Women's Participation in Flexible IT Roles Reaches 40% in Fiscal Year 2026
Detailed Analysis
Women's Presence in IT and IT-Enabled Services Sector Reaches 40% in FY26
A recent report by talent solutions provider Careernet has revealed that the placement of women in contractual or flexible roles in the IT and IT-enabled services sector has reached 40 per cent in FY26. This marks a significant milestone, reflecting the growing adoption of the workforce model.
The report, titled Women in IT/ITeS: Trends in Contractual/Flexi Roles, highlights a substantial increase in women's placements, with a 10 percentage point rise from FY22 to FY26. The preferred roles in the sector are finance and accounting (43 per cent), followed by data science and analytics (34 per cent), UX, design and architecture (31 per cent), IT and information security (29 per cent), and engineering - software and QA (27 per cent). Consulting (20 per cent) continues to lag, indicating areas that have greater headroom for inclusion.
Careernet's report is based on an annual sample of 3,000 placements in contractual positions in FY26 and was compared with data from the last four fiscal years. The data reveals that the talent pool remains concentrated in metro hubs, with Bengaluru (21 per cent), Hyderabad (20 per cent), and Pune (17 per cent) together driving the bulk of participation. Delhi NCR (13 per cent) and Chennai (9 per cent) follow, while Mumbai (7 per cent) and Kolkata (2 per cent) contribute smaller shares.
| Geographical Location | Women's Participation (%) | | --- | --- | | Bengaluru | 21 | | Hyderabad | 20 | | Pune | 17 | | Delhi NCR | 13 | | Chennai | 9 | | Mumbai | 7 | | Kolkata | 2 | | Tier II Cities | 11 |
In terms of career span, the report indicates that women's participation is strongest in early to mid-career stages, led by professionals with 5-8 years of experience (31 per cent), followed closely by those with less than 2 years (30 per cent) - together accounting for a significant share of the active talent pool. However, participation declined at senior levels, with 9-14 years (13 per cent) and over 14 years (4 per cent), indicating gaps in retention and advancement.
Careernet's report suggests that women's participation in IT/ITeS has evolved beyond just numbers to the kinds of roles they are choosing, with finance and accounting leading the mix, signalling that this is no longer a peripheral participation story.
