IET launches campaign to boost female engineers

The Institute of Engineering and Technology (IET) is launching a new campaign to encourage companies to revisit their approach to recruitment and retention in order to make sure that they are doing everything possible to attract more women to engineering roles.

Currently, only 7% of the total engineering workforce is female. This effectively means that engineering companies are not accessing half of the potential talent pool which, given the impending skills crisis in engineering and technology, makes little sense.

IET Deputy President, Naomi, Climer, who is also President of Sony Media Cloud Services, is championing the campaign. Climer led a 50:50 campaign to creat an inclusive and diverse culture that promotes gender balance and a fulfilling working environment to achieve a greater business result. She is now keen to encourage her fellow engineers to do the same.

Sony Europe did not previously have a good record or attracting or retaining female engineers. It also had a very low percentage of women in senior positions.

Climer said: “Before launching the campaign, we had to highlight that the lack of women was a genuine business concern. To do this we set out a strong and compelling business case. Our focus was that improved diversity would lead to more innovation, as well as more harmonious and collaborative working environment, all of which ultimately help us to maintain our competitive position”.

The IET campaign, which is calling for other companies to look at how they can make their recruitment and retention more female friendly, is launched on National Women in Engineering Day, which is dedicated to raising the profile and celebrating the achievements of women in engineering.

Adapted from a press release by Emma McAleavey.

Read the article online at: https://www.worldpipelines.com/business-news/23062014/iet_campaign_encourages_women_to_engineering_765/