For women in leadership generally, stepping away—even briefly—can mean stepping off the radar. The scene of senior women tech leaders is further cutthroat. While junior roles are supported with structured returnee programmes, senior positions often remain out of reach, as if to suggest leadership skills have an expiry date.  

But does a sabbatical or a break really erase years of expertise? Here we dig into why leadership re-entry remains elusive, the programmes changing the game, and how women techies can reclaim their place at the top.

The Landscape: Why the Leadership Gap Persists

 

        1. The Technical Knowledge Paradox

Senior women in tech face a unique challenge not present in other leadership domains: they must simultaneously demonstrate executive leadership capabilities while proving their technical relevance hasn't diminished during their absence. This creates a paradoxical situation where the returning leaders have to spend significant time reestablishing technical credibility before their strategic insights are valued, creating an additional barrier to effective leadership

Some companies are addressing this by implementing "technical relevance" versus "technical recency" frameworks in their hiring processes.

• Strategically highlighting their architectural and systems thinking knowledge, which ages more gracefully than specific technology implementations
• Demonstrating their ability to evaluate and integrate new technologies rather than hands-on coding proficiency
• Leveraging technical adjacency - showing how their knowledge in one domain transfers to emerging areas

        2. Age + Gender + Tech: The Intersectionality Challenge

Returning women tech leaders face a unique triple bias intersection:

• Gender bias in tech leadership remains persistent, with women techies holding only 28% of leadership roles
• Tech's youth-oriented culture creates age bias, particularly pronounced for those with career gaps
• The "currency bias" assumes technological skills degrade rapidly during absence

This intersectionality creates complex barriers that standard returnship programs fail to address.

Actionable Insights for Women Tech Leaders Returning to Boardroom  

          1. The Entrepreneurial Bridge

A growing trend among senior women in tech is leveraging entrepreneurial ventures as stepping stones back to corporate leadership. This "founder-to-executive" pathway transforms a potential career gap into a strategic advantage:

• Develops fresh perspectives on market needs, customer pain points, and technology deployment 
• Provides demonstrable evidence of current business acumen and decision-making capability and demonstrates comfort with risk and ambiguity
• Builds fresh networks outside existing corporate structures

          2. Beyond Mentorship: Sponsorship Networks

The distinction between mentorship and sponsorship is critical for returning women tech leaders. Mentors provide advice and guidance; sponsors actively advocate for opportunities and advancement. Research indicates that women with sponsors are 23% more likely to advance in their tech careers after a break than those with mentors alone. The most effective sponsorship models for returning tech leaders include:

• "Board-level sponsorship" where corporate directors advocate for returning leaders
• "Capability vouching" where respected technical leaders publicly endorse the returning leader's judgment
• "Opportunity creation" where sponsors carve out specific roles aligned with the returning leader's strengths
• "Skill translation" where sponsors help frame career break experiences as valuable perspectives

Successful returning leaders are strategically building sponsorship constellations - networks of advocates across different organizational levels and domains who can support their re-entry and advancement. 

          3. Global Programmes and Policies Supporting Leadership Comebacks

Several countries and organizations have introduced initiatives specifically targeting women techies:

United States

• Path Forward: Collaborates with tech companies like Amazon, Intuit, and Meta to offer returnships tailored for senior professionals. 
• ReBoot Accel: Provides executive training and leadership workshops for women returning to senior tech roles. 
• iRelaunch: Partners with tech giants like Apple and IBM to facilitate mid-career internships and returnship to the mainstream. 

Middle East

• Dubai Women Establishment (DWE): DWE collaborates with tech firms to provide leadership returnships and mentorship programmes for women leaders returning to the workforce.
• GLOW by Deloitte:  Growth & Leadership Opportunities for Women (GLOW) is the Deloitte Middle East’s gender diversity ambition that fosters inclusivity through mentorship, sponsorship and allyship. Returnity – one of its flagship programmes is designed to support women returning from parental leave. 

Read how the Middle East is closing the gender gap and building an inclusive ecosystem. India

• Accenture Career Reboot: Gives women returnees the chance to interact with industry experts and Accenture’s leadership team.
• HCL’s Career Re-Begin: Focuses on experienced women professionals, ensuring they return to positions matching their prior seniority.  
• Capegemini’s Relaunch: Aimed at women who have taken a career break from 18 months to 10 years, this 6-month programme offers the opportunity to join the Capegemini workforce in senior positions. 

Time for a Reboot: Purple Quarter Enabling Leadership Re-Entry 

At Purple Quarter, we recognize that career breaks don't diminish leadership potential. Our proprietary Behavioural Metrics Model (BMM) evaluates candidates based on:

• Technical Expertise: Ensuring returning leaders are equipped for modern tech challenges.
• Change Potential: Assessing adaptability post-career break.
• Motivational Fit: Aligning leadership roles with individual aspirations.
• Cultural Fit: Matching leaders with organizational values.

The second stint doesn’t have to stall a leadership career for women. With the right programmes, policies, and mindset, women tech executives can seamlessly re-enter leadership roles, bringing diverse perspectives and invaluable experience to the table.

Ready to navigate your leadership return journey? Connect with us - interact@purplequarter.com

 

Authored by Soumi Bhattacharya

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