INDEX

Sr. Topics Page No.

No.

1 Introduction 1-3

2 Workplace stress among women executives in bank 3-14

3 Women participation in indian banking sectors 14-24

4 Problems Faced by Working Women in Banking Sector 24-28

5 Women entrepreneurship 29-32

6 Womes’s career development hindrance in 33-34

The banking industry

7 Scenario in indian banking industry 35-
37
8 What make women so successful in the Indian banking industry? 37-
39
9 Challenges of women’s entrepreneur’s 40-
42
10 Remedial measures 4
2
11 Swot analysis 4
3
12 Top women at india banks prove ICICI CEO factory gender 45-
neutral 60
13 Conclusion 61-
62
14 Bibliography 6
3
15 Questionaries 64-
65
1
2
SECTOR

INTRODUCTION

Banking is a profession involving financial intermediation through the

creation of a system where surplus and deficit economic units are

exchanged. Bankers are expected to show a thorough knowledge, grasp

and understand of their work, must be ethically up right, skilled and

disciplined and should not abuse the unique fiduciary position the

profession maintains in economic society .In order for us properly

appreciate the role of women in Banking and to enable us asses the extent

to which they are indispensable, we must have a common understanding

of the evolution of the Bangladeshi Banking Industry form birth to date

and a common understanding of the role women have played in the

industry over this period. The banking landscape in Nigeria has

undergone drastic changes over the period of its existence.

Professions at the Bank

The following is a brief overview of some of the varied professions at the

Bank.Please see our Career Opportunities to learn how you

can have a central role in our success. (Bank of Canada, 234 Wellington

Street, Ottawa, ONK1A 0G9)

3
 Economist/Financial Analyst

Within the Bank's economics departments, we bring together outstanding

teams who challenge and support each other in the delivery of economic

research and monetary policy.

As an economist you will be recognized for your specialized expertise,

and will contribute to the formulation and implementation of Bank policy

in the areas of monetary policy, financial systems, funds management ect.

4
WORKPLACE STRESS AMONG WOMEN EXECUTIVES

IN BANKS

Mumbai is the largest metropolis as well as the financial, industrial and

celluloid capital of India. Mumbai serves as an important economic hub

of the country. In the present scenario of globalization and liberalization

of the economy, the demographics of employment have been changing in

India and Mumbai is not an exception. Women are represented in

workforce in greater numbers than ever before. They are holding higher

percentage of managerial and executive jobs than in the past. But these

roles demand a fat slice of time of women executives. Hence, balancing

personal and professional lives has been a challenging issue for women

executives today. It may be seen that due to problems at workplace,

personal life may get affected and vice-versa.

However, one who is able to balance the two is the winner. More and

more women are joining banking sector and making their mark. Banking

has provided new areas of opportunity for women, and nationalization

has been a key factor in countering some aspects of gender

discrimination. Despite this increase, many women still are concentrated

at the clerical level; very few women employees are at managerial level.

omen managers, officers, and clerical groups in their banking career

5
face some common problems. These include the burden of dual role,

sexual harassment in the workplace, the refusal of men to accept women

as colleagues or seniors, the need to work twice as much as men to gain

recognition, and the lack of solidarity among women.

All these problems contribute to increasing stress among women

executives in the banks. Therefore, with the given background, an urgent

need was felt by the researcher to study about stress among corporate

women at managerial level, particularly in banking sector in the city of

Mumbai.

Objectives of the Research Paper:

The objectives of the study are stated as follows:

1. To discover the workplace stressors among the women executives in

the banks.

2. To study the effects of stress among the women executives in the

6
banks.

3. To identify the degree of stress among the women executives in the

banks.

Significance of the Study:

As we witness an increasing number of women workforce in the banking

sector, the research paper focuses on women executives in the banking

sector in the city of Mumbai. An attempt has been made in this research

paper to highlight workplace stress among women executives in the

banking sector. The women executives experience a lot of stress due to

various problems faced by them. The women executives face

organizational problems like glass ceiling, lack of training and

development opportunities, sexual harassment at workplace and so on.

They also face familial problems like work-family conflict, hostile

environment at home, children and elderly care, etc. Thus, women in

management face a number of problems on the personal as well as the

7
professional front. Due to these problems, women executives in the banks

experience a lot of stress. Some experts argue that stress is required for a

normal and healthy growth.

The problem arises when stress is not managed properly. Excessive

workplace stress will affect the motivation and health of the women

executives leading to lack of interest in job, reduced productivity, more

incidences of sickness, frequent absenteeism, and poor morale.

8
 Research Methodology:

In order to determine the degree of stress faced by women executives in

the banking sector in the city of Mumbai, the researcher had used primary

data collection method. The data relating to the women executives were

collected from public sector banks, private sector banks and foreign

banks. The researcher randomly selected 100 women executives from the

banks and the details are shown in the table below:

Sample Size of Women Executives from the Banks

9
 Types of banks No. of respondents (%)

1) public sector banks 39%

2) private sector banks 40%
3) foreign banks 21%
Total 100%

Source: Compiled from primary data

The above table states that 39 percent women executives were selected

from public sector banks, 40 percent women executives were selected

from private sector banks, and 21 percent women executives were

selected from foreign banks. The researcher also collected data from

secondary sources, such as books and magazines.

Stressors faced by the Women Executives:

The presence of workplace stress is almost inevitable. Stress may be

defined as a state of imbalance arising due to excessive psychological

10
and/ or physiological demands on a person. The main causes of stress

among women executives in the banks are explained as follows:

1. Poor Working Conditions:

Poor working conditions contribute to stress among employees. Women

executives may face the problem of poor working conditions in the

banks, such as poor lighting and ventilation, unhygienic sanitation

facilities, excessive noise and dust. Long working hours also bring strain

to women executives, which may lead to stress. Inadequate facilities

provided to women executives also develop stress among them.

2. Rotating Shifts:

Stress may occur to those women executives who may have to work in

different shifts in banks, especially in the foreign banks. The women

employees may be expected to work in day shift for some days/ weeks

and then in night shifts. This creates problem in adjusting shift timings

for the women employees with their family lives. Especially married

women executives face a lot of stress in adjusting their work life with the

upbringing of their children and taking care of the house.

11
3. Work Overload:

Quite often, women executives are asked to do many tasks in very little

time. Hence, they experience stressful situation. Work overload can be of

two types:

 quantitative.

 qualitative.

Quantitative overload involves performing more number of activities in

the prescribed time. Qualitative overload implies performing a

complicated task, which may be beyond the employee’s capacity.

4. Role Ambiguity:

Sometimes, the women executives do not know what they are supposed

to do; their tasks and responsibilities are not clear. This creates confusion

and may lead to stress.

5. Lack of Participation in Decision-making:

Participation in decision-making involves invitation for important

12
meetings, consultation, invitation for membership for important

committees, etc. Many of the experienced women executives feel that

they are not consulted in important decision-making matters affecting

their jobs and careers. Thus, the women executives develop a feeling of

being neglected, which may lead to stress.

6. Inappropriate Leadership Style:

There is a major difference in leadership styles of male managers and

female managers. The male managers generally adopt autocratic

leadership style, where he does not consult the subordinates and believes

that he is always right. On the other hand, women managers adopt

transformational leadership style. Transformation leadership is positively

related to organizational commitment and job satisfaction among

employees of banks and financial sector in India. Women employees may

not like the leadership style of their superiors, which may create a feeling

of tension and anxiety.

