GLOCAL BUZZ 2“If you want something said, ask a man; if you want

something done, ask a woman” — Margaret Thatcher

What comes after weDancing on the shop floorbreak the glass ceiling?

My first employee was a personal assistant, someone who handled my one-woman

show. Later on, she helped me with hiring the rest of the team, admin related issues, and most importantly became my most trusted confidante. She is Monica Periera.Today, she heads our HR and admin departments. During all the initial tough days, Monica would gently, but surely communicate when my temper went out of line and when there were things, I needed to know that was brewing within the new and young teams. She became my go-to person within the agency. Monica has been with me through thick and thin.

My second recruitment was Asha Ravaliya who was then our finance head, and now the CFO of the company. If we have managed to stay afloat for 20 years, stayed independent, it is because of Asha’s stronghold on the financial reins of our agency. Her cut and dry approach to money management balanced my

emotionally driven decisions. Along with these two ladies, I also

have one particular icon that I relate to as a single mother. Jhansi Ki Rani.Between 2009 and 2012 our company

went through some serious challenges. Not without me keeling under pressure. I was to almost give away our agency to an NRI who sought the opportunity to buy us out cheap in the guise of bailing us out. At that time the TV serial Jhansi Ki Rani was quite

popular. It was a great source of inspiration for me. During that phase,

I met Anmol Sekhri, a financial wizard and an M&A expert who I think was god-sent. He looked at what we had as an agency and said, “You are sitting on a gold mine.” I also spoke to him about my personal challenges at length. He told me, “Jhansi Ki Rani bano. Tie your son to your back and take off.’’ That was the only visual inspiration I needed. My son Joshua was then around 7. And that is what I decided to do

and we turned around our operations within a year.

My mother, who was alive till I was a little over 16 has been an all-time inspiration for her generosity. She also partnered with my father to financially help her brothers in their very trying times. I have lived my life with their values. A businesswoman from my family who I’ll always admire and respect is my aunt Rajeshwari Natrajan. She turned around her husband’s floundering textile chemicals business from very bare-bone premises in Tirupur to a successful and respected venture.

With genes and colleagues like these, I was sure to make it.

My mother has been my icon of strength! Right from my

childhood, my mother has been the biggest source of inspiration. It is through her, I imbibe virtues like strength and perseverance. She taught me the fact that, there is absolutely no alternative to discipline.

I’m inspired by the women I work with, each one brings a unique perspective to the table. Be it my managers, young graduates in corporate set-up or relentless women from our factories, all ensuring we achieve one common goal. Every aspect of my personality is shaped by the interaction that I have with my team members on a daily basis.

My leadership style has been honed over a period of time and is a culmination of these learnings. I believe communication

is the cornerstone for an organization’s success and thus the leadership mantra that I adhere to is to keep a clear communication channel with the team I work with. Constructive feedback plays a vital role in the growth of an employee and thus by proving this form of guidance, I am trying to nurture the young impressionable minds and leaders of tomorrow.

Being passionate and never give up attitude is the key to success. You have to be passionate about what you do, feel the purpose and when you set to achieve a goal, don’t give up. Life will throw challenges at you, you will make mistakes. It is important to accept and learn from them and never give up!

In the beginning…I was an anomaly when I started out in my career. Leave alone having senior women who could be a boss to me, there were no creative women in ad-vertising at that time at all! Except of course, for Elsie Nanji. My first boss was Mohammed Khan. He and I got along famously because apart from being my mentor, he treated me as another chap. I willingly com-plied in order to be accepted and so got a full frontal exposure to the world of men’s bawdy jokes loaded with double entendre, not to mention some serious eff-ing language and a lot ahem, more.

No point break-ing the glass ceilingHaving said that, in a male dominated industry, it’s a boys’ club out there and there is just no room for women to truly belong except as a token ornament. It was one of the reasons I moved out from under the glass ceiling to start VGC in 1997 so I could carve my own destiny and lead without being judged or conditioned by male ideas of women stereotypes. So, the women whom I have admired and learnt a lot from are honestly the ones I have hired when I started VGC. Their sincerity, grit, hunger to learn and de-liver diligently has been inspirational.

My very first employee was Jyoti Hinduja who is no more. She was a

designer, brand manager, and business head rolled into one and I consider her as a founding member. She didn’t come from any formal design background and hence she just dove into the deep end and took on everything with passion, creativity and intelligence. A people person, she had every client eating out of her hands to the extent that they

wouldn’t let her go on leave.

Neha Harlalka, joined us as a bright young designer in Mumbai, but also pushed my entrepreneurship boundaries to start an office in Bangalore as she had to shift there.

