Four out of ten women lost jobs in India due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In an attempt to combat these devastations, Women in Cloud launched the #empowHERfamily initiative in August 2021. The goal of this cross-sector economic relief initiative is to empower 1 million women in India to have an effective future through the curation of actionable digital solutions that provide economic relief.
The digital skilling portion of this campaign offered Azure Training and Certification Scholarships to women in India—which was made possible by our partnerships with Microsoft, Coursera, RV College of Engineering and IAMCP.
In November 2021, Women in Cloud launched the community fundraising portion of the #empowHERfamily campaign. Through partnerships with Indiaspora and Give India, Women In Cloud set the goal of raising $1M for 2,500 Indian women who lost the primary bread-winner of their families to COVID-19.
Women In Cloud, Give India, and Indiaspora are ecstatic to announce that almost $60,000 were raised to support the impacted women. The funds raised from the community fundraising campaign will be distributed as a 1-time bank transfer of $400 (INR 30,000). This will aid urban families with monthly expenses for two months and rural families for three months.
This momentous feat could not have been achieved without our incredible community—so, thank you! Together, the lives of thousands of women and children will be transformed for the better.
If you would like to be a part of the #empowHERfamily initiative, consider becoming a volunteer, donating to the community fundraising campaign, amplifying the voices of the affected women by becoming a social media ambassador, nominating an NGO/non-profit to get access to digital solutions, or simply learning more!
Every action—regardless of its size—has immense impacts.
Monumental events have undertaken in the last two years at Women in Cloud; our purpose to generate $1B in economic access received tremendous support and we are now on the path to realizing that dream with greater support from Fortune brands like Microsoft, Insight, Accenture, Hitachi Solutions, Teradata, Avanade, Boeing and Global Affairs Canada along with other partner organizations like UN Women, EQUALS and Ideagen.
With programs like Women in Cloud Azure Skilling Scholarship, Fortune 100 Initiative, EmpowHERAcess Campaign and Women in Cloud Accelerator running around the globe with massive impact being created, our leadership has had their hands full to create a world-wide economic impact.
Thus, it is with great enthusiasm that we announce, our President and Co-founder, Chaitra Vedullapalli’s recognition in the Forbes Next 1000 2021 List.
The Forbes Next 1000 list shines light on the ambitious sole proprietors, self-funded shops and pre-revenue startups in every region of the country—all with under $10 million in revenue or funding and infinite drive and hustle. Forbes and their partners at Square are thrilled to welcome Chaitra Vedullapalli to the Forbes Next 1000 class of 2021. This first-of-its-kind initiative celebrates bold and inspiring entrepreneurs—like her—who are redefining what it means to run a business today. They received thousands of nominations and her achievements have been recognized by their editors plus a panel of top business minds and entrepreneurial superstars.
She is a purpose driven leader who bridges business and technology to globally scale companies and drive economic development, Chaitra Vedullapalli’s impact in the technology industry and community has been extensive in her 20-plus years tech career.
We at Women in Cloud celebrate Chaitra’s contribution and a well-deserved recognition by Forbes.
Congratulations Chaitra!
