In the summer of 1969, American society watched with anticipation as Neil Armstrong stepped on the Moon. Behind this achievement, however, there is a woman. Margaret Hamilton, 33, a software engineer, is responsible for the smooth landing and return of Apollo 11. Man would not have gone to the moon if it were not for this woman. NASA’s first software engineer developed the navigation systems for the Apollo missions in the 1960s and 1970s. A woman who excelled and changed the world by making us understand that there are no male and female professions, only will and vision. Today, Peggy Whitson is the first female commander at NASA.
A successful career in technology can change a woman’s life forever, as long as it is in her choices as a viable and realistic career option. The importance of women in technological professions has also been captured on the big screen. In the film Hidden Figures, three women struggle to claim their place in the male-dominated space of NASA in the 1960s. These true stories are an inspiration for all women today. The demands and opportunities of the era are clear, managing technology requires different skills, which are, as everything shows, closer to the innate talents of women, such as flexibility, collaboration with people of various specialties, imagination and creativity. That is why technology is a field in which women can excel. However, prejudices still exist today. The place of women in technological society has been questioned for a long time. Some had to claim double and triple what their male colleagues took for granted.
In Forbes magazine’s annual list of the most powerful women in the world, women in technology occupy six of the top 20 spots, ousting heads of state and many other recognizable figures. Facebook COO Sheryl Sandberg is in seventh place behind prime ministers such as Angela Merkel, followed by YouTube CEO Susan Wojcicki in eighth place and HP CEO Meg Whitman in ninth place. The top 20 is rounded out by IBM CEO Ginni Rometty, Apple Senior VP Angela Ahrendts and Oracle Co-CEO Safra Catz.
There are many options for women in technology studies, and as a society we must educate our members that gender should not be an obstacle or criterion for professional advancement, even in a field traditionally considered male-dominated. Is it a coincidence that large and powerful organizations have chosen women to lead?