Why the Indian Technology Sector Needs VMinclusion Taara
Taking one step at a time towards achieving gender parity in the workplace, men like Anil Varma are setting a remarkable example by helping bring women back into the workforce after a break.
Last year, VMware celebrated 20 years of innovation, 20 years of disruptive market leadership, and raised their glasses to the next 20 years together. In India, we announced a significant investment of USD 2 billion to increase headcount in sales and R&D as well as for expanding our footprint in the country. For me, one announcement and a subsequent conversation with Pat Gelsinger and Duncan Hewett made the celebrations extra special. Part of the $2 billion investment was going to be leveraged for a unique program called VMinclusion Taara created specifically to bring Indian women back to work after a career break.
Why did this discussion stand out for me on a day when we were celebrating 20 years of dominating the technology sector-our core business? And why did I think that this program is exactly what the Indian technology industry needs right now? For three key reasons.
First, I truly believe that a program like Taara is the need of the hour. Despite there being significant progress in the equal rights movement in India, the country remains deeply patriarchal at heart. Over the years I’ve seen countless women shouldering the primary responsibility for their homes, families, and children while struggling to balance their professional aspirations. And ultimately dropping out of the workforce when the balancing act gets too much to cope with. Over the last few years, there has been an alarming increase in the number of women dropping out of the workforce in India. The conspicuous absence of women from India’s workforce is part of a much bigger issue and is a worrying trend for India. Nearly 20 million Indian women quit their jobs between 2004 to 2012 according to a study by the World Bank. Not only is this detrimental to the development of the IT sector, but it also plays a significant role in slowing down the economic growth of the country.
Making matters worse is the fact that most women are unable to find a job when they are ready to make a comeback. Most often, prospective employers feel that their skills are outdated in an ever-evolving technology landscape. Under these circumstances, VMinclusion Taara is a ray of hope for women trying to find their way back to the workplace. It offers the chance to avail of free online VMware certification courses in the latest digital transformation technologies. In other words, we are helping women address the gaps in their skillsets and return to work confidently.
Second, most women enrolling with VMinclusion Taara are looking to upskill and restart their dormant careers. But we are also witnessing a steady flow of women from diverse backgrounds who are looking for opportunities to learn technology skills or trying to enrich their skillsets by learning multiple new technologies. This is a testament to the growing multi-skilling trend in the industry. I am confident that with so many talented driven women keen to expand their skillsets, India’s innovation quotient will remain high in the years to come.
Third, I am incredibly proud to be part of an organization that has the vision, foresight, and commitment to drive positive change not just internally but within the industry at large. VMware is committed to driving inclusivity and positive transformation within the technology industry as a whole. It is one of the most diverse and inclusive organizations in the world, with supportive workplace policies and a deep focus on inculcating a truly inclusive workplace where the power of human difference is celebrated every day. But more importantly, it is an industry leader that is committed to addressing the widening gender disparity in the sector. And what is more heartening is the fact it is genuinely concerned to resolve a widening issue of the industry. VMinclusion Taara is a concrete first step taken by our organization in association with Women Who Code, to bring women back into the workforce and I am happy to be closely involved with one the largest return to work programs in the country, aiming to empower more than 15,000 women of the country.
I have been a VMinclusion Taara evangelist since its launch. I believe the Indian tech industry needs a program like this at this point in time because it aims to enable and empower a significant and capable demographic that is otherwise not being included in the workforce. We all agree that diverse and inclusive teams come up with more creative, effective & out-of-the-box ideas compared to those that are more homogenous. As technology grows more complex and emerging trends disrupt the sector every day, innovation will be a key differentiator for organizations in the years to come.
VMinclusion Taara is the first step to creating a more diverse, inclusive and innovative Indian IT workforce. Today, more than 4000 women have already enrolled in the program. Many of them have completed the course and are back in the workforce as VMware certified professionals. The program holds immense value in the industry as it helps women upskill in some of the most advanced technologies — datacentre virtualization, cloud management, and automation, networking and security, and digital workspace technologies.
A number of leading Indian enterprises have already pledged their support for the program. I am confident that through programs like VMinclusion Taara we can create a better, more diverse and balanced industry for future generations.
