“The evolution of HR business partners mirrors the dynamic pulse of the job market, embracing strategy-driven approaches, data-centric decisions, and a holistic focus on employee experience and talent management.”
In this episode of The Shape of Work, uncover the future of work with Mantript Kaur, a Senior Talent and Culture Business Partner at Globant. With over a decade of professional experience, she has cultivated a diverse background through roles at esteemed organizations like Naalsons Engineers, Sphinx Worldbiz, and Nihilent Technologies. Her academic foundation includes a PGDM from the esteemed I.T.S Institute of Management.
In this episode, we explore the evolving role of HR business partners in today's dynamic corporate landscape, and how key factors such as respect, recognition, support, and communication contribute to creating a positive work culture. We delve into the critical skills needed to succeed in this role and how the interplay of these factors drives employee well-being and fosters diversity.
Episode Highlights
Follow Mantript on Linkedin
Produced by: Priya Bhatt
Podcast Host: Riddhi Agarwal
About Springworks:
Springworks is a fully-distributed HR technology organisation building tools and products to simplify recruitment, onboarding, employee engagement, and retention. The product stack from Springworks includes:
SpringVerify— B2B verification platform
EngageWith— employee recognition and rewards platform that enriches company culture
Trivia — a suite of real-time, fun, and interactive games platforms for remote/hybrid team-building
SpringRole — verified professional-profile platform backed by blockchain, and
SpringRecruit — a forever-free applicant tracking system.
Springworks prides itself on being an organisation focused on employee well-being and workplace culture, leading to a 4.8 rating on Glassdoor for the 200+ employee strength company.
“The evolution of HR business partners mirrors the dynamic pulse of the job market, embracing strategy-driven approaches, data-centric decisions, and a holistic focus on employee experience and talent management.”
In this episode of The Shape of Work, uncover the future of work with Mantript Kaur, a Senior Talent and Culture Business Partner at Globant. With over a decade of professional experience, she has cultivated a diverse background through roles at esteemed organizations like Naalsons Engineers, Sphinx Worldbiz, and Nihilent Technologies. Her academic foundation includes a PGDM from the esteemed I.T.S Institute of Management.
In this episode, we explore the evolving role of HR business partners in today's dynamic corporate landscape, and how key factors such as respect, recognition, support, and communication contribute to creating a positive work culture. We delve into the critical skills needed to succeed in this role and how the interplay of these factors drives employee well-being and fosters diversity.
Episode Highlights
Follow Mantript on Linkedin
Produced by: Priya Bhatt
Podcast Host: Riddhi Agarwal
About Springworks:
Springworks is a fully-distributed HR technology organisation building tools and products to simplify recruitment, onboarding, employee engagement, and retention. The product stack from Springworks includes:
SpringVerify— B2B verification platform
EngageWith— employee recognition and rewards platform that enriches company culture
Trivia — a suite of real-time, fun, and interactive games platforms for remote/hybrid team-building
SpringRole — verified professional-profile platform backed by blockchain, and
SpringRecruit — a forever-free applicant tracking system.
Springworks prides itself on being an organisation focused on employee well-being and workplace culture, leading to a 4.8 rating on Glassdoor for the 200+ employee strength company.
Hello and welcome to the Shape of Work, a podcast series by Springworks. My name is Anoop and I am your host. Each week, we'll be talking to top people managers across the world on the future of work and how it's shaping our workplace. So sit back and get ready to find out more from these movers and shakers, as we have a no-holes bar. Anything goes. Conversation with them about their journey, their insights, their thoughts, most importantly, their ideas and vision for the workplace of the future. Join in on the conversation, leave a comment and don't forget to hit that subscribe button.
Speaker 2:Hello and welcome to another episode of the Shape of Work podcast. In this episode today, we have with us Mandript Kaur, who is senior talent and culture business partner at Gloomand. Hi Mandript, thank you for coming and joining us today. How are you?
Speaker 3:I'm good, ritthi. How are you? How are you? And, first of all, thank you for inviting me for this podcast.
Speaker 2:I'm great Mandript and it's pleasure having you here. So just to set some context about you and what you do, can you tell our listeners a little bit about yourself and your career journey till now?
