If you’ve ever been called too much, too emotional, too bold — that’s your badge of honour.

She does not believe in talking about corporate ladders but about building bridges. She confronts the tough dilemma of being a juggler and a sniper at the same time. She bravely points out the struggle of internalised shame of balancing work success with personal life. She does not believe in wearing burnout as a medal or guilt as a piece of baggage. She does not flinch in calling out the difference between intention and effect in corporate inclusivity. And she strongly advises her fellow women not to try to be less palatable, or wait for permission, to not chase perfection, and definitely to not underestimate the value of quiet revolutions. Asking Varundeep Kaur about her journey is like reading an entire book of women’s challenges and courage in a few minutes. With some eye-opening footnotes. Let’s turn some pages.

What happens when a bold voice, a brilliant mind and an earnest heart tell the story of women leaders– without gilding the lily and without being an ostrich in the sand? Varundeep Kaur is a portrait who essays a leader’s journey in all its colours and depth. She joined the Spice Group in 2003 and played a significant role in the development of Spice Telecom, which eventually came to be integrated into Vodafone Idea. Her metier in Spice Digital and Spice Communications Limited showcases her telecom expertise. But she was meant to make her mark in other terrains too. Moving into the fintech space, Varundeep accepted the challenges of IT modernisation and adopting scalable solutions. She accomplished many key turning points here – like the implementation of automation, low-code/no-code solutions, cybersecurity, AI and GenAI and IT system modernisation.

Her strategic thinking reflected compelling outcomes like a 15% decrease in errors and improved customer experience through better turnaround times. Her career is packed with many such milestones- as she has always jumped with a lot of ambition, passion and precision into many transformative digital initiatives aimed at scaling operations and driving inclusion. She is an alumnus of IIMA, IIMC, IIMK, ISB, and also a qualified independent director and a certified ESG and CSR professional. Her interests and contributions expand beyond IT and have illuminated areas like sustainability, rural development, design thinking, and skill development. A passionate advocate for diversity and a frequent speaker at premier industry forums, she is an ardent champion of technology as a force for good—especially in empowering underserved communities. And here she speaks of all of this. And more.

What makes you the most proud when you look back at your professional life so far?

As I reflect on my journey, I come to see that real success had little to do with climbing ladders — it was about creating bridges. It was not about accomplishing, but was about inspiring possibilities in others. What I take with me with pride is not a resume — it’s the ripple effect of courageous choices, difficult conversations, and unshakeable authenticity.

What I’m most proud of isn’t the titles I’ve worn or the records I’ve broken, but the moments I stood firm when it would have been easier to back down. I’m proud of when I decided integrity over ease, impact over fame, and people over numbers. I reflect with pride on the brave choices — be it taking on the status quo, standing up for someone unheard, or stepping out of areas that weren’t in line with my values.

Are you happy? Are you content?

What fills me with the deepest sense of fulfilment is knowing that I’ve created opportunities for others, including women to rise, to be seen, and to lead in their own voice. The legacy isn’t in the outcomes alone; it’s in how I’ve led: consistently, authentically, and without apology.

To every woman leader walking her own path: don’t wait for permission, don’t chase perfection, and don’t underestimate the quiet revolutions you’re leading every day. You are proof that leadership can look different — and still change everything.

They say ‘Men can open jars, and women can fill them right.’ Does this kind of strategic teamwork/segmentation of roles happen in the world of IT too?

Certainly, in IT and technology, one frequently finds strategic role segmentation grounded on complementary abilities rather than stereotypes. It is crucial for creating successful teams. Though the original metaphor, based on traditional gender roles, ‘Men can open jars; women can fill them right,’ is playful, the basic idea—using diverse skills for improved results—translates quite well to how successful IT teams run.

In high-functioning tech teams, success depends on diverse roles and complementary strengths: one person may be brilliant at architecting systems (opening the jar), while another excels at refining user experience, ensuring product-market fit, or maintaining team cohesion (filling it right).

Women in tech often bring strengths like empathetic leadership, cross-functional communication, user-centric thinking, and risk-awareness, which balance out the technical rigor and velocity-driven mindset that may dominate the space. This is not to reinforce stereotypes, but to highlight how inclusive, multidimensional teams often outperform homogeneous ones — not because of one dominant skill set, but because of how well varied talents align toward a shared goal.

