Women Must Walk Career Talk
With organisations embracing DEI, the Indian woman professional has been getting opportunities to boost her career. But has she been to leverage it to its full potential? The answer is a ‘no’.
Here are the reasons for the wide gender gap
The urban female labour force participation rate in the age group 15 to 59 years was 26.5% in 2021-22, while the number for men was 81.2%, according to a report titled ‘Female Labour Utilisation in India’ released by the ministry of labour and employment.
This is despite companies embracing DEI (diversity, equity, and inclusion), and happens as a result of two major mental barriers women face as they strive for a successful career:
Lack of Clarity: On ‘career intentionality’, women score much lower than men, shows research by consulting firm Avtar. Career intentionality refers to periodic strategic steps that one must take to progress steadily in his/her career. Men tend to invest time and effort in continuous learning, networking, building good relationships with their managers and developing a long-term career plan. But a lot of women are unclear about their professional priorities and find it difficult to define their career objectives.
Apathy Towards Career: Another contributor to low career intentionality is the in adequacy of hunger for professional growth, shows the research. This results in women either quitting when challenges arise or accepting the status quo and taking no action to grow in their careers. Women face these psychological obstacles as they often view jobs as temporary roles for sustenance or diversion, and do not consider their career holistically. There are multiple reasons for this from conditioning, childhood experiences, career interruptions, managing a heavy workload (at home and in the workplace) and the resulting burnout, to name a few.
So, how can the Indian woman professional overcome these barriers and optimise her career?
Self-Reflection: As the first step, they need to have a meaningful conversation with themselves. Why do they want to work? What are their core values? What are their aspirations? Are their values and aspirations aligned? Where do they see themselves five years from now? What steps should they take to achieve their long-term career goals? Getting clarity on these points is important for women to set effective goals & actively pursue them.
Build Allies: As the next step, holding conversations with people around — both at home and in the workplace — is an effective way women can harness their support. Tapping into others’ backing is critical for career success for anyone. They should not hesitate to talk to their partner about the ‘chore-gap’ at home or from initiating conversations with their manager about the kind of support they need at work. It could be about work flexibility or childcare. Speaking up is key.
