FDM Group accelerates initiative helping women break into tech careers

FDM Group, the FTSE 250 global leader in the recruit, train and deploy sector, has accelerated a series of programmes to help female graduates and consultants break into tech careers.

The first programme under the ‘SheLivesTech’ initiative was launched in November 2022, and it is an all female software development class. The 14-week programme has already onboarded 13 female trainees, training them in key programming languages such as Python and Java before placing them on-site with clients in consultant roles.

The second programme in the SheLivesTech initiative is a coding bootcamp for female students, offering them a one-day taster course to help them understand their future career path and get a taster for the tech industry.

It is targeted towards final year students and has already received over 50 sign-ups. The bootcamps will run in London, Leeds, and Glasgow in the final week of February, culminating in a showcase day on the 8th of March.

Other initiatives include providing their consultant base with access to inspirational female leaders through leadership events, such as their recent consultant trip to the Karen Brady Women in Businessand Tech Expo at the ExCel Centre in London. As part of the same initiative, a group of Women were also taken to the Women of Silicon Roundabout Expo in November 2022.

Looking forward to 2023, FDM also plan to launch a permanent web page dedicated to its SheLivesTech initiative, to coincide with International Women’s Day in March. They then hope to begin partnering with some female focused media partners and groups that share the same goal of breaking down the entry barriers for women in tech.

This will build on their headline sponsorship of the upcoming Everywoman in Technology awards which creates role models to inspire the next generation from the UK and beyond.

Emma, who took part in the all-female software development class, said: “A lot of jobs expect you to have the knowledge and the skillset to go into the workforce and be able to code straight away. FDM acknowledged that if you don’t have that computer science background, you need that little bit of extra help to be able to get into the workforce and do what you want to do, which helps build confidence.”

Sheila Flavell CBE, COO for FDM Group commented: “Many women still find it very challenging to break into the technology industry, which is why FDM is committed to providing the support, resources and training to enable candidates to thrive.

“Alongside our SheLivesTech initiative, we regularly host career development support workshops, such as female-only digital bootcamps, CV workshops and interview training, to help boost the confidence of women. These are initiatives we plan on increasing investment into to help even more women enter a career in tech.”

By Mark Adair – Correspondent, Bdaily

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