‘Cocktails and Conversations’: HR to discuss business over networking

HRKatha, in association with KellyOCG, is bringing together a group of HR leaders and industry veterans on the evening of February 22, in Bangalore, to discuss what’s next with finding the best talent.

HRKatha has launched a series of networking events across cities for the HR community. Partnering with HRKatha in this endeavour is Kelly OCG.

The first one of the series aptly called ‘Cocktails and Conversations’, will be held at Bengaluru on February 22, at Taj Vivanta. The idea is to discuss some serious business over drinks, dinner and networking.

The occasion will also be to acknowledge the exemplary contribution of a select few HR professionals. The event will commence with a panel discussion, which will be followed by a felicitation ceremony.

Unlike any award, the felicitation is HRKatha’s endeavour to acknowledge and appreciate some of those HR professionals, who in their careers, have not only built a powerful personal brand in the community, but have relentlessly contributed to the larger cause of HR.

Prajjal Saha, founder & editor, HRKatha, says, “HR is not just any profession but one that involves wisdom, knowledge and emotions alike. The felicitation is our effort to acknowledge and encourage those professionals, who have been able to balance all and support numerous other successful careers through their jobs.”

At the Bengaluru meet, the HR community will discuss one of the major recruiting challenges.

The panellists for the session are Richard Lobo, EV-P HR, Infosys; Sudheesh Venkatesh, chief people officer, Azim Premji Foundation; Srikanth Karra, CHRO, Mphasis; Sailesh Menezes, director & head – human resources – India, at Hewlett Packard Enterprise; Sunitha Lal, head, people operations & strategy, Ather Energy; Pramath Nath, executive director-HR, KPMG.

Organisations across geographies have been forever struggling to find the right kind of talent. The ever-consuming war for talent, however, has now gone to the next level, with organisations looking for specialised workforces. The loyalist employee may have been every organisation’s dream but, with technology and economic changes redefining jobs, specific task- and skill-based employment is slowly becoming the norm.

Talking about the agenda for discussion, Francis Padamadan, senior director – APAC, KellyOCG, says, “The concept of free agents and engaging a varied workforce is getting accepted widely in India and it would be interesting to see how this evolves. The success of future organisations depends on how they leverage varied talent and have them engaged for longer periods. Hybrid working models will soon be a reality and the good part is that it augurs well for both employers and employees.”

In fact, even the World Economic Forum revealed that five years from now, over a third of skills (35 per cent) that are considered important in today’s workforce will have changed. With technology disrupting everything around us, and economies across the world opening up faster, the work dynamics ought to undergo a huge transformation in the coming times. From a permanent workforce, the world of work is now shifting towards a community of free agents. This shift is expected to further transform how organisations look at sourcing, selecting and on-boarding. The question is—Are we ready for the change?

On the evening of February 22, at the Taj Vivanta in Bangalore, over 35 HR professionals will gather to discuss what’s next with finding the best talent—a new outlook on what it takes to attract them and where to find them.