7. Lack of Social Support:

Women executives are greatly affected by the support of one or more

13
members of a cohesive group. By sharing their joys and problems with

other members, they feel contended. In the absence of such social

support, the women executives feel stressful.

8. Transfers:

Transfers refer to movement of employee from one department to

another, or from one branch to another without any increase in job

responsibilities. Women executives resist transfers especially outstation

transfers as it disturbs their family lives. Such problem of transfer is

widely experienced by women executives in public sector banks.

Sometimes their postings may be in rural areas which also results in the

problem of dealing with rural customers.

9. Poor Working Relationships:

Women executives may have strained relationships with the members in

the banks. They may have extremely formal relations with their superiors

and/ or negative vibes may be exchanged with their peers. Especially the

men executives may not have a positive attitude towards their women

colleagues. Hence, the environment becomes hostile and unhealthy to

14
work in the banking organization. Hence, such conflict creates stress in

the minds of the women executives.

10. Technological Changes:

Changes in the technological field can be source of stress among

employees, including women executives. Introduction of Core Banking

Solution (CBS) and other technological changes taking place in the

banking sector brings constant stress to the women executives for the fear

of losing their jobs, or the need to adjust to the new technologies.

Effects of Stress on the Women Executives:

Prolonged exposure to stressful situation produces serious physical,

psychological and behavioural effects. The effects of stress on women

executives are briefly explained as follows:

1. Physical Health:

Medical evidence suggests and supports a link between stress and

15
physical health. For instance, there is a direct link between stress and

heart disease. Stress also gives rise to negative effects like high blood

pressure, ulcers, arthritis, headache, constipation and skin diseases (Vaz

Michael, 2006). The managers and professionals experience extreme

fatigue: bodily disturbances including hypertension, peptic ulcers,

migraine headache, fevers, etc. However, despite these disorders

executives fare better than employees at the bottom of the organization

with respect to their mental health (Sahni Ashok, 2006).

2. Psychological Health:

High level of stress is followed by anger, anxiety, depression,

nervousness, tension and boredom. The change in employee behaviour

affects his job performance. It affects his self-confidence, lowers self-

esteem, lack in concentration and reduces job satisfaction.

3. Behavioural Effects:

Reactions to stress result in development of defensive behaviour such as

denial, illusion, and xenophobia. The women executives experiencing

stress may preoccupy themselves with routine work and pretend to be

16
busy. Some of them opt for early retirement or due to their inefficiency,

the management may ask the executive to leave. Some people resort to

alcoholism and drugs to escape from the ill-effects of high levels of

stress. It is bound to have an adverse effect on employees’ performance. It

may lead to increased absenteeism, work accidents, and loss of

production. Further, it is likely to affect career prospects – promotions of

an addicted employee (Vaz Michael, 2006). In a study conducted on

stress (Sahni Ashok, 2006) the following results were found:

• Executives with high stress tend to be lower in their commitment

towards their job.

• They experience more anxiety, indecisiveness and worries on the job as

compared to executives with low stress.

• They also derive very little satisfaction from their work. They perceive

the organizational policies to be unfair, working environment inadequate,

salaries and job security also inadequate.

• They do not have very good relations with their peers, subordinates and

superiors.

17
• They are also low with respect to growth on the job and are less

competent with respect to utilization of their time. They are less flexible

in their attitudes and values.

• They are low on self-esteem.

Thus, the organizations must ensure regular health check-ups so that

employees maintain a stress level, which could be manageable. Stress is

said to be positive when the situation offers an opportunity to women

executives to gain something. Eustress is the term used to describe

positive stress (Vaz Michael, 2006). Eustress results in innovation,

motivation, reduction in absenteeism, higher efficiency and better

organizational relations.

Conclusions of the Study:

1) The researcher concludes that there are various stressors among

women executives in the banks, such as: poor working conditions,

rotating work shifts, work overload, role ambiguity, lack of participation

18
in decision-making, inappropriate leadership style, lack of social support,

transfers, poor working relationships and technological changes in the

organization.

2) Excessive stress may result in bodily disturbances like peptic ulcers,

migraine headache, fever, etc. High level of stress may affect self-

confidence, lower self-esteem, lack in concentration and reduce job

satisfaction.

19
 Women Participation in Indian Banking Sector:

Issues and Challenges

1. Introduction

In Vedic times women occupied the highest place in society. They were

given all opportunities to develop themselves, socially, intellectually and

morally. They were given thorough education. Similarly there is a

positive change in the present society, which is focusing on women

empowerment. The progress of any country is intimately linked to its

ability to develop and use its human resource effectively. This is

particularly true in a developing country like India. Women, as a

significant part of this human resource pool, play a vital role in the

economic, social and political development of India. Nationalization of

the Indian Banking Sector in 1969 served as the first major step to reduce

gender discrimination against women in banking sector and that provided

opportunity for women empowerment. The pattern of Indian women's

employment has changed significantly since the 1970’s. Many major

Indian banks are hiring highly qualified young Indian women to their

20
administrative levels and they are showing remarkable growth over the

years.

2. Objectives of the study

1) To identify the problems of women in the Indian banking sector.

2) To suggest the measures to overcome the problems.

21
3. Methodology

The present study is based on secondary data and the data were collected

from journals, books, news papers, RBI annual reports and other

websites.

4. Spotlight on Women in Indian Banks

The number of talented women with a finance background joining into

the banking sector is increasing every year. Women constitute a little over

11% of the workforce in the banking industry (Khandelwal, 1988).The

Indian government appointed a committee in the year 2009, to look at

human resource issues of public sector banks under the chairmanship of

former Chairman and Managing Director of Bank of Baroda and Anil

Khandelwal. The Khandelwal Committee made some far-reaching

recommendations, some of which were accepted by banks and the

government. According to the committee's report published in 2010, at

that time women accounted for only 17 per cent of employees in state-run

banks, of which only 2.7 per cent of women were in executive positions.

“Women started joining banks only in the late 70s and mostly at clerical

22
levels. With career progression reaching an apex, the industry is likely to

have more women at the top in the years to come. And when they do

come, they are not just considered women, but as leaders and role

models,” says Subhalakshmi Panse, chairperson-cum-managing director

(CMD) of Allahabad Bank, who took over the reins in 2012. Not only in

the higher levels that we can see had the involvement of women but also

in the clerical levels also women are more attracted. Secured family life,

attractive salary, favourable working conditions and the stability in work

are some of the reasons that make this sector more preferable to women.

According to a study by Standard Chartered Bank about women on

corporate boards in India, the financial sector performs best in terms of

gender diversity, nine of the eleven banks listed on BSE-100 have a

woman on their board and two of these banks have a female CEO. In fact,

through the recent recession, Reserve Bank of India had two women

deputy governors on board, Usha Thorat and Shyamala Gopinath.

According to the 2013 Catalyst Census: Fortune 500 Women Executive

Officers and Top Earners, women represented 17.6 percent of executives

and 17.9 percent of the board of directors in the finance and insurance

23
sector. In 2012, women represented 23.1 percent of all senior officers in

Financial Post 500 companies, and in 2013 11.4 percent of chief financial

Officers of Fortune 500.

