STEM: Daughters at CGI now have a firm idea of the future

The firm began the events in London last year with 100 girls taking part and they were so well received it was decided to broaden the initiative to include Scotland, with one held in Edinburgh and one in Glasgow.
Edinburgh-based SME company, Robotical, supported the events by bringing their robots along so the girls could programme them to dance to music.

“We worked hard on the programme to make it varied,” said Steve Smart CGI’s senior vice president for Scotland. “It was really interesting as we had the robots in the morning and we were a bit worried that the coding session we had planned for the afternoon might seem a bit boring by comparison, but the girls loved it as well.”
The initiative has been developed as part of CGI’s efforts to address the gender gap in the IT industry and inspire young girls to consider careers in technology.

Many other events attempting to engage girls with the industry are aimed at teenagers but CGI took the decision to target a younger age group in the light of research that shows girls begin thinking about future jobs when they are just seven or eight-years-old.

However, a recent report by Ofsted found their thinking was strongly influenced by stereotypes circulating within society.
“These girls were aware of the conventions surrounding ‘girls’ jobs’ and ‘boys’ jobs’,” the report said.

The good news is that the researchers found some girls who had decided to pursue a STEM career, mainly because they had had the opportunity to meet an adult working in the sectors or had had the chance to try some STEM-based work. 

“In the few examples where girls had changed their minds and set out on a new and unfamiliar route, that change had often been catalysed by a personal experience of either meeting a professional in school, or directly encountering the new kind of work for themselves,” the report said.
For these reasons, CGI has been concentrating on providing opportunities to girls aged eight to 12.

 
“It is important to make an impact at that age and we got fantastic feedback with many of them saying it was the best day of their lives and that kind of thing,” said Steve.

Daughters, nieces, neighbours and friends were all encouraged to attend with the nominating CGI member also playing a part in hosting.
“As far as we are concerned it is a no brainer as we get to promote ourselves to lots of girls that hopefully in time will come to work for us or tell their friends about us,” said Steve. “Presenting to 10-year-old girls and keeping them engaged is quite a challenge so it is also a good opportunity for members to build their presenting skills.”

Richard Holmes, vice president for Cyber Security Services at CGI, took daughters, Erin, 12 and Iris, 8, to one of the events.
“I have three girls so I am quite alive to the challenge of getting them interested in technology and counteracting the gender conditioning that everyone gets as they are growing up with, for example, girls’ ranges and boys’ ranges in toy shops,” he said.  

“Having a day where it was cool to do technology and normal for girls was a really good message for them to be given.”
While Richard believes society has come a long way since his grandmother had to go to a boys’ grammar school in order to study science, he thinks there is still work to be done to close the gender gap.
“Companies like ours need to play their part,” he said. 

“Often girls make up their minds about science at a very early age. Schools are changing their approach but businesses need to be involved as well.

“From my perspective, it is great to see the company willing to do something to encourage girls to explore STEM subjects and who knows –maybe that is the day they will remember when it comes to deciding on their careers.”

CGI have now made up a pack so they can hold Bring Your Daughter to Work days regularly and which they can use to encourage their clients to hold similar initiatives.   

The events were held as part of the company’s Dream Connectors project, a global initiative which aims to focus CGI’s corporate social responsibility by developing ideas conceived and proposed by members.
Founded in 1976, CGI is among the largest independent IT and business consulting services firms in the world, with 74,000 professionals across the globe.

It is sponsoring the Scottish Cyber Awards 2018 on November 28 which are aimed at raising the profile of cyber careers in Scotland. The awards include the category of Outstanding Woman in Cyber.

Broadening minds and opportunities 

FOR eight-year-old Lola Galbraith going to work with her mum was “the best day of my life”.

She was one of the girls who took part this summer in a day of STEM based activities held by her mother Gina’s employers, technology giants CGI.

The Bring Your Daughter to Work days are organised by the company to encourage more girls to think about technology as a career option.
“It was an amazing opportunity for her to see where her mummy works every day and to see how fun technology can be,” said Gina Galbraith, CGI communications director. 

Erin, 12 (left) and Iris, eight (right) accompanied their father Richard Holmes, vice president for Cyber Security Services at CGI, to work to learn about the scope of work in technology.

“Every day I try to nurture the belief that Lola can do and be anything she wants to be – this CGI initiative is so important for demonstrating that this is true and that they should not be afraid to try things.”
As the family do not live near the office, Lola had never had the opportunity to see round it before and was very excited about going to the building where her mother works.

“She had her eyes wide open all day and I was proud on two counts  – proud of her and bringing her in to meet people I have worked with for years and also proud to work for a company that sees the importance of doing things like Daughter To Work days which have the potential to make a huge difference,” said Gina.

  
“Who knows how this experience may impact Lola’s future decision but it can only be positive. I think it is great that she got the chance to see that it is not a man’s world or a boy’s world and that she can keep her options open.  “All the activities were about driving enthusiasm for the STEM subjects, making them fun and showing the girls that anything is possible. 

 
“There wasn’t one activity she didn’t enjoy and it was pitched really well for the age range that was there.  It was a great experience for her to take part in all the activities and get a taste of technology.”
Gina believes it is “fundamental” for businesses like CGI to address the gender gap in STEM-based careers. “I don’t think we have any other option as we have to do something drastic to change what is currently happening,” she said.

  
“Anything that can make a difference to these girls when they are choosing their subjects later on has to be a good thing. 
“I think it is non-negotiable for businesses like ours to be involved and help counteract the gender stereotyping that goes on. I don’t blame the schools – I think a lot of it just goes on subconsciously and that is what we have to fight against. People just accept that boys are better at some things and the girls think they can’t do certain subjects so we have to challenge the status quo. 

“I think this event opened Lola’s eyes to the possibilities that are available.”