HR Bulletin Volume 126

HR BULLETIN

Creating a gender inclusive workforce: Wells Fargo's Vidya Lakshmi

Vidya Lakshmi is an Executive Vice President leading Human Resources at Wells Fargo India & Philippines. Vidya leads all HR services across the two regions and oversees the implementation of country-specific labor practices and effective risk controls. She is responsible for defining and driving the people strategy and priorities of employees in India & Philippines in partnership with local and global leadership.

In her previous roles, Vidya spent over 15 years with Goldman Sachs, where she began her career and has held, among others, the positions of Head of Human Capital Management, Bengaluru, Head of HR Operations, Bengaluru, and Chief of Staff to the CEO in Bengaluru

In this interaction with People Matters, she shares her thoughts on diversity and what Wells Fargo is doing to support greater inclusion in the workplace

We hear from the Wells Fargo Human Resources leader for India and Philippines on how to create and maintain a diverse and inclusive people strategy

How do you define a diverse workforce?

A diverse workforce is one where people from different backgrounds, varied attributes and diversity of thought come together. Gender identity, sexual orientation, physical and mental abilities, ethnicity, religion, age, work experience, educational background, military experience, family status are some attributes that contribute to a diverse workforce. I also believe that the core of a diverse workforce is where varied life experiences are embraced and leveraged by virtue of identities or otherwise.

A study by Avtar Group found that though the presence of women at work has gone up cumulatively, their presence in managerial roles is down by 9% at (23% in 2017 and 26% in 2022), further dips to 18% at the senior managerial level, and only 17% at the corporate executive level How do you look at this? Most organizations have a fairly balanced gender representation at entry level roles, but the challenge continues to maintain this at managerial to senior executive roles There are multiple nuances that come into play where the talent pipeline has narrowed, and women may drop out at mid to senior levels Globally, Deloitte’s latest report, Women @ Work: A Global Outlook, stated that nearly 80% of women say their workloads have increased because of the pandemic, while 66% of women report having more responsibilities at home.

From an India standpoint, we are aware of the continued impact of the double burden syndrome. Women continue to manage multiple roles – being primary caregivers to children or the elderly, managing household chores and contributing at work.

A lot of this also has to do with the way we are conditioned as a society. Support structures and deconditioning needs to manifest in family and societal frameworks This enables women to embrace and celebrate their careers and ambitions in a meaningful manner and cherish their successes

At Wells Fargo, we have made efforts towards focused programs that support women during inflection points, such as the parenting journey, eldercare support, or returning to the workforce This also needs to be sustainable and evolving for us to see impact over time

With employees being asked to return to work, do you think that the ratio of women in the workforce will be affected? If yes, how? If not, why?

I think for any individual, returning to work after 2 years is a change. For me personally as well, I know I had to rewire a lot of the ways of managing my family and responsibilities. In my experience over the last year, with people returning to work, there are ways in which an organization can support this transition meaningfully. There is enhanced impact especially for someone with caregiving responsibilities. We have slowly transitioned to a hybrid model of work, that allows all employees to be able to balance their worklife priorities I believe that working out of the office fosters creativity and collaboration and caters to our social needs of belonging to a space/community We also provide access to a range of resources such as caregivers, flexible day care facilities, and resource groups that enable people returning to work a bit more seamlessly Many organisations fail to implement DEI policies in the true sense of the terms, but end up focusing only on women’s participation However, DEI is a much wider concept What are your thoughts? Historically, we have seen organizations focus their efforts on increasing women’s representation, primarily because of the easier access to and familiarity with that segment. However, in the last decade we have seen intentional efforts to broaden the spectrum of DE&I to include talent from multiple communities including LGBTQ+, veterans, people with disabilities, generational diversity etc.

