Women in Cybersecurity: Job Satisfaction, the Persistent Pay Gap and Ongoing Challenges

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Job Satisfaction, the Persistent Pay Gap and Ongoing Challengesn

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nOverall, women in cybersecurity like the work that they do — and at a highernrate than men. Some 76% of women reported being satisfied with their jobsncompared to 70% of men surveyed. Given thatnn85% of employees worldwide admit to hating their jobsnnwhen surveyed anonymously, both men and women in cybersecurity appear to bendoing very well. Women participants rated their overall job satisfactionnhigher than men for the past five years. That gap grew in the past twonyears, with a 9% difference in 2022 and a 6% difference in 2023. Womennparticipants intend to stay at their current organizations longer than mennwho participated. More than half (53%) plan to stay for five years comparednto 49% of men in the study.

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Satisfaction does not necessarily translate into passion, and womennparticipants reported lower levels of passion for cybersecurity work inngeneral and feeling competent in their roles than men. Women also reportednlower levels of satisfaction with their teams and departments. Some 64% ofnwomen are satisfied with their teams, compared to 67% of men, while 58% ofnwomen respondents said they are satisfied with their departments, comparednto 61% of respondents who are men.

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Passion for cybersecurity trended positively with tenure in the field, butnwe saw a dip amongst women respondents with 10 to 15 years of experience.nThe feeling of competency increased with the length of tenure inncybersecurity, but men and women participants progressed at very differentnrates. The career growth of men who responded was very linear, with feelingsnof competency consistently increasing with tenure in cybersecurity. Thenresults for women participants were not so linear.

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Feelings of competency dipped amongst women in the 6–9 years of tenurengroup. The gap increased with tenure (2% difference in the 10–15 yearsntenure group, 4% difference in the 16+ years tenure group).

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ISC2 research also showed that women cybersecurity professionals continue tonstruggle with fair compensation, an issue that is not unique to thenindustry. In thenU.S., thenpay gap has not changed much in the last two decades, andnglobally, thengender pay gap stands at approximately 20%.

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nThe average global salary of women participants in ISC2’s 2023 study wasn$109,609 compared to $115,003 for the men who participated, a difference ofn$5,400. The average salary for U.S. women participants was $141,066 comparednto $148,035 for men, a difference of nearly $7,000.nnAdditional U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics datannshowed that the median salary for Information Security Analysts in 2022 innthe U.S. was $112,000. The median salary of all U.S. Security Analystnparticipants in our survey was $110,000; the median of women participantsnwas $105,000, while for men it was $115,000 ($10,000 more).n

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nThe pay disparities grow for U.S. participants of color. The average salarynof men of color respondents was $143,610, while the average for women ofncolor respondents was $135,630 – a difference of nearly $8,000. ISC2 doesnnot have an adequate sample yet to compare the salaries of women and mennoutside of the U.S.

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In addition to salary discrepancies, the data showed that women are alsonstruggling to fully be themselves at work. More than one-third ofnrespondents (36%) felt that they could not be authentic at work (compared ton29% of men), while 29% felt that they were discriminated against in thenworkplace (compared to 19% of men). These answers varied by race, ethnicity,nand gender. Overall, women of Black or African descent in Canada, the U.K.nand Ireland reported the highest levels, with 53% feeling discriminatednagainst, while white and Black/African American (U.S.) men reported thenlowest levels (14% each). The largest gaps existed between Hispanic and Eastnor Southeast Asian men and women.

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In terms of not being able to be authentic or “fully yourself,” men of Blacknor African descent in Canada, the U.K. and Ireland and South Asian womennreported the highest levels (48%), while Black/African American (U.S.) andnwhite men reported the lowest levels (26% and 27%, respectively). Thenlargest gaps existed between Hispanic, Black/African American (U.S.), andnSouth Asian men and women.

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These are not trivial issues and may help explain the retention challengesnsurrounding women.nnMcKinsey’s Women in the Workplace reportnnfound that women who experienced microaggressions in the workplace are muchnless likely “to feel psychologically safe, which makes it harder to takenrisks, propose new ideas, or raise concerns.” The report, now in its ninthnyear, noted, “The stress caused by these dynamics cuts deep. Women whonexperience microaggressions – and self-shield to deflect them – are threentimes more likely to think about quitting their jobs and four times morenlikely to almost always be burned out.”

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nMen and women also expressed significantly different feelings about thenimpact diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives have on addressingnthese issues, as well as the effectiveness of their teams. Womennparticipants felt more strongly than men that diversity and inclusivitynimpacted their security team performance, viewing security team diversity asnimportant and a contributor to success at much higher rates than the mennsurveyed.

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They also felt that DEI has been increasingly important for their securitynteams over the past five years and will continue to become more importantnover the next five.

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Women participants tend to work at organizations that are doing more tonattract diverse candidates with the goal of mitigating cybersecuritynstaffing shortages. Their organizations are looking for potential talentnfrom within (employees outside cyber/IT), implementing job rotation andnhiring those without cyber experience at significantly higher rates than thenorganizations that men who participated in the study work for. Theseninitiatives appear to be working as women participants reported lowerncybersecurity staffing shortages at their organizations than men (62% vs.n68%).

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What Does This Mean for the Industry? Takeaways for Leaders

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There are many “why” questions to ask about the data. From a numbers perspective, incrementally increasing the percentage of women in cybersecurity from only a quarter of the workforce can go a long way toward starting to fill the workforce gap.

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The International Monetary Fund estimates that emerging and developing economies could boost gross domestic product by about 8% over the next few years by raising the rate of women’s labor force participation by 5.9% and that countries that close gender gaps see substantial returns. Our research revealed encouraging signs that more young women are entering the profession, progressing into managerial-level roles and impacting hiring decisions. 

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That said, there are ways to help increase women’s participation and satisfaction in cybersecurity.

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  • Address early education. A recent Gallup poll found that Generation Z interest among women in engineering, mathematics and computing is lagging behind men’s interest and that women are exposed to fewer STEM topics in school. Only 14% of our women respondents pursued cybersecurity in school, but exposing women to cybersecurity programs early on can help create a stronger pipeline of candidates.
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  • Set specific hiring, recruitment and advancement metrics. Establish targets to help organizations grow and promote a workforce that closely reflects the diversity of the population.
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  • Make pay equity a priority. Actively monitor pay equity for all roles within an organization and ensure that salary and benefits are aligned based on role requirements and experience. Adjust as needed.
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  • Eliminate inequities around advancement. Support women in defining their goals and ensure they have equal access to development opportunities to reach leadership roles. Greater representation of women in senior positions inspires other women.
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  • Focus on the “I” in DEI. Many organizations now understand what diversity and equity means. Inclusion will help address feelings of not belonging and feeling inauthentic and help on the retention front.
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When companies commit to and implement them correctly, DEI programs can help address skills shortages.

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