Speakers at the 2nd Annual Women Leadership Summit at IIMB speak of the need for new rules of inclusion at the workplace
JANUARY 10, 2015: “There is a strong bias working against women, which has to be overcome since it comes in the way of women’s education. Most of us don’t realize there is bias. Hence, you have to recognize bias, use data, then strategize to move things forward,” said IIMB Director Dr Sushil Vachani while delivering the welcome address at the Second Annual Women Leadership Summit, themed ‘Take the Leap’, and hosted by the Women in Management Club at IIM Bangalore, on January 9, 2016.
Observing that a society like the Women in Management club at IIMB was the starting point of such conversations, Dr Vachani said, “There may be many things that you cannot change. But you can change the hand you are playing. The conversation that we will have today will help you come up with the winning hand which is different for each of us.”
In her keynote speech, Rama Bijapurkar, Visiting Faculty, IIM Ahmedabad and a well-known Consultant in the field of Market Strategy and Consumer Behaviour, emphasized the need for women to recognize, strategize, discuss, negotiate, use data and address gender and other issues. “Women are living in a 21st century economy which has an 18th century society!” The silver lining, she said, is the fact that more women were gaining an education and some laws of the land, pertaining to women’s rights, were being rewritten.
“Domestic violence is now recognized as a criminal offence, there is a change in inheritance laws and there are new laws on addressing crimes against women. Women are choosing to work. In the near future, new rules will come in and we have a better chance of shaping the new rules, even in the workplace,” she said.
Sharing experiences from her own life as a professional, Rama Bijapurkar spoke about “sliding door” situations or “surprises that life springs on you, which significantly impact your life” and explained how she dealt with such challenges. “It is important to have a navigation principle, devise your own definition of success and chart your course.”
Describing the specific challenges faced by women who return to work after a break, she suggested that they work towards finding a transition position that could enable them to regain their bearings. “It is all about strategizing and negotiating. When faced with situations where women have to make choices, they should negotiate and try and have both. With remote working opportunities, this has become a possibility,” she said.
Addressing the issue of gender bias at the workplace, she said that although stereotyping was a reality, many people were not even conscious of it. “Sometimes it is important to point out that there are differences in situations for men and women. Sometimes, you have to be assertive, protest, raise your voice and have your way. Collectively work with the system, negotiate it, shape dialogue and action. Do not be cowed down, speak up and sensitize all around you. If you pretend nothing is happening, then nothing happens. Ask who made the rules, challenge them and make new rules,” she said.
In his address, Sanjaya Sharma, Founder-CEO, Tata Interactive Systems and Tata ClassEdge, said women needed to be more assertive in their careers. “Everyone in society must develop a mind-set that accepts the fact that people – irrespective of their gender – must be self-sufficient economically and be able to express their potential.” Offering examples from his own life, he told the audience: “Set priorities; do not do things out of responsibility alone, have fun too by getting a new dimension in life and make your life richer.”
He remarked that organizations needed to design and support women around phases such as child birth and baby breaks. “Organizations can do a lot for the welfare of employees, diversity and inclusion. Gender discrimination happens, but today due to evolution of society, partly because of hard core economic logic, things are changing for the better,” he added.
Talking about technology and its impact on work and productivity, he said that technology had knocked out distance and time factors. “Hence, work cycle designs can be remodelled. Thanks to technology, many issues faced earlier will fade away. However, all the evidence indicates that the family remains an important source of development, happiness and success in life, so many times you need to look from the family perspective too, create a support group and move forward. You have to be realistic and make the best you can.”
Other highlights of the day included a panel discussion on ‘Ascent to the Pinnacle’. The panellists included Dr Gita Sen, Director, Ramalingaswamy Centre on Equity and Social Determinants of Health, Adjunct Professor of Global Health & Population, Harvard School of Public Health, former Professor of Public Policy, IIMB; Rama NS, CEO, ELCITA, former VP, Infosys; IIMB alumnus Ramya Mohan, Manager, AT Kearney; and IIMB alumnus Gauri Jayaram, Founder & CEO, Active Holiday Company. The moderator of the session was Dr Ritu Tripathi, IIMB faculty member in the Organisational Behaviour & Human Resources Management area.
The panel discussion was followed by a workshop on ‘Financial Planning - Take charge of Your Career’, conducted by Subha Chandrasekaran, Founder & Director, Raikraft Creative Solutions, who also has over 15 years of banking experience.
ABOUT WIM:
Started in 2014, the Women in Management (WIM) club at IIMB aims to promote gender equality and encourage women to find their rightful place in education, industry and entrepreneurship. Towards this end, the WIM club has launched several initiatives (such as summits, talks, workshops, mentoring sessions and networking events) to create awareness about the challenges faced by women in industry and the role to be played by various stakeholders in encouraging and developing women leaders.
The objective of the leadership summit, which is a flagship event of the club, is to bring together a community from academia, industry and entrepreneurship to engage with relevant issues and have important conversations about women leadership.
