India’s Gender Gap / Getting even at work

The fight to balance the boardroom may not have been won but quite a few Indian companies have been making strides towards a gender-balanced workforce.

At Quintiles India, a leading provider of biopharmaceutical development services and commercial outsourcing services, 52% of the workforce is women. L’Oreal India is merely 6% short of the halfway mark, while at boutique consulting firm YSC, the number of women employees far exceeds the men.

Be it the nature of the industry they operate in or their women-friendly policies, these companies stand out for encouraging more women in their workforce. L’Oreal India has achieved a gender balance ratio of 44:56 at its head office. “A balanced workforce in all functions and levels enhances our understanding of consumers and allows us to develop and market products that are relevant to their wants and needs,” said Mohit James, director HR, L’Oreal India.

With boutique consulting firms, smaller in size and less matrixed, the dominant presence of women employees comes as a pleasant surprise. YSC Asia Pacific, a niche consulting firm that specializes in executive coaching, organization development and executive assessment, has a total strength of 32, of which 26 are women. “Consultants have to demonstrate allround skills in business development, design, delivery and customer relationship management, all of which women are able to do as well as men and in some cases even better,” said Gurprriet Siingh, director & head, YSC India. The glass ceiling effect is not as common at consulting firms which are fairly flat, encouraging lateral growth opportunity. A section of experts, however, argue that gender balance ends at 50% and anything beyond that can lead to a skew.

For many organizations, commitment to gender diversity doesn’t end by merely ensuring a healthy ratio of women. “We are aware of the need to provide an environment where women progress in their careers as they balance the demands of personal and professional life,” said Trupti Talati, senior director, HR, Quintiles India. Studies across organizations have shown that women often drop out at the mid-career level or at the stage where they start a family. “It is in our interest to ensure that we provide these women options that allow them to continue their careers despite the pressures and demands of family life through policies such as flexi-work, home-based work, extended paid maternity leave and so on,” said Talati.

Sectors like IT, financial services, media, fashion and hospitality have taken the lead in employing more women, according to Moorthy K. Uppaluri, CEO, Randstad India & Sri Lanka. A pleasant working atmosphere, good work-life balance, easy access to workplace and flexible working schedules are some of the reasons these sectors attract more women.

Chosen excerpts by Job Market Monitor. Read the whole story at 

via Getting even at work: Number of women employees up in many sectors – The Economic Times on Mobile.