Proving women can be perfect leaders
A wife and an IT leader – Swati Nilesh Shinde is proof that women can triumph over any obstacle to emerge as a leader in both their personal and professional life simultaneously. Her own life journey is a case in point.
Swati grew up in Satara, Maharashtra in a family of teachers where education was valued utmost. She always dreamt of joining defense services but could not make it after several tries, leaving her heartbroken. However, her family stood strong and helped her sail through this emotionally tough patch.
Life slowly turned around and she completed her Master of Technology (M.Tech) in Atmospheric Sciences and Meteorology from the prestigious Savitribai Phule Pune University. “I understood that human life is all about aligning with the present situation and start now attitude… I felt rejuvenated and started finding joy in little things. As my alignment increased towards my employment, I started finding opportunities to connect with like-minded professionals. My journey towards perfection started from the imperfect version of me.”
Swati started her career in ITES as a Software Tester and strived to deliver bug free and risk free mobile applications from day one. This dedication helped her excel and tap better opportunities in her area of interest. After 12+ years in the field, today she’s Deputy Manager – Technology, at Saregama India Ltd, Mumbai.
Her daily motivation now is learning new skills, technologies, and its implementation to achieve the best quality software apps. She introspects about what she is doing, how to achieve better results, and is driven enough to meet daily objectives and expectations at the work front. Recently, she was recognised for ‘Influential Leadership in Technology’ by TechNet Conferences at Las Vegas, USA in July 2024.
Nevertheless, her journey from the countryside of Satara to a career woman in the metropolis of Mumbai wasn’t always easy. She found the daily hustle challenging on every front – physically, emotionally, culturally, and spiritually. While I was navigating these challenges, my mom-in-law alleviated my household responsibilities, which ultimately facilitated my progress and success.
“Planning for one day at a time, one challenge at a time, helped me stay energetic and enthusiastic to face the next one. This routine helped me to finish work in an iterative but progressive way, meeting timelines along with qualitative work. This learning and unlearning to meet daily objectives was simply ‘keep doing it and completing it’. In this process, I met so many people who helped me at the right time, in the right direction. All this was possible by understanding and fulfilling my responsibilities, and not by pure luck.”
A big advocate for women@work, Swati is inspired by the thought that women can lead the world with kindness and affection. She feels every woman should believe in herself and lead from the front, and is trying her best to spread this message. “I want to set an example to inspire other women to believe in their dreams and make an effort towards building their dream life.”
Increasingly seen as a leader by peers, Swati defines her style of leadership as: Leadership is neither micromanagement nor supervision. Leadership is all about an open mind, believing human values, growing over personal biases, and creating more leaders.
What are her thoughts on the rat race, we ask her. “We are a part of the rat race.. winning it at one level takes you to the next. What sets you apart is how ‘human’ you are after finishing it and how ‘humble’ you are after winning it. Being kind and respectful to every other person is the only success that matters,” she answers.
Swati has achieved what most women find challenging – the elusive balance between professional and personal life. As a result, she believes in being happy and spreading happiness around. She fuels her day by lifting weights in the morning and learning different dance forms as and when time permits. On the weekends, she plays cricket and goes swimming, which helps her maintain ‘mindfulness’ over the work week.
Sharing her pearls of wisdom, Swati relays a message for all women: “Trust in the iterative progress, success won’t come overnight but progressively happen each day. Remember that many generations have fought for women’s right to education, voting, being financially independent, pay parity, and gender parity.. we are the result of all these fights and rights and hence we should act accordingly. We should put forward the best version of ourselves and keep achieving our goals. At the same time, we should acknowledge the strength that comes from family and personal connections.”
Lastly, I extend my heartfelt thanks to my better half for being a steadfast support throughout this journey
