Enhancing Women Leadership in India Inc.
March 4, 2024
The study ‘Enhancing Women Leadership in India Inc’ conducted jointly by Fortune India and S. P. Jain Institute of Management and Research(SPJIMR) sheds light on the persistent gender gap in leadership roles within Indian industries. Hon Minister Smriti Irani released the white paper “Women Leadership in India Inc” developed by SPJIMR faculty members Prof. Sushmita Srivastava, Prof. Jyoti Jagasia and Prof. Jankiraman Moorthy in New Delhi on March 4, 2024. The event was attended by Prof. Preeta George, Associate Dean, SPJIMR, Mr. Rajeev Dubey, Editor, Fortune Magazine and SPJIMR PGDM alumnae Debjani Ghosh, President, NASSCOM, and several other dignitaries.
The study brings to the fore not just the challenges of creating a fair representation of women leaders but also suggests actionable solutions to the problem after extensive discussions with leaders of corporate India as well as a survey with Fortune 1000 India companies. The five central themes that emerged from the research were related to Gender Inequality, Career Advancement, Work-Life Balance, Organisational Policies and Cultural Norms and Stereotypes. The study captured the voice of Corporate India through interviews with over 130 respondents including top CEOs, CHROs and Emerging Leaders, across 4 cities of Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkata and Bangalore. SPJIMR is grateful to all the respondents for sharing their insights.
Some solutions presented in the whitepaper include incentives and ranking of companies, enhanced reportage and disclosures on diversity, the increased representation of women on boards, sponsorship/allyship in senior leadership roles, a right ecosystem to expand the base of the pyramid, care infrastructure, state-level public-private partnerships, and mandates for gender-specific hiring.
The minister complimented the “passion” with which SPJIMR had applied itself to the study and expressed genuine appreciation for the research by the Institute and desired further study in examining the economic impact of having more women in the workforce, particularly at the shop floor level.
The study was undertaken by SPJIMR in partnership with Fortune India, Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), and Karmannya Counsel with support from the Ministry of Women and Child Development and Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
