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Friends, eWIT – Empowering Women in IT – As soon as people hear me say the expansion for our beloved organization, the immediate question is – But IT is the Happening Place and the women in IT are in no need for more empowerment. Is this the true state of affairs? Yes and No would be the answer by everyone of us who are part of this industry. Yes, compared to women in some of the other industrial sectors. YES, we are already there, but when you dive deep into the status, the answer is NO ; we are not different in terms of corporate growth of the women in these sectors. The entry level looks good, the going up the ladder is slowly happening – but the bias - be it in recruitment or promotions or getting new opportunities or even fairness in appraisal – is real. So what do we do to enhance the Women Power At Work? Four Indian business leaders have made their way into the 2016 edition of The World’s 100 Most Powerful Women list, brought out by Forbes. The Indian businesswomen on the 13th edition of the annual rankings include 1. State Bank of India Chairman Arundhati Bhattacharya (ranked 25); 2. Chanda Kochhar (40), MD and CEO, ICICI Bank; 3. Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw (77), Chairman and MD of Biocon; 4. Shobhana Bhartia (93), Chairperson and Editorial Director, HT Media Ltd Three of them are employees and one is an entrepreneur in that powerful list. If you take these 4 women – I am pretty sure everyone had to fight the workplace bias, raising their families along with their professional growth and every day taking small steps towards their reaching the summit. The common qualities that all the four possess are: phenomenal confidence in themselves, their work, the power of knowledge, and their grit to succeed against all odds. The theme of this year anniversary is essentially based on the way we, the women have changed or changing the workplace. A new McKinsey Global Institute report finds that $12 trillion could be added to global GDP by 2025 by advancing women’s equality. The public, private, and social sectors will need to act to close gender gaps in work and society. While the whole world is talking about the power of Women At Work , we as women in the work place have a bounden duty to ensure that this power is visibly felt by our action, deed and work ethics. I truly believe that each one of us has the same capability like any of the 4 women mentioned above. What we need is to take it upon ourselves to GO FORWARD with grit and vigour. We need to get together to fight the workplace bias, help one another to grow. We need a lot of champions to raise our cause. But more than anything we need to understand, realise and take the necessary measures to suitably update our competencies, take our personal branding seriously, take the initiative to grow, chart out our career path along with our family growth. I am sure that with the impetus that we have gained, we are at the point where the momentum has to pick up. Let each of us, as women, work towards making the leadership pipeline grow more and more. Wishing all of you a Phenomenal Year of Success, Happiness and along with Wonderful time. Sarada Ramani, President-eWIT CEO, CI Global Technologies
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About eWIT
Empowering Women in IT (eWIT) is a voluntary, not-for-profit forum run by a group of senior women professionals associated with the IT/ITES industry. eWIT was formed in March 2006 with support provided by STPI (Software Technology Parks of India), Chennai. eWIT was formed with the vision: “To be the preferred forum for interchanging of ideas and for pioneering initiatives so as to unleash the potential of women and drive their growth in the IT/ITES industry” with specific objectives of:
Expanding the women workforce at all management levels and sustain and flourish
Enabling women to tread the career path by equipping them with necessary skills
Facilitating women’s quest for a better ‘work – life’ balance in IT/ITES Sector eWIT currently has corporate members both large and small such as Virtusa-Polaris, Cognizant, RR Donnelley, Hexaware, iNautix, Ford, etc and several individual & institutional members including academic institutions. We work with other not-for-profit organizations like Computer Society of India, SPIN, TiE and Prajnya for conducting programs that are of specific interest to women in IT/ITES.
Over the last eleven years, towards achieving the above mentioned objectives, we have undertaken the following:
1 We have been conducting programs and workshops to train women on various topics of relevance to them, apart from regular networking events that enable women from the industry to interact for knowledge sharing and exchange of ideas 2 The eWIT Excellence Award competitions, held annually to encourage young talent enjoy wide participation. Our Anniversary events, usually held in March, are hugely successful and we are happy to say that today, every company associated with eWIT is perceived to be a women-friendly organization. 3 Academic Initiative, in which we network with Colleges / academic institutions across Tamil Nadu. Senior women associated with eWIT conduct interactive sessions, give lectures, motivational talks etc to students to encourage them to take up careers in IT and also expose them to industry practices. 4 We undertake research studies to understand the expectations women have from companies with regard to women-friendly policies, support infrastructure etc. We also study what companies have to offer and try to knowledge-share for the larger benefit of all our member companies. 5 Vaapas, a return-to-work initiative by eWIT helps women find suitable openings and resume their career after a break. 6 eWIT is being invited by corporates to initiate and provide a thrust to their women empowerment programs. We not only present industry best practices but also research and make recommendations on specific women-friendly policy related issues like flexi-time etc. Please check out our website www.ewit.co.in for more details. Organisations find that eWIT’s intervention can help in two ways:
To get more information about what other companies are doing in the area of gender inclusivity and bring out the learnings relevant for their company
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To interact in a neutral manner with a cross-section of women employees to get an unbiased feedback on their expectations and identify areas where further improvement could be brought about in the company’s women oriented policies You can visit our website www.ewit.co.in to find more detailed information about us. eWIT Annual Membership Details
Annual Number of employees Category Classification of Members membership fee eligible to attend all eWIT (Rs.) events
A Corporations with > 50000 Employees 35,000 10 members Corporations with > 20000 and <= 50000 B 25,000 10 members
Employees Corporations with > 1000 and <= 20000 C 15,000 6 members
Employees
D Corporations with > 500 and < 1000 Employees 7,000 3 members
E Corporations with > 100 and < 500 employees 5,000 3 members
F Corporations with up to 100 employees 2,500 2 members 2 members (Lecturers, HOD, or anyone from
G Colleges 2,500 management other than students)
H Individuals 500
I Life Time Patron Membership for individuals 5,000 Depends on the number Sponsor an of employees,
J Sponsor Members event same as Category A - F
eWIT membership would entitle the members to attend all the regular events free of charge. Some special events may be charged depending on the trainer involved. eWIT corporate members can nominate more women for these events by paying an extra amount as specified
Payment can be made either as a crossed A/C payee cheque or a demand draft favoring ‘Empowering Women in IT’ and mailed to:No.6, Kalakshetra Avenue 2nd Street, Thiruvanmiyur, Chennai 600041, Ph: 044-42120706 indicating the name of the organization and the contact details in the covering letter.
eWIT Corporate membership makes ALL their women employees eligible to become members of eWIT automatically without any additional payment. However, to activate the membership, one has to register in eWIT’s website.
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List of eWIT Chennai Governing Body
Office Bearers
CEO, CI Global Sarada President Technologies Pvt. Ltd.
Director- Business Continuity Radhika Management, RR Vice President Chandrashekar Donnelley - Global Outsourcing, Asia Operations
Namagiri Management General Secretary Ramesh Consultant
Latha Ramesh Jt. Secretary Consultant-eLearning
Executive Director, Niraimathi D, Treasurer Zyvana Integrated Services Pvt. Ltd.
