Page 24 - SPiCE Magazine (September 2019)

24 The SPiCE Magazine • Technology Features: Rocking it @ 40
Besides enjoying a healthy career since joining SCOPE ten years
ago, at 47-years, Priya is the mother of two children and wife to
Ravikumar who runs an NGO for the underprivileged in India.
When asked about what she would like to share to the women
contemplating technology as a career, Priya said “I never believed I
could or couldn’t do something because I was a woman. Focus on
being the best that you possibly can be. All the people I’ve worked
with, they’re looking for people who are the best at what they do.
If you, as a woman or a man, can prove to them that you are the best at what you do, they respect you for
that. Be confident, trust in yourself, believe that your voice matters and know that your words are good
enough. Women are natural at multi-tasking and are very detail-oriented. They are also excellent at think-
ing out of the box and coming up with creative and innovative solutions and technology is actually an ideal
career for women. Embrace technology with passion and you will never have a moment of regret.”
Despite global statistics indicating that India produces the highest number of female representation in the
tech field year-on-year, among Priya’s 45-member team of developers and technologists, only twelve are
The SPiCE Magazine • Technology Features: Rocking it @ 40 25
women. She noted that SPi Global’s focus areas are highly specialized. As micro-niches continue to emerge
in the markets the company serves, the prospect of more women breaking into the tech industry steadily
increases as well.
“Those who are brave enough to explore outside their comfort zone will find that the rewards are worth
the long haul. When even the smallest aspect of our work impacts the mainstream, our contribution
becomes immeasurable. ”
The debate on equality has grown gitty and granular, granted by net neutrality and free and open internet
(which was also espoused by a woman in the Obama administration). But popularized issues such as equal
representation, diversity, and discrimination are made moot when true equality, which leads to better
opportunities and outcomes for the greater good, is at the top of an organization’s hierarchy of values.
Indeed, SPi Global at 40 years puts this occasional feminist at liberty to babble on about our women of
disruption. Ergo, history may be evidence; its interpretation, however, is according to our collective
conscious - and unconscious - evolvement.
Note: Current count of SPi Global’s tech teams including TechSol and
IT groups is 478. Only 86 (17.99%) of them are women.
TM