How to Develop Your Career as a Woman in India? Here’s Some Tips

The world of work is ever-changing, and broadening its understanding of women in India has never been more important. Here are some ways for women to consider expanding their breadth of skills and careers to successfully thrive in the marketplace.

Best Career Options for Women in India

• Women in India will find the most opportunities in the field of business management. They can work as managers, accountants, or customer service personnel.
• Other options for women are teaching, architecture, public relations, and healthcare administration.
• In India, there are a lot of challenges that women have to face in business. Studies estimate that only 27% of women participate in the workforce and half of them work in less economically productive areas like embroidery and weaving. The number is worse for educated women. A study found that only 24% of Indian female graduates work in any job.

Indian Women’s Opportunities

When most people think of opportunity, they think about opportunities for men. But this is changing in India. Now, women are also presented with many opportunities to help them develop their careers.

There are many role models that inspire girls and tell them about the possible for success. Such individuals can be found disproportionately among government officials, super accomplished businesswomen, or successful entrepreneurs. If you’re a professional woman in India and you know that, like the rest of your gender, you don’t get the same opportunities as men. However, the things have started to change.

Career options for women in Government sector in India

If you are looking to build a career in the government sector, there are several options available. Though the conventional option is to pursue IT or engineering, there are other sectors rumored to have higher salary packages. A few examples of these industries are being government physicians, defense officers, and civil services, just to name a few. Government sector has a lot of opportunities for women in India, including Administrative services, defence, medical, education, railways, public services among others.

• The number of working women in India has been on the rise from 10% in 1980 to 19% in 2009. In addition, there has been a spike in government sector jobs for women nowadays with just 7% of the workforce being constituted by female employees.
• Women in India still lag behind when it comes to career development. Government sector is looked at for different opportunities, however not many women are absorbed in this sector. The constitution of India prohibits discrimination against any citizen on grounds of gender; however, it does not offer enough protection for women employees who need to work more than 24 hours a week or women who need to travel overnight trips.
• The government should allocate some percentage of the budget more towards programs for upholding statutory provisions of rights and welfare of working women in India too.

Tips to stay on top of changes in the economy

• It is vital to stay on top of changes in the economy to create opportunities for yourself. Make sure you talk with your company’s recruiter to find out what they are looking for.
• Keep learning and developing skills so you can provide better value to the company, especially if they experience some change due to new competition or economic conditions.
• Find ways to build your network of contacts so that new business opportunities easily come to you.
• The thing that Ruchi Anand, director at KPMG India, stresses is that women have all the qualities to climb the corporate ladders. Women are better educated than men, according to her, and they are also known for their innate nurturing abilities. Nevertheless, many obstacles male leaders don’t have to face make it hard for women to stand out in male-dominated industries. For example, women tend not to speak up at meetings because they prioritize preserving harmony instead of prestige.

Ways to get noticed by recruiters

• There are many ways to get noticed by recruiters that are not just related to technical skills or experience. You can volunteer or join an industry organization.
• Ask for advice on “success stories” like LinkedIn’s Chief Operating Officer, who is offered mentoring help with her career progression. Whether it’s a small startup or a leading corporation in the nation, the recruiter size in general is male-dominated. So in a company that reflects a gender balance in terms of employees, there is going to be a much bigger chance to get noticed by recruiters.
• Another way to get noticed is by volunteering at startup events- start putting yourself out there and send your resume to companies so they can know you better.

Advice on choosing an appropriate job area

• No workplace in India has, at the outset and in perpetuity, an open policy towards women. But there is something you can do about it: be persistent and tune your voice to suit your differently-gendered audience.
• Women in the workplace must therefore show that they are not only capable of performing tough tasks (and tough attitudes), but retain their own identities and personalities.
• Determining the career trajectory is a difficult choice for many women, but there are certain points that can help.
• Another important aspect of development is self improvement.
• Never stop learning and researching new skills which you can add on to your existing repertoire.
• Most importantly, you need to define your career goals and understand why they’re important. Figure out what you really want to do and be true to yourself while doing it.

Conclusion

In this blog post, we have provided you with a well-groomed guide to know about various fields in which a woman can pursue her career and talk about the challenges they might come across in their journey. With a box of wisdom & a well-imagined approach to grabbing your dream, women can definitely develop their career in India!