Governing Council Members
COO, Cenza G. Rajalakshmi Governing Council Member Technologies
Program Manager, Nirmala Governing Council Member Skillsoft Gopalakrishnan
V P Rajini Managing Director, Governing Council Member Reddy Exemplarr Worldwide
Co-Founder - Value Software Indira Jagan Head- Academic Initiatives Committee Technologies Pvt. Ltd.
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Governing Council Members
Managing Director – Sudha Gopal Governing Council Member Systech Solutions
Assistant General S. Srimathi Governing Council Member Manager, HR, Scope e Knowledge Centre
Sr. Manager, Lakshmi Governing Council Member Cognizant Technology Narasimhan Solutions
Program Manager, Sweta Jayaram Governing Council Member BNY Mellon Innovation centre, Chennai
Technical Manager, Madhavi Chilla Governing Council Member HCL Technologies
Program Manager- Umasree R Governing Council Member Project Services IBM India, Chennai.
Lead, Learning and Gayathri Governing Council Member Development -Integra Sivaprakasam, Software Solutions
Deputy Manager-HR, Divya Ashok Governing Council Member Hexaware Technologies
Senior Director, Hema Governing Council Member Human Resources, Mohandas Virtusa Polaris
Dr. Christina HR Consultant & Augustine Governing Council Member Coach
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Governing Council Members
Program Manager, Shreedevi Governing Council Member Payments PMO, Ramesh Paypal
Associate Vice Bhanurekha Governing Council Member President, Condur Sutherland
Advisors /Special Committee
Usha Srinivasan Advisor Director – Ushas
Mentor/Business Vijayalakshmi Rao Advisor Advisor
Principal Officer/CEO Kalyani Narayanan Advisor ICM insurance Brokers
Executive Director and Chief Operating Officer Rama Sivaraman Advisor Polaris Consulting Services limited
Administration
G. Bhuvaneswari Executive - Administration
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List of eWIT Trivandrum Governing Body
Office Bearers
Dr. Sindhuja R Varma President Allianz
Hema Menon Vice President UST Global
Parvathy N Pillai General Secretary IBS
Radhika Viswanathan Jt. Secretary Allianz
Rani Ramesh Treasurer Extenta
Media & Comm. Rani Sasikumar Allianz Advisor
Governing Council Members
Governing Council Sandhya Sayama Oracle Member
Executive Committee Members
Executive Committee Lead-Information Security Manger, Jyothi Ramaswamy Member TCS
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Executive Committee Members
Executive Committee Devi Nair Manger – Facilities, Infosys Member
Executive Committee Asst. manager – Marketing & Legal, Gita Gopalakrishnan Member Park Centre, TECHNOPARK
Executive Committee Administrative Officer – T(TBIC), Annie Moses Member TECHNOPARK
Executive Committee Karthika Nair RR Donnelley Member
Executive Committee Anne Sowmya Head- HR, D+H Member
Executive Committee Renu Franklin Allianz Member
Executive Committee Ann Christian RR Donnelley Member
Executive Committee Nisha S Kumar Quest Global Member
Executive Committee Arya Suresh TATA Elxsi Member
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Advisors
Mr. V K Mathews, Advisor Chairman, IBS, TEchnopark
Mrs. Sarada Advisor Muraleedharan, IAS
Mr. Rakesh Gupta, Advisor MD, Allizanz
Mr. Sreekumar Nair Advisor MD - ZafinLabs
Mr. C. Balagopal Advisor MD – Terumo Penpol
Former Executive Director Ms. Vatsala Kumar, IAS Advisor Kudumbashree
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Calendar of eWIT events for the year 2016-2017
February 20, 2016 - The eWIT Academic event– Symposium on IT Security
The Symposium on IT Security was jointly organised by eWIT, Information Systems Audit and Control Association (ISACA ) and Meenakshi College for Women on Feb 20, 2016. It covered sessions on (i) IT Security as a career and (ii) Secure Social media. Three hundred students from colleges namely, Rajalakshmi college of Engineering, Rajalakshmi Institute of Technology, Agni College, Meenakshi College for Women and Meenakshi Sundararajan College of Engineering participated in the event. The event began with a brief inauguration function followed by a welcome speech. Ms. Namagiri Ramesh and Mr. Mahesh gave a brief introduction about eWIT and ISACA respectively. The highlight of the day was a group discussion on IT Security as a Profession. The discussion was moderated by Mr. Maria Bellarmine of Tech Mahindra and the Panelists were Mr. Mahesh of Tata Communications and Mr. Shankar of Citibank. Many students had their questions answered by the panelists. The second session was on Secure Social Media by Mr. Sripathy (Bank of NY, Mellon). This session was informative and was well appreciated by the audience.
April 11, 2016 - Enhancing Synergies between Corporate and College – by eWIT eWIT Academic Initiative was established three years ago. Having both the Corporates and Academia as members, eWIT is now working on increasing synergies between the member Corporates and Colleges. The first session was held on 29th September 2015 at Anna University. Representatives of the colleges as well as corporate members welcomed this idea and put forth their pain points and spoke about their expectations. The session was of great benefit to the participants as well as eWIT in understanding the areas that need to be improved upon. The follow up session was held on Monday, April 11, 2016. This session was hosted by iNautix Technologies. The session helped in the colleges and corporates coming closer together to address the pain areas and overcome the barriers.
April 22, 2016 – eWIT’s 10th Anniversary event eWIT celebrated its 10th Anniversary on 22nd April 2016 at The Rain Tree, Anna Salai, Chennai, with the theme ‘Gender Equal – The workplace of the future’ from 3pm to 8pm. Over the past ten years eWIT has worked to increase the 'Share and Sustainability' of Women in the IT/ITES sector. Being Gender-Equal has changed from being a check-box item to a business imperative. When we look around we may find that the workplace has changed. But the concern is the pace. Many studies seem to think that maybe 30 years from now we may have a Gender-equal workplace. While a lot more women are qualifying and entering the workplace, attrition, however, continues to be a significant problem. While many Companies have 'Plans and Policies' to encourage and retain women, statistics tell another story. Companies are now realising that they cannot afford to lose 'Valuable Talent'. Valuing their contribution to innovation and business growth and keeping women in the workplace has become a necessity. So how do we institute 'real change'? What more do companies need to do? Is it enough if the CEO wants it or do we need to have Managers accountable at every level? Are companies equipped to handle this paradigm shift? What more do women themselves need to do?
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At eWIT’s tenth Anniversary event, participants came together to debate on how to make 'Gender Equal' happen fast and more impactful. Ms. Padmapriya Ramanujan, Head of Innovation & Technology, Tyco Fire & Security India Pvt. Ltd. was the Chief guest of the evening. Technology session was addressed by Mr. Sivaram Parameswaran, Director, iNautix Technologies and Mr. Srinivas Rangarajan, Director, iNautix Technologies, and Life Style session by Dr V Kaushalya, Lifestyle and Anti Ageing Consultant. Leadership session was addressed by Dr. Janani, Director – Rexpride Training & development and Founder – Genius India. The panel discussion, Gender Equal - The work place of the future was moderated by Ms Usha Srinivasan, Advisor, eWIT. Panelists were: Ms. Visalakshi Subramaniam, Retail Business Services (India), Thoughtworks, Mr. Srinath Sridevan, Owner, HSB Partners, Mr. Sriram Rajagopal, Senior Vice President - Human Resources, Cognizant Technology Solutions and Ms. Bhanurekha Condur, Associate Vice President - Service Delivery, Sutherland Global Services.
