# Avtar Group

Avtar Group is an Indian human resources consulting company founded in 2000, based in Chennai, Tamil Nadu. It was established by Saundarya Rajesh and focuses on promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) in the workplace, with a particular emphasis on second career opportunities for women.
The company conducts and publishes research, studies, and surveys on human resource practices and runs initiatives such as DigiPivot, a skill development program for women in collaboration with Google, and myAvtar.com, a job portal for women and other underrepresented groups, including the LGBTQ community.

## History

Avtar Career Creators was established in 2000 by Saundarya Rajesh. In 2005, Avtar launched Avtar I-Win (Indian Women Professionals Interface Network), a platform aimed at supporting women re-entering the workforce after a career break. By 2016, the network included 42,000 women professionals. Avtar I-Win has partnered with organizations such as Accenture, Deutsche Bank, Genpact, HCLTech, Hindustan Unilever, IBM, IFB, Kraft Foods, PepsiCo, Naturals, Standard Chartered, and Vodafone to develop workshops that assist women in transitioning back to the workforce.
As part of Avtar Group, Flexi Careers India was established in December 2011 to support women's participation in the workforce. The company conducts research on women re-entering the workforce and has developed the Segue Sessions, a program that supports skill development for employment.
In 2018, the company launched Bruhat Insights Global, a talent acquisition company that utilizes artificial intelligence and big data analytics to provide insights to reduce ghosting and improve offer-acceptance rates.
In 2020, Avtar Group established a partnership with Google India and the Indian School of Business to launch DigiPivot, a free skill development program to help women acquire digital skills for modern careers. The DigiPivot initiative is a 22-week virtual course that equips women with digital marketing skills to support their entry or re-entry into the workforce, regardless of their career stage. As of 2024, the DigiPivot programme has completed five editions.
In November 2020, Avtar launched a job portal called myAvtar.com for women, the LGBTQ community, people with disabilities, and army veterans. Avtar holds annual job fairs for women, with participation from companies in industries such as finance, technology, healthcare, and consumer goods.

## Research

Avtar Group annually publishes several reports, including the 'Best Companies for Women in India' (BCWI) list, the Most Inclusive Companies Index (MICI), and the Top Cities for Women in India (TCWI) index. The BCWI and MICI reports are published in collaboration with the research firm Seramount. In the past, they were released in partnership with the U.S.-based Working Mother magazine.
A study by Avtar revealed that the attrition rate for women at senior levels is 4%, compared to 8% for men at the same level. The study also found that while promotion rates for women and men at senior levels are similar, men are more likely to be promoted to mid-management positions. Additionally, it noted a 2.5% decline in the hiring of women between 2017 and 2018.
In January 2022, Avtar's Status of Women's Workforce Participation in India report indicated that the pool of employable women jobseekers increased to 7.6 crore, up from 5.7 crore in 2016, with companies advancing gender diversity through career development, male allyship, and second career programs.
In January 2024, a study by Avtar found that flexible work arrangements, such as remote work and flexible hours, are important for increasing women's workforce participation. The second edition of the 'Top Cities for Women in India (TCWI)' index indicated that while workplace enablers are beneficial, sustained employment for women also requires significant investment from local and state governments.
The third edition of the TCWI study, released in January 2025, analysed 120 Indian cities. It reported that South Indian cities ranked highest in gender inclusion and women's career opportunities, with Bengaluru securing the first position, followed by Chennai in the second position. The other cities in the top five were Mumbai, Hyderabad, and Pune.

## Philanthropy

The company has engaged in various social causes especially empowerment of women through Avtar Human Capital Trust, a not-for-profit arm of Avtar Group which was launched in 2008. It works on issues related to gender equality, poverty eradication, and provides employability workshops for underprivileged women in Tamil Nadu and Puducherry to support inclusive economic growth.
In November 2019, Avtar Human Capital Trust received grant from the Government of Tamil Nadu to implement a career guidance program in 1,000 schools across the state, in collaboration with private sector partners through CSR funding.

### Project Puthri

In 2017, Avtar Human Capital Trust initiated the 'Project Puthri' campaign on National Girl Child Day, January 24. This project aims to encourage career awareness among girls from corporation schools, helping them to overcome challenges such as poverty, early marriage, sexual abuse, and domestic violence, and to prepare them for potential roles in corporate India. The program provides training in 40 different skills to enable girl students between the age group 13 to 18 to pursue careers following their tertiary education. In May 2023, as part of Project Puthri, it awarded scholarships totaling ₹2 lakh to girls studying STEM, Arts, and Commerce at various colleges in and around Chennai, Tamil Nadu.

### Project Nipuni

In November 2024, the company launched Project Nipuni, a career readiness programme that aims to equip college girls with skills required for the corporate workforce.

### Project MITR

In 2022, Avtar launched MITR (Men Impacting Trust and Respect), a program designed for boys in Tamil Nadu government schools to promote respect and support for girls. The initiative educates students in classes VIII to XII on topics such as adolescent changes, women's historical progress, awareness of stereotypes and biases, gender inclusion in the workplace, and aspects of the Prevention of Sexual Harassment Act.

### Udyog Utsav

Since 2018, Avtar organizes Udyog Utsav, an annual two-day Career counseling event for girls from corporation and government-aided schools. By 2024, ten editions of the event had been held. In 2018, Udyog Utsav took place at Dr. MGR Janaki College for Women with 1,000 participants, while the 2019 event, conducted in partnership with the Government of Tamil Nadu, saw participation from 800 girls.

## Awards and recognition

In 2008, Avtar I-Win was listed as an 'India Innovation' in Outlook Business's Top 10 niche services. In 2011, Avtar received the Chinnikrishnan Innovation Award from CavinKare. On January 22, 2016, Saundarya Rajesh, founder of Avtar Group, received the '100 Women Achievers of India' Award from President of India, Pranab Mukherjee and Minister of State for Women and Child Development, Maneka Gandhi, at Rashtrapati Bhavan. In September 2017, the company received the TiE Stree Shakti Award from The Indus Entrepreneurs.
In 2022, Avtar was included in The Straits Times's "Steward Leadership 25" listing for the Southeast Asia Pacific region, recognized by the Stewardship Asia Centre (SAC) and the INSEAD Hoffmann Global Institute for Business and Society.