BELIEVE

H

ow ‘Employees First’ philosophy helps women succeed at HCL

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From the Diversity Desk

dream is fuelled and fulfilled by belief. Most things in life, come down to what we

believe in. That said, it is important to have someone who believes in you.

At HCL, we believe in the women who work with us in making this organisation the dynamic and

diverse place it is.

Across the globe, women are assuming leadership roles in business, politics, education and

society. Research indicates that women bring irreplaceable skills into the workplace. They are

excellent mediators, great networkers and place value in building relationships.

How do we, at HCL, leverage the intrinsic values of our women employees to make a positive

contribution in the workplace? In turn, how do we contribute to their professional growth?

‘Believe ‘, our e-book initiative, takes the first step in studying the impact and assimilation of

‘Employees First’ philosophy by the women in our organisation.

Believe is a celebration of all those who select HCL as an employer of their choice, a salutation

to those, who work hard to make our organisation what it is and recognition of our women

leaders who have stayed with us through our journey.

To succeed in today’s global economy, it is imperative to identify, motivate and guide women

professionals. Inspiring women to assume leadership positions is a top management priority at

HCL.

Our approach toward this vision is simple.

We believe!

Srimathi Shivashankar

A

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EFCS CULTURE AT HCL

TECHNOLOGIES

Making Way for Dreams

CLT has now become synonymous with its ‘Employees First, Customer Second’ culture,

which has re-defined the way we build upon the foundation of our organisation. We thought it

interesting to understand how our innate philosophy impacted one of our core-strength

employee-groups, our diverse women workforce.

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The four main tenets of the ‘Employees First Customers Second’ philosophy (EFCS) are:

Mirror Mirror

Trust through Transparency

Inverting the Pyramid

Recasting the Role of the CEO

Mirror Mirror is about self-analysis and creating the need for change, while dreaming about the

romance of tomorrow. Trust through Transparency is about the openness shared between

employees and management. Inverting the Organisational Pyramid, deals with making enabling

functions accountable to employees; whilst Recasting the Role of the CEO deals with leaders

recognising that they are not the only source for change, and learning to place the next

generation of leaders closer to the value zone.

Promoting Positive Behaviours

From the above, we derive important workplace attributes: self-oriented and team-oriented,

personal and interpersonal. We spoke to our women employees at different stages in their

career and asked them questions, related to these derivatives in an attempt to understand their

assimilation of EFCS.

All these behaviours are closely interlinked and directly relate to our EFCS philosophy.

For us women professionals, it is imperative to Speak up and voice our questions and concerns.

Be clear about your level of understanding of an issue and clarify if you need further

understanding. Do not make promises about deliverables that you cannot manage.

Accountability and Self-directed Leadership are important attributes for future leaders to

inculcate. Be Direct and Sensitive in all your communication. While working in a diverse

environment, it is important to ensure that, what you say and do makes your colleagues feel

included.

Being Data-Oriented is critical in any stage of your career. Numbers are important. They help us

understand where we are and where we have come from. Women leaders must work toward

building and promoting a Democratic and Egalitarian environment, where team members feel

they are making meaningful contributions.

Create an environment where employees have the Freedom and Space for Innovation.

Encourage New Ideas and be supportive of efforts that do not translate into expected

outcomes. New leaders emerge from environments where mentors support them even after a

fall. Confidence and trust are boosted after such experiences.

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Women leaders must ask themselves if they are encouraging Passion for New Ideas and

Opportunities in their teams. While Dealing with Ambiguous Situations, their behaviour must

be a positive reference for their teams to learn from.

These behaviours are exercised by women when the workplace is enabling and inclusive. HCLT’s

women believe that EFCS ensures such a work environment for them.

“At HCLT, Gen Y women employees bring to the table, high energy, passion and innovation. They are strong, confident and assertive. Motivating them to grow and eventually assume leadership roles will ensure organisational growth.”

- Ravishankar B, SVP – HR

"The contribution of women to the success of our engagement has grown substantially in the last three years. They have contributed everywhere: support, development, technical and domain work and have played enabling and influencing roles. We have consciously decided to increase the women members in our engagement because they are great neutralizers in conflicting situations. Today, our women workforce is a whopping 26%, as against a mere 8% four years back.”

- Balaji Prasad Nandagopal, Vice President

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ESHA, FARAH & SARAH Diverse Dreams, Common Challenges

ntroducing to you, Esha,

Farah and Sarah, three bright

talented women professionals

who represent the different

stages in which a woman’s

career evolves. Each of them

has a unique story to tell. They

have dreams, aspirations and

questions, just like any of us.

You may identify with one of

them. Or, even all of them.

Through their questions, we

understand the challenges we

women face in various stages

of our careers and what we can

do to overcome them.

I

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INVESTING IN OUR FUTURE

ESHA’S STORY

sha is a young engineering graduate. She represents the new generation of qualified

individuals who are looking to work in IT Services and making their mark in global organisations.

Esha was interviewed on campus by HCL Technologies. A campus leader, she also received offers

from other Tier-1 companies. Like any young graduate of today, Esha had a choice.

These were some of Esha’s questions, whilst deciding her ‘employer of choice’

Would her induction programme give her all

the relevant information to succeed both,

personally and professionally?

Would there be relevant training programmes

and opportunities to hone her soft skills?

Would the company send her abroad and give

her the experience of working on-site?

Would she be in an environment where she

could voice her concerns and ask questions?

Was the company a responsible one in terms

of diversity and sustainability?

