Why we need more women in tech sales. Patricia Tompkins-DuChene, Wrike Director of International sales

By Reuben Godfrey

Women in Tech Sales

It’s not controversial, or at this stage even very interesting, to comment solely on the statistical gender imbalance that exists in the tech industry. Just last week at the World Economic Forum in Davos they discussed the Industry Gender Gap; Women and Work in the Fourth Industrial Revolution, a study that confirms anecdotal assumptions that the ICT sector is deficit in most key areas when it comes to gender equality. Fewer female students are traditionally attracted to STEM courses and  revolutionary thinking, it seems, is needed to encourage girls into these fields.

Salesfloors, too, have a reputation and history of gender imbalance but for different reasons. It’s often said that women are not drawn to the perceived high-risk associated with performance based salaries, preferring more predictable careers and more stable incomes. Fewer women apply for sales positions and those in sales have often migrated there from a different role.

With every challenge, it’s said, comes an opportunity. As girl-powered, tech savvy, millennials  push past entry-level positions, how are sales structures adapting and what challenges still exist before the gap can be fully bridged?

We are interviewing women from different roles within tech sales. First up is Patricia Tompkins-DuChene, Director of International Sales at Californian management application service provider Wrike.

How important is it for you to see more women in sales roles? 

Extremely important.  Women make up approximately one half of the world’s population and they make up just a small fraction of the tech sales workforce.  So you have to wonder – what talent are we missing by not reaching out to more of the female population when hiring?  What opportunities and ideas are we missing?  Women bring a different mind set to the sales arena, they can challenge the ways we have historically approached sales and help us to improve this ever-changing career.

Why, do you feel, are there so few women in sales roles in technology?

There are many reasons that one could point to when answering this question. At the end of the day, we need to look at the beginning of the story – how are we raising our girls?  Do we empower them at a young age?  Do we encourage an entrepreneurial spirit?  Do they realize that they are just as capable as a young boy to do anything?  Careers don’t have gender roles.  As adults, we need to remember this as well.  We are all humans and we all have goals and aspirations of our own.  If a woman is to interview at your company, would she see a culture that is welcoming in general?  Or would she see an “Old Boy’s Club” with behavior that is likely to alienate her?

5 best tools to increase #productivity for #entrepreneurs: https://t.co/kluwprWsOl via @lifehackorg pic.twitter.com/Yl0OMRyg6v

— Wrike (@wrike) February 10, 2016

THE BUSINESS CASE FOR CHANGE

In addition to a values-based case for gender equality, there is an accompanying economic imperative for including women more fully into society and the workplace and women’s participation in the workforce is no longer perceived as a social issue alone, but also as a business issue—costing women, companies and ultimately entire economies.

– The Industry Gender Gap; Women and Work in the Fourth Industrial Revolution

What is your organization doing to address gender imbalance? What are you doing personally?  

When we set out to build the Dublin office in July ’15, I was laser focused on finding the best talent to launch our EMEA headquarters and creating a culture that would continue Wrike’s legacy of being a great place to work.  I felt to accomplish these two goals, I had to ensure we interviewed plenty of candidates and with that, a diverse set of candidates.  We interviewed women for every single position in our “landing team.”  It took over 250 interviews to hire the best talent for this team and the result is a team that is 40% female.

Direct from Wrike HQ in Mountain View, our Director of Talent Management and CFO, are wrapping up a audit of the company’s pay levels.  They have run comparisons across genders, teams, and departments to evaluate if we are paying people who do the same function equally.  We want to ensure that Wrike is a fun, challenging, and fair place to work.

This is just the start.  There is plenty of more work that we can do at Wrike, as well as in our industry.  It’s not an issue that can be fixed with a single solution or initiative.  It will take the attention and participation of men and women, executives, directors, managers, and front line sales reps.  It has to be everyone’s issue because ultimately, we are only limiting the development of sales as a career by excluding one half of the population from the conversation.  I love innovation, I love technology, and I love improvement.  So I say, the more people, the merrier.

”As millennials we are not afraid of obstacles or norms; we aren’t afraid of what ‘has been’, we are too busy improving on the present.”

Have a?about Wrike? Visit our Help Center https://t.co/soZFoGQkf1, or we're easy to reach at [email protected]! pic.twitter.com/cz1s1PIiV7

— Wrike (@wrike) February 2, 2016

What can your male colleagues do/be more aware of?

Be aware of what women bring to a sales organization in their own right, rather than simply measuring them through the same benchmark we’ve always used for men. When we look at women in sales, we often dismiss them because they apologize “too much” or they do not speak their opinions as if they are facts (attention everyone: opinions are opinions, not facts) or they seem emotionally connected to a deal/client.  Why are any of these things bad or weak?  Apologizing is owning your part in something, opinions are not facts, and emotion is absolutely key when winning a client’s loyalty.  A client wants a relationship with their sales rep.  People buy from people.  Who can say they have had a relationship with someone who didn’t have emotions?  In a world of tech sales that is fast moving towards a consultative sales process, we need more of this ownership and emotion.  If a rep cannot connect with their customer, they cannot expect the customer to trust them.  When we look at all of our sales reps we need to diversify the ways in which we measure their potential.  One size doesn’t fit all and we need to view the different approach women bring as a positive, welcome change to our profession.

If you would like to have your company featured in the Irish Tech News Business Showcase, get in contact with us at [email protected] or on Twitter: @SimonCocking