Irish female tech founders: New year, more layoffs, that’s how it’s looking for the Irish tech industry as it braces itself for a turbulent twelve months ahead. With Ireland playing host to the European headquarters of some of the world’s biggest names in technology, despite the recent spate of announcements, it’s not all bad, with reports that a mass reshuffle rather than a tech recession is on the cards.
It’s predicted that this sector shakeup will be accompanied by the need for more females in the tech workplace, as many companies see it as an opportunity to battle it out to boost their diversity credentials. Although Ireland is a proven leader when it comes to more women in the investment market in Europe (figures from TechIreland state twenty per cent of investing partners in Irish firms are female in comparison with an EU average of just seven per cent), experts are expecting a spike in demand from innovation giants for women-powered tech talent in particular.
Figures also reveal that in 2021 alone, Irish Female Founders raised over €230 million, more than twice the record €105 million the previous year. As observed by Una Fitzpatrick, Director of Technology Ireland, though tech companies look set to become cautious when it comes to hiring over the next two years, growth, although slow, could, in all actuality, produce more opportunities for women in the sector.
Some of the larger tech companies exercising redundancies over the early part of this year include Twitter, Stripe, Meta, SaleForce and Intel. With Twitter employing around five hundred workers in Dublin alone, it’s expected at least one hundred and forty of these will be cut. Meanwhile, Stripe is set to lay off around one thousand workers, with Meta letting go of three hundred and fifty. In addition, Salesforce is set to cut ten per cent of its workforce, with Intel set to follow in a similar suit.
Many technology groups in Ireland are stating such mass layoffs could represent more opportunities for companies to promote better diversity. According to IBEC, only nineteen per cent of Irish women are currently employed in technology companies or ICT roles in other industries. Maureen Lynch, operations director at recruitment company Hays Ireland says she believes staffing challenges are set to continue into 2023 as employers and employees “continue to grapple with the rising cost of living and inflation and a more cautious mood in the Irish tech sector”.
She also says a recent survey from the group shows employers remain optimistic that 2023 will see further economic and job growth across sectors, including accountancy, finance, engineering, and healthcare. Meanwhile, a survey from PwC has shown that, in Ireland, just three per cent of women say a career in technology is their first choice, a figure that this latest spate of layoffs, believe it or not, could increase over time.
