Jaya Ramoutar
Jaya Ramoutar is an IT Performance Manager at one of the world's leading integrated oil and gas companies, a role which took her squarely out of her comfort zone and planned career path. While cognisant of the risks such a move represented, she made it anyway – and successfully so! We recently sat down with Jaya to find out more about the decisions, experiences, and risks which led her to her current position, what she sees as the real challenges of leading others, and how she continues to carve out a space for herself in defiance of traditional expectations. This piece forms part of our series on Entrepreneurship and Diversity in the Workplace.
Jaya’s career had always been in IT – with a self-described knack for computers, and IT-focused undergraduate and postgraduate degrees (the first in Computer Science and Management, and the second in Business Information Systems). One thing she’s quick to explain however is that IT is much more than just programming, despite popular misconceptions. In fact, she shared that her arguably ‘non-traditional’ IT route (starting off in network engineering, and then moving to technical cybersecurity) was a main factor in her fruitful 12-year cybersecurity career. Having attained leadership positions in cybersecurity and with a clear path for further upward mobility within that stream, it is no wonder that an opportunity which was effectively a sidestep away from her ‘anchor’ subject matter and into the unknown constituted a substantial career risk for Jaya.
Indeed, Jaya stresses just how risky the move seemed at the time – she could lose her competitive edge as an SME in cybersecurity, she could become lost in the crowd of well-experienced IT practitioners, she could face a future entirely unknown. But she was able to see the opportunity for what it was, namely a step that widened and expanded her career trajectory exponentially, both within and outside of her organisation. Equally, on the aspect of leadership Jaya does not sugar-coat – “It’s quite challenging, being a senior leader in a big company”, but she notes that it is enjoyable especially as she’s settled into the role. Her advice is to ensure that if your aspirations centre on such a role, that you understand all aspects of the role - not just the day job - noting that each day she is responsible for a multitude of things including her team’s emotions, their careers, and for decisions that can either bring profit or redound to far-reaching consequences.
"entrepreneurial leadership stays true to some of the general principles – namely being able to influence people up and down the value chain, being able to ‘sell’ your product or service, and being able to show (in dollars and cents) how you are adding value to the Company."
The stars had aligned early on for Jaya to take up and succeed in the role, starting with joining the company on one of their tailor-made initiatives geared towards developing leadership potential. This programme aimed at providing coaching as well as intensive opportunities to network and accelerate working experience specific to the company. For Jaya, her strong foundation in her subject area of cybersecurity meant she was comfortably able to demonstrate her professional expertise, but she notes that as an experienced hire this was par for the course and expected. The true test posed by the Programme centred on the leadership skills like ‘impact’ and ‘influence’ that you were expected to demonstrate, and Jaya notes that in large companies, successful leadership absolutely requires exceptional soft or leadership skills.
Another such skill is networking, which Jaya admits to having previously undervalued and misunderstood; nonetheless, she was given the opportunity to develop and hone her networking abilities in interactions with the company’s top management. Through the programme, Jaya was therefore stretched in new directions, both personally and professionally. “You had to be able to multitask, to do your day job and also do stretch projects, the purpose of which was to bring new ideas to senior management.” That exposure to the company’s senior executives, in working and learning alongside them, was one of the most invaluable aspects of the programme for Jaya.
Putting her soft skills into practice, Jaya’s success in her Management role has arguably been founded on her ability to maintain an essentially entrepreneurial approach to leadership, focused on the ability to influence, impact, and bring value. Faced with a team who needed coaching due to organisational changes, Jaya successfully redefined the role and position within the value chain of the organisation – and this only a year in to the role. What does Jaya’s brand of entrepreneurial leadership look like? It stays true to some of the general principles – namely being able to influence people up and down the value chain, being able to ‘sell’ your product or service, and being able to show (in dollars and cents) how you are adding value to the Company.
However, what sets Jaya apart is her focus on the people that she leads, and the way she employs a pivotal combination of listening and empathy. In fact, she stresses the importance of being able to fully understand and appreciate the challenges faced by her team and to get past the tendency to apply a solution derived only from her personal experience. Instead, she indicates that the much more rewarding approach (personally and professionally) is to lead the team member along a path to discovering a unique, and oftentimes even better, solution of their own making. Undoubtedly another extremely important (and entrepreneurial) skill that Jaya has had to develop is the ability to prioritise and manage her time, and to come to terms with the fact that it is often impossible to get everything on the list done. She notes that it is essential to evaluate priorities and determine what you can risk not doing – while simultaneously managing your time to ensure that you add value, can face any repercussions, and manage to have a life too.
"my advice to anyone reading is to be open to opportunities you never thought about; don’t be afraid of forging your own path despite family, cultural or other pressures. It’s ok not to be married by the age of 25, it’s ok to take a different path in life – change countries, change jobs, defy timelines– do what makes you happy.”
What does ‘having a life’ look like for Jaya? Acknowledging the cliché all the while, she revealed her renewed interest in meditation, which she notes has helped her appreciate the sound of silence, a welcome reprieve from her role’s requirement of constant conversation and engagement. Mentioning a mix of diet and exercise, we loved when she noted “I do what makes me happy”, meaning that if she really wants that slice of cake, then cake it is! Sleeping, yoga, salsa dancing - Jaya does a mix of things to ensure that she meets her self-care needs – thankfully supported by the culture of her organisation. She noted that as a young, single female, there was always a chance that her time may not be as valued as that of someone with children for instance – but fortunately that is not the case, something which she is immensely appreciative of.
Indeed, the Company does arguably well in terms of furthering its diversity agenda, something that Jaya is personally invested in not only in terms of gender but more so in terms of making sure that people who are different in whatever way are aware of - and empowered to exploit - the opportunities that may be available. In the same way that Jaya’s story turns the status quo on its head, her advice to anyone reading is to be open to opportunities you never thought about, and not to be afraid of forging your own path despite family, cultural or other pressures. She stresses, “It’s ok not to be married by the age of 25, it’s ok to take a different path in life – change countries, change jobs, defy timelines– do what makes you happy.”
Jaya’s pursuit of happiness may one day lead her to working at a development bank, or even opening her dream coffee shop, serving gourmet coffee amidst fantastic ambience overlooking the ocean. Until then, Jaya continues to lead entrepreneurially and empathetically, face risks head on, and chart her own course regardless of expectations (including, at times, her own!).
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One of the best books I’ve ever read is Shantaram by Gregory David Roberts. It’s a very exciting book, loosely based on someone’s life. The way it was written, was like poetry; the writer’s use of prose and the way he used language, made me appreciate words as a tool. I could actually feel and visualise the things the writer described in the book. I felt as though I had understood exactly what his interpretation of everything was, which was powerful for me.
Another book that impacted me was The Power of the Subconscious Mind by Joseph Murphy. This was the book that changed my mindset, it empowered me to take action and do things, to accomplish things.