Having diversity is building an ecosystem of continuous innovation: Tiny Sengupta

Adgully has consistently celebrated and acknowledged the accomplishments of women entrepreneurs and leaders in various sectors. One of our notable initiatives, W-SUITE, focuses on highlighting extraordinary women achievers in the Media & Entertainment, Advertising, Marketing, PR, and Communications industry. In this updated series, we aim to explore how women leaders adeptly manage their teams and overcome challenges in the dynamic landscape of their respective industries.

In an exclusive interaction with Adgully, Tiny Sengupta, Business Unit Director, Vision Care India, Johnson & Johnson, speaks about the unique perspectives she brings to the table as a woman leader, navigating and overcoming challenges, fighting stereotypes, leadership roles in traditionally male-dominated industries, emotional intelligence, maintaining a successful work-life balance, fostering a culture of diversity and inclusion, and more.

As a female leader in your industry, what unique perspectives do you bring to your role as Business Unit Director in your organization?

Well, I would like to respond to this from a gender-neutral perspective. From the lenses of a leader, the unique perspective or the most interesting part of my job is ‘Creation’ – shaping brand, serving consumers/ patients, nurturing future talent to build a profitable business.

How do you navigate and overcome challenges related to gender bias or stereotypes in your professional journey?

Gender bias or stereotypes has been there across generations and various walks of life. It is not just limited to professional space, but often spills into other aspects of life as well. The best way to navigate is by always:

• Understanding one’s core
• Having clarity of your choices and own it
• Identifying a mentor to learn from
• Seeking help from the people around youin the absence of a mentor when you need it

Could you share insights into how you have championed diversity and inclusion within your team and organization throughout your career?

Having diversity in the team is fueling curiosity and building an eco-system of continuous innovation; an eco-system that will help breed new ideas and create a risk-taking muscle in the team. 

In fact, diversity also leads to multiple ideas, point of views, agreements and disagreements to ensure thatone common vision succeeds.

I believe inclusion is respecting all voices and providing psychological safety to make everyone feel belonged to an idea that manifest on ground.

As a mentor to future female leaders, what advice do you offer to women aiming to break into leadership roles in traditionally male-dominated industries?

To be a role model with a secured mindset, one must be a constant learner first. It is very important to have an attitude to learn from your mentor, subordinates, various functional partners, consumers, key opinion leaders from the industry, etc., because the more you listen, the more you learn and will be able to appreciate diverse views.

Building trust is another significant attribute towards becoming a secure leader. This comes when you empower members of your team to lead while trusting their capabilities.

Champion and nurture your team to build future leaders – be it women leaders or male ally leaders.

How do you balance the demands of your professional career with your personal wellness and self-care routines, particularly as a woman in leadership?

For me, balance comes from my love for yoga, which helps me discover myself every day!

When it comes to my personal life, I am not married by choice but, having said that, I am the mother of five members in my family, both old and young. I feel rejuvenated in the company of my 6-year-old son and my family that is a living model of optimism and positivity for me. They keep me going, bringing along a sense of fulfillment and purpose to my life.

In what ways do you advocate for women’s health and wellness within the corporate environment and through your initiatives in the organization?

I can share through my personal experience my transformational journey from 80 kg to 57 kg, all due to discipline of regular Yoga and the right food. The trigger to take care of self came post-Covid, when I realized the key to life is taking care of one’s health.

This makes me always nudge each member of my team to first take care of their physical and mental health by investing time in a disciplined regular physical activity and comp-off for oneself.

Another important must-have is sound sleep of 8 hours. I have yet to master this, however, I do recommend my team members to do so.

Could you discuss any specific experiences or challenges that you’ve faced as a woman leader in your sector, and how you have addressed them to drive positive change?

There is a bias which I had to experience as a woman. For me, that has been a major challenge, however, I would like to think of it as an opportunity to initiate change in my own capacity.

One of the significant challenges that I faced as a woman was to navigate through GT sales, commercial functions, etc. I am sure a lot of women will find this relatable and have more stories to share.

An advice that has worked best for me is to demonstrate your effort and enthusiasm to learn, perform and win. I believe that the best way to break the bias and pave the way for more women leaders is by continuously initiating this change across various fields and functions.