The banking Sector in India which was male dominated till 1980’s, in last

three decades the gender equality became fairly poised. Women

executives like Chanda Kochhar (CEO, ICICI Bank), and Naina Lal

Kidwai (CEO,HSBC), Arundathi Bhattacharya,(CMD SBI), Shikha

Sharma(CEO and MD, Axis Bank), Usha Ananthasubramanian (CEO,

MD Punjab National Bank), are contributing a lot to the bank’s growth.

The below table presents the class-wise distribution of all scheduled

commercial banks employees and women representation in it. From the

below table we can observe that the number of female employees in the

banking sector is increasing year after year.

the distribution of employees of all scheduled commercial banks in India

since 2005-2014, it is clear from the table that every year the number of

women entering into the banking sector has been increasing significantly,

that is from 1, 30, 489 in 2005, to 2, 77,792 in the year 2014, out of

which 1,29, 345 are in the officers position. That means 1,47,303 and

24
optimal women entered into the banking sector, within a period of 9

years. The increasing number of women employees in Indian banking

sector shows that the gender discrimination in the workplace is being

reduced since past few decades.

5. Problems of Women Employees in Indian Banking Sector

The banking and insurance sectors today offer more prospects for jobs for

women - both qualitatively and quantitatively. However there are some

common problems faced by women managers, officers and clerical

groups in banking and insurance sector, in the course of their careers.

These include the burden of the dual role, sexual harassment in the

workplace, the refusal of men to accept women as colleagues or seniors,

and the lack of solidarity among women. A lot of women play both

primary breadwinner and primary care taker role which create a tension

most men do not experience when juggling work and personal

responsibilities.

According to a study by Kamala Srinivasan (1991) 50 per cent of women

25
complained that extra work is always shunted to women. They also

complained about sexual harassment from colleagues, managers, or

customers. Women also felt dissatisfied that they were not sent out for

training. Some obstacles arise from women's specific difficulties in

demanding promotion - because promotions are linked with transfers; or

they have difficulties in working late; or because women shy away from

responsibility, having a low opinion of their own abilities and a negative

attitude to accepting recognition (Mankidy, 1986). Some

women employees feel that these constraints are intensified by being

forced to adopt the behaviour of the 'successful manager or officer' which

has been established by men. They argue that women could find their

own strategies which would achieve the same result (Mankidy, 1988).

Women frequently suffer subtle forms of discrimination that tend to get

worse as they progress up the career ladder. Their lack of visibility is a

disadvantage that manifests itself when job assignments and selections

for training programs are made and they tend to be excluded (Goverman,

1992). Indian women managers’ expresse interest to be included in

informal networks on the job (Bhatnagar, 1988)

26
The biggest challenge lies in changing the stereotypes, assumptions and

biases about what is required for leadership and success that permeate the

culture of financial institutions. The senior management of financial firms

have always been almost exclusively men and they remain the strongly

dominant group. This means that what is in fact a gender-based bias may

be perceived by most senior managers to be no more than commonsense

meritocracy. These assumptions relate to both day-to-day working

practices and also the qualities required for leadership.

Certain behaviors are perceived differently when exhibited by men and

women. For example, an assertive man might be perceived as being a

strong leader whereas a similarly assertive woman might be perceived to

be “strident” or “bossy” (adjectives rarely applied to men). And as

pointed out earlier, the character traits traditionally associated with

leadership in financial firms have been typically masculine.

The discrimination experienced by women working in banks is mainly in

terms of the lack of infrastructural facilities, the transfer policy, and

assumptions that women would not be interested in training or in

promotions.

27
6. Strategies to Overcome from the Problems

The first step in addressing the unconscious biases and assumptions is to

get people recognize and understand these in their own thoughts and

behaviour. Management may require some training to help them do this.

Some firms are taking measures to improve awareness of gender issues,

using workshops and reverse mentoring,

The second, and perhaps the most important step in eliminating biases is

ensuring that these assumptions about what it takes to be an effective

leader do not influence hiring decisions, promotions, the allocation of

career opportunities and performance evaluations. To bring this about,

senior management should change their recruitment and promotion

criteria and set targets for attracting and developing a diverse set of

leaders.

Employers who want to help women advance to the top must do more to

make allowances for life outside of work. They must make sure that even

ambitious and talented employees do not feel that they will have to work

hours incompatible with a family life. Women in banking who require

28
flexible working conditions need to feel emotionally empowered to take

full advantage of them.

The Women's Wing of the AICOBOO has been taking up these issues

systematically. One outcome of their work has been the charter of

demands they submitted to their union confederation. These included:

 Infrastructural facilities such as creches and day care

centres.

 Provision of hostels for working women, accommodation

for divorced, separated and widowed women with children.

 Special leave with a lien on service, for up to say five years,

to meet certain contingencies specific to women, extending this

facility to men also whenever required.

 Provision for a woman with a child less than three years old

to work for fewer hours and receive proportionate pay.

 Family pension and voluntary retirement for men and

women after twenty years of service.

29
 Provision for flexi-hours and part-time employment in

suitable cases.

 Although maternity leave (12 weeks in all) is regarded as

fairly satisfactory, additional provisions required are medical

benefits, hospitalization, leave for the purpose of child care,

paternity leave for at least ten days, and further leave for those who

have to look after an infant in special circumstances. The Ministry

of Labour is expected to amend the Maternity Benefit Act, 1961,

which presently entitles women to 12 weeks of maternity benefit

whereby employers are liable to pay full wages for the period of

leave.

 The specific demands put forward by the Women's Wing

include a uniform transfer policy in all banks for women officers,

and a cell to deal with women's issues in every bank's personnel

department. They are currently trying to formulate demands

relating to training programmes and time off for women to do

union work.

30
Similarly the All India Bank Employees Association (AIBEA) initiated a

women's wing of the union to take up issues specially affecting women.

The Reserve Bank of India has a Women's Forum for the same purpose.

The unions in the LIC have begun to organize women-only meetings and

workshops. The Insurance Employees Association decided in 1991 to

organize women employees more effectively, as the number of women

employees was increasing day by day, with over 75 per cent of the new

recruits being women. The association has demanded crèches facilities,

special leave and better working conditions for women, and the removal

of hidden discrimination.

Each PSB has to come out with a HRD plans for development of women

and SC / ST employees. A special HRD effort has to be put in place for

developing these groups in key skills of banking. Training strategy to

focus on staff working in rural areas and women employees and priority

to be accorded for regular in-house training to rural staff . Many of the

Banks do not have transfer policy which gives consideration to the

special problems which female officers/employees face vis-a-vis their

male counterparts. Government of India, Ministry of Finance and

31
Department of Financial Services has issued guidelines to all Public

Sector Banks including IDBI & SBI Associates, so that transfers of

female officers and employees can be considered with compassion and

their hardship can be mitigated to the extent possible. National Institute

of Bank management (NIBM) is also organising workshops for female

clerical staff, officers and managers.

One way of improving prospects for women could be to restructure the

work, for example with flexible working hours, part time job

assignments, split location positions performed partly at home and job

and job sharing (Mankidey 1988). Banks should be encouraged to have a

formal mentorship program in which new employees are assigned

mentors who are responsible for helping the new recruit to fit into the

central core of the organization.

