PhonePe pledges to increase female representation in leadership roles

PhonePe has pledged to increase female representation in its two senior most leadership roles, including directors and vice presidents, to 25% from 16% by December 2021.

This is part of PhonePe’s new Diversity & Inclusion (D&I) charter to create a more inclusive workforce. The digital payment firm said it has taken on a numerical goal for gender at the senior level. The charter’s first phase will focus on gender, sexual orientation and people with disability, while identifying specific actions in each of these areas in an effort to push inclusion.

Sameer Nigam, co-founder and chief executive PhonePe, said it is important that the organization the company creates represents the diversity of their customer base. “I have always felt strongly about creating a diverse, inclusive and vibrant organization,” he said. “There are sound rational reasons to do this, there is a strong correlation between diverse organizations and increased shareholder value; as a diverse workspace we will be able to attract from a wider talent pool; and we will be able to encourage deeper, more holistic thinking.”

Manmeet Sandhu, head of human resources PhonePe, said people work best when they have a safe environment to bring all their capabilities and creativity to the job. “Diversity for us will never be only about representation, but about letting people be their true selves without the need to hide any aspect of themselves,” Sandhu said. “How we do this will be a process of ongoing learning from people’s lived experiences, and from all the work that has gone before.”

Also Read: Amazon India launches special storefront to highlight products of women-led businesses

In regards to the LGBTQ+ community, PhonePe’s initial focus will be on creating spaces for conversation and awareness, and to review policies, processes and systems to be more inclusive. The company is also reviewing its current roles, policy framework and infrastructure to enable people with disabilities to be a larger part of the organization.