Women leadership in insurance: How this CMO reached the C-suite

Despite companies becoming more vocal about gender equality and inclusivity, insurance and technology industries remain male-dominated, especially when it comes to leadership roles. What will it take to disrupt the status quo?

According to consulting company McKinsey, white women only make up 18% of c-suite roles in the insurance industry and women of color only make up 3%. This means very few women are in a place where they communicate directly with the CEO, let alone are CEOs. This limits their ability to influence and structure a workplace that supports their growth, and the cycle of poor representation continues — a cycle Anita Tulsiani is helping to break.

Tulsiani is now the chief marketing officer at insurtech company Carpe Data, but as a first-generation Indian woman, the journey there was not without its barriers. Still, she knew she wanted to be in this field.

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“I just fell in love with the [industry], and I got to be part of the beginning of disruption in the space,” says Tulsiani. “I haven’t ever really looked back, and I just see myself being in insurance for the remainder of my career.”

Tulsiani admits she didn’t expect to fall in love with insurance after getting her marketing degree, but after 15 years of working within the tech field, she found herself at CoreLogic, a real estate insurance company, as a director and then vice president of marketing. However, she struggled to climb higher and broke away to take her career further. EBN spoke with Tulsiani about her journey through the hierarchical ladder and how women can support other women in male-dominated spaces. 

Why did you choose to leave CoreLogic?
As a director at CoreLogic, I was working in a really large company with a lot of structures in place that made it hard to know what I needed to do to climb to the next rung. I became vocal about my need to advance, but it just didn’t always happen. There was this artificial glass ceiling, and I realized in order for me to break through, I needed to pull away because no matter how hard I tried, those structures held me back. So, I stepped into startups where I could have a new start and grow. Now I’m in my second CMO role, and I’m really proud of my accomplishments.

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Did you feel you were being underestimated by colleagues in your industry?
Instead of being underestimated, I have been underutilized throughout my career. I know I could do more. But then I have to ask myself, “How much of myself do I give?” Meanwhile, everyone is trying to get promoted, and women have to work extra hard to get the limelight — and it’s not always for a title change or money.

What are some ways your current company culture empowers women?
They ensure women are on the interview committee, so whoever the candidate may be, a woman’s perspective plays a role in the decision to bring someone into the company. Even down to promotions, our company often looks for people who are underrepresented and elevates them, giving them the opportunity to grow in new roles. 

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Interestingly enough, one of the main reasons why I came here was my company’s book club. When I started, the book we were reading was called “Brotopia,” which talks about bro culture in the technology space and how leadership participates in the facilitation of that. The one we’re reading now is “Inclusion on Purpose.” These topics are tough, but the fact that we’re exposing it allows people to see a different perspective. I’m really fortunate to be in a company that spends its time thinking about this. 

What advice do you have for women in this insurtech industry?
Make the time and space to get to know other women in the organization. We should all work to lift each other up. Being in the C-suite is nice, but it’s also lonely sometimes. A good example of this is when my good friend Ashley Fong approached me on the first week of employment and asked if we could get ice cream together. She created a sponsorship between us, and now I have somebody that’s been in the company for quite some time that I can learn from.

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Even though I have this title, I think about what we can offer each other as women. We have to give ourselves the time and space to be able to do that versus just getting caught up in a never-ending cycle of work.