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Having been part of four organizations in the last twenty-five years where
women were expected to and did play as much of a role as any man in the success
of the firms and their own success, here are a few thoughts on why women can and
must succeed in playing more significant leadership roles in IT and business
services. Even as the industry aims to achieve revenues in excess of $300 bn by
2020.
Let us define leadership in the most commonly understood format to set the
base for this argument. It is essentially all about developing and articulating
a clear vision, a strategy and direction, setting performance standards for the
team and then assuming responsibility and taking charge to achieve the agreed
goals. In the process becoming an inspirational role model for many in the team
who look for such inspiration. Successful IT industry women leaders who have
built and led companies with distinction includeRevathi Kasturi, Uma Ganesh,
and Neelam Dhawanhave demonstrated all these qualities in abundant measure and
most women managers in line roles in IT organizations typically demonstrate
these traits at a very young age.
Many women also bring to the table some distinctive capabilities that make
them more suited than men to tackle sensitive leadership tasksa willingness to
collaborate and consult before arriving at a decision, the ability to empathize
with weaker performers and attempt to develop them towards better goal
achievement and the willingness to nurture and coach young members of a team.
Years of dealing diplomatically with domestic situations caused by stereotyping
in the role they play vis-a-vis spouse, children, and other members of extended
families give Indian women the patience to deal with complex situations with
balance and equanimity at all times.
Why is there then such an alarming drop off rate as an industry which
typically has over 30% of associates at the entry level of the female gender
struggles to demonstrate even a third of that percentage in senior management.
And if one leaves the human resource community out of the calculation, the
percentage could drop to even five or less? It is fashionable to attribute this
malaise to the proverbial glass ceiling. I was bemused in a recent interaction
with a very vocal consultant on this issue to find her laying the blame squarely
on heartless and insensitive men who do not want women in the board room! At
the risk of losing many of my wonderful women friends, let me offer an argument.
Very often it is the very sensitivity and emotional quotient that enables young
women managers to be so successful that proves to be their undoing as they work
longer hours in the middle years of their career.
Our own analysis in Zensar of the reasons for attrition in the second ten
years of any womans career has shown that domestic compulsionsa drop in
performance of a child, a casual barb thrown by a family member and sometimes
the perceived risk of shining more than a spouse are very often reasons for
voluntary movement to a staff role or even into a lower intensity career. It
could be argued that the next generation of women will demand and practice
complete gender equality in all roles performed in and out of home but all of
usIT leaders, husbands, fathers, bosses and indeed women bosses in
particularneed to demonstrate an understanding of real and perceived conflicts
to succeed in their aspiration to reach the top.
And to conclude, one parameter of success would really be when the womens
conferences scheduled in the next few months are attended by as many men as
women to ensure gender is finally buried as a reason for lack of success of any
professional in this proud industry!
Ganesh Natarajan
The author is Vice Chairman & MD of Zensar Technologies. He can be reached
at maildqindia@cybermedia.co.in
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