Bollywood actress Anushka Sharma gives a thumbs up saying ‘About time this is normalized’
Twitter’s Indian-American CEO Parag Agrawal is winning praise for taking paternity leave to welcome a second child with his wife Vineeta, within weeks of taking the top job from Jack Dorsey last November.
Agrawal is the executive sponsor of Twitter’s internal parents group. His wife Vineeta is a general partner at the venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz.
Among those giving a thumbs up to the Ajmer-born Agrawal, 37, was Bollywood actress Anushka Sharma whose cricketer-husband Virat Kohli also took paternity months before their first child was born.
Read: Indian American Parag Agrawal takes over Twitter (November 30, 2021)
“About time this is normalized,†she posted on Instagram. Sharma, 33, and then Indian cricket captain Kohli welcomed their baby girl Vamika on January 11, 2021.
Agrawal reportedly made the announcement in an all-hands meeting of executives, telling them he is going to take “a few weeks†of parental leave, but will be in touch with the leadership team.
Praise also came from Twitter CFO Ned Segal. “Thank you @paraga for leading by example and taking paternity leave. I wish leaders did this when I was early in my career and becoming a father. We have 7500 people @twitter who have your back!†he tweeted reacting to a post by Will Oremus.
“A little news: Twitter’s new CEO, @paraga, is expecting his second child and will take paternity leave soon, in contrast to tech leaders like Elon Musk who have downplayed fathers’ role in childcare,†Oremus tweeted.
Brenden Lee, a member of Twitter’s Corporate Communications department, also took to LinkedIn to appreciate Agrawal sharing the link of the same report.
“Proud that Twitter and our CEO Parag Agrawal are leading the way here, ensuring ALL parents are able to take advantage of this most special time for their families,†he wrote.
People, on both Twitter and LinkedIn, have showered praise for Agrawal and his decision to take paternity leave.
“Can’t agree more,†wrote a Twitter user on Segal’s share. “Much appreciated,†posted another. “Cheers and kudos to him for leading by example. I remember the guilt I felt when I took a week off following the births of our daughters (who are now 7 and 9). That’s time I’ll never get back,†posted a LinkedIn user.
Read: Twitter CEO Parag Agrawal’s Paternity Leave Draws Praise From Other Fathers (February 17, 2022)
“At Twitter, we encourage and fully support employees taking parental leave in whatever way works best for each person,†Laura Yagerman, a Twitter spokeswoman, told The Washington Post.
“It’s a personal decision, and we created a parental leave program (supporting up to 20 weeks of flexible leave) that is customizable for that reason,†she said.