If we look for a woman who has rock-solid determination, keen interest in seeking knowledge, a strong sense of responsibility, a passionate inclination towards hard work and all the other virtues that make up a versatile woman, Ms. Barna Ahmad, Head of Customer Experience, at Robi Axiata Limited would be one of the strongest candidates out there. In this issue, she is our ‘Superwoman’.
Ms. Barna Ahmad was born in Bangladesh. When she was around 6 months old, her father joined the Water and Electricity Department in Abu Dhabi and moved over there along with his family. She did her schooling and completed high school in Abu Dhabi. Her parents, especially her mother, who herself is a very strong-willed, resilient woman, are a great source of inspiration for her. Her parents together were among the main founders of the first Bangladeshi School in Abu Dhabi (which later on received the Bangladesh Board accreditation to become the first Bangladeshi College).
During the mid-1990s, higher education opportunities for foreigners in Abu Dhabi were quite limited. But, her parents always prioritized the education of their children and wanted them to go to the best universities within their means. For this reason, after completing high school, when she was 18, she came to Bangladesh to pursue further education. Initially, being brought up her whole life abroad, Ms. Ahmad was obviously concerned about fitting into the different cultural and social environment here. But, thanks to her overall confidence, her outgoing, unorthodox (yet down-to-earth) personality, and strong communication skills (coupled with a quick wit and a good sense of humor), she had no trouble making friends quickly and adapting to the new surroundings with ease. Of course, she also accredits the success, of having to be able to blend in, to some very good friends, who made her feel completely at ease.
From the very childhood, Ms. Barna aspired to be a doctor and give back to society, by healing the world. But, Allah had different plans for her. Right from her childhood, she was a brilliant student. After Intermediate certification, she got the chance in BUET, Dhaka University as well as IBA for her higher studies. She opted for IBA and completed her BBA from there.
After completing her BBA, instead of going with the flow, she decided not to start MBA right away. She figured out that doing MBA without any practical experience wouldn’t add much value to her finesse. So, she decided to start her working career instead. Her first formal job was at a finance & investment institution. But, she realized that her true calling was elsewhere and that she was more into marketing than finance. After three months, she got a job offer from Concern Worldwide for the position of Head of Marketing. Despite the initial salary & perks being lower than other alternate job offers at hand, Ms. Barna did what any other success-oriented person would have done – she followed her passion and joined Concern Worldwide. Concern Worldwide is an international development organization, based in Ireland. She decided to join Concern, primarily because the job offered not only to hone her acumen as a business graduate in the area of her interest but also catered to her aspiration to do something for this society. She saw that she would get that opportunity at Concern Worldwide as it championed ‘fair trade’ – the humanitarian cause of ensuring the rights of marginalized, grass root-level producers and advocating for them to have a sustainable, source of livelihood at decent wages through fair trading.
It was an exceptionally, interesting job for her, as she had to travel very frequently, both within Bangladesh and abroad. Most days of the year, she had to stay in Europe, attending international exhibitions and pitching & getting orders from international clients. While working there, she took attempts to get enrolled in MBA several times. But regularly being abroad, she couldn’t manage it. After 6 years, she decided to get her Masters degree, which will further help her in moving up the corporate ladder and grow as a professional. That was when she consciously made the decision to move out of service. After quitting her job, she started preparing for her MBA. While undergoing her preparation, she was contacted by Robi (Aktel back then) for the position of Marketing Manager. She took the job, as the job was locally based and did not entail much travel, giving her the chance to do her MBA at the same time.
Meanwhile, she had applied for MBA in IBA, North South University (NSU) & East-West University (EWU) and managed to get through in all with a full scholarship. Since she was in a demanding job, she did not choose IBA as commuting would take up much of her time. She was unsure about choosing between NSU & EWU, as both institutes had their own strengths. She was so concerned about the quality of her education and making the right choice that for the first semester, she decided to enroll in both the universities & study there simultaneously to get a first-hand experience at both institutes! We can only imagine how much pressure she had to handle – maintaining her job as the marketing manager in an MNC and undergoing the grueling MBA course in two different universities at the same time. That is only possible for a superwoman!
