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Women in Product – A Blog Series (Perspective of Women Entrepreneurs, Investors and Corporates - 2)
Women in Product – A Blog Series (Perspective of Women Entrepreneurs, Investors and Corporates - 2)

October 8, 2022

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Women in Product – A Blog Series

Perspective of Women Entrepreneurs, Investors and Corporates - 2

 

In the first blog titled “Diversity Scenario in the Indian Software Product Ecosystem”, we discussed the diversity of women in the product sector, and we agreed that this participation is low compared to the overall tech ecosystem. An all-women round table comprising of eight entrepreneurs, two investors, and two corporates participated in a brainstorming session to discuss the nuisances and challenges faced by Indian women working in this sector.

The importance of women in the product sector

Women usually like to work in sectors where they can be part of a broader vision and can create a larger impact. The software product sector is one such sector where critical thinking and vision play a big role in developing market-fit products. That’s why there has been a new wave of increasing women's participation in the product sector.

Another advantage of increasing women's participation in this business is that of the perspective and thought leadership they bring to the table. The interesting part is that these perspectives are not learnt but come natural in a woman, and this is what makes them special.

Women carry certain inheritance advantages.

  • Ability to think holistically: A birds-eye view is required to see the business's long-term prospects and develop a business strategy accordingly.
  • Ability to collaborate/bring things together: Women have a strong collaborative approach that greatly aids them in bringing teams together and motivating them to work toward a common goal.

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Women's participation is low and needs to be increased

The biggest and most common question is why is the participation of women low in the sector? There is no straight answer to this, and there are barriers at every stage that women need to cross. Below are some of the points discussed by the female panellists about women's participation: 

Individual Perspectives by Women Panellists:

1) Low or high proportion of women in graduate roles (one of the perspective): An unanswered question to which nobody has the answer. Even if there are more women graduates, the number of women joining corporates or taking entrepreneurial roles after graduation is still very low.

2) Inclination towards more stable and larger companies: A settled and safe job is preferred by women compared to taking a risk and taking up a technical role or joining a start-up.

3) More graduates than men but unable to take tech roles: Women's upbringing has been talked a lot about on this point. The cultural upbringing of women is done in such a way that they are not made as risk-takers or they are more inclined towards family commitments.

4) Networking is a challenge: Networking is key in the current business environment, especially in the product sector. As per the panellists, a certain section of women feel uncomfortable in taking such roles.

Ecosystem Perspective

1) Access to community: Women don’t have access to the community which can push them to take the next leap. The huddle mindset still prevails and is dominated by men. Hackathons, high-end academia, etc. are all dominated by men's groups and led by them.

2) Hiring: Hiring mindset is still a questionable thing in today's scenario, where men are preferred over female candidates in some cases due to family foundations and commitments.

The surprising part is that this is a global scenario. If we talk about Europe, there are very few female-led start-ups.

So, mindset shift is one of the major issues to address and increase women's participation in the product or in the overall tech sector. Now the most interesting question is how to increase this participation. We will discuss the same in our next blog.


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