Seeking Ideas: How Can I Contribute to Global HR from India?

Hi All,

I am working with an American MNC that has factories and offices all over the world, including in India. My role is as the HR and Admin Head for India Operations. Despite this, I have a lot of time available which I am certain can be utilized by the company. I have requested my Corporate Director - HR, who is based in the USA, to provide me with more exposure so that I can assist offices in other countries with HR management.

He has only asked me to share ideas on how they can make use of my skills in other countries. This opportunity will also provide me with valuable global HR exposure.

I kindly request all my friends on this forum to suggest ideas or functions in which I can contribute and work. Additionally, I would appreciate it if you could elaborate on your suggestions.

Regards, Tushar Bachal

(You can also email me at [tushar0057@yahoo.com](mailto:tushar0057@yahoo.com))

Hi Tushar,

If you are heading the HR & Admin of Indian Operations, similarly there would be someone else heading the HR & Admin in other countries as well... right? Why do you assume that they are not capable enough to handle their job properly without your help?

If you want to help them out in any way, then first check if they need your help at all. Besides, HR policies and procedures can be very different from country to country. So, without having global HR knowledge, how will you help them?

Or if you want to contribute to the improvement of the organization as a whole, then think of some global HR practices and suggest them to your Director - HR.

Even better, try to improve HR functions in your own Indian branch. I am sure there would be a lot of scope for improvement if you look more closely.

Hi Deepthi,

Thanks for your advice. We have offices in countries like China and Singapore, and HR support from Sweden and the UK, respectively. If I could support them from India, then I believe it should work. My intention is to gain more exposure globally, so I am trying.

In India, we are a company of 60 employees, so I have a lot of time that I can dedicate to supporting others. Perhaps, this will also be cost-effective. What do you think further?

Thanks,
Tushar Bachal

Hi Tushar,

I understand your keenness to get better exposure. Unlike IT support, it's not feasible to support other countries from India - it's like marriage - you cannot build/nurture your family from abroad. Hope you understand. This is my opinion, forgive me if it's not in the right taste for you.

Thanks,
Vg

Hi Tushar, it is a great idea.

Start with understanding the business model of each location/country. This will make you informed about the type of business operations at that location. Write to me when you do this.

Till then, bye.

Bharat Ketkar

My 2 cents on what I feel you could do.

Organize an international meeting at the American MNC Headquarters for HR heads so they can get a deeper understanding first of the company and its environment. This will help realize more productive measures in the company's growth. The HR challenge when the company grows will be met internally by these same heads (as they would be preparing for it right now). Get information on current factories and offices all over the world, including in India, and get information on its growth plans. Know what I mean?

Also, note as the current HR and Admin Head for India Operations, you should start preparing someone to take over your role as you grow, which, since you have time, you can do now, not possible later.

Do note all throughout I am focusing only on the growth of the company translating to growth plans of each individual and better understanding within the company.

To utilize your potential fully, you need to first travel, preferably to Singapore (closer to India/Asia region/cheaper than other countries), see and understand the global model of the company, then you would be in a possible position to give the details that your director wants from you. Knowledge sharing between your Singapore and India offices could start. Think about it again!

You could bring home the comparison between different countries, i.e.:
1) Per person efficiency
2) Cultural difference effects on work in turn effect on productivity
3) Difference in training resulting in a difference in efficiency
4) I am sure you can think of 2 points more
5) as above

Later if this trip proves insightful, they could send you to more places.

It would be interesting, if possible, to get to know why Sweden & UK provide support for Asia and not India? Find out the reason, reverse the situation. Maybe someday the India center would be the center point for all HR globally. Find out who, how, why, what. Then cut, copy, paste the same model, customize it to global/regional, and voila, India HR center for global operations. (I am a little carried away in my thinking here, if you think the same)

Basically, the entire efficiency of the company can improve with your one thought and effort.

I agree with the Human Resource Manager's suggestion to the extent of meeting all the heads and understanding how they are doing whatever they are doing in their respective countries. Tell them what you are doing in India and things that can improve. On the same lines, ask them how you can be of assistance in their operations. Simply put, you just need to ask, not grab, and there are people willing to help you get that exposure.

