“Synergy Empowers Her”, an interactive seminar on 15 May echoed, illustrated and again promoted Synergy’s commitment to industry equality for women, with over 300 delegates including seafarers, shore staff and cadets from the Indian Maritime University, the Maritime Academy of Asia and the Pacific and the University of Cebu.
Speakers and panel members included Sanjam Sahi Gupta, Director at Sitara Shipping Ltd and Founder of MaritimeSheEO, Dr. Deepti Mankad, Founder of Mindspeak, Ms. Debasmita Sinha, Clinical Director at Manah Wellness along with key team members from Synergy – Ms. Jyothsna Machcha, Chief HR Officer, Ms. Aizza Kesavmoorthy, Manager – Manning and Captains Rajesh Unni, Swaminathan Hari, Shashank Jahagirdar, Kirsty Bruce and Radhika Menon, with the latter two distilling wisdom from their own experiences in tackling what was entrenched bias in what remains a male-dominated environment.
Frankness in recognising this was matched by artful presentation of the binary method of addressing it – women inspire and support each other in nurturing ambition, individuality, resilience, determination, strategy and unchallengeable competence, and (rightly, and also to the great benefit of all) employers facilitate that with cultures, structures and disciplines that insist on safety, proper behaviour and fair treatment, all in strict meritocracy that avoids patronisation and absolutely forbids discrimination.
All of this highlights a vital need rather than being a mere politically correct pleasantry. Everyone at Synergy, came together to further emphasize their understanding and commitment to listen, speak, and act accordingly.