On the occasion of Women’s Day celebrated in March, WE interviewed some of our women leaders to understand what according to them will result in a gender equal discipline at the workplace. Malavika Achawal, Commercial Head Products & Mfg., Infrastructure, Eras Lodhi, Head- Corporate HR, Babita Singh -Talent Management Lead, and Vijayalakshmi Suresh – Chief Internal Auditor join Smita Basu Roy – Head, Corporate Communications as they reflect and reminiscence on their various journeys up the career path…Read on to find out some personal experiences from their lives that have helped them succeed at their workplace and beyond…

Smita: First off, thank you so much for taking time out from various parts of the country (Malavika connected over a call). Since we have only 30 minutes, let’s get straight to the question that I have prepared for all of you. So what’s your secret to success?
Malvika (joins us on a call): I think my secret to success has been sincerity - the sincerity that I’ve worked with all these years, be it at home or be it in the office.
Eras:For me it was more like... I mean Malvika I echo your thoughts as well but I’ll just add to that. For me I have never approached any task thinking ‘I am a woman over here’. I have always approached a task as work that needs to be done and it’s gender neutral - be it in situations or in meetings. So it’s never like you know I am a woman and hence I need to say or do things a certain way. Yes at times, I have had to be aware of the fact that I am a woman and needed to probably drive my point a little harder or modify my behaviour accordingly but mostly I approach a task in a gender neutral manner.

Smita: Babita, what about you?
Babita: So, I agree with both of them.

Smita: Playing it safe is it? (Everyone laughs)
Babita: (laughs) No really…Both these things are important since for me quality has always been extremely important. It has been my key mantra or a growth driver and obviously dedication and hard work goes with it. But also what Eras said, A task is a task and it has to be done irrespective of your gender.

Smita: Very interesting. With these foundations in place, I’m sure all of you started off with some career aspirations. It might have changed over time because of the life experiences. So, any of your aspirations have changed may be slightly or drastically. I know Vijaya’s aspirations have not changed much. She actually started her CA journey when she was in her teens. She had to wait for some time before she could start practicing.

Smita: So, do you think you would have been a doctor if your dad would have actually allowed you to move out and live in a hostel.
Vijaya: I am sure I could have pursued medicine…

Smita: Where I'm coming from when I framed this question is: I wanted to address the point that would we be donning different roles in life, in career if we were not limited by our gender?
Vijaya: So, I don't think there was any objection to me becoming a doctor or engineer but it was more to do with my safety. It was my father who could not pursue CA due to financial hardships who played a vital role in my taking up CA Articleship and my mother’s tremendous support in handling college and a day job. Times have changed now. Now we are more connected and families are more open to sending their children to study.

Smita: This also gets me to the fact that there might be a lot of women out there who lose out on certain roles & aspirations in life because of challenges regarding safety, infrastructure, etc. For example historically a lot of women didn’t venture into sales roles owing to field jobs which raises a concern over both safety and sanitation. But do you see that changing now?
Eras: So, while in Voltas itself I have come across women whom I hugely admire. I have met some young women in UAE who were on project sites. Remembering the days when I gave up the idea of becoming an archeologist because one of the sore points was that I would not get clean and hygienic toilets on site. Perhaps it was a gender thing. Also women, men and organizations have evolved. I admire these women on project sites because they are roughing it out there. There are no toilets and even if there is one, it's miles away. But while women, today, are rough and tough the men are also cognizant of these challenges and do help their female colleagues through these challenges to help them achieve success at workplace. In this particular example the woman herself said that she had support. A male colleague would walk with her to the loo just to ensure safety. Having said this, yes I agree gender conditioning needs to happen.
Vijaya: To take further from what Eras has said, when working in project sites, I still do not find safety gear designed for women. When I go to a project site, I don’t find shoes, helmets and protective gear designed to fit women comfortably. When there are women engineers at factories or project sites, we need to ensure PPE and infrastructure meet their needs. We need to be a bit more inclusive for sure. Having said that I think people are always open. Even 25 years ago when I started my career people would look at me strangely in shop floors and warehouses, not so sure of what I was doing there. But it was just a matter of time, maybe few weeks, before they would start judging me based on the work that I delivered and not my gender.
Babita: I totally agree with what she is saying. Basically, work is gender neutral. I mean you have to do what needs to be done.
Malvika: Yes I think work has always been very gender neutral. Even when I started working 25 years back, it was very hectic. I used to work in the factories and had to interact with the workers there. All my colleagues respected me not just because I was a woman but also the position I held. But again all this varies from function to function. There are equal number of men and women Chartered Accountants on the field, so that is different from the one of women engineers that you might find on field. I think as women if we are committed to our work, it can lead to instilling a lot of confidence among our male team members as well.
Vijaya: While people at workplace are way more inclusive today, I believe women fall short because they don’t demand a seat at the table. They don’t say yes this is a job and I need to go for it and go for it aggressively, irrespective of whatever it takes. It may involve taking a transfer or a relocation for a promotion. Demand it. I always thought that was a very “Indian” thing till I read the book ‘Lean In’, authored by Sheryl Sandberg, Ex-COO of Facebook. She writes that she demanded a compensation of 2-3X of her last remuneration after her husband pushed her to and Mark Zuckerberg actually gave her that salary! She got the job while initially she thought she might be thrown out for asking for such a huge increase.