June 30, 2016 - Towards Gender Parity in IT/ITES companies in Chennai
A number of eWIT member companies have come forward to share their knowledge with us at our various events and also involve us in their gender inclusivity initiatives. Through our programs we have also been in touch with a large number of women in the IT & ITES industry, especially in Chennai, cutting across company size, roles, levels and experience profiles. We also carry out extensive secondary research on women empowerment and gender inclusivity in technology/IT companies, both globally and in India. Talent crunch, increasing competition, recognition of women’s contribution and global diversity drives have all led to an increasing thrust on gender inclusivity in IT/ITES companies in India. Enhancing the share and sustainability of women is very much a business imperative in most well managed IT/ITES companies. Over the years eWIT has witnessed the following positive trends in Chennai: ● Companies are serious about gender inclusivity and have instituted a number of measures to make their organisations women-friendly ● This has resulted in increasing the percentage of women in the work-force, albeit slowly. There is virtually no gender bias at the entry level and many companies have over 50% women at the entry level. ● Women are more aware of industry practices with respect to gender inclusivity and sexual harassment issues ● Women are more vocal about gender issues impacting their work and are less hesitant in seeking women friendly policies and practices Yet, there continues to be the problem of leaking pipeline with many women opting out of their careers or settling for less demanding roles, leading to a very small percentage making it to senior management positions, especially in mainstream areas like delivery and marketing. Women constitute only 20% to 25% at the middle level and this plunges to 5%-7% at the senior levels. What is even more worrying is that the proportions at middle and senior levels are not increasing at the expected pace, despite gender inclusivity measures in place. In various eWIT events, we find women increasingly talking about ‘inequality’, ‘discrimination’, ‘gender bias,’ etc. Our assessment is that gender parity with regard to opportunities for substantive participation, growth and development and even pay could be an issue. Current global research also suggests the same. We at eWIT are deeply concerned about this issue and it was with a view to seek opinions of CXO level executives, who are in decision making roles, that eWIT organised a presentation and discussion with CXOs
2017 12 of select IT/ITES companies on 30th June 2016. CXOs discussed the problem on hand and possible measures they could take to make their organisations, gender inclusive.
July 11, 2016 – eWIT VAAPAS (Return to Work) Launch
Taking a career break is common among working women. Though many want to return, only a small percentage manage to, as they find it difficult to figure out how to navigate their way back in. eWIT’s Return- to-Work (RTW) initiative helps these women prepare for their career re-launch. eWIT launched VAAPAS whereby women seeking to resume their careers after a break could register at their website. Organisations looking for talent receive suitable candidates from this database to recruit. The first Orientation program for registrants was held on July 11, 2016 at Vani Mahal, G N Chetty Road, T.Nagar from 9.30am to 1.15pm. Key note address was given by Mr. Mohan Narayanaswamy, Managing Director, iNautix Technologies. This was followed by sessions namely, Personal branding / Positioning by Ms. Shanthi Sridhar, Cognizant Technologies, Meeting employer expectations by Ms. Bhanurekha C, AVP, Service Delivery, Sutherland Global and Scripting your story by Ms. Lavanya Srinivas.
August 30, 2016 – eWIT Roundtable Discussion – The Recent Amendment of Maternity Act – Benefits and Challenges
The union government is set to increase the maternity leave for women employed in private firms from the existing 12 weeks to 26 weeks. Following the Cabinet approving the amendment made to the Maternity Benefit Act, which aims to raise maternity leave for women from 12 to 26 weeks, the Rajya Sabha has passed the amendment. While it is welcoming news for working women there is also apprehension that a longer maternity leave may prompt companies to think twice to hire young women employees. Experts looked at the Benefits & Challenges on the recent changes of Maternity Act. The round table discussion was held on 30th August 2016 at CSI Seminar Hall from 5pm to 7pm. Speakers were: Ms. Aarthi Sivanandh / Ms. Poongkhulali Balasubramanian – Lawyers - J.Sagar Associates, Chennai Ms. Roxana, Director HR - Sutherland Global, Chennai Ms. Rajalakshmi Srinivasan, Project Manager, Zoho Corporation
October 21, 2016 – eWIT conducts Role Model Series Lecture eWIT conducted a Role Model Series Lecture on Friday, 21st October, 2016, from 5:00 pm to 6:30 pm at ScopeKnowledge Centre, Primus Building, First Floor, Guindy Industrial Estate, Chennai 600032.
Dr. Rekha Shetty, Managing Director, Farstar Distribution Network Ltd, put across her views on how women can overcome challenges, make use of opportunities and unleash their potential.
Dr Rekha Shetty, is not just a successful entrepreneur and author but has carved a niche for herself in today’s highly competitive business world. Dr Shetty, founder of Farstar Distribution Network Limited, a unique consultancy company that is devoted exclusively to innovation and creativity, is a great role model for women who are looking to take up leadership positions and to improve their work life integration. DR Shetty shared her inspiring story and the participants enjoyed the session.
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November 25, 2016 – Round table discussion on Artificial Intelligence & Computer Applications eWIT conducted a Roundtable Networking Event on 25th November 2016 at Hotel Savera from 6.30pm to 8pm. The topics taken up for discussion are:
Table-Head Topics
Ms. Dhivya, Computer Vision Engineer, Mad Street Den Artificial Intelligence & Computer Applications
Dr. Christina Augustine, Director HR-Global Human Employee Branding and not Employer Branding Resources, Virtusa-Polaris
Mr. Suresh Kumar, ISACA, Chennai Cyber Frauds
Summary of the Round table discussion on Artificial Intelligence & Computer Applications:
Divya introduced how their organization focused on Artificial Intelligence for Fashion and Retail industry. They worked on the visual attributes of fashion. Learning the latest trend in fashion, their network would make recommendations to users. Though they mostly focus on on-line stores, their services extend to supermarkets and retail outlets. Starting from conversion and user engagement to product discovery and inventory, were tracked by their analytics. There were questions on where creativity played a role and what was in store for future. Divya explained beautifully how for defining various fashion attributes and for developing algorithms and network models, creativity came into play. There were interesting points when the future of AI was discussed. While automation of this kind, (i.e) equipping the computer to take instant decisions simplified many things and threw open numerous interesting and useful applications, the risks of these sensitive data getting misused keep increasing. Divya shared that access to data was the biggest challenge they faced. The session was well received and participants found it helpful.
Summary of the Round table discussion on Cyber Frauds:
SME introduced the members with some of the day-to-day potential hackings that happen which we may not be even be aware of.
Some examples of major issues like Air Traffic Control system at Switzerland airport being brought to a halt and one of the big bank transferring money from a US account to Phillipines etc. were discussed. This gave the participants an idea about the possible magnitude of the issues beyond personal levels
The potential age group who are experts in these have been found to be children even below 15 years. Then the motive behind doing such things were deliberated and listed as the thrill, competency show casing, ego, feel of great achievement against a major entity etc.
