{"id":6681,"date":"2023-11-23T12:20:00","date_gmt":"2023-11-23T12:20:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/innovationisrael.org.il\/en\/?post_type=report&p=6681"},"modified":"2023-11-23T12:20:07","modified_gmt":"2023-11-23T12:20:07","slug":"women-in-high-tech","status":"publish","type":"report","link":"https:\/\/innovationisrael.org.il\/en\/report\/women-in-high-tech\/","title":{"rendered":"Women in High-Tech"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
The Israeli high-tech industry is at the forefront of Israeli innovation and its achievements set new records every year. Nevertheless, as far as gender equality is concerned, Israeli high-tech has significant room for improvement. Women comprise only one third of Israeli high-tech employees, a figure that has remained constant over time. At each stage of the path to the high-tech industry and subsequently, within the industry itself, women are a distinct minority. The higher up one examines the ladder of seniority, the lower the ratio of women startup founders, or partners in venture capital funds \u2013 portraying a discouraging reality. Global comparisons with other international centers of innovation show that Israel lags behind other countries with low levels of women entrepreneurs and funding of their companies. Initial encouraging signs have been witnessed in recent years with increased numbers of women signing up for academic studies in high-tech professions, an increase in the number of female highschool students graduating with matriculation certificates in computer studies, and in other indices, but progress is slow. Processes must be accelerated to reduce the gender disparity while increasing joint efforts of government and the high-tech industry itself at each stage.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
This report, being published for the first time, aims to lay the foundations of a knowledge infrastructure that is based on facts and figures in order to gain a deep understanding of the reality for women in Israeli high-tech and in the paths leading to it. Furthermore, considering the important role of technological innovation within the Israeli innovation ecosystem, this report places special emphasis on analyzing the gender aspects of the Israeli startup arenas, including reference to the ratio of women entrepreneurs, the sectors in which they choose to establish companies, and their ratio in funding rounds. It is specifically in light of the impressive flourishing of Israeli high-tech and the significant levels of capital it has attracted in recent years, that it is important to highlight this weaker angle of Israeli high-tech.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Women\u2019s path to the high-tech sector begins at an early stage. Choices made by high school students have a significant influence on their later professional career and on their chances of being accepted to the field. For women to become entrepreneurs, to serve in senior corporate roles, or to progress to investment roles in venture capital funds, they must first acquire relevant education and training and advance within the industry. To increase the representation of women in the industry it is therefore important to increase their relative presence at each stage on the path that leads to high-tech.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The beginning of this path \u2013 the 5-study unit matriculation exams in mathematics \u2013 is characterized by a state of near gender equality. The gender gap begins to widen however during the following years of military service in the development and cyber units that pave the way of those serving in them to the Israeli innovation sector. Women comprise 23% of the soldiers serving in these units. The situation is slightly better in academic high-tech studies where, although the number of female students increased by 64% within the last decade, their relative share of total students in these subjects has increased only slightly and women still comprise less than one third of the total number of students. Subsequently, and as the level of seniority rises, the ratio of women in high-tech industry steadily declines.<\/p>\n\n\n\n