1、Prof.Dr.Anna SchneiderHochschule Fresenius University of Applied Sciences,Cologne(Germany)27 February 2023Picture ThisisEngineering RAEng from unsplashTime to Reboot?Outlining critical factors for womens success in digitalized workplaces2This study uses a unique comparative approach to the issues of

2、 women in the tech sector.By stepping beyond traditional metric-based analyses of tech-focused industries,we have gotten a more nuanced view of the issues preventing female engagement in digitalized work environments across all sectors.This shift in focus uncovered many new takeaways:Women across al

3、l sectors do not see their strength in their digital skills.When asked to rank their strengths,women in highly digitalized environments consistently rank their digital skills lower than men,even though men in similar positions rank their digital skills as their top skill.Despite this,women benefit d

4、isproportionally from digitalized environments.They are equally,if not more,comfortable with advanced human-computer interfaces and benefit more from digitalization-enabled remote work than men.Employers are being held back by their“pink glasses”.In opposition of general wisdom,this study found that

5、 women are generally interested in the exact same incentives as men.While specific top-5 desired incentives do change from country to country,both men and women consistently most desired company cars,pensions,and stock options.A generally inclusive corporate culture has multi-fold benefits.In highly

6、 digitalized fields,women are significantly more likely than men to seek work environments that give them a sense of“belonging”and foster a culture that promotes teamwork over competition.In addition to attracting more women,such management cultures result in higher levels of employee acceptance of

7、management authority and decisions.Ageism is a uniquely urgent problem for women in ICT.While ageism effects all genders and all industries,this study found remarkably higher levels of ageism specifically effect women in ICT,with women experiencing it up to 36%more than their male counterparts,parti

8、cularly at the beginning and end of their carriers.Gender inequality in tech may have significant knock-on effects for digitalization.The dominance of men in technology development has resulted in a generation of technology that not only perpetuates gender stereotypes,but also neglects the needs of

9、a user base that makes up half of our population.For example,women consistently view the impact of robots on both their personal lives and society as a whole less positively than men.By excluding women from involvement,they are excluded from the benefits.Executive Summary3Digitalization has become a

10、 critical driver of innovation around the world,across sectors,and across a multitude of applications.While the IT&telecoms sector remains the propelling force for such innovations,the benefits of these innovations need to resonate with everyone if we hope to fully realize the value of digitalizatio

11、n.Despite significant efforts from policymakers,companies,and other organizations,women still play a relatively minor role in IT&telecoms and in digital leadership in other sectors.The results of this study point to a need to reboot our thinking about involving women in digitalization.This report dr

12、aws on a uniquely large survey of more than 21,000 respondents across seven countries(China,France,Germany,Greece,Italy,the UK,and the US).This report shines a light on how women position digital skills among their comprehensive skillsets,and reveals marked differences in digital poise between women

13、 and men,even in comparably digitalized environments.The research highlights ageism as a challenge women face in the IT&telecoms sector in particular.The data clearly shows that women prioritize similar benefits as men when choosing a job(company cars,meal plans,pension plans,and stock options).Howe

14、ver,they place more importance on a corporate culture that fosters teamwork and knowledge exchange than men,particularly in highly digitalized workplaces.Finally,this study found women to be more skeptical of robots than men,suggesting fundamental concerns related to men oftendesigning tech for othe

15、r men,instead of breaking existing gender stereotypes.This underlines the importance of building inclusive digital workplaces.Introduction4The status-quo of women in digitalized workplacesChinaFranceGermanyGreeceItalyUKUS404344605756LOAVHI6052364048645545474555535251494849516043344057665748434352574

16、84643525457FemaleMaleShare of female and male workers across levels of digitalization of workplaces(all sectors)2Level of digitalization:LO=LowAV=AverageHI=HighIn all surveyed countries except China,the share of females employed in IT&telecoms is significantly lower than their share in the general w

