The role of women in the urban workforce has expanded exponentially in the recent decades. As part of our commitment towards our readers across gender and geographies. Going forward every month, we are trying to bring to our readers a success story of a woman leader in the technology world. Towards the same, Associate Editor, channel360mea spoke to Sonali Basu Roy, Marketing Manager, Bulwark Technologies. During the interaction she shared that as a female marketing leader, she had been fortunate to have worked with some dynamic leaders. They have provided the required guidance and support at various junctures of her career contributing to her success. There were many noteworthy incidents and experiences as a woman in the technology domain that helped her write a success story. Below are the excerpts…
Please share your professional journey post college?
It’s been an eventful & knowledge-enriching journey as a competent Marketing Manager in Bulwark Technologies spear-heading the MARCOM function for several years now. With a degree in international marketing management, I have 12+ years of valuable experience in the IT Distribution market. Prior to this, I have worked with leading IT Distribution players in the region, busily involved in handling their MARCOM functions.
I look forward to continuously enhancing my knowledge and skill sets and to being a credit to my organization & my colleagues consistently.
Since when have you been part of the tech industry?
When I was in the crossroads of choosing a sound career, I was highly fascinated and impressed to see how an ordinary product transforms into an extraordinary Brand with the assistance of the creative engine called Marketing. This highly inspired me to be a Catalyst in the formation of large brands and pursue my dreams of becoming a successful marketer in the IT segment. This enabled the development of a great passion towards marketing in the IT segment & the passion continues to grow over the years. The growth opportunities are enormous and so are the challenges associated as you successfully climb the corporate ladder.
Do you see less women working in the IT or Telecom industry? Give reasons for both yes or no.
More and more women are taking responsible positions in the field of IT or telecom sectors. Women should believe in their capabilities and should be quick learners and acquire different skills. Market trends and mentalities are changing and there are plenty of opportunities for those who are dedicated and motivated. I strongly believe that success and passion towards your job & responsibilities are correlated and would enable in achieving the desired level of success and at a shorter timeframe.
Share an incident where just because of your gender your capabilities were doubted.
A good challenge which I constantly try to overcome as a woman leader & competent marketer is to develop accurate metrics to measure the outcome of the marketing activities in relation to the direct sales/revenue generated from such Marcom activities. The outcome of a successful marketing campaign may not be immediate and may take a while to derive actual lead generation & ROI from the activity. Also limited budgets, timeframes and marketing perception in the industry add to the list of challenges. I also feel it is important to balance my personal & professional career giving both the required importance for a healthy work-personal life balance with constant support from my organization & my family to achieve this.
What are other milestones you have achieved in the journey?
Over the last 12+ years, I have faced unique opportunities in the form of either creating Brand awareness of new Security Technology players in the Regional Market or helped in creating brand equity for the organization as a Thought Leader in the Cyber Security domain. For attaining both these objectives in totally separate scenarios, have successfully devised Marketing programs having a measurable mix of Direct channels (such as events/webinars etc.), Indirect Channels (such as website/blogs/Magazines/Interviews etc.) and Digital mediums (such as social media/EDM etc.), collaborating at any given point of time with various partners like marketing agencies/media houses/PR agencies/Printers etc. amidst an aggressive timeline to have the maximum impact. A planned approach towards the key objectives of the program, optimum utilization of resources and budget I had for disposal, the marketing mix and the market which we wanted to address, helped me very quickly achieve the desired results of the Marketing campaigns for the organization and channel community.
Do you think with markets opening up for jobs and with the realisation of the concept of WFH (work from home), job chances for women will improve in 2023?
Gender balance and diversity is extremely critical for a successful and thriving organization especially as we all function in an interconnected, truly international environment not limited by geographical boundaries. Gender balance and diverse workforce helps us to get a wider, richer perspective on everyday organizational challenges. It does bring varied skills and inherent strengths in conceptualizing & execution of relevant strategies to overcome challenges in respective work domains. Every human resource should believe in their capabilities and should be quick learners and acquire different skills to grow in this highly competitive market and workspace. Market trends and mentalities are changing and there is plenty of opportunity for those who are dedicated and motivated. Organizations should invest in skill development and maintaining a good gender balance for their own success.