Would she have opportunities to network with

women outside her team?

Can she reach out to senior women, when she

needs guidance?

Are there appropriate channels to address

safety issues?

Will she get the chance to work with global teams?

She had worked hard to complete her engineering degree with proficient grades. She had

presented papers in National level conferences; she cared about the environment and would

represent the third-generation of women who had a career in her family.

Esha also knew what she did not want. She wanted to be ‘heard’ not ‘herded’. She wanted

managers who would recognise her talents and help her grow.

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Esha’s father enjoyed seeing the HCL Technologies advertisements on television. He felt there

was a human element attached to all their branding and suggested, that they go online to learn

more about the organisation.

When they opened the company’s official website, they were greeted by the words,

‘Employees First’, and a video, encouraging them to learn more about it. They followed this by

viewing another video, which gave them an Introduction to HCL Technologies by the CEO, Vineet

Nayar.

“This looks like an interesting concept,” said Esha’s father. “When a company chooses to put

you first, I think you should choose that company.” Esha felt encouraged by her father’s

perspective. Choosing HCL Technologies felt right. She had a good feeling that all her questions

would be answered positively at HCL Technologies.

A few weeks later, Esha’s father dropped his daughter at the gates of one of HCL Technologies’

contemporary facilities. He felt positive.

After all, he had always put his daughter first.

Now, her company did too.

Connecting with Gen Y

Today, HCL Technologies has many bright professional women like Esha working with us to

create ‘Technology that touches lives’. They are Gen Y who represent the future of our

workplace.

Literature suggests, Gen-Yers unlike Baby Boomers ‘work to live’ and not ‘live to work’.

A study conducted by the Business and Professional Women’s Foundation indicates that Gen-

Yers, people born after 1980, are predicted to make up about 75% of the world’s total

workforce by 2025. Women are projected to account for 51% of the increase in total labour

force growth between 2004 and 2015. To compete in a global marketplace and record

sustainable growth, it is important to understand the aspirations of the younger generation and

our Gen Y women workforce.

"This year 49% of our fresher recruitment from campuses are women. I know this number will continue to grow with more women joining the engineering stream. We have proactively created an environment for women to contribute and develop equitably, hence preparing ourselves to compete in the global market place."

-Vaidyanathan R, Executive CVP & Chief Cost Officer

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Research indicates:

Women Gen-Yers consider work as an integral part of their lives

They want to feel a sense of service

They seek global opportunities and a chance to explore new cultures

Communication is at their finger-tips, they enjoy social networking and information

sharing

They want employers who provide them with contemporary avenues of communication

They want less lines of division and the freedom to ‘speak up’

They are prone to be entrepreneurs and look for their corporate careers to give them

space for innovation

They want to be treated as equals while feeling a sense of security

While there is strong focus on aligning an organisation’s vision with that of Gen Y as a whole, we

must also understand what the women from this generation expect from their employers. At

HCLT, we build a work environment with programmes, platforms and avenues to hire, retain and

motivate employees like Esha.

Creating Tomorrow’s Workplace Today

Meme: Our Innovative Social Networking Website Ritu was excited when her company launched a Facebook-inspired social networking website,

‘Meme’ which is a great tool to network within HCLT. One can even interact with the CEO

through Meme!

Ritu managed EPIC, an initiative which had 51,000 employees on-board. When she wanted to

promote EPIC internally, ‘Meme’ was the perfect channel. Meme was bombarded by EPIC posts

and her initiative was a great success. She explains that Meme is a great stress-buster. In the

middle of a long day, you can log on to Meme, read a motivational story or a humorous

anecdote, network with your colleagues and feel refreshed instantly.

Ritu delivers high value to her customers - her internal employees because of the EFCS

influenced work environment.

“At work, I am encouraged to pursue new ideas and am given a lot of freedom,” she

says. “That makes all the difference.”

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"At CSMP, we promote a work environment where women are provided equal opportunities and can speak up and voice their opinions. We understand that someone challenging the status quo is important for innovation and that is what diversity brings to a work place."

- Rajiv Sodhi, Senior CVP and Chief Customer Officer

Women’s Councils: Supportive Networks

Anitha enjoys leading the Women’s Council for her facility. Taking part in the council’s

programmes is a great way to learn about various women-related issues and network. Webinars

and seminars on health, wellness, career and time management are some of the programmes

conducted for women employees.

Through the council, women on maternity leave receive special support where their maternity

benefits are explained to them. Anitha found the programmes dealing with health issues such as

cervical cancer and breast cancer detection very informative. She encourages all the women

employees to pay attention to their women council e-mails and attend as many programmes as

possible.

Since an on-site crèche was not available in her facility, Anitha worked on establishing a tie-up

with a near-site crèche. Doing something positive for her women colleagues gives her a sense of

satisfaction.

Anitha believes that the overall responses to the programmes are positive with ‘Employees First’

philosophy inherent in all activities.

“All the women I interact with are very happy in HCLT,” she says. “It‟s a fun place to work

in.”

Feminspiration: Inspiring Young Leaders

Neha was excited when Kiran Bedi, her role model, was called to address HCLT’s women about

community leadership and launch the Feminspiration series- a motivational program where

guest speakers are invited to speak to women. During the talk, Neha enjoyed hearing Kiran

Bedi’s description of the TEA concept: Trust, Empower and Align. Neha came out of the talk,

feeling empowered.