17、orkforce.The largest gap is seen in France,where women represent only 31%of the workforce in IT&telecoms,but 49%of the overall workforce.This coincides with a significant fall in female participation in highly digitalized French firms compared to less digitalized French firms.The US and Germany mirr

18、or this pattern to a large extent and share a similarly large gender gap in their IT&telecoms sectors.This report seeks to understand the factors that might affect womens ability and desire to enter digitalized workplaces.37396361AllICT493151694732536842335867423058704834526647325368ChinaFranceGerma

19、nyGreeceItalyUKUSShare of female and male workers across economic activities(ICT and all sectors)1Sources and notes:1Latest data referring to all sectors of economic activity and“J Information and communication”(or the equivalent in non NACE classifications)respectively.China:Date for 2018;the sex c

20、omposition of the employed population in urban public entities was drawn from the National Bureau of Statistics of China(國(guó)家統(tǒng)計(jì)局)s report Women and Men in China Facts and Figures 2019.EU countries:Eurostat data for 2021(own calculations).UK:Office for National Statistics data for September 2022(own ca

21、lculations).US:ILO data for 2022.2Survey(n=13,147).Digitalization of the company was measured on a nine item scale(Cronbach alpha.9 for all countries)built from the Osterwalder and Pigneur(2010)business model canvas.The groups for low,average,and high digitalization were developed for each country i

22、ndividually based on a triadic split of the data using+/-one standard deviation from the mean as the cut-off.For more information about the index methodology,see Schiffer,M.,&Arnold,R.(2011).Wirtschaft digitalisiert.Cologne and Berlin:IW Consult and Bitkom.and Arnold,R.et al.(2013).Wirtschaft digita

23、lisiert.Welche Rolle spielt das Internet fr die deutsche Industrie und Dienstleister?Cologne and Berlin:IW Consult and Bitkom.FemaleMaleSector of economic activity:ICT=“Information and Communication Technology”All=All sectors5In over half of all sectors,women and men have similar skill profiles,but

24、men claim to be more digitally savvySocialIntellectualCommunicationLiteracyTechnicalVocationalPhysicalNon-digital top-and bottom-skills by gender and sectorDigital skills in the context of non-digital top-and bottom-skills by gender and sector(average inverted rank for each sector)FemaleMaleTop-skil

25、l(non-digital)Digital skillsBottom-skill(non-digital)Source:Survey(n=10,919).Notes:Respondents were asked to rank eight sets of skills from top(what they are best at)to bottom(their weakest set of skills).The skillsets covered were(1)digital,(2)vocational,(3)social,(4)literacy,(5)technical,(6)intell

26、ectual,(7)communication,and(8)physical.Skillsets were presented in a randomized order for respondents to rank.Due to the small sample size in each sector,individual countries or regions cannot be analyzed individually.6Even when working in IT&telecoms,women do not see digital skills as their top ski

27、ll1822263034384246505458626618222630343842465054586266IT&telecoms sector respondents self-reported digital-skills level compared to their top and bottom skills(all countries)FemaleMaleDigital skillsTop skill(non-digital)Bottom skill(non-digital)Source:Survey(n=1,115)Notes:Respondents were asked to r

28、ank eight sets of skills from top(what they are best at)to bottom(their weakest set of skills).The charts show the(moving)average(reversed)rank of digital top,and bottom skills on the same scale applied to all three charts.The skillsets covered were(1)digital,(2)vocational,(3)social,(4)literacy,(5)t

29、echnical,(6)intellectual,(7)communication,and(8)physical.Skillsets were presented in a randomized order for respondents to rank.Respondents age was capped at 67 years for this chart.Moving average for age+/-2 years.Due to the small sample size,individual countries or regions cannot be analyzed indiv

30、idually.It is often assumed that people working in IT&telecoms have a higher degree of digital skills than the average worker.The charts below confirm this expectation.However,women in IT&telecoms noticeably do not rate digital skills as their top skills,whereas men working in the sector are more li

