Wherever we cast our attention, the assumptions surrounding gender are part of the data flow that runs perniciously under the radar screen of how we perceive the world. Like it or not, gender is an easily observable and frequently behavior-influencing phenomenon. On various levels in the contemporary IT shop, your sex does matter.

This month's CIO Habitat delves into the issue of gender and the role gender plays in the IT workplace, particularly the extent to which sex correlates with generating high-value IT outcomes for business. Through the eyes of practitioners, we examine the state of gender consciousness in the IT industry. We contacted 140 companies (65 large and 75 midsized firms) in 17 vertical markets. Among our large-company respondents, 57% are women; among midmarket respondents, 35% are women.