Charismatic HR Leader

A charismatic leader who leads by example, Prem Singh is an HR professional with high integrity, exhibiting exceptional leadership qualities and deep domain knowledge. Currently in the role of President, Group HR, JK Organisation, Prem Singh is also Hon. National President of National HRD Network. An alumnus of IIT Delhi, he brings with him a rich work experience of over 32 years and is associated with diverse sectors in leadership positions. He is an all-round professional who understands business nuances and HR interventions for win-win scenario. In an exclusive interview with Corporate Citizen, he talks on people connect, capability building, nurturing talent, empowerment, critical competencies, importance of self-belief and much more

"Focus of HR is getting more futuristic, from being a purely operational support function to becoming a strong strategic business ally. HR is now actively involved in strategic decision-making, aligning HR practices with overall business goals to drive organisational success "

- Prem Singh

Corporate Citizen: What is the role of HR in today’s digitised and hybrid working era, as providing employees with a seamless working experience is considered of prime importance?

Prem Singh: Organisational culture and Employee Experience (EX) are very critical levers of sustainable business success. It is imperative to facilitate and support employees with productive and positive experience, through seamless working processes. When Covid hit, the world was introduced with options like Work-From- Home and hybrid work culture. Providing our employees with the right tools, guidance and ensuring productivity for the organisation was the prime responsibility of HR. I am glad to say, HR function delivered.

Our focus in today’s digitised and hybrid work era is on ensuring that employees have access to the devices, software and networks they need to do their jobs. HR has an important role in facilitating employees learn skills to use necessary tools and new technologies. At JK Organisation, we have been investing in upskilling our employees to keep them future ready. Additionally, we have also developed policies and processes to support hybrid working as needed.

HR plays a vital role in supporting employee well-being and promoting a healthy work-life balance, especially in a hybrid work setup. A Harvard Business Review study found that 40 per cent of employees reported feeling burnout during the Covid-19 pandemic. Clearly, this requires a significant focus from HR.

Through leadership connect, regular manager-employee dialogue and collaboration between employees, we encourage employees to use technology tools to stay connected with each other, regardless of wherever they may be. A culture of trust and autonomy built by giving employees the necessary freedom to work helps to create a seamless and positive working experience for employees.

CC: When management picked you up for the challenge of Essar Steel Caribbean assignment, how did you face and overcome the challenge of settling in a totally different and difficult place and culture?

In the Caribbean, I oversaw HR, Admin, and Corporate Communications for Essar Steel Caribbean Ltd, and two other group companies. To de-risk a 2.4 billion USD investment, one of the primary focus areas was acquiring competent talent for current and future needs. We needed Mechanical, Metallurgical and Instrumentation Engineers, among others, in large numbers. We did our research and understood that the University of Trinidad & Tobago (UTT) was the only institution that might assist us. However, the aforementioned fields did not exist at the University. As an option, I proposed a long-term partnership with the University, whereby we would assist them in hiring and importing Indian Professors from various IITs, who in turn would help build these departments at the University and develop the capability for future. It was not at all easy to get this approved by the concerned Ministry and the University, but finally, after several rounds of discussions and lot of persuasion, it was finally, accepted.

We would eventually hire these young engineers who had been trained by the UTT to develop these areas. With UTT, we formed a strategic alliance. We published an advertisement in India inviting applications from Professors at different IIT’s. Over 40 academicians applied. We set up interviews with them, by a three-members team from UTT, who had travelled to India for this purpose. They chose five Professors—eventually they joined UTT and some of whom stayed there for many years. This project was highly praised by the then Prime Minister, Patrick Manning and Prof. Ken Julien, the then Vice Chancellor of the University, at a ceremony conducted at the institution. The manner in which the PM and everyone else appreciated us that evening, more than convinced that it was worth the effort.

CC: What is the important role of HR analytics in helping organisations with critical insights and producing compelling benefits for businesses?

