Source: Accenture. Closing the gender gap at work.
According to Accenture research, digital skills and technologies are empowering women in Singapore to secure and progress in their careers. However, a wage disparity persists, with men earning more. Ranked 5th out of 31 countries in Accenture’s research, Singaporean women demonstrate significant progress in digital fluency, reflecting their adoption and utilization of digital tools for knowledge acquisition, networking, and enhanced efficiency.
The report Getting to Equal: How Digital is Helping Close the Gender Gap at Work underscores the role of digital skills in providing women with a competitive advantage in job preparation, search, and career advancement. Although a digital fluency gap persists between genders in many countries, enhancing women’s digital literacy can reshape the landscape.
Accelerating the rate of women’s digital fluency acquisition could lead to gender parity in the workplace within 25 years for developed nations and 45 years for developing nations, compared to the projected 50 and 85 years at the current pace, respectively.
Pierre Nanterme, Accenture’s Chairman and CEO, emphasizes the untapped potential of women in bridging the skills gap, stating that they represent “an untapped talent pool.” He further highlights the opportunity for collaborative endeavors between governments and businesses to empower women with digital skills, thus accelerating gender equality in the workforce.
While digital fluency positively impacts women’s career progression, it has yet to eradicate the gender gap in executive roles or achieve pay equity. Singaporean men across all generational cohorts remain the primary income providers. However, with more millennial women and digital natives assuming leadership positions, this is expected to shift. Notably, the research revealed that seven out of ten millennial and Gen X women in Singapore aspire to leadership roles.
Men tend to utilize digital tools for job preparation and search more frequently than women (100% and 90%, respectively). Interestingly, the research indicates that women with comparable digital proficiency to men demonstrate greater efficacy in leveraging those skills for job seeking. Close to six in ten survey respondents in Singapore (58%)—representing both genders—affirmed that digital tools facilitate remote work, 42% acknowledged its contribution to work-life balance, and 48% reported increased access to job opportunities through digital platforms.
Singaporean women’s digital fluency scores tend to fall on the lower spectrum of the research model, with the second-largest gender gap observed. This model measures women’s digital fluency compared to men and assesses its impact on their educational attainment, employment, and career advancement.
The research reveals relatively low digital fluency scores for women in education, with Singapore being one of the countries where men outperform women in this domain. However, nearly three-quarters (74%) of millennial and Gen X women reported holding university degrees, a significant increase compared to only 11% of their mothers’ generation. Despite the lower scores in digital fluency and education, Singaporean women exhibit commendable performance in employment and career advancement, achieving the fifth-highest advancement score in the model.
Teo Lay Lim, Accenture Senior Managing Director, ASEAN, and Country Managing Director, Singapore, acknowledges Singapore’s above-average performance in overall gender diversity while highlighting the significant digital divide between genders. She emphasizes the role of digital fluency in bridging this gap. With women constituting 49.4% of Accenture’s workforce in ASEAN, Teo underscores their commitment to nurturing future women leaders through substantial investments in education, training, and on-the-job learning opportunities.
This report marks Accenture’s first publication of its ASEAN gender workforce demographics and statistics. Going forward, Accenture plans to annually disclose its global progress on diversity and inclusion.
Teo emphasizes the significance of transparency in gender diversity statistics as a testament to their commitment to fostering an equitable workplace for women. By tapping into a broader talent pool within the region, Accenture aims to better cater to the needs of its clients, employees, and communities. She stresses the critical role of encouraging young women and girls to pursue STEM fields for business growth and regional development, highlighting the significant contributions women can make in these areas.
* The Accenture Digital Fluency Model was developed to identify and understand the impact of digital fluency on gender equality within the workforce. Conducted in December 2015 and January 2016, a survey encompassing over 4,900 men and women across 31 countries assessed the integration of digital technologies into their personal and professional lives, including education and work. The sample consisted of an equal representation of working men and women, spanning three generations (Millennials, Gen X, and Baby Boomers), across various job levels and company sizes. The margin of error for the total sample was approximately +/- 1.4%. Digital technologies encompassed virtual coursework, digital collaboration tools (webcams, instant messaging), social media platforms, and the use of digital devices such as smartphones. Survey data was integrated with published reports, publicly available information on education, employment, leadership, and research from institutions like the World Bank, OECD, World Economic Forum, and the ITU World Telecommunication. The countries included in the model were Argentina, Australia, Austria, Brazil, Canada, France, Germany, Greater China (including Hong Kong and Taiwan), India, Indonesia, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Netherlands, the Nordics (Denmark, Finland, Norway, Sweden), Philippines, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, South Africa, South Korea, Spain, Switzerland, UAE, the UK, and the US.