When Ragini Das, Who Built a Women-Only Networking Platform, Was Called Anti-Men
As an aspiring woman, have you ever thought about a networking platform which also doubled up as an exclusive ‘Girls Only’ club? Well, the answer to your prayers is Ragini Das and her venture leap.club, a platform best described as the LinkedIn for women!
Das, who played a key role in building Zomato Gold, a food and beverage membership, said the idea struck her during her conversations with her boss and co-founder Anand when the two spoke about how professional networking was undeveloped. “There was nothing helping people from point A in their careers to point B and everyone leaves it to chance. I happen to have met someone who knew someone and that’s how this happened and as we speak, 8 months [later], exactly today here I am.”
While Das gives credit to incubators and accelerators for being founder-focused and helping get a company off the ground, she says a network is “very, very different and pretty much a superpower”.
“Now, if I look back at all my career decisions, I think everyone had just kind of left it to chance, which is not the wisest thing to do. That’s exactly what we are trying to change. We are creating a platform which will help you meet people who will help you take that next step in your career and not leave it to chance. We target everyone — we have women in law, private equity, journalism, public policy, start-ups, corporates etc. In fact, 34% of our members are founders of solid start-ups and even if you end up adding 3–4 people to your inner network, overall it’s a big win from that membership,” she says.
“A network is very, very different and pretty much a superpower”
But how did Das plan on a women’s only club? “Men traditionally have their own ways to network. Now you can call it a ‘Sutta Break’, ‘Golf Game’ if you are right up there. Now, I think unfortunately most of that is not available to women. What we thought was really the need of the hour was to help these women find different ways to network. I think a network where everyone is interested in each other’s growth was missing and now, more than ever, in the middle of the pandemic, it’s so crucial to build a network outside work.”
Did she face any criticism for her ‘Girls Club’ approach? Das says many people asked her if she was ‘anti-men’ or had faced an unpleasant situation at Zomato. “I am not [against men] at all. My co-founders are men, my best workers were men and so were many of my mentors. It’s just that women fortunately or unfortunately need more help and we want to help them build a network in a safe space.”
Das says the idea is to democratise the space for everyone. “There are so many people who reach out to other people for jobs. People reach out to potential investors, advisors etc. and many such networks will help you cut that line and get there faster and that is very important.”
“Women fortunately or unfortunately need more help and we want to help them build a network in a safe space.”
And what about balancing networking and family responsibilities? Das has some advice to juggle both. “Primarily, a big part of when people realise they need to network is that mid-career stage, which for most Indian women is when they became mothers or are just married. So for that, just put yourself on mute, be there, be present in that conversation because I think the worst thing that you can do is regret not doing something at the right time.”
Original Women Network is a platform powering women with inspiration and information to achieve their ambitions. This interview is part of the #OwnItLikeABoss series. You can watch the full interview here:
