The Queen Bee That Never Was
For those women brought up in patriarchal India, one part lives in the dichotomy of extreme protection and subjugation which centuries of conditioning has invoked in both the genders, if one were to be lucky. And the other, and increasingly so in the current milieu of increasing feminism, in an everlasting race to prove oneself to easily fit into the mould created by men. Yes, the dichotomy is much of a reality in India of today. They both co-exist and in many cases in very close proximity to each other. In fact in several case one end is in awe of another, sometimes for the courage displayed by one and at other times for the subjugation and conventional role played by the other.
This has very much reflected in the corporate world of today especially in our country. So while in some industries women are at the helm, having gone ahead of their male counterparts, securing some senior roles, and that too not as an exception but as a rule (like in Banking), there is the other extreme of Manufacturing, where one may still find women mostly in support roles, providing (what else) but the required support for their male counterparts to function well. In case of the latter, the organizations many a times don’t even understand the need for women, the business case for diversity (in this case pertaining to gender) having totally missed them. What is ironical is when women are on Boards of such organizations, and for those who have had a chance to peep across the organization hierarchy, the missing gender presence can be quite unnerving and can make one realize more and more the mandates which allow for their presence have not yet percolated to levels where it can impact (positively at that) masses of women aspiring to make a dent in the ever-increasing presence driven as it is especially by the Prime Minister’s “Make In India”.
Meanwhile, many women still aspire to be part of industries which are known for their “women friendly” approaches. Whether policies, infrastructure, mindsets (again driven by presence) could be reasons for such friendly spaces. In fact, more and more new-age industries (and by that I mean the startup space) are wont to be amenable for a better gender balance, having been born in an era when there are more aspirants from the fairer sex who would want to add value, to contribute!
Then there are organizations who by the drive of those at the helm of affairs are inching towards tilting the balance in favour of more gender diversity. It is an arduous journey and one which requires conviction- to embark, to undertake, to watch for slow movement in visible results. And while mandates from the top can make a difference, the mindset and culture of the larger share of population still requires much amends if it was to not make it awkward at every step of a woman’s existence in what becomes the place she spends majority of her waking hours!
Delving a little deeper into this topic, one can see umpteen examples of why age-old practices and behaviours can make so much of a difference to the curve titling in favour of more women in an organization hitherto unaware of the value they can bring. There are preconceived notions of the amount of time women will be willing to spend for work. Let’s take the female colleague, who punched in on time, needed to leave at a fixed time. Perhaps because there was a child to be picked before the crèche closed, or a household with elders which required a certain rhythm of routine to be followed when it came to meal times. It is assumed that such a person, irrespective of how much efficient she may be at her work will be unable to provide that extra face-time when the boss thus required, and in some cases that may be a habit rather than an exception. There is no credit for how much efficiency and output that may have been generated during the time dedicated for professional work.
In many cases, such women when available for their households are also living with the guilt (sometimes ascertained on their face by less considerate family members, who by the way may not be interested again in efficiency, but more on face time) of not having done enough.
In other words, here is a very busy being who having spent so much of her energy caring for others while ensuring her place of pride with a professional participation, is much of a spent force ensuring just that! So while organizations assume that hiring women would mean a whole lot of exception management, and laxity in delivering results, especially if they were taken for roles which did allow for much maneuvering, here are women who having hung themselves upside down in their endeavors to make a presence felt, are still unable to have an acknowledgment of all that they make happen everywhere!
It takes two to tango. So while women are increasingly out of their comfort zones to add value to every sphere of life, it requires the men to also learn to leave their comfort zones. To not assume women need to be partnered with as an exception for delivering results, but to assume them to be the inevitable partners who could enable delivery of exceptional results. Several households have learnt it, either because of the progressive mindset of the males therein, or the stubbornness of the females. However, it is still a while – and it may also never happen- that an entire generation depends upon the Queen Bees, but it is time that we realize that the unpaid, unacknowledged labour of the human Queen bee needs to come to the fore if the species requires an impetus to its evolution.
