'Geek girls are chic' is mantra (and book) for activists
Source: Mike Snider,

Sandy Carter and Elizabeth Caudle talk about ways to advance women in technology at SXSW. (Kaveh Rezaei)

Stemming the growing gender gap in technology requires efforts that target girls at a young age, according to activists who gathered to discuss the topic at SXSW.

Studies show that even though more women earn college degrees than in the past, the percentage of computer science degrees that go to women has declined, from 37% in 1984 to 18% in 2012. This decade, an estimated 4.8 million computer science-related jobs are expected to be created.

And while women make up nearly half of the work force (48%), they only account for one-fourth (24%) of those in tech careers.

"This is something that (we're) really trying to tackle," said Elizabeth Caudle, east coast regional director for Girls Who Code, an educational group seeking to expose 1 million young women to computer science education by 2020. IBM is hosting one of Girls Who Code's 40 summer immersion programs.

Caudle spoke Sunday at SXSW about advancing girls and women in technology. Joining her was Sandy Carter, general manager of IBM's cloud ecosystem development. "This is the challenge we face," she said.

Carter and IBM created a downloadable book called Geek Girls Are Chic for SXSW and it's available free to download on ibm.com.

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In some ways, women are natural techies in that social networking, which can be a strength in the workplace, Carter said. When encouraged, girls and women can flourish and, in the end, companies can benefit when they are more diverse.

Companies that are more diverse -- with more women and minorities on board -- deliver about a 35% higher return on equity and a 34% return to shareholders, she said, citing research from Catalyst.

"So it's not just nice to support Elizabeth and Girls Who Code," Carter said. "It is the right thing to do for your company's bottom line whether you are entrepreneur or a large company like IBM."


On stage at South By Southwest, Elizabeth Caudle of Girls Who Code, at left, and Sandy Carter of IBM. (Photo: Mike Snider)

Women should take notice because tech-related jobs such as these STEM (science, tech, engineering and math) jobs pay 33% more, on average, than non-STEM jobs. And tech jobs typically have less of a disparity in salaries among the sexes.

Geek Girls Are Chic includes advice for all ages on embracing the opportunities that tech has to offer, from fostering girls' interest in technology to improving women's tech relevance in their careers.

"We want to instill in them that they need to be building their skills over the course of their entire career," Caudle said.

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The three-week South by Southwest festival in Austin, Texas is set to begin. Here is what people think about SXSW. (Kaveh Rezaei)