Smita: What she also mentioned was that women normally tend to ask for a promotion/ raise when they feel they have proved it, whereas men tend to go for it when they know that they are ready to deliver and that’s the difference. Women are not bold enough.
Vijaya: Definitely we demand too little and too late.

Smita: We women also tend to be very hard on each other. Not just at workplace I think just in life.
Vijaya: To a large extent this is true because women generally don’t like to confront a man, but they very comfortably confront and push back female colleagues. That is the reality. They don’t like to be seen as biased towards women and hence may not go that extra mile to help other female colleagues. Women may understand, but may not help or support.

Smita: That's something we should be aware of and we need to work on, right?
Vijaya: So, what I think women can do is to provide the infrastructure or provide the ecosystem to help other female colleagues.
Eras: One thing I hate being called is a “feminist”. It's the easiest tag.

Smita: But there's nothing wrong in being called a feminist because, “feminism” just means equal rights for women.
Eras: Why I hate it is because it gives an easy escape to the person who's labeling. Just label the other person and you get away.
Malvika: Women must help each other. I'd like to share an example. My daughter is doing her residency, pursuing her MS. Whenever any help is required there will be a male colleague who will come and help her out rather than a female in case of emergencies. The equality won't come unless and until we women help each other. That's what I feel.
Babita: So, I have had a different experience: I've had female colleagues who have been really helpful. I had a senior colleague (female) who was not just helpful but a great mentor. I think she set an example for other women. I really give total credit to her. Because if you set an example you will create multiple people who will follow the same thing and create a better workplace.

Smita: Do you think this is one of the challenges that a woman faces on her journey towards a leadership role. Let’s discuss the challenges.
Eras: Lack of confidence is the biggest one I would say. It’s all in your head at the end of the day.
Vijaya: I think another challenge is “financial empowerment”. It is still not there for the women. How many women we interact with including working women, have a proper financial plan for themselves & for their families. Do they have a life insurance protection, a health insurance or a retirement plan? Do they save & invest in their own name. Financial literacy & financial empowerment for women is not there.

Babita: I think one of the biggest roadblocks is that we want to be best at work and also at home. They don’t want to give up their responsibility. It is a social conditioning, that as a mother you have to ensure that you and only you are responsible for your children and family. For example I don’t try and be that perfect mother who supervises every small detail concerning my child. It will lead to burn out. Hence we need to prioritize. I have segregated work at home very well. If I am in the kitchen, I make sure that my husband is also there sharing the load. My kids are extremely independent.
Malvika: We have to teach our sons to contribute to the home. This will ensure a more inclusive next generation.

Smita: This gets me to the next question. Because it’s a women’s day special issue, one important message that each one of you would like to give to a young woman who is striving to get big in her career.
Eras: You are better than you think. That voice is just in your head.
Malvika: Be strong, have self-confidence, you will definitely do it.
Babita: So mine would be to never give up. It is often seen that women leave or give up whenever there is any issue at home or life challenges. Don’t give up so easily. There’s always a way out. Constantly work towards your goal.
Smita: And eventually society will also get more & more progressive & evolve & I think that everyone will work with you.
Babita: Just ask for the support.
Vijaya: My message would be, you are the most important person in your life, don’t forget that.

Smita: Finally one interview question that you’ll had to respond to during an interview process & you’ll want to strike it off any interviewer’s questionnaire?
Eras: So it’s not a question that I’ve been asked but I have sat in an interview, where a woman was asked ‘what are your marriage plans’?

Smita: Yes, I have been asked that question too. Should be totally struck off.
Vijaya: To add to Eras’s point, I think personal questions are a complete no-no in any job interview.
Babita: I was actually asked this question, when my child was just eight months when I joined my first job- ‘how would you manage, who would take care of your child’. They would have never asked a man that you have an eight-month-old child, how are you going to manage.
Eras: One question I generally ask, but I ask this to both men & women is - where do you stay & how do you manage your commute. In Mumbai it’s important.
Malvika: How will you manage your children- a common question which should be avoided because it is not just the responsibility of women but the entire family.

Smita: What’s your perspective on women’s role in nation building basically to drive the economy?
Eras: Critical. Probably the primary role.
Malvika: I think women play an important role in nation building. In fact, I want to add that we collectively should start empowering other women to be financially independent. This will not just help an individual, a family but also the economy at large.
Vijaya: I completely agree with what Malavika is saying. I have a friend who is a successful financial advisor in Kerala who has an “all women” team. Not that she doesn’t want to empower the opposite sex; but it is to create an example that you can have an all-women’s team and be still be successful! This will instill confidence in other organizations to recruit women.

Smita: Thank you so much all of you. I’m sure this is going to be a very engaging and insightful read for all our colleagues at Voltas.