Neha is sold 100% on the EFCS philosophy. She believes, “It is all about directing yourself and

turning to the company for support.”

“We may not have the opportunity to go outside and attend programmes like this,” says

Neha. “It is great that HCLT is bringing these programmes to us.”

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MAD Ltd: Making Future CEOs

When HCLT announced a platform to celebrate innovation and leadership, a woman

professional was crowned the winner. KAP (Kids-Adults-Plants), an exceptional idea was

propagated by the first CEO of MAD Ltd, Shyamali Rathore. Out of thousands of entries received,

her idea came out as a winner in the ‘MAD Ltd’ contest.

Shyamali ideated a social program, connecting the adults who have time to spare, and the will

to share this time, educating orphans and street kids.

Power of One: Inculcating a Sense of Service

Srividya believes that HCLT truly puts its Employees First. The company was quick to recognise

that a majority of the employees wanted to volunteer, but did not know how to go about it.

When the ‘Power of One’ initiative was launched, she was inspired by the idea of volunteerism.

Srividya is a ‘Power of One’ leader from her facility and works with adopted youth clubs for the

rehabilitation of local slums. She wants to make an impact in her community and give the

under-privileged children, the chance to believe that there is a brighter future.

She makes time for her role as a ‘Community Service Leader’ because, the smiles she sees on

the faces of the people that she touches, is motivation enough.

“If I were doing only my routine activities the whole day, I would feel drained out.” says

Srividya. “Being involved in „Power of One‟ activities recharges my energy levels.”

When Naomi, a Communications graduate, started work, she wondered if she would make a fit

in an IT organisation. She has always been interested in Corporate Social Responsibility, but

assumed that HCLT would let her work on CSR projects only after a couple of years.

She was pleasantly surprised at the level of confidence HCLT placed on her, as soon as she

joined. She was given projects that not only challenged her, but also helped her learn more

about the organisation. Today, Naomi leads CSR initiatives in Bangalore. She works on

identifying suitable CSR partners and is thrilled to receive complete ownership of all her

projects. The great trust that her team has on her, motivates her to be more organised and

accountable. Today, her project, ‘Dream IT’ is a successful program with over 500 employees.

Naomi respects the fact that she can talk to senior leaders directly; which, has given her

confidence when she interacts with leaders outside.

“When I come up with a new idea, I am never put down,” says Naomi. “This is a positive

sign for me.”

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"Focusing on women advancement is a business requirement today. I know many women in HCL who have benefitted from our inclusive policies, and continue to grow both professionally and personally. I think their contribution to HCL's growth is immense and they lead many change initiatives.”

- GH Rao, Senior CVP

HCLwomen.com & BlogHer: Encouraging Expression

Anita was given the project of launching HCLwomen.com, very early on in her career. Initially,

she felt completely overwhelmed; but, with the guidance and support of her reporting manager,

she began to gain confidence. Her role was to generate content for the website that showcased

achievements of HCLT’s women professionals to the outside world.

For Anita, confidence came with transparency. She was meticulous in understanding the content

for the website before it was presented to the outside world.

Anita describes the site as one that brings external women one step closer to HCLT and helps

them identify with HCL Technologies as an employer of choice.

Anita believes that the ‘Employees First’ philosophy must be understood in a holistic way.

“‟Employees First‟ is not only about what HCLT can do for me,” says Anita. “It is also about

what I can do to take my organisation forward.”

"Our ‘Employees First’ philosophy has helped HR teams to create new policies and support systems which are gender neutral, but primarily benefiting women to manage work life priorities. The BlogHer initiative of the diversity team has helped us to understand gender perspectives better and I am glad that HCLites partner with HR for drafting new policies through this forum"

- Dilip Kumar Srivastava, CVP and Head HR

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STRIKING THE RIGHT BALANCE

FARAH’S STORY

arah has been with HCL Technologies for

over six years now.

She has an enriching career and manages her time

wisely to maintain a work-life balance.

She schedules her son’s day-care routine with the

same élan as she schedules her conference calls.

Week-ends are strictly meant for family and she

ensures maximum productivity during the

work week. Her customers are happy with her and

her team’s deliverables.

Farah has a supportive employer in HCLT. She had

heard about women who were given lesser

responsibilities when they decided to start a

family, which did not happen in her case. HCLT did

not lessen her visibility. They increased her flexibility. She used her maternity leave benefits and

worked flexi-hours to spend more time with her son. She was happy that important facilities like

lactation rooms and on-site daycares were made available to her, when she needed them.

HCLT’s support enthused Farah from within. She was quick to assimilate the tenets of EFCS and

apply them at the workplace. She learnt to navigate through ambiguous situations and was not

afraid to take risks. Maintaining a balance between work and home, meant being data-oriented

on the job. She felt accountable to her organisation for they had supported her fully when

needed. She blogged about her experiences in BlogHer and as her responsibilities grew; she

extended similar support to the women who reported in to her. Working with people across

different locations, Farah learnt to build trust across virtual teams. That was possible only

through direct communication and information sharing. She also reached out to the Women

Bouncing Board members, to get tips on work-life balance.

Today, Farah represents the future of our women leaders. From her story, we learn that one

gives support to get support.

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“Diversity is a source of organizational strength. Gender diversity by inclusion and enabling work continuity for women has created a positive environment in the organization. Many women in the organization have been having successful careers. Women in my teams have brought in diversity of thought and provided perspectives that have made our team more mature in thinking and execution. I am happy to see women take up leadership positions and am looking forward to a higher representation.”

