“Retaining women at mid-management levels is challenging. It is observed that in organisations where many senior leadership positions are held by women, they are more likely to get equal pay, feel higher job satisfaction and stay longer with the company,” said Prashanti Bodugum, Vice President – Enterprise Business Services and Chennai Centre Head, Walmart Global Tech India.
ETHRWorld interacted with industry leaders on the occasion of ‘International Women in Engineering Day.’ The leaders talked about the current situation of women in engineering, challenges the women face and how to address them.
Prashanti Bodugum, Vice President – Enterprise Business Services and Chennai Centre Head, Walmart Global Tech India, who is an engineer herself, said, “Retaining women at mid-management levels is challenging. It is observed that in organisations where many senior leadership positions are held by women, they are more likely to get equal pay, feel higher job satisfaction and stay longer with the company.”
What the pandemic has changed for women in the sector
Jharna Thammaiah K, Director and India Site People and Places Leader, Intuit, said, “The pandemic has certainly created a greater demand for tech roles and has also created new opportunities in an otherwise challenging job market. I would believe this has paved the way for more women to join the tech industry.”
According to Jharna Thammaiah K, currently, there is a demand for women to lead and mentor, as the need for more empathetic decision making sees a rise.
Noting the challenges of work from home mode, Balvinder Khurana, Technology Principal and Global Data Community Lead, ThoughtWorks, mentioned that while everything is moving on to remote mode, it becomes easier for women to participate equally in work-related activities.
On the other hand, Khurana added that in the current scenario, the home front is witnessing an increased burden of workload on women as well as other family members due to the shutting down of educational institutions, which are also operating remotely, and the absence of the house help.
Explaining the positive aspects of the situation, Sashikala Viswanathan, Director – Corporate Quality, CSS Corp, said, “The technology industry is evolving rapidly and is one of the spaces where women can explore many opportunities to expand their horizons and succeed in their careers.”
Viswanathan stated that the initiatives and support offered by technology companies through mentorship programmes, peer training, reskilling, and upskilling courses or sessions provide women in tech a platform to hone and nurture their abilities further and grow within their roles.