You too sister?At any rate, it is heartening to see a more asser-tive depiction of women in more and more ads but honestly, we are far from any true breakthrough as an industry.

Internationally too, when I was invited to come on board in an all women jury for the new Gerety awards, I realized that this global initiative was especially created to include more women in the jury pro-cess, which otherwise is dominated by men. I realized with some sadness and exasperation that after all these years women around the world are still on the outside periphery of all meaningful orbits of the industry.

Iwas a regular student like most people when I was

sixteen. However, I was two years younger than most people in my class. Martina Hingis, who was the same age, was the biggest tennis sensation at the time making records of being the youngest Grand Slam winner. There were many women achievers even then, around us to be inspired from, but the fact that here was a girl my age who was conquering the world really struck me, despite the fact that I wasn’t in that field. It made me realise that so much is possible if you passionately

work towards something.My biggest joy

at work is when I have been able to inspire other women

in my organization in some way. Those moments have been really humbling

moments which have encouraged me to bring my best self to

work every day and also stay true to who I am, instead of trying to borrow leadership styles. The biggest leadership tenet I have tried to follow has been ‘respect for everyone’.

My sister, Shilpi Jhawar,is a stay-at-home mom, an excellent one, who shares a great bond with my children as well. She has been my biggest cheerleader since I was a child.

Chaaya Baradhwaaj, founder and MD, BC Web Wise, who runs one of the oldest

independent digital agencies in India, remembers the women

who taught her to never give up.

The aces in my

An insider’s ode

A job “well done”

Preeti Vyas, chairwoman of Vyas Giannetti Creative, moved out from under the glass ceiling in the late 90s to start her own company. In 2020, she says, women around the world are still on the outside periphery of all meaningful orbits of the industry.

“Thank you, Jhansi Ki Rani”

Dipali Goenka, CEO and joint MD, Welspun India Ltd, was

the star of a recent viral video that featured her dancing

with her employees in office. Here we get a glimpse of the people who shaped her as a

person and professional.

Swati Rathi, head marketing, Godrej

Appliances, on why tennis legend Martina

Hingis is her idol.

The 20-minute trickI met Sheela Bhatt(journalist and editor) when I was finishing my graduation. At that time Sheela was a dynamic editor of a magazine called ‘Abhiyaan’. She would often say that it made no sense to cook for 3 hours and eat in 20 minutes. So she would cook food which could be prepared in 20 minutes. It was not only a great way of managing time but it also gave me perspective on being practical about many aspects of life and work.

Be fearless & be stress-free Kalpana Rao (entrepreneur and founder of Pari’s Haute Couture) was my first boss at Ulka. Kalpana had the spirit of a fighter when she believed in something. It didn’t matter who she had to face or the hierarchy; which was so different from my demeanor. Many times, when I feel passionately and yet feel apprehensive, I take inspiration from Kalpana.

Savita Mathai (group HR head – IPG Mediabrands and FCB India) has great mental

vigor, moral energy, and dispassionate judgment.

To have her support is really energizing especially as our

business is extremely stressful and volatile.

Your girlfriends are always rightFortunately, in the course of many

years, I also have formed deep friendships with many who

keep urging me on - Farida Sabnavis (a direct marketing professional), Minitha Saxena (who works in TCS) and my sister Shraddha Mahajan (who

works in customs). Every time I go into “what next?” or “what else” I brainstorm with them and I always get the nugget I need for the next step.

Love can beat all the oddsMy husband’s godmother Ernestine Bandekar’s ability to love people and manage circumstances despite all odds inspires me to do the same with not only my home family but also my professional family.

Sisters-in-arms

pocket

Iam inspired by Indra Nooyi. She went on to head a global consumer

business firm (PepsiCo) much before other Indians took the helm in IT and other famous tech companies. I adore Sudha Murthy. She inspires me to stay grounded, do good and put in hard work. I feel privileged to have worked with Ireena Vittal.Reviews with Ireena, who was a board advisor at Bigbasket, were scary and at the same time also nuggets of knowledge sessions. It was scary because Ireena had the highest expectations and wouldn’t mince words in trashing something

that wasn’t right. So, after one session where I had conducted and presented a particular research, when she said, “well done”, I can’t express how happy I felt that day. She refined my problem-

solving skills in those limited interactions. I found Leena Nair (CHRO-Unilever) to be a passionate advocate of diversity and also a very supportive leader. Approachable and candid, she championed issues and got in very progressive policies for women. Her advice on building relationships and networks have really been spot on. Closer home, I owe my success so far simply to my mother. Amma couldn’t work herself for a variety of reasons and so has been a big cheerleader as well as my pillar of support at home, taking care of my children. She is the reason why I am where I stand today.

