When the complexity dies down, the career actually becomes a job
Published on : Sunday 08-03-2020
What inspired you to study engineering and pursue a career in IT?
I did not study engineering. Academically I am an MBA and a Certified General Accountant of Canada. My first job in Royal Bank of Canada Financial Group, was that of a Business Analyst, where I had a team of technical people working with me. While I always remained a business person, I have gradually been drawn to IT, quite naturally. Soon I was neck deep in managing IT and when I came back to India, after almost a decade at the Royal Bank of Canada, I found the best fitment in Leadership roles with the IT majors. And there has been no looking back since then.
It will be hard to choose one mentor, since many people have influenced me along the way, but I must say that it was my father who always believed in me and made me believe that I can do anything, that I set my eyes on and my heart in. So jumping into IT, being a very business person, was not at all daunting to me. During the course of my career, I have also met many great leaders who have not only influenced me, but also believed in me. I am indebted to them all.
How did you manage all these assignments with all the travel, projects – the complexities?
To me it’s my career and it’s not just a job. And complexity makes a career interesting and worth pursuing. When the complexity dies down, the career actually becomes a job. As for me, I strive in complexity, I love projects, deadlines, client discussions, travel and the whole nine yard. So would never wish that away, unless I am ready to hang up my boots and retire. So to answer your question, is there any pressure – absolutely. But I love it!
For a woman, the family is a priority too. Was it difficult to find the right balance?
They used to say 'behind every successful man there is a woman.' The same is true for women as well. We can choose to be a career woman and aspire to grow only when we have a supportive family, most importantly a supportive husband. Unlike many ladies in India, I didn't have any extended family support and for me my only support system has been my husband, and a rock solid one! Ever since we had our daughter 12+ years back, we started planning our days on a daily basis. And I believe we have managed it fine. Whether there has been stressful times? Sure there was. But we enjoyed sharing it together and coming out of it unscathed, mostly.
In such a situation, travelling for days would have only added to the difficulties? Did you ever wish for a regular job?
Staying away from kids is always tough, especially if they are really young. While I don't mind the travel that comes with our kind of jobs, it is a problem to stay away from kids. But fortunately in my case my husband is a very hands-on dad and I know that in my absence he will be able to manage everything that I do for our daughter and more. So I was never really worried to pursue a demanding career and that has never prompted me to change my career.
Any missed opportunities just because you are a woman?
I will be lying if I say that I haven't, but I have always tried to ignore such incidence and take things in my stride and move on. When I had my daughter, I had a boss who rated me average because he said I performed for 9 months as opposed to 12 months for others. But I believe that he was an exception. I have mostly had fair bosses who didn't discriminate against me. I know life is not always fair and sometimes I will get a raw deal too. Instead of brooding over such incidents I have either taken them in my stride and moved ahead or if too difficult, then changed the job to change the boss. I did quit after getting the 'average' rating due to my maternity leave of 3 months.
Are workplaces today more sensitive to gender issues than say, a decade ago?
I think they are. I believe we are more conscious or sensitive about any diversity today and not just gender.
Are there areas at work that still restrict women when it comes to leadership role?
I think the only thing that can restrict women today are people's attitude towards women and most importantly, women themselves doubting their own ability. Many a times, I have seen when giving up a career progression just by being apprehensive that they will not be able to manage, even their family priorities. But in most cases these are more worries than facts. I believe this is what is holding us back. Otherwise there's nothing that women cannot do.
What would be your message to the youth, your children for that matter, in career choices?
I would always say that choose a career that you love. If you love to dance, be a professional dancer and don't waste your time being a doctor or an engineer. Today’s kids have so many different opportunities in front of them, so many different avenues! They should choose their profession to match their passion and not be guided by any social dictum.
As a woman of today, what is different, that was not there before?
I know we talk more about the challenges that a career woman faces, but I truly believe that we have come a long way. Forget our grand-moms, even our mothers’ generation didn’t get even 10% of the opportunities that are open before us. Today we have women running huge organisations across the world, today we have parents who do not differentiate between sons and daughters when it comes to education, today we have husbands who take more pride in the wife’s career achievements than her cookery skills and today we have children who are more proud of their working moms. So honestly we have strived and achieved a lot with support from all. We need to keep pushing the boundaries for us to move ahead further and making the path easier for the women of tomorrow.
A word of advice to the women of tomorrow?
The only suggestion that I would like to give to the women of tomorrow is – ‘Make your own choice and follow your heart. Do not give up on your dream, based on apprehensions – try it out. If you can’t, you can always leave. Possibilities are plenty and everyone finds their own solution to their challenges. If you want something strongly enough, there is no way that you can’t do it!’
If you have to sum up your career, or life, in just three words, what will they be?
I love it!
Mohua Sengupta is a Senior Business Leader, with 25+ years of experience across the globe, both in the Financial Services and IT Services Industry. In the past decade, Mohua has focused on Digital Transformation, Digital Banking, Distributed Ledger Technologies, Application of Emerging Technologies in Banking, Insurance Healthcare to name a few. After spending almost a decade in Royal Bank of Canada Financial Group, Mohua shifted back to India and have worked in organisations like Wipro, Accenture, Patni, iGate, ITC Infotech and 3i Infotech. She is also extremely passionate about Women’s issues especially in the Corporate. A much published author with 100+ articles in business journals of repute, Mohua is also extremely passionate about Theatre and together with her husband, co- founded Ventures, a banner for theatre enthusiasts, in 2014. Ventures has produced 3 full act plays which have been staged in various prestigious auditoriums in Bangalore and outside. Academically Mohua is an MA in Economics, an MBA in Finance and is also a Certified General Account of Canada. Most importantly, she is a mother of a 12-year-old daughter.
.jpg)