Finally, if financial firms are to make progress on increasing diversity,

they cannot treat it as a side-line activity. Increasing diversity must be a

priority for the most senior management in the firm and not merely for

HR.

32
 Problems Faced by Working Women in Banking

Sector

INTRODUCTION

Gender diversity is a term referring to how different genders are

represented in a relevant setting. Primarily this term is often used to refer

to females and males, though is some contexts and research the terms

may also refer to those who fall into non-binary categories of gender.

Since executives like cashier, teller, accountant, loan officer, portfolio

managers, FOREX officer, assistant branch manager, etc., cannot leave

the bank without tallying the account, the family members of female

executives suffer more and executive concerned experience more mental

stress than the male counterparts which have an adverse effect on the

psychological health of the women executives. Besides women

executives have to bear the verbal abuse of angry and irate customers.

This upsets psychological wellbeing of women executives. Some times

33
when male chauvinist happens to be a performance appraiser in the

capacity of higher ups, he shows his bias in the appraisal exercise.

Similarly male chauvinist happens to be the subordinates; they willfully

disobey the instructions of women executives and deliberately prolong

the work. In the same vein, women executives do not get any cooperation

from the peers in other departments of the bank thanks to male chauvinist

attitude.

OBJECTIVES

1. To Find the Problems faced by Working Women in Banking

Sector i.e. Govt. and Private.

2. 2. To verify that whether these problems are actually exist

for Working Women in Banking Sector i.e. Govt. and Private.

LITERATURE REVIEW

Kumar, Sundararan and Mahendran in their study “Complication

Faced by Women Executives in New Generation Private Sector

Banks in Pondicherry State”, found that there are certain problems

34
 faced by women executives for their professional duties like heavy

workload, physical strain, the pain of dealing with illiterate

customers, difficulties experienced in getting work done from the

male subordinates and lack of time to attend to the needs of family

members, etc. If these problems are overcome than there is a

smooth professional journey of women executives.

DATA ANALYSIS
A. Confirmation Process Confirmation of Hypothesis is prepared

after the data analysis using chi square test as an analysis tool on

the data collected which makes us able to prepare the

recommendations.
B. Relationship between Banking Sector and Problems

Table: 1 Study of Relationship Between Banking Sector and

Problems

ctor Government Problems total

A lot Few Some
Count 3 20 9 3

35
 % within sector 9.4% 62.5% 28.1% 1 0%
Private % within problems 60% 48.8% 36% 4 .1%
% of total 4.2% 28.2% 12.7% 4 .1%
count 2 21 16 3

% within sector 5.1% 53.8% 41% 1 0%

% within problems 40% 51.2% 64% 5 .9%
% of total 2.8% 29.6% 22.5% 5 .9%
Total Count 5 41 25 7
% within sector 7% 57.7% 35.2% 1 0%
% within problems 100% 100% 100% 1 0%
% total 7% 57.7% 35.2% 1 0%

Today in the modern era banking sector played a vital role. This

sector attract the different jobseeker especially women. But there

are some problems which associated with job and vary with the

banking sector like: time management, work overload, work

schedule control, work hours and their fit with preferences and

work-life conflict among full-time employees etc.

RECOMMENDATION
This research revolves around the topic “Problem faced by

working women in Banking Sector”. After analyzing the data

carefully, the following conclusions are drawn. Majority of the

respondents lies between the age-group of 26 –40years and belong

36
WOMEN ENTREPRENEURSHIP:BANKING INDUSTRY

ABSTRACT

Earlier leadership theories focused on The Great Man theory and women

were at all excluded from being seen as a leader due to fact that earlier

people considered men and women having different behavior, different

skills and attitudes. However with changing time, status of women gained

importance and now in this dynamic world woman entrepreneurs are an

important part of the corporate sector. This paper studies the increasing

role of women leaders in banking industry. It shows that organizations

with women executives at the top levels have increased the performance

and efficiency of the company compared to those which do not have

women leaders at senior positions. The banking Sector in India was male

dominating till 1980‟s but in last three decades the gender equality

became fairly poised. Women executives like Chanda Kochhar (CEO,

ICICI Bank), Kalpana Morparia(MD and CEO ICICI Holdings) and

Naina Lal Kidwai (CEO,HSBC) contributed a lot to the company‟s

growth. This paper studies the factors which make women so successful
37
in the Indian Banking Industry and what are the main challenges among

them. This paper also suggests some remedial measures that the

companies should adopt to retain women longer in the workplace and to

offer opportunities to women to move into top- positions.

38
INTRODUCTION

The liberalization process of the Indian economy has penetrated deep into

the lives of people including women. Historically, women are considered

as the weaker sex, as a result, for the past centuries, women are deprived

of most of the rights of the opposite sex, particularly the issue about

leadership and management. Earlier the women were confined to

household chores. This is particularly because of the issue of leadership.

The early leadership theories focused on the Great Man theory, thus, all

of the theories primarily focus on describing men and male leaders. As a

result, women are all excluded from being seen as a leader, due to the fact

that during that time, literatures and researchers considered men and

women having different behaviours, skills and attitudes, consequently, the

said differences between the two sexes are considered as hinder for

women in terms of career advancement (Morrison & Von Glinow

1990).women are the nucleus of our civilization. She has different roles

to play in ever changing social environment. Women‟s development,

39
thus, is directly related with nation‟s development. With the dawn of

independence, our constitution guaranteed gender equality, and a large

number of schemes and programmes for women‟s development were

initiated. But despite of these measures, Indian women entrepreneurs

continues to live and strive in a complex situation of socio-cultural,

historical, political and economic realities. It took centuries for women‟s

role to unfold in different forms, shape and size to move in a new

direction. Still there are localities where women still listen to code of

conduct written on there four walls by male dominating society however

in some localities women‟s are fighting back these problems and are

trying to come out there four walls which are holding them back to show

there skills, abilities and interests. However, with changing times, the

potential of women was recognized and gradually status of women

gained importance. Although the Government of India strived to break

through such gender discrimination by introducing various initiatives like

emphasis on women‟s education, abolition of child marriages, women

health activities, etc., but the results were not fruitful. Historically many

freedom fighters and leaders took up many movement against women‟s

40
subjugation to men it means there is no discrimination between men and

women in the eye of our constitution. Then where does this difference

lies? This difference lies no where but in minds of our society and some

where in our culture which never wanted women‟s to step out of there

abode. Previously it was always the male member to step out to earn

living for his family then came a time where women started coming out

to earn but only under the condition where male member was absent or

was unable to work, and it was considered as a condition of pity for that

women and his family as well. But it took so many ages for women to

come out and earn there interest and feel proud about themselves. It was

always a son who used to take over his father‟s business but with the

changing role of women now this scenario has also changed now there

are many examples where a girl is contributing his best with her parental

business. The growing Indian middle class shed apprehensions about

educating the girl child and gave due importance for higher studies.

