As a woman in a senior leadership role in tech, encouraging and promoting Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging (DI&B) within the industry is really important to me. The technology industry strives for a more diverse and inclusive workforce, with women making up 28% of senior leadership roles according to DDI’s 2023 Global Leadership Forecast.

We can always strive to do better with DI&B, the DDI’s statistic shows we need to do more in investigating and understanding why areas that start with diverse talent erode as careers progress. Or why technical roles do not attract higher levels of female talent. Inclusive work environments offer the opportunity for growth, more resilient communities and a more equitable world. It’s critical that real action is taken to address these issues.

At Insight, we don’t just talk about DI&B, we put action behind it. We know that our people are our greatest strength and that by fostering uniqueness we can achieve unity. We have global Teammate Resource Groups (TRGs), which are open to and run by teammates, each of which have their own unique mission and charter.

She’s Insight is our women’s TRG, which aims to facilitate gender equality throughout the entire working lifecycle, of which I am proud to be one of its Executive Sponsors. She’s Insight collaborates alongside Insight’s other TRG’s, DiversABILITY (visible and non-visible disabilities), Insight Stands Out (LGBTQ+) and RESPECT (minority ethnic backgrounds) to create intersectionality and highlight issues faced by all. The resource group partners with our Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM) programme to encourage women in the STEM industry. She’s Insight also works to provide equitable policies and benefits, opportunities to develop and partners with organisations that also support women in tech, such as the Tech She Can Charter.

This year, Insight has collaborated with STEMettes, a UK social enterprise dedicated to inspiring the next generation into STEM careers. With STEMettes, we have run a Hackathon event, with around 40 young people between the ages of 5-25 learning and developing their coding skills, with more planned for the future. Giving young people opportunities to develop skills that can give them a foothold in this industry is just one step in enabling DI&B.

But we haven’t stopped there, Insight’s Skills Academy has just wrapped up with its most recent group of graduates. Insight’s Skills Academy is a two-year placement which provides candidates from all backgrounds and limited to no experience of the technology industry, with a broad range of skills and knowledge that will open the door for a successful career in Sales, Operations, or technical positions within Insight.

As I said at the start, being a woman in a senior leadership role in tech, DI&B is really important to me. I’m proud of the action and activities we undertake at Insight, preparing the next generation of female leaders as well as striving to create an equitable world for all. As an industry, we need to work together to create change in the right direction, not just through policies, but the actions we take collectively. Working together to uplift and support women in leadership, in STEM, and throughout the entire working lifecycle.

Karen McLaughlin

Senior Vice President – EMEA Services & Global CoE at Insight