Payal Vadhani: Making A Space For Women in Leadership
By, Monika Samtani, Co-Founder, and Emily Montague, Managing Editor, The Fem Word
Payal Vadhani, Senior Vice President, Enterprise Risk, HCL Technologies
Few would argue with the statement that our modern world, our digital world, is ruled by technology. The people behind that technology are equally important. Payal Vadhani is one of these people, and as an executive member of the huge firm HCL Technologies, she works at the direct and bustling intersection of business and tech.
As more and more people gain access to the internet, the cloud, IoT technology, and other advances of this digital age, women like Payal have a unique perspective to offer us. Supervising the relationships that form between businesses, technology, and the people they serve is a difficult job, but it’s one that women are perhaps better suited to than anyone else.
We were thrilled to have the chance to sit down with Payal and talk about her life and work. Her insights will only become more valuable as we emerge into the digitally-influenced, post-pandemic world, and we hope you enjoy learning from her as much as we did!
Monika Samtani and Emily Montague: There’s been a lot of talk about women in STEM over the last couple of years, both in the USA and beyond. But before we get into the industry details and “big picture” perspective of this field, let’s take a minute to talk about you and your story, specifically.
How and where did you grow up? Was education––especially science, maths, and technology education––a big part of your life when you were a young girl?
Payal Vadhani: I grew up in a business family in Pune, India. My undergraduate degree is in Computer Engineering from Maharashtra Institute of Technology and graduate degree in MBA specializing in Information Technology from American University. I have been in STEM since high school (junior college in India) with Physics, Chemistry, Math and Technology as core subjects. Coming from a business background, throughout my early life, there was a heavy emphasis on understanding the concepts of Math and its applicability. Though I must admit, I wasn’t naturally good at it and had to work very hard. I was most interested in world History and remain interested in the subject even today.
Monika and Emily: What were the big events you remember happening throughout your life––the defining, historic moments that stuck with you and made you feel empowered. These can be either personal or societal. Did any of these events or moments push you toward your eventual career, or did you end up going in a totally different direction than where you started out?
Payal: My Mom had the most amount of influence on me growing up. Though she finished her college in Arts in Pune, she was not very fluent in English and had to learn the language. This was important as we lived in a joint family and most of the family members preferred to speak in English. She didn’t feel like she fit in. At that time in the late 70s, she took classes from Mrs. Modera who taught her how to speak English fluently. This gave her the confidence and transformed her. That was the earliest defining moment for me. From a young age I believed that if she could do it, I can do anything I set my mind to. Also, since I can remember, my mother emphasized the importance of a career, to be financially independent, to challenge the status quo, and to follow my passion. I am who I am because of her. She has been the silent force to eventually push me to achieve my goals and dreams. Besides STEM, I pursued other interests such as competitive swimming and modeling. Though I did well, I always knew long term I wanted to be in a technical field. I’d also like to credit my Dad for giving both my brother and I equal opportunities. In that regard, I’m blessed to be born into a progressive family.
Monika and Emily: You are the Senior Vice President of Enterprise Risk at HCL Technologies, a global technology company where you manage large, diverse and global teams in multiple countries and work in an environment of ‘ideapreneurship’. Give us an idea of ‘the day in the life of Payal Vadhani’ and what steps you take to ensure the inclusivity of women at the company.
“Being assertive is often deemed as aggressive. I have been counseled for being an alligator in the room. It’s often expected for women to be confident but demure. I don’t understand it.”
Payal: Since I have geographically dispersed teams in many countries, my day starts very early. Managing a diverse team brings many challenges that must be addressed regularly. The most important aspects are managing cultural nuances and sensitivities, communication style, understanding the inter-connectedness of professional and personal aspects, and getting the teams to deliver as per strategic objectives. When you have a truly global role, the technical or domain expertise is secondary. What’s of primary importance are your soft skills and how you manage people. With respect to diversity, inclusion and equity, there is a lot of catching up to do for companies across the globe. And HCL is no different. While many programs have been implemented across our organization, I’m particularly pleased with the progress the Risk & Compliance organization (within HCL) has made. Seven years ago, only 4% of women were in our workforce. Today that number is 36%. One of the group’s Key Performance Indicator is our progress in diversity. In the last 3 years we have continuously made progress and expect to do even better in the future. But my personal goal is to improve the statistics for women in leadership roles. We have already started the process of identifying next-gen women leaders and will nurture them until they reach leadership positions.
Monika and Emily: Whether you occupy a consulting, programming, project management, engineering, or leadership position in the world of IT and IT services, it’s known to be a very male-dominated industry. A very white male dominated one, actually.
What has it been like to work and grow your career as a woman of color in this industry? Have you ever felt out of place?
