From the Kitchen to the Boardroom, women have made a prominent yet seamless transition over barely decades while even overtaking the menfolk in the process.
Today, even as Women’s Day is being observed globally, women leaders/ entreprenuers are at the forefront in enabling economic growth through highlighting their intelligence and skills in the various sectors of industry, business and other activities.
Manisha Raisinghani, Co-founder and CTO, LogiNext, said, “2021 ushered in good news about a woman-led tech company going IPO. This success story was celebrated and highlighted a new age in the post-covid world, where we are all rooting for more women in leadership roles across the board. Less than 10% of the S&P 500 companies have a woman CEO, but that number should grow rapidly in the coming times. And this will happen by changing mindsets at a cultural level by encouraging more young women to pursue their dreams.”
“Technology and the internet is a great leveller because it gives access to a sea of knowledge and anyone can start a business from anywhere! At LogiNext, we have a special push to achieve a 50:50 gender ratio by the end of 2021 and we already have several women in leadership roles across the organization,” she said, adding “LogiNext is probably one of the most diverse, high growth startups globally and we’d like to encourage more and more companies to take this route.”
Lakshmi Mittra, VP and Head, Clover Academy highlighted International Women’s Day 2021’s theme – ChooseToChallenge – as a call to action to recognize and celebrate women for their role in shaping a more democratic future, and building a gender-neutral society.
“Within organizations, women have already cemented their positions as innovators, thinkers and go-getters. Now, the time has come for organizations to take this contribution to the next level by introducing forward-looking policies and initiatives for women to thrive,” she said. “At the same time, women need to rise above the status quo and embrace challenges. This leads to the creation of amicable work culture that not only facilitates mutual growth but also strengthens an organization’s values and reputation, further assisting in attracting and retaining the right kind of talent and forming a diverse workforce.”
Surabhi Goel, CEO – Aditya Birla World Academy, Aditya Birla Education Academy & The Aditya Birla Integrated School, said “For me, gender equality means truly being equal. Neither men or women are superior. It means that we need more men as teachers; raising my son to do household chores and respecting a woman who may be more successful than him in the future. I choose to challenge the belief that working women are not good mothers or good daughters. I want to challenge people who look at compassion and empathy in women as their weakness — Because these are actually their strengths. At the Aditya Birla Education Trust, we have several women in the leadership team. We hope that we can inspire other women that they too can lead.”
Jyotsna Uttamchandani, Executive Director, Syska Group, emphasized how, during the pandemic, the world witnessed countries — which had women in — leadership positions being in much better shape than the rest.
“Women have time and again proven that they are focused on continuously finding solutions for challenging situations. The world wants change and this could definitely be a century where equality can be established in every field. A big example that showcased a country breaking the ‘etch’ was Kamala Harris becoming first woman Vice-President of the USA.”
“We need a more humane and rational approach. Most importantly women always believe in working in a sort of comradeship. Be it healthcare, hospitality, politicians, innovators, women have been front liners,” she said, adding ”“It is time we discard the gender stereotypes, empower and let women take the lead towards this unrivaled gridlock. As Michelle Obama said, “there is no limit to what we, as women, can accomplish.” Wishing All Women a Happy Women’s Day. May you all continue to be strong, and keep your heels and head high!”
Mili Panicker, Senior Manager – HR, WebEngage, said “As HR leaders, we are constantly striving to make the organisation a great place to work for our employees across the globe. Focusing on diversity, inclusion and respecting individuals as a whole at every level is very important and needs to be adapted by every enterprise. That said, companies also need to curate and drive HR initiatives that empower women and assure them a safe place to work, while balancing their personal life.”
“Today, as corporate organizations, we all need to open up new opportunities and avenues for women to grow and succeed. As HR teams, we need to understand the challenges women employees face at work and believe that empathy and support are two essential things to facilitate the growth of women in the workforce, she added.
Manisha Banthia, Director, Analytics, Fiserv Global Services urged women from all fields and at all levels to strive for driving innovation and business transformation across organizations.
“Women have broken all barriers in technology across sectors. The rising popularity of fields like data science amongst women can change the rules of the game. While some are now part of core leadership or have built their own enterprise, there is also progressive increase in participation of women in niche areas like data science and analytics, UI/UX, animation etc,” she said while pointing out that to accelerate growth, it will be essential for companies to incorporate forward-thinking policies for women and provide them an environment to be at their best.