Women have to make twice the efforts
Published on : Sunday 08-03-2020
What motivated your career choice – were you always aspiring for a career in engineering?
I come from a small town in Gujarat. While in school I was a ‘maths’ kind of student and loved working with tools and gadgets so engineering was a natural option for me. Having said this, I must add that my father supported my choice and encouraged me, and I always tried to prove that it was the right decision. I graduated in Instrumentation & Control from Nirma University, Ahmedabad.
A working woman also has to manage the home – a difficult balancing act?
True. Family plays greater role in developing a woman’s individuality. I am lucky to have motivating parents, inspiring siblings and a very supportive husband. Without their support, managing home and yet retaining focus on the career would have been akin to a body without soul.
A career in engineering also necessitates travel which means staying away from home. Were you able to adjust to such a routine?
Well, I do travel a lot and traveling for leisure is my hobby. But I also enjoy the work related travel. Traveling offers a change in daily routine. Waking up early morning to catch a flight or returning late night from the airport, staying attentive all the while and resuming the routine life the next morning provides a lot of change and once it becomes a routine, it also becomes effortless to handle. Such a routine provides variation in life and then one never feels monotonous.
Any regrets about the choice of career: Did you ever wish you were engaged in some other field?
My working life is so exciting and challenging that I have never thought of changing the career path. To experience automation in various sector I have worked in oil & gas, process and manufacturing industries and enjoyed the experience, so no regrets. But yes, I do think that if for any reason had I not been in this line, then I would have chosen interior designing to satisfy my inner creativity.
Often one hears of missed opportunities and promotions for just being a woman. Have you experienced such discrimination?
I do not think so. Whatever I have aimed for, I have achieved, maybe with some delay. I have done my engineering in Instrumentation & Control and we had many process companies that came for campus placement in my college. I did not get selected in any campus placement so at that time I felt it is gender biased industry, but once I joined and am part of it, I have never felt discriminated against.
Have things in general changed for the better for women at work now?
As I mentioned in my earlier reply, there was a certain gender bias earlier, but these days it’s more open and cordial to work with. From infrastructure point of view, there are still many things lacking that make women uncomfortable at some workplaces. I believe the industry should consider the basic sanitation needs for both male/female associates at work. I see there is hesitation from female candidates to work in this industry due to the variation of schedule and poor infrastructure at workplaces. If organisations institutionalise such norms, then I am sure they can attract more female talent to serve the industry.
We still do not see many women in leadership roles. Is there an undeclared restriction at play here?
I wouldn't say restriction, but yes women have to make twice the efforts compared with men to achieve the equivalent position in an organisation. This is not a negative comment but as you must have heard “It’s the character that’s the strongest that God gives the most challenges”. We have inherent multitasking and managing techniques which makes us born leaders but when it comes professional world we need to organise our action and believe in ourselves to achieve leadership role.
What would be your message to the youth, your children for that matter, in career choices?
There is a great variety of career options these days and some of them appear to be earning easy money in short time. At this stage I can profess that there is no shortcut in any achievement. Time is money. Everyone has to work hard to be at recognisable stage in their own career whatsoever it maybe. Choose the career which gives you vision and reason for life. Build definitive inner skills which add some value to yourself and society and which will contribute to build a strong nation. Whatever you choose, do it with full dedication and you shall win. These days one more message I would like to pass to youth that they are more leaning towards social networking even for career options, for which I would suggest that digital media should be used as supportive tool and not as an addiction.
Is asked to sum up your life and career thus far in three words, what would they be?
Adventurous – Accept Challenges (in) Motion – Never Stop, Cock-a-hoop – have high spirit!
Dharini Joshi, Director, Trio Motion Technology India Pvt Ltd.Dharini Joshi is a professional who wants to bring new ideas and values to the industry with an engineering know-how, remain focused in Motion Control and continue the avid interest in Physics and Maths. Starting as a Trainee Engineer with B&R Automation Pvt Ltd – Pune in 2003, Dharini worked on textile, pharmaceutical, plastic and injection moulding machines, gaining experience on PLCs, HMIs, IO modules and various Fieldbus in machine automation. After two years later she joined as Application Engineer at TATA Technologies for automation projects in Automobile division. In 2005 she moved to UK and acquired specialisation in PLC programming and worked as Application Engineer at Berger Lahr (now part of Schneider Electric) for their Motion Control products. Berger Lahr was a great experience as it provided her with international experience and exposure to a different culture. She enjoyed working with people who mentored her in motion control with various OEMs in printing, packaging, cutting, labelling and bakery machines. She also acquired extensive knowledge of CANOpen. In 2008 Dharini, in a move she describes as game changer, decided to move from the field of industrial automation to Oil & Gas and joined as Senior Engineer at ICS Triplex Silvertech Limited (later acquired by Rockwell Automation), Horsham. Rockwell has great company culture which tutored her the disciplined way of documentation and safety aspect of process industry. Most challenging but fascinating task was to get successful BOSIET (Basic Offshore Safety Induction and Emergency Training) certification for Offshore Helicopter Safety. Here she was promoted to Lead Engineer role thanks to her managing skills and handled resource planning of 10-12 engineers. In 2011, she returned to India, around the time when Trio Motion Technology, UK was planning to start their Indian operations and joined as Technical Manager. Her primary focus at Trio Motion Technology is to train engineers on Trio Motion Controller.
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