Table Of ContentI N D I A N
W O M E N I N
L E A D E R S H I P
Edited by
RAJASHI GHOSH AND GARY N. MCLEAN
Current Perspectives on Asian Women
in Leadership
Series Editors
Yonjoo Cho
Indiana University
Bloomington, IN, USA
Rajashi Ghosh
Drexel University
Philadelphia, PA, USA
Judy Y. Sun
The University of Texas-Tyler
Tyler, TX, USA
Gary N. McLean
University of Minnesota
Minneapolis, MN, USA
Headed by leading Human Resource scholars, this new series taps into some
of the hottest topics in business – gender, leadership and globalization – to
explore the unique challenges and opportunities faced by Asian women in
their quest to achieve success in regions which are traditionally resistant to
women’s career advancement.
More information about this series at
http://www.palgrave.com/gp/series/15062
Rajashi Ghosh • Gary N. McLean
Editors
Indian Women
in Leadership
Editors
Rajashi Ghosh Gary N. McLean
Drexel University University of Minnesota
Philadelphia, PA, USA Minneapolis, MN, USA
Current Perspectives on Asian Women in Leadership
ISBN 978-3-319-68815-2 ISBN 978-3-319-68816-9 (eBook)
https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-68816-9
Library of Congress Control Number: 2018948841
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Acknowledgments
We appreciate the engagement of the India HRD Special Interest Group
(SIG) members in making significant contribution through co-authoring
of chapters for this book.
v
Contents
1 Indian Women in Leadership: An Introduction 1
Rajashi Ghosh and Aindrila Chatterjee
Part I Barriers and Challenges 11
2 Family Roles Posing Challenges for Women Leaders in
India 13
Sanghamitra Chaudhuri, Ashutosh Muduli, and Ridhi Arora
3 Indian Women in Leadership: Engaging with the Terrain
of Constraints Rooted in Religion and Traditions 31
Venkatesh Murthy and Sangeeta Roy
4 Career Development Challenges for Women Pursuing
Leadership in India 47
Judy B. Smetana, Misha Chakraborty, and Rimjhim
Banerjee-Batist
vii
viii Contents
Part II Signs of Hope 67
5 Policies and Legislation for Indian Women Leaders 69
Soumi Rai and Shalini Gopalkrishnan
6 Role of Education in Developing Women Leaders in India 91
Malar Hirudayaraj and Priyanka Doshy
7 It Takes a Village: Collaborations and Partnerships
Empowering Women in India for Leadership 109
Nisha Manikoth, Krishna Gajjar, and Valerie Mendonca
Part III Sector Perspectives 131
8 Women Leaders in Corporate India 133
Meera Alagaraja, Denise M. Cumberland, Mrudula Anne, and
Vishal Arghode
9 Women Entrepreneurs in India 155
Rajeshwari Narendran and Anjana Vivek
10 Indian Women’s Leadership in the Government Sector 171
Pradeep Kumar Misra and Garima Singh
11 Women in Leadership in the Education Sector in India 191
Madhulika Sagaram and Prabhjot Kaur Mahal
12 Indian Women Leaders in the NGO Sector 211
Yogita Abichandani and Vimal Babu
13 Women Leaders in Indian Agriculture: Grassroots
Perspective 235
Madhavi Mehta
Conten ts ix
Part IV International Perspectives 257
14 Indian Women in Leadership in an Asian Context 259
Sanghamitra Chaudhuri, Sunyoung Park, and Gertrude I.
Hewapathirana
Part V Closing 281
15 From Darkness into Light: Hope for the Future of
Women in Leadership in India 283
Gary N. McLean
Index 297
Notes on Contributors
Yogita Abichandani is Associate Professor of HRM at Management
Development Institute, Murshidabad. She was the former Area Chair and
Associate Professor at Symbiosis International (Deemed University) and a
Tenure Track Assistant Professor at Western Carolina University, University of
North Carolina (UNC) System. Her research interests are Women Leadership,
Critical HRD, and Feminist HRD. She graduated from The University of
Georgia in 2012 with a PhD in Adult Education and HRD. She has over
17 years of experience across multiple sectors and is serving as the Advisory
Board Member for North Carolina State Employees Credit Union. She has pub-
lished in several national and international conferences and journals. She is the
Co-Chair for the India Special Interest Group at the Academy of HRD, USA,
which is a member of Society of Human Resource Management (HRM), USA
and India. She consults with non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in vari-
ous capacities both in USA and India and provides developmental blueprints to
organizations for strategic planning. She also volunteers with various education-
based NGOs in India for teacher pedagogy development. She enjoys baking
with her 8-year-old daughter.
Meera Alagaraja is an associate professor in the Department of Educational
Leadership, Evaluation and Organizational Development at the University of
Louisville. Her research agenda focuses on three distinct streams—strategic
human resources, wellbeing in the workplace, and vocational education and
workforce development. Her research publications in Human Resource
Development Quarterly (HRDQ) and Human Resource Development International
xi
