Addressing Gender Balance - Reaping the Gender Dividend · Best Practice Case Studies 21 Best Practice Case Study 1 - Schlumberger 21 Best Practice Case Study 2 - Northern Ireland

Addressing Gender Balance - Reaping the Gender Dividendin Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics (STEM)

STEM Business Group November 2013

Funded by:

Both the Northern Ireland Executive’s‘Programme for Government’ and the SkillsStrategy for Northern Ireland, ‘Successthrough Skills - Transforming Futures’,recognise that the future success of theNorthern Ireland economy will requireincreased numbers of skilled workers withscience, technology, engineering andmathematics (STEM) qualifications.

In Northern Ireland, some employers, whorequire STEM skills, are already experiencingdifficulty recruiting and retaining enough staffwith the required level of qualifications andskills.

The CBI 2013 Education and Skills Survey1

(UK) said that “STEM skills are in widespreaddemand and nearly two in five firms (39%)that need employees with STEM skills andknowledge currently have difficulties recruitingstaff. A similar proportion (41%) expectsthose difficulties to persist in the next threeyears.”

The same survey said that “Shortages ofSTEM-qualified technicians (29%) andgraduates (26%) are widespread among firmsin the engineering, hi-tech/IT and scienceareas and are expected to intensify aseconomic recovery gathers pace,emphasising the need to focus ontechnicians, as well as graduates.”

Businesses are increasingly aware of the needto take steps to grow the talent pool of STEMskills, with more than eight out of tenbusinesses (85%) now having links of sometype with one or more school or college. Thereport states that the proportion of employersthat offer work experience placements hasrisen to 81% in 2013 and nearly two thirds(64%) are involved in providing careers adviceand talks.

The Social Market foundation2 recentlyestimated a 40,000 per year shortfall in thenumber of STEM graduates in the UK.According to the National Skills Forum3, “Thelimited number of women entering science,engineering and technology (SET) exacerbatesskills shortages in these sectors, reducing theproductivity of SET organisations and making itharder for them to compete on theinternational stage.”

In the Northern Ireland economy, high levelSTEM posts currently constitute over 11% ofthe workforce, with men outnumbering womenby nearly 3 to 1. Contrast this with theoverall employment situation in NI, wherewomen comprise 47.3% of those aged 16-64currently in employment, similar to the rate of46.5% in GB4 and it is clear that we need to

Executive Summary

‘Diversity isn’t an altruistic aspiration; it’s a competitive demand’ (Bill Destler)

1 Link for CBI 2013 Survey2 Social Market Foundation ‘In the Balance: the STEM Human Capital Crunch’3 National Skills Forum: Closing the Gender Skills Gap, 20094 Source: NISRA

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take a proactive approach to address thegender balance within the STEM industries.

The ‘Success through STEM Strategy’ includesa recommendation to address the issue ofgender bias, particularly the disparity between,on the one hand, the Physical Sciences andEngineering and on the other, Life Sciences.This is one of five recommendations that areIndustry led and as such, the STEM Businessgroup has carried out statistical researchalong with feedback from industry, culminatingin a seminar with the Equality Commission, toengage further with businesses to look at theissue of gender bias, share best practice andidentify additional steps that businesses cantake to make careers in the STEM industriesmore attractive.

This challenge has been recognised bygovernment and was highlighted in an OralStatement to the Northern Ireland Assemblyon 4th June by the Minister for Employmentand Learning.

We welcome the initiatives and policies thathave been introduced by the Department forEmployment and Learning (DEL) and theactivities by other bodies to attract more girlsinto STEM sectors. However, given theprojected growth in these sectors and theskills shortages in these areas, a greatercollaborative effort is needed from business,government and education to engage,encourage and inspire young women and girls.This needs to be at a number of levels:

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• subjects chosen at school;• further and Higher Education choices;• career choices;• recruitment and Retention within the STEM

related industries; and• career progression.

This report sets out the business case forgender equality and diversity within STEMbusinesses and includes:

• a set of good practice guidelines, withsupporting case studies from someprominent STEM employers;

• a Northern Ireland CEO Charter for STEMemployers; and

• relevant links to further information andsources of support.

We must challenge the stereotyping and biasthat can still pervade our culture, particularlywithin the male dominated engineering andtechnology sectors. Attracting and retaining amore diverse workforce will maximiseinnovation, creativity and competitiveness. The message that the STEM industries provideexciting and rewarding career options isbeginning to be heard locally, throughincreased engagement of business supportingfor example, giving talks for Careers teachers,providing industry placements for DEL CareersAdvisers and the Belfast Telegraph STEMCourses and Careers supplement, which waspublished in September 2013.

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Next StepsWorking with the Equality Commission forNorthern Ireland, we plan to produce an“Addressing Gender Balance - a Good PracticeManual”, containing the Charter, the goodpractice guidelines and the supporting casestudies and run a series of seminarssupporting the implementation of goodpractice. The details of the seminars, whichare planned for early in 2014, will be availableon the Equality Commission’s websitewww.equalityni.org.

This report and the supporting seminarshighlight the issues and examine howbusiness can inspire young people, male andfemale, to consider careers in the STEMindustries and create an environment that iswelcoming and encouraging to all. We wouldask you to look at the Charter, the goodpractice guidelines and the supporting casestudies and see how they can be applied inyour workplace, so that together we may allreap the dividend of having a more diverseworkforce.

Our thanks go to all the companies andorganisations that have supported the STEMBusiness group in the development of thisreport.

Dr Joanne Stuart OBE,Chair STEM Implementation Group and Business Group

Feedback & Further InformationThe STEM Business Group would welcome any comments or queries you may have about any aspect of this report. Please contact the STEM Business Co-ordinator [email protected].

Executive Summary 1

Business Case for Gender Equality in STEM 7

The effect of gender diversity on company performance and share valuation 7

Enterprise value from intentional investment in women 9

The picture in Northern Ireland 11

Selected statistics from some Professional Institutes and others: 12

How can the gender dividend be realised? 15

UKRC/WISE CEO Charter 15

UN Women CEO Charter 15

Northern Ireland STEM CEO Charter 17

Examination of Best Practice 19

Good Practice Guidelines for addressing the STEM gender gap 19

Best Practice Case Studies 21

Best Practice Case Study 1 - Schlumberger 21

Best Practice Case Study 2 - Northern Ireland Electricity (NIE) 22

Best Practice Case Study 3 - Queen’s University Belfast 24

Best Practice Case Study 4 - Schrader Electronics Ltd 26

Best Practice Case Study 5 - Ulster Bank (part of the Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) Group) 27

Best Practice Case study 6 - Allstate NI 28

Best Practice Case Study 7 - Atkins 29

Sources of Support 33

Bibliography and Links to Sources of Information 34

Further Reading 36

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Contents

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The business case for managing genderbalance in the workplace was well made by noless than Warren Buffett in the May 2013Fortune Magazine, when he said:

“For most of our history, women — whatevertheir abilities — have been relegated to thesidelines. Only in recent years have we begunto correct that problem.” He also said “Thecloser that America comes to fully employingthe talents of all its citizens, the greater itsoutput of goods and services will be. We’veseen what can be accomplished when we use50% of our human capacity. If you visualizewhat 100% can do, you’ll join me as anunbridled optimist about America’s future.”