-Vijay Anand Guntur, Senior Vice President

Connecting with Managers: Supporting Choices

Irrespective of their diverse backgrounds, women continue to play their natural role as

nurturers. A woman’s natural instinct is to care for her family and is not diminished even as she

contributes to the professional workforce. Today’s managers want to work in organisations that

understand their need to balance both.

Research on women managers indicates the following:

Though motivated by extrinsic factors, monetary compensation, bonuses etc,

women managers also want roles that motivate them intrinsically. They want roles

that create an impact

Women must be given the flexibility to tailor their careers and responsibilities to

meet their personal demands

Women want their organisations to acknowledge their need, to play other fulfilling

roles in their lives as mothers, daughters, friends and partners and view them as a

‘whole’ person who values relationships

Single women do not want to be discriminated because they may not have

husbands or children. Work-life balance is not only about balancing children and

careers; it includes developing hobbies and interests beyond work

Women want ownership of their projects

Women flourish in environments where they are supported although they may

encounter set-backs. This gives them the confidence to persevere during obstacles,

knowing the management will support them

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At the managerial level, women face the following challenges:

They feel the need to go the ‘extra mile’ to show their capabilities because they are a

minority in the organisation

Due to the delicate work-life balancing, they do not find time to network beyond the

organisation

In many cultures, strategic decision-making is conducted during informal networking

and women are not included

Stereotypes and prejudices still exist in some workplaces

They seek alternative careers to manage work-life better

The guilt-factor about not spending enough time with their children exists

They feel the need to be perfect in everything they do both at home and work-related

projects

They burden themselves with their own high self-expectations

HCLT provides women employees with a supportive environment for them to steer through

challenging moments in their careers as well as hone their managerial skills.

Rise and Shine: Managing Challenges

Strike a Balance

Heena is a manager with the Organisational Effectiveness team. She joined the organisation

when her daughter was only three, a challenging time for any mother. However, Heena found

that HCLT’s forward-thinking and inclusive work environment was conducive in making that

adjustment. She has what she calls a ‘switch-on’ and ‘switch-off’ policy at work and home which

helps her dedicate time equally.

Heena believes that balancing work-life issues must be self-directed. She feels that the

organisation has a lot of policies and incentives for working mothers and one has to know how

to leverage each of these, to make the best fit.

“HCLT does a lot to promote work-life balance for women,” she says. “Now, it is the men

who need more such programmes.”

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Dare to Dream

Saloni has worked with HCLT for over a decade and manages UK-based retail accounts.

She values the level of flexibility given to the employees. When family members are unwell or

emergency situations arise, HCLT is very supportive. Saloni feels that most women are

apprehensive about their abilities to balance work-life issues. She has seen capable women not

want to take up additional responsibilities because they assume they cannot handle them. This

leads to women taking low-visibility roles that may not fully leverage their skill-sets.

“Do not make assumptions,” advises Saloni. “Think wisely, plan your career path and

grow smartly. Women must not second-guess themselves.”

Experiment and Experience Chitra was an HR generalist with HCLT, before she decided to take a sabbatical. When she

decided to resume, not only did she receive a warm welcome but she was also given a unique

portfolio that involved working with diversity-related programmes and initiatives.

Chitra believes that HCLT is an organisation that is ready to experiment, that gives employees

the opportunity to be involved in something new and exciting at all times.

“We have the capacity to use our skill-sets across various projects,” says Chitra. “This

helps us in learning and progressing.”

Embrace Diversity Janice embraces the fact that HCLT is a diversity-sensitive employer. She started at HCLT by providing administrative support for an International team. According to her, the journey has been challenging and fascinating, one that involves education, training, cooperation, initiative, and a continuous quest to excel. She is pleased to be involved working on diversity programmes. Research is an important facet of her responsibilities and Janice is happy to share her findings. “In the past, women's advancement was only seen as an issue of fairness and equality,”

she shares. “Now, research indicates that it must be seen in another way, the business

demands it.”

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Network and Share Munira provides delivery management expertise across various teams in HCLT. She believes that

self-directed employees, who take accountability seriously and are not afraid to speak up, will

succeed irrespective of their gender.

Munira appreciates the programmes, platforms and initiatives that HCLT promotes for its

employees. She observes that in some cultures, women and men do not make an effort to

network informally, a behavior, not prevalent elsewhere. Key decisions are made near the

coffee machine or over lunch and at times, women are left out.

She feels, those who are not part of informal teams, do not get the opportunity to make an

impact. However, she observes that the current generation of working women does not hesitate

to network with their peers. This is a positive sign.

On the topic of work-life balance, Munira advises women to be true to the concept.

“Don‟t focus only on balancing the „life‟ part of the equation,” says Munira. “Give your

work your 100% and you are sure to be recognised.”

Stay Upgraded

Sundaravalli is a manager who spends time in ensuring that her team members are in a

‘comfort zone’ where they can manage their time and deliverables. She encourages the women

in her team by giving them specific growth plans and works with them accordingly. She believes

that managers must play the dual-role of guides and mentors. Women in the technical field, in

the quest of achieving work-life balance, must remain technologically savvy.

“Women are good leaders as the skills come naturally to them coupled with the instincts

of treating employees with care and understanding,” she says. “This is a very good

combination for the successful growth of an organisation.”

