Caroline is an award-winning data expert, author and co-founder of global data consultancy Carruthers and Jackson.
She was one of the first women to take on the role of Chief Data Officer and has worked across multiple industries to build data capability and deliver real change.
In my time working in the technology industry, there have been significant strides forward that undoubtedly place women in a better position.
IT has gone from being seen as the male domain, to female workers getting recognition as instrumental figures, and spearheading innovation. Marked by demands for equal pay, shared parental leave, and access to leadership positions, the 21st century has been a turning point for gender equality in the technology industry.
It’s crucial to recognise these achievements and appreciate the collective effort that brought us here. However, there is still clear room for improvement, and ironically, the tech industry, which leads the world in innovation, has been one of the slowest to adapt to societal changes. This is demonstrated by the fact that less than one-third of tech sector employees globally are women.
That is not to say we should lose hope, as the technology industry continues to grow, so does the number of women working in it, and with each new innovation I see an opportunity for women to take a pivotal leadership role and shape the future of the business and economic landscape. Most recently, the ongoing Artificial Intelligence (AI) revolution provides an opportunity for female leaders to rise to the occasion, and have their voices heard to ensure the tools being created take different viewpoints into account and benefit all groups in society.
The AI Landscape
Recently, AI has dominated the news and technology agenda, and going forward, this technology will be integrated into most aspects of life and will produce new efficiencies and powerful, dynamic tools.
No matter how sophisticated AI becomes, I’m a big advocate for ALWAYS having a human in the loop somewhere. So even if it’s just checking the consequences and the outcome of the actions that we’re taking and having the ability to go back if we need to, I think that the moment we’ve given that up, we’ve lost. Humans are also obviously integral to the design and development of AI products.
For these reasons, we have to consider how humanity and technology can interact effectively. This means really looking at the teams leading the development of the new wave of AI, to ensure the industry is mitigating against bias and the reproduction of normative assumptions while encouraging creativity and flexibility.
Diversity is key for development
To succeed in developing new AI tools and projects, companies need to ensure a diversity of voices are present at all stages. For example IBM recently found that 73% of business leaders believe that increased female leadership in the AI sector is important for mitigating gender bias in AI, and 74% saw increased female leadership as important for ensuring that the economic benefits of AI are equally felt across society. This is vital, as due to the mass appeal of Generative AI, the people using AI products now, may not have traditionally engaged in the world of data and technology. It’s almost like we’ve got a new audience to deal with.
As AI companies cater for a more diverse selection of people, there needs to also be a range of voices and perspectives amongst those creating products. The second that different perspectives and experiences aren’t taken into account, it’s increasingly likely that groups’ needs will be forgotten, and when developing a new product, the forgotten group is perhaps the most important one. For example, in 2022 a new study by UCL researchers found that AI models built to predict liver disease from blood tests were twice as likely to miss disease in women as in men. The researchers noted that the disparity in performance likely reflected existing inequalities in care, as the biochemical markers of disease used by the algorithms appear to be a more effective indicator of disease in men.
If AI technology continues to be sourced predominantly from men and/or based on male profiles, women will continue to be negatively impacted. For example, AI Personal Assistants like Alexa, Cortana, and Siri were programmed predominantly by men and gendered to be distinctly female which has been criticised for potentially reproducing normative assumptions. This sort of issue is often the outcome of not having female voices in the development stage.
I believe, with the right leadership, we will be able to develop systems that will learn from and reflect a much broader population. This can be achieved by diverse leadership groups, where there is a higher likelihood that challenges will be approached and tackled in new and creative ways.
Data Guardrails
By having a diverse selection of data scientists developing AI tools, with soft skills that complement their technical abilities, it is more likely that data leaders will look at the whole situation and ask the necessary questions to ensure that new tools inherit as little bias as possible. Through effective governance, data leaders need to insert guardrails, these should be just far enough from the road that businesses can’t drive off the edge of the cliff but not so far that innovators can’t still drive and use the road.
Data scientists can’t exist in isolation, we need well rounded individuals. The best data scientists I know understand psychology, they have a creative background and they’re open to experimentation, flexibility, and agility. Of course, the most important role for any data leader is ensuring data quality and collection. This is vital for AI development because it directly impacts the performance, accuracy and reliability of models.
Inclusive, Ethical and Empowering For All
Despite recognition that female workers have had a significant, lasting impact in the world of tech, and an industry wide consensus that women should be active participants in AI’s deployment, only 33% of businesses in EMEA have a female leader in charge of making decisions on AI strategy. Going forward, these companies need to make women feel supported and that they are equipped with the skills and confidence needed to lead the next stage of AI development.
To ensure the AI revolution succeeds, the technology industry needs to guarantee that the people leading the charge reflect society at large, and the industry needs to move forward with a shared image of making future tools inclusive, ethical, and empowering for all.
