30 Women in Power: Their Voices, Their Stories is a book that doesn't limit itself to known names
30 Women in Power: Their Voices, Their Stories is a book that doesn't limit itself to known names. Gargi Gupta talks to its author Naina Lal Kidwai about what led her to this book and more
Who better than Naina Lal Kidwai, HSBC India chairperson, the first woman to head a foreign bank in India and FICCI, to edit a book on women CEOs? Thankfully, 30 Women in Power includes many less known super achievers, from the IT sector and NGOs to the daughters of industrialists and others who've fought their way up from less-privileged backgrounds. Edited excerpts from an interview with Kidwai:What led to this book?It was inspired by my frustration at the way Indian women were viewed. I took over as FICCI president two weeks after the Nirbhaya incident and everywhere I was asked - how do you survive, aren't you anomaly? It is something we must change, but we also have great women CEOs and that's a story we haven't told enough.How is it that banking has so many women CEOs?For the generation of Arundhati (Bhattacharya, SBI chairperson) and Chanda (Kochar) - my generation - we had little choice. You didn't get marketing or sales jobs in the FMCG sector. You needed to travel and where, in those days, would you even find a hotel in small towns? Banks and the government were the most attractive, being regular, office-bound jobs.What are the challenges in the way of women who want to rise to the top?There isn't a gathering of women - social or corporate - where I don't get asked about work-life balance: how do you manage? It's the same in India or anywhere in the world. It's okay when you're young, fresh in the workplace and full of passion. The challenges start when you have, not even your first, but your second child. You have important meetings and a child at home that's sick. So you make conscious choices. Sometimes they may not be the right ones.Do you see a change in the attitude of women today?For women like Avani Davda (CEO, Tata Starbucks), who are entering the workplace today, it doesn't matter that they are women - I'm good or bad, depending on how I deliver. I am not looking for specialprivileges (nor did my generation) and I don't want to be treated differently.Do you see any change in companies and social attitudes?These days many companies - not enough, I admit - have returnee programmes for women who want to re-join after a year off, flexible work hours, longer maternity leaves, it's easier too with the broader family - parents, in-laws, etc. Today's young person also checks with her husband-to-be on whether he supports her working. Our generation didn't have advantage, unless one married late.