Brands
upGrad launches campaign for Digital Marketing Job-Linked Bootcamp
Mumbai: Asia’s largest higher edtech company upGrad is back with yet another clutter-breaking digital campaign featuring a seemingly ironic interviewer-interviewee banter. The campaign film, through interesting on-screen chemistry, brings out the efficacy of upGrad’s best-in-class faculty, and the placement strategy it offers under its Digital Marketing Job-Linked Bootcamp, delivering a promising career outcome.
Conceptualised by upGrad’s in-house creative team, the film is produced by Valeum Films and is directed by Manoj Tapadia, who has made ad films for an endless list of brands, notably Dove, Maggi, Dettol, Tata Tea, Havells, Symphony, and HDFC. The film, shot in an office setup, shows a job interview underway that isn’t going the applicant’s way, until he answers a key question that turns the interview – and the hiring manager’s perspective – around.
The six month bootcamp has been developed using upGrad’s extensive industry experience and offers a hands-on curriculum, including 200+ hours of live lectures, introduction to niche digital marketing tools, and 65+ hours of interview preparation and dedicated soft skill development sessions each. Prepared by industry experts for industry roles, the 100 per cent live bootcamp is carefully designed for freshers to assist them land a job with a minimum of Rs 4 lakhs per annum within 150 days of performance-based program completion or an entire fee refund. The move is also set to accelerate India’s growth momentum significantly through an added employment doorway.
Commenting on the campaign, upGrad CEO – India Arjun Mohan said, “Job-Linked Digital Marketing Bootcamp is one of the biggest milestones, we, as a higher edtech leader, have introduced and therefore, it was critical for us to create maximum awareness touchpoints to let our target group and aspiring marketers take an informed career choice. The campaign draws insights from an internal study which highlighted the existing market gap in terms of available jobs. As a result, we realised that freshers and working professionals who aspire to build a career as digital marketers do not have a direct entry point. They have to pursue multiple different job profiles before they actually land the desired job.”
“Young people change the face of any industry. Digital marketing is no different – in fact, it is one of the industries, most prone to be changed by new blood coming in. While earlier, young people usually stumbled into digital marketing, a structured and industry-relevant course like this upGrad Bootcamp, will give prospective marketers a great start to their career, thanks to the veteran faculty teaching it. This was the insight that led to the ad film,” added upGrad head of creative and content marketing – India Shreyas Shevade.
In line with upGrad’s commitment to LifeLongLearning, the program structure also includes 1:1 mentorship opportunity with industry experts, end-to-end support in resume building, interview etiquette, and mock interview sessions, enabling its learners with enhanced career development opportunities.
Brands
33 per cent of women believe the salary scale is rigged: Naukri report
Voices @ Work study finds rising calls for equal pay audits and lingering bias
MUMBAI: Progress may be visible in India’s workplaces, but many women still feel the need to tread carefully. A new report by Naukri reveals that one in two women hesitate to disclose marriage or maternity plans during job interviews, worried that such information could influence hiring decisions.
The findings come from the second edition of Naukri’s annual Voices @ Work International Women’s Day report, titled “What Women Professionals Want.” Drawing insights from more than 50,000 women across over 50 industries, the survey sheds light on evolving workplace aspirations alongside the biases that continue to hold women back.
One of the report’s most striking insights is the growing demand for equal pay audits. The share of women calling for regular pay parity checks has climbed to 27 per cent this year, up from 19 per cent a year ago. The demand now stands alongside menstrual leave as the most sought after workplace policy.
Interestingly, the call for pay transparency grows louder higher up the income ladder. Nearly half of women earning between Rs 50 lakh and Rs 1 crore annually say equal pay audits are a priority, suggesting that pay gaps become more visible as women move up the career ladder.
At the same time, confidence and ambition appear to be rising. About 83 per cent of women say they feel encouraged to pursue leadership roles, a significant jump from 66 per cent last year. Cities in southern India appear particularly supportive, with Hyderabad leading the way as 86 per cent of respondents there reported encouragement to step into leadership positions. The education sector recorded the highest sense of encouragement at 87 per cent.
Yet the report also highlights a growing trust deficit around pay equity. Nearly one in three women, or 33 per cent, say they do not believe men and women are paid equally at their workplace. That figure has risen from 25 per cent last year, pointing to widening perceptions of disparity as careers progress.
Bias in hiring and promotions continues to be the biggest hurdle. About 42 per cent of respondents say workplace bias is the main challenge for women from diverse backgrounds. The concern is consistent across major metros, with Chennai and Delhi NCR reporting similar levels.
Reluctance to discuss personal milestones during hiring processes is also widespread. While 34 per cent overall said they hesitate to share marriage or maternity plans in interviews, the anxiety increases with experience. Among professionals with 10 to 15 years of work experience, the figure rises to 40 per cent.
Info Edge group CMO Sumeet Singh, said the data reflects both progress and unfinished work. “Behind every data point in this report is a woman who is ambitious. The fact that 83 per cent feel encouraged to lead is something to celebrate. However, the fact that one in two still hide their marriage or maternity plans in interviews tells us the work is far from done. As India’s leading career platform, it felt not just important but necessary for us to shine a light on these gaps through the second edition of our report,” he said.
The report suggests that while ambition among women professionals is growing, structural changes around pay transparency, fair hiring and supportive policies will be key if workplaces hope to keep pace.
