Arundhati Bhattacharya

Former chairman of SBI Arundhati Bhattacharya believes when there is a problem, there is also a solution — you just have to do a little digging.At an economic conclave in Mumbai a few months ago, Bhattacharya said that the reason there aren’t as many women as men in middle-management of companies had nothing to do with lack of enthusiasm or skill. It could be something you didn’t even consider: like rent.Bhattacharya said, “When I became the chairman, I found that after the probation period, one has to do a rural assignment and a branch manager assignment to get a promotion. And I learnt that most men went to a rural branch and did both simultaneously.”However, Bhattacharya discovered that most of the women were opting for HR roles. So, she held a meeting to find out why. “During a meeting with the youngsters, I asked them why they were opting for the safer choices, which could be harming their careers. They told me it was not out of choice. When they got posted in a rural area, no one would rent a house to them. Now that was something that never struck me.”Bhattacharya added that this was a revelation to her and she started to find a solution. “We solved the problem by renting a house in SBI’s name and created a small hostel for women.The best thing is that many of these girls came back and told me that they had the time of their lives there,” she said.“You need to really understand what is holding them [women] back. Often, when we become seniors, we stop looking at these things. But if we have a forum where women are encouraged to share their thoughts and what is holding them back, we can continue to keep them in the work force.”