HR analytics plays a crucial role in helping organisations gather critical insights in various areas of HR, thereby allowing organisations to make decisions based on data rather than gut- feel or assumptions. This leads to more informed and objective decision-making in areas such as talent acquisition, workforce planning, employee development and performance assurance.

A study by Deloitte found that organisations using data-driven recruiting saw a 40 per cent reduction in turnover. Identification of most effective recruitment channels, sound assessment of hires and predicting success in specific roles – all these can lead to reduced time-to-fill, lower recruitment costs and improved candidate experiences.

By analysing employee data, we are able to identify factors contributing to turnover, employee dissatisfaction, or disengagement. These insights helps in implementation of targeted strategies to improve retention and engagement, ultimately reducing turnover costs. HR analytics helps organisations anticipate future talent needs and plan for succession. Performance Management Analytics provides insights into individual and team performance, allowing for more effective performance reviews and development plans.

Employee well-being data has helped in identification of sources of stress and burnout and take proactive measures to improve employee mental health and well-being. A study by the World Health Organisation found that for every $1 invested in mental health initiatives, there is a return of $4 in improved health and productivity.

"A culture of trust and autonomy built by giving employees the necessary freedom to work helps to create a seamless and positive working experience for employees"

HR analytics has helped in predictive analytics to forecast future trends and issues, such as turnover rates, skill gaps, and recruitment needs. This enables proactive problem-solving and planning.

We are empowered to optimise our HR practices, improve employee experiences, and align HR strategies with business goals. By leveraging data and insights, businesses can gain a competitive edge and drive sustainable success.

CC: How can big data and AI be purpose driven by HR to bring competitive advantage for the organisation?

Big data and AI are getting increasingly integrated in various business processes, including HR. Leveraging them for competitive advantage is the need of the hour. Big data and AI are used to analyse large volumes of candidate data, social media profiles and online resumes, to identify and shortlist qualified candidates quickly and efficiently.

AI-enabled HR platforms use algorithms to match job requirements with individual skills and qualifications, improving the quality of hire and reducing time-to-fill positions.

By analysing data from employee surveys, performance review feedback and other sources, HR can identify patterns and trends related to employee engagement and satisfaction. AI algorithms can then help predict which employees may be at risk of leaving and suggest targeted interventions to address their concerns, ultimately leading to improved retention rates.

Big data and AI can be used to identify skill gaps and training needs within the organisation. By mining data from training evaluations, performance data, and external sources, HR can personalise learning and development programmes, recommend targeted training modules and track the effectiveness of these initiatives in real-time.

Artificial Intelligence can also assist HR in analysing data related to employee demographics, performance metrics and market trends to forecast future workforce needs. This enables organisations to proactively identify and address talent gaps, plan succession strategies and optimise workforce allocation based on data-driven insights.

Study by Deloitte found that organisations using AI for HR service delivery experience a 50 per cent reduction in HR inquiry response times. Big data and AI involvement in performance management can provide objective and comprehensive assessment of employee performance by analysing various data points, including sales figures, customer feedback and project outcomes. These insights can be used to provide accurate performance feedback, identify high-performing employees for recognition or promotion and support development areas for underperforming employees.

Big data and AI tools can help eliminate bias, ensure fairness and promote diversity and inclusion within the organisation, enabling a broader, more diverse talent pool and fostering innovation.

Overall, big data and AI in HR can improve decision-making, increase efficiency and optimise resource allocation, enabling organisations to gain a competitive advantage by retaining top talent, enhancing employee productivity and fostering an inclusive and engaged workforce.

CC: What should today's HR professionals embrace to stay ahead of the curve, especially in the current disruptive work environment and rapid pace of change?

In the current disruptive work environment scenario that we see today, it is extremely critical to adapt to stay ahead of the curve. Our focus should primarily be on embracing technology to improve HR processes, right from hiring to retiring and enhance the overall employee experience and productivity. Investing in HR software and tools that can automate repetitive tasks, would allow HR teams to focus on strategic initiatives.

Prioritising DEI initiatives to create a more inclusive workplace and addressing bias in hiring and promotions, provide diversity training and create a culture that values diversity and inclusion.

