Career advice for women | 4 leadership roles where women excel
A few years ago, a McKinsey report revealed that despite slow progress, the business case for diversity, equity, and inclusion (DE&I) was stronger than ever. Diversity of thought in a business plays a critical role in providing different perspectives and helps leaders better serve their diverse audiences. Thankfully, in 2022, things are looking much brighter, with women increasingly excelling in leadership roles across the tech industry.
Women are already transforming the industry at breakneck speed. Female tech leaders are proving that a combination of diversity and technology can deliver the game-changer moment that provides businesses with a competitive advantage. Leadership roles in tech require various technical and soft skills, including analytical, critical thinking, communication, problem-solving, multi-tasking, research, and time management. All of which come naturally to women.
In the past, the idea of entering a male-dominated tech industry might have felt daunting for women, Thankfully the industry has changed for the better. As the tech talent shortage increases, analysts predict thousands of tech positions will need to be filled in our immediate future. Ambitious women are seizing this opportunity to boost their careers by learning new technical skills that are helping them thrive in business analysis, project management, and change management.
With salaries of over £65,000 a year, many women are also reskilling to kickstart their dream of a career change. If you are looking for help, support, or need pointing in the right direction of how you can begin a successful career as a leader in the tech industry, look at some of the options below. We will guide you through everything you need to help you transform your career in months rather than years.
Business Analyst | career advice for women
A lead business analyst is challenged with identifying business needs first and then helps create or develop new systems that will help leaders reach their goals and overcome challenges. The role often involves reigning in stakeholders who might get distracted by a shiny new tech solution and focusing everyone on what problems need to be solved before going into solution mode.
Business analysts can create positive change inside an organisation while also adding value and increasing the return on investment for projects. This could sometimes lead to implementing new systems or simple fixes and minor tweaks. As a lead business analyst, you will be the bridge between the business and the IT department and will be comfortable communicating with both and adapting your language accordingly. For example, a stakeholder is more interested in the business benefits than the technical aspects and vice versa.
Ultimately, A lead business analyst will need to be a great communicator and critical thinker who pays close attention to detail. They will also spend much of their time facilitating meetings and workshops ensuring everyone is engaged throughout the project. If these skills already come naturally to you in an existing corporate role, increasing your technical knowledge will be the only missing piece of the puzzle.
If you are looking to start a career in Business Analysis, the BCS Foundation Certificate in Business Analysis is the ideal starting point. With a study time of 25-30 hours followed by a 60-minute exam, securing your entry into a lead business analyst job with a starting salary of more than 42,000 can be achieved sooner than you might think. If you already have the soft skills required to succeed, this technical qualification will help you transition into a tech career with minimal fuss.
Business Intelligence Analyst | career advice for women
Suppose you have a passion for data analysis and leverage your skills to help a company make data-driven decisions. In that case, a lead business intelligence analyst might be the perfect role for you. Uncovering hidden insights from large amounts of data that can help drive and reshape a company on a journey of continuous improvement is what makes these unsung heroes of tech jump out of bed in the morning.
Business intelligence analysts are in high demand and in short supply as business leaders explore how they can leverage their data in various ways. Understanding the entire landscape through competitor data, industry trends, and detecting patterns will help the boardroom identify the future impact on their operations and long-term objectives in a more proactive approach to management.
A lead business intelligence analyst will predictably gather data, interpret it, and communicate the insights via analytical reports. Descriptive and predictive analytical skills and regression analysis are critical, but it’s also essential to bring any insights you unlock to life through data visualisation.
Many women possess the exact unique perspective, communication, and analytical skills required for a successful career in data. By upgrading their technical skills, they can leverage technology to help them recognize patterns, consolidate data sources, and provide key stakeholders with the information they need to make data-driven decisions.
There are many ways to update your skills with various options that can take you from data analyst to Data Scientist. Many women are earning job-ready certifications for in-demand analytical data skills alongside their current role. If the idea of playing an essential role as a business intelligence analyst and being at the heart of decision making in business appeals to you, consider this your true calling.
Change Management | career advice for women
Women see the world very differently from men, and their leadership approach is unsurprisingly different. For the most part, women thrive when building relationships and collaborating with others to deliver results while also resolving conflicts along the way. Playing the role of a change maker also comes naturally, which makes it easy to see why women excel in change management.
Heraclitus, a Greek philosopher, was famously quoted as saying, “change is the only constant in life.” Our world has changed so much in the last two years that it can be challenging to recall what normal even means anymore in our working and daily lives. In business, change management plays a critical role in helping an organisation, and its stakeholders adapt to change.
Learning how to lead change management involves understanding how individuals react to change and guiding them through the entire process. The APMG Change Management Foundation certification is the perfect way to explore the world of change management in a career with an annual salary of over £60,000. However, even if you have no project management experience, the CAPM and Change Management collection can also equip you with the tools to understand how to manage and lead change effectively.
Communication, active listening, strategic thinking, leadership and measurement, and analysis are essential skills required for great change managers to succeed. Of course, most women already possess the soft skills needed for the role. But, when combined with a certification in change management, women are increasingly driving positive change in the workplace and empowering the business to respond more quickly to new market trends.
The good news is that leading a business successfully through a period of change offers a high salary and often additional bonuses for hitting your project targets. So, what are you waiting for?
Project Management | career advice for women
A decade ago, the project management industry looked very different from today. Then, the Microsoft Suite was regarded as the only tool for project managers to track the progress of their projects, and automation was an alien concept. Even more concerning is that women only made up around 25% of IT workers, and the number dropped dramatically in leadership roles too.
It’s no secret that men and women often work and deal with situations differently in the workplace. Of course, each will have their unique perspective, but what female characteristics are helping them excel in project management? Once again, women are natural communicators and listeners. Both skills are invaluable to project managers who need regular, informal conversations across multiple teams.
Some men are often guilty of getting lost in technical jargon or mansplaining their way through complex documents and reports. By contrast, female project managers have a gift of seamlessly simplifying complex information and repackaging it in a language that everyone can understand. In addition, rather than give in to the loudest voice in the meeting room, women lead project managers actively encourage discussions in a non-judgemental way and allow every voice to be heard in an environment where ideas can flourish.
Project managers are currently in demand worldwide and within every industry. So, it’s the perfect time for women to explore a career in project management. Regardless of your current role, transitioning into a career in tech is as simple as learning at your own pace through online training that arms you with all the relevant skills and certifications to play a vital role in managing a project from the initial planning stages through to the end.
The best women lead project managers possess a unique, logical, and meticulous way of working that organically allows innovation to thrive. By learning new skills around methodologies in project management, every woman reading this has a perfect opportunity to advance their career as a project manager.
We are finally learning to celebrate and champion the different skills and perspectives women bring to the tech industry. These are just a few reasons why we are so passionate about providing women with personalised mapped pathways that advance their skill sets and careers.
If you are interested in exploring business analysis, project management, and change management, where salaries are over £65,000 a year, don’t hesitate to contact our career consultants, who will advise you of the best path for your unique journey in tech leadership.
