Inclusion Financial News

company culture plays a key role in ensuring job satisfaction, growth, and overall well-being. A high paycheck may seem attractive, but if the work environment is toxic, it can quickly affect daily work life and career growth. A supportive work culture can lead to better professional fulfilment, while a poor one can limit growth, reduce productivity, and harm mental health. It is important to assess a company’s culture before accepting a job offer to ensure it aligns with your values, work style, and long-term career goals. Here are four practical ways to assess company culture before making a decision:

employee benefits to address evolving workforce needs and attract talent amid a changing employment landscape. Organisations are now focusing on flexible health insurance, mental health support, and diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) measures, according to The Future of Benefits 2024 report by Mercer Marsh Benefits. The report, accessed by TOI's Rupali Mukherjee, highlights a 300% rise in companies offering flexible health insurance over the past five years. These plans now include coverage for parents, siblings, wellness programs, and financial planning tools. The study analysed data from over 10,000 policies and more than 600 benefit evaluations across 14 industries. Employees are increasingly seeking more control over their benefits, driving demand for customisable insurance and wellness schemes. The banking, financial services, and insurance (BFSI) sector offers the highest sum insured, followed by pharmaceutical and IT/ITES/e-commerce industries. Notably, 73% of IT/ITES/e-commerce firms offer insurance covering employees, spouses, children, and parents/in-laws by default, compared to 64% in pharma and 54% in manufacturing, the report noted.

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Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. India’s consumption landscape has undergone a significant transformation over the last two decades, influenced by shifts in income distribution, economic shocks and changes in spending behaviour. Data from PRICE’s ICE 360 pan-India household survey provide a detailed account of these trends, shedding light on the financial resilience of different income groups and the impact of events such as the pandemic.

Samantha Ruth Prabhu is battling systemic injustices in showbiz, one day at a time. The ‘Yashoda’ actress, who launched her production house Tralala Moving Pictures in 2023, has revealed that every artiste associated with her maiden venture 'Bangaram' will receive equal pay. This unprecedented move has been widely lauded by her peers, including Kannada actress Ramya and cinematographer Preetha Jayaraman, both of whom commended Samantha for championing fair wages in cinema. During a panel discussion on gender equity in the film industry at the Bengaluru International Film Festival (BIFFES), filmmaker Nandini Reddy, who is directing the project, disclosed that Samantha had personally intervened to eliminate pay discrepancies. This decision marks a significant shift in an industry where wage inequality remains a persistent issue.

equity and inclusion initiatives that much of corporate America endorsed following the protests that accompanied the Minneapolis police killing of George Floyd, a Black man, in 2020. The changes have come in response to a campaign by conservative activists to target workplace programs in the courts and social media, and more recently, President Donald Trump's executive orders aimed at upending DEI policies in both the federal government and private sector. DEI policies typically are intended to root out systemic barriers to the advancement of historically marginalized groups in certain fields or roles. Critics argue that some education, government and business programs are discriminatory because they single out participants based on factors such as race, gender and sexual orientation. They have targeted corporate sponsorships, employee-led affinity groups, programs aimed at steering contracts to minority or women-owned businesses, and goals that some companies established for increasing minority representation in leadership ranks.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. Each year, the Pickle Factory Dance Foundation—an artist-led not-for-profit in Kolkata— creates homes for dance in repurposed spaces. This annual event celebrates its fifth season this year.

Corporate India on the whole, is still at a ‘progressive’ stage (L2), finds the analysis of 251 organisations, including 40 Nifty100 Companies and 8 of the top 10 Indian business houses, by talent and leadership consulting firm BasilTree Consulting — where organisations have formal strategies and defined initiatives, but DEI is yet to become a true business driver. Over a third of companies are still at the ‘emerging’ stage (L1), treating DEI as compliance-led and event-driven, while only a small fraction has reached a ‘transformative’ (L4) stage, where inclusion is embedded into culture, strategy, and measurable business impact. The more mature companies – belonging to the Nifty-100 list, are in the L3 bracket.

International Women’s Day, philanthropist Nita Ambani shared an inspiring message for women, urging them to place their health and well-being at the forefront of their priorities. Through a heartfelt video, she encouraged women to invest in themselves by adopting a fitness routine, reinforcing the idea that it is never too late to embark on a journey toward a healthier lifestyle.

Nirmala Sitharaman on Saturday said the banking sector must continue to innovate and lead amid changing global landscape, and exuded confidence that the country's largest bank SBI will embrace technology, sustainability and inclusivity as its guiding principles. Speaking at the launch of Platinum Jubilee celebrations of Foundation Day of State Bank of India (SBI), the minister also said SBI has continuously evolved to meet the changing landscape and retained its position as a market leader despite regulatory tightening. «The world is changing rapidly, and the banking sector must continue to innovate and also to lead. I am confident that SBI will rise to the occasion embracing technology, sustainability and inclusivity as its guiding principles,» Sitharaman said. She said SBI is reinventing its personal distribution channels to align with evolving customer expectations.