31、kely to view digital skills as their top skills.720 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61 62 63 64 IT&telecoms all other sectorsWomen in IT&telecoms experience more ageism than menExperience of ageism by women relat

32、ive to those of men(IT&telecoms compared to other sectors)Between 25 and 29,women in IT experience10%more ageism thantheir male co-workers.Women generally experience less ageism than men in the middle of their careers,except in the IT&telecoms sector where they experience more.The gap between men an

33、d women in experienced ageism is most pronounced at 57+in the IT&telecoms sector.Peak:36%moreageismthan menSource:Survey(n=10,919)Notes:All values above the black line indicate that women experience relatively more ageism at the same age than their male counterparts.Values below the black line indic

34、ate that women experience less ageism at the same age than their male counterparts.Ageism was measured using the three items on ageism featured in the European Social Survey(ESS)which have been tested and validated broadly.See Bratt et al.(2018):Perceived Age Discrimination Across Age in Europe:From

35、 an Ageing Society to a Society for All Ages.Developmental Psychology 54(1):167180.The index showed a Cronbach alpha of.85 for all countries in the sample.Lines smoothed.8While the perceived skills profiles of women and men do not substantially differ when they work in low digitalized firms,only the

36、 perceived strength of mens digital skills increases sharply when they work in more digitalized environments.Women show only minor increases in perceived digital skills.Even in highly digitalized environments,women report feeling that their digital skills are not their top skills.Men in the same wor

37、k environment frequently see digital skills as their top skill,especially in the 25 to 45 age group.These results underline the need for more efforts to equip women not just with digital skills,but also the confidence to put them to use.18222630343842465054586266Self-reported digital-skills level co

38、mpared to respondents top and bottom skills(all countries)1822263034384246505458626618222630343842465054586266Source:Survey(n=19,363).Notes:Respondents were asked to rank eight sets of skills from top(what they are best at)to bottom(their weakest set of skills).The charts show the(moving)average(rev

39、ersed)rank of their digital skills and their top and bottom non-digital skills on the same scale applied to all three charts.The skillsets covered were(1)digital,(2)vocational,(3)social,(4)literacy,(5)technical,(6)intellectual,(7)communication,and(8)physical.Skillsets were presented in a randomized

40、order for respondents to rank.Respondents age was capped at 67 years for this chart.Moving average for age+/-2 years.Low digitalized firmsAveragely digitalized firmsHighly digitalized firmsWomens digital skills barely rise with increased digitalization of workplacesDigital skillsTop skill(non-digita

41、l)Bottom skill(non-digital)Female(solid lines)Male(dotted lines)|9-3*-4*-4*-2*-6*-6*1-1-6*-5*-1-5*-5*-1-1-2-10-2-6*-2HCI buttonsHCI advancedHCI virtualAdvanced virtual interfaces flatten gender differencesSelf-reported confidence using different types of human-computer-interfaces comparing women and

42、 men(in rounded%,0=same confidence)Women have more confidencethan menWomen have less confidencethan menChinaFranceGermanyGreeceItalyUKUSWomen and men generally perform similarly well with advanced(touch-centric)interfaces and any remaining difference between the genders completely flattens when usin

43、g virtual interfaces.Women and men are also equally confident using virtual interfaces in all countries other than the UK,where the difference in confidence is only weakly significant.The way we interact with computers is rapidly changing,with modern voice assistants,AI chat services,and gesture con

44、trols becoming increasingly common since the mass adoption of touchscreens over the past 15 years.The survey indicates womens strong self-reported social and communicative skills may benefit them in using these newer human-computer interfaces(HCI)when compared with using traditional hard buttons.The

45、se new HCIs may also help women improve their confidence in their digital skills.The way companies and policymakers currently think about and measure digital skills may not be optimally effective in light of these results.Sources:Survey(between n=4,870 and n=11,826 depending on the interface users o

