Mentorship, Technology and You: Vancouver Stop of the eMentorship Program (Canadian Women in Technology)

When I think of Canadian women in technology, obviously three of my very first choices are my good friends Minna Van (co-founder of The Network Hub and someone who codes websites and apps with ease), Rebecca Bollwitt (co-owner of Sixty4Media, and a WordPress theme developer) and Maura Rodgers (co-founder of Strutta, Executive Director of Bootup Labs, and a number of other activities related to technology).

For me, women in technology are a fact of my day-to-day Vancouver life, and that may be a substantially biased view because I have many female friends who are either owners or co-founders of tech startups or work in the technology field. So, when Cathy Browne shared some information on Canadian Women in Technology and the eMentorship program whose only Vancouver stop will take place on Tuesday April 10th, 2012, I figured I would share with my audience.

I’m helping draw attention to a national initiative that just been launched to address a critical shortage of women in the tech sector – and I know you’re all supportive of these types of concerns.

Canadian women make up only 25% of the technology workforce, with only a small number holding management positions. And a staggering 52% of these highly trained and qualified women will leave their jobs after only 10 years. This doesn’t bode well for young women considering careers in technology.

According to Canadian Women in Technology (CanWIT), mentorship can help contribute to turning these stats around, and encourage the participation and advancement of young women in tech. Canada’s onlynational grassroots organization dedicated to promoting tech careers for women has launched an online mentorship matching platform, and is hosting workshops for both mentors and mentees across the country.

Think about it – would the career of a woman you know have been improved by a mentor’s guidance? Could her career be helped now? The answer is invariably yes.

The only Vancouver stop on the eMentorship tour is on Tuesday, April 10 at The Segal Graduate School of Business, SFU, 500 Granvile (at Pender) from 10 am-1 pm. The cost is $35 including lunch. Complete information can be found here. Sounds like a valuable workshop for any woman who wants to enter or is in the technology field.