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    Women can be allies and buddies to other women joining the workforce, says Seema Unni, Fidelity HR Head

    Synopsis

    Personal motivation can be complex, moulded by our internal conditioning & the environment.

    ​Seema Unni
    Seema Unni, Head, Human Resources, Fidelity Investments India, says that the cause of supporting other women is not limited only to women leaders.
    Sheryl Sandberg in her book, ‘Lean In’, says that “women often keep themselves from advancing because they don’t have the self-confidence and drive that men do.” She cites her first performance review with Mark Zuckerberg six months into her job at Meta (then Facebook) in which he told her that her desire to be liked by everyone was holding her back. If you please everyone, he said, you won’t change anything. “Mark was right,” she writes. “Everyone needs to get more comfortable with female leaders,” she insists, “including female leaders themselves.”

    Personal motivation can be complex, often moulded by our internal conditioning and the environment in which we have been nurtured. At the workplace, it also depends on our peers and the connections we make. And more so for women.

    Seema Unni, Head, Human Resources, Fidelity Investments India, says that the cause of supporting other women is not limited only to women leaders. And women professionals, in general, can become allies and foster a sense of solidarity. She also lists a few imminent challenges as more organisations try to strike a balance in a hybrid work-culture, and highlights how women leaders can act as mentors.


    Lopamudra Ghatak: What can women themselves do to change people's perception of other women employees? How can women at the workplace show solidarity towards their own and nurture them to grow?
    Seema Unni: Women can do a lot to support other women colleagues at work – depending on where they are in their career journey. Those in leadership roles can share their own inspiring success stories which have the potential to inspire others. Women leaders should also actively act as sponsors for younger professionals and speak up for them and provide them visibility and opportunities.

    The cause of supporting other women is not just limited only to women leaders. Women professionals, in general, can be allies by participating in employee resource groups, leadership groups, special interest groups like technology etc. and so on. Actively standing up and speaking up for their colleagues across levels and business groups is another way for women professionals to show support to other women colleagues.

    Similarly, women with lived experiences can act as buddies for new joiners. For example, previous beneficiaries of a returnship programme can guide new entrants, help them learn the ropes quickly and settle down at a workplace.

    LG: As the world crawls back to ‘the normal’, many organisations are experimenting with a hybrid routine. What, according to you, are the key challenges faced by women in such a scenario?
    SU: While the long-term impact of the pandemic is not fully known, there is a probability that it might threaten the progress made in the direction of gender parity till now. A study conducted by Deloitte has revealed that there have been significant shifts in the daily routines of women: 1 in 3 women surveyed said their workloads were higher and 65% mentioned they have more responsibility for household chores. Similarly, women with or without caregiving responsibilities were being impacted in different ways.

    Flexible work arrangements, expected hours of work, the ability to better integrate work and life outside of it, and a safe and inclusive workplace continue to rank high on the expectations of women in the new normal. Employers should understand these needs and try to customise their approach in order to enable women to bring their authentic selves to work and ensure they are able to thrive and succeed.

    Leaders and managers need to lead with empathy and have a true sense of what their employees need. Crafting creative solutions to facilitate a hybrid environment is one aspect. However, ensuring there is an inclusive culture that supports women taking advantage of these in a psychologically safe environment is pivotal.

    LG: How would you rate the evolution of women in the corner office in the BFSI sector?
    SU:
    Diversity and Inclusion (D&I) is no longer a good-to-have practice, it's a business imperative. The customer demographic has been changing across domains, especially in the financial services sector, globally.

    A McKinsey report mentions that an unprecedented amount of assets will shift into the hands of US women, representing a $30 trillion opportunity by the end of the decade. The employee base must mirror the customer base to cater to the ever-changing demands of customers and provide a superlative experience. Having said this, the number of women in the workforce, specifically in the BFSI sector, has seen a steady climb. We see that the gender ratios are usually very healthy at the lower levels but drop steadily and significantly when they get to mid-management. The gap is widest at the senior management.

    In recent times, gender parity has evolved in the workplace significantly. However, the larger question that leaders need to ask – is the intensity of progress good enough, and fast enough? A multi-pronged, robust, and urgent game plan is required to boost women’s representation in the workplace, especially at senior levels. A multi-pronged approach is essential because it is not only important to enable and develop women to rise through the ranks, but also to provide a facilitative eco-system in which they can thrive and flourish. Also, the right time to act is now rather than wait any further.

    LG: What are the other issues that are pertinent to modern women in the workplace in 2022?
    SU:
    Today, we cannot view D&I through a unidimensional lens. For each individual, there exists multiple diversity dimensions. If we try to broad-brush the approach, we may intentionally include one aspect but unintentionally exclude all other dimensions. It is important to understand this nuance for us to appreciate the issues that women face. For example, issues faced by a Gen-Z woman belonging to a particular race or ethnicity could be very different from a Gen-X woman belonging to another race or ethnicity.

    Too generic a solution or too much hyper-customisation may not yield the right results. It is important to strike a balance and create a holistic and multi-pronged inclusion strategy for an organisation.
    ( Originally published on Mar 08, 2022 )

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