More Women In Workplace: Inspiration And Imperative
Back when Nigar Shaji was growing up in a farming family in the tiny agricultural town of Sengottai in Tamil Nadu, little did she think that she would make the country proud by successfully placing India’s first solar-based space observatory into orbit one day. The Project Director of the Indian Space Research Organisation’s (ISRO) solar mission and her team of women scientists ensured that the Aditya L1 observatory reached its final destination at Lagrange Point 1, 1.5 million km from the Earth, earlier this month. With this, ISRO’s scientists have once again proven that there’s no stopping women from reaching for the stars and beyond – literally and metaphorically.
Nigar’s mother was a homemaker and her father a math-graduate-turned farmer who instilled the love for STEM in her. Despite their humble origins, her parents were keen to give their children the best education possible. They especially wanted their daughters to be financially independent, she has revealed in a recent media interview. It was because of their encouragement and motivation that Nigar got a master’s degree in engineering before joining ISRO in 1987.
As we celebrate the National Day of the Girl Child in January, it’s heartening to see Indian women take such huge strides in gender-agnostic organisations like ISRO. At India’s Bharati Research Station in Antarctica, around 80 women researchers and doctors are taking the country’s Antarctica mission forward. Other Indian women are increasingly displaying their talent and drive in diverse spheres be it a cricket pitch or factory shopfloors across the country.
Their passion for learning and their eagerness to grab every opportunity for growth is truly a source of inspiration for the rest of us.
However, even as we celebrate these achievements, it’s important to remember that we still have a long way to go before we can create an environment that supports the personal and professional growth of each and every girl child in the country. Gender equality must be the norm and not an out-of-the-ordinary occurrence.
According to data from the International Labour Organization (ILO), there are less than 20% of women in the Indian labour force – that’s just 2 women out of every 10 people in the talent pool. More worryingly, the rate of women’s participation in the workforce has been declining over time. A couple of decades ago, this rate was as high as 30%.
The low labour force participation rate has not only individual and social repercussions but economic implications, too. A McKinsey Global Institute report suggests that advancing women's equality and presence at the workplace can add $12 trillion to global growth.
Clearly, employers need to do more to attract and support women in the workforce and turn the gender parity promise, which is a key component of their Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) commitment, into reality.
The Impact of Diversity
One of the big benefits of a gender balanced workforce is that it brings in greater diversity in culture and perspectives by allowing for a variety of viewpoints and innovative thinking. For instance, it can help a life insurance company understand and meet the needs of diverse customers, thereby enhancing its competitiveness.
Take, for example, the process of creating a life insurance product. Getting multiple perspectives from different users, reviewers and auditors makes a big difference to the quality of the end product. If you work with a group of like-minded people, you may be quick in designing and implementing, but you may also face problems of pushback from customers later on. Why? Because you have created something based on limited perspectives. There’s the possibility of a reputation risk for the organisation.
On the other hand, if more women are involved in designing insurance products, shaping policies, crafting processes, defining SOPs, it helps the organisation to plan for multiple scenarios.
Tackling the Gender Bias
Unfortunately, entering the workforce is still an uphill task for many women, especially in the hinterland, because of factors such as unequal education opportunities, cultural dogmas, and lack of family support. Gender biases in India are deeply rooted, often confining women to traditional roles.
The insurance sector, too, has been traditionally male-dominated and is a microcosm of these societal biases. According to an ILO report, only about 20% of the insurance workforce in Asia is female. However, with three of the leading insurance companies in India headed by women, and with their active encouragement to women to take up leadership roles across the board, the country could well take the lead on gender parity in this part of the globe. Surely, Indian women in finance are no less than their counterparts in space and polar research when it comes to treading the untrodden path.
A Holistic Approach: From Recruitment to Retirement
Undoubtedly, building a diverse team is a complex task. It must start with recruitment, and companies should actively seek candidates from various backgrounds to ensure that their workforce is a true reflection of the society they serve.
Equally, it’s important to impart gender sensitivity training to existing employees to foster an inclusive environment that supports and encourages women. Equal opportunities must also permeate through the entire employee lifecycle, ensuring that the commitment to DEI is a lived experience and not a corporate slogan.
The National Day of the Girl Child is a timely reminder of all that we need to do to support and celebrate the young girls of today who will grow up to be the incredible women of tomorrow. We have to ensure that they have an easier walkway to workplaces and ample choices for contributing not just to households but also to shopfloors, policy spaces, corporate boardrooms and more.
