Women in Tech.

Resources for Women in Tech and STEM 

Women make up almost half of the U.S. workforce, but are still highly underrepresented in several areas of the tech and STEM industries, especially for women of color. If you’re a woman in tech looking to launch or progress in your tech career, here’s some women-focused media resources and learning courses to get you started.

Women in Tech Blogs 

These blogs can get you up to speed on happenings in today’s tech world.

Women Who Code Blog

Women Who Code is an international non-profit organization that was created to support and empower women in tech careers by providing networking and scholarship opportunities. Women Who Code’s blog presents various pieces ranging from career navigation to niche tech topics, all from the perspective of women in the industry.

Girls in Tech Blog

Girls in Tech is an organization that seeks to promote diversity and women’s voices in the tech sphere. Its blog features pieces on everyday tips for the workplace, women-centric career development skills and spotlight posts on specific organization members.

BUILT BY GIRLS Blog

BUILT BY GIRLS is a platform for young female and non-binary individuals to seek STEM guidance, connect with a community and receive access to certain tech tools. The BUILT BY GIRLS blog is filled with insights into for young women navigating personal and professional life, covering everything from how to budget better to how to deal with microaggressions in the workplace.

Tania Rascia’s Blog

For a more personal perspective, this blog gives an inside look into the life of Tania Rascia, a software developer and engineer working in Chicago, Illinois. Throughout her posts, Rascia shares software tutorials and knowledge categorized from topics like JavaScript to UX design.

Books for Women in Tech

Below is a list of books written for women in tech and startups that offer tips and perspectives for progressing in the industry. 

Brotopia: Breaking Up the Boys’ Club of Silicon Valley by Emily Chang

In her book, Emily Chang shows readers the inherently sexist “bro” culture that permeates the startup scene. Chang’s deep dive into Silicon Valley’s dangerous “work-at-all-costs” culture shows how the tech scene still leaves women behind and promotes a male-dominated environment.

Reset: My Fight for Inclusion and Lasting Change by Ellen Pao

This book shares the author’s personal story about suing a powerhouse Silicon Valley VC firm and exposing their discriminatory and misogynistic practices. Though Pao ended up losing the suit, she brought forward an important discussion about gender in the workplace and the lengths we still need to go to prevent discrimination.

Female Innovators at Work: Women on Top of Tech by Danielle Newnham

Newnham discusses the experiences and successes of female entrepreneurs in a largely male-dominated tech scene, interviewing a range of CEOs, founders and inventors, who all share their insights and advice on how to navigate the tech world while being a woman.

Pivot: The Only Move That Matters is Your Next One by Jenny Blake

Author Jenny Blake reveals that the success of your next career move depends on your ability to determine your best move. Women looking to make a career shift must strategize their biggest strengths to ensure that their next career puts them in position to achieve their wildest goals. 

More for Women in TechWhat Is Gender Bias in the Workplace?

Women in Tech Podcasts

Let’s be honest — podcasts are the best. They’re concise, informative, binge-worthy and great for professionals on-the-go. Check out these podcasts that inspire and celebrate women in tech and the greater workplace:

Women in Tech Podcast 

The Women in Tech Podcast is a talk show for women engineers, designers, founders and more from the tech industry to share their career experiences and how they got to where they are now. The podcast airs one to two episodes each week and is hosted by WeAreLATech founder Espree Devora.

Girlboss Radio

Girlboss Radio routinely serves up inspiring, insightful and entertaining podcasts that feature women from all different backgrounds discussing subjects that are important to them. On any given episode, you might hear how an entrepreneur built their billion dollar business, how an actor is working on a passion project that is important to them or how you can become a better version of yourself. 

Women at Work

The Harvard Business Review’s Women at Work podcast discusses pressing issues for women in the workplace in an in-depth and thoughtful manner, covering topics such as working in a male-dominated industry, how to make yourself a leader in your company and even how to build a feeling of “sisterhood” in your personal and professional life.

Coding Schools, Courses and Bootcamps for Women in Tech 

Whether you’re looking to start your career in STEM or are already an industry expert, there is always something you can learn from coding schools, bootcamps and courses directed for women.

Hackbright Academy

Hackbright Academy is not only a coding school teaching students popular languages (like Python, JavaScript and Flask), but it’s also a community for women to network and grow their career prospects. Throughout the 12-week program, students are linked up with educators, alumnae, mentors and hiring partners that help each student realize and reach their professional goals.