Dear Tushar,

Hi! I would like to know if there's any vacancy in your organization for an HR position. I have been working as an HR Executive in a leading Courier Company for the past year, with a total of 2 years of experience as an HR Generalist.

I am eagerly awaiting your response.

Thank you.

Hi Friends,

Good suggestion, Human Resource Manager. I will plan accordingly. Let's see what the outcome will be. Anyone with some more suggestions? I am sure this forum will definitely have someone whose company works on this ground for supporting HR or someone who knows such practices in some company. Thanks to Vg, Bharat, Trahul, and Manjeet.

Regards, Tushar Bachal

Hi. What you can do is help the HRs of your other countries by sourcing people for them from here for that office. You can conduct online training programs, like soft skills or organize technical trainings via video conferencing from here. You can organize for technically sound people in your domain and make them conduct trainings for your staff in the UK and US, which will work out cost-effective. Conduct sessions online for your HR people in other countries on how to do online sourcing of people without having to go to job boards, etc. All this will keep you very occupied and is more than enough time for you.

I am the HR manager and Head of HR for a clinical research BPO for a company in Bangalore, and I also help my US office in many such ways. Think about it. Today, technology has opened up windows, and nothing is impossible. I appreciate your effort to make use of your time in a useful manner; keep it up!

Hi Nhaniyur,

Thank you for your suggestion. You have provided a significant suggestion. Let me work on it, and I will update you about the outcome.

Regards,
Tushar Bachal

Hi All,

After reading all your suggestions and ideas, I take back what I had said earlier about not being able to support other HRs in other countries. Looks like it's possible after all. :)

Thank you all for this new paradigm. And Tushar, I think the Human Resource Manager's suggestion is the best. Nhaniyur's suggestion also has very useful points.

All the best and do keep us posted....

Dear All,

I am glad to know my 2 cents were accepted here. In keeping up with the tradition, a word of thank you from me is sent out to:
1) Deepthireddy :)
2) Tushar_Bachal :-D
3) Manjeet Kaur :)
4) Trahul :)
5) and all others who participated in this topic, including the silent viewers. :icon10:

Currently working as a Human Resources Manager possessing very limited knowledge (I work in the luxury industry), I felt that the knowledge shared here and especially the spark of this topic was good. Thus, I am rating this topic as 4: GOOD.

I would be sinking back into the silent depths once again (as you see, I am not an active poster, but a very active reader on these forums - could give you excuses galore for this behavior). If anyone needs any special help on the thoughts I have put across, do let me know separately.

Adieu all, thanks once again for the active participation with the variety of thoughts.

Best Wishes

I agree with HRM, Sir. He has given a very valuable suggestion, Tushar. I am sure it will give you a better platform to enhance your global exposure. Even Trahul has also given a very good statement; you need to ask, not grab. In such situations, it is necessary to try to identify the areas for improvement in the organization and communicate them after analyzing to all the HR heads in the respective countries during the meeting. It would be appreciated if someone tried to think beyond the limits to make the organization more successful than the current scenario.

Hi,

My suggestions are:

1. You can support in recruitment (depends on volume and mode), i.e. resume sourcing, first-level validations, etc.
2. Help in preparing the Appointment Orders/offer letters, etc., if your company has a common enterprise application to handle all the HR activities (get the data and prepare the letters by following your company HR policy guidelines).
3. Payroll preparations - again if you have a common application to run the same.
4. Appraisal - Just compile all the appraisal information and present it in a form for decision-making.
5. HR MIS preparation - based on the data, prepare presentations, graphs, etc., depending on your company's needs.
6. Coordinate and prepare training calendar, training plans, etc.

Generally, you can do any work where you can get the data in a structured way and process the data (using a common application) and deliver. This will be like internal outsourcing.

Hope you get some picture...

Thanks.

Hi Friends,

My sincere thanks to all of you who have given their ideas and shared their thoughts in the forum. Even my Corporate HR Director was amazed by this idea. Except maybe only HR, we see many other functions are outsourced in India. So then I started thinking, why can HR not support other countries' offices/employees?

Good, we have got some ideas on this. I want to keep this discussion open. If anyone, anytime has some more thoughts, please share with me.

Thanks,
Tushar Bachal
Manager - HR & Admin.
GL & V India Pvt. Ltd.
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