Women on Top

Some were lucky to have been at the right place at the right time; one admits that she is not the sort of mother who packs their child's tiffin in the morning-and another is "quite unashamed" to say that she eased up on her career to be with her children when they needed her most. And look out for the rising star who takes her two-year-old daughter jetsetting as she shuttles between two cities in the US and her Indian headquarters, and for the lady who came back to India to be near her ailing mother-in-law-but succeeded with yet another start-up.

Radhika Roy54, MD, NDTV She appears to come with the trappings of the quintessential business tycoon—a super-connected family. Her sister is Brinda Karat, the first, and only, woman member of the CPI(M) Politburo, and her husband Prannoy Roy, who defined English news on TV. But Radhika Roy, Managing Director, NDTV, has in many ways slogged for every little bit of the success that is NDTV today. A former print journalist, Roy is known for exacting standards. “She’s a terrific person with a remarkable sense of strongwilled ethics and understanding of what is right and wrong…. I owe her a huge debt,” says Rajdeep Sardesai, Editor-in-Chief, CNN-IBN.
Tales about her principled approach are legendary and insiders still recall her calm despite the pressures that the channel faced during the Gujarat riots. Roy lets reporters do their jobs without once questioning their coverage or reporting. The group, meanwhile, has launched several new channels and media platforms. This year has been big as it also forayed into the Hindi general entertainment space with NDTV Imagine.

Shobhana Bhartia51, Chairperson & Editorial Director, HT Media
It has been business as usual for HT Media, as the company delivered good first quarter results this year, and the 51-year-old media baroness would have it no other way. Shobhana Bhartia, 51, Chairperson & Editorial Director, HT Media, known for her fierce time-and-agenda prioritisation, has been chipping away at her vision since the early ’90s. Says Rajya Sabha Member Chandan Mitra, Editor & MD, The Pioneer: “I was probably part of her first experiment to engineer change at HT. Way back in the ’90s, the paper had forayed with a new segment on ‘Infotainment’ and later launched its weekend lifestyle magazine… she has been very quick to spot trends and has been aggressive in pursuing change and growth.” Mitra was Executive Editor at HT (1992-96). "Bhartia knows what she wants and gets people to achieve results—the group has already seen key top-level exits, including that of two editors, in the last few years.

Leena Nair38,Executive Director, HUL Power to me means: It’s having more at your disposal to be able to help others.My most memorable experience at workplace: Seamlessly moving our Foods Division to Mumbai from Bangalore and also ensuring that the transition was done in a caring manner.My favourite life-after-work activity: Spending time with my family.The biggest turning point in my career was: Getting appointed as the first woman on the Management Committee of HUL.Mantra for maintaining work-life balance: Just don’t give yourself a choice and live life to the fullest.Closest friends in business: Prem Kamath, Gurdeep Singh and HR heads like K. Ramkumar of ICICI Bank, Satish Pradhan of Tata Sons, Santrupt Misra of Aditya Birla Group.
For the second consecutive year, she is on BT’s list of 25 most powerful women in business. As HUL itself did well, regaining the Day Zero slots at B-School placements, Nair has been given the added responsibility of being the Vice-President-HR for South Asia. The company has also been able to attract and retain talent, and lower its attrition rate. She also feels that she has grown personally in her job. But the modest Nair credits her achievements to her team.

Madhabi Puri-Buch42, Executive Director, ICICI Bank Power to me means: Being able to make a difference in people’s lives.My most memorable experience at workplace: When one of my team members said: “why not make homes affordable for everybody?”My favourite life-after-work activity: To set-up a charity website toofles.comThe biggest turning point in my career was: Taking charge of back-office operations after the merger of ICICI and ICICI Bank.Mantra for maintaining work-life balance: Use of technology, especially the Internet and mobile phones.
If you enjoy what you are doing then you are living a wonderful life. That has been Madhabi Puri-Buch’s life mantra— which is why she opted for back-office operations work, seen by her colleagues as less attractive, when ICICI and ICICI Bank were merged. “I wanted to learn something new and, in a bank, the back-office is a key area of operation,” she says. Buch feels roles that are not glamorous but are difficult to execute create more value for a person. At present, she is busy with a social cause in her personal capacity, and will soon launch a charity website where people can sell second-hand stuff.

Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw55,Chairman & Managing Director,Biocon Power to me means: The ability to influence change.My most memorable experience at workplace: Having to roll up my sleeves to work on the shop floor when employees went on strike in 1985.My favourite life-after-work activity: Holidaying with family.The best way to deal with a glass ceiling: To pursue your sense of purpose with a single-minded determination to succeed.The biggest turning point in my career was: When I failed to get a job as a brew master.Mantra for maintaining work-life balance: We, in the corporate world, are obsessed with work and tend to sacrifice social commitments to our families and friends. Family and friends bring about a great balance: make time for them.
She is among the largest private collectors of paintings, trained in Hindustani vocals and is all for public-private partnerships in city administration. As Biocon’s boss, she is the face of the biotech industry. But she makes time for friends and family. “The recent loss of my dearest friend to cancer made me realise how important it is to show you care,” she says

Kalpana Morparia59,CEO,JP Morgan India Power to me means: The ability to make a difference.My most memorable experience at workplace: Merger of ICICI and ICICI Bank.My favourite life-after-work activity: Shopping and watching movies. The biggest turning point in my career was: In 1996, when K.V. Kamath (now MD & CEO, ICICI Bank) asked me to move over from being a lawyer to head treasury.Mantra for maintaining work-life balance: What’s a work-life balance? To me work is life.She has just begun her second innings after retiring last year from India’s second largest bank. At 59, Kalpana Morparia, the ICICI Bank veteran of over three decades, has taken over as CEO of JP Morgan’s India setup. The assignment came as she was enjoying her non-executive stint at three of the bank’s subsidiaries. Morparia also became an independent director on other boards at this time. Now, she has to broaden JP Morgan’s footprint in existing areas. “I never let my gender come in the way of my career, why should age become a barrier?” she asks. Why, indeed?

Indu Jain76,Chairman,The Times Group Power to me means: When people say ‘yes’ to my mission and do the work joyfully, happily and enthusiastically.My most memorable experience at workplace: Whenever I catch and hold the high dimensions of my consciousness.My most difficult decision: Whether I should be compassionate or punish those disruptive and tortuous people who hurt and cause suffering to others.My motto in life: To become rich and make others rich, spiritually and materially.Mantra for maintaining work-life balance: My inner growth must match my material growth and achievements. Learning, Living and Actions…. I move in Oneness. There is no positive. There is no negative. Simply, there ‘is’.
She is the matriarch of the most powerful media group in the country, estimated to be worth over $4-billion (Rs 18,400 crore). Indu Jain, Chairman of the privately-held The Times Group, hardly fits into any prototype of power-women, but she wears her power with a style that is her very own. Known to be an ardent follower of Sri Sri Ravi Shankar and Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev, Jain has pushed through her unique spiritual, cultural and social sensibility into Bennett, Coleman & Company, her group’s flagship. At the same time, she is also known to have pushed through the agenda of internal audit, or, management assurance system, earlier on. She is the founder of The Times Foundation and is also the Chairperson of Bhartiya Jnanpith Foundation.

Chitra Ramakrishna45, Deputy Managing Director, NSE Power to her means: Shunning media glare and letting her actions speak for her work. My most memorable experience at workplace: There has never been a dull moment over the last 15 years—with Indian markets growing the way they have—and personally for me as I grew with this institution. NSE has always provided an excellent environment for professionals and that is something I will always cherish.The biggest turning point in my career was: Getting an opportunity to become a part of the team that set up the National Stock Exchange.
When you are a part of the team that created a world-class stock exchange, it’s tempting to talk about that success and bask in its glow. But Chitra Ramakrishna, Deputy Managing Director, NSE, has always shunned the spotlight, though she is used to being at the forefront of framing crucial regulations. During her days at IDBI in the early ’90s, Ramakrishna was selected to be part of a small team that prepared a blueprint for SEBI regulations. This led her to study the regulations in developed countries. “Her ability to understand business nuances is amazing,” says former colleague G.V. Nageshwara Rao, CEO, IDBI Fortis Life.