Educating women has changed the role of women. Gradually, women‟s

education was encouraged and due importance given to women‟s career

and professional life In this dynamic world, women entrepreneurs are an

41
important part of the global quest for sustained economic development

and social progress. In the words of president APJ Abdul Kalam

"empowering women is a prerequisite for creating a good nation, when

women are empowered, society with stability is assured. Empowerment

of women is essential as their thoughts and their value systems lead to the

development of a good family, good society and ultimately a good

nation."

42
WOMEN’S CAREER DEVELOPMENT HINDRANCE IN

THE BANKING INDUSTRY

This can be observed in the banking industry – which is the largest

financial sector. However, globally, it can be observed that there is a vital

difference between the proportions of women managers between the

industrialized or developed countries with those developing countries.

For instance, in the USA, 37% of the management positions are handled

by women (US Bureau of Labor Statisservtics 2005), this percentage is

high compare with only 20% in the entire European Union (European

Commission 2005) and only 26% in Germany (German Institute for

Research in Economics 2007. There are different studies which show the

different factors or aspects which affect and result to challenges and

hindrance in career development of women in the banking industry as

well as other industries in the world. The main or general barriers towards

the development and advancement of the careers of the women in the

industry are

 Stereotypes
 recruiting practices
43
 the lack of access towards the powerful networks and

connections
 the issue about family
 process of balancing the time and effort exerted in work and

family In many countries laws and regulations are designed in

44
 order to protect and give special treatment towards the women,

particularly those with family and single parents.

This includes financial benefits, maternity protection and rights for the

working parents. While the maternity protection law include protection

from dismissal to those employees expecting to be a mother . This also

includes protection from any harmful and risky tasks and influences in

the workplace which prohibits them to work on Sundays, holidays as well

as at night. It is important to consider that all of the expenses and cost of

the programs and benefits stated above will all be solely handled by the

employers. As a result, this gives the employers to hesitate in employing

female managers because, in case of pregnancy and family matters, there

are laws and regulations which give them the rights to excuse from their

work, which is very important because managerial and leadership

position in banking industry is considered as vital and complicated.

Therefore, it will be beneficial and feasible for the employers to employ

male leaders and managers.

45
 SCENARIO IN INDIAN BANKING INDUSTRY

Many experts opined that organizations with women executives at top

levels have increased the performance and efficiency of the company

compared to the companies which do not have women leaders at senior

positions. Companies with diversity on their boards, productivity is

better. Having more women on the boards of companies does help.

Women would moderate risk and would be more balanced. "If UK banks

had more women on their boards, the scenario post- recession would have

been a lot different." Indian banks, with better gender equality on board

than their western counterparts, scraped though the economic slowdown

unscathed The banking sector in India did have its male

domination till the 1980s, but in the last three decades the gender

equilibrium became 'fairly' poised.

Chanda Kochhar ICICI Bank, India's second largest bank after State Bank

of India, is headed by a woman, Chanda Kochhar In mid-1980s the

46
chairman and managing director of ICICI, Suresh S. Nadkarni exhorted

Lalita Gupte, trainee (at that time), to prove her potential in the

organisation. He advised: “If you do not succeed, there will be no other

woman in this organisation.”

Kalpana Morparia

Kalpana Morparia played a major role in transforming ICICI Bank from

being a financial institution to a `one-stop shop' providing an array of

financial services right from project financing to retail products. Morparia

will be the new MD and CEO of ICICI Holdings, the new arm for

insurance, mutual fund business.

Naina Lal Kidwai There are many firsts to Naina Lal Kidwai's credit.

Naina Lal, CEO of HSBC, is the first Indian woman to graduate from the

Harvard Business School. Also, she has the distinction of being the first

woman to head the operations of a foreign bank in India. Women

executives – Chanda Kochhar, Shikha Sharma, Lalita Gupte, Madhavi

Puri Buch and Kalpana Morparia head various portfolios of the company

bringing up in phenomenal changes and contributed to the company‟s

47
growth. The company played a significant role and has acted as a catalyst

in facilitating its women to hold senior positions. According to a study

by Standard Chartered Bank about women on corporate boards in India,

the financial sector performs best in terms of gender diversity, nine of the

eleven banks listed on BSE-100 have a woman on their board and two of

these banks have a female CEO. In fact, through the recent recession,

Reserve Bank of India had two women deputy governors on board, Usha

Thorat and Shyamala Gopinath. Many people agree that many banks that

were headed by women CEOs performed much better at time of

recession. In this sense, the banking and financial services sector has been

particularly lucky. For, while only 11% of the companies across sectors in

India had women CEOs, 54% of these CEOs come from the financial

services sector, says a recent EMA Partners International study. In the

Fortune 500 list though, financial services just accounted for 7% of the

women CEOs.

48
WHAT MAKES WOMEN SO SUCCESSFUL IN THE

INDIAN BANKING INDUSTRY?

 The present data clearly indicates that management in

general has become much more human-oriented, even in the face

of some incredible advancement in technology. As a result,

scholars and professionals alike have recognized the need for

people with better 'Soft' skills that include communicating,

networking, empowering, delegating, and counseling among

others.
 Retail banking is more of a relationship thing and women

excel at that. In the Indian context, while women have started

venturing out to work in the corporate world, they have been

handling relationships at home too, as a wife or a mother. "This

nurturing and adjusting attitude flows into the workplace as well."

 The mid-80s saw a number of smart women graduating from

the B-schools just when the Indian banking sector was starting to

grow. ICICI, HDFC, HSBC, Citibank, were all expanding and

49
were hiring during the mid-80s and the early 90s.
 Women have done well in banking because it is a business

where you need to keep in mind what the customer wants. Women

have some amount of empathy towards a customers needs.

 Most women bankers agree that one of main advantages they

had was the support system from their family. There may be

numerous cases to belie their observation but for the achievers,

family support made all the difference. "There is family, in-laws,

friends and domestic staff that offer support to the household,

which makes it easier for the woman to focus on her career.

 Companies are increasingly recognizing the talent of women

and placing them in a required position. Earlier, women were risk-

averse but with changing times they are becoming risk-takers as

men and focusing on long-term interests of the company. In

general, operating and managing businesses by women are

significantly different with that of men. Studies showed that the

styles of leadership of both men and women can be effective

depending n the business circumstances but women‟s leadership

has more edge.

 In today‟s world, leadership is becoming more results-

50
oriented than process-driven. Moreover, organizations with more

women executives are experiencing better results or improved

financial performance than companies with few women leaders.

Traits like patience, commitment, understanding others‟ concerns

and so on are in-built in women, which are very helpful in

building strong business relationships.

 Women managers tend to have more of a desire to build than

a desire to win.
 Women tend to be better than men at empowering staff.
 Women encourage openness and are more accessible.
 Women leaders respond more quickly to calls for assistance.
 Women identify problems more quickly and more

accurately.
 When feeling the sting of rejection, women leaders learn

from adversity and carry on with an "I'll show you" attitude.

 Women leaders demonstrate an inclusive, team-building

leadership style of problem solving and decision making.

 Women leaders are more likely to ignore rules and take risks

51
CHALLENGES OF WOMEN ENTREPRENEUR’S

 Women leadership is invisible, that is, women leaders take a

back seat to submit to men leaders since the corporate world is a

„man‟s industry‟.
 Women leaders are more assertive and persuasive, have a

stronger need to get things done and are more willing to take

risks than male leaders

 Leadership remains as a domain dominated by men as it is

directly associated with authoritarianism to which the women

lacks.
 Tokenism prevails in the corporate world that endangers the

value of women leaders in comparison of men leaders.