Meera Iyer, chief marketing officer,

Medlife, shares leadership notes that

she has gathered over the years by

looking at Indra Nooyi, Sudha Murthy

and a few others.

Let me start by penning down tiny odes to the ladies I’m writing about. Odes I suspect only they will understand, but I’m not terribly fussed about that fact.

Kainaz Karmakar. Chamakte Rehna.Tista Sen. Pooch Paach.

Malvika Mehra. Dadaji, Badminton.

Inspired. Check. Championed. Check.

Supported. Check. They’ve done all this and more for me, at different points in my life,

and in many ways shaped the creative

professional I have become. Mind you, I never saw them as flag

bearers for women in advertising. I just saw them as consummate professionals,

sharp minds, problem solvers, and empathetic listeners - what any good creative director should be, regardless

of gender. And that’s why I think the “boy band” culture of adland couldn’t and hasn’t held them back - all they ever did was their jobs, and they continue to do them damn well. Cheers and more power to you three.

Nandini Dias, CEO, Lodestar, has an army of girlfriends who are her inspiration. Here are a few lessons from them that cheer her up every time.

Ihave been fortunate enough to grow up, both in my personal and professional life, with stimulating

women role models. I didn’t work for her, of course, but

I was raised by a mother who had a huge influence on me. A person who always aroused my curiosity, inspired me, and taught me that working hard would never ever go out of fashion. Her formidable problem-solving abilities push me on even today.

Owing to my mother’s influence when I started working, I knew that having female bosses and mentors would be imperative to my success. Thanks to fate or chance in my 27 years of working

I have reported to woman leaders in most part of my career.

My first ever manager was a woman, Preeti Sawhney (now an independent

advisor), at Lowe Lintas Advertising. She pushed me out of my comfort zone, and by just watching her love and deep passion for advertising, and everything else, she made me believe that I shouldn’t do

things where my first objective is to make money. It’s about loving what you do so much that I would be happy even doing it for free. Financial rewards will always follow. I owe most of who I am as a professional to her.

Those were the days where women in technology were not a common choice and at Intel, while running APAC retail programs, I had a dynamic manager Rupal Shah Hollenbeck (former global CMO of Oracle). From her, I learnt the art of senior-level stakeholder management

and that it was truly a high stakes game. Also, you can build a career

around who you are and what you believe in, and how a boss can be a good friend too.

At Schneider Electric, I have a fan-girl moment with our Global

CMO Chris Leong, every time I meet her. She is what most women

want to be: a loving mom, responsible, fair, hard-working, and super smart. She empowers other women and amazes me every day with her clarity of thoughts.

Some of my greatest lessons that I hold dear to my heart have come from observing other women, my friends, colleagues. All I can say is that if you haven’t had a women manager yet, find one and see your life change!

Why Bidisha Nagaraj, vice

president – marketing, Schneider

Electric India, thinks having

a women manager

changes your perspective.

Pallavi Chakravarti,

executive creative Director,

Taproot Dentsu, talks about

three fellow creative heads

who in her opinion are the real problem-

solvers.

Find a Lady Boss

Indra Nooyi Sudha Murthy

Malvika Mehra

The magnificent three of Ogilvy,

Wunderman Thompson and

Dentsu

Monica Periera

Asha Ravaliya

Ihave been fortunate enough to work with women who have supported and played a pivotal role in my personal

and professional life. My former boss Ruchira Jaitley from

PepsiCo. Ruchira, had joined Pepsi after 7 years in Hindustan Unilever, and right after her maternity leave. She was heading brand Kurkure which was growing by leaps and bounds, beating other big FMCG players. She has shaped the way I work and function today. Ruchira was a task master yet had a softer side to her. She taught me the importance of work-life balance, no compromises. An important

takeaway from Ruchira that has stayed with me is to behave as neutrally as possible and never let your gender be an obstacle. Her work ethic, the passion and aggression she brought to the workspace were influenced me greatly in my formative days. The most important thing she taught me was that there is room for all of

us to bloom. She believes that women come from a more secure place which

allows us to be nurturing and not just competitive. I was the

beneficiary of this and is also something I would like to pass on to all women.

My colleague and confidante, Mansi Maroo has helped me focus on the nuances of life that

I have always ignored. She has helped me see life’s

bigger picture, which in turn has made me a better leader.

“There is room for all of us to bloom”Kranti Gada, chief operating officer, Shemaroo Entertainment, shares the story of two close colleagues,

who taught her the art of work-life balance and more.

SavitaMathai & Minitha Saxena

Kalpana Rao

3THE ECONOMIC TIMES MARCH 04-10, 2020

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