Investing in black women in ICT sector to shatter glass ceiling

Published Aug 17, 2015

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Innovator Trust

While the information and communication technology (ICT) industry is undoubtedly the most exciting and rapidly expanding industry, there is still a marked lack of female representation in its workforce.

According to Tashline Jooste, chief executive of ICT enterprise development initiative the Innovator Trust, this is particularly true for black women. “We identified this as a major shortfall within our local sector and our primary goal is to empower and upskill our entrepreneurs,” she said. “The goal is to be a significant contributor to the growth of the sector through the successful development of small businesses through innovative development processes.”

Through her experience as an ICT industry SMME incubator, Jooste said that some of the main challenges and barriers to entry for black, female-owned SMMEs in this field were the scarcity of both technology and business resources and skills, as well as a lack of access to potential clients. “In some instances the stereotyping of women by organisations within a primarily male-dominated industry presents major hurdles for females… many are discouraged from endeavouring to find success in ICT due to a perceived lack of support. However, it is important to note that these gaps also present valuable and sustainable opportunities for black female ICT professionals and entrepreneurs,” Jooste said. “As this garners more attention and awareness among socially conscious business organisations, many companies have now begun to add more black and femaleowned companies to their preferred supplier lists. These businesses actively seek their services over those of more established service providers to support the industry and make a meaningful social impact.”

However, Jooste says that simply gaining access to markets is not enough to boost businesses and the industry at large. “Concrete business acumen, a sustainable and workable business model, as well as on-going skills development are crucial elements in the success of black female-owned SMMEs in the ICT sector,” she said. “Because of the high standards and strong demands of this industry, we have employed strict entry criteria to ensure the SMMEs we invest our resources and mentorship in are viable and have real profit potential.”

For many of the black women heading SMMEs and entrepreneurs trying to break into the South African ICT market, gaining access to the required business skills and resources could mean an invaluable and crucial jump start into the industry. “We are passionate about creating successful and highly skilled black female business owners and entrepreneurs, and believe that by helping to create these rolemodels, this passion and perseverance will spread – having a significant impact on the industry,” Jooste said.

l The Innovator Trust was formed to develop competent SMMEs through training, skills sharing and infrastructure support in the information and communications technology (ICT) sector. As such, the company has partnered with other incubators who have experience and knowledge in this field, to help grow SMME entrepreneurship and make a real impact in the ICT SMME sector over the next five years.

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