This article is part of Inspiring Inclusion, Tech in Asia’s campaign for International Women’s Day 2024, which ties in with our larger initiative to support women in tech by shining the spotlight on their stories, the impact they’ve had, and their achievements.
A year ago, I was in the early stages of my second pregnancy and went in for what should have been a routine scan to hear the baby’s heartbeat. Instead, I walked out devastated and in shock– no heartbeat could be detected and I had miscarried.
The timing of this news was tough, as we were just kicking off our roadshow for the Tech in Asia acquisition, and I had a packed calendar of calls and pitches. I needed to put on a good show, while quietly trying to emotionally, mentally, and physically process the miscarriage.
From there, the rest of 2023 unfolded on these parallel tracks.
Term sheets started rolling in mid-year, right about when I found out I was pregnant again. The due diligence process could be mapped to my first trimester, final negotiations happened during my second trimester, and we officially closed the deal as I kicked off my third trimester.
I assume that sparring with financial advisors and lawyers is annoying most of the time, but I can assure you it’s downright torture when you’re also fatigued and nauseated. And all of this was happening on top of the daily job of running Tech in Asia and chasing my toddler.
Fast forward to today, I’m nine months pregnant and should go into labor any day now (🤞). Our deal is done and we’re now deep into integration work with SPH Media. So really, all’s well that ends well.
Announcing our M&A with SPH Media well into my second trimester (that’s why I’m hiding behind Wei Kong)
When I look back on the last year, I’m struck with gratitude for working at a company and with people that helped me maintain sanity during a crazy period. As I transition from one to two kids, I also know that given the increased complexity and costs of balancing things at home, many mothers tend to drop out of the workforce after having two kids.
This International Women’s Day (IWD), I’m reflecting on why I’ve felt so supported in my journey and how to pay it forward. In line with this year’s IWD theme of “Inspire Inclusion,”, I’m dedicating my note to some thoughts on what the “broken rung” is and what employers can do to inspire and include women – ultimately for the good of their own businesses.
The imperative to fix the broken rung
First of all, why do working moms matter?
Working moms make up a critical group that can help fix the broken rung in women’s rise to leadership. The stats definitively show that more women are dropping out of the workforce in the middle of their careers, so by the time one is looking at talent for senior leadership roles, the pipeline of women is not robust enough.
What starts as relative parity for entry level positions (52% men, 47% women) quickly becomes an increasingly cavernous gap, according to the 2023 Women in the Workplace study. At the manager level, the ratio changes to 60% men, 40% women, and by the time you get to the rung below C-level, that turns into a 73% men, 28% women gap.
My personal cost-benefit analysis for being a working mom
Why startups are in pole position to benefit from working moms
Our 2024 IWD campaign
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