However, as far back as 1977, Americansociologist, Rosabeth Moss Kanter, aprofessor at Harvard University, was writingabout the effects of tokenism on womenworking in a male dominated environment.She said that tokenism can become self-perpetuating; rather than paving the way forothers, it reinforces low numbers of women,leaving outside intervention as the only meansof increasing their presence.

Kanter argued that as the numericalproportions within a group ‘begin to shift so dothe social experiences’. She talked about theidea of uniform (100:0), skewed (85:15),tilted (65:35) and balanced (60:40) groups,with an increasing proportion of the minority ineach of the groups. This work, and that ofDahelerup in 1988, gave rise to the idea ofthe ‘Critical Mass’. This is where the minority

has become strong enough, say at 35% (inthe tilted group), to influence the culture ofthe group and alliances between minoritygroup members become a possibility.

The effect of gender diversity on companyperformance and share valuationEuropean Research by Professor MichelFerrary 20135, of the Skema Business School,Geneva University, compared the performanceof companies in the French Share Index CAC40 for the year 2012. He found that inconcrete terms, 100,000 euros invested earlyin January 2012 in the CAC40 index wouldrepresent 115,230 euros on the 31.12.2012and 131,440 euros, if they had been investedin what Ferrary called the Femina Index.

The Femina Index is a diversified portfolio of10 companies: three in the luxury industry,three in the financial industry, one in the foodindustry, one in the tourism industry, one inthe health industry and one company in thecommunication industry. To be part of theFemina Index, the company had to have aminimum threshold of women in managementi.e. 35% at the reference point in 2007.Ferrary justifies the figure of 35%, based onthe work of the Rosabeth Moss Kanter, whichstipulates that a minority group has torepresent 35% of an organization to influenceits operation and therefore its performance.

To what then does Ferrary attribute thesuperior performance of the more balancedcompanies?

Business Case for Gender Equality in STEM

5 Source: http://www.skema-bs.fr/faculte-recherche/documents/femina-index-en.pdf

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Diversity as a performance driver

Ferrary says that promoting diversity andenhancing the advancement of women inmanagement /executive positions cancontribute to the financial performance ofcompanies for three reasons:

• recruiting women enlarges the size of thetalent pool and therefore increases theprobability of recruiting better quality staff;

• half of all consumers are femaleconsumers. Employing women enablesbetter understanding of the expectations ofclients; and

• diversity improves the decision makingprocess within the firm.

In 2011, the Canadian Coalition of Womenin Engineering, Science, Trades andTechnology (WinSett) published a literaturereview entitled ‘Increasing Women in SETT:the Business Case’6, which described amore detailed list of the benefits andsupported them by evidence of directeconomic indicators.

The benefits include:

• solution to skills shortages; • access of employers to a broader base of

talent; • increased innovation potential; • enhanced market development; • greater return on human resource

investment; • stronger financial performance; • improved governance; and • increased national economic growth index.

In the case of ‘stronger financial performance’,the paper cites as evidence several

international studies of the Fortune 500companies in the US, as well as a UK studyinto FTSE companies and Swedish research.A study for the Conference Board of Canadaconcluded ‘for those organisations that fostergender equality at all levels of the organisationthe rewards are great –bottom-line results,lower turnover and employment branding thatis attractive to talented, successful women,the kind of employees that all Canadianorganisations seek.’

The WinSett review also said that enhancingthe participation and leadership of women inscience, engineering, trades and technology(SETT) fields will generate even greaterpositive impacts in the knowledge-based,technological and highly competitive globaleconomy.

For the United Kingdom Resource Centre7

for Women in Science, Engineering andTechnology, UKRC (now incorporated intoWomen in Science and Engineering, WISE),improving gender equality in science,engineering, technology (SET) and the builtenvironment is not just about social justiceand fairness; rather the organisation statessimply that gender equality makes goodbusiness sense. The UKRC says that thefollowing are drivers to develop genderequality and bring about change in SET:

• become an employer of choice;• improve business performance;• retain knowledge and experience;• respond to changing workforce

demographics;• tackle skills shortages; • meet procurement standards and

stakeholder requirements; and• comply with legislation.

6 Canadian Coalition of Women in Engineering, Science, Trades and Technology www.ccwestt.org7 Source: http://www.theukrc.org/resources/the-business-case

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Enterprise value from intentionalinvestment in women Perhaps the most detailed analysis of theBusiness Case for Gender Diversity comesfrom a Deloitte Report called ‘The genderdividend: Making the business case forinvesting in women’, 20118

This report draws the distinction between thecurrent industrial model operating in mostorganisations, which thinks of ‘talent as a costand women as a niche group’, whereas in theknowledge economy, ‘talent is an asset andwomen are key to both the talent and theconsumer market place’.

Pellegrino, D’Amato and Weisberg furtherargue that any business case analysis of thegender dividend should have a dual focus: theimpact of women internally as workers in theorganisation and externally as customers. The authors argue that the business case forinvesting in women must take account of the‘compelling goals of attracting talent andcapitalising on the growing market strength ofwomen’.

The authors offer a detailed enterprise valuemap as a way of looking at the economicbenefits.

Enterprise Value

Operating Margin• Reduce costs associated with recruitment,

training, and retention.• Increase efficacy of existing programs and

communications because they address allemployees.

• Reduce potential liability and legal costs ofaddressing claims.

Asset Efficiency• Attract and retain top talent through more

role models.• Increase complex problem-solving capacity

through gender diverse teams and leaders• Increase innovation through gender diverse

teams.• Increase productivity through improved

morale/esprit de corps.

Revenue Growth• Leverage women’s relationships and

experience to attract new business anddesign new products.

• More effectively sell to this growing marketsegment.

• Mirror changing complexion of clientorganizations to compete more effectively

Expectations• Build firm’s brand through eminence of its

people.• Retain/build reputation of organization as

market leader in developing talent.• Become a talent magnet.