International Women's Day in New Delhi on Saturday. He emphasised that multitasking, often seen as an inherent trait of women, is likely a role imposed by society, calling for solutions that stem from societal reform. «The remarkable women who shaped our Constitution proved that true leadership is built on compassion, humanism, and care—not just power or wealth,» Venkataramani said.

women investors make their mark in the financial world, it is important to explore the factors of this shift, the development of their investment strategy, and the wider influence of their increasing presence in shaping contemporary finance.

Subscribe to enjoy similar stories. The union government proposes to expand the network of digital banking units (DBU) across the country by nearly doubling their number to around 200 in just over a year.

Women in Tech Report 2025. The number of women perceiving their company's diversity efforts as merely symbolic or slow-moving has dropped from 70% in 2024 to 40% in 2025, marking a substantial improvement. Nearly 75% of respondents report that their workplace provides a safe and inclusive environment, found the report. The Breaking Barriers in Tech – Women in Tech Survey Report 2025, in collaboration with Talent500, is based on insights from 3,000 women across IT/ITES, Global Capability Centers (GCCs), startups, and product companies.

Bureaucratic Caste System', former IAS officer and Padma Bhushan recipient M N Buch likened India's bureaucracy to caste hierarchy: IAS as brahmins, IPS kshatriyas, general bureaucracy as vaishyas, and teachers and scientists as shudras. This unwritten 'caste system' was debated in the Supreme Court this week when a challenge to the MP government's 2024 order on performance appraisal reports (PAR) for forest officers came up. The order mandates district-level forest officers — divisional forest officers, conservators and chief conservators — be appraised by district magistrates (DMs) and divisional commissioners (DCs), both IAS officers. MP forest officers contend IAS officials lack technical expertise to judge them.

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female workforce participation by 2047 as it is pivotal for building a Viksit Bharat and will help unlock immense economic potential and foster growth, labour and employment secretary Sumita Dawra said. Speaking at the Women in Services Sector — the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) Dialogue 2025 on Wednesday, Dawra said over the past six years, the labour force participation rate for women has risen from 23% in 2017-18 to approximately 42% in 2023-24. “This uptick is evident across various sectors, including agriculture, manufacturing and services, with a notable increase in educated women joining the workforce,” she said.

Makkal Needhi Maiam President Kamal Haasan has strongly criticised the Union government’s plan for parliamentary constituency delimitation, warning that it could weaken India’s federal structure and diversity. Speaking at an All-Party Meeting on the issue, Haasan stated that the move could harm India’s inclusive vision by promoting a homogenised «Hindia.»

Bastar region, through special schemes for roads and mobile towers. Finance minister OP Choudhary reduced VAT on petrol, thereby reducing the price by ₹1 per litre. He also proposed the setting up of a pension fund for all government employees. The government expects an 11% increase in income without imposing any new taxes. Choudhary said, «In the last budget we laid the foundation of inclusive growth with GYAN — Garib, Yuva, Annadaata and Naari… In this budget, I will mention the gameplan of GATI to achieve inclusive growth for GYAN. GATI means good governance, accelerating infrastructure, technology and industrial growth. GATI is essential not only for GYAN but also our long-term aim of 'Viksit Chhattisgarh' by 2047.»

Now in their ninth year, the Women in Investment Awards continue to play an important role in helping accelerate the pace of change towards a more diverse and inclusive investment industry.   Our awards not only honour the inspiring achievements of women across all parts of the investment industry, they also help shape the discussion around how we can improve DEI within the sector.   As well as our headline sponsor Amundi Investment Solutions, we will also be supported this year for the awards by a group of Ally Partners including KKR, Morgan Stanley Investment Management and Nuveen. ...

women in mid-to-senior management roles want to lead but systemic obstacles continue to block their way forward, a new survey found. A new study conducted by diversity and inclusion firm Interweave Consulting discovered that 55% of women aspired to move into senior leadership positions just below the C-suite, while 34% aspired to reach CEO or CXO levels. A whopping 91% of the women surveyed shared a willingness to stretch boundaries in the short term to invest in their self-growth and career growth. Yet, 39% feel unconscious bias was hindering their advancement. The study spread over three years and 16 organisations, surveyed more than 1,000 women and 50 managers, and found unconscious bias, work-life balance, and absence of support hobbled the path to top leadership for women.