Payal: A woman in the workforce is a minority and a woman of color is a minority within a minority. For thousands of years our society has believed that men are bread winners and women are caretakers. While much has changed, a large amount of population still believes in that concept. And that belief makes its way into behaviors in the workplace. In the initial years of my career, I was blessed to work in environments where gender bias negligibly existed. It became more pervasive in the years of leadership positions. Being assertive is often deemed as aggressive. I have been counseled for being an alligator in the room. It’s often expected for women to be confident but demure. I don’t understand it. It bothered me initially, but over the past 5-7 years, I have become numb to the judgements of others, especially regressive men. Also having good mentors (women and progressive men) has helped me grow professionally and personally. I highly recommend women to surround themselves with mentors who are interested in their growth.
Monika and Emily: Over the last ten years, what are the most impactful changes you’ve seen happening in your own workplace? Especially those relating specifically to women and minorities.
Payal: Initiatives in Diversity, Inclusion and Equity are on the rise which is great. Companies are going much further and including them as performance evaluation criteria for themselves as well as in their supply chain. This, in my opinion, has moved the needle, but more work needs to be in promoting women to leadership positions. Not enough is done to nurture and help women grow to become the next-gen leaders.
Monika and Emily: With so much instability overseas and so many global changes happening where women and the workforce are concerned. You have two daughters of your own, what’s your view on girls’ opportunities as they relate to STEM education and eventual careers in this field?
“There are tremendous opportunities for girls in STEM. If girls see the bigger picture and understand what this demand/supply means for their future, things will be very different.”
~Payal Vadhani with her two daughters
Payal: There is a global shortage of skilled technical talent. In the field of cybersecurity alone, there is 3 million deficit of skilled resources. What does that tell you? There are tremendous opportunities for girls in STEM. If girls see the bigger picture and understand what this demand/supply means for their future, things will be very different. Parents must first understand this and talk to their daughters about career choices. Also, there is misconception that a STEM field does not offer work-life balance. That is not true. Every girl can decide the pace of her professional growth based on life priorities. I can share my own experience. Time off after 2 child births, and a break of 1 year in the middle of my career did not slow my professional growth as compared to men. In fact, I have done better than most men who started out with me.
I share my personal experiences with my daughters all the time. They are data driven so they see the statistics and have made their decisions accordingly.
Monika and Emily: Let’s broaden our view for a second. Industries and the companies occupying them have a lot of potential––and arguably responsibility––when it comes to human rights and society as a whole.
What can companies like HCL Technologies do on a serious, tangible level to improve the situation for women and girls worldwide? How can individuals within these companies play a role in this kind of social action?
Payal: Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is on the agenda for large corporations like HCL and gets the required focus at a Board level. Empowerment of women and girls can and should be an initiative within SCR. Here are some specific actions I personally suggest:
1) In developing countries, companies can invest in primary and secondary education for girls by starting or funding schools.
2) A batch of girls should then be guaranteed employment with the company.
3) Company should setup a ‘Rising Stars’ program specially designed for women to promote growth and give them a career path.
4) Success measurement criteria should be established, monitored, and reported for the above.
Monika and Emily: Of course, the whole concept of companies or industries doing good is becoming a major part of branding. And in some places, like India, there is a legal requirement known as Corporate Social Responsibility or CSR as you mentioned above.
Payal: Currently, CSR is not a regulatory requirement or mandate, but it’s important to recognize that it’s increasingly becoming a criterion for doing business (B2B)
Monika and Emily: What would a legally-backed CSR program look like in America? Could it be implemented effectively, or do you think we would need to seek other avenues to achieve CSR-related goals in the USA?
Payal: CSR goals should be incorporated into contracts for doing business. We must move from ‘Nice to have’ to “Must have” for any meaningful impact. Things will change when it directly affects a company’s top/bottom line and brand value. The more tangible the impact, the better chance for success.
“Each time my mother tells me ‘You can do anything you set your mind to’, which is very often. Those words are enough for me to go conquer the world.”
~Payal Vadhani
Monika and Emily: This interview is made possible by our partner Akytech Consulting - a minority woman-owned company who embraces the importance of showcasing the voices and stories of women leaders through The Fem Word platform - because our stories intersect - no matter what profession or industry. And whether you work for a huge company like HCL Technologies, or run a growing small business like Akytech Consulting, women as leaders are changing company culture. What advice do you have for the leadership at Akytech Consulting in terms of incorporating diversity as a core guiding principle?
Payal: I have one piece of advice for Akytech Consulting – while you are chasing revenue, do not forget the core guiding principle of diversity and equity. Growth will only compound if you incorporate diversity and equity in the cultural DNA of the company. You can lead by example and be the change you want to see in the world.
Monika and Emily: Now, it’s a tradition here to ask our guests a specific question. Payal, when have you felt truly powerful?
Payal: Each time my mother tells me “You can do anything you set your mind to”, which is very often. Those words are enough for me to go conquer the world.
This interview is made possible by our partner Akytech Consulting, a minority, woman-owned consulting company in the DC area which allows The Fem Word to highlight women leaders.
The views, thoughts, and opinions expressed in this article belong solely to the interviewee, and do not necessarily reflect the position of The Fem Word organization. Any content provided by our interviewees are based on their opinions and are not intended to malign any religion, ethnic group, club, organization, company, individual or anyone or anything.