Rebooting Hr : Talent Molting in the Era of New Normal

Date: 9^th Jan, 2021

In this era of a global pandemic, it is very important to keep the morale high at the workplace. And, since they would be the newest entrants to the workplace, students too, need to be motivated, and their confidence should not be allowed to waver. So, the question that arises is: how do they mould themselves in order to be accepted?

Change is the only constant. It is something we have to accept. In these changing times, both industry and academia have undergone a sea change. They need to develop that willpower where it becomes easier to accept the new normal. The industry and academia should align with each other to come to a plausible solution.

Kontempore, in association with KIIT University, in its KweetTalk series, discussed and deliberated on how to take leadership skills to a new level. The Kweettalk firmly asserts:

Speakers:

Mr. Dev Tripathy, VP & HR Head- R&D, Glenmark Pharmaceuticals Ltd; Mr. Saumen Chatterjee, Director HR Global Head TA & HR R&D and Discovery, Sai LifeSciences Ltd. ; Mr. Srinivasan Pagadala, Director HR, Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories; Mr. IthaLakshmipathi, Senior Director HR, GVK Biosciences

Here’s what industry stalwarts have to say about “Rebooting HR”

Q1) There was large scale collaboration among businesses that too with limited Supply Chain and resources –

“Pharma Companies to be specific normally have reserves for six months. So the limitation didn’t hamper. The real challenge was in Quarter 1 as the industry belonged to essential services so the WFH option wasn’t there. Management was way too supportive and there was an immense collaboration between cross-functional teams. Be it HR, finance, marketing, operations.  This collaboration helped the employees to come back to their workplace as they were ensured safety. Various change management techniques came to place like the area which used to have water bottles now has sanitizers, social intimacy too was curtailed.”

– Mr. Itha Lakshmipathi, Senior Director HR, GVK Biosciences

 Q2) Industries are operating with reduced manpower. Still, targets are possible –

“A lot of it depends on the industry and the role we are operating in. The very concept of absenteeism has decreased as people are working from home and working at their convenience. In manufacturing units, efficiency versus volume has come to play. The volume can be no of people or hours spent. HR people dealing with efficiency are the key to success. People slowly and steadily understand the importance of being disciplined. Six Sigma has become a powerful tool.”

– Mr. Saumen Chatterjee, Director HR Global Head TA & HR R&D and Discovery, Sai LifeSciences Ltd.

Q3) Initiatives by Industry to boost the morale of employees –

“Industries have started categorizing functions where employees don’t have to come home. Initially, WFH was hectic but by setting proper timing things have become easier. Everything has become meeting based. The number of working days has increased but working hours have decreased. Certain models have been removed. Employees are encouraged to demand their safety gear. Workplaces have become far more hygienic. One of the major interventions is mindfulness training of employees and their family members in form of NLP sessions, yoga, etc.”

– Mr. Saumen Chatterjee, Director HR Global Head TA & HR R&D and Discovery, Sai LifeSciences Ltd.

 Q4) Changes to mitigate effects of Covid 19 and their consequences –

“Pharmaceutical companies have acted promptly in addressing the issues related to the pandemic. They significantly contributed to expedite the manufacturing of certain drugs that were required not only in India but also outside India. Various measures have been implemented to stay relevant in the business from an HR perspective. The area of organizational design has also undergone a change. MIS is changing rapidly. Different verticals are collaborating to deliver customer value. Experience and exposure have been enhanced. Virtual learning has gained momentum. There is an additional burden on leaders to connect teams better, focussing, and facilitating on employee engagement programs. Learning too has become result-oriented”

– Mr. Dev Tripathy, VP &HR Head-R&D, Glenmark Pharmaceuticals Ltd

Q5) Key skill set to adopt digitization –

“The ability to code is needed for organizations and their employees to embrace digitization. In the area of biotech and pharmaceuticals, computational chemistry has become all the more important where data can be synthesized to bring out the best possible outcome. The access rate has gone higher in biological sciences. Due to the power of data and collaboration, there has been a disruption in technology. Siloed function works will soon disappear where the organization will become more bionic. The new world will have Artificial Intelligence.”

– Mr. Srinivasan Pagadala, Director HR, Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories.

Speakers:

Mr. Dev Tripathy, VP & HR Head- R&D, Glenmark Pharmaceuticals Ltd; Mr. Saumen Chatterjee, Director HR Global Head TA & HR R&D and Discovery, Sai LifeSciences Ltd; Mr. Srinivasan Pagadala, Director HR, Dr. Reddy’s Laboratories; Mr. Itha Lakshmipathi, Senior Director HR, GVK Biosciences