#Superwomen2019 Trying to do everything yourself is unreal; we must recognize this: Smita Murarka, Amanté

Smita Murarka, Marketing Head @Amanté shares her illustrious journey spanning 16 years in the M & A industry in an exclusive conversation with Social Samosa.

Murarka shares that the industry needs an environment without any gender biases that advocate equal opportunity, and equal pay. A superwoman is no longer restricted to a definition; Murarka sharers her two cents on the Superwomen of the Media & Advertising industry.

How would you define a
Superwoman in today's day and age? 

A superwoman is someone who is multifaceted and evolves constantly. Women juggle many roles quite efficiently, whether in their career or being a daughter, mother or wife. I believe that all these roles deserve an equal commitment, to be efficient in each role. Someone who juggles these effortlessly is a quintessential Superwoman.

I also believe that Women today are change-makers in society and at work. They’re at the forefront of changing the way brands are doing business, societies are thinking and judging behavior. To have a voice and use social media and other platforms to drive positive changes are parameters of being a superwoman.

One quality that you
think every superwoman has and that helped you win Social Samosa Superwomen

I have worked across decades with changing consumer behavior and diverse roles, adopting digital in the brand’s marketing strategy as an early starter. Have been part of the journey to move consumers from ethnic-wear to western wear, onset of beauty & accessories & upgrading confidence from within through lingerie. Today I am able to contribute to the business decisions holistically, not restricting my learnings to only traditional marketing.

Being agile, understanding different generations with ease, and
having a diverse experience would be some of the reasons.

How successful have
women been in shattering the glass ceiling in the Media & Advertising
field? Does the 'boardroom inequality' phrase still stand true? 

Board room inequalities are topics being brought out globally and are not confined to any particular industry but exist across.

Today women are the key purchase drivers and main target audiences for any brand. With this shift in consumer behavior, advertising and media agencies are also hiring women to market to them better and thus are by default coerced to give women equal importance in boardrooms. These industries have more room for organic changes and are faster in overcoming the inequality battle.

What are the key changes this industry needs in order to make workplaces gender-neutral, safe, and nurturing?   

Equal opportunity, equal pay and creating an environment without any gender biases would help in making workplaces safer for women.

Women also function differently from men and present different views on handling the same business situations. This industry needs to understand and encourage this, as it brings diversity and more comprehensive views to the table.

Also read: #Superwomen2019 Organizations need to see skills over gender: Manika Juneja, Watconsult

One Superpower you
wish you had? 

One Superpower that I had would be to predict the future in a category faster than consumers know it. Many times, marketers are stuck in doing researches and provide consumers what they want today, however, the real differentiator is when you give consumers what they would want tomorrow.

Apple and its brands are a great example of such a philosophy. I would like to excel at this and have special superpowers to get it right every time.

The 'Superwomen' you
diligently follow and who inspired you... 

There are many role models today, who have come out and inspired
us to be multifaceted and set standards of excellence in their roles.

In the Indian sports scene its Mary Kom, defying age and motherhood, putting Indian boxing on the world map. In the world of Bollywood -Priyanka Chopra has put Indian talent on the global scene and gone beyond any Indian artist. In the world of business, it is Indira Nooyi.

All these women have shown us to dare to dream and dare to be
the best version of themselves.

One tip to women out there attempting to scale heights...

As women, we handle many more roles, and it’s important to create a structure at home which helps us be as committed and career-driven at work and relieves us from the emotional guilt of being omnipresent.

Trying to do everything yourself is unreal and we must recognize this to be able to scale heights. Use principles of team management and delegation even at home.