IMI, New Delhi conducted a leadership marathon which was organised by professor Dr. Asha Bhandarker. The marathon was a full-day event with events such as solving live case studies and talks by industry stalwarts such as AD Burman, Head Learning and Development, Maruti Suzuki; Himanshu Misra, Vice President and Head Compensation and Benefits, Axis Bank; SK Bose Head Learning and Development, Indian Oil Corporation Ltd.;and R Anand Head, HR, HCL Technologies.
The day was divided in two halves, hosting sessions ranging from solving cases, industry insights and interactive sessions with Director General Debashis Chatterjee and other speakers. In one session industry stalwarts discussed the role of an HR manager in an organisation. Discussing various business problems such as attrition and training, the speakers all agreed that design thinking analytics was coming up in a big way. They also touched upon the never-ending debate on whether the HR’s role is all-business or being supportive. The panel also said that today’s generation practices an individualistic approach, but should realise the importance of intangible attributes, such as managing relationships and the ability to gel with the team.
The day ended with everyone agreeing that the world is shifting from manufacturing industries to a more corporate-oriented approach, the HR world is indeed thriving in this dynamic and VUCA world . This dynamism can be seen in the shift of context and continuum in the various organizations. HR has come a long way and is still important in an organisation because it deals with the ‘human’ factor. But one must always remember that the human mind can never be replaced, which is why HR has, and will always have an important role to play.