46、nly).Notes:Scales were developed based on the recommendations by Bandura,A.(2006).Guide for constructing self-efficacy scales.Self-efficacy beliefs of adolescents,5(1),307-337.The scales captured the same five items for each interface representing increasingly difficult operations.The Cronbach alpha

47、 scores for the scales were all.8 for all countries.The index ranged from Min=0 to Max=100.Advanced HCI comprises touch-centric interfaces(touchscreens and apps).Virtual HCI comprises voice and gesture interfaces.Statistically significant differences between womens and mens ratings were identified u

48、sing Mann-Whitney-U tests:*p.05;*p.01;*p.001.105-562410*15*4*27*11*8*12*20*24*12826*317*31*Low Average HighWomen in digital firms seek belonging more than menThe importance of“belonging”in the work environment according to men and women across digitalization levels and countries(in rounded%)Source:S

49、urvey(n=13,147)Notes:The data presented in the chart refers to the difference in percent between women and men indicating how important“belonging”is to them compared to“exposure”.1Schneider,A.,&Arnold,R.(2022):Intergenerational collaboration and digitalization Key results of a seven country survey.S

50、henzhen:Huawei.Statistically significant differences between womens and mens ratings were identified using two proportion z-tests:*p.05;*p.01;*p.9 for all countries)built from the Osterwalder and Pigneur(2010)business model canvas.The groups for low,average,and high digitalization were developed for

51、 each country individually based on a triadic split of the data using+/-one standard deviation from the mean as the cut-off.For more information about the index methodology,see Schiffer,M.,&Arnold,R.(2011).Wirtschaft digitalisiert.Cologne and Berlin:IW Consult and Bitkom.and Arnold,R.et al.(2013).Wi

52、rtschaft digitalisiert.Welche Rolle spielt das Internet fr die deutsche Industrie und Dienstleister?Cologne and Berlin:IW Consult and Bitkom.Women seek belonging morethan menWomen seek belonging lessthan menChinaFranceGermanyGreeceItalyUKUSDigitalization level:In almost all cases,women sought a sens

53、e of“belonging”in their place of employment more than men,with this trend generally becoming more pronounced as firms become more digitalized.This supports other findings from the survey reported on the next page that digitalized workplaces differ markedly from less digitalized ones in their managem

54、ent culture and opportunities for knowledge exchange.1It also indicates that not only are women attracted to positions in companies that have a positive culture that promotes teamwork over competition,but that digitalization seems to be a critical factor in enabling the creation of these kinds of co

55、mpany cultures.11-12-10-11-6-8-6-199241815201335Digital firms benefit from a more effective management cultureChange of perceived management culture indicators(index 0=average digitalization level)-11-4-5-6-8-3-61823161318930ThoughtfulnessAuthorityLow digitalized companiesHighly digitalized companie

56、sChinaFranceGermanyGreeceItalyUKUSSource:Survey(n=13,147)Notes:Thoughtfulness and Authority represent indices based on multiple items,Cronbach alpha.8 for all countries and both scales.Digitalization of the company was measured on a nine item scale(Cronbach alpha.9 for all countries)built from the O

57、sterwalder and Pigneur(2010)business model canvas.The groups for low,average,and high digitalization were developed for each country individually based on a triadic split of the data using+/-one standard deviation from the mean as the cut-off.For more information about the index methodology,see Note

58、s:1 Schiffer,M.,&Arnold,R.(2011).Wirtschaft digitalisiert.Cologne and Berlin:IW Consult and Bitkom.and Arnold,R.et al.(2013).Wirtschaft digitalisiert.Welche Rolle spielt das Internet fr die deutsche Industrie und Dienstleister?Cologne and Berlin:IW Consult and Bitkom.Exceptthe differences from avera

59、ge to low digitalization levels in FR and UK all differences across digitalization levels were statistically significant at least p.9 for all countries)built from the Osterwalder and Pigneur(2010)business model canvas.The groups for low,average,and high digitalization were developed for each country

