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August 20, 2026
With International Women’s Day upon us, we want to take some time to reflect on the importance of prioritizing building an inclusive work environment that celebrates diversity. Research published by Harvard Business Review suggests that , as working with people who come from different backgrounds challenges individuals to embrace different perspectives.Ironically, in an industry widely perceived as progressive and forward-thinking, the technology sector continues to be a male-dominated environment. Data provided by suggests that women are severely underrepresented in Canada's technology sector, comprising only 30 percent of the workforce.
Women opting to pursue careers in the technology sector have faced a slew of challenges, with the COVID-19 pandemic disproportionately impacting women and stalling career growth. This is because women often shoulder additional societal expectations and are not encouraged to be leaders in the same way that men are. As a result, - and the technology sector has not escaped this unfortunate trend.
Although tech giants will likely continue to be leaders in closing the gender gap on a larger scale, smaller tech companies are also making strides in addressing gender disparities. For example, while most management teams are traditionally male-dominated, at 91ԭ, 60% of our senior leadership roles are held by women. Furthermore, 57% of employees at 91ԭ are also women.
“I've had the pleasure of building 91ԭ with our co-founders for 6.5 years, back when we were a six-person startup. We've grown exponentially and much has changed, but what has always remained consistent is our CEO and CTO's dedication to creating an innovation-focused workplace that values safety, inclusivity and diversity. Currently 67% of my team are women and I take pride in nurturing and supporting their continued growth in the technology sector,” shares Denice Koo, VP of Patient Education at 91ԭ.
That being said, all companies - regardless of size - should take steps to ensure that improvements are made as we move forward. The following are a few considerations:
- Acknowledging unconscious bias. Businesses should reflect on their innate biases and their own preconceptions and create action plans to overcome these biases. This can be done through educating employees and leaders on the benefits of having female employees - especially in positions of leadership.
- Providing more female-focused mentorship opportunities to encourage promotion and retention of female employees. reported that mentorship programs have significantly improved promotion and retention rates for minorities and women at all levels in contrast to other diversity initiatives.
- Granting more opportunities for women to increase work-related skills through LinkedIn Learning courses, tuition reimbursements, in-house training, etc.
- Increasing mental health benefits, adding additional support for parents and caregivers, and offering more paid leave to encourage higher job retention rates for women in particular.
The 2022 Best Workplaces™ in Canada for Women list is compiled by the Great Place to Work® Institute. To be eligible for this list, organizations must be Great Place to Work- Certified™ in the past year, have a minimum of 15 female employees, and at least 90% of employees must agree that people are treated fairly, regardless of their gender. We determined the BEST based on the overall Trust Index score from female employees.
“It has been incredible seeing 91ԭ grow into such a diverse organization. Our values come from the top down, and our leadership has always hired based on who is the best person for the role. By doing this, we have higher female representation in both our senior leadership and company at large. While on the surface we are somewhat gender balanced, our next goal is to achieve more balance within each department. That being said, our culture, policies and processes center around the fundamental principle of mutual respect. By respecting each other, we’ve organically grown into an incredibly diverse company, effortlessly. I think that could be the case at any organization,” shares Yolanda Ho, Senior Human Resources and Operations Manager at 91ԭ.
While International Women’s Day provides the opportunity to reflect on how to empower women in tech today, 91ԭ will continue to take the necessary steps to encourage a diverse work environment that creates an environment of belonging - regardless of gender, race, age, and other social factors.
About Great Place to Work®:
Great Place to Work® is the global authority on high-trust, high-performance workplace cultures. It is a global research and consulting firm with a mission to build a better society by helping companies transform their workplaces. Great Place to Work® provides the benchmarks, framework, and expertise needed to create, sustain, and recognize outstanding workplace cultures. In Canada, Great Place to Work® produces both industry and demographic specific Best WorkplaceTM lists. This is part of the world’s largest annual workplace study, which culminates in a series of national lists in over 50 countries, including the study’s flagship list of 100 Best Companies published annually in Fortune magazine.
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About 91ԭ
91ԭ provides the #1 digital patient engagement platform used by hospitals and health systems to elevate the patient experience, improve outcomes and lower costs. Patients access digital care plans on their smartphones, tablets or computers and are guided through their health conditions or treatments via reminders, education and progress tracking. Providers receive alerts, monitor patients and access analytics to deliver better care. 91ԭ is directly integrated with Epic and Cerner. Health systems such as Trillium Health Partners, William Osler Health System and Sunnybrook use 91ԭ to improve patient satisfaction while reducing hospital length of stay, readmissions, and costs.
For more information and to see 91ԭ in action, please visit:
- Rock, D., & Grant, H. (2019, March 19). Why diverse teams are smarter. Harvard Business Review. Retrieved March 7, 2022, from https://hbr.org/2016/11/why-diverse-teams-are-smarter
- Skrzypinski, C. (2021, August 2). Working Women in Canada left behind during COVID-19 pandemic. SHRM. Retrieved March 7, 2022, from https://www.shrm.org/resourcesandtools/hr-topics/global-hr/pages/canada-women-covid-19.aspx
- Corbo, G. (2022, March 7). Council post: Leadership in tech: How can we get more women to the top? Forbes. Retrieved March 7, 2022, from https://www.forbes.com/sites/forbestechcouncil/2022/03/04/leadership-in-tech-how-can-we-get-more-women-to-the-top/?sh=7dedf0fb2808