Invest in continuous learning and development programmes for employees. This includes upskilling and reskilling to keep up with evolving job roles and technologies. Focus on employee well- being, both physical and mental and initiatives that promote work-life balance.

Embracing agility in HR practices is very critical to adapt quickly to changing circumstances. This includes being flexible in workforce planning, performance management, and decision-making.

Being vigilant about protecting employee data and privacy, especially with the increase in remote work and the use of digital HR tools. Stay updated on cybersecurity best practices. Laws are being amended rapidly in the current scenario, hence be informed about labour laws and regulations, especially in the context of remote work and changing employment practices.

Consider integrating ESG as part of HR strategy. This would include initiatives related to environmental sustainability and social responsibility, apart from sound Governance practices.

"The joy of giving back is extremely fulfilling. It’s very satisfying to note that I have been able to help several hundreds of young HR professionals, students and others"

CC: How is HR reinventing its role, in a world where the only thing constant is disruption?

My experience has been that the only constant is change and the pace of change is getting steeper by each passing day.

Focus of HR is getting more futuristic, from being a purely operational support function to becoming a strong strategic business ally. HR is now actively involved in strategic decision-making, aligning HR practices with overall business goals to drive organisational success.

We are leveraging technology to streamline and automate processes, such as recruitment, onboarding, performance management and employee engagement. This has allowed us to focus on more strategic and innovative aspects of their role. Redefining talent management practices over the years to attract, develop, and retain top talent. HR is recognising the importance of continuously nurturing and upskilling employees to keep pace with emerging skills and technological advancements.

With the rise of remote work and flexible arrangements, HR is focused on improving employee experience. We are implementing initiatives to foster collaboration, communication, and work-life balance, ensuring employees feel supported and engaged.

Utilising data analytics to make informed decisions and predictions related to employee trends, performance, and workforce planning. By analysing workforce data, we are able to uncover insights for improving productivity, diversity and inclusion, and organisational effectiveness.

A crucial role in driving diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives within organisations is the responsibility of an HR—implementing policies and practices to ensure fair representation, equal opportunities and an inclusive workplace culture.

CC: What strategies are required to be an effective leader and be an asset to any organisation?

An effective leader is one who continues to build organisation for future, while creating ‘impact and results’ in the current. I firmly believe an effective leader never works alone. It is his/her prime responsibility to nurture the team thereby enabling them to deliver at their full potential. For strategy, I focus on the following key points:

Vision and goal-setting: For being an effective leader, one should define a collective vision, which is so compelling that everyone would like to be part of it and then set up the goals accordingly. Compelling vision where each one can see his/her part clearly, create a sense of purpose and direction.

Connect with team: It’s very important for the leader to remain connected with people. They should be able to clearly convey their ideas, expectations and feedback both ways. Additionally, a leader has to be a good listener and encourage open and honest communication

Being decisive, objective and being fair: Making timely, objective and informed decisions by gathering relevant information, analysing options, and considering the potential outcomes and consequences. A leader can’t afford not being objective and fair in his/her dealings.

Empathy and emotional intelligence: Understanding and relating to the emotions and experiences of my team members. Treating others with respect, listening to their concerns and provide support when needed. Emotional intelligence helps build trust, cooperation and a positive work environment.

Delegation and empowerment: Leaders cannot do everything on their own. He/she needs to delegate and empower the team and hand hold them. This not only helps develop the skills and confidence of the team but also eases the leader's burden.

Continuous learning and self-improvement: Inculcating a growth mindset and actively seek knowledge and improvement. Staying up-to- date with industry trends, attend professional development opportunities and encouraging a culture of learning within the organisation is a symbol of a good leader.

Adaptability and resilience: It is in our vision and mission at JKO that we must be adaptable and be able to navigate change and uncertainty. They embrace new challenges, learn from failures, and motivate their team to stay resilient and flexible in the face of adversity.

Integrity: Leading by example and demonstrating integrity in actions and decisions. Being honest, ethical and consistent, ensuring that we act in the best interest of the organisation and its members.