60、 individually based on a triadic split of the data using+/-one standard deviation from the mean as the cut-off.13Women benefit more from digitalized remote work0102030405060708090100ChinaFranceGermanyGreeceItalyUKUSfemale maleShare of remote work(WFH and mobile work)in the last four weeks prior to t

61、he survey grouped by low,averagely,and highly digitalized work environments(only employees)Sources:Survey(n=11,307 employed respondents only)Notes:Remote work includes all forms of remote and mobile work.The share was calculated relative to the number of working days indicated by the respondents in

62、the survey.From low to high digitalized work environmentsx1.6x1.2more remote work.From low to high digitalized work environmentsx2.2x1.4more remote work.From low to high digitalized work environmentsx3.1x2.4more remote work.From low to high digitalized work environmentsx2.9x2.5more remote work.From

63、low to high digitalized work environmentsx2.9x2.2more remote work.From low to high digitalized work environmentsx1.4x1.3more remote work.From low to high digitalized work environmentsx2.1x1.6more remote work.All seven countries surveyed saw increased remote and mobile work in recent years due to the

64、 pandemics acceleration of global digitalization.These more flexible work arrangements benefit women who still shoulder more domestic duties than men.The research indicates that women benefit more from digitalization as regards to working remotely than men.14Attitudes towards robots across genders a

65、nd regions(higher scores indicate a more positive attitude)Sources:Survey(n=19,363).Notes:Scales from Koverola,M.,Kunnari,A.,Sundvall,J.,&Laakasuo,M.(2022).General attitudes towards robots scale(GAToRS):A new instrument for social surveys.International Journal of Social Robotics,14(7),1559-1581.Cron

66、bach alpha.7 for all scales in all countries.Moving average for age+/-2 years.Respondents age was capped at 67 years for this chart.Europe comprises data for France,Germany,Greece,Italy,and the UK.Scores presented are the normalized differentials between positive and negative attitudes scales.Women

67、have a less positive attitude towards robots than menFemale respondents consistently viewed the impact of robots on both their personal lives and society as a whole less positively than male respondents.Robots are often designed by men for men,perpetuating gender stereotypes instead of breaking them

68、.Robots are also frequently personified and gendered in a way that matches the preconceived roles of men and women in society,with“female”robots filling caretaking,cleaning,and assistance roles while“male”robots solve hard problems,lift heavy inventory,or venture into dangerous environments.This may

69、 influence the less positive view women on robots,both from their individual and a societal perspective.These views could potentially be reversed by diversifying the workforce developing robots.ChinaEuropeUSRobots impact on personal lifeRobots impact on societyFemale(solid lines)Male(dotted lines)|1

70、5Conclusions The effects and extent of digitalization are difficult to capture and compare.The same is true for digital skills.This survey drew from a uniquely large sample,allowing it to offer an alternative to typical approaches.It measures both digitalization and digital skills comparatively inst

71、ead of against arbitrary metrics,and therefore,arrives at novel insights that can help shape our understanding of the critical factors for womens success in digitalized workplaces.Objectively,there is no reason why women should have less-developed digital skills than men.However,the results of this

72、study indicate that women across multiple sectors perceive their digital skills as worse than or at most on par with mens.Worryingly,this gap is particularly pronounced in the IT&telecoms sector.While men in this sector frequently see digital skills as their top skill,women very often do not.The IT&

73、telecoms industry has to go a long way to properly recognize and promote womens digital skills.The study also found women in the IT&telecoms sector disproportionally impacted by ageism.This poses a significant social barrier for female graduates that could discourage them from seeking a longer caree

74、r within the sector.Improvements must be made,particularly at the early stages of employment,to prevent a subsequent loss of valuable diversity.While these results reaffirm the existence and impact of well-known barriers women face in the ICT industry,they more importantly indicate that these barrie

