How HR heads are leading change
Mumbai:
There’s very little that a chief human resources
officer (CHRO) today would have in common with one who had the same job a
decade ago. Back then, the head of the department needed to know the nuances of
labour law and be an ace at managing ops. Today, it’s more the ability to plan
for the future of work and align employees to growth that’s essential. Today’s
CHRO is also more likely to be younger and a woman, though the scale still tips
in favour of men.
“The CHRO’s job has become much more like that of a
chief transformation officer,” said Reena Tyagi, who has been leading HR at
Cigna TTK Health Insurance for six years. “To succeed, the CHRO must master the
attributes that were barely on his or her radar five years ago — embracing
disruption, practising agility, solving for organisational structure, employing
data analytics, and facilitating new work environments. The companies that get
the right employees will greatly improve their chances of being able to take
advantage of the big changes afoot in the marketplace.”
If a CHRO spent 20% time on talent acquisition in
2008, this now consumes 30% of his/her time. On the other hand, HR operations
have reduced from 30% in 2008 to 10% this year, according to a study covering
100 companies by BTI Executive Search. Today, CHROs are more aligned to the
business compared to 2008. This means that they are also judged on planning,
engagement and mapping the skills capability for the current and future needs.
James Agrawal, MD, BTI Executive Search/PersolKelly,
said, “The role of a CHRO is becoming more strategic in managing and developing
talent. It is a clear expectation from CHROs that they must help the business
by building and assigning talent, especially key people, and work towards
unleashing the organisation’s potential.” He said CHROs are now expected to be
both business-savvy and data-savvy. “In recent years, we’ve witnessed an
increase in demand for analytical CHROs with good business acumen and
experience in managing diverse talent and work environments. Companies are
looking for CHROs who are innovative and have long-term vision,” he said.
‘Recession, tech advances have
reshaped HR work’
According to the study, disruptions have touched all
areas of the CHRO’s traditional portfolio. “From the 2008 recession to major
technological advances, the events of the past decade have shaped how we work
today,” said Shantanu Das, CHRO, Amway India. “A decade ago, a company’s top
future challenges were succession planning and developing skills of leaders.
Today’s challenge has moved to acquiring and retaining specialised talent.
Conventional HR practices are eroding, giving way to agile thinking and dynamic
orientation. The role of a CHRO is a hands-on one and a critical element for
success is the pace with which an HR leader can transform the culture to enable
higher engagement.”
The average number of years required to become a CHRO
has come down from 15-20 years to 12-18 years. Contrary to the belief that HR
roles attract more women, at the level of CHRO, men hold sway though the gender
ratio has improved from 90:10 in 2008 to 70:30 this year.
“Women are under-represented, particularly in senior
leadership teams, but companies are increasingly realising the missed
opportunities and are promoting women in leadership roles. Many companies have
launched internal programmes to improve recruiting, retention, and promotion of
women,” said Tyagi.
Leena Nair, the first woman CHRO at Unilever, is an
engineering graduate who chose HR. She combines her engineering and HR skills.
In a recent interview to TOI, Nair said: “We have to bring the
field of human capital and financial capital together. We use standard measures
to ensure we get the best talent from the best places. We measure the mood and
morale of people with data analytics. With predictive attrition, we are able to
predict which employees we may lose. That has saved us 200 million euros, the
cost of unavoidable attrition.”
Namrata.Singh@timesgroup.com
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