The CII Global Leadership Centre has launched a six-month Women in Manufacturing Future Leaders Fellowship in Jamshedpur to help women move from operational and supervisory roles into higher levels of responsibility in India’s manufacturing sector.
The first batch is being hosted by CII Jharkhand and began with a three-day, in-person leadership training session on Tuesday. The fellowship is open to women working in shop floor operations, production, technical departments, quality control and supervisory positions.
The programme is designed to strengthen participants’ leadership skills and prepare them for greater responsibilities within their organisations. After the initial in-person training, participants will continue learning through virtual sessions for the remainder of the six-month programme.
Diloo Parikh, chairperson of CII Jharkhand, said India’s ambition to become a global manufacturing powerhouse required the country to use the full potential of its workforce. She said the sector needed to move beyond women’s participation in manufacturing and create meaningful opportunities for their progression into leadership and decision-making roles.
The fellowship brings together academic institutions, CII centres of excellence and manufacturing industry experts. IIM Visakhapatnam will provide training in personal effectiveness, people management and workplace wellbeing. The CII Institute of Quality and the CII Centre of Excellence for Competitiveness for SMEs will focus on operational excellence and manufacturing competitiveness.
The CII Godrej Green Business Centre will contribute inputs on sustainability and green manufacturing. Industry experts will also guide participants on career opportunities and professional growth, according to the programme details reported by the Times of India.
The initiative places Jamshedpur, an established industrial city, at the centre of an effort to address women’s progression within manufacturing workplaces. Its focus is not limited to entry into factories; it is aimed at representation in supervisory and managerial roles, where operational knowledge can translate into decision-making responsibility.
The six-month format combines direct classroom engagement with continued virtual learning. The next phase of the fellowship will therefore be delivered through online sessions following the completion of the three-day leadership programme.