Ada Developers Academy

Ada Developers Academy is a non-profit, tuition-free coding school for women and gender-diverse individuals. This Seattle-based organization teaches women how to become junior developers and advocates in the workplace. Not only do they teach students everything from Ruby to Agile, but they also incorporate diversity and inclusion initiatives and advocacy work into their training regime as well.

Black Girls CODE

Black Girls CODE empowers young girls of color to participate in STEM fields. This resource hosts chapters, workshops, and camp programs all over the U.S. to teach web design, game design, mobile design and robotics. Black Girls CODE has partnered with businesses like IBM, VMWare and others to host relevant tech classes and events.

Girl Develop It

Girl Develop It is a nonprofit that gives women and non-binary adults a safe space to learn web and software development. The organization hosts workshops virtually or in-person from major U.S. cities to cover materials like “Introduction to Web Concepts,” “Intermediate HTML/CSS” and “Web Accessibility.” The goal of Girl Develop It is to give women of all diverse backgrounds an education that allows them to pursue great careers in software and app development.

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Women in Tech to Follow on Social Media

Below are just a few of the many women in tech to follow on social media.

Women in Tech Accounts to Follow

Mina Markham, Staff Software Engineer at Slack

Mina Markham holds expertise in front-end software development and is the founder of the Girl Develop It chapter in Dallas, Texas. She worked previously for the Hillary for America organization and has taught classes for Black Girls CODE.

Laura Medalia, Programmer in NYC

Laura Medalia is a NYC-based programmer and content creator who mixes fashion with her love of tech.

Rawan, Product Marketer at Meta

Rawan shares career development, education and program resources, as well as humorous commentary, for working in the tech industry. She also shares traveling and lifestyle content and what it’s like to work abroad in other continents.

Johna Rutz, Software Architect at Credera

Johna Rutz is a software architect at Credera, who shares her love of tech, books and travel with the world. Have a question for her? She tries to answer some of her follower’s most pressing questions.

Women Entrepreneur Accounts to Follow

Mariam Naficy, Founder + CEO of Minted

An entrepreneur woman, Mariam Naficy founded online design marketplace Minted, which has sold products to over 70 million homes.

Anne Wojcicki, Co-founder + CEO of 23andme

Anne Wojcicki provides a down-to-earth approach when it comes to being a mother, a tech innovator and CEO of 23andMe, one of the most well-known genetic testing services.

Payal Kadakia Pujji, Founder + Chairman of ClassPass

Payal Kadakia Pujji shares her insights into motherhood, culture, entrepreneurialism and how she took these inspirations to found fitness and wellness platform ClassPass.

Afton Vechery, Co-Founder of Modern Fertility, President of Women’s Health at Ro

Afton Vechery is the co-founder of Modern Fertility, a resource center for customized fertility tests, vitamins and reproductive system information. Vechery shares both fun and insightful posts as she changes the landscape of fertility technology and patient-centric healthcare.

Sara Blakely, CEO of Spanx

Entrepreneur and philanthropist Sara Blakely is responsible for founding billion-dollar business Spanx, a clothing apparel company for women. Blakely posts an abundance of uplifting content on her work, family and professional women’s empowerment.

Other Inspiring Women to Follow

Serena Williams, Retired Professional Tennis Player, Entrepreneur

Grand Slam award-winning athlete Serena Williams is a shining role model for women (and anyone) in the sport of tennis, being considered by many as one of the greatest tennis players of all time. Additionally, she’s not only a powerful champion for women, but also a fierce advocate for mothers when off the court.

Melinda Gates, Philanthropist, Advocate for Women and Children

Melinda Gates is a global icon for women’s issues, as well as, an author, philanthropist and co-chair of one of the world’s largest charitable foundations, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. 

Sheryl Sandberg, Founder of LeanIn.org, Board of Director and Former COO of Meta

A business executive and philanthropist, Sheryl Sandberg is a staunch advocate for gender parity in the working world, and has encouraged women’s leadership at Meta plus every workplace she has encountered.

Women in Tech Groups and Communities 

In-Person Communities for Women in Tech

In-person communities are vital for inspiring, networking and learning. Check out these stand-out community resources for women in tech.

Women Who Code

Women Who Code is a membership-based organization that develops training seminars for developing soft and technical skills in the workplace. The nonprofit hosts hundreds of events annually for women to meet and learn from others in the industry.

Girls in Tech

Girls in Tech is a tech resource community for women with members from all over the globe. The nonprofit has chapters in almost every major city that host everything from coding bootcamps to networking events and mentorship programs.

Women in Tech Meetups

Meetup is a resource for women to discover their own tech communities and network with like-minded individuals. With more than one million members representing over 1,000 different “women in technology” groups, you’re bound to find a welcoming network no matter where you are or what tech topics you’re interested in. Groups range from “women programmers” to “women entrepreneurs” and everything in between.

