There are untold stories behind career breaks in India – journeys shaped by maternity, health, family obligations, loss of family member and more. Majority of these individuals are females, and their career takes a backseat because of lack of opportunities in the organizations supporting comebacks.
ATT engaged in a discussion with Revathy Ramasamy, the Talent Acquisition Specialist at Bounteous, who is driving the company's ambitious Beyond Your Break initiative. Revathy brings a wealth of experience, having rejoined the workforce following a seven-year career hiatus. Previously serving as a technical lead, she took time off to prioritize her personal life before returning to the professional realm.
Founded in 2003 in Chicago, Bounteous (Now Bounteous x Accolite) is a leading digital experience consultancy that co-innovates with the world's most ambitious brands to create transformative digital experiences. The company launched the 'Beyond Your Break' (BYB) program in 2021, empowering individuals to make comebacks and explore new opportunities, regardless of the reason or duration of the break. It is a gender-neutral program with a commendable 89% retention rate. As per the company, it aims to make BYB, an important hiring channel for experienced talent across Business Units.
We also spoke to Priya Parthasarathy, Associate Director, Information Security at Bounteous who bounced back after a decade long break from the industry.
Resume is not what matters here, it is the attitude, capabilities and life experience that matters.
Priya credits the 'Beyond Your Break' program for revitalizing her personal and professional life. Overcoming a 10-year career break, Bounteous provided a chance as a Salesforce Consultant. In her current role, she is part of the Information Security team operating out of the Chennai Collaboration Centre facilitating both Internal and third-party audits for businesses.
Positive attitude of the specially trained interview panel helps build an empathetic conversation with BYB candidates.
Revathy joined Bounteous thro’ BYB program after a 7-year career break. She had a technical background and wanted to broaden her career horizon into HR after this break. The interview panel of the BYB program focussed on evaluating her skills rather than imposing rigid expectations. The program enabled the diversification of her career skills and transitioned her from a Technical Lead to a Talent Acquisition Specialist.
“We do not look at what you did in the past as a projection of what you can do in the future."
Discussing the program's vision and philosophy, Vasan Sampath, President and Global Head of Salesforce Practice at Bounteous x Accolite, emphasizes their approach of hiring individuals for the organization rather than for a particular position.
“Our belief is that people come with a variety of skills, capabilities, and experiences from their past, all of which are valuable to the company in the future. We realize that there are a lot of professionals out there who have taken career breaks for a variety of reasons, and we feel that each of those reasons is also a life experience for those individuals. It is possible for us to see that those life experiences are valuable to us as a company. Whether it was someone who took a career break to bring up children, to take care of a personal emergency, to address a health situation in the family, or to take a sabbatical to explore the world. Each of those experiences we feel is very important and has brought in a lot of learning to the individual, helped gain maturity, and brought skills to the table that otherwise would have been lost to us as an organization.We do not look at what you did in the past as a projection of what you can do in the future. We look at what you have done in the past as potential for what you can become in the future."
During their discussion with ATT, the team members at Bounteous delved into the program, elaborating on its details and sharing notable achievements.
“About 37% of BYB candidates were nominated for BRAVO awards (internal annual R&R celebration), and it's not easy to get nominated. It's an open nomination where all eligible associates are considered, and 20% of BYB candidates won the award. Approximately 57% made it to the list. This reflects the quality and potential of BYB candidates, showcasing that they're meeting our expectations in a short span of time.”
- Diversity percentage at Bounteous India is 39%.
- The current BYB associates' number is 90. While this is a gender-neutral program, we see more women applying via this than men.
- In just two years, we provided a candidate with a 13-year career break an opportunity, and she successfully joined a global delivery project.
About the company:
Founded in 2003 in Chicago, Bounteous (Now Bounteous x Accolite) is a leading digital experience consultancy that co-innovates with the world's most ambitious brands to create transformative digital experiences. With services in Strategy, Experience Design, Technology, Analytics and Insight, and Marketing, Bounteous elevates brand experiences and drives superior client outcomes.