Author: Liji Narayan | HRKatha

The hybrid work culture is not as welcome to people as it may appear. A good 70 per cent of the respondents, in a survey by ICICI Lombard partnered with Hansa Research, reveal that they would prefer to work regularly either from home or office. Amongst those who did not have a brush with COVID, 40 per cent are willing to work from office, whereas the others who have contracted COVID or have witnessed closed ones suffering from the same, prefer to work from home. More men prefer working from office than women. While 36 per cent prefer to work…

We have all read lessons on marketing, attended sessions on business strategy, read up about the nuances of consulting and searched the internet for tips on how to sail through interviews, but rarely do we remember what we have read. Why? Because it was all theory —page after page of fine print that just stared at us, waiting for us to make some sense out of them and also register it all to be retrieved at a later stage. Unfortunately the registering part of the exercise remains weak and the retrieval almost never happens. Sandeep K Krishnan has changed all…

While most employees blame leadership for the mental health issues that emerge at the workplace, the employers choose to underplay the role of leadership. This is clear from the Gi Group report on the state of mental health in corporate India. A good 77 per cent of the employers chose to blame erratic work schedules and peer pressure for the mental health issues in a corporate setup. While they underplayed the role of leaders in the mental health of the workforce, a significant 79 per cent of the employees contradicted this. They felt that leadership is the major reason for…

Due to the pandemic, the year 2020, saw the hiring activity plummeting. There was an 18 per cent dip in hiring in India last year. However, that was a year gone by, and the new year brings in lot of positivity. According to a survey by Michael Page, around 53 per cent of companies in India are looking to increase their headcounts in 2021. The sentiment is similar among employees as well. Among the respondents, 75 per cent of those employed anticipate looking for new job opportunities in 2021. This is not all. About 60 per cent of employers intend…

The way we need two eyes, two hands, two legs and yes, two brains – left brain and right brain – businesses also need both critical thinkers and lateral thinkers in order to be successful. It’s rather difficult to say who is up on the hierarchy of importance, as it would completely depend on the stage or phase the business is in, or on the nature of the problem or situation. Companies, of course, wish that they find both lateral thinking and critical thinking capabilities in one person, but that’s like finding a true gem from a pile of stones.…

SYKES, the global digital marketing and customer services outsourcing company, has opened its fourth centre in the Kokapet area of Hyderabad. The Company plans to take on at least 500 more people in its existing team of 2,000 employees. Spread over an area of about 44,000 sq. ft., this is the Company’s sixth centre in India, and the second one opened since the lockdown. This new vibrant employee-centric office space is based on advanced office architecture and is equipped with a first-aid room for medical emergencies and a separate prayer room to accommodate employee needs. Focussing on functionality and sustainability,…

Simplilearn, the global online skilling programmes provider, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the All India Council for Technical Education (AICTE) for a Ministry of Education initiative, called the National Educational Alliance for Technology (NEAT 2.0). The collaboration is aimed at upskilling higher education students from Indian engineering and technical institutes. This unique initiative by Simplilearn, will benefit millions of students. As part of the MoU, Simplilearn will offer six programmes in data science, DevOps engineering, business analysis, big data engineering, big data hadoop and spark development and AWS big data certification training on the NEAT 2.0 platform.…

We run into them all the time. In the markets, shopping for provisions; in the bookshops browsing through classics; at the traffic light, observing vehicles around them while waiting for the light to turn green; at cafes, indulging in sudoku while sipping coffee; in the parks jogging early in the morning; and even at art exhibitions, book launches and film screenings. They are fit, smartly turned out, conscious about their health and eager to keep up with the changing pace of life. They look at the youngsters with amusement and admiration. They have learnt not to interfere with them, but…

IDEMIA, a global market leader in augmented identity solutions, today announced the appointment of Matthew Foxton as its new regional president for India. Matthew has been the executive vice-president, branding & communications, member of the Group Executive Committee at IDEMIA, a role thathe will continue to fulfil. Matthew will succeed Sanjeev Shriya, who played a central role in the development of IDEMIA India over the last 25 years and who will now move to a non-operational role as an advisor to the Global CEO. Matthew has a wealth of experience working with multinational companies serving both the government and enterprise technology…