Learn through Experience

Jaya believes that HCLT has given her rich experience across various sub-functions within HR and

delivery, that she has not felt the need to look to move beyond the organisation. Her moment of

pride was when one of the customers from New Zealand used her story of her career growth

and work ethic as an example to motivate. She recounts him describing HCLT as an organisation

where the sky is the limit, as long as one has the zeal to excel.

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“The focus on diversity has really helped us achieve business scale. Almost 30% of our growth has come through our women employees. Not only have they contributed to growth in volume, their dedication and ownership has been a vital reason for our continued success in execution excellence. If we have been enjoying a CSAT of 6.4/7 continuously, a large part of the credit should go to our women employees. Similarly, they have also played a very critical role in protecting the culture as we grew and that has made the growth sustainable.”

--Prabhuraman S, Vice President

Today, Jaya works on various functions and assignments with a diverse workforce. She feels that

when passion is the driving force for work, work-life balance never comes across as an issue. She

has never felt bogged down by her travels or meeting deadlines. Stretching her capabilities at

work and achieving successful results fulfils her dream of becoming a competent woman leader.

"There are no set rules for growth,” says Jaya. “You carve out your own path.”

Motivate and Mentor

Supreet has successfully managed the delivery for a major HCLT customer since the account’s

inception. Today, her account has grown from a 13-seater to one of the largest contact centers

with over 240 seats. Along with her Senior Manager, she meets the front-line employees

individually to get the pulse of the process and takes timely actions to resolve issues.

When talking about navigating through ambiguous situations, Supreet recalls being handed over

a new team of eleven members, where ten were put on a special list and were asked to improve

their performance. Somehow, the team came to know about this and grew worried. Supreet

took this exercise as a challenge and turned the team around. She mentored and motivated

them by requesting experts from her network to help them upgrade their skills. As a result, out

of the ten-member team, six cleared the Team Leader IJPs in different accounts and one became

a Quality Analyst in one of the UK accounts within three months.

“With EFCS in enforcement, I feel empowered to take decisions,” says Supreet. “I have

the authority to bring in a change if it is for the good of the

organisation.”

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SELF-DIRECTED LEADERSHIP

SARAH’S STORY

arah has worked in the IT industry for over

twelve years. She has experience and expertise. Sarah

represents a unique group of women leaders who

have seen organisations evolve, both incrementally

and radically. Along with their industries and

organisations, they have also evolved.

Sarah has seen the IT industry, grow, change, flourish,

re-orient and re-structure over the years. She started

with working on mainframe computers and has now

mastered using her Blackberry. She is passionate

about her work and keenly develops her domain

competency regularly whilst providing value to the

stakeholders. She is assertive in her relationships and

aggressive when it comes to implementations.

Sarah is confident of working with virtual teams and can assess someone's capabilities based on

deliverables and not on vicinity to the office location. She has now turned into a mentor from a

manager. She makes a conscious decision to share information, empowers her team by giving

them credit when they perform well and stands up for them when they take a fall. She has

evolved into a true leader.

The onerous task of managing simultaneously the expectations of her management and her

team from various perspectives, financial, motivational and process-oriented, etc., falls on her.

Sarah has her own challenges to face at home. The support system required at home, must run

like clockwork to ensure that she manages her time efficiently. She cannot do everything by

herself and has learnt to delegate.

As she climbs the corporate ladder, Sarah has to make time for her high-visibility position by

globe-trotting, attending and conducting various workshops and programmes alike and also

talking to the media. She knows that she is a leader who must represent her employer in the

S

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best possible manner. All this, while being accessible to speak to her team, which is spread

across geographies.

Sarah is conscious that she represents a minority of women leaders. There are many women

professionals who emulate her and look up to her to show them the way. Her role is a

challenging one but she blazes on, empowering and inspiring.

Contemporary research on women leaders makes a shift from understanding conventional

theories that primarily centre on the ‘glass ceiling’ and ‘work-life balance’.

New leadership models like McKinsey’s ‘model centered leadership analyse what intrinsically

motivates women leaders and what helps them achieve sustainable growth. They are:

Meaning - Finding your strengths and putting them to work in the service of an inspiring

purpose

Managing Energy – Finding where your energy comes from, where it goes and how you

can manage it

Positive Framing – Adopting a more constructive way to view the world and gaining

resilience even when bad things happen

Connecting – Identifying who can help you grow, building stronger relationships and

increasing your sense of belonging.

Engaging - Finding your voice, becoming self-reliant and confident by accepting

opportunities and the inherent risks they bring, and collaborating with others

Research indicates that women leaders place more value into building relationships and

foster genuine collaboration, while their male counterparts view negotiations and

business transactions as zero - sum games.

Experts believe that ‘negotiation skills’ are crucial in closing the gender gap in

leadership. They recommend that instead of waiting for the tectonic plates of society to

shift, women leaders must ask themselves what they can do at the interim.

Literature suggests, that outstanding women in leadership use a blend of what is

popularly conceived as the traditional masculine styles – being directive, authoritative,

and leading by example as well as feminine one such as being nurturing, collaborative

and promoting an inclusive work environment.

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Leading Global Initiatives

Transforming an Idea

Ambika leads Knowledge Management initiatives at HCLT. Under her leadership, her group built

HCLT’s next-generation KM Portal from scratch. ‘Arkmedes’ is built on the philosophy of a

seamless knowledge environment for all the employees in the organisation. The framework has

been successful in identifying important knowledge gaps and promoting information awareness

within the system.

