New Study Exposes Hidden Gender Bias in Tech Job Descriptions

Research from Cangrade highlights tech industry practices perpetuating gender bias against women in tech

WATERTOWN, MA – April 2, 2024 – As DE&I initiatives are increasingly valued but under-prioritized and underfunded in tech, Cangrade, a leading AI-based predictor of job candidate success and retention, has published a comprehensive report revealing insights into gender bias in job descriptions and how to combat it. 

At the end of 2023, women in tech held only 35% of positions, underscoring the uphill battle for gender parity in the industry. Cangrade’s research examines how job description language may be keeping the number of women in tech low. 

Cangrade analyzed criteria like DE&I statements, language, and parent-friendly policies in job postings from female-dominated and male-dominated occupations to compare to tech job postings across five major cities. 

Here are a few of the key findings from Cangrade’s research on gender bias in tech job descriptions:

• Tech job postings have the least amount of feminine-coded language at a rate of 54%.
• Tech job postings are more likely to include a blanket DE&I statement and show a deeper commitment to DE&I than male-dominated jobs, but trail female-dominated jobs.
• Tech job postings use the most superlative language. 
• Coding job postings within tech show a 15% higher likelihood of showing a deeper commitment to DE&I than no-code tech jobs despite having fewer DE&I statements.
• No-code job postings within tech are 47% more likely to have parent-friendly policies than coding jobs.

“Gender bias in job descriptions transcends sectors, affecting non-tech and tech roles,” shares Cangrade Research Scientist, Dr. Katherine Chia. “Despite the tech industry’s efforts to promote inclusivity, disparities in language use suggest that barriers remain, particularly in coding jobs. The tech industry, always at the forefront of innovation, stands to win by making job ads more inclusive, aligning its actions with its image as a leader in the fair and inclusive workplace culture space.”

For the full report, including insights and action steps for tech organizations to address gender bias in job descriptions, visit: https://www.cangrade.com/blog/hr-strategy/exposing-hidden-gender-bias-in-job-descriptions-report/

For more information, visit www.cangrade.com or email info@cangrade.com.

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About Cangrade:

Cangrade’s is a leading bias-free, AI-based hiring solution enabling HR leaders to be strategic business partners that drive results. By seamlessly integrating data into talent management processes, Cangrade helps HR make accurate, efficient talent decisions from initial screening through promotions. Backed by I/O psychology and cutting-edge machine learning, Cangrade’s solutions deliver 10x more accurate predictions of talent success and retention than traditional hiring methods and a 0% chance of introducing bias. Cangrade’s Pre-Hire Assessment has helped organizations like Wayfair, FDNY, and Unum make the right talent decisions on over 10 million candidates. For more information, visit www.cangrade.com.

Media Contact:

Sarah Gurr

Chief Marketing Officer

press@cangrade.com