On 13th February 2020, into the new decade, the Bayer Group hosted the 1st meeting of the Indo-German HR Partner Forum. KS Harish, Country Group HR Head, who has been one of the founding and senior most members of the forum, facilitated the agenda throughout the day with the highest level of engagement. Joining him with equal fervor was the entire HR team including colleagues Vaibhav Rane, Priya DCruz, Jaideep Iyengar and Dr. Rajesh Parekh; and Sarita Bahl, Country Group Head – South Asia, Communication and Public Affairs.
Bayer with its new vision “Health for All, Hunger for None” had recently undergone an integration with global biotech giant Monsanto. This acquisition – its process, its challenges and its outcome – was an interesting case study for the remaining partners in the forum. It resonated with the spirit of the forum that always believes in sharing and benchmarking best practices and learning from each other.
Through an interactive dialogue across various stakeholders, Harish passionately narrated the entire integration story emphasizing on the following topics:
- Managing change and communicating exhaustively to inculcate a culture of oneness
- Magnifying inclusion by creating programmes that enables girls from an agricultural background to enter the sales force and physically challenged individuals to enter the Bayer Shared Services
- Managing performance
Through the detailed case study, it was evident that the Bayer Group had sailed through this difficult phase with success. In a pulse survey conducted, they had emerged with the highest scores on Customer Focus, Experimentation, Collaboration, Pride, Trust and Advocacy. And this really meant huge kudos to the entire HR team!
Post lunch, all the partners indulged their collective energies and strengths to pave a new way forward for the Indo-German HR Partner Forum in the new decade. Four working groups presented their ideas on the following topics:
- Purpose of the IGTC
- Value Proposition for Business Eco System
- Staying agile and in tune with environment
- Looking beyond Business
The new purpose was defined as the 3Cs –
- Collaborating and Networking
- Contribution to Business and Society
- Competency Building
The fulfilling and enriching day came to a close by bidding an emotional farewell to Dr. Lakshmi Nadkarni, Director HR South Asia, BASF India on her retirement. Dr. Lakshmi leaves behind a legacy by initiating “HR – Horizon Redefined”, a series of joint learning and development programmes for the enhancement of the HR Fraternity. The forum will always cherish her mentorship and guidance!
The next meeting of the Indo-German HR Partner Forum will be held on Thursday 14th May 2020 at Bajaj Allianz General Insurance Company, Pune.
