Male-oriented networking among challenges faced by female IT executives

16 September 2015 - 21:26 By Kaunda Selisho
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Image: ICT works

Many advocate for the involvement of women in all industries and the information and communication technology sector is no different. But there are few people who speak about the challenges that lie ahead once you’ve cracked the nod.

The ICT Works management spoke about these issues candidly at their networking session in Sandhurst‚ north of Johannesburg‚ on Wednesday.

ICT works is a 100 percent black-women-owned‚ founded and managed company based in Johannesburg.

COO Maggy Sibiya said that race-based assumptions about the management and capability of the company prove to be their biggest challenge. This has resulted in them being offered smaller contracts as well as partnerships with other firms in order for those companies to meet their corporate social investment goals‚ she said.

Xoliswa Kakana‚ CEO of ICT Works‚ said that they often find that certain companies have already formed partnerships that they cling to and this makes it harder to outsource certain work on projects.

According to Kakana‚ this also contributes to ICT Works missing out on contracts or having to work much harder than everyone else to get them because they fall outside of the trust circles that people have formed.

Public Sector Director for ICT Works Sindile Ncala spoke about having to network in predominantly male environments. The kind of places that she says society still frowns upon women for being in – such as golf courses and whiskey bars.

RDM News Wire.

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