MET Institute of Management, Mumbai in collaboration with the HR Federation of India (HRFI) organized the HR Conclave 2022 last week. The theme of the conclave was ‘Talent Attraction and Retention: Battling the Great Resignation’. Approximately 630 Human Resources professionals across various sectors and industries registered for the conclave where top-notch HR professionals shared insights and knowledge.
Mr. Pankaj Bhujbal, Hon. Trustee, Mumbai Educational Trust (MET) delivered the welcome speech highlighting aspects of BANI (Brittle, Anxious, Non-linear & Incomprehensible) world that we live in and how HR professionals have a great responsibility. Dr. Swati Lodha, Director, MET Institute of Management set the tone of the conclave as she spoke about HR from the academic perspective while others deliberated on the theme and how to address and tackle it.
Ms. Nalini Nutan, Head HR, BASF, said, “As per the Indian employment data, 68% of people changed jobs last year. Out of that, 61% changed for better opportunities while the remaining percentage that quit chose for culture and mental well-being among others. As corporates, we need to change as well and we are taking baby steps toward it.”
Addressing the young generations, Mr. Prabir Jha, Founder & CEO, Prabir Jha People Advisory said, “Don’t think the way the earlier generations thought, especially the younger generation. There is too much of sir and ma’am, the culture needs to change. Individualise responses and understand what the relevant talent for your time is. Don’t be in the business of trying to throw largesse. Clarity about the strategy is extremely important,” he said.
Mr. Alok Sheopurkar, HR Head in HDFC Asset Management Co., said, “Finding people who would be putting in working hours every day is very difficult to get. When the world looks for talent and India starts exporting talent, would we be able to retain our best people? Give a sense of purpose to them, and they should see that the organisation is not into a money-spinning business but is benefiting and changing the lives of an investor or a customer. I envisage that the next economic crisis would be due to a shortage of talent and not because of a shortage of money,” he further added, “Organisations which were suffering from arrogance, bureaucracy, and complacency suffered a lot. But the organisations that are purpose-driven and fair, they could retain their talent.”
Mr. Girish Naik, Vice President HR, Birlasoft, said that there was an increase in demand for people with specific skillsets due to the COVID-19 phenomenon. He added, “That is what is constituting a great resignation. Their salaries increased manifold and as a result, our attritions also doubled. However, it is going down now. This was a short-term blip in the history of humanity”.
Mr. Hirak Bhattacharjee Head HR, Aditya Birla Sun Life Insurance AMC, said, “If an employee who comes into the organisation is able to be productive faster, and if we enable the employee to be continuously productive, the stickiness to the organisation is always going to be there. Unable to perform is when the manager pressure starts coming in. Reliable and valid tools of selection are imperative. An analysis is what is more important than an interview because it cannot catch that.”
Other dignitaries also included Mr. Harjeet Khanduja, SVP HR, Reliance Jio, Mr. Raosaheb Kangane, Executive Committee Team, HRFI, Ms. Ankita Rudra, Head HR, Academy Jio, and Ms. Sonal Jain, Head of people APAC, Coursera.
The conclave also included a book launch titled, ‘The Art and Science of Effective Mediation’ co-authored by Dr Farida Virani, Professor, MET Institute of Management and Mr. Ashraf Ramji.
