An Interview with Mrs. Renu Sharma, IRPS
She is currently the Principal Chief Personnel Officer in Central Railway. She was the first lady DRM of Pune Railway Division, 1990- batch officer of the Indian Railways Personnel Service (IRPS). Earlier she has worked as the Chief Personnel Officer at Research Designs and Standards Organisation (RDSO), Lucknow and in various positions in the North Eastern Railway, Northern Railway, Eastern Railway. She did her Masters in Chemistry. She likes to sing classical songs, watching motivational movies and books.
What do you like to say about your background which would motivate all?
1. I think everyone should know about their strength and weakness. I had a middle-class background but ever since I was a child, I always looked up to my parents, both were working in State Government. This propelled me to perceive myself as a working woman in the future. I’ve had my education in different cities of UP.
What do you think about the changing scenario for the job market in the Government and Private sector?
As per my views since there is job security in government jobs, a large number of graduates still opt for the government sector. But it is a clear fact that the creamy layer of good students especially the ones passing out from IITs and IIMs opt for the private sector as they have better salary packages and good career prospects.
What is your view about fast making money fad in young generations rather than good education? Is it ok?
The value of good education is much more than the value of making fast money because making fast money is generally through illegal ways, one requires education to differentiate between ethical and unethical. One should opt for steady growth and for that education is necessary.
Please comment on social media in respect of youngsters.
Social Media platforms such as Facebook, Snapchat, Instagram, WhatsApp are a sheer waste of time and mostly spreading false information which sometimes becomes very disastrous for the society as a whole. It also proves to be of distraction for the youngsters. They also fall for illegal acts such as the recent boy’s locker room and Jamtara incidents.
In which direction should our youngsters should work for their future career?
Youngsters should follow careers which suit their competence rather than conventional ones. People generally overlook the academic merit of an individual and start analysing his talents but I think that academic excellence is equally important. Parents should not assume their roles to be just as a drag but act as facilitator in shaping the career of their children. Students should keep a constant vigil on different prospects in different career fields and stay aware. For job satisfaction, it is very important that they should understand the challenges and the significance attached to their posts. They should try to grab opportunities for decision making and creativity during day to day working. It is also important to be tactful in a positive manner in dealing with the superiors as well as the juniors for self-satisfaction. Time management and organised way of working is important. Last but not the least it is very important to plan short term and long-term self-made goals and try to achieve them within time. This gives maximum job satisfaction.
What would be guidelines for our parents for their children?
Parents should not pressurize their children in the fields in which they are not interested. Besides studies, children should also be motivated to follow some extracurricular activities which help in building the overall personality which is very important for job and interviews, be it private or government sector. Parents should promote their children to be frank with them and there should always be an atmosphere of open dialogue between the parents and their children so that the best decisions can be taken while deciding the career.
What do you like to give a take away point for all?
The most important things which I would like to highlight on the issue are: 1 The parents should act as guiding factors rather than compulsively forcing their children towards the career of their choice. · Class and college merits are equally important as are the extra-curricular activities. 2 The children should be made bold, extroverted and outwardly in a limited positive manner as it teaches them how to survive beyond the boundaries of their home. 3 The career planning should not be done based just upon the present socio-economic scenarios but should be based on very specific analysis of the future market. As per my view the thing of paramount importance is self-actualisation and happiness. All other worldly things like money, career, job satisfaction is secondary to it.