Sriharsha A Achar, who was CHRO, HDFC Ergo General Insurance Services, is now the joint executive director and CHRO, at Star Health & Allied Insurance Company. His stint at HDFC Ergo was a very short one, considering that he joined in February, 2020. Achar had taken a short break spending time helping with COVID-related relief activities and indulging in social work, before taking on his new role at Star Health, Chennai. Backed by over 34 years of HR experience in several industries, Achar has held HR leadership positions at Xchanging Technologies (now DXC), America Online, First Ring India, Astra Zeneca…

Gone are the days when unused sickness leaves were carried forward by employees to the next year. Times are such that organisations are surprising their workforce with wellness holidays and encouraging them to take leaves to rest and unwind. Yes. The realisation has dawned that while sick leaves can take care of physical illness, psychological exhaustion also requires time to be treated. Thus has emerged the trend of employees being urged to take a day off just to relax and do nothing — a holiday to rest their exhausted minds and bodies. Why are wellness leaves necessary? To correct work-life…

Come rain or sun, human resources professionals always have their hands full. The pandemic, however, seems to have brought fresh challenges their way. This is also the best time for HR professionals to hone their skills. While there are a whole lot of courses to choose from, and even more modes to access them, the best way to learn remains the digital route. Irrespective of the career stage an HR professional is in, the truth is that there is always scope for improvement and growth. Also, developing oneself professionally is the best advice leaders can give to their juniors, in…

Will I still be employed at the end of the year? Will my children be able to attend school anytime soon? What if there is another phase of complete lockdown? Will my son have a normal childhood? What if the business doesn’t pick up? When will I be able to travel to my hometown to visit my parents? How will I repay the car loan? Who will buy my car even if I decide to sell it? Innumerable questions like these plague the minds of employees amidst the pandemic. News of layoffs, retrenchment, downsizing and furloughs on a daily basis…

The Government has taken various measures to ensure that more women participate in the labour force. These include childcare facilities, increase in paid maternity leave from 12 weeks to 26 weeks, compulsory crèche facilities in all establishments employing 50 or more employees, and even allowing women to work in the night shifts with appropriate safety measures in place. The Code on Social Security gives immense importance to women workers and their health. According to Chapter VI of the Code, all women will be eligible for maternity benefits. Employers are liable to pay them benefits at the rate of the average…

Sudden silence in the middle of a serious and important debate, can be quite uncomfortable. However, many leaders actually strategically plan such a prolonged pause. This requires skill too and emotional intelligence. After all, one has to pause at the right juncture. One has to know exactly when to stop speaking. Some thought has to go into creating a gap at the opportune moment, for others to fill, meaningfully, so that the discussion gets directed towards a logical and desired conclusion. Says Bhawna Kirpal Mital, general manager, human resources, Hero Future Energies, “I have certainly used this tactic to my…

Enclothed cognition is about the impact of clothing upon mental processes — in the way we think, feel, and function in the areas of attention, confidence and abstract thinking. Based on an experiment in 2012, the term was coined by Hajo Adam and Adam D Galinsky. Going by this logic, now that we are all in our pyjamas and loose tees while we tele-work from the comforts of our home, does this imply that the approach towards work is also getting more casual and eventually affecting productivity? For many, being appropriately dressed for work has come to mean casual below…

The pandemic and the eventual lockdown put a stop to the conventional way of functioning for the 2000 plus members of Cadila Pharma’s salesforce. These field sales officers were completely off the field with no or little interaction with the customers or healthcare professionals. That did not put a stop to the business though. What this Ahmedabad-based pharma major did was to turn around quickly and use the lockdown as an opportunity to upskill its salesforce on digital training. The Company strengthened the digital marketing efforts right down to the last sales team member. “We are seeing a huge shift…