Ambika believes that every person who leads a team and has employees looking up to them

plays the role of a CEO. That person becomes a role model, bringing in accountability, providing

direction and enabling support. While she extends her managers’ sphere of work, she gives

them the opportunity to bounce back, even if they face setbacks.

“When I force you to do something, it will only be a tick mark exercise,” explains Ambika. “If I

were to enthuse you, I find myself with a gold nugget.”

Ambika advises women in managerial positions to exhibit the same traits that got them to

where they are. She says that responsiveness, sharing and contribution are essential for growth.

She believes that leaders must lead by example and live up to the standards they expect.

“Women, by nature are inclusive,” says Ambika. “The metamorphism that happens in

every woman‟s life, gives her the strength to take more into her fold. This makes her a

natural leader.”

Evangelising EFCS

Anitha directs multiple engagements for the Healthcare vertical at HCLT. She is a firm believer in

the ‘Employees First’ philosophy and is a passionate evangelist of the same. For Anitha, the

philosophy is not something you can only apply at work. She talks about it to her friends, her

family and also uses it as a tool to empower women when she represents HCLT in the outside

world.

Her passion for the philosophy yielded tangible results when she received recognition for her

efforts in conducting EFCS workshops. She was one of two employees, who were recognised for

inspiring the students from the campus that submitted the maximum number of MAD Ltd.

entries.

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In the workplace, she believes that ambiguous situations can be navigated through by setting

clear expectations from the start. She calls for women leaders to be transparent about progress

and be in sync at all times with their respective stakeholders. She motivates her team by

conducting her appraisals on time and alerting them on areas of improvement regularly.

When there is a conflicting situation, Anitha does not procrastinate on resolving it. She is

‘hands-on’ in working to ensure that problems are resolved at a nascent stage.

“Delivery roles are challenging,” explains Anitha. “However, I make time to go outside

and conduct workshops in campuses and spread this positive philosophy. I enjoy doing

this.”

Leveraging Intrinsic Values

Anuradha leads the professional excellence pillar of learning and development initiatives at HCL.

Being involved in training, she has the opportunity to engage with many employees. She

observes that women have the natural inclination of being forward-thinking and being

meticulous planners and implementers. Her belief is that, women do not require any additional

training or grooming because they already have the required qualities intrinsically.

Before accepting challenging roles, Anuradha asks women professionals to ensure they have a

supportive and conducive home environment which will help them focus on their career. Once

they establish that, she advises them to put their best foot forward in everything that they do.

“A woman‟s core strength is the ability to manage anything from conceptualisation to

implementation,” explains Anuradha. “That is the secret recipe of our success.”

Defining Success

Aparna leads operations for a large account at HCLT. She has been with HCLT for several years

now, and feels that the organisation has always been a flexible and supportive one.

Aparna advises women not to put on the ‘superwomen’ mantle at all times. Women tend to set

very high expectations for themselves and feel disillusioned when they do not succeed up to

what they originally anticipated.

She recommends understanding one’s priorities, learning to delegate and being reasonable

about what one can and cannot do with one’s management.

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"While as a company we promote focused mentoring of women, I think it is important for women to leverage this opportunity for personal & professional growth. Women perform extremely well at work, and their sense of alignment to corporate and business goals is so steadfast. My teams are spread across the globe, and I find this situation across cultures. So, when I help a woman leader on her personal development, I ensure the self branding aspect is learnt and adopted."

- - Vikram Sarathy, Vice President

Aparna explains that her team understands that she needs to go home at a certain time and

organise things for her family. Once you ensure your deliverables are on-time, teams begin to

trust and work to accommodate one’s schedule. She defines success as a relative term and asks

women professionals to do some self-reflection and ask themselves what they truly want out of

their careers.

“Define your parameters of success,” she says.” Be content. If you are happy, your output

reflects that happiness.”

Empowering while Leading

Dhamayanthi heads TechCEED which is responsible for providing business aligned training for

employees of HCLT with a focus on Technical and Project Management competencies. She

believes in motivating future leaders by transferring complete ownership of projects to them

while ensuring that she is available for support and guidance.

She consciously and periodically reviews the ‘Employees First’ philosophy with her team.

Dhamayanthi asked her teenage son to make a list of the areas in which he could improve to

ensure success at school. She gave him a deadline. In return, he asked her to do the same.

“When someone looks up to you for guidance, you automatically become accountable to them,”

explains Dhamayanthi. “You can use this philosophy at home as well.”

Dhamayanathi is a firm believer of self-directed leadership. She feels that women are capable of

much more than they give themselves credit for. Her advice to women professionals, is to

remember that whatever level they are in, they are service providers who must treat their team

members as customers, be accessible and not believe in hierarchy. Hierarchy is there only for

employees to get guidance and should not prevent people from asking questions.

Dhamayanthi observes that managers have a tendency to ‘manage’ more and ‘lead’ less, a trend

she feels, must change.

“As long as you only delegate, employees do not give their best,” explains

Dhamayanthi. “Transfer ownership. Support them through setbacks and give them due

credit. You will see the magic.”

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Applying Intrinsic Skills

Madhurima, who directs Operations, believes that women bring in a rational way of working

and a focus on what must be done to achieve the final result instead of finding faults. They have

the attitude to work hard and worry about rewards later.

Madhurima takes the time to listen to her team members and gives them the opportunity to

share their thoughts and opinions. Women are naturally ‘inclusive’ in nature and must apply

those skills at the workplace.

She points out that women make naturally good listeners.

