Bridging the Digital Divide: Female Style

Posted by Erin


Having recently been named one of the Top 30 Female Internet Entrepreneurs, I am continually intrigued by women who are self-proclaimed geeks ;-) and women who are actually making a difference in the high-tech world. One of my favorite journalists on this matter is Kim Hart of The Washington Post. In her article "Up-and-Comers Who Are Breaking Down a Digital Divide" she explains that you often hear people referring to a tech start-up as just "two guys in a garage." But that phrase excludes a gender that is too often overlooked in the technology industry. The fact is a number of women are leaving their mark as entrepreneurs, big corporate front runners, social media enthusiasts, and government policy experts. Even if she happens to start her business from the kitchen table.

Those of us who have established ourselves as influential figures all agree, we want to make room for more girl geeks! Most women in technology admit they were never encouraged to be interested in computers or programming but in the 21st century, that is changing. One area of growth is social media because it is a tech industry that is natural for women. Social media is all about communicating and women's communication skills are great assets.

Whether women entrepreneurs are expanding the reach of social networks among associations, educational institutions and government groups, or whether they're founding nonprofits to provide training for women and helping communities take advantage of tools such as blogs, Facebook and Twitter to organize events, respond to issues, and spread information, it is clear that we are growing the female faction within the tech community (even though there is still a huge digital divide that adversely affects women, especially minority women). However, the verdict is in: There's something very optimistic about what's going on right now. And since more women are spending more time online, career opportunities in the online world are growing. As my Mom (a successful entrepreneur herself) always said, "Don't be afraid to take a risk and make an impact. Find the work that fulfills and satisfies you and that in itself is part of the reward." Spoken like a true woman.
DGYF,
Erin