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Finance is not as boring as it is made out to be, and needs more women in decision-making roles, says Risk Analyst Sanya Mahajan.
In our new series, Brief Case, we will be meeting women at work in different fields, different roles, to get some insight into their lives. With more women joining (or aspiring to) join the paid workforce, we live in exciting times, and this is an attempt to chronicle those times, one life at a time.
Sanya Mahajan is a Risk Analyst at Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) in Gurgaon and she has a lot to share about her unique job and its exciting challenges. A graduate in Economics from Delhi University, and a post- graduate in International Politics from SOAS, UK; she has dabbled in multiple interests, and has a plethora of experiences to show! We spoke to her about her experience and views on the financial services sector in India.
Q1. How do you describe yourself?
An ardent fan of reading and music, I also love to travel, run, and just stare at the stars sometimes! A foodie with a sweet tooth, desserts are my absolute weakness and tend to balance out all the running I do. I set large goals for myself and push myself towards them, and I take pride in all my pursuits.
Q2. Why did you choose this field?
I have always been interested in Political Science, despite not studying it in College. I was and am a complete news buff and was always in touch with national and international goings-on. I worked under the Ministry of Defence on a number of themes and I love how in my current job I am able to use my academic training as well as my broader interest in national and international events and issues.
Q3. Describe your role so that it is understandable to someone who knows nothing about your industry.
Quite simply, I monitor and analyse national and regional (South-Asian) political and security developments. These developments need to be assessed for their impact on the bank’s operations and safety. Financial institutions don’t function in isolation and are affected by daily developments – positive and negative, and keeping RBS abreast of this is the essence of my job.
Q4. What is the most exciting part of your role and your field?
In this job, it is a new day every day. Things are changing so rapidly around us. My job is about helping RBS make sense of security developments, and there are changes happening on a daily basis in the banking and financial services industry. The industry has been reeling from the shock of 2008 and has picked itself up ever since then. However, in this transitory period, I have had the opportunity to work with both successful as well as struggling clients. My role is quite people-intensive and I am able to build new experiences with people from around the world.
Q5. What is the most challenging aspect of your role?
My role has received tremendous exposure and visibility. I feel that the challenge has been to not be intimidated by the fact that at 25 years of age I am advising far more experienced people on how to conduct business. Hard work has helped me establish that credibility amongst my peers and seniors.
I feel that the challenge has been to not be intimidated by the fact that at 25 years of age I am advising far more experienced people on how to conduct business.
Secondly, disasters can strike at any point of time in the external world and I am expected to be composed as well as help calm down the stakeholders as well. I can’t involve emotions, and I need to maintain objectivity at all times.
Q6. What is the common misconception about your field?
(laughs) Many people don’t even know that this field exists. Unfortunately in India, the avenues for a person with a social sciences background are limited if one isn’t interested in the development sector or academics. The question generally is “what can these people contribute to corporates?” I believe that would be the most common misconception.
Q7. If you had to change one thing about your field, what would it be?
I would definitely propound the need for greater participation of women in the security and banking industry. Financial services is rather weak on female participation and presence. In most big banks, one will notice a healthy mix of the genders at the lower and middle-level management; however this quickly changes at the senior management level, where one clearly sees more male presence. There is a dire need to push more women up the pipeline into major decision-making positions.
Extremely enthusiastic about writing, reading, movies and food; though not necessarily in that order! A Feminist by choice and finds comfort in giving 'gyaan' from time to time. Would love constructive feedback on my writing read more...
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UP Boards Topper Prachi Nigam was trolled on social media for her facial hair; our obsession with appearance is harsh on young minds.
Prachi Nigam’s photo has been doing the rounds on social media for the right reasons. Well, scratch that- I wish the above statement were true. This 15-year-old girl should ideally be revelling in her spectacular achievement of scoring a whopping 98.05% and topping her tenth-grade boards. But oddly enough, along with her marks, it’s something else that garners more attention – her facial hair.
While the trolls are driving themselves giddy by mocking this girl who hasn’t even completed her school yet, the ones who are taking her side are going one step ahead – they are sharing her photoshopped pictures, sans the facial hair, looking nothing less than a celebrity with captions saying – “Prachi Nigam, ten years later”.
Doctors have already diagnosed her with PCOD in their comments, based on photographic evidence. While we have names for people shamed for their weight – body shaming, for their skin colour- racism, for their age- age shaming, for being a female- sexism, this category of shaming where one faces criticism for their appearance has no name. With that, it also has zero shame attached to it.
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