Great IT teams thrive by assigning jobs according to abilities rather than prejudices. Just as in the analogy, where the jar needs both opening and filling to be useful, a team is strong when every member knows how their job contributes to the whole.

A lot is said about glass ceilings for women business leaders. What about glass tunnels/bridges that women forget/neglect?

Yes. While the idea of a ‘glass ceiling’ for women in business leadership is well known, there’s also an equally significant and lesser-known concept of glass tunnels and bridges that many women might overlook or forget in their paths to success. These ‘glass tunnels’ are the internalised barriers and self-imposed limitations that women may put on themselves — the fear of using their voice, the need to be perfect, or the internalised shame of balancing work success with personal life. These are invisible and entrenched barriers that make it more difficult for women to move into leadership positions or to fully realise their potential.

And glass bridges?

Conversely, ‘glass bridges’ are the networks, opportunities, and support systems that women might not notice or feel they don’t deserve. Women, especially in traditionally male-dominated fields, will shy away from using their networks or seeking mentorship because they don’t want it to look like they’re asking for special treatment. They also might devalue their achievements or believe they have to “prove” themselves more than their male peers before they can take their rightful place at the table. These lost connections and untapped assets are bridges to more power, opportunities, and development, but are ignored or overlooked.

The task, therefore, is not simply to shatter the glass ceiling but to notice, construct, and traverse the glass tunnels and bridges en route — whether through overcoming internal self-doubt, finding mentors, or forging robust networks that will drive women forward.

How?

Genuine inclusivity and personal development depend on an awareness and resolution of internal as well as outside obstacles. The solution is to immerse themselves in support structures, openings, and mentality adjustments that empower them to confidently enter leadership without holding themselves back or believing that they have to walk the very same strict course others have done.

Is enough translating to reality when we look at all the DEI promises, inclusivity brochures, and fairness initiatives taken by various companies?

Although a lot of companies have made great progress toward inclusiveness, there is still a difference between intention and effect. Real diversity and inclusion go beyond symbolic acts; they need perpetual work, quantifiable results, and a society that really appreciates many points of view. Although DEI is still thought of as mostly related to gender, its scope is far larger and there are many fallacies and misunderstandings about it overall.

Any special strength that you think being a woman helped you with in your journey?

“My strength as a woman leader lies not in emulating old models of power, but in rewriting them — with empathy as strategy, resilience as fuel, and collaboration as legacy.” In an absolute sense, one of the strongest advantages that I think being a woman has provided me is empathetic leadership — the capability to lead emotionally intelligent, through active listening and a profound ability to understand human needs and motives. This has served not only in creating trust-based, resilient teams but also in traversing intricate negotiations and high-stakes situations with serenity, transparency, and humanity.

Another strength is resilience through multitasking — the kind that comes not from simply juggling roles, but from learning how to prioritise, make decisions under pressure, and stay committed even when the odds aren’t stacked in your favour. Being a woman has also given me a heightened awareness of systemic gaps, which in turn fuels a greater sense of purpose to make workplaces more inclusive and humane.

Finally, there’s a special strength in the collective sisterhood — the encouragement, support, and cooperation women leaders give to each other, much of it unspoken but extremely potent. That solidarity, silent but consistent, has been a source of tremendous energy and strength along the way.

Women are still not in the front row when it comes to STEM education and roles. Why is that?

Women’s underrepresentation in STEM education and professions is fuelled by a combination of historical, cultural, and systemic factors. Societal expectations, insufficient early support, and restricted access to role models also contribute to women’s underrepresentation in STEM. At early ages, society’s stereotyping discourages girls from studying STEM subjects because the myth has it that boys are naturally better suited for the fields. This is further worsened by the absence of female role models in STEM, which makes it more difficult for young girls to envision themselves in these careers. Implicit biases in classrooms where male students are usually accorded more attention or higher expectations continue to discourage women from performing at their best in STEM fields.

Does this continue in a career as well?

Even after women venture into STEM, they are likely to encounter discrimination based on gender, unequal salaries, and insufficient mentorship, which lead to increased attrition rates. The high-stress requirements of STEM professions, combined with cultural pressures on women to balance work and family, can also render these fields incompatible with personal life, causing many to depart.

A McKinsey report showed that women still get only 29% of C-Suite chairs. Your observations/interpretations?