“It takes effort to actually implement EFCS philosophy,” says Madhurima. “Freedom of

choice always comes with the added responsibility of „responsible‟ choices.”

Developing an Inner Zeal

Seema manages delivery operations for Australia and New Zealand.

She says that women managers today do encounter stereotypes at the workplace but can

overcome them by proving their capabilities. Stereotypes stem from mental blocks which can be

removed only through awareness.

When Seema entered the Service and Delivery environment to work on infrastructure projects,

there were some who were apprehensive about her capabilities in this domain. Under Seema’s

leadership, the unit grew up to 200% and the customers were satisfied.

She attributes her effectiveness to time-management, be it at work or home. She explains that

organisations give you work-from-home and flexi-time options with the belief that you will

deliver on time.

The word ‘aggressive’ is not a negative one. It denotes an inner zeal for doing things right. She

urges women professionals to be aggressive and committed in reaching their set goals.

“If you want to reach a goal in life, you have to work hard toward it,” explains the mother

of twins. “Use your time wisely. If you cannot get something done in 8 hours, you cannot

do it in 18 hours.”

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Creating Space for Innovation

Sheela is a Delivery Solutions Head at HCLT. She finds that women leaders have a tendency to

be transparent and deal with issues by bringing them out in the open. She advocates

empowerment and does not believe in formal hierarchy.

Every week, she conducts an all-hands meet where projects and progress are discussed.

“We do not take down minutes or note action points,” explains Sheela. “My meetings are open

forums where people can speak up. There are many benefits to working this way.”

Sheela feels that the first step to deal with a problem or complaint is to acknowledge that there

is one. When a leader is in denial, the team does not grow. When team-members comes to her

with a crisis or request a replacement during a personal outage, Sheela asks them to come up

with a recommendation or solution first.

“With my experience, it is not difficult for me to give suggestions,” explains Sheela. “When

I throw the ball in the other person‟s court, the results are two-fold, I give them a chance

to take responsibility and potentially learn something innovative that I may not have

thought of myself.”

Speaking Up

Kavita is in Corporate Marketing and works closely with the CEO’s office on communication-

related projects. Kavita believes that HCLT’s culture of transparency and open workplace

provides an encouraging environment for women who may be otherwise shy to network or

speak up.

She feels that women must make more efforts to network both within and outside the

organisation. This begins by learning to speak up and building strong communication networks.

Kavita does not hesitate to voice her opinion even while speaking with her CEO, who takes her

suggestions positively. This reinforces her belief that HCLT takes its ‘Employees First’ policy

seriously. Kavita observes that people assume that single women or those without children are

naturally obligated to work more, which is not a positive notion. She feels that sensitisation

training should be introduced to increase awareness and avoid prejudice.

“Women are ambitious and goal-oriented.” says Kavita. “Don‟t feel apologetic about it.”

"HCL women leaders have the ability to work in ambiguous situations which needs creative thinking and a collaborative mindset. Empowerment of such leaders creates new ways to manage knowledge, learning, and transformation at HCL. In my team, I have seen women leaders take bold decisions and have led many transformation initiatives very innovatively thereby helping us to ‘Upgrade HCL’.”

- Ram Krishna, Senior CVP and Chief Delivery Officer

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Managing Global Operations

Liselotte heads HCLT’s Nordic operations. Her advice to aspiring women leaders is to be

proactive, make a plan on what they want and tell people around that they aspire to do it. She

feels that women professionals can break out of stereotypical expectations by taking small

assignments outside their responsibilities to experiment with their capabilities.

According to Liselotte, spending some part of one’s career in Sales goes a long way in building a

leadership profile. Liselotte stresses on the importance of sharing objectives and understanding

the objectives of others. Communicate!

“Take on all the help you can get, both at work and for household chores,” says Liselotte.

“Marry a great guy that shares the burden equally, teach your kids to help out and make

sure you have fun.”

Leveraging Experience

Neelam joined HCLT as a part of campus placements, seventeen years ago. She has grown with

the organisation and has worn different hats in her career - that of developer, manager, played

customer-facing roles and is now a leader. Neelam uses stories from her own experience,

starting as a developer, in the organisation, to motivate people.

She ensures that she encourages information sharing in her team and propagates an open

culture in the office. She believes transparency across hierarchies and motivation to think

beyond the normal lets one evolve as an individual and keeps one going even in tough

situations. She leads by example; she is assertive, work-oriented and structured but

accommodates the needs of her team members when they need her to.

In Neelam’s team of 300+, over 30% are women - she is proud of her gender-diverse team.

Neelam is upfront about the fact that careers are challenging but encourages women who have

taken sabbaticals to join back and grow over a period time. Having invested time and energy

into educating themselves and gaining experience – she would be happy to see them make a

career, with a focus on family and home!

“You are lucky to be starting your careers in the new normal - there is pace and place across the

industry,” says Neelam, to the women of the next generation. Neelam advises women, never to

lose confidence and not restrict their capabilities by only comparing themselves to men.

Her success mantra: Be confident, speak up and keep up the spirit of being a woman!

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The Power of Listening

Peggy leads engagement initiatives at HCLT’s Consumer Services vertical.

At HCLT, she learnt that being a leader not only requires a thorough understanding of the

customer’s present and projected business needs; but also requires openness to new ideas and,

above all, an ability to listen. Each day, Peggy encounters new challenges, both big and small,

and has found that the best way to meet those challenges is by leveraging the ideas of the

whole team in order to create the best solution.