Inspiring: Leaders must be able to inspire the team. Celebrate successes together—recognising achievements and providing constructive feedback are the key components a leader has to do. These are some of the strategies I have found very helpful in my career.

"Success at the workplace is not solely dependent on technical expertise but also on the ability to lead, communicate effectively, and demonstrate desirable qualities that contribute to a positive workplace culture "

CC: How are leadership and communication skills related to each other? What is vital to stand out at the workplace?

Clear and transparent communication has been a must for me since the inception of my career. It is an essential part of my leadership style because I believe leadership and communication skills are closely related as effective communication is a key component of successful leadership. Leadership involves influencing and guiding others towards a common goal, and effective communication is necessary to communicate that vision, build relationships, motivate and engage others and ultimately achieve the desired outcomes.

To stand out at the workplace, it is vital to showcase a combination of leadership and communication skills. According to a report by the World Economic Forum, by 2025, employers expect communication skills to be one of the top five skills that will increase employability.

Articulating and showcasing vision and goals is one thing but are we able to communicate these goals in a way that is inspiring and motivating to their team members, that is the vital question and hence we need to have a combination of both. Communication is a two-way road and hence actively listening to their team members and understanding their concerns is important as well. They need to be able to communicate effectively with their team members in order to resolve conflicts and build consensus.

Giving and receiving feedback effectively to and from with their team members in a way that is constructive and supportive can happen only when we are able to express ourselves clearly. According to a Harvard Business Review survey, 57 per cent of employees prefer corrective feedback to praise.

Remember, success at the workplace is not solely dependent on technical expertise but also on the ability to lead, communicate effectively, and demonstrate desirable qualities that contribute to a positive workplace culture.

CC: 'Quiet Quitting' is a phenomenon that has gained prominence in businesses and among employees. As an HR what countermeasures will you suggest in curtailing the rising unhappiness and disengagement among employees?

Quiet Quitting' is a new phenomenon that needs immediate attention of HR, to be able to ensure employee happiness and engagement. To curtail rising unhappiness and disengagement among employees, I would suggest the following countermeasures:

Create a positive work environment, that fosters an inclusive work culture based on open communication, respect and collaboration. This would help build emotional connect with the company. Seek employee feedback on a continuous basis and most importantly act on the feedback. This could be based on regular surveys, anonymous feedback channels, periodic focus group discussions or town halls. Actively listening to employees' concerns and taking prompt action to address any issues raised fosters long lasting relationships with the company.

Offer career growth opportunities, encompassing training, mentoring, coaching etc. Encouraging employees to explore their skills, ambitions and interests within the organisation and provide clear pathways for promotion or lateral movement ensures employee happiness and thus retention.

Recognise employees’ contributions and appreciate their efforts in a timely and objective manner. Recognise outstanding performance, both individually and as teams and ensure that rewards are meaningful, aligned with employee preferences, and based on fair and transparent criteria. We at JKO, have developed a robust rewards and recognition system where we reward them at group level in front of hundreds of individuals and senior leaders altogether.

Enhance Work-Life Balance, by promoting flexible working, encouraging employees to take breaks and supportive policies. Investing in employee well-being initiatives, such as wellness programmes, mental health support, and family-friendly policies to create a supportive environment is essential as well.

Foster Employee Engagement, by way of regular team-building activities, social events, and volunteer programmes to strengthen employee relationships, encourage collaboration and create a sense of belonging within the organisation.

Through these countermeasures, HR can proactively address the issue of 'Quiet Quitting' by fostering a positive work environment, promoting employee well-being, recognising achievements and supporting professional growth.

