Hyderabad: Indian women have seen an upsurge in employment at the entry-level, as per a survey report, however, there is still room for improvement when it comes to senior managerial and executive positions.
Women’s representation at entry levels continues to increase but downfall also continues when it comes to women at senior level, said Avtar Group, India’s pioneers in Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) Consulting, in its Seventh Edition of Avtar & Seramount Best Companies for Women in India (BCWI) report, released on Monday.
The seventh edition of BCWI – MICI study commenced in February 2022 and had 351 companies spanning different industry sectors participating in the study which had over 300 questions across seven key areas.
While the study revealed that representation of women at entry levels continues to increase (from 33 percent in 2017 to 38 percent in 2022), the female talent pipeline continues to bleed – it goes down by 9 percent in managerial roles (23 percent in 2017 and 26% women in 2022).
Women’s representation also dips to 18 percent at the senior managerial level and 17 percent at the corporate executive level, the report revealed.
Amongst the companies that feature in the 100 best companies for women in India list, 33 percent were Indian companies and the rest were multinational companies.
2022 Top 10 Avtar & Seramount Best Companies for Women in India, listed A-Z alphabetically are: Accenture Solutions Private Ltd.; Barclays in India; Citi India, EY, Genpact India Pvt. Ltd. IBM India Private Ltd, Infosys Limited, Mastercard India, Tech Mahindra Limited and ZS Associates India Pvt. Ltd.
Avtar also announced the Fourth Edition of the Avtar & Seramount Most Inclusive Companies Index (MICI), a pioneer inclusion Index in the country that recognizes companies whose inclusion intent transcends all diversity dimensions.
The companies that participated in the 2022 MICI and scored an Inclusion Index score of above 75 percent are placed in the prestigious Champions of Inclusion Index.
The Champions of Inclusion -2022, presented A-Z, alphabetically are Accenture Solutions Private Ltd, AXA XL India Business Services Pvt. Ltd, Citi India, EY, IBM India Pvt Ltd, Infosys Limited, Mastercard India, Target Corporation India Pvt Ltd, Tech Mahindra Limited, and Wipro Limited.
Avtar Founder-President Dr. Saundarya Rajesh, said, “Women’s representation continues to improve when we looked at a 5-year data frame. However, we must note that the increase is primarily because of more women at the entry-level. With an equitable talent supply at this level (49.5 percent of college graduates in India today are women), pursuing gender balance at the entry point is non-negotiable at 100 Best.
However, as we move up the talent pipeline the drop in representation of women at senior levels is stark. This is despite the robust career enhancement programs at these companies – with 98 percent of 100 Best companies providing mentoring support to women, 94 percent providing executive coaching and 97 percent having ERGs for women, she said.
In the hybrid work model that is here to stay, societal enablement by way of improved facilities for child-care and elder care and family units that hold value for the career ambitions of women can change the narrative, she added.
Subha V. Barry, President of Seamount said the Most Inclusive Companies Index places emphasis on identifying and developing diverse talent, utilizing best practices in DEI training, holding managers accountable for their DEI results, and more. It is through measures like these that ensure inclusive workplaces are built. We at Seramount are proud to honor these forward-thinking organizations.”
