At what point in your life did you decide to take up HR as your career? What were the guiding / motivating factors?

I started working as early as 18 years of age and by 20, I had the first industry exposure in year 1992 with the manufacturing company called as Uni Deritend Precision Casting, I was working there in the Personal Administration department at that time. Human Resource was called Personal Administration Department and I became very much interested in it.  As we get to connect with lots of people and the connection, knowledge of different people and their issues fascinated me. I was very comfortable at it since the beginning. After graduating, I worked for another company and from the year 2000, I switched from Manufacturing company to an IT firm as an HR professional.

HR is one practice that touches human lives directly. Do you think employers and specially HR Professional can play role in reducing stress levels of employees through various employee engagement initiatives?

Very much. Although this is an era of Machine Learning, Robotics, Artificial Intelligence, etc. but you cannot be fully dependent upon it without the inputs of human beings. Workforce is required for growth of the organisation as well as the growth of the whole nation. HR drives the human functions in the corporate sphere where an employee nearly invests/spends his/her major part of the day in the work. There are numerous employee issues HR come across and resolve on a day to day basis. We talk about work-life balance, however it is submerged in this age of digitisation, there are some instances where one thinks of home issues at office and vice versa. So here, an HR has to play a crucial role to de-stress the employees by bringing better work atmosphere.  Employee engagement programs helps to enhance employee’s connection towards the organisation and also helps to figure out a person’s ambitions and career goals. I totally agree to the fact that HR is only such practice that touches the human life clearly.

What are some of the most important employee engagement initiatives related to Music, Art, Dance or Sports that you have taken in your career?

I have taken up sports very actively. Dance is something I realised that I cannot do perfectly but I enjoy indulging in it. Music is something which is ongoing throughout at any point of time. Nowadays we have so many apps and radio channels which has made the accessibility of Music very easy.
At my organisation, we consider the extra curricular activities are the best mode of bringing out the best of the employees.  We conduct Talent shows thru competition (Singing, Dancing, mimicking etc), quiz competitions, sports competitions (we have a them called Josh), nature interactions thru outbound training programes.  We also celebrate various days like Diwali, Dussera, Independence Day by showcasing skits done by our employees.  We also celebrate inhouse festivals by keeping Ganesh ji, Christmas Carols, Namaz/prayer rooms.  The overall atmosphere brings out so much of positivity which motivates the employees to do better and look forward to better tomorrow.
 

Do you think time and cost for employee engagements are an investment for the organisation and can help in multi-fold returns?

Yes. There are few organizations including the one that I am working with, realises the power of EE.  The investments be it time, energy or money done thru EE is fruitful to the organisation. These initiatives make the employees more motivated, energetic and productive, brings out the out of the box thinking, man-management skills which helps in bringing out the best for the organisation.

Do you feel there is a need even to reach out to the family of employees so that they get better connected to the company? Have you undertaken any such initiative in your past or current organization?

When you consider a person representing your organisation, you must also consider his family members who are depending upon that person or connected with him/her. So, you need to connect the family members by actually inviting them into the office to make them see where their father/mother, son/daughter wife/husband brother/sister etc work.  It is a matter of pride to show our family members the place where we work.  Its been now last 10 odd years we have been calling once a year by celebrating family day for the employees.  The pride and joy reflects in the eyes of our employees and their loved one when they see the desk, premises, colleagues is unbeatable. The family members realisation towards from where their son/daughter father/mother draws the monthly earning grows the respect many-fold. Our format of ‘family day’ has evovlved year and year where we organise family engagement activities, this programmes is especially enjoyed by the children.

What is the one change that you would like to bring in HR practice that has potential to boost employees work-life balance?

I would like to have a colonized employment by having offices near homes, it works really well and does wonder, but it may not work in the large metro cities like Mumbai, Pune, Delhi, etc. It has done well at manufacturing set ups at work premises are out of cities and developed new cities within just like Jamshedpur. Mumbai is a city where commuting from one place to another is very complicated and the cost of living is very high. So that is something which cannot be affordable by all to stay nearby their workplace. 
Another best HR practice is that one can co-create a homely atmosphere in the office which I have clearly seen in imd1 office where one can really spend time in the office unwinding themselves to adjust in it and this is where work becomes fun which lets one start enjoying the work.
 

What are your personal interests in Music, Art, Dance or Sports and how do you continue to pursue it?

I do not play sports much these days, but I go to the Gym. Sports is something I wish I could have access to some cricket ground to spend a Sunday morning, that is something I miss a lot. I enjoy Music very much and I even sing on some occasions. I am not that good painter, so canvasing isn’t my cup of tea. I am traveller and a foodie; I like exploring new places and trying new cuisines.