 Women leaders themselves have lower expectations than that

of men leaders thus women leaders are more hindered by the

entitlement effect.
 Women faces more challenges before becoming leaders

compared to that of the challenges experienced by men.

52
 REMEDIAL MEASURES

 Companies need to recognize that leadership skills are

“common at the top” for both men and women executives –and

women do not require any special privileges that highlight their

abilities to multi-task or provide emotional intelligence or empathy.

 Women can deliver best in an “environment of respect.” --

With best employer practices in place, that offer career

advancement opportunities to senior women to move into top-

positions. These companies will be able to retain women longer in

the workforce.
 HR leaders and CEOs will need to redefine “Best-Employer”

organizations, from the traditional and outdated indexes to ones

that include best practices for building a sustainable organization,

with a corporate code for women employees, and diversity-

dashboard.
 There is a clear need to focus on mentoring the Indian

53
corporate mind-set to get past the “subtle glass ceiling” and

resolving inequities in the workplace, for leveraging best talent and

performance among women executives.

 There is an important need for Mentoring women in the

“successor generation” – so that they are able to meet the

challenges in a male-dominated workplace –while they are trying

to also maintain their work-family commitment in the early stages

of their career.
 Women need to market themselves better in the organization

– and create visibility in external networks. This is one of the key

invisible barriers to women‟s advancement

 There exists a hesitation to appoint women as Directors on

company board – both executive and independent – as they bring

in a „novelty-factor” that may upset the comfort-zone. As

companies aspire to become global leaders and bring innovative

thinking in the organization – investors and market consumers will

begin to look for more women on company Boards.

 Diversity programs in organizations provide an excellent

network for women executives in the organization.

 Appraisal systems need to be more gender-neutral in

corporate India, and interview panels should be more inclusive.

54
 Women need to unambiguously celebrate their success – and

there is need for more success stories to be outreached, more

women role-models to learn from, and more networks for

experience-sharing.

55
 SWOT ANALYSIS

STRENTHS :- Equality of opportunity Equal pay for equal work

Reservation for women in parliament and state legislative bodies Right to

education Full voting rights

WEAKNESSES :- Emotional behavior Back seat of women leader to

submit to men leaders Lack of authoritarianism Lower expectations than

men Discrimination Networking

OPPORUNITIES :- Higher education Reservation of different

sectors Social support

THREATS :- Sexual Harassment Family commitment Support from

spouse Traditional mindset of society Maintain the balance between work

and home Faces more challenges than men

56
 HR INITIATIVE FOR WOMEN

ENTREPRENEURSHIP

• On campus day-care centre – (McAfee India)

• Flexi- Timing to accommodate early parenthood

• Extended maternity leaves

• Adoption maternity leave – (IBM)

• A certain amount of payment of the legal expenses incurred while

adopting a child – (HP)

• Cab drops during pregnancy

• Post maternity leaves without pay for 6months to 1yr – IBM, Infosys)

57
 Top Women at India Banks Prove ICICI CEO

Factory Gender Neutral

June 23 (Bloomberg) -- ICICI Bank Ltd. Chief Executive Officer Chanda

Kochhar says it doesn't seem so long ago that she was worrying that she

wouldn't be able to handle her job at what's now India's largest

nongovernment lender while managing her household and caring for her

infant son.

"I'd taken my maternity leave and come back," says Kochhar, 49,

munching on a salad in the top-floor executive dining room of the bank's

11-story Mumbai headquarters. "I found it a little difficult."

58
During that time of doubt that almost derailed her career in 1996,

Kochhar was fortunate to be working at a place that encourages women

to not abandon their first steps up the corporate ladder, Bloomberg

Markets magazine reports in its August issue.

ICICI Bank, which lends to corporations and individuals and offers

insurance, investment banking and other financial services, has produced

seven of India's 14 top female financial professionals.

"ICICI has served as a bit of a CEO factory," says Gunjan Bagla,

managing director of Amritt Inc., which advises Western and Indian

companies on working together.

"Many women who rose to top positions inside ICICI and its affiliate

companies have since moved on to other entities in India."

'Looking for Talent'

Kochhar thanks former CEO Kundapur Vaman Kamath for making what

turned into a career-changing decision for her. He let her take a half-year

hiatus from her job as head of infrastructure financing after she was

overwhelmed by work and family life. The change from India's typical

59
three-month maternity leave made the difference. Thirteen years later, in

May 2009, Kochhar succeeded Kamath as CEO.

Kamath, 63, who became the bank's chairman, was building on a tradition

of ensuring that women get opportunities to prove themselves. Narayanan

Vaghul, who was managing director and chairman of the bank's

predecessor, ICICI Ltd., from 1985 to 1996, says India's management-

minded females confronted two kinds of employers in the 1970s: those

who believed women could perform as well as men and those who

couldn't see them in roles beyond secretary or stenographer.

Vaghul and his predecessor, Suresh Nadkarni, were believers.

"It was never a question of gender," says Vaghul, who remained ICICI

Bank chairman until early 2009. "We were really looking for talent."

Executive Director K. Ramkumar, the bank's head of human resources,

says the company challenged norms without having formal diversity

policies.

60
'Fairness and Transparency'

"If your board or chairman wants to implement equality, you don't have

to create committees," he says.

That kind of thinking has pushed ICICI Bank into the vanguard of

companies where women can succeed at the top, says Deepak Gupta,

managing director and country head for India at search firm Korn/Ferry

International in New Delhi.

"It's a women-friendly kind of culture catering to fairness and

transparency," he says of ICICI Bank.

India's foreign banks, such as Citigroup Inc., also have done well in

mentoring women, Gupta says. The difference at those companies: When

women reach upper management, they're offered opportunities outside

India.

"ICICI being an Indian bank, the women that get to senior levels tend to

excel within Indian institutions without having to go anywhere," he says.

Kochhar Tested

Kochhar put her skills to the test after she returned from her break. From

61
2001 to 2006, when she headed retail banking, ICICI Bank expanded

lending. Loans to retail customers surged more than 30-fold.

Then, as India's economy grew at the slowest annual pace in six years

beginning in April 2008, ICICI Bank became the nation's only lender to

see a run on deposits. Hundreds of people pulled money out of automated

teller machines because ICICI's U.K. unit held 57 million euros ($82

million) in senior bonds sold by Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc., which

filed for bankruptcy that September. Kochhar and Kamath helped defuse

the situation by appearing on TV and saying the bank had enough capital.

The years of lending caught up with the bank in 2008. The

nonperforming assets ratio, a measure of bad loans, soared more than 30

percent for the 12 months through March 2009. Profit plunged 35 percent

in the quarter ended that March.

"With the benefit of hindsight, yes, we could have adjusted our growth

rate," Kochhar says.

Shares, Profit Soar

She took over as CEO in May 2009 and has slashed loans to retail

62
borrowers by 21 percent over two years. ICICI Bank's profit has almost

doubled, increasing to a record 14.5 billion rupees ($325 million) in the

quarter ended on March 31 from 7.43 billion rupees in the March 31,

2009, quarter.

