Indian Cos pushing women towards senior leadership positions, finds survey

The hand that rocks the cradle can also rule businesses. According to a report by The Times of India, research by a Delhi-based firm reveals that a large share of companies is investing in women employees to equip them for moving them into senior leadership roles.

The report states that 73% of Indian companies have decided to focus on promoting development of women employees in 2024. Five years ago, the share of such companies stood at 41%. WeAce, the platform on upskilling, coaching and mentoring, remarked that the focus on leadership development becomes more important with 87% of businesses apprehending shortages in employee talent.

The programmes that seek to further empower women employees include training on leadership skills, strategic thinking and impactful communication.

Incidentally, Grant Thornton’s International Business Report published in March last year mentioned that in India 36% women in senior management positions in mid-market businesses are found. This is 4% higher than the global average which is 32%.

“To push for better parity, businesses must adopt a hybrid or flexible approach, create a supportive and understanding culture, and focus on employee well-being and mentoring programmes that support women,” Grant Thornton Bharat Partner Pallavi Bakhru told the media in 2023.

The Grant Thornton report was compiled following interviews of 5,000 MDs, CEOs chairpersons and senior decision-makers in companies in 28 countries between October and December 2022. As many as 281 mid-market businesses in India were a part of that survey.

“We have seen many companies have ongoing sessions for their CXOs to enable them to imbibe inclusion, linked to their business goals. This helps it to cascade down the line. Our survey found an increasing number of companies focused on enhancing and expanding women’s development programmes. The objective is how all employees can thrive and maximise performance in an inclusive culture, especially at a time when there are challenges of business growth,” Anuranjita Kumar, co-founder & CEO, WeAce told the newspaper.

Diversity, equity, and inclusion, somewhat rhetorically dubbed as the DEI agenda is being pushed by 51% of the companies, the research found. In 2019, 34% companies had such an agenda.
Women development programmes are increasingly covering negotiation skills, project management, financial literacy, emotional intelligence, and assertiveness training.

Pointing at a few specific examples, the report mentioned DBS Bank. On a global scale women constitute 50% of its workforce and fill 40% of senior management positions. In DBS Bank in India, 30% of the employees are women and it wants to reach 35% in five years.

“To further DEI efforts, the bank has formed a DEI Council led by the senior leadership, which aims to enhance representation across genders, abilities, and generations, while fostering a psychologically safe culture and engaging diverse talent communities,’’ says Kishore Poduri, managing director and country head of HR at DBS Bank India.
The Indian company DCM Shriram, the origins of which can be traced back to 1889, is a diversified agri-chemicals and power firm. Sandeep Girotra, the company’s executive director & CHRO, told the newspaper that they are putting together a development programme for women and focusses on hiring and grooming women for executive leadership.

“Recently, we introduced our group DEI strategy called WIDE (We are Inclusive, Diverse & Equitable), spearheaded by our group level DEI Council, co-chaired by the group CFO and a business head,” Girotra remarked.

For a few companies, the results are already visible. URJA, a women’s development programme implemented by Schneider Electric in 2015 has benefitted more than 900 women in India. It stretches over six months and focuses on nurturing impactful leadership at junior and middle management levels, said CHRO Greater India of Schneider Electric, Binu Philip. It has helped the company achieve shift on career acceleration and mobility, Philip claimed.