Speaker 3:Sure, sure. So basically, I'm from Bilih Chattisgarh. I did my computer applications from there only, and then I went to Delhi for my post-cred. I'm a Gold Medalist in HR and Chairman, bronze Medalist winner in MBA, a scholarship student, a scholarship holder. I worked in Delhi for some time and then I landed to Pune. Basically, my experience is more into IT and IT services For a change. I worked as an HR manager in the hospitality industry as well, but most of my experience is into IT only. If I talk about my function, my profile as an HRBP, I'm working with Gloomand and it's HRBP profile, but here we do have a designation as TCBP, that's Talent and Culture Business Partner. So here we are working strategically on the HR part, hr rule, as well as we are working as the culture ambassadors for the organization. I'm also a part of DEI POT, wherein we take initiatives related to diversity, equity and inclusion. Yeah, that's all about me, ribi.
Speaker 2:I must say it's been a great journey so far and definitely, as you mentioned about, you are a Gold Medalist in HR, so definitely we'll get a lot of insights for our listeners from today's conversation. So, talking about your role, you are a Human Resource Business Partner and, of course, have great experience in talent and culture. So, talking about this role, I just wanted to ask you like how has this role evolved over the years and what do you think the future holds for this profession, how the role will look like. So, if you can share some insights, Sure.
Speaker 3:So the talent and culture business partners. They play a very crucial role in creating an environment where employees can thrive. Tcbps or the HRBPs, they achieve this by developing a company's culture that reflects the organization's values, mission and vision. The HR business partner function. If you talk about the evolution, yes, it is constantly evolving, driven by emerging trends in the world of work and changes in job market. The changing role of HRBP reflects the shift towards strategy catcher management, data driven decision making, employee experience, talent management and also an effective collaboration, which I feel. Hence, I believe the HRBPs must learn and develop different skills to meet the demands and also it will help the organization to succeed.
Speaker 2:So definitely, as you said, it will be an exciting time for talent and culture management.
Speaker 3:Yes, and if we talk about the future holds for this position, so I believe it is already there. Hrbps they are shifting their focus from individual competencies to organization capabilities, or basically to broaden the HR outcomes, and subsequently, I believe, internal and external stakeholders will receive more values and this will demand the HRBP to level up their business skills.
Speaker 2:Definitely, I think. Very well said, manthrit. Of course, today it's all about shaping workplace culture and driving employment and fostering innovations, as you mentioned. And what can I conclude from your points? And in the future, definitely I see it becoming more integral as businesses focus on employee well-being and diversity and digital transformation.
Speaker 3:So, yes, yeah, very good.
Speaker 2:So now, if we'll talk about the workplace culture, I just wanted to ask you, like in your experience, what do you think what are the key factors that contribute to a positive workplace culture?
Speaker 3:Yeah. So I believe, first of all, respect. This is what I feel. This is one of the very important factor here. Everyone should be treated same. They should get same amount of respect, regardless of rank in the company, seniority in the company. Everyone is worthy of regard and everyone is treated. They should be treated with courtesy and kindness. We should be kind to them. There shouldn't be nitpicking or criticism over little things. So this is one of the important thing here. Next, I believe, recognition Employees should feel valued and important in the workplace itself. So this is again a very important point here.
Speaker 3:Next, I would say support and investment. Here I mean this. So personal development it should be encouraged as much as the professional development, regular training, while support, guidance and constructive feedback should be given for the development and also for the improvement. I believe the seniors they actively give challenging tasks which would require more than the level of the employee, because we are pushing the employees for their development. So it should be the responsibilities or the you know, maybe the challenges. It should be a level up so that again, at the personal and the professional end, the employees will get a level up exposure.
Speaker 2:Yeah, definitely those factors are very crucial for a healthy workplace Talking about the respect for the employees, or recognition and support to them.
Speaker 3:So whatever points you have mentioned are very, very crucial One, like a few more points which I believe you know, which I should add. Here is one. This one is communication and transparency. The transparent workplace always shares many traits which actually builds a strong relationship and always, you know, honesty is paramount. So this is also one of the important factors which I feel you know, which I should talk about. Then comes trust. Employees should be feel trusted to manage their own time and there shouldn't be micro management, because nowadays you feel nobody wants to join an organization where micro management is there, so it actually disturbs the employees, so it shouldn't be there.
Speaker 3:Then very important part is the inclusion. You know employees should feel involved in the organization, like their opinion should matter, they should be encouraged to express their ideas and opinions. They should, you know, and it should be acknowledged, expressed and also implemented. So this is what the inclusion talks about. Then we do have this understanding and empathy. So employees should be treated as human, not as machines. It's very important. Empathy should be there.
