“EMPATHY IS AS IMPORTANT AS INTELLECT”
As Chairman of IBM India, Vanitha Narayanan has transformed the Big Blue into a technology company that is preparing for a multidisciplinary future
There’s just the slightest trace of an American accent that indicates the nearly three decades she has spent working for IBM, one of the world’s most iconic companies, with operations in 170 countries and a brand valuation of over $75 billion. But it’s the confident set of her shoulders and her firm enunciation that truly sets her apart. At 58, Vanitha Narayanan is at the peak of her profession, Chairman of IBM India (IBM prefers this to the gender-neutral chairperson), where it has moved beyond its core competence of servicing telecom into banking, financial services and insurance, industrial, healthcare and retail segments. Not bad for a woman who began her working life in America as a store clerk in the home linen department of Joske’s, a department store in Houston, Texas.
Like most children growing up to middle class parents in pre-liberalisation India, education for Narayanan and her brother was the biggest goal. Especially because neither of her parents was able
to complete college. Growing up in Pune, her family moved back to Chennai when it was time to go to college—so it was a BA at Stella Maris College in PR and Communications, which sounded like an intriguing idea. Then followed an internship at advertising agency HTA, and an MBA at University of Madras. In the final semester, she got married, and by July 1981, she was in Houston, Texas, working as a store clerk at $3.50 an hour. “I got to know what a fitted sheet was, what was a comforter, or a dust ruffle. Then I was moved to electronics where there was a nice gentleman, Dick Reed, who taught me everything there was to know about TVs and radios.” By the time she left, she was making $6.50 an hour with 2 per cent commission. She calls this her pre-IBM learning, which taught her to adapt in a new culture. “I learnt to speak slower; how to keep the customer happy by making them comfortable; and discovered that you don’t always get what you wish to do but how you do it can set you apart,” she says. This lifelong lesson in work ethic has served her well.
But babydom was calling and so was an MBA at the University of Houston with a specialisation in management information systems. She did well in an interview for a job at IBM and moved to St Louis, Missouri. “From the beginning, my husband and I did whatever made sense for us as a family,” she says, echoing Sheryl Sandberg’s advice to find a supportive spouse. So, her husband, Ramesh, quit his auditing job and moved with her. She spent a decade working for a telecom customer Southwestern Bell Telephone Company in Missouri. “It defined my IBM career. It helped me lay a foundation—and most times, the client is your best teacher,” she says.
From there to Dallas, then three
years in Shanghai between 2006 and 2009 and finally, nine years ago, back to her roots, in India as Sales and Distribution Leader and then Managing Partner for Global Business Services, IBM. China, where she ran the communications sector business for IBM’s Asia Pacific unit, gave her global exposure, in a career that was largely US-oriented and returning to India as head of sales, reporting to MD Shanker Annaswamy, was a very impactful experience. “I came back to a very different, much younger and more confident India.”
This is her thirtieth year at IBM and she likes to divide her career at The Big Blue into three decades— her first decade in St Louis, Missouri, where she didn’t wait for opportunity to knock, but simply created it when she could; the second decade at Dallas, Texas, when she acquired a national and global role, started running teams, working on partnerships, recognising how to scale; and the third decade where she stepped into a global role and acquired the skills required to flourish in it. “I discovered not to confuse English skills with insight, realised empathy was as important as intellectual capacity to be a leader, and that no one can invent anything in isolation,” she says.
After serving as the Managing Director of IBM India for four years (2013-2016), Narayanan was elevated to the position of Chairman, IBM India Pvt Ltd in early 2017. Her broader understanding of IBM capabilities and the Indian market has helped provide strategic roadmap to the organisation. Apart from working closely with various industry chambers and government bodies, she will continue to stay engaged with the clients in this role.
She says she has never really had to face misogyny at work, except for once, at a meeting with a potential partner, she recalls, when no one was listening to her and her male colleague had to repeat everything she said. “I believe it is more important to get the right outcome than be right. But I also believe in not playing the victim as long as you’re not being abused or bullied.” The last few years she has spent giving back to society, working with professional organisations, government initiatives and start-ups. Her stint as chairperson of National Institute of Technology (NIT) Surathkal was a great learning as was her tenure as chairperson of AMCHAM (American Chamber of Commerce in India). Her personal passions and professional ambitions are coalescing.
She believes that the future will see us leverage technology in health, education and in all aspects of life and work that we have not experienced as much to date. Every student in the 21st century, she believes, will need to have basic technical skills which will make them more employable. So STEM (Science, Engineering, Technology and Mathematics) subjects are important but so are liberal arts, because with the advance of artificial intelligence, humans need to become more human. ‘’We will all have to become lifetime learners and most people will have multiple careers in a lifetime. People will build new skills as per their aspirations, technology shifts and market needs, remain flexible and be willing to reskill,’’ she adds. She sees a lot more opportunity for women in a digital economy. Men and women will be adapting their roles in the traditional family structure, and we will see increasing societal acceptance to men being primary care givers.
She sees the world as an enormous possibility—automation and quotas don’t worry her. “Certain shifts in industry are occurring and some jobs will become automated, all jobs will change and a whole new set of professions will emerge,’’ she says. IBM too is changing to keep pace—in the last five years it has invested $15 billion in health education. IBM employs more doctors than ever before, more data scientists than ever before. Last year alone, her teams in India have invested 1.8 million hours of learning in the first quarter. It is this focus on people that makes her stand out. As IBM Global Markets Senior Vice-President Bruno V Di Leo says, “The most important thing Vanitha has is that she puts the human side in everything she does. She really cares about her people. And she shows this through her words and actions.” This mix of business acumen and people skills has earned her respect from leaders and peers from across the globe says Managing Director AT&T, Global Integrated Account, IBM, Randy Walker.
Having taken up a new role and more responsibilities, Narayanan is now all set to move back to the US. With her intent to always make a meaningful impact, whether professional or personal, who could ask for more?
“I BELIEVE IT IS IMPORTANT TO GET THE RIGHT OUTCOME THAN BE RIGHT”