Today, most organizations in India that have chosen to aim higher in their growth and success paths have leveraged gender diversity. Second-career programs or returnship programs for women enable the change in such organizations.
Avtar, a pioneer in women’s workforce participation, has been instrumental in making second-career women a potent talent pool for India Inc. The 2023 Best Companies for Women in India Study, an annual gender analytics conducted by Avtar in association with Seramount, shows that 83% of the 100 Best have formal second-career hiring programs— a 53% rise from 30% in 2016 when the study was launched.
While driving the change across industries, Avtar believes in leading by example. With robust gender diversity, the organization has been hiring and retaining some crackling second-career women talent. They have not just found their feet at Avtar but also have progressed and grown in the highly inclusive organization that goes the extra mile to support its women employees.
In this weekly series, meet the second career rockstars from the Avtar group.
An unconfined view of second careers
Having been an integral part of the prolific second-career recruitment program pioneered by Avtar to now pursuing a second career in the organization, it was only natural for Swetha Lakshmi Narayanan, Assistant Vice President-Talent Acquisition, Avtar Group, to turn to Avtar after she took a career break following maternity and mobility.
Swetha, who has a cumulative experience of over a decade at Avtar, holds a Master’s in Computer Applications. She stepped into the world of recruitment at Avtar in 2008, after a six-year stint in the field of education as a lecturer. “My only connection with recruitment was the placement officer role I played as a lecturer. It was a whole new world for me. However, I closed 52 placements within two months of my entry into Avtar. I can only thank the leaders there for training me and supporting me, making me deliver the best,” she says.
Swetha was involved with Avtar I-Win (Avtar Indian Women Professionals Interface Network) with diversity hiring as the focus. In the period between 2011 and 2016, thorough research into the sector was the standard procedure she adopted for every big project, she adds.
Maternity followed by a hiatus due to relocation as a trailing spouse brought about a career break. “It was a difficult decision to make, but it was required. My husband was to work in Canada for a year. However, that kept getting extended,” she adds.
Swetha rejoined Avtar early last year as AVP and picked up the second career thread to head the Avtar Second Career Program at Avtar. Now, after a year of resuming her career, following a five-year break, Swetha reflects that when compared to her earlier stint, engaging with women who have been on breaks would now be more relatable and easier. “I was associated with Avtar’s successful Segue Sessions in my first stint. We were engaging with women on career breaks, helping them with skilling and networking. And, my interactions would then be so theoretical. I would take insights from my sister and everyone around me. At times, when some woman asked me if I knew how challenging it was for her to rejoin, I would not know. Today it is practical, and I can relate to the dilemma, doubts, and reasons surrounding such career breaks,” she added.
As she guides several women to take the leap of faith and advises organizations to expand their hiring canvas to hire second-career women, she believes her life has come full circle!
Swetha’s second career statement: “Restarting my career was a bold and empowering choice, leveraging the wealth of life experiences I gained. The lessons learned during my break have proven invaluable in my second innings. Proudly heading hiring for second-career women, I am dedicated to creating a supportive and empowering community for those seeking to restart their professional journeys.”
Watch this space for more stories on a few amazing second-career women from Avtar.
