Bharti’s primary work focus is policy, transactions and advice on private investment and finance raising for large complex projects. Some of her policy and regulatory work has focused on issues of financial inclusion for the poor and women and Bharti serves on the boards of BASIX and Professional Assistance for Development Action (PRADAN), two Indian non-government organisations engaged in the promotion of rural livelihoods.
I joined the firm at a time when there were few women in leadership positions. All the major professional services organisations in India had only men as Partners. In 1992, I became the first female Partner in PwC India, and by virtue of this the first female partner among all professional services firms in India.
Working women in India
Being a working woman in India isn’t always easy. Gender stereotypes are still very strong here and many women lack the ambition and the self-belief to build up a successful career. There are also fewer role models and fewer programmes to help women advance, such as networking groups. On the reverse side, women in India have access to an extended family network, capable of providing quality child care, which is often lacking in countries in the West.
Listen to an interview with Bharti, in which she discusses the 2007 PwC report into economic barriers and enablers, on the BBC World Service, by clicking
here.
