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What is the story about?
Arundhati Bhattacharya, the former SBI chairman and Salesforce India CEO, delivered sharp, data-backed insights on gender equity at a panel discussion on Wednesday. Bhattacharya pulled no punches at the Future Female Forward panel discussion, laying out with characteristic bluntness why corporate India continues to fail women and what it would take to change that.
The former SBI chief and current Salesforce India CEO opened on a personal note, rejecting the "Durga ideal" that expects women to be tireless and all-powerful.
"You are a common, regular person who needs rest, needs time off," she said, drawing applause.
However, it was her dissection of boardroom bias that drew the sharpest attention. When a woman was on the borderline in a promotion review, she said, the question asked was, “Karlegi? Will she manage?” When a man was in the same position, the response was “Karlega,” a statement of confidence, not a question. "That is where bias works," she said.
Bhattacharya also disclosed that she failed Salesforce's mandatory unconscious bias training before she was permitted to interview candidates. Asked to list questions she would pose to male and female candidates, the lists came out entirely different. "We all have biases," she said. "It doesn't matter whether we are men or women, high up or just joined."
Also Read | Future Female Forward | Women leaders bring accountability and ownership to governance: Ashwini Bhide
On corporate boards, she was equally critical. SEBI's mandate for a woman independent director, she argued, has produced compliance, not commitment, with many PSUs yet to meet even this minimum bar.
She also credited SBI's elder-care sabbatical policy which prevented the resignation of a 22-year veteran who would otherwise have quit to care for a dying mother-in-law.
Her closing prescription for young women: continuous learning is the only thing that keeps you relevant in an uncertain world.
The former SBI chief and current Salesforce India CEO opened on a personal note, rejecting the "Durga ideal" that expects women to be tireless and all-powerful.
"You are a common, regular person who needs rest, needs time off," she said, drawing applause.
However, it was her dissection of boardroom bias that drew the sharpest attention. When a woman was on the borderline in a promotion review, she said, the question asked was, “Karlegi? Will she manage?” When a man was in the same position, the response was “Karlega,” a statement of confidence, not a question. "That is where bias works," she said.
Bhattacharya also disclosed that she failed Salesforce's mandatory unconscious bias training before she was permitted to interview candidates. Asked to list questions she would pose to male and female candidates, the lists came out entirely different. "We all have biases," she said. "It doesn't matter whether we are men or women, high up or just joined."
Also Read | Future Female Forward | Women leaders bring accountability and ownership to governance: Ashwini Bhide
On corporate boards, she was equally critical. SEBI's mandate for a woman independent director, she argued, has produced compliance, not commitment, with many PSUs yet to meet even this minimum bar.
She also credited SBI's elder-care sabbatical policy which prevented the resignation of a 22-year veteran who would otherwise have quit to care for a dying mother-in-law.
Her closing prescription for young women: continuous learning is the only thing that keeps you relevant in an uncertain world.
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