ALTHOUGH PROGRESS ON GENDER EQUALITY HAS BEEN MADE IN SOME AREAS, THE POTENTIAL OF WOMEN TO ENGAGE IN, CONTRIBUTE TO AND BENEFIT FROM SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT AS LEADERS, PARTICIPANTS AND AGENTS OF CHANGE HAS NOT BEEN FULLY REALISED. WHAT IS BTPN SYARIAH’S ROLE TOWARDS THIS END?
BTPN plays a very significant role in promoting gender equality as capacity building is part of our priority, both for our customers and for the employees. For productive underprivileged women customers, our financing product is designed to nurture four key behaviours: courage to do business, discipline, hardwork, and solidarity. Possessing these characteristics, our customers are empowered to manage their household finances while creating a better quality life for their families and the next generations.
Our financing product also has a membership system, with shared responsibility for all members within each community group. The group selects a community leader for each instalment cycle and the leadership role is passed on amongst members, thus allowing members to practice their leadership skills. As for the employees, all of our Community Officers are women – they are the front liners in facilitating and assisting the productive underprivileged customers in the field. Their task is not only to finance the distribution, but also to encourage the customers to pursue their hopes and dreams. The Community Officers are trained to demonstrate honesty, politeness, and discipline. By taking up these roles, we also encourage the Community Officer to develop their own potential as well.
UNDOUBTEDLY, SUPPORTING WOMEN ENTREPRENEURS IS VITAL FOR ECONOMIC GROWTH. HOWEVER, IN INDONESIA, WOMEN ENTREPRENEURS STILL FACE SIGNIFICANT CHALLENGES IN OBTAINING ACCESS TO CREDIT. HOW IS BTPN SYARIAH ADDRESSING THIS ISSUE?
We have a dedicated team working exclusively on opening access to credit for women from productive underprivileged background. Since the beginning of our operation, we have been persistent in our efforts to empower the unbanked communities across Indonesia.
Currently, BTPN Syariah is serving 3.5 million customers, all of whom are women. We operate in 23 provinces, out of which 10 provinces, as recorded by the government, have the largest population of poor productive communities in Indonesia.
YOU HAVE RECENTLY BEEN NAMED AS THE 6TH MOST INFLUENTIAL WOMAN IN ISLAMIC BUSINESS AND FINANCE GLOBALLY BY CAMBRIDGE IFA, UK. CONGRATULATIONS ON THIS HUGE ACHIEVEMENT. WHAT ARE, FROM YOUR PERSPECTIVE, THE BIGGEST CHALLENGES FOR WOMEN IN LEADERSHIP ROLES?
Taking up a leadership role has its consequences. The challenges will arise if women don’t anticipate them early enough. These consequences or challenges may occur in various forms – gender bias, family sensitivity, societal perceptions of working women, and many more. Once we have the willingness to accept these challenges and embrace them instead of denying them, we have the power to leverage on our personal qualities to tackle these challenges.
WHAT ADVICE DO YOU HAVE FOR WOMEN AIMING FOR LEADERSHIP POSITIONS?
Focus on your passion. God has given you talents, while your passion drives you to use your talents repeatedly and consistently, all the while strengthening them. Passion creates a burning desire to serve wholeheartedly, thus, leading you with determination, persistence and endurance during the hard times.
Choose your team wisely. Base your choice on EQ (emotional quotient) instead of IQ (intelligence quotient), and avoid the tendency to choose a team that is “similar to us”. Instead engage professionals with different strengths, and assure that your team carry a shared mission and hold the same life values.
Always make time to learn and grow. There is no magic in building a business; one has to go through the process of ups and downs, the success as well as the failure. You can only grow only if you learn from that process. It can be better understood using the mountain climber’s principle: be humble when you rise (because you are stronger when you bend your body down as you walk up the mountain), and confident when you are down (because it is easier to walk down the hill with your body leaning back). Lastly, disrupt yourselves otherwise someone else will.
WHAT DO WOMEN LEADERS BRING THAT IS UNIQUE?
Women tend to lead from the heart. It is natural for women to show caring and empathy, thus human connections comes quite naturally in an environment led by women.
