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SHRM India Annual Conference 2021: Experts discuss why organisations now need HR more than ever

New Delhi: The 2-day long SHRM India Annual Conference 21: HR Now More Than Ever, concluded successfully today. The virtual conference witnessed 2000+ delegates, 120+ speakers and 50+ immersive and insightful sessions to discuss  various aspects of HR, and how to equip the HR leaders and people managers to confidently reframe the future & thrive in the new world order.      

The second and closing day of the conference started with the opening Keynote Session, “The India Story: Growth Opportunities Post Pandemic Era”. In this session, Amitabh Kant, CEO, NITI Aayog, discussed how there is a distinct trend towards a more multipolar world, which has been the hallmark of the past decade. Also, and the power centre of the global economy began to shift, slowly yet surely, to Asia, and there is infinite potential that our nation holds, for us to grasp and make the most of.

In another powerful session, “A Culture to Thrive: Harnessing the Power of Cultural Transformation Dr Praveer Sinha, CEO & Managing Director of The Tata Power Company Limited, and Anand Shankar, Director – Tata Management Training Center, discussed how a profound cultural transformation is possible when four cultural attributes are prioritized: Openness, Simplicity, Empowerment with Accountability and Leaders Developing Leaders.

Achal Khanna, CEO-SHRM India and Business Head – APAC & MENA said, “This is an exciting and pivotal time in the HR profession. Now, more than ever, HR teams are required to assume a greater leadership role, contributing to the strategic direction of their organization. We are extremely delighted to see the overwhelming participation, and hopeful that the attendees must have had a seamless and enriching experience from the keynote addresses, panel discussions and special talks at the SHRM India Annual conference 21”.

As soon as any of your teams begin working remotely, you need to put new protections in place. Similarly, if any of your employees relocated long-term, there are regulations to control their employment and your team needs to learn the ins-and-outs of remote employment. In SHRM BIG DEBATE, “Hybrid is the new way of work but what is your default option: WFH & WFO”, experts discussed the best practices for drafting remote work policies and integrating new recruits compliantly.

On the upGrad whitepaper launch on day 2, Ms. Achal Khanna, CEO-SHRM India and Business head – APAC & MENA, said, “In Peter Senge’s words: Only a learning organization can truly build systems thinking in a sustainable manner! And PSUs have time and again, proven themselves by being in the forefront to build, transform and continue to be learning organizations. It gives me immense pleasure to launch this white paper in collaboration with upGrad, which takes into account the insights shared by Senior HR Leaders from Public Sector Units, and includes cutting edge learning initiatives that PSUs have taken up, ensuring that they are future ready for the opportunities offered by the new normal”.

Some of the eminent speakers who contributed to the sessions on day two of the conference were, Manu Wadhwa, CHRO, Sony Pictures Networks; Sonam Kalra, Award Winning Singer & Composer, Creator of The Sufi Gospel Project; Pankaj Bansal, Co-Founder & Group CEO, PeopleStrong; Yash Mahadik, President – Global Human Resources & Co-Lead Business Transformation Office, Lupin Global; Sashi Kumar, Head of Sales, India, Indeed; Leena Sahijwani; Human Resources Leader, Change Enabler; & Smriti Ahuja, Chief People Officer, Times Internet.

In an exciting Closing Keynote, “The Iron Lady of India, Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw, Chairperson, Biocon and an unconventional thinker, candidly shared her beautiful journey and achievements in life.

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