University connections and other successes Companies that have been successful in hiring women for technology positions have discovered a number of effective strategies as the demand for skilled professionals increases daily. Shirley says that companies needing qualified entry-level IT personnel should check with local universities. If the need is for management personnel, Women in Technology International and the Association of Computing Machinery, a professional society for computer scientists, are also good resources. Companies can recruit for open IT positions among people with industrial engineering backgrounds. Women are more attracted to system-level things, particularly if there are people involved.
Women tend to focus on social systems.
It also helps companies to know which schools are nurturing the interest of women in engineering. At the University of Oklahoma, freshman women who signed up for engineering also got seminars that previewed the college engineering department and what they can expect out of their coursework. The Society of Women Engineers is an active support group for women in engineering at the school. And the young women can see themselves reflected in the engineering faculty at the university. We recruit women faculty members all the time, Shirley says.