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Quest Global says 90 per cent of its women workforce is in engineering
Women make up 25 per cent of global workforce as leadership promotions and retention improve
BENGALURU: At Quest Global, the gender equation in engineering is being recalculated, and women are increasingly solving for X. Ahead of International Women’s Day 2026, the engineering services firm has revealed new workforce data showing that women are not only growing in number across the company but are also increasingly embedded in the organisation’s core technical and leadership pipelines.
Women currently make up 25 per cent of Quest Global’s global workforce, but the more striking statistic lies in where they work. Nine out of ten women employees, roughly 90 per cent, are in technical and engineering roles. In an industry where women globally account for about 28 per cent of the Stem workforce, the company’s numbers suggest a different narrative, one where female talent is not clustered in support functions but directly involved in solving complex engineering challenges.
The trend is visible across several delivery centres. At the company’s Trivandrum facility, one of its largest engineering hubs, women represent 46 per cent of the workforce, compared with 54 per cent men, making it one of the more gender-balanced technical environments within the organisation.
Beyond representation, Quest Global says the momentum is also evident in leadership mobility. The share of women promoted into managerial roles rose to 25 per cent in 2025, up from 20 per cent in 2024, marking a five percentage point year-on-year increase.
Retention metrics show an equally notable shift. Female attrition has fallen sharply to 6 per cent in FY26 year to date, a significant drop from 18 per cent in FY24, indicating improved career continuity and engagement. Across the organisation, voluntary attrition has declined between FY24 and FY26 year to date, with women consistently recording lower exit rates than men.
For Quest Global senior vice president, people and cultureSonia Kutty, the numbers signal more than incremental progress.
“At Quest Global, our focus has been to ensure that women engineers are not just represented, but meaningfully engaged in core technical roles and leadership pathways,” she said. “Seeing over 90 per cent of our women employees contributing directly to engineering reflects our commitment to creating an environment where technical talent can thrive.”
She added that the rise in managerial promotions and stronger retention figures demonstrate that inclusive growth is becoming embedded within the organisation rather than remaining a one-off initiative.
Quest Global co-founder and CEO Ajit Prabhu, said diversity is becoming increasingly critical as engineering challenges grow more complex.
“Engineering innovation thrives on diverse perspectives, and increasing participation of women in technical roles is essential to solving the complex challenges industries face today,” he said. “Our progress reflects a deliberate effort to build long-term careers for women engineers, from early talent development to leadership opportunities.”
The push for deeper inclusion is also supported internally through initiatives such as “together,” the company’s employee resource group focused on strengthening community and representation. Group executive sponsor and chief strategy officer Yumi Clevenger-Lee, said building engineering excellence and inclusive career pathways must evolve together.
“Enabling more women to participate and lead in core technical roles is essential to driving innovation and long-term impact,” she said, noting that sustained leadership development and performance-driven opportunities are central to how the company builds careers.
The company’s data arrives at a time when global industries are grappling with persistent engineering talent shortages and rapid technological change. Increasing the participation of women in technical fields is increasingly seen as a crucial lever for sustaining innovation and workforce resilience.
To mark International Women’s Day 2026, Quest Global has also released a three-minute video featuring two of its women leaders, highlighting career journeys and reinforcing the company’s broader focus on advancing women in engineering and leadership.
If the numbers are any indication, the company’s approach suggests that the future of engineering may not simply be about building smarter machines, but also about building more inclusive teams to design them.
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Reliance Retail FY26 revenue rises 11.8 Per Cent to Rs 3.7 lakh crore
Q4 revenue up 11.1 Per Cent, hyperlocal orders surge 4x, PAT steady
MUMBAI: Reliance Retail isn’t just ringing up sales, it’s ringing doorbells faster than ever. Reliance Retail Ventures Limited (RRVL) reported a steady FY26 performance, with growth powered by store expansion, a sharp surge in hyperlocal commerce, and consistent traction across grocery, fashion and jewellery. For the full year, revenue rose 11.8 per cent year-on-year to Rs 3,70,026 crore. In the January–March quarter, revenue from operations climbed 11.1 per cent to Rs 87,344 crore, up from Rs 78,622 crore a year earlier.
Operating performance remained stable, with Q4 EBITDA inching up 3.1 per cent YoY to Rs 6,921 crore from Rs 6,711 crore. However, quarterly profit after tax held steady at Rs 3,563 crore. For the full fiscal, PAT grew 11.7 per cent to Rs 13,842 crore.
Expansion remained a key lever. RRVL added 1,564 new stores during FY26, while simultaneously scaling its digital and hyperlocal commerce play. The latter emerged as a standout, with daily orders surging more than fourfold year-on-year in Q4, underlining a clear shift towards faster, localised fulfilment.
In grocery, large-format stores maintained momentum, aided by festive demand and the expansion of Smart Bazaar, which crossed 1,000 stores. Promotional campaigns such as ‘Full Paisa Vasool’ delivered record results, with sales rising 26 per cent YoY.
Digital commerce also picked up pace. JioMart added 5.8 million new users in Q4, nearly doubling its registered base year-on-year. Hyperlocal orders grew 29 per cent sequentially and over 300 per cent annually during the quarter.
Fashion and lifestyle saw steady traction. Ajio recorded a 23 per cent YoY rise in average bill value, while fast-fashion platform Shein crossed 11 million app installs, scaling rapidly with expanding product lines.
The jewellery business added further shine, with average bill value jumping 53 per cent YoY, largely driven by rising gold prices and sustained consumer demand.
Commenting on the shift, RRVL executive director Isha Ambani said hyperlocal commerce has become a structural growth driver, with orders rising more than fourfold over the year.
Looking ahead to FY27, the company is betting on technology to deepen engagement. The focus, Ambani noted, will be on AI-led merchandising, sharper pricing strategies and disciplined execution turning scale into sustained customer value.
In short, the carts are fuller, the clicks are quicker, and the next phase looks less about reach and more about precision.