8 Source:http://sites.asiasociety.org/womenleaders/wp-content/uploads/2012/01/The-Gender-Dividend.pdf

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Education and Industry

At GCSE level (based on 2011/129), thegender balance across the total STEMsubjects is fairly even, with girls making up45.7% of pupils taking STEM subjects. Thegender bias is more apparent within particularsubjects, such as Physics (37.6% girls) andDesign & Technology (22.8% girls). DoubleScience Award was one STEM subject wherethere was a slight bias towards girls (52%). Of those girls who took GCSE STEM subjects,76.3% achieved the higher A* - C gradescompared with 75.6% of boys.

At A-Level (based on 2011/1210), the genderbalance across the total STEM subjects isfairly even, with girls making up 47.3% ofpupils studying STEM subjects. Only Biology,Chemistry and Psychology are studied more bygirls than boys (with women accounting for60%, 55% and 75% of total enrolments inthese subjects respectively). Physics (31%),Mathematics (43%), Further Maths (25%),Design and Technology (25%) andComputer/IT related subjects (approx 41%)are subjects where the gender bias is mostmarked. Of those girls who took A-Level STEMsubjects, 85.4% achieved higher A* - Cgrades compared with 82.8% of boys. Thelargest difference is in Physics, where 83.9%of girls achieved A* - C grade compared with78.7% of boys. Physics, however is one of theleast favoured choices for girls, although therehas been an increase of 16% in the numberof girls taking Physics since 07/08.

On leaving school, females tend to bebetter qualified than males11

• 68% of females achieved at least 5 GCES atgrades A* to C, including English andMaths, compared with only 56% of males.

• 64% of females left school with 2 or moreA-Levels, compared with only 47% of males.

More females progress to further orhigher education12

• 83% of females progressed to further orhigher education, compared with 71% ofmales.

• 62% of 16 year old school leavers are male.

There is a difference in the subjects thatmales and females study. • 25% of males participants in further

education are studying Science andMathematics, Engineering andManufacturing Technologies or ICT,compared with only 13% of females.

• 62% of total higher education STEMenrolments are male.

• Females account for 29.8% of thosegraduating from higher education in STEMsubjects13.

• 74% of students in Computer Science are male.

• 79% of students studying Engineering andTechnology are male.

The Picture in Northern Ireland

9 Source: Department of Education 10 Source: Department of Education11 Source: Department of Education: Qualifications & Destinations of Northern Ireland School Leavers 2011/1212 Source: Department of Education: Qualifications & Destinations of Northern Ireland School Leavers 2011/1213 Excluding biological science

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Summary

SELECTED STATISTICS from someProfessional Institutes and others:

British Computer Society17

With new research showing that womencomputer science graduates are less likely totake up an occupational role that is defined as‘ICT work’ than men (22% versus 39%),BCSWomen, part of BCS, the CharteredInstitute for IT, is working with universities andstudents to raise awareness of the greatcareers IT offers.

The move is part of the group’s widercampaign to encourage more women to takeup or return to careers in IT; today currentestimates indicate that women representunder a fifth of ICT managers, 21% ofcomputer analysts and 14% of softwareprofessionals.

Low female uptake of work-based training in STEM15

• 8.6% of participants undertakingapprenticeships in STEM-related areas arefemale.

More males work in STEM-related areas16

• Jobs in STEM-related industries currentlyaccount for 11% of total employment.

• The ratio of male to females employed inSTEM-related industries is 3 to 1.

• Males currently outnumber females in themanufacturing sector by a ratio of 4 to 1.

14 Source: Department for Employment and Learning Ministerial Oral Statement on Gender Issues, HESA and Department of Education 15 Source: Department for Employment and Learning Statistical Bulletin ApprenticeshipNI, Statistics from September 2007 to January 201316 Source: DETI, NI Labour Force Survey and DEL Ministerial Oral Statement on Gender Issues17 Source: BCS website http://www.bcs.org/content/conWebDoc/50221

Education Level Male (expressed as a Female(expressed as a% of total STEM enrolments) % of total STEM enrolments)

GCSE 54.3% 45.7%

A-Level 52.7% 47.3%

Degree 62.5% 37.5%

Average 56.5% 43.5%14

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Engineers Ireland18

Extract from ‘Engineering perspectives: a report on the careers of and challengesfacing engineers in Ireland in 2013’. Thiswas published by Engineers Ireland, based ona survey by HRM Recruit. Engineers Irelandhas a membership which covers the wholeisland of Ireland.

Some highlights of the survey include:• ‘Men outnumber women in the engineering

profession by nearly nine to one.• 75% of engineers surveyed belong to a

professional engineering association.• Less than 5% of engineers are currently

unemployed.• Male engineers are almost twice as likely to

work in senior management, compared withfemale engineers.

• Engineering is an extremely diverseprofession, with numerous career streams.

• 40% of professionals with an engineeringqualification, but working in non-engineeringroles, do so in General or OperationsManagement.

• Nearly 40% of engineers surveyed are withtheir employers for more than eight years.

• 45% of engineers surveyed received a salaryincrease in the last three years.

• More than 95% of engineers surveyed seethe ability to communicate with non-engineering professionals as vital.’

Women On Boards of FTSE 100Companies- Extract from WISE reportThe report ‘Women in Science, Technology,Engineering and Mathematics: fromClassroom to Boardroom UK Statistics2012’19 explored ‘female representation onthe Boards of the Financial Times StockExchange (FTSE) 100 companies in STEM andnon-STEM sectors. The secondary analysisuses data from the Cranfield University Schoolof Management Female FTSE 100 report2012 (Sealy and Vinnicombe, 2012). Thereport ranks the FTSE 100 companiesaccording to the percentages of women theyhave on their Boards. From this list, 57companies are classified as STEM and 43non-STEM.

At the time the Cranfield report was published,15% of Board Directors of FTSE 100companies were female (Sealy andVinnicombe, 2012). 13% of the BoardDirectors of STEM FTSE 100 companies werefemale, compared with 17% of non-STEMBoard Directors. Closer analysis revealsimportant differences in numbers of womenon Boards. All non-STEM FTSE 100companies have at least one woman on theirBoard. Almost two in ten FTSE 100 STEMcompanies have no women on their Board.Equally, around six in ten non-STEM FTSE 100companies have two or more women on theirBoard, compared with around four in tenSTEM FTSE 100 companies.’

