Women Leaders in Engineering Industry – A Roundtable
Published on : Monday 30-11--0001
Industrial Automation celebrates International Women’s Day with a virtual roundtable with women in leadership roles in the engineering industry.
Globally, 8th March is observed as International Women’s Day to celebrate the achievements of women in all spheres of life. What is taken for granted today was not always the case, and unfortunately nor a universal reality even today. Across the world, women had to fight for their independence and protection of rights. To celebrate the occasion, Industrial Automation invited women leaders from the engineering fraternity to share their views.
Equality is the first thing what comes to mind when it comes to women at the workplace so that was the obvious opening question: Do workplaces of today provide equal opportunity in the true sense gender wise?
“Most workplaces do not – however there is a wave of change that has begun and luckily it is spreading. Previously, I have had a chance to initiate one such change and now I work with an organisation and team that believes in the equal opportunity,” says Abhaya Chetana, Manager at MadoX Technologies, taking care of Business Development & Operations.
"Would say no,” concurs V P Geetha Vice Chairman, Nagman Instruments & Electronics Pvt Ltd. “The current situation is far improved and women do not want to be treated differently. Let the challenges be presented openly and women are ready to face them,” she adds.
But there are women who feel otherwise. “Yes, workplaces today do provide equal opportunities. In fact nowadays there is more focus on diversity hiring and the desire to improve upon it. But there still exists a gender gap as we go up the ladder and it will take time for the workplace to become gender neutral. But surely the efforts are on,” says Neelam Pandey Pathak, Head – Purchasing Functional Excellence at Cummins India.A mechanical engineer, Neelam did her post-graduation from IIM Lucknow, and has an impressive CV with 17+ years of experience mainly in the automotive industry having worked with Tata Motors, M&M, Suzlon and John Deere in the past. Bharathy Rajabaskaran, Joint MD, Nagman Instruments & Electronics, echoes Neelam’s views. “Workplaces certainly provide equal opportunity gender wise in today’s scenario, the opportunity depending more on the ability of the person and the attitude and interests towards the job and the willingness to rise up the ladder,” opines Bharathy. So there we have a balanced view, at least in this industry!
For a woman, is a career in engineering more demanding than other streams? “For a working woman a career by itself is demanding with the additional responsibilities at the family front and a career in engineering is no different. Upgrading yourself with latest advancement in your field, putting in extra hours for meeting the deadlines, visiting the plant at odd hours in addition to dealing with the tantrums of maids, relatives and schools, etc., is part of everyday life of any working women,” says Rajee Guptan, Head – Probabilistic Safety Assessment at NPCIL. “The number of women choosing engineering as a career is now an increasing trend. Earlier women generally opted for computers, IT, electronics or instrumentation, but now the times are changing and women opt for a career in mechanical, civil and aerospace engineering which were once seen as exclusive male domains,” expresses Sangeetha Ramamoorthy, Technical Manager at Nagman Instruments & Electronics. Seema Chopra, Global Technical Leader – Data Analytics & Artificial Intelligence at Boeing Research and Technology, India concurs. “Actually it is easier than a job that requires physical labour, strict timings like the manufacturing sector or no flexi hours like banking sector and even teaching jobs. With the right infrastructure and work environment, women can reach greatest heights in a STEM career,” feels Seema.
Any regrets? Many successful career women admitted they often shied away from challenges and regretted that later. What is your experience? “Yes, as a woman there are some choices you make and regret. I have some regrets, but they only made me stronger. I now choose to look at challenges in the eye and say, bring it on, I ain’t getting weak or shy any time soon,” says Abhaya. No regrets, says Geetha. “While rolling 3 decades back, women were encouraged to take a secure government job, and I too was under pressure to do the same in preference to the private sector. However my mother made it clear it should be my call, and that encouraged me to continue with the private company and looking back, no regrets,” says Geetha, who is not an engineer. But armed with a post graduate degree in business management, she pursued learning with dedication in business practices as well as instrumentation, and has travelled to over 30 countries handling business meetings with customers. “I have taken the challenges as they come as a professional, and never shied away from trying new things or taking up challenging roles. During my career journey,I have taken multiple roles in various organisations and proven the point that if we believe in self we can do it,” says Neelam.