Speakers at the 2nd Annual Women Leadership Summit at IIMB speak of the need for new rules of inclusion at the workplace
JANUARY 10, 2015: “There is a strong bias working against women, which has to be overcome since it comes in the way of women’s education. Most of us don’t realize there is bias. Hence, you have to recognize bias, use data, then strategize to move things forward,” said IIMB Director Dr Sushil Vachani while delivering the welcome address at the Second Annual Women Leadership Summit, themed ‘Take the Leap’, and hosted by the Women in Management Club at IIM Bangalore, on January 9, 2016.
Observing that a society like the Women in Management club at IIMB was the starting point of such conversations, Dr Vachani said, “There may be many things that you cannot change. But you can change the hand you are playing. The conversation that we will have today will help you come up with the winning hand which is different for each of us.”
In her keynote speech, Rama Bijapurkar, Visiting Faculty, IIM Ahmedabad and a well-known Consultant in the field of Market Strategy and Consumer Behaviour, emphasized the need for women to recognize, strategize, discuss, negotiate, use data and address gender and other issues. “Women are living in a 21st century economy which has an 18th century society!” The silver lining, she said, is the fact that more women were gaining an education and some laws of the land, pertaining to women’s rights, were being rewritten.
“Domestic violence is now recognized as a criminal offence, there is a change in inheritance laws and there are new laws on addressing crimes against women. Women are choosing to work. In the near future, new rules will come in and we have a better chance of shaping the new rules, even in the workplace,” she said.
Sharing experiences from her own life as a professional, Rama Bijapurkar spoke about “sliding door” situations or “surprises that life springs on you, which significantly impact your life” and explained how she dealt with such challenges. “It is important to have a navigation principle, devise your own definition of success and chart your course.”
Describing the specific challenges faced by women who return to work after a break, she suggested that they work towards finding a transition position that could enable them to regain their bearings. “It is all about strategizing and negotiating. When faced with situations where women have to make choices, they should negotiate and try and have both. With remote working opportunities, this has become a possibility,” she said.
Addressing the issue of gender bias at the workplace, she said that although stereotyping was a reality, many people were not even conscious of it. “Sometimes it is important to point out that there are differences in situations for men and women. Sometimes, you have to be assertive, protest, raise your voice and have your way. Collectively work with the system, negotiate it, shape dialogue and action. Do not be cowed down, speak up and sensitize all around you. If you pretend nothing is happening, then nothing happens. Ask who made the rules, challenge them and make new rules,” she said.
In his address, Sanjaya Sharma, Founder-CEO, Tata Interactive Systems and Tata ClassEdge, said women needed to be more assertive in their careers. “Everyone in society must develop a mind-set that accepts the fact that people – irrespective of their gender – must be self-sufficient economically and be able to express their potential.” Offering examples from his own life, he told the audience: “Set priorities; do not do things out of responsibility alone, have fun too by getting a new dimension in life and make your life richer.”
He remarked that organizations needed to design and support women around phases such as child birth and baby breaks. “Organizations can do a lot for the welfare of employees, diversity and inclusion. Gender discrimination happens, but today due to evolution of society, partly because of hard core economic logic, things are changing for the better,” he added.
Talking about technology and its impact on work and productivity, he said that technology had knocked out distance and time factors. “Hence, work cycle designs can be remodelled. Thanks to technology, many issues faced earlier will fade away. However, all the evidence indicates that the family remains an important source of development, happiness and success in life, so many times you need to look from the family perspective too, create a support group and move forward. You have to be realistic and make the best you can.”
Other highlights of the day included a panel discussion on ‘Ascent to the Pinnacle’. The panellists included Dr Gita Sen, Director, Ramalingaswamy Centre on Equity and Social Determinants of Health, Adjunct Professor of Global Health & Population, Harvard School of Public Health, former Professor of Public Policy, IIMB; Rama NS, CEO, ELCITA, former VP, Infosys; IIMB alumnus Ramya Mohan, Manager, AT Kearney; and IIMB alumnus Gauri Jayaram, Founder & CEO, Active Holiday Company. The moderator of the session was Dr Ritu Tripathi, IIMB faculty member in the Organisational Behaviour & Human Resources Management area.
The panel discussion was followed by a workshop on ‘Financial Planning - Take charge of Your Career’, conducted by Subha Chandrasekaran, Founder & Director, Raikraft Creative Solutions, who also has over 15 years of banking experience.
ABOUT WIM:
Started in 2014, the Women in Management (WIM) club at IIMB aims to promote gender equality and encourage women to find their rightful place in education, industry and entrepreneurship. Towards this end, the WIM club has launched several initiatives (such as summits, talks, workshops, mentoring sessions and networking events) to create awareness about the challenges faced by women in industry and the role to be played by various stakeholders in encouraging and developing women leaders.
The objective of the leadership summit, which is a flagship event of the club, is to bring together a community from academia, industry and entrepreneurship to engage with relevant issues and have important conversations about women leadership.