18 Source www.engineersireland.ie19 Source: http://www.wisecampaign.org.uk/files/useruploads/files/wise_stats_document_final.pdf

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Senior managers in companies must beconvinced of the benefits of gender diversityand to this end several organisations acrossthe world have developed the idea of CEOCharters. By signing up to a CEO Charter,companies send a strong public message,demonstrating their commitment to supportinggender diversity and equality, to increase theparticipation and progression of women inscience, technology, engineering and maths(STEM).

Two examples of CEO Charters are detailedbelow for information - the UKRC/WISE CEOCharter, which is specifically for STEM and theUN Women CEO Charter, which relates togender equality and diversity for allbusinesses.

UKRC/WISE CEO Charter

The CEO Charter‘By signing up to the UKRC Charter, the CEOand senior management of each signaturebusiness or organisation commit to:

• Actively supporting the aim of increasing theparticipation, at all levels, of women inScience, Engineering and Technology (SET).

• Developing and communicating thebusiness case for gender equality withintheir business or organisation, their supplychain and their wider networks.

• Promoting and showcasing the business ororganisation’s approach and examples ofbest practice at relevant events and forums.

• Developing clearly defined strategies andimplementing practices which encouragewomen to enter and progress in, or returnto, SET careers.

Charter signatories are encouraged todemonstrate progress in their business ororganisation toward the aim of increasing theparticipation and progression of women in SET.They can do this in a number of ways, such as:

• taking part in benchmarking surveys;• assessing their business or organisation

culture using the UKRC Culture Analysis Tool;• applying for a UKRC SET Fair Standard;• taking positive steps to increase the

recruitment and retention of women in SET, including placements and support forreturners;

• setting up and running a mentoring ornetworking scheme for women; and

• training staff in gender equality.’

The UKRC/WISE Charter has been signed byover 100 UK organisations, including largecorporate companies, small and medium sized enterprises, professional bodies,education institutions, research councils and learned societies.

UN Women CEO CharterWomen’s Empowerment Principles – EqualityMeans Business, produced and disseminatedby the United Nations Entity for GenderEquality and the Empowerment of Women (UN Women) and the United Nations GlobalCompact.

How can the gender dividend be realised?

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CEO Statement of Support and List of Signatories ‘We, business leaders from across the globe,express support for advancing equalitybetween women and men to:

• bring the broadest pool of talent to ourendeavours;

• further our companies’ competitiveness; • meet our corporate responsibility and

sustainability commitments; • model behaviour within our companies that

reflects the society we would like for ouremployees, fellow citizens and families;

• encourage economic and social conditionsthat provide opportunities for women andmen, girls and boys; and

• foster sustainable development in thecountries in which we operate.

Therefore, we welcome the provisions of theWomen’s Empowerment Principles – EqualityMeans Business, produced and disseminatedby the United Nations Entity for GenderEquality and the Empowerment of Women (UN Women) and the United Nations GlobalCompact. The Principles present seven stepsthat business and other sectors can take toadvance and empower women.

Equal treatment of women and men is not justthe right thing to do – it is also good forbusiness. The full participation of women inour enterprises and in the larger communitymakes sound business sense now and in thefuture. A broad concept of sustainability andcorporate responsibility that embraceswomen’s empowerment as a key goal willbenefit us all. The seven steps of theWomen’s Empowerment Principles will help us realize these opportunities.

We encourage business leaders to join us anduse the Principles as guidance for actions thatwe can all take in the workplace, marketplaceand community to empower women andbenefit our companies and societies. We willstrive to use sex-disaggregated data in oursustainability reporting to communicate ourprogress to our own stakeholders. Please join us.’

Since the launch of the Women’sEmpowerment Principles in 2010, over 550CEOs from around the world have signed theCEO Statement of Support for the WEPs,signalling their support for gender equality andthe guidance provided by the Principles.

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Northern Ireland STEM CEO Charter

The STEM Business group and the Equality Commission for Northern Ireland have devised aNorthern Ireland STEM CEO Charter and have taken feedback from local businesses andother organisations which employ STEM professionals. We would like to encourageorganisations to commit to the Charter.

……………………………………............................. is a STEM employer.

This means we are committed to ensuring that men and women have equality of opportunity, interms of accessing our jobs in the areas of Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics.

We are committed to ensuring that we provide equality of opportunity in relation to recruitment,training, development, promotion, appraisal and with regard to all of our employment policies.

To show our commitment as a STEM employer, we are doing the following:

• Implementing an equal opportunities policy, that is regularly updated, and is supported bytraining, for all of our staff.

• Implementing appropriate positive action measures, such as pre-employment training, welcomingstatements and personal development courses for women, where they are under-represented incertain job areas and at certain grades.

• Challenging stereotypical attitudes, preconceptions and prejudice that might exist in relation towomen working in STEM jobs.

• Work with our female employees to benchmark the current working environment against bestpractice examples and to identify ways to improve its accessibility to women.

• Monitoring access to all of our policies, to ensure both women and men enjoy equality ofopportunity in terms of access to employment, training, development, promotion and flexibleworking.

• Utilising various measures, including staff awareness surveys and exit interviews, to help usensure that all employees feel that they enjoy equality of opportunity.

• Signed Date

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Other ideas to reap the gender dividendinclude the examination of organisations’ good practice through case studies and thedevelopment of guidelines. The Guidelines, setout below, were developed through extensivedesk research on both academic and practicalexamples. These Guidelines have been given toother organisations for comment: EqualityCommission, Department of Employment andLearning, Queen’s University Belfast, WRDA,enei, WISE, the Equality Coalition and severalSTEM businesses.

Good Practice Guidelines foraddressing the STEM gender gap

ROLE MODELS- PRIOR TO RECRUITMENT1. Encourage staff to become STEM

Ambassadors, working with organisationssuch as W5, Sentinus, BiTC or SchoolEmployer Connections.

2. Participate in Careers talks and fairs.

3. Use welcoming statements in recruitmentadvertisements.

4. Use female role models in advertising andother brochures.

SUPPORTIVE PERSONNEL POLICIES5. Refer to family friendly policies in

recruitment literature.

6. Refer to flexible working practices inrecruitment literature.

7. Refer to any home working policies inrecruitment literature.

8. Consider using a female onlyundergraduate scholarship scheme.

9. Use of salary sacrifice schemes e.g.Employers for Childcare, to supportworking parents with childcare costs.

10. Consider partnering pregnant employeeswith a mentor or buddy, who has recentlyreturned to work after maternity leave.

NETWORKING11. Utilise existing networks for women which

address work issues.

12. Establish a women’s network, if noneexists in your business or industry.

CAREER DEVELOPMENT13. Enable all staff to articulate their career

aspirations at regular intervals.

