RESEARCH SHOWS

“When Google and Apple launched their voice activation tech, both had a preference for male voices,” she says. “They would pick up questions from men more strongly than from women.”

She also points out that ambient office temperatures are nearly always geared to suit the male metabolism, which is why many women find office environments too cold. Such revelations are startling, but Williams feels the most-needed changes are societal.

“It’s all about narratives,” she says. “I only have sisters, my mum is a great professional role model and I went to an all-girls school, and at no point did anyone tell me there were things I couldn't achieve.”

She adds: “Our narratives around women and girls, and what they contribute to society, are vitally important, yet often these are not positive in nature.”

Positive narratives key to getting women into STEM jobs

Williams talks of a “narrative gap” that needs bridging, so that girls’ STEM ambitions are not stymied and women’s STEM goals are accommodated on a physical, psychological, and emotional level in the workplace.

She points out that, with so many organisations digitally transforming themselves in the bid for greater resilience, there has never been a better – or more important – time to begin changing attitudes and practices around STEM inclusivity.

“More people than ever are re-skilling and retraining, and we must keep that narrative open for women at all stages of their careers so that anything is possible for anybody.”

She feels the career narrative for girls has improved dramatically in recent times, “in terms of encouraging them to believe anything is possible”.

But she says mid-career women looking to retrain or upskill are not finding ways into the STEM roles many desire.

“It's a really important area,” says Williams. “Women represent half of the world's population, yet there's an estimated US$1tn of female potential that is untapped because they are not engaged in the workforce, or ARE engaged, but in sectors that are not