After one semester, she made up her mind to complete her MBA from EWU as the then faculty seemed more experienced and the class timings more flexible. Meanwhile, in Robi, she was requested to take over the call center department and later on, the customer service planning department. After five years in different roles within customer service, she became the Head of Customer Lifecycle Management. In that role, her main responsibility was to study consumer behavior, understand trends and identify & implement ways to preempt buying decisions. It also covered winning back lost customers, creating customer loyalty, and retaining them. After 4 years, last August, she got the position of Head of Customer Experience. Now, her responsibility is to supervise and improve the overall customer experience for Robi subscribers, across different service touchpoints. In addition to that, her team is also responsible for managing customer feedback and insights and feed that into the designing of different products & services. Over the past 10 years with Robi, she also managed other portfolios like market strategy & planning, digital services, etc. at different points in time.
One of the most incredible things about Ms. Barna is how she was determined to step out of the stereotypical notion of women who wear the abaya (burka) and successfully set an example out of herself. She got inspired by her younger sister to wear the abaya. When she had first started wearing the abaya at the age of 16, she had been quite surprised at how people’s attitude towards her changed overnight. Close acquaintances started telling her that she was going to miss out on countless things in life, at such a young age, for being “confined” in that “thing”! That was when the determination to challenge the norm and disprove all these baseless perceptions hit her. According to her, “Just because you wear an abaya, it’s not that you can’t represent and work in the corporate world. It’s not that you can’t travel abroad. It is not that you can’t be career-oriented and ambitious.” Peoples’ attitude towards her chosen attire irritated her. But not for once did she think of leaving it. Instead, she had the courage to stand against all odds and prove her worth all by herself – “I was adamant to prove these narrow-minded individuals wrong. It’s not inhibiting me from doing anything. So, why should I think of it as a barrier in the way of leading a modern, progressive life? Yes, I had to work harder to overcome first impressions, those created based on how I was dressed. But once I overcame that, I was able to perform at the level of my male colleagues. I am still going to market visits with them. I am still interacting with people in corporate forums. And I am confidently representing my organization & my country everywhere. The abaya is just like any other dress anyone wears. So, why should it be treated as a burden or any different from other attires?” In fact, while traveling abroad, she realized that this attitude towards women wearing abaya is more prevalent in Bangladesh than in the people of the west. The people of the west more easily overlooked one’s attire and made perceptions based on actual interactions with the individual. She recollects thinking, “You know what, I am going to do everything that you didn’t expect of a “borkhawali”. I am going to get into the corporate world, I am going to work there, I am going to go to public forums and present papers. I will enjoy rock concerts. And I will do it all wearing the abaya. I won’t change it.”
Many people ask her if she faces any problems when visiting abroad for official purposes and whether she wears the abaya overseas or not. To them, her answer is, “Why shouldn’t I? They are accepting me with this dress. If somebody has a problem accepting me in this attire, that is more of his or her problem, not mine. I am not disrespecting any culture by wearing an abaya. If others have the freedom to choose what they wear and I am comfortable with their wearing it, why shouldn’t I have the same liberty?” Her determination towards Islam was such that she even turned down the position of Regional Manager in one of the biggest communications and information technology companies in the world, just because they insisted that she needed to change her attire to fit into the company’s culture! Many of us would have thought twice before taking such a bold decision, but not her.
Sticking to her decision wasn’t easy for her at all. She had to fight all through the way. It was possible due to her sheer confidence in herself, her upbringing, her education, and her potential as an individual. When she used to go to sales pitch meetings in Europe – she realized that was a Muslim in a room full of non-Muslims, she was a woman in a room full of men, she was just a BBA graduate in a room full of international experts. But she stood out, ahead of others, despite all odds, due to her inner conviction and strong will. And she did all of it, wearing an abaya.