ICICI Bank shares, which are listed in India and the U.S., soared 108

percent to 1,018.9 rupees on June 22 under her watch compared with a 51

percent rise in the Bombay Stock Exchange Sensitive Index during that

period.

"The targets management set under Chanda Kochhar were fairly

ambitious, and they've pretty much accomplished all of them," says Brian

Hunsaker, an analyst at Keefe, Bruyette & Woods Inc. in Hong Kong.

With ICICI as their incubator, women alumnae are bringing their

experience to India's top banking jobs. Kalpana Morparia joined ICICI in

1975 and left in 2008 to become CEO of JPMorgan Chase & Co.'s India

unit. She says ICICI managers never stereotyped women.

"None of them ever made us feel special

, and I mean it as a very positive statement," she says.

63
'We Flourished'

Morparia, 62, who has a law degree from Bombay University, says

Kamath pushed women out of their comfort zones, in her case making her

leave the legal department for the bank's treasury. Kamath is scheduled to

become chairman of Bangalore- based Infosys Technologies Ltd. on Aug.

21.

"As we got on with the job, we flourished," she says.

That's a departure from most of India. Women in the world's largest

democracy rise to just 9 percent of jobs at the director level or higher --

behind all countries but the United Arab Emirates and Japan, accounting

firm Grant Thornton International Ltd. says. Worldwide, women

managers average 20 percent of executive jobs, according to the 2011

report.

A situation at State Bank of India, the nation's biggest lender by assets, is

an example of the hurdles women can face. In 2009, the government-

controlled bank barred pregnant women from being hired during a

recruitment drive that drew 11,000 applicants, according to the Centre of

64
Indian Trade Unions, which represents industrial and service workers.

Only Female CEO

The CITU said in an August 2009 letter, which it sent to Indian Finance

Minister Pranab Mukherjee, that women who successfully passed a

written test and interview had to provide a gynecological history. State

Bank spokesman Milind Arjunwadkar declined to comment.

It was a different story at ICICI Bank that year: Kochhar attended the

International Monetary Conference in Kyoto, Japan. She was the only

female CEO among the 76 delegates.

Some Indian women who pursued banking elsewhere say they were

pigeonholed before they even got started. Manisha Girotra says that when

she joined Barclays de Zoete Wedd, the investment-banking unit of

Barclays Bank Plc, in 1994, her bosses debated whether to spend equal

money on training female and male analysts. The assumption was that

women would marry and leave, she says.

65
'Extra Bit'

When she moved to London from Mumbai with the firm, she says

managers doubted whether she could handle the 18-hour days that

investment banking demanded. They offered her a position in

communications with fewer hours.

She says she slept in the office many times during a four- month period to

prove them wrong, keeping a change of clothes and a toothbrush with her.

"I would just not go home," says Girotra, 42, now CEO of UBS AG's

India operations. "I used to go under the table, sleep and then come back

up."

Kaku Nakhate, CEO of Bank of America Corp.'s Indian unit, says women

can still struggle to meld work and personal lives, making mentoring and

support at home crucial to their success.

"Women put in that extra bit," Nakhate, 45, says. "Because women are

taking precious time away from their family, they are a lot more focused

on getting the most out of every minute."

66
'Work Speaks for You'

Kochhar says her gender-related setbacks originated outside the bank.

Factories that she appraised in her early years didn't have bathrooms for

women, and officials questioned her authority.

"It was not a natural thing for factory owners at the time to see some girl

in her 20s," Kochhar says, dressed in a black- and-silver sari that sets off

her diamond-studded earrings. "Finally, your work speaks for you. So

what if a girl came to inspect the factory, as long she was knowledgeable

and asked the right questions and behaved in the right manner?"

Inside ICICI Bank, two top women executives quit the month before

Kochhar was scheduled to take over. Shikha Sharma, who ran the life

insurance arm for eight years, and Renuka Ramnath, head of the venture

fund, resigned within days of each other in April 2009. Sharma is now

CEO at Axis Bank Ltd., India's fourth- largest lender by market value.

Ramnath has her own private- equity firm, Multiples Alternate Asset

Management. Sharma and Ramnath declined to comment.

Unusual Name

The company with the unusual moniker got its start in 1955 as Industrial

67
Credit and Investment Corp. of India, later shortened to ICICI. It worked

with India's government

and the World Bank to fund development. In the 1990s, ICICI branched

into financial services, creating ICICI Bank in 1994. ICICI Ltd. merged

into the bank in 2002.

Early female recruits say the company has treated women as equals for as

long as they can remember. When Lalita Gupte, 62, now chairwoman of

the private-equity business, began job hunting in 1971, every employer

asked whether she'd move with her husband, who was in the Indian navy

and therefore likely to be uprooted.

ICICI never raised the subject. Instead, Nadkarni pushed her to succeed.

"You had to be excellent," she says. "I'd just had a kid; I was back after

three months, and he wanted to send me off for a week to a project site. I

said, 'That's hard; I can't do it.' He said, 'If you don't adjust now, you

never will.' It ultimately turned out to be a three-day trip, but it was

testing times."

Nadkarni intervened a few years later when Gupte considered resigning

68
after the birth of her second child. He went to her home and told her

husband -- using a dose of humor -- not to let her quit or she'd drive him

up the wall.

'Women Are Secure'

"Word seemed to spread that here is an organization that is friendly to

women, where women are secure," Vaghul says. "In relation to other

companies, we attracted more women."

ICICI trusted its new hires.

"They believed that you can take a young person and give him or her a lot

of responsibility and let them run with it," says Vedika Bhandarkar, 43,

vice chairman and head of investment banking at Credit Suisse Group AG

in India, who worked at ICICI for nine years starting in 1989.

"We would go meet CEOs and CFOs when we were all young."

As more women joined, they shared tips on travel and work hours, Gupte

says.

"I've had instances when women colleagues were questioned about why

69
they were coming home so late," she says. "We've helped these

colleagues talk it through with their partners."

Young children often caused the strife, and the bank would sometimes

provide an extended leave, she says.

Greater Loyalty

When Prime Minister P.V. Narasimha Rao opened India to outside

investment in 1991, a shortage of non-clerical workers, salespeople and

bankers helped more women get noticed. Some of ICICI's men left

because the company waited until 1996 to raise salaries, Vaghul says.

Women were more likely to stay because they saw opportunities as men

moved on.

"They showed greater levels of loyalty," he says.

India's working women enjoyed an important perk: affordable domestic

help. Maids today make as little as 7,000 rupees, or about $155, a month

in Mumbai.

Nanny and Maid

70
"From the time you're a management trainee you can afford to have a

full-time nanny and maid, so you don't need to have this constant tussle

of 'Is my child taken care of or not?'" says Madhabi Puri-Buch, who

joined ICICI in 1989 and until April headed investment banking arm

ICICI Securities Ltd.

"I never needed to say, 'Now someone needs to go drop and pick up my

son from tennis and from tae kwon do and from math tutorials,'" says

Puri-Buch, 45, who's on a three-year sabbatical to be with her husband in

Singapore -- another instance in which ICICI Bank has been flexible.

Falguni Nayar, who heads investment banking at Mumbai's Kotak

Mahindra Capital Co., says she has never experienced a glass ceiling --

even as a mother of twins.