But Bharathy has some regret when she says, “I have the experience of opting for lesser responsibility at the peak of my career when my children were in their final years of education and it has had an impact on career growth. Not a great regret though, when compared to the satisfaction of achieving responsibilities.” That is something that often happens to women. On the other hand, there are women who have braved the odds. “I have never shied away from taking any responsibility on the work front because I firmly believe that every assignment, however big or small, teaches you something, shapes your profile and widens your horizon. Shying away from challenges does not help in personal and professional growth, in fact it labels you as a negative person and you lose the credibility which ultimately effects your carrier growth,” says Rajee Guptan. While Sangeetha has no regrets, Seema is circumspect. She feels it is natural to step back or go slow with the career when family or biological priorities need to be attended. “But bouncing back, focusing and pacing the trajectory is key to success after the conscious slowdown rather than keep shying away from challenges. Known as crisis expert, I am one of those who not only landed jobs at large corporates like GE and Boeing, but managed to become a strong technical person in the field of Artificial Intelligence,” says Seema, who also got recognised as part of Boeing Technical Fellowship and became the first ‘Associate Technical Fellow (ATF)’ for Artificial Intelligence.
Then there is that inevitable question of how India compares with other developed countries in this respect? Well, Abhaya feels India has a long road ahead. “But the good thing is the journey towards equality has begun and women are now empowering each other and themselves to start the ride,” she says. Geetha feels today girls enrolling in engineering stream is a rising trend, but when it comes to employment, the reality is sometimes harsh. “Most women engineers are assigned desk jobs rather than field work,” she laments adding that tradition, culture, family pressure also contribute to this. “In developed countries, I see an equal number of women on the shop floor as men. While in India it is still not common in the core industry. Gender neutrality is easily seen in newer industries like IT, banking, FMCG, but in engineering, it will still take time to fill this gap,” observes Neelam. Broadly in agreement with this, Bharathy says developed countries have been creating greater opportunities ushering in better working conditions for women, while in India at many workplaces the environment is still not favourable and sometimes poses danger to working women. “But in spite of all these challenges and risks, women are outshining men at many workplaces,” says Bharathy.
On the other hand, Rajee Guptan says in terms of professionalism in technical field Indian women are at par with women of any other country. Her observation is based on own experience of attending various conferences, meets and workshops in different countries. “However, the social structure of our country where most family responsibilities are fulfilled by a woman plays a crucial role in the career progression of our working women as compared to the woman folk of developed countries,” she adds. Seema Chopra has a slightly different perspective. “There is incredible women talent in India, especially for those interested and pursuing STEM career. As a country we have made a lot of progress towards empowering women and sectorial quotas, but are still behind in addressing safety, assurance and policies conducive for a woman to catapult herself to the top.”Summing up, we also asked these ladies who have made a mark in their chosen field one last question.
What would be your message to young women entering the corporate world?
“Dream big and believe in yourself. You are never too young or too old to dream big. Take calculated risks and you’ll be surprised where you end up. Aim for the mountains, enjoy the journey thoroughly and then getting to the finishing line is the feather in the cap,” are Seema Chopra’s words of encouragement.
“Have passion for what you do and believe in yourself,” says Sangeetha Ramamoorthy.
“It’s very simple – put on the hard work with utmost sincerity and honesty towards the organisation. Good appraisal and recognition will happen automatically. Similarly, handle the pressure on the family front gracefully, because to taste success in life you have to have a career and a family so you can’t be lonely at the top,” emphasises Rajee Guptan.
“The only message I can give is, women should always have the courage and conviction to prove to the world that they are capable of anything and are in no way inferior to menfolk,” states Bharathy Rajabaskaran.
“Aspire to achieve your dreams and go that extra mile to do it! Be the support for each other to grow, learn and dream,” exhorts Neelam Pandey Pathak.
“Love your job – the most basic requirement in a career. Be presentable. Have an open mind – listen and observe. Be proactive – when stuck, analyse the problem and offer a possible solution, which, even if not feasible, will create a positive impression of your attitude showing your aim is to reach the goal, stresses V P Geetha.
“Hey Girl, be the change or bring in the change...rebel for what you deserve, fight for what you believe...believe in yourself,” is the inspiring message from Abhaya Chetana.