“When your team trusts that their ideas are being heard, everyone works smarter, and the

customers benefit,” says Peggy.

“When you're passionately focused on a client project, it's often easy to let your work life

become your whole life.”

Peggy believes that HCLT understands this and empowers their employees to take time off to

recharge, stay healthy, and to balance the demands of family life with those of the workplace.

'In order to work at the level of excellence I demand of myself, I have to be as serious

about my family life, as I am about the clients with whom, I work with everyday,” says

Peggy.

Building ‘Family-Based’ Teams

Shaila directs delivery operations for HCLT’s largest retail client. She attributes her success to

the management who understand and support her. She has the independence to take decisions

and takes complete ownership for her projects.

Shaila’s group does not have manager-level attrition, a statistic that she is proud of. To achieve

that, she has built what she calls a ‘family-oriented’ team at work. She believes that acting like a

conventional manager or leader does not get the best results. Employees look for friends and

mentors in the managers they report to.

Shaila thinks that women can use their intrinsic qualities of being listeners and nurturers to build

a great team. While men focus more on the ‘wine and dine’ aspects of building relationships,

she feels that women make attempts to really get to know their colleagues, customers and even

their extended families. This personal rapport ensures greater trust and productivity.

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Shaila works long hours and overcomes time-critical issues on a daily basis. She maintains a

work-life balance by not trying to do everything herself.

“I have great support from my joint family,” explains Shaila. “It also helps that my husband is an

HCL employee. We understand the pressures of each other’s jobs.”

Shaila believes there is a workaround to any issue, as long as one explains oneself and avails of

the flexibility that this organisation offers. She plans her conference calls and meetings in the

evenings, when her three-year old, is winding down.

Shaila feels that the most important thing for a woman leader to remember is to make time for

herself and not feel guilty about pursing her career.

“Don‟t forget to take care of yourself,” says Shaila. “Listen to music, make time to workout

and enjoy your work.”

“Research indicates that companies with a higher percentage of women in senior leadership have higher returns on investment. Though this has not been measured yet in HCL, I know many women have put HCL first in their priority list and manage their work life continuity accordingly. I acknowledge the value that women bring to HCL, and many of our customers appreciate the fact that our HCL women are playing important roles in their engagements"

- Shami Khorana, Senior CVP & Custodian -Diversity Council, North Americas

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Why Believe? ‘Believe’ is a dedication to all the women in HCL.

The conceptualisation of ‘Believe’ also draws inspiration from the EFCS philosophy.

From ‘Mirror Mirror’, we take a long hard look at ourselves and ask if we understand our

women. Are we in-tune with their current expectations?

From ‘Trust through Transparency’, we ask our women employees questions, that will

help us understand them better.

From ‘Inverting the Pyramid’, we share our vision of creating a workplace for the

Gen Yers.

From ‘Recasting the Role of the CEO’, we explore what our women leaders are doing to

bring our future leaders closer to the value zone.

To all the bright and beautiful women at HCL, who through their work, support, inputs,

thoughts and guidance have made this initiative possible!

Thank You.

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Citations

Barrett, Nichols Kara. 2011. Gen Y Women in the Workplace. Business and Professional Women’s Foundation.

Barsh, Joanna and Cranston, Susie and Craske, Rebecca A. 2008. Centered Leadership: How Talented Women Thrive. The McKinsey Quarterly.

Lagace, Martha. 2003. Negotiating Challenges for Women Leaders. Harvard Business School. Nayar, Vineet. 2010. Employees First, Customers Second: Turning Conventional Management

Upside Down. Harvard Business School Press. Poti, Sapna and Talwar, Anand. 2012. People! Focus on Me! Hindu Business Line. Samuelson, Kristin. 2012. Making the Workplace Appealing to Gen Y. Chicago Tribune.

Acknowledgements

The women featured in ‘Believe’ represent professionals at various stages of their careers in our

organisation. We thank them for their inputs. They are:

Ritu Singh-Associate Manager, Anitha Sivaramakrishnan-Lead Engineer, Neha Singh-Manager, Shyamali Rathore, Srividyaa Radhakrishnan- Software Engineer,

Naomi Anna Sarah Varghese-Executive, Anita Ramachandran-Executive, Heena Verma-Associate General Manager, Seema Kapoor- General Manager,

Saloni Mangal- Deputy General Manager, Chitra Shyam Sunder- Group Manager, Janice Graham-Manager-Sales & Market Operations,

Munira Fazleabbas- Associate General Manager, Madhurima Chandran- Operations Director, Sundaravalli Chakravarthi Varadarajan- Group Project Manager,

Supreet Kaur Kondal-Associate General Manager, Ambika Natarajan-General Manager, Anitha Rajesh- Operations Director, Anuradha Maitra, Associate Director,

Aparna Nair- Associate General Manager, Dhamayanthi N- Associate Vice President, Jaya Kiran Satish- Deputy General Manager, Sheela Mohan- Vice President,

Kavita Khushalani- General Manager, Liselotte Hägertz Engstam- Vice President & Country Director- Nordics,

Neelam Manwani- Operations Director, Peggy Crane- Area Sales Director, Shaila Sharma- Global Operations Director

Bonnie Laila Bhattacharya for her support in proofreading this document.

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A Diversity Initiative

Concept & Content: Sunanda Seshadrinathan Design & llustrations: Sandhya Prabhat

The contents of this book are confidential and are intended solely for HCL and its employees and its business partners. Any use, reproduction or dissemination of this work is strictly prohibited.