The smaller the number of people in the industry, the fewer of those ideas we'll get. That's more in focus in our industry because growth is directly related to human talent. Meanwhile, women are missing out on some of the best career paths. Other tech jobs are growing nearly as quickly. In the end, say analysts, the economy suffers.
Technology is the fastest-growing U.S. industry, and it dominates world markets.
If the lack of women keeps a leash on the industry's growth, it holds back the nation's economy in general. What discourages managers and officials who watch job trends is that the problem is not easily fixable. Even today, when women are commonplace in professions such as medicine and law, women still are nudged away from technology at every stage of life, from attitudes towards girls in grade school, social pressures in high school, the atmosphere at universities and the nerd culture in company computer departments. Changing all that and more could take generations. Nicolette Martin, a technology manager at 3Com, jokes that there's one quick solution.