The Women of AccessHQ

Jodi Lawson, Corporate HR Manager

The Women of AccessHQ

When I was asked to write this post for International Women’s Day, my thoughts immediately went to how I could write about our good track record of employing and promoting women in our organisation. According to a recent survey by the Australian Computer Society, just 23.5% of all ICT trade, technical and professional jobs are performed by women; and in an industry dominated by men, our 44% female employee base is a standout!

At AccessHQ, our staff development program, Your ROAD, focusses heavily on competency acquisition and career development. In the past 12 months, we have promoted approximately 15% of our employees and 50% of those promotions have been female employees.

Picture of staff celebrating International Women's Day in our AccessHQ Sydney office Picture of staff celebrating International Women's Day in our AccessHQ Canberra office

So, why are women successful at AccessHQ? I have put a lot of thought into this and I believe that our Human Quality philosophy focusses heavily on traditionally female dominated traits such as empathy, communication and relationship building. I realise that I am generalising and a lot of men have these traits too, which is why AccessHQ is focussed on promoting people based on ability and not gender; but our vision, values and culture provide an environment that enables women, as much as men.

The changes we are seeing in the ICT industry also provide an environment that allows women to shine. We have seen a dramatic change in the skills our clients demand. Of course, technical skills are essential, however other skills that top the list of demands are:

  • Great communication
  • Empathy and customer focus
  • The ability to multi-task
  • The ability to build relationships is key to success

So, if you’re thinking about a career in the exciting and ever changing world of ICT, I encourage you to jump in, immerse yourself, because odds are, you will be successful!

If you’re already in ICT and thinking about how you can develop your career, I encourage you to take up any and all career development on offer. Focus on developing skills that will make you stand out from the crowd. Play to your strengths. Get a mentor! Join groups such as Females in IT and Telecommunications. Network! Go to Meetups. And, most importantly, don’t be afraid to ask for help because it’s generally there if you ask for it! #BeBoldForChange

 

 

Profile picture of Jodi Lawson, the Corporate HR Manager at AccessHQ

Jodi Lawson is the Corporate HR Manager at AccessHQ. With over 17 years in the business, she has witnessed a huge amount of change in the IT industry, and in particular, assurance and testing.

She is passionate about ensuring the HR strategy is aligned to the Human Quality vision while maintaining a respectful and positive company culture. She takes a consultative approach to dealing with stakeholders and plays a key role in the leadership group to assist in guiding the organisation through growth and profitability.