Investing in India's Women: How the Corporate Sector is Helping Drive Change

By: Jennifer George
Jan 31, 2011 3:25 PM ET

MSLGROUP's Blog By: Jennifer George

As any observer of the global economy knows, India has seen unprecedented growth in recent years. In fact, the Indian economy has been growing by about 8 percent each year since 2006, reducing poverty by about 10 percentage points since 1997. And the corporate sector is helping drive this change.

Despite challenging issues corporations rarely get involved in, there a clear return in doing so – socially and financially. Global companies that have a vested interest in helping women in India succeed are taking bold steps toward supporting girls’ education, improving local economies, and fostering stronger communities. The result is not just local goodwill nor is it simply the cost of doing business in an emerging economy; rather, it’s a source of economic opportunity, innovation and competitive advantage.

The Cause/CSR team at MSLGroup believes that, in today’s always-on world, companies must redefine how they conduct business.  Profit and purpose are no longer mutually exclusive and companies are expected to define and deliver on their greater purpose in the world.

For Example:

The IT sector has historically struggled to attract women. To boost the talent pool, Capgemini, the global consulting, IT consulting, and outsourcing company, has identified gender diversity as one of their long-term business objectives. In India, it has partnered with the Naandi Foundation and the Maharashta government to promote and support the education of girls.

Oracle and CARE are working together to give Indian children— especially girls— access to math, science and technology lessons, as a way to help build knowledge, skills, and confidence. Oracle and CARE are enabling nearly 20,000 children from India to better their lives and the communities in which they live.

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