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Women are now the dominant
force in the information economy. They constitute the majority
of the users of information technology. That's not the case with the
pushers of computers. They are overwhelmingly male. Computer people
talk about the "information economy" or "information society," but
almost no one mentions the people who make it up. The just-published
"Statistical Abstract of
the United States" (U.S. Bureau of the Census) may force us to
revisit what the information economy is all about. IT folks invoke
Moore's Law, cybercommerce and data connectivity when discussing the
information economy, as if it were only about hardware and software.
They also should consider the changes in the socioeconomic structure of the U.S., where their technological marvels will have to be accepted. The information management workforce — unlike those who manage IT — is made up of executives, managers, professionals, sales and administrative personnel. The people in these occupational categories create, distribute and consume information as their primary concerns. (Noninformation occupations, such as technicians, service personnel, production workers and farmers are increasingly engaged in part-time information processing tasks, but I don't count that). The information management workforce now makes up 55% of U.S. employment and earns a remarkable 64% of all wages and salaries. The information workforce has also been growing twice as fast as all other occupations and getting better raises than everyone else. Information management is where women are now building their careers. The statistics show their remarkable success. There are 5.6 million more women than men in information management occupations. Are they, as many believe, in mostly clerical jobs? The facts suggest that's not so: By 1996 (the last year for which such numbers are available), women had attained parity in the higher-paying managerial and professional occupations. There were 13.3 million women and 13.9 million men in this job category. If you look at pay, women are gaining there as well. As compensation for women picks up with seniority, and if current growth rates continue, one can expect that most of the income of career women will come from occupying information management positions. Meanwhile, the computer industry, especially in marketing and sales, continues to be male-dominated: The female participation rate in IT jobs declined from 31% in 1983 to 29% in 1996. There are more influential positions available to women in the huge (55% of total employment) "IT-using" information management sector than in the smaller (1.3%) "IT-producing" sector. I've long thought that the computer industry's combative marketing tactics are better explained by the testosterone quotient of male executives than the MIPS they have to offer. Such tactics make less sense now that more of the executives who buy and live with computer systems are women. Ms. MIS columnist Kathleen Melymuka noted that young women are more interested in being the drivers of IT than the mechanics [CW, Jan. 18]. As power over technology shifts to those who apply IT, it seems they are making the right bet about where the best prospects will be. For every dollar U.S. industrial corporations spend on IT, they will spend 10 on information management. Anyone thinking about the future of the information society should stop focusing on the ambition of the mostly male technology pushers and heed the concerns of the majority of those who will pay for and work with IT. Strassmann (paul@strassmann.com) has been writing for years about the importance of total life-cycle management of IT costs. He is still waiting for a new generation of business executives to adopt that view. |
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