How a 90% Women Workforce Built a Politics-Free, Empowering Culture at Vernac
Discover how Vernac Language Technologies, a women-centric language tech start-up, is rewriting workplace norms with unmatched flexibility, human-centric values, and a culture free from hierarchies, proving that an empowering environment can drive both creativity and business success.
What truly makes a workplace amazing? For most people, it’s a mix of cool infrastructure, supportive colleagues, empathetic leaders, approachable management, and recognition for their work.
For Alifya Thingna, Founding Member & COO of Vernac Language Technologies, an amazing workplace is much more. Vernac not only checks all these boxes but also offers flexibility, intellectual stimulation, and a politics-free environment where individuality thrives.
In this candid conversation with Ekta Capoor, Editor-in-Chief of Amazing Workplaces, Alifya shares how Vernac, where 90% of the workforce is women, has built a culture that values creativity, independence, and human connection over conventional corporate norms.
So Alifya, tell us about your company Vernac Language Technologies and the space that you work in?
Vernac Language Technologies is a spin-off from the Indian languages division of BITS, a three-decade-old language services company with a global presence.
Most of our in-house team members are translators, reviewers, and language professionals. Translation, to me, is the perfect blend of creativity and intellectual stimulation. It uses language skills, often your mother tongue, along with deep research to ensure that documents, from technical to legal to software, are both accurate and of globally accepted quality.
The idea for Vernac emerged with the rise of mobile phones, affordable internet, and the growing demand for regional content. We set out to disrupt the market by launching a first-of-its-kind crowdsourced translation platform in India. Our goal was to address the shortage of quality translators, expand the supply chain, and make translations faster and more cost-effective for clients.
Your workforce mostly comprises women. How would you define this decision?
Honestly, this was never a conscious HR decision. Many believe women are naturally better language learners and often carriers of culture in families. Because of this, many women choose fine arts, languages, or translation studies, either as a primary career or alongside another one. So, we simply received more women applicants and embraced it. Interestingly, this mirrors the broader localisation industry in India, where women already form a large part of the workforce.
What are the pros and cons of working in a women-centric environment?
When I joined BITS in 2010 as a French-English translator, I was amazed by the women in management. They were confident, grounded, and brilliant at their work.
I have grown professionally watching these inspiring women in a warm, family-like environment, something that big corporations often lose to hire-and-fire culture and cut-throat competition.
Working in a smaller, women-centric company has many advantages. People genuinely care for each other and stay connected to basic human values. Corporate culture often claims that employees drive culture, yet many workplaces become automated and impersonal. Here, compassion stands out. Women are naturally empathetic, and it shows in how we manage our teams, both men and women. As for cons, honestly, I can’t think of any.
How has this women-centric environment shaped your vision for your company?
I have long been passionate about women empowerment, although I discovered its true essence only here, thanks to my friend, colleague and mentor, and the Founder & CEO of both companies, Mr Sandeep Nulkar. So when we founded Vernac, the idea was to offer women never-heard-of flexibility in working hours. But for a women-centric work environment, the compassion needed to think about the women with family, physical or social limitations would have never come to our minds.
The best the world offers such women currently is a part-time job and we wanted to go beyond that. Women are virtually thrown out of the workforce because they are unable to do even part time jobs. So we used technology to allow women, irrespective of where they are and how little time they have at their disposal, to be able to work for as little as a few minutes to as much as a few hours, all from the comfort of their mobile phones. You could be dropping your child off to a swimming class or be travelling back home on a bus, you can now aspire to be independent by earning in whatever spare time you have. We have seen that this works beautifully well for working women professionals looking for some extra income as well as for men too.
So is everything automated and over an app now?
Not entirely. While the app makes work easier, we ensure a personal touch remains. Traditionally, translators work over email for introductions and feedback. Some of our operations still follow that model.
But when we launched the app, we personally visited several Indian cities to onboard translators. We trained them, listened to their feedback, and met each one in person. These interactions, along with small gestures like giving souvenirs, added warmth to the process. Such basics mean far more than fancy wellness programs.
The app offers convenience, but human connection stays at the heart of what we do.
What would you say are the advantages of working with your organization?
Workplace culture today extends beyond physical offices. With more people working from home, we focus on building strong virtual values as well. BITS has set high standards in motivating translators through industry awards and partnerships with universities to prepare students for the market.
One of our key strengths is transparency. We conduct weekly assessments, share project feedback, and ensure timely payments. We also guide people to upskill when needed. Recognition, respect, flexibility, and empathetic colleagues matter more than perks or salaries. Small gestures speak louder than big entitlements.
We even avoid terms like “employee” and “boss,” using first names instead. This removes mental hierarchies and encourages open ideas and innovation. That’s the kind of culture we nurture.
Any parting words of advice for the youth of today?
I’m part of the youth myself! (laughs) Rather than advice, I’d share a thought. Recently, we explored the Japanese concept of ikigai, which means “the reason you jump out of bed each morning.” It combines four elements, what you love, what you are good at, what you can be paid for, and what the world needs.
Finding your ikigai isn’t instant; it can take a lifetime. But reflecting on these components will lead you to work that excites you, beyond jobs that just look cool on social media.