14. Recognise that career aspirations maychange, as caring roles change over time.

15. Consider horizontal career moves todevelop breadth of knowledge andrespect across the business.

16. Ensure that all staff members are clearabout career progression and promotionprocedures.

Examination of Best Practice

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MENTORING17. Consider the use of mentoring within and

outside the organisation.

18. Consider partnering a male mentor with afemale mentee and the reverse.

ROLE MODELS- POST RECRUITMENT 19. Increase visibility by having female

speakers at internal and externalmeetings.

20. Have female representation on internal/external committees.

MONITORING PROGRESS21. Obtain feedback from staff about these

issues and suggestions, particularly in exitinterviews.

22. Take all opportunities to challengeunconscious bias.

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Best Practice Case StudiesMany organisations in Northern Ireland displaygood practice, some of which were discussedat the joint STEM Business group and EqualityCommission seminar in June 2013. For thisreport, we have attempted to capture thisgood practice and other exemplars for thebenefit of other organisations.

If you like to profile or benchmark some ofyour own practice, please [email protected]

Best Practice Case Study 1 -

SchlumbergerSchlumberger is the world’s leading supplier oftechnology, integrated project managementand information solutions to customersworking in the oil and gas industry worldwide.Employing approximately 120,000 people,representing over 140 nationalities andworking in more than 85 countries,Schlumberger provides the industry’s widestrange of products and services fromexploration to production. Their people invent,design, engineer and apply technologies tohelp customers find and produce oil and gasmore efficiently and safely. 

Locally …..Schlumberger has been established inNorthern Ireland since 1958. The companycurrently employs approx 200 employees inthe Newtownabbey Manufacturing Facility(previously Camco).

Scholarship for female engineeringstudents:Schlumberger Belfast, in collaboration withQueen’s University Belfast, has developed afemale scholarship programme aimed at A-Level students. The scholarship programmeoffers financial rewards to the successfulapplicant, who undertakes a MechanicalEngineering Sandwich Masters degree atQueen’s University Belfast. Additionally, thesuccessful applicant has the opportunity tolearn from experts during internships at theSchlumberger facility in Newtownabbey duringtheir studies. Schlumberger, globally,recognises that diversity is a key source ofcompetitive advantage and believes it isintegral to future business success. Thisfemale scholarship is aimed at attractingyoung women to a career in engineering,boosting gender diversity within industry andpromoting the excellent STEM careeropportunities available. SchlumbergerNewtownabbey Product Centre is currentlyunder-represented by females, with only 10%of the workforce being made up of women.The Product Centre management team iscommitted to increasing significantly thatnumber. The STEM programme is a long terminitiative, which is making progress. Incomparison, at Schlumberger overall, 18% ofthe engineers are women. In developing thescholarship, Schlumberger worked with theEquality Commission NI, which agreed andapproved Schlumberger to run a female onlyscholarship as a “Positive Outreach Initiative”,with a view to attracting more females towardsengineering. The programme is a traininginitiative and not a definitive route toemployment.

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Girls’ Schools’ Open Day:Each year, Schlumberger Belfast hosts a“Girls’ Schools’ Open Day”, where 50 Year 12girls from a cross section of schools in theGreater Belfast area visit the Belfast ProductCentre, along with a STEM or Careers teacher.The aim of this event is to raise awareness ofSTEM and the career opportunities available,as well as being an opportunity forSchlumberger to give back to the localcommunity. The event has been runningsuccessfully for four years and is starting topay dividends, in terms of seeing applicantsfor the scholarship programme andinternships from the groups of students whoattended the open day in previous years.

Best Practice Case Study 2 -Northern Ireland Electricity (NIE)NIE owns and maintains the electrical wiresand meters for everyone in Northern Ireland,no matter who bills the customer for energyusage. The company has 1,300 employees,who work around the clock to plan, build,repair and develop Northern Ireland’selectricity network. NIE has predicted a skillsshortage in power engineering within the nextten years and as such, has developed a seriesof measures to address both this issue and, atthe same time, that of gender balance. TheEnergy and Utility Skills Council has predicteda skills shortage across the UK, not just withinNorthern Ireland.

STEM Ambassadors:Schlumberger Belfast works in collaborationwith the W5 STEM Ambassador Programmeand currently has an active team of registeredSTEM Ambassadors. STEM Ambassadors arepeople from STEM backgrounds who volunteeras inspiring role models for young people.They can contribute both to regular lessons, orparticipate in extra-curricular activities such asSTEM Clubs, Careers Days and visits. A fewexamples of STEM Ambassador work whichSchlumberger employees have participated inare: teachers’ careers days, careers fairs, aSTEM Club Event for teachers at W5, interviewskills days at schools, Northern RegionalCollege Careers Academy, vocationalapprenticeships careers events and workexperience on site.

Schlumberger recognises that working withschools is key to attracting and developing theengineers of the future, both for theSchlumberger Belfast Mechanical EngineeringApprenticeship entry route and GraduateEngineer entry route. The STEM AmbassadorsProgramme is a free resource for schools,offering support from people with STEMbackgrounds to help entice and inspirestudents into science, technology, engineeringand maths careers. The resource enablesteachers to make links from the curriculum tohow STEM is practised in the world of work.Working in collaboration with the STEMAmbassador Programme offers insurance foremployees to attend STEM events, providesthe appropriate AccessNI checks and partnersSchlumberger employees with the right STEMinitiatives, which will provide benefit for boththe schools involved and the business.

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Careers talks and outreach programme-NIE currently attends approximately 50careers fairs and events per year, in additionto their normal outreach activity, such as FirstLEGO League, Sentinus Research andDevelopment Programme, IET SMART EnergyProject, NIE STEM career and activitydays, NIE industrial bursaries and workingwith Queen’s University Belfast toincrease the current uptake of places forElectrical and Electronic Engineering. NIE alsorecently took four Department of Employmentand Learning Careers’ Advisers for a one weekplacement.

Benefits of Outreach Work • All graduates and undergraduates are

heavily involved in outreach work as part oftheir continuous development in their first three years with NIE.

• It enables them to become STEMAmbassadors, which continues to build theirCPD points for their IET accreditation.

• It improves their communication, planningand presentation skills, as part of theircontinued development.

• NIE believe that using practising engineersis a powerful promotional tool for NIE.

• The company states that their graduates,undergraduates and apprentices arepassionate about inspiring young peopleand encouraging them to continue studyingSTEM subjects.

• NIE says that outreach provides theopportunity to challenge the stereotypesabout STEM subjects and also careers inSTEM.

