Today, women are making rapid strides in every industry, and they are performing much better in the mobility and lifestyle products industry. We have conducted an all-women panel discussion where women leaders and entrepreneurs from the industry expressed their experiences, views, how they are progressing, what challenges they are facing, and what message they give to other women in general.
The discussion was chaired by Mr. Sukanta Dey [an industry veteran with a B.Tech from IIT Kharagpur and an MBA (Finance & Marketing) from IIM Kolkata] and moderated by Ms. Shweta Berry, Director – Marketing & Head of Strategic Alliances, Industry & Academia, Marcom, PR, Demand Generation and CSR Divisions at Aeris Communications, India. The all-women panel included: Ms. Midhula Devabhaktuni, Co-Founder, Mivi; Ms. Aishwarya Agarwal, National Manager – Marketing & Corporate Sales, Nextech by Amson Interconnect; Ms. Vandana Seth, Founder and CEO, RV Solutions Pvt Ltd; Ms. Nikita Kumawat, MD, Brandworks Technologies Pvt Ltd; and Ms. Pallavi Singh, Sr. VP, Super Plastronics Pvt Ltd (SPPL), Exclusive Brand Licensee of White Westinghouse in India; and Ms. Arushi Bhatia, Director, JBtek (JK Enterprises).
Chairman of the Discussion: Mr. Sukanta Dey, a B.Tech from IIT Kharagpur and an MBA (Finance & Marketing) from IIM Kolkata, is an IT Industry Veteran.
I am excited to witness and listen to the all-women Panel Discussion organized by the Mobility Magazine, which is a rare event. Today, women are making rapid strides in every segment and also in the mobility accessories and lifestyle products industry. The proportion of women vis-a-vis men has been steadily rising.
I am very proud to moderate this all-women panel discussion, which is a very rare phenomenon. I thank Mobility magazine, for launching this platform. Today, women workers and leaders are growing in proportion in every industry, though there is still a big gap compared to the proportion of men. It is a well-known fact that where the women’s participation is higher, the contribution to the GDP of the country is also higher. Here we have a panel of experienced and enthusiastic ladies. Let us know how these ladies started their journey, overcame challenges and made it big in a world where women normally have to face several prejudices and challenges and overcome stereotyping. Today, women contribute over 20% workforce in the organized manufacturing sector and a higher proportion in the unorganized sector for which we do not have the figures. If women work with confidence and persistence, they can become path-makers as well as path-finders. Employees build machines but they themselves are human beings so they need to be treated with care, empathy and respect, make them feel safe and secure, which will eventually help them work with motivation and perform better.
PANELIST: Ms. Midhula Devabhaktuni, Co-Founder and CMO, Mivi (Seminole Electronics Pvt Ltd)
We at Mivi do the end-to-end process from designing, developing to manufacturing at our plant in Hyderabad and supply to the partners and customers. I and my husband were in USA. During one of our trips back to India, we observed that in India, the quality of the available audio products has been much lower than that of those available in USA. Then we decided launch Mivi brand to provide audio devices that suit the Indian conditions and tastes, with a quality comparable to that provided by the brands in USA but at an affordable prices. When I started working, there was a feeling among male employees that some jobs are meant only for men. I had to persist and prove them that women can handle almost all the jobs men are doing, provided women get the right motivation and support, at office and also at home. We at Mivi have decided to work with a long-term vision driven by R&D and innovation, and we want Mivi to become an electronics company that represents India like the way Samsung represents South Korea and Sony represents Japan.
PANELIST: Ms. Aishwarya Agarwal, National Manager – Marketing & Corporate Sales, Nextech by Amson Interconnect
I am glad to be part of this insightful discussion. Nextech is one of the first companies which ventured into smart wearables space in India. I had the passion for fashion and technology and that is what attracted me towards this industry. When I joined, I focused on how to make best use of software to improve the current methods of working, generate new customers and to improve CRM at our company. At Nextech, we strive to design and develop multi-purpose products which can be connected to several equipments like those in photography and medical sector, besides mobile accessories.
PANELIST: Ms. Arushi Bhatia, Director, JBTEK (a brand of J.K Enterprises)
My father has been associated with IT industry since 1997 and he started JBTEK brand for mobility accessories in 2010. I was a lawyer by qualification and profession and then I transitioned into this electronics industry. My father has been a very energetic and enthusiastic person. My father inspired me to join this mobility industry. We take special care of women employees at our company. We found that they can perform almost all the jobs the men handle provide the women are provided the right environment.
PANELIST: Ms. Vandana Seth, Founder and CEO, RV Solutions Pvt Ltd
RV Solutions has been into the fields of software, telecom and system integration and into after-sales-service for mobile handsets and consumer durables for over a decade. For after-sales-services, we have service centres, all over India. My engineering background motivated me to join this industry. Initially, when I started working, many used to think that a lady cannot manage a system with nationwide service centres, but with time I proved that I can manage efficiently. Apart from mobile phones, we are also into providing after-sales-service to IT and telecom equipment. Our vision is to reduce the electronic waste and protect the environment through effective service.
PANELIST: Ms. Nikita Kumawat, MD, Brandworks Technologies Pvt Ltd
Brandworks is a prominent manufacturer of power solutions and smart wearables. We have women in every department, including sales, purchases, assembling and manufacturing. Over 60% of our employees today are women. We do not have overtime (OT) policy, we do not ask employees to work OT, particularly in case of women. We created a safe and secure environment in the office so women do not have to worry. We have counselling committee who will talk to women employees and find out their personal problems and try to do whatever we can to make them feel reassured and comfortable. Next, we try our best to decentralize and delegate the work within the organization.
PANELIST: Ms. Pallavi Singh, VP, Super Plastronics Pvt Ltd (SPPL)
At SPPL, we have a highly flexible working style. Even if the employees are selected for particular roles and if they want change to some other department, we will do everything to change to the new department in which they could feel comfortable and enjoy working. Once in a week or fortnight, we take our employees out on a tour or for a common lunch so that they may feel comfortable, feel at home and could speak out their feelings without hesitations. These initiatives worked and improved the employee loyalty and commitment.
In a nutshell
In a world where women are stereotyped as weak and fit only for certain jobs, these successful women leaders have disproved many age-old assumptions of a male dominated society. employees in future and can see better contribution from them in future.
Covered By: Mobility India
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