Our mission is to help end inequality and increase diversity in the technology and digital sector.
Digital Her was set up to inspire and empower girls and women to consider a career in technology and support them throughout their career development. The aim is to positively influence and tackle gender inequality in the sector, now and for the future.
By harnessing the power of industry mentors and real role models, Digital Her will provide the support, the opportunities and the guidance needed to empower a new generation of women into our industry and for young women, equip those key influencers around them (teachers, careers advisors and parents) to help them make informed decisions about their digital futures.
Digital Her will achieve this mission by…
Introducing girls to real role models and visible mentors from within our community
Ensuring key influencers such as teachers, careers advisors and parents are informed and able to support and advise girls interested in digital and tech
Championing change amongst our employers, educators and institutions that will end any bias inherent within the sector
Providing support for women in the sector through mentoring and training opportunities
Giving a voice and platform to the incredible women and diversity initiatives happening within the industry
Providing more networking and support opportunities for our community of role models
Digital Her is an initiative set up by Manchester Digital in 2018. Manchester Digital is the independent trade body for the tech and digital sector across the North West.
Why is Digital Her so important?
Recent statistics found that just 26% of the UK tech workforce are women. There are many reasons that women are under-represented in the tech industry and this has been a long-term issue. The tech industry also has a growing talent gap with more skilled vacancies than people to fill them, so we need to encourage more people into the industry.
We believe that it’s important to showcase and bring to life what a tech career means to girls and women. For girls, this is essential while they’re still in school or college, allowing them to choose their future pathway. For women switching to digital, retraining or progressing in the sector, this means having a community to draw on, to show it is possible.
Diversity of all types is crucial to build a robust workforce with different experience and viewpoints in order to make better decisions, and technology products and services.
Research from the Skills Audit in 2022 found that 95% of employers said that diversity and inclusion is important, and have ambitions around attracting more diverse talent.
However, this doesn’t translate into the practical and operational measures and commitment with 43% admitting they had no specific approach or strategy to support change creation.
The audit also highlighted that regionally, only 24% of technical roles were represented by women with an overall representation of women across the sector in the region at 38% in 2022. Meaning there is much more work to be done to bring more diversity into these roles and the sector.
“We work with some of Manchester Digital’s partners to drive diversity and inclusion within hiring decisions for example Digital Her.”
* The Manchester Digital Skills Audit is an annual audit of over 250 digital and technology businesses across the region of Greater Manchester.
Our impact
Digital Her was launched by Manchester Digital in 2018 and has already been hugely successful in supporting girls and women with their tech careers.
Reached Nearly
4000
girls & women
Supported
200
Schools & colleges
A community of over
320
Digital Her Real Role Models
Over
600
Followers on the Digital Her Instagram account