Women In Tech: Manjula Muthukrishnan, Managing Director, Avalara Technologies

A lot has been talked about gender neutrality and proper dissemination of responsibilities, however little is executed when it comes to practice. In order to achieve this, its pertinent that organisations must actively seek and hire talent from diverse backgrounds. Yet, while working in the professional space, women often have to encounter many challenges, whether it being professional hazards, or juggling work at home.

Manjula Muthukrishnan, Managing Director of Avalara Technologies Private Limited, shares her journey.

Knowing that gender biases exist, how difficult is it to be a woman and thrive in your specific field?

Any bias, not just one specific to gender, at the workplace is a hindrance to the growth of an organisation as well as its employees. But eliminating gender bias forms the crux of this challenge because not only is it widespread, it has, unfortunately, been ingrained into our culture. From the pay gap, delayed or skipped promotions, project allocations – you can see gender bias raise its ugly head in various growth scenarios at the workplace. 

Back in the 80s and 90s, women struggled around issues such as separate restrooms in the workplace. Women were the ones who were expected to conform to behaviour that was acceptable to their male colleagues. An ambitious woman was quick to be judged as over the top. Not to mention, a baby while being a blessing, took away a woman’s chances at a promotion. 

The good news is that we have come a long way since then. Not only are today’s women more vocal about their needs for significant roles and equality in the workplace, but more and more also stand up to old school discrimination and advocate workplace safety. Times have changed but only to an extent. In an industry like technology that sees male dominance in terms of volume, women are required to prove their worth over and over again. This is probably why women drop out of the technology workforce. To retain competent employees, companies need to work toward being more inclusive actively. This will help women thrive in their respective fields. 

What role do you think technology plays in contemporary times? 

Since the introduction of the Goods and Services Tax in India, the digital wave has become more robust, and the adoption of technology in the tax function, coupled with government initiatives like Digital India has been steadily gaining momentum. Tax administration technology has emerged as one of the biggest drivers of the tax function transformation since 2017, with GST leading technology-led tax reform. 

Tax authorities worldwide are also introducing newer tax laws like e-invoicing to enforce greater transparency through disclosures and seamless exchange of taxpayer information between tax authorities.

For most CFOs and CTOs, the challenge today is determining their requirements, designing tax technology strategy and selecting the right solution. With the commencement of cloud-based SaaS solutions, the cost of deployment and maintenance of large applications has reduced significantly. 

In their digital tax journey, guide organisations are embracing newer technologies such as automation and analytics. This transition is enabling them to respond to the dynamically changing tax landscape effectively.

Increased use of technology has brought enormous opportunities as well as challenges to the modern-day workplace. Despite the increased involvement of women in tech, gender inequality remains a critical issue across the globe. Even today, technology is often associated with masculinity. Earlier, women were less motivated to consider IT as a profession. In the digital era, however, women in the technology sector have increased exponentially. But this is not sufficient, and more women need to join the IT sector. Today, equal number of women receive technical education to be employed in technology-intensive work in comparison to men. The problem is not only with access to education but also the gender roles of the society. Women enter the workforce at the entry level, but gradually drop out as responsibilities on the family front take precedence.

 Can we rely on technology solely to be the panacea for all problems? If so, how?

Technology has made it possible for organisations to migrate from an on-premises system to a hybrid cloud or software as a Service (SaaS) solution. Technology is even enhancing customer experience as a part of a company’s digital transformation exercise. That being said, this is not possible without a leader with long term vision. We cannot rely solely on technology to solve our issues. Technology can enable us to achieve our goals, but before that, we need to define what we want. 

Looking at developments in new-age technologies like Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, Natural Language Processing, it does call for some radical rethinking of how we come up with technological innovations. While building solutions with these new technologies, you cannot keep one gender out of the process and create systems that interact with humans. An inclusive and diverse team is more likely to flag problems that could have negative social consequences before a product is even launched or can provide insights into emotions which can be useful for women consumers. 

Another aspect is that few startups that are led by female founders receive funding. This is one of the most gender-biased segments in the tech industry. We need more female investors and female-led companies.

 What are the immediate and long-term milestones for your company like?

Avalara is building tax compliance products and solutions with a vision to be a part of every transaction in the world. Tax touches every country and every business around the world.  As Avalarians, we take on problems of global magnitude and are required to think about brand-new ways to solve existing problems as well as issues that have not even arisen yet. We have a bold mission, and as pioneers in the industry, we cannot rely on how something has always been done. We create use-cases for others to follow.  

To fulfil our mission, we need problem solvers, creative thinkers, builders and developers – we need people from all genders. We want to achieve a 50/50 gender parity as a part of our long-term vision

Avalara encourages active roles for women as part of its efforts to facilitate diversity in the workplace. We encourage the active involvement of female employees, focusing on raising the percentage of female managers. Here is a fun fact – Avalara India GST team is currently being led by women in the majority. Women of Avalara, our Global Employee Resource Group for Women, is dedicated to advancing women professionally and personally, building a diverse and inclusive workplace at Avalara. Our group is a symbol of our identity, team spirit and a platform to support each other.

Challenges are an inevitable part of the business. Could you highlight on some you had encountered?

Being in the technology industry for over 25+ years, I have had my fair share of challenges and hurdles. Some significant problems for women which I have personally witnessed are the struggle to be heard in a room full of men. The higher the climb up the corporate ladder, the more difficult it is to be heard. There are, of course, many exceptions. Most women in senior positions will, at some point, face the challenge of being the only female voice in the room. 

Another challenge is keeping up with new-age technologies while balancing work and personal life. This is true, especially for working mothers. Becoming a mother is often the moment when women are knocked off the professional ladder. Many companies are known to sideline pregnant women from promotions and raise systematically. Even today, pregnant women and mothers are often perceived as less committed to work and more involved with their personal lives. 

The world of technology is a fast-paced one, and technical skills have a short shelf-life. That is why workplace learning and development is critical. For the majority of women balancing work and family life is already a challenge, on top of that, keeping up with new-age technologies is extremely difficult.

How can we have more women joining the bandwagon? 

We need more role models for women in the technology industry. When you have more women in leadership, other women will be encouraged to approach management to address their issues. It also creates an environment of support and is beneficial in increasing productivity in the long run.

Support other women. Period. From helping another woman with ‘manterruption’ or ‘being mansplained’ to mentoring another female colleague for career growth, we together have to force men to acknowledge our presence. Learning to speak up and being heard is not just critical for visibility, but it is an essential career skill.

Organisations should start looking at flexible work hours, access to learning and development and mentorship programs as strategically important elements to retain gender balance, and the competitive advantages it brings. Diverse companies are inherently more adaptable, and adaptability is critical for companies looking to remain relevant in a time of workplace disruption. Companies that want to stay relevant and competitive in this changing landscape can do so by prioritising diversity and ensuring equal access to training.