Speaker 3:Then, I believe time, yes. So we should feel as the doors should always open from the leader's side for anybody to come and discuss anything if they want to discuss it with their seniors. So it should be open. They should feel like, okay, fine, there's leaders, they have time for them and if they need them, they're always there. So it should be there. Very important is security, so seniors need through trust over fear. We are not in a 15th century wherein we do have tyranny rules, so we do have now positive work culture. Employees they shouldn't feel an insecurity in their working environment. Employees never made to feel like they could be fired or dismissed unfairly at any point of time. So, yeah, these were a few important factors which I feel I should talk about when it comes to the workplace culture, a positive workplace culture.
Speaker 2:Definitely. Very well said, manjip. Of course, when employees feel heard and supported definitely contributes to our thriving culture. And even you have talked about inclusivity and diversity in the workplace, so I'll just want to add another question regarding to this. So, like diversity, equity and inclusion have becoming increasingly important in the workplace, and every organization are trying to focus and adopt this approach in the workplace. So how do companies integrate these principles into their strategies for fostering a diverse and equitable workforce? What do you think?
Speaker 3:Yeah, firstly, I would say, in today's globalized business environment, diversity and inclusion are not just buzzwords, they are basically business imperatives now. So the TCBPs, hrbps or PVPs PVPs here I mean as people, business partners so they play a very important and a leading role in creating a culture that celebrates diversity and promotes inclusivity. This is very important, and a diverse and inclusive workplace is one that makes everyone, regardless of who they are or what they do for the business, they should feel equally involved and supported in all the areas of workplace, which I feel I this is my belief. And then, and yes, when employee, they don't feel that their ideas, presence or contributions are truly valued or they're not taken seriously, so they will not again, it will give a very negative impact on the work culture and they will eventually leave. So, yeah, and having an inclusive workplace, it will not only attract a diverse set of talent, but also helps you to retain the diverse talent that you attract in the first place. And if we talk about fostering workplace diversity, so you know it involves creating an environment where all the employees, they should feel valued and can thrive.
Speaker 3:And, yes, the companies, you know the company strategies are basically to achieve it through transparency, open dialogue and also collaboration among diversity members and eventually, you know, it is the employees who are getting encouraged to contribute their unique perspectives, which can also lead to innovative solution and not, so you know, to more inclusive culture.
Speaker 3:Also, you asked about you know the strategy, so I would like to add you know, nowadays, companies, they've started working on trainings on unconscious bias and there are sessions on LASHA because, you know, communicating these kind of trainings it is, it actually creates an importance and also creates a spreads a word you know, like what is the importance of the bias, managing how we can manage bias. And also, there are organization not, I think, almost every organization they are promoting pay equity and developing a strategy on training programs, because these diversity training will help employees to understand. First, they need to understand what are the differences, why we are doing it, so they'll understand the culture differences which can impact how people work and how they interact at the work environment. And also, yes, almost every organization, they've started acknowledging holidays of all cultures. Yeah, but I wanted to mention here.
Speaker 2:Definitely very well said and that was some great points you have mentioned. I think like creating a company culture where DEI are infused throughout is no longer nice to have, like it's necessary for business success and employee affinity, and every companies are encouraged to think more holistically and, you know, adopt this approach more.
Speaker 3:Yes.
Speaker 2:So of course, they should also implement, like whatever you have said about inclusive hiring practices, create diverse talent pipelines and regularly access their process. It's continuous journey towards equity and inclusion. Yeah, so we have talked about DEI and the workplace culture and how the role have evolved over the years. Like, I want to ask you and take you on a different expect, because technologies are coming into play, ai advancements are there, so in the organization there are different, you know, functions or domains which are evolving very frequently. So I just want to ask you, like, what are some of the best practices for onboarding? Because, of course, talking about onboarding, even it also has involved, evolved over the years. So, what are some of the best practices for onboarding new employees now and how we can ensure that they can quickly adapt to the company culture? What do you think?