Ashu Suyash41,MD & Country Head-India, Fidelity International Power to me means: The ability to influence and bring about change.My most memorable experience at workplace: The period when we launched Fidelity’s mutual fund operations in India in March 2005.My favourite life-after-work activity: I love to spend time with my daughters and husband.The best way to deal with a glass ceiling: Focus on delivering.The biggest turning point in my career was: When I joined Fidelity Fund Management
Striving for work-life balance? Look at Ashu Suyash, Country Head & Managing Director for India at Fidelity International. The March 2005 launch of Fidelity’s mutual fund operations in India coincided with her elder daughter’s board exams. Suyash planned the entire promotional exercise in such a way that she could be back home every 3-4 days.The fund was a huge success and her daughter did well. “Leading a brand like Fidelity gives you the calling card and the edge. You have a point of view, you get heard. But the key is to hold on to your own views when others don’t agree with you. That’s a challenge. But if you remain firm, over a period of time you get accepted,” says the 41-year-old chartered accountant who has a 15-year stint with Citibank behind her.

Ela R. Bhatt75, Founder, Self-employed Women’s Association Placing Ela R. Bhatt in any listing of India’s most powerful women is—on the face of it—a distinctly bizarre exercise. That’s because it’s the powerlessness of the womenworkers in the informal economy that has shaped the life-long efforts of the founder of the Self-employed Women’s Association (SEWA). This Padmashri, Padmabhushan and Ramon Magsaysay Award winner earns a place here not because she has come to accumulate a lot of power in trying to empower the powerless. It’s because of the worldwide impact that her work has had on not only the disadvantaged workers but also on government policies. SEWA’S work is improving the lives of over a million direct members and about 5-6 million others in India. The SEWA family includes a trade union of selfemployed women with 1.1 million members and a cooperative bank. Her policy advocacy has also spawned the Unorganised Sector Workers’ Social Security Bill and a worldwide awareness of the plight of workers in the informal economy.

Chanda Kochhar46, Joint MD, ICICI Bank Power to me means: The ability to impact the lives of common people.My most memorable experience at workplace: When a customer wanted to see the window from where the teller places cash in an ATM machine.My favourite life-after-work activity: Watching Hindi movies and shopping.The best way to deal with a glass ceiling: Concentrate on work and focus on performance.The biggest turning point in my career was: The launch of retail banking at ICICI Bank.Mantra for maintaining work-life balance: Maintain a daily time schedule and prioritise things depending on the situation.
If you want to meet her on weekends, check out multiplexes in Mumbai running Hindi movies. Chanda Kochhar is a die-hard fan of Bollywood. She also helped transform ICICI Bank into India’s secondlargest bank, changing the rules of the game using technology. “Now just 10 per cent of our customers visit branches for their banking needs,” she says. She has seen it all— from corporate and infrastructure financing to retail, but the last is very close to her heart. “It (retail banking) was new for me and for the bank and for the industry,” says Kochhar.

Amrita Patel64, Chairman, NDDB Power to me means: Maintaining the highest standards of integrity at all times.My favourite life-after-work activity: I am actively involved in two movements—ecological security and rural healthcare.The best way to deal with a glass ceiling: Fortunately, I have not had to fight the glass ceiling. Hard work, commitment and caring in word and deed helps people overcome obstacles.Mantra for maintaining work-life balance: Meditation. I am not a businesswoman,” says Amrita Patel, Chairman of National Dairy Development Board, the world’s largest dairy development programme, which involves over 12.4 million farmer families, 117,000 co-operative societies and procures 21.5 million litres of milk every day. “I’m in the business of putting other women into business and enabling them to earn a daily income,” says Patel, chairman since 1998. “We must ensure that we do not become importers,” she adds. Patel is behind a National Dairy Plan that looks at demand and supply up to 2021.