The world of information technology (IT) today doesn’t look the same as it used to. It’s not just that computers are now palm-sized —the people behind the screens who are solving business issues, guarding data, and developing technology are changing, too.
The School of Business and Technology at Capella University is proof. One notable distinction? It is led by three women: Dean of Technology Sue Talley*, Faculty Chair of Graduate Studies Mary Brown*, and Faculty Chair of Undergraduate Studies Melissa Zgola. And as enrollment climbs in response to the hot job market, so does the diversity of students interested in Capella. In fact, women make up 1/3 of the student population enrolled in Capella’s IT programs, a significant contrast to the industry population of 26 percent.
These three leaders share their individual paths and unified approach to IT, with an ultimate objective to change the face of IT yet again.
Leading By Example
Mary Brown ended up in IT by chance. “But I think most people end up in their careers by accident,” she says, laughing. Her story began in security and privacy for Hennepin County Medical Center in Minneapolis, where she was selected to evaluate the alignment of CISSP® (the gold standard of security certification) curriculum with the certification process. Instead, she rebuilt the program to address issues in the larger IT world.
Melissa Zgola’s career also took a roundabout path, beginning in psychology and drug and alcohol therapy. She was able to combine her interests in psychology and IT to add a human touch to what has traditionally been seen as a machine-driven culture.
Sue Talley’s career has touched every level of education and every kind of industry: She was an English teacher first, followed by jobs in “for profit, nonprofit, higher ed, K-12, and a stint in DC as part of a policy group.” She worked for Apple. She built the online program for Pepperdine University.
As a result, she has a wealth of experience to draw upon as she thinks critically about what education can really do for IT. “I’ve seen a lot of innovations come and go, and I love to push the envelope, but sometimes the shiny, bright thing won’t have as many benefits as some think,” she says.
Now together at Capella, these three have become a support system for each other and set the culture of inclusivity and support from the top.
According to Zgola, having other women as mentors is invaluable. “Having [Dean Talley] as a mentor has been huge. [Female] mentors encouraged me to move ahead with more strength and comfort into higher positions. Women had paved the way for me—and they were empowering me to move forward, too.”
She also credits female leadership for getting the department to its current level of success. It’s “unreal,” she says, to have the IT department led by three women. “It’s so refreshing to have women as leaders.”
A New Approach to IT Culture
Given her background, Talley understands the significance of the routes people take to IT as a career, especially women.
“My staff and I talk a lot about how we have a great deal of empathy for the women in the programs. We’ve all been to school later in life, juggled life responsibilities to do it, and we really understand the concerns women in those positions have,” Talley says. “We help alleviate all those concerns.”
It’s quite a contrast to the male-dominated set of rules that defined early IT culture.
Brown provides her perspective. “IT did a bad job coming out of the gate. [IT professionals] were very ‘take it or leave it,’ and expected people to conform their work to accommodate the system,” she explains. But that wasn’t the only issue.
“IT used to be something in the corner of the basement,” she adds. “Now, because it’s so integrated with business, IT people have to understand and interact with business people,” Brown says. Moving IT out of the basement and up to the main floor—in the light, with other people—is something Talley, Brown, and Zgola are aiming to do.
She continues, “people think of IT as technology—software and hardware—and really, it’s data. The biggest and most valuable information that an organization has, full stop, is data.” And that data is much more human than a series of 1s and 0s on a computer. “The fact that women run [Capella’s IT programs] is probably helpful,” says Brown, alluding to the fact that they approach a typically male-dominated field with a more inclusive approach.
“Ultimately, we give people an atmosphere where they can succeed,” Brown says. “Many of our female students are moms, who put their kids to bed and then study. We give them the bandwidth to work out when to get stuff done. I think both that cooperation and word of mouth has built our program to where it is today.”
Changing Curriculum, Changing Voices
Zgola just recently finished revising the curriculum. Again. Not because it wasn’t right the first time, but because the industry is changing at light speed and she is dedicated to making sure students get the latest research and best practices—that the curriculum directly matches up with what employers are looking for in prospective employees.
She says one of the reasons the school has been able to be so agile and responsive when it comes to updating curriculum is the female ability to broach tough or potentially awkward conversations with grace. “We’re able to communicate differently than men. We can process information in a different way—women have become more adaptable with their communication styles. A lot of research backs that up.”
In other words, women are finding their voice in the industry.
“Women are viewed as better project managers in IT,” Talley explains. “They are often better at breaking down silos, and a lot of businesses really need that cross-functional collaboration.”
Research shows women also approach problem solving differently. Rather than handling a problem as a competitive challenge with only one solution, women typically head up teams of people to find the best solution together. “This is an important role for women to play,” Talley says. And sometimes they have a better ability to translate techie jargon into everyday language, she adds.
Characteristics like these have led to a change in hiring practices throughout the industry as well. Hiring managers don’t see a non-traditional path as a liability—it’s a strength. “It’s not prior experience they want as much as they’re looking for that other thing—spark, collaboration, drive,” says Talley. “And diversity is needed in the workplace to make sure we’re representing the people we are trying to create things for—that’s what drives innovation.”
Capella offers IT bachelor’s, graduate certificates, master’s, and doctoral degree programs.
*Interviewee Mary Brown passed away in 2015.
*Interviewee Sue Talley retired in 2016.
