07 March, 2017
Engineering is not a man's profession
Nivedita Chaudhary isn't your average woman shuttling between home and hearth with a sense of surrender. Strong and feisty, she debunks the myth that engineering is a man's profession. She believes that if you are a capable engineer, you will succeed in your profession, irrespective of your gender and the fulfillment that comes with a successful career will help you to look after and manage your personal life well. Nivedita is a Mechanical Engineer from the National Institute of Technology, Patna and is currently the Group Lead, Plant FMQ, for our Medium and Heavy Commercial Vehicles division at the Jamshedpur plant.
Inclusion and respect
Ask her how easy it has been for her, this journey in engineering, considered a male-dominated field, and pat comes the reply, "At home, there was no question of discrimination. Mine is a family of doctors and engineers. My elder sister is an engineer and it was only natural for me to take it up as a profession. On the work front, I have never faced any major discrimination." And then the memory of her first work interview dawns. Nivedita recalls that she was told by the head of the department of the section she had wanted to join, ‘One day you will get married and leave your job. Therefore, I wouldn't prefer to hire you.'
That was perhaps the first and last ever bias she faced in the work front as soon after she got a job at Tata Motors. Here she has stayed for the last 16 years having worked in four different divisions -automotive design and development, customer support, and now, quality. "I have enjoyed every minute of these complex and challenging functions," she says.
Organisations that value their women engineers are redefining policies to ensure that women engineers are able to grow, take on larger responsibilities and become a driving force for change. Tata Motors believes that if you give an engineer the right opportunities and an environment in which they can flourish, they become integral to the business, adding value all the way. Gender plays no role in this situation. Nivedita's long association with Tata Motors, and her successful career path up the ranks stand testimony to the company's policy of diversity and inclusion.
Debunking prejudices
Strong-willed and passionate about finding solutions and driving results, Nivedita knocks the popular myth that engineers are boring geeks, who cannot be creative. She firmly believes that her creativity is chanelled into doing things differently at work. Not only that, she loves to cook, can sing very well, and has a life beyond the shop floor. She's glad that the work-life balance that she's found at Tata Motors helps her to pursue creative interests. "It's all about the choices you make and I am glad I chose Tata Motors. My advice to young engineers is choose an equal-opportunity employer and be clear about your goals. Everything else will fall into place," signs off the feisty engineer.
Determined women engineers like Nivedita are testimony to the changing dynamics of engineering as a profession. Her longstanding association with Tata Motors demonstrates that if you give an engineer the right opportunities and an environment to flourish, they become integral to your business, adding value all the way.