While these are the threats the transformation cannot be avoided and it is like avoiding to walk on the road fearing for accidents (In earlier days where the traffic was minimal, the accidents were obviously minimal)
The risk management plan was discussed with 4 factors - risk mitigation, risk acceptance, risk avoidance, risk transfer.
The key possible solution needs to be decided based on these and a security policy needs to be drawn accordingly. It is generally felt that these are required for organisations and corporates. But the fact is that even at the individual's level these need to be laid down and followed meticulously. It is like somebody cannot afford to leave his / her house open while they are away or keeping their purse on the table unattended to and walking off.
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Summary of the Round table discussion on Employee Branding and not Employer Branding
Employee branding is an indirect and powerful branding effect in which the communication of company employees serves to characterize their company's employer brand. This entails what company employees have on the real image of their employer and the brand, by publicly voicing their opinion on their place of work across social mediums. This could be to its customers, external stakeholders, current and prospective employees and clients.
How about channelizing this platform where the characteristics and attributes that the organization wants to project, becomes a gateway to educates employees on that messaging? Employee branding is a tactic for generating ‘on brand’ behavior, behavior that expresses, presents and performs the attributes that the organization wants as part of its reputation in the marketplace.
Employee branding is more captivating, genuine and credible than a combination of market research, advisory services, communications and marketing that goes behind a desirable brand position. Organizations instead of actively promoting themselves as the employer of choice to attract the desired target group, unknowingly must sign a psychological contract with their employees. Only when an employee feels a strong alliance with the organization and its services this happens with ‘less conscious effort’ by both the employee and the organization. “Employee branding is about employees living and breathing the brand”– knowing and celebrating its image story, and epitomizing its image values. Today it is about talent’s social leadership and influence than about the employer. Talent has proved that they are the social brand ambassadors to vouch and endorse the brand.
The session was well received by all. eWIT Trivandrum event update
Cancer Awareness Day – Medical camp for Breast cancer awareness conducted in Technopark. eWIT spearheaded the event in association with Swasthi, Tejus and Technopark – Oct - 2016
eWIT Vaapas 2016– Return to Work program by eWIT Chennai –with close to 60 registrations from Trivandrum region lined up for orientation on placement in partnering organisations in the program.
Blood Donation Camp : with focus on women folks - multiple blood donation camps conducted in association with Tejus in November and March to create awareness and to encourage women blood donors. These camps increased the donor base.
Community Canvas for women artists in Technopark - associating with Natana with eWIT members participating in the contest.
Floodlight Run – women night run in Trivandrum - associating with TRACS to create awareness on women safety with eWIT members participating in the run.
eWIT Excellence Award – 2016 - Trivandrum chapter set a new record in terms of participation. There were 50 registrations, 4 finalists and one runner up from companies in Trivandrum.
eWIT Annual Presentation Contest 2017 - launched in line with Women’s Day event 2017 with Diversity@ My Work Place as the topic of the contest – to create a platform for women to share best practices and ideate on innovative ways to create a more inclusive and equal opportunity workplace in Technopark.
2017 15 eWIT in PRESS
Kungumam Thozhi – 31.5.2016 Makkal Kural - 2.5.2016
NIE – Chennai Express – 25.4.2016
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The Hindu – Empower – 4.5.2016
Dhinaboomi, 5.5.2016
Chennai Patrika, April 25, 2016
Chennai, April 25th, 2016: Empowering Women in IT (eWIT), a first-of its kind voluntary, not-for-profit women’s forum in India, today celebrated its 10th anniversary amongst the IT glitterati in Chennai. With the theme ‘Gender Equal – The Workplace of the Future’, the event provided a knowledge sharing platform for over 300 IT Professionals, key influencers and decision makers to come together and address the various challenges in the industry.
A special panel discussion on the theme featured eminent leaders from the industry addressing the key importance of gender equality for a balanced workspace environment and its pivotal role in the current industry scenario.
Spear headed by Ms. Padmapriya Ramanujam, Head of Innovation & Technology, Tyco Fire & Security India Pvt. Ltd as the Chief Guest for the evening, the event saw special addresses by stellar speakers
2017 17 including Mr. Mohan Narayanaswamy, Managing Director & COO, iNautix Technologies India Pvt Ltd, Dr. Kousalya Nathan, Ph.D Scholar (Anti Aging& regenerative medicine), Lifestyle Management / Anti Aging Consultant, Apollo Spectra Hospitals and Dr. Janani, Director – Rexpride Training & development & Founder – Genius India . The key note address by these industry stalwarts emphasized on the importance of Gender balanced workplace and its role in offering Women IT professionals a stepping stone to achieve their highest potential including leadership roles.
Speaking on the theme, Ms. Padmapriya Ramanujan, Head of Innovation & Technology, Tyco Fire & Security India Pvt. Ltd, said, ‘In most industries and especially in Technology & Engineering the majority workforce today is male. As we aspire & gear up to have a significantly higher participation from women, the social fabric at work place will change and the change can be positive only if we include the “majority” in the discussions creating awareness and supporting the change in a healthy manner. Male advocacy teams in support of the larger participation of women at work place could become key ; apart from all the other initiatives that are prevalent today’.
A special panel discussion supporting the cause included Ms. Visalakshi Subramaniam, Head -Retail Business Services (India)- Thoughtworks, Mr. Srinath Sridevan, Partner-HSB Partners, Mr. Sriram Rajagopal, Senior Vice-President- Human Resources, Cognizant Technology Solutions, Ms. Bhanurekha Condur, Associate Vice President - Service Delivery, Sutherland Global Services discussing extensively about achieving gender equality as it is vitally important for any business and the productivity of our nation.
Adding on this, Ms. Sarada Ramani, President –eWIT, said, ‘'In India – the Number of women who opt for STEM – Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics is very high. in fact touching 40.2% in IT stream. This higher number reflects in the increasing number of women at Entry level in IT industry @ 51%. But as we climb the corporate ladder – the numbers don't add up. eWIT's endeavor is to create a level playing field to make sure women have access to the same opportunities in the workplace and can achieve their full potential. This will lead to more Leaders and automatic C-Suite opportunities.
The evening ended with announcing this year’s Excellence Award winners and a Souvenir was also released on the occasion.
2017 18 eWIT Academic Initiative 2016-17 Overview
Keeping in line with eWIT’s goal of increasing the Share of Women in IT /ITES, the eWIT academic initiative promotes IT / ITES as a preferred career choice for women, to help students make informed career decisions. eWIT collaborates with academic institutions by preparing students through workshops aimed at enhancing life skills. This year, we saw the number of our academic member colleges doubling.
Having both Corporate and Academic members, eWIT worked to enhance the synergies between colleges and corporate. We facilitated a connect between principals of member colleges and senior decision makers from member corporates to better understand problems faced by both. The outcome was an MOU signed between two of our Academic member colleges and one of our corporate members to collaborate. We hope to see more corporates coming forward to contribute and benefit from such co-operation.