In addition, NIE displays good practice in otherareas related to the guidelines:

• All new graduates and undergraduates willbecome STEM ambassadors within 3months of joining NIE (see SchlumbergerCase Study for details of the STEMAmbassador programme).

• NIE utilises their female apprentices andgraduates as role models in advertisingfor both our apprenticeship and graduateroute

• NIE has the Employee Purchase childcarescheme which is unique to them and it alsohas the salary sacrifice scheme. NIE offersall employees the opportunity to join theChildcare Voucher salary sacrifice schemeand the Employer purchase scheme.Vouchers are provided for both schemes byEmployers for Childcare.

• To be eligible for the Employer Purchasescheme, an employee must have a childunder four in full-time, registered day-care(pro rata for part-time employees) and theirspouse/partner should not be in receipt of asimilar benefit from another employer.

• NIE has women in senior roles who act asmentors for their young, female under,graduates.

• NIE has an annual Planning andPerformance Review (PRR), where theindividual will review this year’s performanceand also articulate where they want to go inthe following year or beyond. These arereviewed every six months

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Best Practice Case Study 3 - Queen’s University BelfastOver the last decade, Queen’s has been oneof the leading higher education institutions invaluing and supporting women’s careeradvancement. Over the years, the Universityhas created an environment in which thecontribution of women is fully valued. This is acontinuing process.

This commitment was recognised in 2011,when the University was listed as a Top 50Employer for Women. In 2012, Queen’sbecame one of only four universities to hold asilver Athena Swan award. The Athena Swanawards20 recognise and celebrate goodpractice in recruiting, retaining and promotingwomen in Science, Technology, Engineering,Mathematics and Medicine (STEMM) in highereducation. Queen’s also has the distinction ofhaving all of its 11 Science, Engineering andTechnology (SET) schools holding SWANawards: one Gold, nine Silver and one Bronze.

MentoringWhen Queen’s University conducted a“listening” exercise with its female staff in thelate 1990s, one of the recommendationsarising was the development of a Mentoringexercise for female academics. Following asuccessful pilot, the scheme has run everyyear since 2001/2002, with senior academicwomen providing advice and support to morejunior colleagues, on issues related to careermanagement and planning, helping womentake responsibility and be more self-reliantabout their careers, providing support andincreasing confidence and developingknowledge, skills and expertise.

• NIE offers three scholarships with Queen’sUniversity, Belfast, for first and second yearstudents studying Electrical and ElectronicEngineering. Scholarships include financialsupport, mentoring and invaluableexperience within the power industry.

• NIE utilises development roles within thecompany to develop individuals’ breadth ofknowledge and experience.

• Clarity about career progression andpromotion procedures is given through thePPR process and also highlighted for newentrants during their induction and repeatedafter three months service in NIE.

• NIE uses mentoring from day one withapprentices and graduates. Theapprentices will be mentored by a teammanager, or the apprentice co-ordinator.The graduates will have quarterly mentoringsessions with a Director of the business.Mentor and mentee are matched up,depending on the needs of the individual.

• Female graduates and apprentices areregularly utilised at internal and externalmeetings, to give them more visibility andto try and encourage females into theindustry.

• NIE uses exit interviews for all leavers fromNIE and assesses the information that isobtained.

• NIE has recently re-briefed all staff in NIE onrespecting differences within NIE. Thiswas done in conjunction with an equalityexpert from a local university.

20 Source: http://www.athenaswan.org.uk/content/awards

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The scheme has now been running for elevenyears, during which time a total of 181women have been mentored.

Promotion seminarsQueen’s has carefully monitored the successrates of its academic staff applying forpromotion for a number of years and theanalysis shows that while women wereappointed commensurate with their applicantrate, they tended to apply in lower numbersthan might be expected. To address anyunderlying concerns about the promotionsprocess and allay any doubts about fairness, aseries of promotions seminars have been heldin recent years, aimed at those women whowant more information about how thepromotions exercise works in practice and howto make an informed decision as to when themoment has arrived to make an applicationfor promotion. The seminars are resourcedfrom the Queen’s Gender Initiative, the EqualOpportunities Unit and include an input from aPro-Vice Chancellor.

CultureThe culture of an institution concerns thevisible structure and practices, such aspolicies and procedures that can bemonitored and changed if necessary. It is alsoabout what people say and believe, as well asthe underlying unconscious thoughts andbeliefs that are much harder to change,though their effects can be mitigated.

Queen’s has tackled the issue of culture by:

• ensuring greater visibility of women amongexisting academic staff. This is achievedthrough replacing generic university imagesof academics on web home pages with realfemale members of staff and highlightingwomen who take on particular roles, suchas that of Science and EngineeringAmbassador; and

• taking specific actions to encourageincreased representation of women oncommittees.

Steps include: reviewing the selectionprocesses; writing to all eligible women staffto encourage them to apply; asking ex-officio members whether they mightnominate a woman to attend in their place,drawing up a suitable list of women toencourage to apply for lay positions onSenate; asking existing committee membersto buddy new members; and monitoringcommittee membership annually

• Proactively reviewing the gender balanceon all policy and decision-makingcommittees, to achieve a substantialincrease in the female, academicmembership of strategic School and Centrecommittees;

• inviting external women on a regular basisas guest speakers and external examiners;

• including representation from femalepostgraduate students and postdoctoralfellows at staff meetings;

• ensuring that administrative responsibilities,student supervision and marking workloadsare transparent;

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• 20 STEM Ambassadors, who actively workacross the local and wider community tofurther promote STEM;

• sponsored several STEM awards at schools,colleges and universities to strengthen theSTEM profile;

• hosted several tours and visits for schools,colleges and universities, to showcase careeropportunities within STEM;

• supported specific STEM initiatives atcolleges and universities, including theNorthern Regional College EngineeringCareers Academy and the Queen’s UniversityEngineering Leadership Programme. Thishelps strengthen the STEM profile betweenlearning establishment and industry;

• supported STEM discussions at variousgovernment advisory groups, to ensure thatSTEM continues to be placed high on thebusiness agenda; and

• participated in numerous careers fairs atschools, colleges and universities, toshowcase career opportunities in STEM.

Training and Development (STEM)As an Investor in People organisation, SchraderElectronics invests heavily in the training anddevelopment of all their employees. Trainingand development is promoted at all levelswithin the organisation and it has number ofpartnerships and external accreditation toenhance its development portfolio. Thisincludes Institute of Leadership &Management, Engineering Training Servicesand City & Guilds centre status. More recently,the organisation has developed partnershipswith the Institute of Mechanical Engineers andthe Institute of Engineering Technology, furtherdeveloping STEM thinking within theorganisation.

