‘There is no force more powerful than a woman who is obsessed with her goal and has complete faith in herself. Glass ceilings will break, and organisations will carve out a special path for her.’

Simmi Dhamija, Chief Transformation Officer, Tech Mahindra, is the perfect example of this saying.

Since joining Tech Mahindra in 2006 in the Quality Function, Simmi has played a pivotal role in the company’s transformation journey. She has been a catalyst in profit improvement, driving delivery modernisation using technology and digital transformation to help Tech Mahindra towards the journey of Cognitive Enterprise. She has also been instrumental in the performance turnaround of portfolio companies, building performance-based leadership culture at Tech Mahindra.

Her ownership of not only of her function, but also for the organisation has helped her craft new roles. In her 14-year journey, she has traversed horizontals and verticals in the organisation, from Quality to Executive Performance Management to leading strategy to business initiatives. She is now leading a full-scale transformation focused on solution portfolio design, delivery modernisation, cost transformation, digitalisation leading to a cognitive enterprise for Tech Mahindra and its portfolio companies.

Simmi recalls the turning point in her career. “When I was in Quality, I had identified Performance Management Leadership as an improvement area. I took a detailed solution to CP Gurnani, MD & CEO, Tech Mahindra. He supported me whole-heartedly and asked me to drive this initiative directly with him,” says Simmi, who had the organisation’s backing for every new idea she came up with.

To drive large scale change in 100K+ associates, she created virtual teams in business units. To keep pace with her new roles, she kept unlearning and learning. That passion for learning inspired her to come up with the idea of ‘Skilling Nxt’ — a programme that helps people trying to upgrade their skills get on-demand skilling for future roles. Her determination, diligence and extreme hard work — whether it meant putting in 20-hour days or giving up holiday time — helped her fulfil organisational goals. Simmi was awarded the ‘Leader of the Year’ award in 2018 for her contributions to the organisation’s success.