Published in 2015
320 pages
Naina Lal Kidwai is executive director on the board of HSBC Asia-Pacific and chairman of HSBC India. She is also a non-executive director of Nestle SA and was the first woman president of the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI), India’s leading and oldest industry association. She has served on several government committees and is India s representative on the BRICs Business Council, the India-Malaysia CEO Forum and on the governing boards of the National Council of Applied Economic Research and the National Institute of Bank Management.
She is also a global advisor for Harvard Business School and chairs its India advisory board. An MBA from Harvard Business School, Naina has made a regular appearance over the years on listings by Fortune, The Wall Street Journal and Time as one of the most powerful women in business in the world. She believes in empowering women through livelihoods. Her interests in the environment and water are evident through her engagements as chair of FICCI’s Water Mission; vice chair of the World Economic Forum’s Global Agenda Council on Water; and board member of Shakti Sustainable Energy Foundation, The Energy and Resources Institute, and the International Advisory Council of UNEP’s Inquiry for Sustainable Financing. Naina has edited the book Contemporary Banking in India and is the recipient of many awards and honours, including the Padma Shri in 2007, for her contribution to trade and industry.
What is this book about?
30 Women in Power carries the inimitable voices of Indian women who have been pioneers and led large organizations – in banking, law, the media, advertising, government services, health care, consulting, the fast-moving consumer goods sector and the not-for-profit space.
In these narratives – told up, close and personal – thirty of India’s greatest women achievers speak of the guiding principles that have held them in good stead, the role models who have anchored them, the childhood influences that have shaped their values and the interests outside the world of work that have revitalized them. Coming from all walks of life, these empowered women discuss their many successes and their dreams for the future. Yet, they also venture to disclose the setbacks that have preceded hard-won conquests, the barriers, psychological or otherwise, that may have held them back at certain points and the compromises they’ve had to make to reach the top.
Through these honest and contemplative revelations, thirty women in power answer those questions that confront all working women – from how best to balance the personal and the professional, to how to dismantle gender biases. Equally, the essayists consider seminal issues that concern every committed professional, man or woman: What are the qualities that define a leader? Where does one find a mentor? What are the ingredients in the recipe for success? Edited by business leader extraordinaire Naina Lal Kidwai, this topical and relevant book is a must-read, not only for the lessons it provides but also for the intimate accounts it offers of lives powerfully lived.
