating AI schooling.

Women in ICT Actions

This yr’s Women in ICT Day on April 25 impacted 36,025 college students reached through the dwell broadcast, International Study-A-Thon, and Cisco worker volunteer occasions, with 1.23 million attain on social media channels.

Congratulations to the Girls Rock-IT staff and Cisco volunteers for orchestrating a very impactful Women in ICT Day occasion. It was an inspiring showcase that highlighted our dedication to fostering variety within the tech trade.

Inspiring audio system

For our dwell broadcast, main ladies in AI shared their expertise within the subject.

Dr. Tanya Berger-Wolf mentioned her work as a computational ecologist working on the distinctive intersection of laptop science, wildlife biology, and social sciences. Tanya is Director of the Translational Knowledge Analytics Institute and Professor of Laptop Science Engineering, Electrical and Laptop Engineering, in addition to Evolution, Ecology, and Organismal Biology on the Ohio State College.

Dr. Elizabeth Bondi-Kelly, Assistant Professor on the College of Michigan explored the affect of AI on society. She mentioned moral concerns of AI and advocates for accountable AI growth to mitigate dangers and guarantee useful outcomes for all.

International Study-A-Thon

This yr, the International Study-A-Thon noticed college students team-up to take introductory programs in Knowledge Science or Cybersecurity, with a digital badge awarded to these attaining 70 % or extra on their examination and a Cisco Study-A-Thon expertise digital badge.

“I’m actually impressed by Girls Rock-IT,” says attendee Thendeka Zesuliwe Zikode from rural Bergville, KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. “My want is to review extra and get full assist in know-how and AI, in order that I may help different women round my ’hood.”

Cisco occasions

Over 230 Cisco volunteers organized occasions in Cisco places of work and faculties worldwide this yr. Attendees had been capable of meet ladies working for Cisco and speak to them about their expertise in tech.

Get entangled

Lastly, I’d prefer to take this chance to thank all of the Cisco staff, Academy companions and instructors, and our audio system for getting behind Women in ICT. The affect this makes wouldn’t be doable with out you. 

Study how one can get entangled in 2025

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