75、rs also effect female participation in the workforce of highly digitalized firms.Female digital leadership in all sectors must also be supported to close this digital divide.This survey identified areas of improvement where clear concrete action can be taken to attract and retain female talent in di

76、gitalized workplaces.Digitalization can also play a critical role in these changes.The advantage digitalization gives employees by creating more flexible work environments disproportionately benefitted women.More digitalized firms have also been shown to embrace womens need for team-oriented corpora

77、te cultures and,in turn,benefit from a different management culture.These positive takeaways were all tempered,however,by the clear lack of confidence that plagues women due to the gender disparity within the tech sector.This can be clearly seen in the less positive attitudes women hold towards robo

78、ts,likely as they were not designed to serve womens needs.Men continue to dominate the development of robots,and this lack of diversity means robots are not only made for men,but they also often reinforce traditional gender stereotypes.The digital revolution itself will have to be more equitable if

79、we hope for everyone to reap its benefits.16Method:CAWI:Computer Assisted Web InterviewSample size(s):n=21,427(China n=3,063;France n=3,051;Germany n=3,078;Greece n=3,031;Italy n=3,066;UK n=3,070;US n=3,068)Sampling time:2022/11/02 to 2022/11/15Length of interview:The median interview length varied

80、between 24 and 32 minutes depending on the country.Sampling frame:The sample type is a non-probability sample recruited and stratified on the basis of representative quota distributions(quota sample).Sampling procedure:Using YouGovs proprietary sampling technology,quotas were framed based on the ini

81、tial census or profile of the target population.This frame was the basis on which the sampling software controlled the flow of members into each survey.The sampling software randomly selected members from the available panel,and allocated them to surveys according to the quotas set.YouGovs sampling

82、software included a router which removed the risk of self-selection on surveys,and increased our ability to deliver lower incidence samples within a short time frame.Panelists received an invitation email containing a survey link.When they accessed the link the router checked their participation aga

83、inst quotas on all live surveys and allocated them to a suitable survey.Since panelists were not invited to one specific survey the risks of early response bias,social desirability and other motivational biases were minimized.Survey pretest:To allow for testing,the online survey was soft-launched fr

84、om 2022/11/02 to 2020/11/03.Based on the results,no adjustments were made.Questionnaire:Huawei,in collaboration with Prof.Dr.Anna Schneider(lead),Prof.Dr.Ulrike Fasbender,and Prof.Dr.Fabiola Gerpott,provided the master questionnaire in English.YouGov reviewed the questionnaire and translated it into

85、 the local languages required for the target countries.Data preparation and analysis:The survey data was processed by YouGov and provided in a SPSS data set.Incomplete entries were removed from the data setalong with cases from the pretest and cases with duplicate cookie IDs were removed.The data wa

86、s analyzed in R.MethodologyCopyright2023 Huawei Technologies Co.,Ltd.All Rights Reserved.The information in this document may contain predictive statements including,without limitation,statements regarding the future financial and operating results,future product portfolio,new technology,etc.There a

87、re a number of factors that could cause actual results and developments to differ materially from those expressed or implied in the predictive statements.Therefore,such information is provided for reference purpose only and constitutes neither an offer nor an acceptance.Huawei may change the informa

88、tion at any time without notice.Bring digital to every person,home and organization for a fully connected,intelligent world.Prof.Dr.Anna SchneiderHochschule Fresenius University of Applied SciencesSince 2017,Anna Schneider is Professor of Business Psychology.Her research interests and teaching revol

89、ve around the impact of digitalization on consumer behavior,and in particular how people communicate and interact with emerging technology.Anna is a member of various research associations and sits on the scientific board of the Wissenschaftliches Institut fr Infrastruktur und Kommunikationsdienste(WIK)a renowned communications and internet policy think tank.Drawing on more than 20 years of hands-on experience in market research she regularly advices public and private organizations on surveys as well as qualitative research projects.About the author