Aamchi Mumbai to Big Apple: Change of track for Abhinav Chopra

Abhinav Chopra, current CHRO and senior executive VP,Viacom Inc., will leave the Indian subcontinent by April to take up a senior management role in HR. In his new position, he will be responsible for the domestic market (country role) and work from the headquarters of the global multi-platform entertainment company, at Times Square.

In India, Viacom 18 was founded in November 2007 as a joint venture operation between Viacom Inc. and TV18. Viacom 18 owns and operates various channels of the Viacom Group for the Indian viewers, as well as various consumer products in India.

“This is an internal move for me. I have been with Viacom 18 since its genesis. It has grown phenomenally since then. We launched Colors TV and over time the genres and platforms for our content have grown steadily creating regional, national and international footprint. Today, there are more than two thousand employees working in the organisation,” declares Chopra

“It’s a sheer joy for me to have built this organisation and taken it to this height. Being with the company for twelve years and raising the narrative for the HR department in the media industry has been of immense satisfaction to me.”

Pushing the boundaries to achieve higher standards has kept Chopra occupied for twelve years in the organisation. Before that, he was with Taj Hotels for seven years.

Chopra is an alumnus of the coveted Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS), and holds a diploma from IIM- Banagalore.

“Our initiatives on gender diversity have helped us widen the gate for inclusion. We pioneered a programme called ‘Wave Women’ and granted paid maternity leave to women that extended to nine months. This was before and beyond the six months’ compulsory leave legislation,” said Chopra.

“I have coined the concept of ‘Equality to Equity’. Giving equal opportunity to women is not enough, we need to do more!” says Chopra.

He explains that their career growth is very different because they go through pauses in the work cycle as they have to raise a family. Not only do they miss out on job opportunities and experience  during the break but re-entering the workforce can also be challenging. To reduce this gap, they need more than equality– they need equity.

Chopra persevered to make Viacom 18 the top work destination in the industry with innovative employee-engagement policies and practices, and a culture that boasts of wellness and oneness. They have gone through a transformation process and people have been at the heart of this change.

It is an emotional moment for Chopra as he moves further to unknown territories in a known business.