Online Communities for Women in Tech

Online communities are another way to meet industry professionals from all over the world. These four resources below act as virtual communities for women who want to learn, network and grow their careers:

Elpha

Elpha is an online social and professional networking site that lets users tap into different tech communities, find support, ask questions and read about what other women are doing throughout the tech and entrepreneurial world. The site features thoughtful content and women from various professional backgrounds seeking to connect over important topics in tech, like career growth, engineering, venture capital and startups.

Ladies Get Paid

Ladies Get Paid is a woman-centric platform that offers tools, resources and networks that help women to negotiate for equal pay and influence in the workplace. The free resource gives you access to a global network of thousands of professionals, who help each other navigate job searches, advocate for higher pay and act as career mentors.

Girlboss

The Girlboss social media platform lets women build profiles, share their accomplishments and network with other tech leaders. The online community is filled with a wide variety of professionals, including entrepreneurs, marketers and even CEOs, who are there to constantly offer advice, support and congratulations to other women in the group.

Tech Ladies

Tech Ladies is an online community of over 100,000 members that seeks to boost women’s participation in tech and prominent tech companies. The hybrid community hosts tech events, provides job resources, features tech employee stories and is a member of the United Nations Equal Pay International Coalition.

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Co-Working Spaces for Women in Tech

Co-working spaces are meant as flexible workspaces to get work done. If you’re an entrepreneur, it’s imperative that you work in an environment that’s comfortable and collaborative to maximize your impact. Luckily, these women-centric co-working spaces are giving entrepreneurs the ability to do just that.

Hera Hub

A “spa-inspired co-working space,” Hera Hub is an international women-focused network providing co-working spaces, business connections and educational workshops. Hera Hub has workspaces available for members in Washington D.C., Chicago and across multiple cities in California.

The Coven

The Coven is an inclusive platform for women and non-binary professionals to find community, access learning courses and reserve co-working spaces in the Minneapolis-Saint Paul Metropolitan Area in Minnesota. With the organization’s Workspace Plans, members have varied access to its workspaces in the Twin Cities with the ability to invite guests and receive early access to premium classes.

EvolveHer

EvolveHer offers career development reading materials and a designated event and working space for professional women in Chicago. The EvolveHer loft building is suitable for hosting conferences, panel discussions, photo sessions or just getting some work done in a quiet space. A fully audio-equipped podcast room is also available to book.

Chief

Chief realizes that it can be challenging to be a woman at the top of a company. That’s why they created a private network exclusively for women in the C-suite. A Chief membership gives executives the chance to connect with other powerful women to get deals done or share a few laughs in the comfort of a “clubhouse.” Chief currently operates upscale clubhouses in New York City, Los Angeles, Chicago and San Francisco.

Conferences and Events for Women in Tech

Conferences and events are a great way to stay in-the-know about the latest tech topics. They’re also a great way to build your network and meet other inspiring women. Below are a few of the best conferences for women in the tech industry.

Grace Hopper Celebration

The annual Grace Hopper Celebration is the largest gathering of women technologists in the world. Presented by AnitaB.org, the four day-long event has hosted speakers like Sheryl Sandberg and Melinda Gates, and features development tracks for technologists in topics that range from data science to artificial intelligence and IoT.

Lesbians Who Tech & Allies Summit

The Lesbians Who Tech & Allies Summit is one the largest LGBTQ professional events in the world. The event, hosting both in-person and virtual sessions, focuses on boosting the visibility of underrepresented groups in the tech sector. Each conference covers topical tech trends, explores how to progress careers and even discusses how to grow the LGBTQ+ population in the tech industry. Past speakers at the annual event have included Hillary Clinton, Stacey Abrams, Bozama Saint John, Jen Wong and Gabrielle Giffords.

Women in Tech Festival

The annual Women in Tech Festival celebrates women in STEM and business who inspire and empower other women. The two-day event features inspiring speakers, startup pitches, workshops and career mentoring sessions for all women and ally participants. Sponsored by the Silicon Valley Forum, the Women in Tech Festival has become an important networking event for women in Silicon Valley.

Women in Tech Summit

The Women in Tech Summit (WITS) hosts virtual conferences that all help to educate, inspire and connect women. The summit hosts women technologists from a wide variety of different fields, like data science, software development, sales and DevOps. The goal of the Women in Tech Summit is to keep women at the forefront of technological trends with workshops and speakers that deal with cutting-edge technologies.