With a mere 6.7% of women in executive roles in GCCs, there is a considerable decrease in the available talent pool of women as they move up the career ladder, showed a Pure Storage and Zinnov report.At the senior level (9-12 years of experience), the representation was at 15.7%, the report said. India has nearly 1,600 GCCs. In 2022-23, GCCs added 2.8 lakh employees, taking its talent base to over 1.6 million. The report stated that family and caregiving responsibilities, limited access to career advancement and leadership opportunities, and poor work-life balance are some of the key factors influencing women’s attrition.
Vidya Munirathnam, HR head of Lowe’s India, attributes the skill gap and difficulty in upskilling after a maternity break as reasons for women leaving the workforce. “When a woman comes back from maternity leave, which is usually for 6 months, they find that suddenly things have changed from a technology point of view. Most organizations are undergoing a tech transformation where legacy systems are being replaced with more updated platforms. There is a skill gap, and many a time, they find it easier to just quit than figure a way to upskill,” she said.
At Lowe’s India, the representation of women drops from 60% at the junior level to 28% at the vice-president level and above. Similarly, at Thales India, women at senior manager and above levels constitute less than 20%, despite the organization’s overall ratio being 31%. Sekhar Sahay, HR head of Thales India, acknowledges the difficulty in overcoming societal norms worldwide, despite having flexible HR policies like hybrid work.
Companies are implementing various programmes to support women returning from career breaks and to boost their confidence in taking up senior roles. Ushashri Tirumala, executive vice president and general manager at Manhattan Associates, believes that connecting women with successful female role models is crucial for retaining and developing women associates.
