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Tech-savvy mothers [Work] [Times of India](Times of India Via Acquire Media NewsEdge) In today's competitive world, how can a working mother divide her daily work and also be productive at work? An international workplace study has revealed that two of three mothers around the world believe that they do not need to be in the office anymore to be productive. The latest technological marvels give them an opportunity to balance their personal and work life. Dr Sunita Maheshwari, paediatric cardiologist says, "Technology has changed my life in ways I could never imagine. Using Cisco e-teaching technology, I have set up a program in paediatric cardiology for trainees located all over India. From a laptop at my home in Bangalore, I hold lectures for 50-odd postgraduates. Also, as an entrepreneur running a telemedicine and healthcare software company and a clinic, I am able to be anywhere and yet be 'working'. I can sit at home while my daughter eats her snacks and be doing evaluations, assessing patient complaints, writing medical papers, while being in touch with the office." Mini Manakame of Aditi Technologies agrees, "In spite of having two children, I continue my professional career. Technology enables me to work from home full time - dial into meetings and even do critical customer presentations. When I am abroad, I video chat with my little ones, which helps me reduce separation anxiety. I could even monitor my threemonth-old over a webcam at his daycare and that in turn saves me quite some tears and helps me focus on work." Garima Sinha of Ramco Systems shuffles between working from home and office, besides travelling extensively. "Technology has helped me do all of this without any hassles. In fact, I am 'connected', no matter where I am; smart phones, data cards and laptops are a boon for professionals like me. Not only has this helped me gain work-life balance, it has also made me much more productive and efficient." Ramaprasanna Chellamuthu, a developer-evangelist at Microsoft, has designed a model house for working mothers. Called BuddyHome, it has various robotic modules to take care of one's different needs. "They can tell my dietary plans, take care of my cooking and cleaning. They can even interact with me just like my buddies do," he says. Today, a lot of busy moms seek time and money-saving solutions for everyday tasks, whether it's recipes for quick meals or tips for keeping track of the 'to do' list. Google Chrome has some simple web browsing shortcuts that will help find whatever they're looking for quickly. Also, there are many technology platforms wherein a working mother can carry out most of her banking transactions and utility bill payments like phone, credit card, electricity, booking various tickets, etc, by a click of a button. And to print her daughter's school excursion consent form, she need not wait till she gets back into the office/home, turns on the PC and retrieves the email. She can simply e-print it by emailing the document from her smart phone to her HP e-print-enabled printer, and the document will be printed when she gets back into the office/home. The work-life balance is often a tightrope walk for a working mother. She has many things to worry about when leaving a child at home - right from having the hired help to the modes of entertainment available on the Internet, which often exposes children to a multitude of threats. Anindita Mishra, cybermum, McAfee India, says, "Installation of security software such as 'family protection' on the home PC/ laptop can allow a working mother to save chat session logs, block users, get a list of sites her children visit and receive notification if the children attempted to access adult content. It can also help filter offensive content, pictures and block inappropriate websites." No doubt, technology is a real friend to working mothers around the world. (c) 2012 Bennett, Coleman & Company Limited |