The one day annual Student Convention which is part of the eWIT academic initiative, was jointly hosted with Anna University and held on 21st February, with the theme being- ‘Your Career Catalyst ‘ at the Anna University, TAG auditorium. The day was packed with various events aimed to prepare the young students to fulfill their career aspirations. We saw over 500 students from various member colleges attend the event.
Ms. Hema Gopal, Vice President TCS, delivered the Key note Address on the theme.
Campus life is now behind you and you are taking the first steps along your career path. Mr. Stanley George, Head HR South India, Hexaware Technologies and Ms. Chitra Ravichandran Director, iNautix Technologies India Pvt. Ltd spoke on how students need to adjust to new expectations in the corporate world.
A lecture on Women Safety was presented by Mr. John Paul Manickam, Head, Security, iNautix Technologies India Pvt. Ltd., on the Do’s and Dont’s on Women Safety’.
Mr. Sujith Kumar, HR Business Leader, Infosys got the students spell bound on how they need to “Choose Right and Win “
A lively Short Play Competition - "Today’s Human Interactions Direct or Digital" was held and winners were selected by Dharini, a theatre professional who was previously a senior manager in the IT industry.
A Patti Mandram on “Catalyst comes from within you or outside” with Pulavar Ramalinga Jyothi as moderator made the audience feel an hour was too short.
The evening ended with the iNautix Corporate Band playing music.
Students also participated in a Poster competition on the topic “ Smartcity”. Many students from outside Tamilnadu participated in large numbers. Prizes were distributed to the winners of the competition by Dean MIT.
From the Academic Initiative Team – Dr. Vidya D, Nirmala G, Rajini Reddy and Indira J
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Women Power AT Work
Power and powerful positions have most often been associated with men as opposed to women. With excellent leadership in short supply, no group, organisation, or nation can afford to restrict women's access to leadership roles. Business world is changing fast, driven largely by technology and it’s changing in ways that give us more power and opportunities than ever and even more than we realize.
Success for professional women will no longer be about trying to compete at the men’s version of the game. And it will no longer be about contorting ourselves to men’s expectations of how powerful people behave. Instead, it’s about embracing and investing in our innate strengths as women and bringing them proudly and unapologetically, to work. When we do, we gain the power to advance in our careers in more natural ways. We gain the power to initiate courageous conversations in the workplace. We gain the power to forge non- traditional career paths.
Women and men experience the world differently—not only do they see things differently, but they see different things. Men tend to have a bottom line, sharply focused, linear way of thinking that excludes any role for emotion or empathy. Women are more empathetic, more aware of the critical impact of interpersonal factors both within and outside the organization.
The leadership styles of women may be different. Many of these differences hold distinct advantages for women, who excel at running organizations that foster creativity, cooperation, and intuitive decision-making power, necessities for companies of the twenty-first century. Organizations run by women do not take the form of the traditional hierarchical pyramid, but more closely resemble a web, where leaders reach out, not down, to form an interrelating matrix built around a central purpose. The strategy of the web concentrates power at the center by drawing others closer and by creating communities where information sharing is essential. Women leaders make decisions, schedule their days, gather and disperse information, motivate others, delegate tasks, structure their companies, hire, and fire. Their experiences as women -- wives, mothers, friends, sisters, daughters -- contribute to their leadership style.
With the above scenarios and increasing gender parity, we today have a lot more women occupying positions of power both in technology and managerial positions in the IT/ITES industry, apart from other sectors. They have overcome challenges, broken societal and organisational barriers and emerged triumphant as women of power and substance They serve as role models not just for women but for men as well.
This change is real, and it’s coming fast. It’s time to own it.
Come, let’s celebrate Women Power at work at eWIT’s 11th anniversary!
Namagiri Ramesh, General Secretary, eWIT
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2017 23 eWIT Excellence Award 2017 – Paper Contest eWIT conducted “eWIT’s Excellence Award - 2017”, a Paper Presentation Contest, to unleash the potential of IT/ITES woman professionals and to showcase their talent and expertise in their respective areas.
The topics for this year’s contest are:
Category A: Technology - Mobile Application management- How is the revolution of the digital era integrating with the mobile apps?
Category B: Quality - Process, Methods and Tools - How much they are important for delivery in an organization?
Category C: HR - Importance of effective people management for giving organizations a competitive edge
Candidates from various organizations had registered to take part in the contest and sent in their papers from which the eminent panelists had evaluated the papers and short listed 4 papers each in Technology and Human Resource, Quality categories for oral presentation.
The oral presentation for all the categories was held on 4th March 2017 at one of the eWIT’s corporate member’s office, RR Donnelley. The event had a healthy and tough competition amongst the 4 short listed candidates each in all categories and the event was teeming with ideas and conversation. The panelists gave suggestions and ideas to candidates for improving their presentations.
The following candidates emerged as winners taking away the first and second place respectively.
Quality Winner Ms. Mampi Bose, Cognizant, Kolkatta Runner-up Ms. Rashmi Sarda, HCL, Noida Special Mention Ms. Shailaja Shanmugam, Verizon, Chennai Technology Winner Ms. Anuradha S, HCL, Chennai Runner-up Ms. Shyamaladevi S, CSS Corp, Chennai Special Mention Ms. Lakshmi Das, Allianz, Trivandrum Human Resources Winner Ms. Achala Bhat, Infosys, Chennai Runner-up Ms. Priyanka Ramireddy, Verizon, Chennai
The winners in each category will be rewarded with a cash prize of Rs.10000 and Rs.5000 for the first and second place respectively. eWIT extends cordial appreciation for the support given by all the members, and participants in making this event a grand success. Especially, eWIT also thanks RR Donnelley for hosting the event at their premise.
Our sincere thanks to the following panelists and judges for the support and guidance to us to make this event a great success. We look forward to your continued support for our future events.
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Quality
1 Geetha P Head of Quality , Technosoft Corporation
2 Vanam Srilakshmi Sr. Program Manager - Verizon Devikarani M / Lakshmi 3 Account Portfolio Manager, IBM Gopal Technology
1 Saravanan Viswanathan Head – Internal Systems & Technology, Hexaware GROUP MANAGER(customer engagement), Tech 2 Jaishree Kasturi Mahindra 3 Ramalakshmi Loganathan Sr. Program Manager - Verizon
Human
Resources
1 Dr. Chris Augustine. Global Human Resources , Virtusa Polaris
2 Bharath Gopalan GM- Learning & Development, The Ramco Cements Limited
3 Umasree Raghunath Program Manager- Project Services, IBM
Ms. Lakshmi Gopal COO, Cenza Technologies has substituted Ms. Devikarani M for Oral Presentation.
We would also like to convey our thanks to the volunteers from eWIT members companies who helped us in conducting the Oral Presentation sessions smoothly.
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Importance of People Management for the success of HR Strategy
“Importance of People Management for the success of HR Strategy” came across as a very inquisitive topic, given the rising importance of empathy and people management, with the advent of automation era. The basic idea while writing down this paper was to make it relevant to the current industry scenario and the prevalent definition of competitive advantage.
The point of view was explained with the help of suggested novel initiatives for each of the facets of people management. These were employee engagement, learning and development and rewards and recognition. There was an emphasis laid on the ripple of analytics, digitization and differentiation and their influence on people management.
Achala Bhat, Business Partner HR, Infosys Ltd Winner – eWIT Excellence Award 2017 – HR Category
Mobile Application Management
The paper highlights the evolution of enterprise mobility solutions, alongside digital era and the role of mobile device and application management in today’s corporate world. It also provides insights, on the changing trend in mobile technologies and challenges faced by organizations, to provide security for sensitive data. This paper also outlines, mobile application framework and its components. As a real time example, the paper includes a detailed description of the mobile application management framework and how it provides a complete solution for an enterprise’s needs.
I work as an associate project manager in HCL technologies with almost a decade of experience in software applications development and support.
Ms. Anuradha Soundarajan, Associate Project Manager, HCL Technologies Winner – eWIT Excellence Award 2017 – Technology category
2017 27
Process, Methods and Tools - How much are they important for delivery in an organization?
Usage ofLean Six Sigma in different industries evolved from its inception based on the challenges faced specific to the industry. The task in hand was to drive a structured approach of Cost of Delivery Reduction in the Testing Business Unit. This was achieved by continuously improving different engagement metrics.We faced some challenges in testing projects:
Testing projects are generally long cycle, non-transactional process Un-availability of detailed data for the analysis Engagements are divided in many small projects with very small headcount Unavailability of resources to handle many projects Difficult to fit standard Lean Six Sigma DMAIC approach This paper focused on implementing LEAN, Six Sigma and TRIZ in amalgamation which is customized specifically for Testing Productivity improvement and thus reducing the cost of the engagements. It also highlights challenges of implementing a six sigma methodology:
Run the improvement initiative in multiple engagements/ projects of a similar nature simultaneously
Reduce the timeline required to complete the six sigma initiative
Create a robust project selection mechanism
Clearly defining the ownerships and responsibilities from the Engagements
Mampi Bose, Manager – Delivery Excellence, Cognizant Technology Solutions Pvt Ltd Winner – Quality Category – eWIT Excellence Award 2017
2017 28
Professional Networking
Professional networking is no longer a matter of choice, it has become a necessity both for survival and growth in our career. But unlike earlier when we were dependent on personal interactions in conferences, seminars to build our professional circle, the advance of social media has made networking possible at the click of a button. Frequently used social media like LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter have built in features to make professional networking easy and accessible As a professional in the corporate world, social media networking sites can help establish peer connects in other organizations, share ideas and best practices, find innovative solutions through your virtual colleagues, hone your skills and much more. In addition, Job search options becomes much easier since many of the sites facilitate job posting and job search Networking sites like LinkedIn map the activities from real world to the virtual world. It allows you to create and publish profiles, establish connects, share publications, search for jobs and all from the comfort of your desk. Below are some practical tips on leveraging social media to build your professional network
Maintain current profile on professional networking sites like LinkedIn, highlight your unique contributions (say an innovative App you developed, white papers you published, webinars you have conducted, forums you contribute to etc.) Join online technical forums and online communities relevant to your industry. This will help you to quickly expand your network as well as understand current trends. Most social networking sites have community areas where you can actively participate and contribute to discussions. They allow you to share content, start discussions threads, debates on ideas etc. Ensure you establish virtual connect with new professionals you meet in your job or through conferences/seminars. Focus on quality of your professional network – be selective on the people you connect with in the virtual network. In the virtual world of networking, nothing can prevent us from connecting with people at any level of an organization – from industry leaders to CXO. On regular basis review contributions from industry peer and give your views in their blogs, it helps develop new connects in addition to honing your skills. Blogging allows you to showcase professional expertise/knowledge of a specific subject by writing about it. Some key social media networking sites to leverage
Facebook - to find professionals with similar interests and also contribute to groups within FB Pinterest: Pinterest helps to create online visual identify for networking and helps develop profiles that showcases you as a professional Twitter: Use it to Follow industry leaders, organizations etc. Tweet about your career interest, career goals to find some new options LinkedIn:Widely used professional network used for hiring as well as networking Jaishree Kasturi, Group Manager – Customer Engagement, Tech Mahindra , Chennai
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2017 30
7 Ways Women Communicate They Mean Business!
The IT/ITES Industry is a melting pot and comprises women from all generations - Baby Boomers, Gen X and now, of course, the majority is from the millennial generation. So, if I ask myself whether these diverse women in the workforce mean business, my answer could be summarized as follows:
1. Choosing a career versus staying at home does not mean we are prioritizing one over the other – today our internal wiring makes it seem like the two are in direct conflict. For women, it is a prioritization at a moment in time. So, women choose a career and home confident we can do justice to both!
2. Overcoming the Baby Boomer guilt trip – Years of conditioning means that shaking off the ‘guilt tripping’ is not an accident but quite simply a choice to make up one’s own mind and take one's own decisions.
3. Requesting/Suggesting/Leading by example in terms of contributing to both work and home – I can proudly claim, at this point, that women who mean business understand the nuances of ‘nudging’ and delegation
4. Multi-tasking is actually an illusion – Women prioritize and re-prioritize constantly in real time so, while all of the studies can claim multi-tasking is detrimental, I would like to see men give this a shot!
5. Spending quality time with ourselves is not a fad – It is a reality and it is so because we understand the value and worth of time and beauty, not because L’Oreal says so!
6. We dress for the job we want - Grooming & fashion is our birth right and, thankfully, we don’t spend half as much time as men do on it!
7. Staying relevant with the digital age – is a choice that involves time and commitment and women continue to ace this. We are smart, savvy and know the benefits of technology.
So, I have my answer when it comes to women. Now I wonder how to tell if the other side means business.
Janine Nirmal , Director – Operations, RRD – Global Outsourcing
2017 31
On Reverse Mentoring: From Millennials to Mentors
How do you keep yourself at the forefront in the digital and mobile world which is at a blazing speed of light? With organizations today choosing to undergo transformation processes, most find themselves in the spot today to address the growing learning needs of the business. It brings in process changes within the company; a parallel move to upgrade employee skills is also needed. Today’s workplace has two very different generations working together and it is extremely important to ensure people belonging to both these generations understand each other to be able to work together.
A couple weeks ago, when I needed help figuring out how to convert numbers in an Excel spreadsheet into a multiline graph, I turned to an expert: my 20-year-old son. It took him less than five minutes to show me which Excel function to use. A couple of clicks later, the numbers appeared as a perfectly formatted, multicolor, four-line graph. I am still decoding acronyms like POS (Parent over shoulder) and P911 (Parent Alert) from him! I believe that we are at a stage where we have to stay updated with the tricks of the trade of our next-gen. Its existence can never be ruled out!
I recently hired and inducted half a dozen graduates for our organization. I’d say reverse mentoring is the perfect way for you to position yourself as a Digital leader especially if you have different generations in your firm. The term ‘reverse mentor’ was coined and first implemented by GE’s Jack Welch in 1999 to help executives enter the Internet age. The 2015 movie, The Intern, is a classic example of how the concept of reverse mentoring is catching up.