• ensuring that pastoral roles within a Schoolare taken up by men as well as women;

• in SET Schools, holding an annual lectureon the theme of women in SET for womenin the School; and

• addressing the under-representation offemales in portraits hung in the University’sGreat Hall, by commissioning additionalportraits of distinguished femalegraduates, or past office holders

Best Practice Case Study 4 - Schrader Electronics LtdFor 25 years, Schrader Electronics Ltd (SEL),has been the market leader in the Design andManufacturing of Tyre Pressure Monitoringsystems. SEL also manufactures electronicsfor the Automotive and Industrial markets. SELlocally employs over 1000 employees acrossseveral disciplines.

Schrader Electronics recognises the need toengage, attract, recruit and developindividuals in STEM-related disciplines and tofurther promote the role of females withinSTEM disciplines. In response to this, theorganisation has a number of initiatives toaddress these two areas.

External Engagement (STEM)Schrader Electronics undertakes a significantamount of external engagement to supportSTEM across the province. This includesengagement with schools, colleges,universities, training organisations,government agencies etc. In particular,Schrader Electronics has:

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Schrader Electronics develops employees on aday-to-day basis in STEM-related subjects andin particular, they operate several training anddevelopment programmes including:

• a Graduate Development Programme tosupport graduates in making the transitionfrom student to employee. This year(2013), the organisation has recruited 31graduates, with 27 of them from STEMdisciplines;

• an Undergraduate Development Programmeto provide valuable work experience tostudents, whilst tapping into fresh ideas andthinking that students bring to theirorganisation. This year (2013), theorganisation has recruited 20undergraduates, with 18 of them fromSTEM disciplines; and

• an Apprentice Development Programme tocontinue the pipeline of talent for keytechnician roles within the organisation.There are a total of 13 apprenticesemployees at Schrader Electronics, all ofwhom are engaged in STEM roles andstudy.

MentoringSchrader Electronics has created a Mentoring framework with approx 60designated company mentors. Each mentorhas successfully completed the Institute ofLeadership & Management Level 5 MentoringCertificate and they are actively involved inmentoring employees at various levels withinthe organisation.

Gender Promotion (STEM)Schrader Electronics supports and values therole that women play in STEM disciplines andhas supported gender balance initiatives. Thishas included:

• utilising female role models to present toSTEM students at career events at Schools,Colleges and Universities;

• showcasing the roles filled by females atvarious STEM events;

• featuring female role models in companyadvertising and promotional activities forboth their Undergraduate and GraduateDevelopment Programmes; and

• participating in various government agencyfocus groups on the topic of genderbalance initiatives.

Best Practice Case Study 5 -

Ulster Bank (part of the Royal Bank ofScotland (RBS) Group)

NetworkingThe local Ulster Bank women’s network,Women in Touch (WIT), was launched tosupport women in managerial roles tonetwork, share experiences, learn from eachother and realise their potential. WIT has thebenefit of broadening the participants’knowledge of business matters beyond theireveryday focus.  The WIT network offers UlsterBank employees the opportunity to developand advance their careers and to becomeinvolved in activities that will challenge andinspire them.

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As part of the ‘Dragons’ Den – It’s Time toGive Back’ initiative and after discussion withthe CCEA, Allstate NI’s training departmentcreated the ‘Allstate Teachers’ TechnologyTraining’ (AT3) programme.

The new CCEA A-Level commenced inSeptember 2013 and in order to providesome up-to-date training in the moderncomputer programming language C#.NET,Allstate invited all post-primary schools acrossNI to send a teacher to participate in a week-long course. The customised course wasattended by 35 teachers from all over NI andwas held at the end of June 2013 in theAllstate NI Building, Belfast.

In addition to the training, teachers were givena full set of C#.NET course material, includingclass notes, assessments, sample code andsample projects geared towards the new A-Level, for them to practice and use with theirstudents.

This course was very well received by theteachers, who praised both the quality of thetraining and the materials. Indirectly, thistraining is supportive of the teachers as rolemodels for the young people in school, as itdeveloped their skills in the language.

As most of the teachers at the training weekwere female, this course has a further impacton young women in the classroom.

Extensive consultation was carried out todetermine the most appropriate time for themeetings to take place and it was decidedthat early evening suited best, directly afterwork and very strictly kept to time. Themanagement nature of topics of the sessionshas attracted the interest of male employeesand they have been made welcome at themeetings. Meetings take place on a quarterlybasis.

Nationally and internationally, RBS has takena lead in the networking concept too, in thatthe RBS Focused Women’s Network (FWN)was launched in 2007, to support the bankinggroup in actively attracting, developing andretaining talented women at RBS.

In the last three years, the FWN has grownfrom 2,000 to 10,000 members across 31countries. This includes some 300 men, whorecognise the value that a diverse team canbring to the business.

Best Practice Case study 6 - Allstate NI - connecting with the Education Community

Allstate NI Provides some Teacher TrainingFor New A-LevelAllstate and other ICT employers were involvedwith the Council for the CurriculumExaminations and Assessment (CCEA) andteachers in the development of a new A-levelin Software Systems Development (SSD), tohelp to meet industry needs.

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The newly developed skills have been put togood use in schools, not just the A-levelclasses, but also through teachers runninglunch time and after school clubs in C#.NETThese clubs have been very popular and insome cases, have been over-subscribed.

Allstate NI hosts visits from schoolsSome of the schools whose teachersparticipated in the C#.NET training were giventhe chance to bring some A-Level computingpupils to visit the Allstate premises. Thefeedback from the pupils was very positive, asbefore the visits they could not visualise whata programmer did, or how they worked, butafterwards, the pupils said that theyunderstood much more about the daily life ofa programmer. Allstate NI also supportsfemale STEM events through the BringITOncampaign and delivers many presentations toall girls’ schools, to encourage more femalesinto the industry. 

Family Friendly InitiativesIn addition, Allstate NI operates a raft of familyfriendly policies and initiatives, including a freecar seat for the first child, flexible working,condensed working, working from home, childtax credits, emergency time, duvet days, Bringyour Child to Work day, sports & social eventsand organised family cinema trips. Thecompany also has a high rate of femalesreturning to work after maternity leave,compared with similar industry sectors, as wellas a higher percentage of female teammanagers and senior managers.

Allstate NI has received over 120 awards forits HR and health & wellbeing practices andhas received the highest standard forInvestors in People at Gold level and is anInvestors in People Champion.