"An effective leader is one who continues to build organisation for future, while creating ‘impact and results’ in the current. I firmly believe an effective leader never works alone"

Formative years of my career journey

I belong to Meerut, Uttar Pradesh and had my formal education from my hometown. I always took academics seriously while keeping an equal focus on extracurricular activities like sports, cultural activities etc. Developed a liking for athletics in my early days and honed it in my graduation. In my engineering college I was also recognised with the VG Sastry Memorial award as the Best Allrounder. This helped me develop myself in a more holistic manner. My professional journey has taken me to several cities in India and outside i.e. Delhi, for a total of 12 yrs (in two phases), Mumbai for 15 yrs, Chennai for 2 yrs, and overseas as well (3.5 yrs). Having worked in very diverse sectors has helped me gain a very wholesome perspective of industry and HR. The journey has been extremely fulfilling and full of learnings, which I owe to the great leaders and the team members I worked with. I am extremely grateful to my ex-bosses for their mentoring and honing me into a better professional. I can share a few notable moments as a learning for my young fellow HR colleagues.

Notable moments

While working at Owens Corning (India) Ltd, as the Plant HR Leader, I led implementation of High Performance work systems, which included Self Directed Teams, Six Sigma, Talent Management, Employee Engagement, Variable Pay Programme, right up to the last level, as some of the tenets of the high performance framework. Our plant received Gold award for three years in a row, and I was awarded with the Global HR excellence award. The most satisfying was that several leading companies like Hindustan Lever, Cadbury, Pepsi etc. visited us to benchmark and learn how the Self-Directed Team concept was being implemented at Owens Corning. That was very fulfilling.

I headed HR, Admin and Corporate Communications in Essar Steel Caribbean Ltd, in the Caribbean islands and worked as an expatriate. The international exposure opened new avenues of learnings and challenges at the same time. Some of the challenges like dealing with several global NGOs, communities, Government regulatory agencies and professionals, for securing the environmental clearance was the biggest learning. Another instance was at Piramal when during the Annual Talent Review with Top Management team headed by Chairman, I had presented the newly developed process of identifying critical positions, potential successors for these positions, readiness of potential successors, development roadmap of successors and career mapping for the internal talent pool in a scientific manner. The integrated approach appealed to everyone and one of the Board Members commented, “This is such a robust process, it should be followed across the Group”. This was then adopted by other businesses as well and I was requested to lead a task force at the Group level for this. I received the Chairman’s Leadership Excellence Award at the Wockhardt Group’s annual leadership meeting. The team’s efforts helped us win three awards from Great Places to Work, including Rank #1 in our industry and Rank #3 for innovative HR practices. One comment which Chairman made, while presenting the award, “Prem has been driving a lot of positive change and it’s after a long time that we have got the right person in HR”. That comment is still so fresh in my mind and so fulfilling.

Joy of giving back

Most satisfying has been the fact that my team members, with whom I’ve worked in many organisations over the years, have developed so well. It gives me tremendous satisfaction seeing them succeeding in their careers. At times some of them would call me up to say “Sir, today I presented to my CEO the work I had done using the concept I learned working with you in XYZ organisation and my CEO was very happy”. “Sir, today I conducted a workshop that you used to conduct in ABC organisation and it went so well”. Such comments bring a unique sense of fulfilment.

The joy of giving back is extremely fulfilling. It’s very satisfying to note that I have been able to help several hundreds of young HR professionals, students and others, through the conferences I have directed, moderated or spoken at, on various platforms like IIMs and other B schools, National HRD Network, CII, PHD Chamber of commerce, AIMA, BMA, DMA etc.

At my current company, JK Organisation, our HR vision is “We shall be an agile, credible, and strategic architect for sustainable business growth”. We have been able to bring in a number of top-tier business leaders from well- respected firms as part of the organisational capability pillar. Reorienting our strategy to bring differentiated value to our stakeholders even more efficiently has been another area of focus. To recognise our HR employees’ high impact, proactive, and progressive activities, a well-structured Customer Champion and Naari Shakti Awards Programme has been launched. Our multi-tiered leadership development programmes include First Time Manager Programmes, Strategic Leadership Programmes, Ready to Lead Programmes, and Top Management Conference.

Overall, it has been a fantastic journey. I believe in life-long learning and consider myself a learner as well. I aspire to become a better version of myself each day and push myself to new horizons at every challenge.