Speaker 3:Well, yes, onboarding it's a completely different topic, but, yes, I know that's. I would say onboarding nowadays is it's more than just paperwork and orientation. You know, it's an opportunity for an organization to create a positive relationship between employers and employees right from the day one, from the day one. So we are not only orienting the employees but also making them acquainted with the business culture and technical factors. So if we talk about the best practices giving a new hire the resources and knowledge to contribute effectively to the team and introducing them to the company culture it's very important. Additionally, if I say we should begin onboarding when your employee receives their offer, that that is the day when the onboarding starts. Right Technically, if we talk about, so, giving your employees access to necessary resources for performance just laptops, internet connection these are very common things which every organization does. But if we talk about the new practices and actually these practices are very productive and it created a very good impact as well so I would suggest assigning a buddy mentor. This is very important Once the person joins in giving your team member a buddy, giving them space, safe space, to learn about the company's procedure, work environment and the day-to-day job. So, newcomers they should feel comfortable asking questions about culture and team to their buddy mentors so does. It would also be idle if we are tagging that buddy or mentor. He or she's a colleague or rather than a direct manager or supervisor. The colleague would work good, so they'll be open to. They will feel shy if they're reaching out to the leaders, managers or supervisors. So we need to ensure the person we are choosing for this position should have helping attitude, which is very important Because these buddies, they are giving the first picture of the organization to them, right, so it's very important. Then we need to provide them essential trainings, your trainings. We generally give a generic training on IT, right, but yes, there should be some guidelines which should be included. If we are working with some clients, then there are some IT related guidelines from the clients as well. So those do's and don'ts should get included here also as a generic training module.
Speaker 3:And I know a few organizations. They have this probationary period of around six months, three months, but yes, the regular connects should happen after a month. We should not wait for the probation period to end, right, so it should start happening from the day one, those one-on-one connects, and in the orientation program I believe the seniors should get added. You know orientation completely. They should be one day assigned to the seniors too, you know, because these seniors they can help, you know, with their history, with the company history, with their experience in the organization. This is very important that we should include seniors in the orientation program also. Can be from technical side, can be from, you know, any other function, but yes, they should be like, they should have a good tenure in the organization, definitely who were aware of the company's history. That is very important.
Speaker 3:And then, if you talk about feedback, feedback, because it is very important. Feedbacks are always important and they are the prime source of any organizations to improve, right, so have feedback system, like we should have feedback surveys on the 15th day or a month's survey and then we can have it on 90th day. So they are very good. You know feed, consolidated resources, you know from the responses which we'll receive, from the feedback which we're going to get from this new hire surveys. So this is very important. And you're I would like to mention few. You know the research and I was just reading one blog, so it says that you know, typically an onboarding process should last for three months but according to the research for the 7% of respondents. You know. They believe that the length of an onboarding process should be more than Three months.
Speaker 2:Okay.
Speaker 3:And the professionals. They also recommended you know it should be much longer than 90% 90 days. This is very important research. You know. If we talk about the onboarding thing, according to one more research where you know it says that 79% of respondents they believe that the onboarding programs, you know the speed up the integration into the company. It helps the newcomers to get involved in the organization. Therefore, you know, the company's success it depends on an effective onboarding procedure throughout all the phases of onboarding.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 3:So, for the two research you know which actually recently I read about, and then, yes, I can conclude saying you know that an effective employee onboarding process can have a significant impact on companies culture. It will not only set new hires up for success but also, I believe, it will help, you know, to define the values, expectations and goal of the organization. So investing in a strong onboarding process can lead to increased productivity, also, I believe, improved retention, and it will also enhance company culture, because culture is something which is very important. So it will definitely going to enhance the culture. So, yeah, that is it you know. So companies should make sure that they should have a robust and efficient onboarding process in place to reap the benefits in the long run, definitely, I must say that makes a lot of sense and you have explained already in a very crisp form.
Speaker 2:But again, to summarize whatever you have said, and that there are some great strategies which you have mentioned. The one is assigning the buddy mentor, which is a very small thing, but again, it's the most important thing to focus on. The next one is to not wait for the probationary period to end. Of course the connection should start then they should start from the day one so that the employee feel more connected with the organization and, of course, the regular feedback are the key to successful onboarding experience. So these are some of the great points you have mentioned and again, thank you for sharing the insights from the article also, which you have mentioned about the onboarding.
Speaker 3:Thank you, thanks, thanks.
Speaker 2:So that makes a lot of sense and I'm very sure there's a lot of takeaway from the content you have shared today.
Speaker 3:I'm hoping to.
Speaker 2:So thank you for sharing this month trip. And this brings us to the end of our conversation. But before we leave, can you tell our listeners where they can reach out to you?
Speaker 3:So they can reach out to me in LinkedIn. I'm there as month trip core senior talent and culture business partner. You can reach out to me through LinkedIn.
Speaker 2:Thank you, man, it was really lovely hosting you today.
Speaker 3:Thank you, thanks, thanks for inviting me, thank you.