Think of today’s remote working employees. They rise from their beds in the morning and walk up to their ‘workplace’. They plonk themselves on a chair, to stare at the computer screen for the next eight to nine hours, sometimes even more. Even the thought is monotonous. Some may not even have a proper dedicated desk, because many Millennials live in paying guest accommodations or sparsely furnished flats, which they share with others. They have never felt the need to invest in furniture because they are used to spending a major part of their day at the office. In fact,…

All of us have doodled at some point or other in our lives. In classrooms, during college lectures, while travelling and even during official meetings. More often than not, teachers, lecturers and trainers admonish those who doodle, for being distracted and inattentive. However, if studies are to be believed, doodling and so-called mindless scribbling should not be discouraged. Why? Because it actually proves that the doodler’s mind is active. Various studies have shown that this so-called idle scribbling or doodling actually plays a significant part in helping a person concentrate and focus. So, next time you see somebody scribbling during…

Many employers feel that their employees do not really understand the benefits that are offered to them. It is hard to believe, but the truth is that people don’t really give much thought to the benefits unless and until they themselves land in a situation where these benefits become crucial. For instance, till a spouse meets with an accident and is being wheeled into the operation theatre, the employee may not really have read through the medical benefits or insurance cover she / he is eligible for. A couple of years ago, the International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans had…

Employees surely do work hard. After all, they do give priority to their job for at least seven to eight hours every day. Therefore, their achievements at work, no matter how small, need to be noticed, appreciated and even celebrated. And there is no need to wait till the end of a project, or till the successful accomplishment of a tough deadline or the end of the financial year or even the annual performance review to recognise the efforts or celebrate the smaller milestones of employees. However, it is often seen that managers, team leaders and senior executives often get…

Kharbanda, who used to work for Andaz Delhi, will now be heading all HR-related operations, such as recruitment, talent development policies, administration, compliance and management ,at Marriott, Pune. Namit Kharbanda has been appointed director of human resources, JW Marriott, Pune.  In his new role, Kharbanda will be responsible for devising innovative HR programmes and ensuring effective communication across hierarchies within the organisation. A postgraduate in human resource management and marketing from Symbiosis University, Pune, Kharbanda was earlier working as director-HR at Andaz Delhi, the luxury and lifestyle outlet of the Hyatt brand. His responsibilities at Marriott will include…

Organisations need to focus on ensuring that their women do not quit. Looks like women are quitting their jobs at a faster rate than men. Whatever happened to women being more stable workers than men? Are women employees growing increasingly unhappy?  Why are companies finding it difficult to retain women staff despite investing so much time and money on them? Recent surveys seem to indicate that the number of unsatisfied women professionals is growing in leaps and bounds. In order to keep them engaged, it is important to find out what is important to them and what is not. …

The importance of hiring candidates who fit into the organisation’s culture is a topic that has been discussed by HR professionals for ages. Organisations believe that hiring candidates who are perfect cultural fits for the organisation can contribute to the productivity and success of the business. Therefore, HR is instructed to look for candidates whose psychological profile and skills are an ideal match for the organisation’s culture, so that they remain motivated and productive. Even leaders prefer to nurture teams where the team members are compatible with each other and can work together as a unified whole. However, it is…

Many an employee has complained about boring meetings at the workplace. In fact, meetings are rarely looked forward to, especially if they happen very often. If the team leader is verbose, and in the habit of rambling on and on, it can even push employees to call in sick, simply to avoid meetings. Conducting a meeting successfully requires some skill. And how does one know whether one is good at running meetings? Just look around and observe your team members. Do they all attend the meetings? Do they look forward to the meetings? If the answer is ‘No’, it is…

We have time and again discussed factors that affect employee engagement and productivity. But who would have thought pollution will also one day feature as one of the growing concerns, when it comes to ensuring employee engagement? The other day, a headline in a daily caught my attention, ‘To escape Delhi’s toxic air, executives seek to relocate’. The article quoted the head of a recruitment agency who had received a deluge of requests from his clients, for job placements that would take them away from Delhi. Why? Because they were done breathing the city’s polluted air. We know that fine…