This highlights both advancement and ongoing disparity. On one side, this number shows a steady rise over ten years ago, pointing to the growing success of programs supporting gender diversity. Still, less than a third of senior leadership roles, however, shows a very ingrained leadership vacuum. This discrepancy results from systemic obstacles, including unequal access to mentorship and sponsorship, prejudiced evaluation systems, and societal expectations that disproportionately burden women with caregiving responsibilities, not from a lack of ambition or ability among men.

The first step from entry-level to management—the ‘broken rung’—is still a key bottleneck. Fewer women in early leadership pipelines translates into fewer candidates graduating to top positions. For women of colour, who contend with additional difficulties, this inequality is even more severe. The lack of women in the C-suite is a corporate problem, not only a matter of gender equity. Studies repeatedly find that in creativity, decision-making, and financial performance, varied leadership teams surpass homogeneous ones.

Correcting this imbalance calls for deliberate efforts: open promotions, inclusive leadership development, great role models, and a society redefining leadership apart from worn-out clichés. The gap will stay until these structural problems are completely fixed; hence, advancement will be incremental instead of revolutionary.

Do women feel less equipped, guilty, jugglers vs. snipers in the current workplace era? What’s the answer, if so?

Yes, many women in today’s workforce still feel less competent, guilty, and more like jugglers than concentrated snipers; this is not because of a lack of skill or drive but rather because of a mix of internalised expectations and external pressures.

Women frequently balance several responsibilities: leader, caretaker, emotional anchor, and sometimes the ‘default’ organiser at home and workplace. Guilt from not doing enough at home when they concentrate on work—and vice versa—can result from this cognitive burden. Women have long been conditioned by society to be first caregivers; hence, even when it is not, giving job goals priority seems either selfish or unnatural. At the same time, companies continue to value ‘sniper’ traits—singular focus, always available, and linear career progression—which can seem unsustainable or unattainable for women juggling several spheres.

Organisations have to overhaul their definition of successful leadership, accepting cooperation, empathy, multitasking, and resiliency as fundamental assets rather than as diversions. Leaders—regardless of gender—ought to normalise boundary-setting, work-life balance, and divided home responsibilities. Personally, women gain from building great support networks, releasing perfectionism, and adopting concentration over frenzied multitasking when feasible.

Anything that you wish to shine a torch on?

I would highlight the urgency of creating spaces where women don’t have to choose between ambition and authenticity. Too often, women are subtly or overtly instructed to shrink, to fit, to mimic leadership models based in dominance, detachment, or tireless hustle. Real leadership, though, doesn’t present itself in a certain way. Many of the most revolutionary women leaders I know operate with empathy, intuition, teamwork, and a strong sense of direction. They change the energy in rooms rather than invade them. That is power, too.

I would like to highlight the need to let go of guilt — the remorse for not being “enough” in self-care, relationships, job, or even at home. That guilt is a sign of obsolete systems and norms, not a mirror of failure. The more we discuss this, the more we free others. There is a need to reclaim time and energy — for rest, reflection, and creative renewal. Burnout is not a badge of honour. Women leaders must normalise boundaries, self-care, and saying no — not as acts of defiance, but as acts of self-preservation and long-term impact.

Let’s redefine leadership not by how much we carry, but by how intentionally we lead. Because when women lead as they truly are, they don’t just break ceilings — they redesign the entire room.

What do you wish you knew 20 years ago? What do you wish future women leaders get/be cognizant of?

If anything I’ve learned in the last twenty years, it’s that rebellion is not noise — it’s clarity. I was never the one to play it safe, read scripts, or wait my turn. I asked questions that no one wanted to answer. I broke cycles that were never meant to benefit women. And I’ve learned this: Our courage is not the exception — it is the path. To future women leaders: Don’t quench your passion to be less “palatable.” Be aggressive in your judgments, tenacious in your drive, and unforgiving in your compassion. Leadership is not about checking the boxes — it’s about levelling walls that weren’t supposed to be there anyway. Your rebellion isn’t private; it’s profoundly transitive. The world requires your nerve. Take ownership of it.

To every woman: if you’ve ever been called too much, too ambitious, too emotional, too bold — wear it as your badge of honour. Because it means you’re already shaking the system. You’re already rewriting the playbook. Every day it’s a call — to lead more loudly, to lead on your terms, and to elevate others as you ascend. We’re not here to fit in; we’re here to reset power itself. We have to build a space that does not require women to shrink, soften, or become assimilated — yet to stand tall in their truth.

Let’s begin.