Gender Relations in IT Companies - Shanker - Gender...

Gender, Technology and Development 12 (2), 2008 : 185 – 207
SAGE Publications Los Angeles/London/New Delhi/Singapore
DOI: 10.1177/097185240801200202
Gender Relations in IT Companies:
An Indian Experience
DEEPTHI SHANKER
With the emergence of the new economy, the working environment in several sectors in
the developing nations has changed greatly. These changes anticipate a departure from
conventional labor methods and practices towards a new organizational structure. Are
these changes characterized by gender neutrality within and outside the workplace? Or
do the new workplaces reproduce the latent hierarchical social structure of the domestic
sphere? This article attempts to examine the emerging ‘new identity’ of Indian women in IT
companies. Analysis of data on organizational structure and management practices reveals
the possibility of an alternative vision of gender relations in IT industries. This study tries
to understand the extent to which the employment of women in these new industries alters
social relations within the work place and outside.
Introduction
Information Technology (IT) is currently the heartbeat of the ‘knowledge-
based economy’ in developing countries like India. The industry is a
relatively young one and one of the most in fl uential technological sec-
tors affecting economic growth in developing countries. In India, the
IT industry is an important source of employment and increasingly, for
women in particular. Women now comprise about 21 percent of the man-
power in the industry, a signi fi cant number in a technical sector in India
(NASSCOM 2003). This article examines the employment of women in
these new economic sectors and its impact on their domestic lives and
Deepthi Shanker, Department of Humanities and Social Sciences, Indian Institute of
Technology, North Guwahati, Guwahati 781039, Assam, India. Email: [email protected]
gmail.com

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Deepthi Shanker
Gender, Technology and Development 12(2), 2008: 185 – 207
social development. Unlike employment in older manufacturing sectors
which have been traditionally dominated by male workers, knowledge-
based sectors have facilitated a work atmosphere that can be described as
‘gender neutral’
1
(Rothboeck et al. 2001). Heeks (1996) contrasts the IT
industry with other Indian industries which are considered to be inward
looking, protected, working within an environment of all pervasive gov-
ernment controls and using obsolete technology. The IT companies are
considered to be less bureaucratic, with an emphasis on open manage-
ment structures, transparency and people development (Lichtensteiger
2003). There is a widespread belief that the growth of this industry will
provide an opportunity and platform for women in developing countries to
be at par with their peers in developed countries, as it facilitates access
to both technology and knowledge (Antonelli 1991; Perez and Soete 1988).