According to her, the responsibility of changing the mindset of people towards the abaya falls upon the person who wears it. She doesn’t blame the stereotypes – “I don’t blame them. Because I see many women, who wear the burkha, using it either as a shield or as an excuse. I can’t blame people for thinking that we are going to be weaker, we are going to be more submissive, we are limited to the extent we can push ourselves. Because that’s the way, we, women have, at times, portrayed it. So, this mindset is very natural. I think the responsibility of breaking this stereotypical perception, therefore, falls on us.” In her opinion, this shouldn’t be a barrier in a woman’s regular life. Neither should anybody see it as a reason for special considerations. To achieve something, one needs to have the drive and the determination to work hard for it – nobody is going to hand success over in a platter to anyone. Her point is, “If you think you cannot do the things you would regularly do wearing an abaya, don’t adopt it. If you come to the corporate world and expect some special privileges for your burkha, then it’s a problem. Yes, to some extent, as women (especially those who are married or who have children), there may be a need for certain considerations, keeping the societal and family expectations from women in our culture. But, wearing an abaya should not be confused with these needs. To expect organizations to compromise on their expectations from their employees is also unfair. You need to be equally considerate to this fact too.” In fact, she states that a real superwoman is someone, who has not only managed to be a successful homemaker and a loving & caring mother but also, at the same time, achieved success in a professional field. One such exemplary figure is her mother.
She also attributes all of her achievements greatly to her family’s support. But, it’s a two-way road – to gain the support of the family, first, you need to earn their trust. She explains, “I think trust and respect are most important. I value the trust my parents have shown in me. As long as they believe in me and willing to support me in my choices, that is what ultimately matters. And because they had that trust, I didn’t break that trust. I have traveled alone to so many places, they have never questioned me about my whereabouts or what I was doing there. As a result, I tried my best not to break their trust. They were concerned about my future and well-being, but they left the decisions on me. That support has been very helpful for me. I couldn’t have done many things if that support wasn’t there. Without this pressure, I was able to focus and perform better in the corporate world.” She also advises to be careful about how one utilizes one’s independence – “And when you are given the independence, use it in a manner that it will earn you the support and respect of people you care. If you misuse your independence, your family will impose unwarranted restrictions on you, pressuring you to conform to social conventions, thus limiting your access to opportunities and success.” As they say, with great power comes great responsibility. And independence is a power for women.
Her advice to the women who follow her path is to be confident, well-read and eloquent. “For me, it’s all about confidence in expressing oneself. I think one of the biggest lacking in Bangladeshi people is the ability to articulate their thoughts and ideas, and confidently communicate this across, particularly in English. In today’s world, communication skills are very important. Your confidence & personality needs to cut through the initial perception of people. Many people may judge you based on your attire. This has been prevalent for decades, everywhere in the world and it will not change overnight. So, no point in battling this phenomenon. Instead, one should focus on how one is either establishing or transforming that first impression, be it positive or negative. ” If a woman wants to be in the corporate world, she needs to be sure of her capability and potential of delivering success, just like her male counterparts. Even in an MNC like Robi Axiata, Ms. Barna finds herself as the only female leadership team member in many management forums. She believes that she was able to achieve that place due to having trust in herself – “If you are unsure about whether you can do something or not, there will be people around you who will make you believe that you can’t do it. Even if you are pushed up, you can’t move up if you don’t get past your internal barrier. You have to make your own path. No one will pick you up and put you on top.”
She emphasizes greatly on the importance of good education – both academic and practical. Her advice is to always keep on learning and experiencing new things. “One of the biggest problems is, once you have a CV with the picture of a person wearing a burkha, the person who is selecting might get skeptical. There is nothing you can do about that unless you have a fantastic credential on papers and a very good educational background with a good result.”
Ms. Barna has disproven every misconception regarding the abaya: through her sheer determination, confidence and smartness. In fact, in all the interviews that she has ever attended, people were compelled to ask her why she wears an abaya. The reason they ask that is that they cannot find a connection between her outgoing & confident personality and the fact that she wears the abaya. And she thinks it’s up to the women to prove people wrong – “It’s up to you to break that norm – either you reestablish what they are thinking, or you can contradict what they are thinking. Confidence matters a lot. And confidence comes from a good education from an institute and from one’s family as well. My institution created a very solid base for me in terms of education and of course, my parents reinforced it. This gives me the confidence of doing the things that I am aiming to do.”
As she moves forward, she still acknowledges that it is always a struggle for women, more for some than others, to move up in the corporate world. According to her, “If a woman is moving up the corporate ladder, she should make it easy for others to follow her path. That is why it important for women leaders to make way for other women. Coach them. Guide them. Make them push their boundaries.”
The fact that makes her stand apart from all others is that she achieved professional success in a highly- competitive corporate world and at the same time maintained a beautiful balance in her life with Islam – a true quality of a superwoman indeed!