The reverse mentorship program’s mixed cocktail of the old and established with contemporary and pioneering fits BNY Mellon’s iNautix well. Parent company BNY Mellon has storied a history of 233 years in financial services sector. But our company’s culture —has always been directed at innovation in function and not form. The reverse mentoring partnership has been a good stepping stone towards innovation where the mentors help their senior mentees look at new and efficient ways of working. Working with young generation actually takes you into a different world altogether.
For instance, Gamification is a buzz word— I am now engaged in the reverse mentoring program. I am in the process of learning from my younger colleague who is probably half my age -- about concepts or tools that could be used in organizational gamification. I believe that my mentor is better equipped with knowledge in gamification. This definitely helps me in setting up the equation between the teams in a more amiable way than anticipated.
Although the reverse mentoring concept brings about several benefits to the business, it is not always an easy programme to implement. To ensure a successful programme, it is important for leaders to have the right outlook about learning from somebody younger. As more and more millennials enter the workforce, it is time more companies take note of the business benefits of reverse mentoring. Not only does it provide knowledge and guidance to older workers about emerging trends, but it is also a way to ensure more active collaboration between generations.
Mohan Narayanaswamy, Managing Director & COO, iNautix Technologies | BNY Mellon Company
2017 32
Leading Bold Change – Unleash the Limitless Potential
Every Woman has limitless potential in excelling in what she has passion for. Sometimes woman do not follow their passion either in professional life or in personal life due to various circumstances.
But understand the meaning of “change” as outlined below, follow your heart and use your common sense, this will help you in finding the right “change” that you wish for in your life:
Transformation/Revolution: This is required when it benefits the organization, your peers, and your team members and for your own benefit. Do not give up in pursuing your passion in areas such as, technology, mentoring, social services, and being supportive to others. Your willingness to take a new role is the first step towards success. Unless you take up challenges in your career, you will never know the potential you have. Use every opportunity that comes your way in your life to “Unleash the Limitless Potential”.
Adjustment: Requires you to be in harmony with your family, also for your safely at office and other public places. Do not get involved in arguments such as “men vs women” topics. Finally you end up depending on your father, brother, husband to take you home safely late at night or help you when you are in need. This is the mother nature of India and accept the truth that you are dependent on men in many of the areas. We need to understand that “Women Empowerment” is not going against men. I see a big change in the mindset from the era of male dominated society to today's world of equality. Today both men and women are walking together in all spheres of life challenging, respecting and supporting each other. Men are supporting women in many aspects. On the other hand, women are well equipped and move out independently to face challenges.
In my life, my inspiration and my empowerment came first from my father and now from my husband.
The true change we can bring in this world has to start from our own families, to teach our children to respect girls and women in their life. Also teach the younger generation to protest against the injustices that are still happening to women in India and other countries.
To all my friends who are reading this article, you are unique and an amazing woman, never lose your confidence, always follow good deeds of your heart and dare to accept the challenges in your professional journey.
I always believe in this saying "The woman who follows the crowd will usually go no further than the crowd. The woman who walks alone is likely to find herself in places no one has ever been before." - Albert Einstein
Madhavi Chilla, Technical Manager, HCL Technologies
2017 33
Tell me your Story – Tell Your Story Well!
Our Story is our self, our story is our identity and our story is our attitude! Our stories reveal a great deal about ourselves...Our beliefs, our values, our perspectives our perceptions, our priorities and our purpose. So when we tell our stories, tell them well. Well enough to get what we want, from our story, from our life!
Therefore, it is important and imperative that we tell our stories well and with impact. The personal narrative needs to be consciously cultivated, the story needs to be carefully crafted.
Collect your thoughts and memories of your life with care, spin a yarn arranging them in an engaging sequence dotted with dramatic tension. Now weave your story with weft and craft, garnish it with emotions and empathy and deliver it in a way that will grab your audience. Let your story become a magic wand!
But before you write/script your story, remember you are designing your future. Ask yourself the common man's abracadabra questions... What am I telling them? Why am I telling them (my) story? Where am I telling them? When am I telling them and finally How am I telling them? Finally when you are ready with your story make sure, you create magic with your story.
What is the purpose of your story? Is it to position your brand in a competitive market, or to make your presence felt in the crowded job market...or to evangelize your vision or values to the stake holders. Your story must have a take away! So tell them a memorable story, tell them a magical story!
Lavanya Srinivas is a storyteller, soft skills trainer, author, and translator. She is the founder-director of Katha Kamamishu – a world of stories
2017 34
Do you know your ABCs for Success?
Whenever I am introduced as the Head of Training for one of the large business spread over 31 countries at HCL and as a successful woman professional, the most frequent question I am asked is ‘What do you credit your success to?’. In life, we first learn our alphabets, the ABCs. Similarly, the mantra I follow, is one, all of us can remember easily - The ABCs. Attitude: The 1st lesson for success is having a positive attitude. Your attitude can make you or break you. When I joined HCL as a Technical Trainer in 2000, I had no hint on how corporates work and what the role of a trainer would be. I had no choice but to start from scratch, despite a decade long experience of teaching in an engineering college. This entailed burning the midnight oil in office and coming back to work in the wee hours of the morning, to help me grasp new technologies. Moving on, some years later, while I was expecting my daughter, I was conducting a month long induction training on C++ and Unix for freshers. My doctor had planned a C-section for 5 PM. However, I insisted on taking the final class on the same day for two hours, and then rushed for my surgery, straight from class. My students, who have now gone on to become Delivery Heads, still recollect this whenever we meet Your attitude paves the way to the impression you create! Belief: Believing in yourself is sacrosanct. It is the unwavering belief in myself that helped me win the Microsoft MVP (Most Valuable Professional) award in India for C#.NET, for three consecutive years. When I received sponsorship, based on my performance, to attend the Microsoft Global Summit at Seattle, I also wanted to give back to HCL, and hence volunteered to train our customers. With the confidence that I could do it right and after a lot of convincing, I finally had an opportunity to train one of the customer teams. However, on the day of the training, I was taken by surprise when asked to train on .NET 2.0 instead of .NET1.1. which I was prepared for. With one hour to prepare, it was my confidence that earned me a standing ovation at the end of training. Belief in myself has helped me to become a popular .NET Consultant / trainer Consistency: Last but not the least, consistency in delivering quality work is crucial. I’ve led my team to win 50+ awards for training, including the coveted ASTD Excellence in practice awards, Bersin by Deloitte Learning Leaders Awards, CLO Learning in Practice Awards, Brandon Hall group Gold Excellence in Learning Awards- a feat not possible without ensuring consistent high performance. “And, when you want something, all the universe conspires in helping you to achieve it”, goes a saying from one on my favourite books, The Alchemist. A humble background did not stop me from dreaming big and believing in myself. What’s stopping you? Dhamayanthi N. Associate Vice President, HCL Technologies Ltd.
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The Curious Case of Smiley’s
Can smileys sent on WhatsApp land you in trouble and cost you your job? Can it be termed as Sexual Harassment?
Yes, as per the recent BSNL Sexual harassment case filed by a lady employee in Tuticorin. The context, type of smiley sent, the frequency and time when the message was sent needs to be factored in.
