When I took a break from full-time corporate roles and started consulting, SE-Mentor wanted my help to build the function from scratch. In many ways, I saw this as an opportunity to leverage all my industry experience to do things right, right from the start. I worked closely with the directors and focused on hiring some talented people who had the passion and attitude to work in HR. Over the next 4-5 years, the HR team grew from 0 to 10 organically as organization strength quadrupled.I… Show more When I took a break from full-time corporate roles and started consulting, SE-Mentor wanted my help to build the function from scratch. In many ways, I saw this as an opportunity to leverage all my industry experience to do things right, right from the start. I worked closely with the directors and focused on hiring some talented people who had the passion and attitude to work in HR. Over the next 4-5 years, the HR team grew from 0 to 10 organically as organization strength quadrupled.I continue to support SE-Mentor by coaching the HR team and being a thinking partner for the board. Show less

I was hired to head the employee engagement team and reported to Head-HR. In my short stint at Yodlee, I was fortunate to handle the entire cycle of the employee engagement survey and could work closely with the leadership team to analyze the results, come out with action plans and implement them. Action plans included an anonymous live chat session with the leadership team which was done for the first time in the organization and received an overwhelmingly positive response.

Action-filled 6 years gets summarized into three learning in my career: - Engaging and influencing CXOs and SBU heads- Developing and managing a high-performing team- "Making HR work" for the business and more importantly for the organization through carefully implemented OD interventionsThe calling was to change the way the HR team looked at their customers and institutionalize a BP HR function at IBS and I took the plunge. The stage was all set with another recession… Show more Action-filled 6 years gets summarized into three learning in my career: - Engaging and influencing CXOs and SBU heads- Developing and managing a high-performing team- "Making HR work" for the business and more importantly for the organization through carefully implemented OD interventionsThe calling was to change the way the HR team looked at their customers and institutionalize a BP HR function at IBS and I took the plunge. The stage was all set with another recession (08-09), the typical “pain of growth” case study situation for the company, a couple of Re-Orgs, and growing negativity in the organization which had taken its toll on the HR team’s morale. A rock-solid boss was the only cushion to fall back as I had to keep driving in top gear while developing the team. This assignment became my ‘been there, done that’ role where I started doubting myself, fell down, stood up and kept the fight on, did some inevitable firing, hired many brilliant minds, kept the direction of the team towards business, coached/helped/fought with/influenced people managers……it was tiring and made me learn that patience was not a quality but a lifeline.Long-term measures like institutionalizing eSAT, making the best of the SBU structure to drive accountability on people management, introducing a game-changing performance management process, placing an indigenous and comprehensive career framework, and investing in the HR team combined with short-term and customized OD interventions finally resulted in the benefits like single digit attrition rate (from a criminal double digit), business viewing the BP HR team as partners in strategic people management than SPOCs, a team brimming with confidence and ideas – all this with a bottom line of 33% growth in eSAT made us realize that we are in the right track. Show less

This is where I realized what is strategic thinking and Change management in action thanks to Sarthak, the master in articulation. To take over performance management in addition to Comp & Ben, to influence some of the best professionals who were heading other functions, to infuse strategy into salary revisions, compensation planning, and incentive plans, and to effectively work with the group headquarters demanded the best in me. The ‘Strategic HRM’ course from IIM – A really came in handy… Show more This is where I realized what is strategic thinking and Change management in action thanks to Sarthak, the master in articulation. To take over performance management in addition to Comp & Ben, to influence some of the best professionals who were heading other functions, to infuse strategy into salary revisions, compensation planning, and incentive plans, and to effectively work with the group headquarters demanded the best in me. The ‘Strategic HRM’ course from IIM – A really came in handy along with the support from other HR function heads. Strategic support extended to brand CEOs for the inorganic growth of Louis Philippe, Van Heusen, Allen Solly, Esprit, and Peter England during the retail revolution in India was a rewarding experience rich with challenges and learning. I was in charge of following reporting to the head of HR- Strategic alignment of the Rewards function- Formulation of Variable Pay Plans aligned to specific business objectives - Driving Performance Management systems and normalization- Benchmarking Compensation through compensation surveys- People Cost Budgeting & Tracking- Payroll Management & Statutory Compliance Show less

One of the best decisions that I reckon with a lot of pride was to quit IBS in 2006 to jump out of my comfort zone. Finding myself in a corporate jungle like Aditya Birla Group, being in Bangalore and heading the compensation and benefits reporting directly to Chief People Officer – It really awed the 5-year experienced guy in me before I learned to tame the situation, learn from mistakes and live up to the expectation. Of course, one thing which got into my blood was to know what is… Show more One of the best decisions that I reckon with a lot of pride was to quit IBS in 2006 to jump out of my comfort zone. Finding myself in a corporate jungle like Aditya Birla Group, being in Bangalore and heading the compensation and benefits reporting directly to Chief People Officer – It really awed the 5-year experienced guy in me before I learned to tame the situation, learn from mistakes and live up to the expectation. Of course, one thing which got into my blood was to know what is confidential and to keep it so – something which you can’t compromise when you are handling the salaries of contract employees to the Business Director! Show less

A few back-to-back exits suddenly made me the seniormost in the HR team and that was one of the best things to happen. I could implement a lot of small ideas right from campus recruitment to performance management to compensation benchmarking. Took a lead role in PCMM implementation and started managing people!

I couldn’t have asked for a better start to my HR career than to be in a 200-plus organization struggling to get over the 2001 recession. Being one of the 2-member HR team, I could dirty my hands on everything starting from food vouchers to recruitment to payroll inputs. In the journey, what I could actually witness was how a visionary CEO turned the disastrous business situation into an opportunity to build a world-class product organization