Best Practice Case Study 7 -AtkinsAtkins is the UK’s largest design, engineeringand project management consultancy,providing multidisciplinary technical expertise.The company provides advice and engineeringdesign for public, regulated and private sectorclients. Its areas of operation include water,environment, education, aerospace, defenceand infrastructure design, as well assignificant activity in transportation.

Atkins has over 9,300 staff across the UK,with 75 staff based in the office in Belfast. Ofthe 75 staff in Northern Ireland, there are 69people in STEM careers. Of the 69 STEMstaff, 32% are women engineers andscientists. This is higher than the figure of25% for all STEM posts in Northern Ireland.

Gender Balance PlanningAtkins’ vision is ‘to be the world’s bestinfrastructure consultancy’ and that meanshaving the best and most talented peoplefrom the sector working for the Atkins group ofcompanies. Atkins’ senior Management Teamwere aware that research by CranfieldUniversity and others had demonstrated thatbusinesses with good gender balance performbetter, have deeper, more resilient clientrelationships and grow faster than othercompanies.

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LeadershipFifty of the organisation’s most senior womenleaders have joined together to form theAtkins Women’s Leadership Council, to help tosupport the objective to have more women insenior positions in the years to come.

Chaired by Sara Lipscombe, Groupcommunications director and Anne Randall,Group legal director, both members of theSenior Leadership Team, the Women’sLeadership Council members will act ascatalysts, role models, sponsors and mentorsto aspiring professionals, including thosebased in the Belfast Office.

NetworkingAtkins’ women’s network, the Women’sProfessional Network (WPN), has been set upto offer a networking opportunity, wherewomen can share experiences, expertise andthoughts. The WPN talk about many differenttopics, but with an emphasis on how toaddress the gender balance within theengineering sector.

Several of Atkins’ larger UK offices are runningWPN events, with other smaller offices aimingto follow suit soon. The women in the AtkinsBelfast office will be hosting their first WPNevent in December 2013.

In this context, in early 2011, Allan Cook,chairman of the Atkins plc board, challengedeach Atkins business to develop a plan toimprove diversity and hence become a betterbusiness.

The UK Gender Balance Focus Group (GBFG)was formed on behalf of the UK ManagementTeam in response to this challenge. Eachbusiness in the UK appointed a representativeon the GBFG and a UK Gender ImprovementPlan was produced with 22 actions toimplement. Well over half the actionscontained in the plan have been achieved,with others making good progress and three orfour long-term aims, which will take longer tofulfil.

In addition, each business has produced itsown Gender Improvement Plan, tailored to itsparticular business and good progress hasalso been made with those plans. One of theways to improve gender balance is to retainthose women already employed, as well asseeking to increase the proportion of womenjoining the company.

The Belfast office is employing the GenderImprovement Plans from the variousbusinesses based in Northern Ireland and hasrecently sponsored a young women engineerthrough university and provided her with awork placement.

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21 http://www.atkinsglobal.com/~/media/Files/A/Atkins-Global/Attachments/corporate/about-us/ourpublications/Atkins_Britains%20got%20talented%20female%20engineers.pdf

DevelopmentAtkins sponsors a Women’s DevelopmentProgramme, run by Skills4 UK Ltd. Over the lasttwo years, 123 female employees have gonethrough the programme. A further 60 women areattending the programme in 2013.

Candidates were nominated from all across theUK and a recent survey demonstrated thatparticipants felt the programme has beensuccessful in helping them with their careerdevelopment. 

One women engineer from Belfast completed theprogramme in 2012, one is currently on theprogramme and two are due to enter theprogramme in 2014.

Communicating with young womenAtkins in partnership with Royal Academy ofEngineering, BP and Rolls Royce produced abooklet in September 2013, ‘Britain’s gottalented female engineers, Successfulwomen in engineering: a careers researchstudy’21. This publication reported on a survey of 300 female engineers and profiled severalwomen from different engineering disciplines. The booklet also attempts to dispel some of themyths and misunderstandings about being afemale engineer.

Commitment Based on the responses from the survey, the companies involved made threecommitments, stay positive, (about whatengineering has to offer everyone), profile role models and clear a (career) path.

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Equality CommissionEquality House7 - 9 Shaftesbury SquareBelfastBT2 7DPTel: 028 9050 0600Textphone: 028 9050 0589Fax: 028 9024 8687http://www.equalityni.org

Labour Relations Agency 2-16 Gordon StreetBelfast, BT1 2LGTel: 028 9032 1442Fax: 028 9033 0827http://www.lra.org.uk

STEM Business Subgroup Contact: Lorna McAlpine, STEM Business Subgroup co-ordinator Email: [email protected]: 028 9090 5378

WISE (Women in Science and Engineering)WISE CampaignQuest House38 Vicar LaneBradfordBD1 5LD Tel: 01274 724009http://www.wisecampaign.org.uk/

Sources of Support

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Bibliography and Links to Sources of Information

Athena Swan Award http://www.athenaswan.org.uk/content/awards [Accessed 26Sept 2013]

British Computer Society (2013)’ BCS highlight need for more women in IT’ -Available through BCS < http://www.bcs.org/content/conWebDoc/50221>[Accessed 21 June2013]

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Canadian Coalition of Women in Engineering, Science, Trades and Technology(WinSett) (2011) ‘Increasing Women in SETT: the Business Case’ - Availablethrough Canadian Coalition of Women in Engineering, Science, Trades andTechnology<http://www.ccwestt.org/Publications/AllPublications/tabid/74/ctl/Detail/mid/448/xmid/385/xmfid/9/Default.aspx> [Accessed 20 June 2013]

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Further Reading Atkins, in partnership with Royal Academy of Engineering, BP and RollsRoyce(2013) ‘Britain’s got talented female engineers, Successful women in engineering : a careers research study’http://www.atkinsglobal.com/~/media/Files/A/Atkins-Global/Attachments/corporate/about-us/our-publications/Atkins_Britains%20got%20talented%20female%20engineers.pdf> [Accessed 18 Oct 2013]

Hill, C., Corbett, C. and St. Rose, A. ‘Why so few? Women in sciencetechnology, engineering and maths’ Available through AAUW<http://www.aauw.org/files/2013/02/ Why-So-Few-Women-in-Science-Technology-Engineering-and-Mathematics.pdf> Accessed 20 June 2013

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Wittenberg-Cox, A. and Maitland, A. (2009) Why Women Mean Business,Chichester, Wiley

Wittenberg-Cox, A. (2010) How Women Mean Business, Chichester, Wiley