As per the Prevention of Sexual Harassment at the Workplace Act, 2013 (PoSH Act), Sexual harassment is defined as any behavior that is unwelcome, sexual in nature and the impact on the victim and not the intent of the perpetrator that matters. Sexual harassment can be in the form of Verbal comments, letters/mails;Non-verbal signals such as gestures, stalking or physical form of inappropriate touch of hair or body or clothing.
As per the Act, every organization with more than 10 employees, should be compliant with having the Policy, Internal Committee (IC) to handle comments, display posters on notice boards, create awareness to IC and Employees on Do’s and Don’ts and Submit Annual reports to the authorities.
The latest ‘The Viral Fever’ (TVF) case which created an uproar in the news was a classic example as to why organizations need to be compliant. An anonymous, ex-employee of TVF took to Social media to post her blog on the Harassment by her CEO, following which there were 50 others who complained on the CEO and acknowledged the anonymous post. The CEO denied these false allegations. TVFan upcoming startup did not give importance to the HR policies, was not compliant to the POSH Act and had not even formed an IC to handle complaints. With employees not knowing where to complaint, Social media and Press are easy source for employees to vent their helplessness. This TVF case may or may not be a false allegation, but the damage to the brand name is irrevocable.
As per the latest survey done by KelpHR, it is found that 22% of employees are victims to Sexual harassment, with 2% being men. The Survey also revealed that 40% of employees were not exactly clear with the definition of harassment and think that only physical form can be harassment. 50% of the victims did not trust their organization to file their compliant as they feared retaliation or loss of job. This is where the members of the IC and their role becomes very crucial in gaining the trust of the employees.
If you are Victim, it is essential to understand that it is not your fault and you should speak out and say a firm ‘No’ if you are not comfortable with a behavior. Gather evidence, check if the harassment continues, despite warning and file a complaint with your HR or IC. When in doubt, seek advice with your HR or manager or IC.
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If you are Harasser, stop your behavior immediately. If you are not sure about your behavior, check if you will behave in the same way in front of your family member. Excuses such as ‘my intent was misunderstood’, or ‘my feelings for the person was genuine’ or ‘it was just a casual comment, she/he should learn to enjoy the joke’ are not acceptable and may cost your job.
As Employers or CXO’s, it is essential for organizations to provide a safe work environment for their employees and to protect your brand name. Excuses such as we have not had any incidents in the past or our employees are all well behaved, are not acceptable in the eyes of the law. Also, it does not cost much to be compliant to the Act as compared to the damage a single case can do.
In India, we have a long way to go by establishing the right organization work culture and commitment towards a harassment free workplace.
Viji Hari, CEO and cofounder of www.KelpHR.com
2017 37
Rise to the power of You! The new world awaits!
My mind often dances to the tune of emoticons that gush through my heart and translates into a soulful play of movements weaved around a story – a story of a girl who is liberated in her thoughts, mind and body yet bound by the reins of defined culture, prescribed formula of righteousness and wrong doings . She rises every single time she is bogged down by the shackles of societal pressure. She rises to her inner power to pursue what sets her soul on fire.
This is the glimpse of the life of today’s woman who is exposed to the immense possibilities that exist in all spheres of life right from traditional forms of work to the modern ones while exploring the new world of intelligence, technology and human era. On the other hand the world is preparing itself to welcome her power by opening up human minds and evolving to be a more inclusive and acceptable place to be in.
In earlier times, when tough voyages were undertaken only the young and middle aged men were chosen to be on board: the crew then formed a rather rough and strong community. Inspite of their physical prowess men often aborted the projects midway and there arose the need of change that came in the form of a Woman oceanographer whose presence was often sufficient to completely change the atmosphere – to give men a purpose, inspire them to be stronger and take risks to exude their grit and guts. This brings me to the thought that a system must always be viewed as a whole and its working be determined by the interaction of all the parts.
In todays’ times, in the era where automation has set in, it is bound to blow across the services based economy. It will be human’s in relation to machine and automation. In that scenario gender differences are likely to level out and humans would move into augmentation mode to become better and more efficient. While in the Industrial era the machines empowered the men and brought about uniformity and a homogenous structure, today technology and automation is fostering a heterogeneous formation without its abrasive edges.
It’s the women leaders who will play a significant role in this process through their traits of empathy, collaboration, fairness and compassion. This needs acknowledgement. If the voyage demands immense skill and power and if the destination is a challenging one then the ship that we sail on (the organization) has to have women. It’s the women who bring in a certain thought process and perspective to the team just like how a handful of women in the oceanographer's ship helped in reaching the destination. The future potential and the growth capability of any organization is dependent on the role played by the women in it.
So to all the woman out there! , it is about time, it’s like the universe has come to conspire and put you at the front and center of everything. More than ever, you are bound to shine, feel empowered and empower others to be their best!
The New World awaits!
Garima Tyagi, Diversity and Inclusion India Lead, Verizon Data Services India Pvt Ltd.
2017 38
A break need not brake your career for ever
VAAPAS - Return to work initiative eWIT has launched several successful initiatives over the last decade to increase the share and sustainability of women in the IT/ITES sector. VAAPAS is one such key initiative. The objectives of VAAPAS are many fold. The primary one is to help women resume their career after a break. And the other one is to ensure that Indian IT/ITES industry does not lose the trained ‘wo’man power that is ready to contribute to its growth.
Women are already closing the higher education gap. At entry level in IT/ITES companies, women form close to 50% and sometimes, more. But later, this percentage comes down drastically. Many women quit when they take a break from their career, either due to marriage or taking care of children or for elder care. When one takes a career break, it is seen as a blot on an otherwise clean career profile. Resumes with career breaks often are pushed to the bottom of the pile of job applications. Even if these women get recruited, they often find that the place they used to work had transformed totally. Despite their brilliant profiles, they find themselves misfits.
VAAPAS, the ‘Return-to-work initiative” of eWIT was launched in July 2016 to address the above challenges women returning to work faced. It prepares the women to face what the reality is; it also helps corporates devise their policies and processes to accommodate these women. A half-a-day orientation program was conducted for the registrants at Chennai. During this orientation program, inputs were provided by senior executives and HR from several corporates. While the talks motivated them to not give up their job search, it also helped them set realistic expectations. Over 500 women have registered so far with VAAPAS seeking a job. So far, about ten of our corporate members interviewed for different positions. Six of them have found suitable matches and hired for the different openings that existed in their organisations.
Corporates have come to realise that by recruiting women after a career break and providing them a roadmap for success, not only they’re perceived as ‘gender neutral’, and helping society but also tapping the rich talent and loyalty of these experienced women who wholeheartedly work hard to help them grow.
Companies who currently participate in VAAPAS include: Systech Solutions, Fifth Generation Technologies, Virtusa Polaris, NCS Soft, Client Network Services, CI Global Solutions, Maarga Systems, Sutherland, etc.
If you or your organisation is looking to be part of VAAPAS, reach us at [email protected]
Latha Ramesh, Jt Secretary, eWIT
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2017 40 eWIT Thanks for the Support
In maintaining eWIT website and providing all administrative assistance and souvenir cover designing
In souvenir designing
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