"Each woman must decide if she wants the responsibilities of handling a

home and career," Nayar, 47, says.

Kochhar grew up in a less propitious environment for women in the state

of Rajasthan. It has the nation's lowest female literacy rate at 52.7 percent

this year, 13 percentage points less than India's average for women and

71
28 points below the state's average for men.

Kochhar's father, who was a professor at an engineering college, died

when she was 13. Her mother was a housewife. The family moved to

Mumbai, and Kochhar entered Jai Hind College.

'Very Focused'

Kochhar joined ICICI in 1984 after earning her bachelor's degree in

economics at Jai Hind and then a Master of Business Administration from

Mumbai-based Jamnalal Bajaj Institute of Management Studies.

Anita Shanbhag, a classmate who now teaches accounting at Jamnalal

Bajaj, recalls Kochhar's work ethic.

"If we got time between classes, we would head for the canteen,"

Shanbhag says. "She would instead go to the library. She was very

focused."

Kochhar made an early impression at ICICI by standing up for Reliance

Industries Ltd., which today produces goods ranging from textiles to

gasoline as India's largest company by market value.

72
In 1989, Reliance's polyester plant in the western state of Maharashtra

was ravaged in a flood. Newspapers were filled with speculation about

how badly the company was hit, Vaghul says. Though Kochhar was

relatively junior, Vaghul made her explain to ICICI's board why the bank

should continue lending.

Calming Fears

Kochhar told directors that her job was to back promising projects and

the people behind them, even if they weren't creating new assets at the

time. Directors approved the funding, Vaghul says, and Reliance got the

complex running again in about 20 days.

After that, "Reliance loved to deal with her," he says.

Kochhar, a badminton and Bollywood enthusiast, says her status as a

mother once even calmed concerns about the bank's health. In 2008, just

before she became CEO, Kochhar was making TV appearances to discuss

Lehman-related losses. One weekend when she traveled to Chennai for

her son's squash tournament, women came up to ask whether everything

was all right at ICICI Bank, she says.

73
"Yes, of course," she responded. "If they weren't, I wouldn't be here."

She says the women were relieved.

"We now feel comfortable because we are hearing you in person, as a

mother," she says they told her.

'Sensible Plans'

With the overlending and Lehman scares behind the bank, Kochhar is

expanding. Last year, she wanted to buy Bank of Rajasthan Ltd., even

after India's central bank had fined the smaller lender 2.5 million rupees

for accounting irregularities and other charges.

Prabodh Agrawal, then an analyst at IIFL Institutional Equities based in

Singapore, called the 30.3 billion rupee all- stock deal too expensive.

Kochhar said the purchase would extend ICICI's branch network in

northern India. After the acquisition, ICICI Bank's profit beat estimates

and its loans climbed for the first time in two years in the quarter that

ended on Sept. 30, 2010.

"ICICI is well-positioned and has sensible plans," says Adrian Lim, a

74
fund manager at Aberdeen Asset Management in Singapore, which had a

2.5 percent stake in the bank as of April 29.

Top 20

Lim says Kochhar raised ICICI Bank's capital adequacy ratio, a measure

of financial strength, to 19.5 percent as of March 31, higher than its

domestic peers. That provides a cushion for any slowdown.

"More importantly, it has a competent, professional management team,"

he says.

Kochhar says she can boost ICICI Bank into the ranks of the world's 20

top banks in five years, as measured by market value. At 1.25 trillion

rupees in early June, it isn't in the top 50.

Kochhar's success is turning heads at her alma mater. On a May afternoon

at Jamnalal Bajaj, students are poring over notes as they prepare for an

exam. Ashwini Mistry, who will graduate this year with a master's in

management studies, says Kochhar is inspiring a new generation of

female leaders.

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Mistry is 24, an age by which 86 percent of women in India have married

at least once, according to the 2006 National Family Health Survey. She

has her heart set on a plum banking job, with marriage in the future.

"I never thought the banking industry was male dominated because I

could see Chanda Kochhar lead such a big bank," Mistry says in the

sunlit classroom. "Chanda is my inspiration because I want to join

banking."

ICICI Bank's CEO Chanda Kochhar

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 CONCLUSION

Increasing women literacy, growing economic pressure, and the burning

desire to gain economic and social independence are pushing womenfolk

to take up gainful career. The phenomenal growth of banks has created

massive employment opportunities for the educated women of our nation.

Feminine traits no doubt help them perform better than male colleagues

in certain aspect of delivery of banking service Researches have shown

that having women on boards provides genuine value addition to

decision-making. We have a distance to go, especially in the larger

societywhose attitudes determine how women are viewed and valued,

including in corporate life.

Entrepreneurship among women, no doubt improves the wealth of the

nation in general and of the family in particular. Women today are more

willing to take up activities that were once considered the preserve of

men, and have proved that they are second to no one with respect to

contribution to the growth of the economy. Women entrepreneurship must

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be molded properly with entrepreneurial traits and skills to meet the

changes in trends, challenges global markets and also be competent

enough to sustain and strive for excellence in the entrepreneurial arena. A

woman has proved themselves as successful leaders in politics as well as

in various organizations. Women are now participate in all activities such

as education, politics, media, art and culture, service sectors, science and

technology, etc. There are lots of problems which a women faces during

her careers growth. Women need to be more practical. Women need to

become more aware so they can reposition their behavior to develop a

style that feels right and delivers effective leadership

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 BIBLIOGRAPHY

 Bhatnagar, D. (1988). “HRD for women employees in

banks”. In A. K. Khandelwal, (ed.) Human Resources

Development in Banks. Oxford and IBH Publishing Company,

New Delhi.

 Goverman, J. (1992). “Women in science should look

within”. Los Angeles Times, November 11

 Carter S (2000) „Gender and Enterprise‟ in Carter S. and

Jones Evans D. (eds) `Enterprise and Small Business: Principles,

Practice and Policy’, Addison Wesley Carter S. and Cannon T.

(1992) „Women as Entrepreneurs’, London: Academic Press Carter

S. and Rosa P. (1998) „The financing of male- and female-owned

businesses‟

 Entrepreneurship and Regional Development, 10(3), 225-

241 Bowen, Donald D. & Hirsch Robert D. (1986), The Female

Entrepreneur: A career Development Women Entrepreneurship and

Economic Development – By Sanjay Tiwari, Anshuja Tiwari.

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 QUESTIONARIES

Q1) Banking is a profession involving financial intermediation ?

YES/NO

Q2) Women are represented in workforce in greater numbers ?

YES/NO

Q3) Women executives were selected from public sector banks is 39%?

YES/NO

Q4) Nationalization of the Indian Banking Sector in 1969 served as the

first major step to reduce gender discrimination against women?

YES/NO

Q5) Women executives were selected from private sector banks is 55%?

YES/NO

Q6) Women started joining banks only in the late 70s and mostly at

clerical levels ?
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YES/NO

Q7) Women executives were selected from foreign banks is 21%?

YES/NO

Q8) Chanda Kochhar In mid-1980s the chairman and managing director

of ICICI?

YES/NO

Q9) 11% of the companies across sectors in India had women CEOs?

YES/NO

Q10) Women leaders demonstrate an inclusive, team-building

leadership style of problem solving and decision making?

YES/NO

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