There are multiple business cases for organizations to look beyond women’s participation such as competitive advantage from both the talent and business opportunity standpoint. Tapping into a varied talent pool also enables an organization to provide unique solutions as well as attract a wider set of clientele What we need to be cognizant of though is the evolving nature of the varied and diverse talent pool This may mean that organizations need to invest to upskill, mentor and build talent from the ground up It is also being mindful of the unique needs of under-represented groups and creating an inclusive environment, be it policies, programs or work roles where they can succeed We partner with industry research leaders to be able to understand these needs and share this knowledge and resources with a wider network of organizations We sponsored two thought

Read more at : https://www.peoplematters.in/article/diversity/creating-agender-inclusive-workforce-wells-fargos-vidya-lakshmi-36284

Top HR skills in demand for the future

Developing a variety of skill sets can help HR professionals position themselves better to support organisational objectives and growth in the workplace of the future.

Building critical skills and competencies tops the list of priorities for HR leaders along with prioritising change management and diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) initiatives for the fourth consecutive year, according to a study by Gartner.

As organisations approach the future of work, the convergence of HR and technology is anticipated to act as a catalyst for the future of workplace transformation. Additionally, by focusing on developing a variety of skill sets, HR professionals will be better positioned to support organisational objectives and growth.

Essential HR skills in demand for the future

The evolution of technology and the acceleration of digital transformation have paved the way for increased technology integration in human resource operations Apart from AI and machine learning, people analytics and augmented and virtual reality (AR/VR) training are recent developments that are being adopted by HR functions

People Analytics - People analytics have grown in importance for HR professionals Data-driven decision-making skills with respect to employee management are now central to HR operations People analytics affect business outcomes as they help provide actionable insights for matters related to talent management, workforce processes, and learning and development, among others.

AR and VR-led learning initiatives - The use of AR and VR in HR processes is gradually gaining importance due to the technology’s impressive potential in hiring, onboarding, training and virtual workspaces. HR can use AR and VR to make immersive and interactive training sessions for employees. Furthermore, VR is a viable option for…

Skill shift, automation and the future of the workforce

Employees with specific skills can be shifted to new roles or have their roles redefined to better serve the company’s needs

The more technology increases and changes, the greater the skills of workers need to shift to adapt to the changes. With AI-powered automation, and the need for remote, digital business operations across all verticals being increasingly felt, there is a massive skill shift underway There is a change in the nature of jobs today, and a greater demand for technological, social, emotional and superior cognitive skills Employees as well as employers must be ready to change their approach accordingly While manual and physical skills will never go out of demand, these must be augmented with digital and cognitive abilities for them to be job fit Existing employees will have to reskill and upskill themselves to stay relevant in their domain of work On the other hand, freshers will have to acquire newer skills as per the prevailing trends.

About 85% of the jobs which will be available in 2030 don’t even exist yet! According to a report, adopting AI and automation will require three types of essential skills: information processing and statistical analysis; social skills such as adapting to a changing business landscape and managing teams; and data analysis or technical skills. Even in labour-intensive fields such as manufacturing, warehousing and driving, automation will bring about a change in workforce patterns. While automation is one side of the story, some other factors in play include pandemic-induced hybrid working, emergence of the gig economy, and expectations around flexibility in working apart from seismic shifts such as the great resignation Companies are thus looking for new strategies around hiring and retention of talent which makes it imperative to reorient the existing talent acquisition and management processes in more ways than

How to build a strong cyber-resilience strategy?

Adoption of zero trust, a secure access service edge, and extended detection and response technologies result in significant increases in resilient outcomes in cybersecurity, says a study by Cisco

Cybersecurity resilience has emerged as a top priority for companies in India as a staggering 61.5% of organisations say they have experienced a security event that impacted business in the past two years, according to a Cisco study. The leading types of incidents were network or data breach (69.1%), network or system outages (55.3%), malicious insider abuse (50 4%), and accidental disclosure (47 2%), reveals the study titled 'Security Outcomes Report, Volume 3: Achieving Security Resilience'

These incidents resulted in severe repercussions for the companies that experienced them, along with the ecosystem of organisations they do business with The leading impacts cited include IT and communications interruption, supply chain disruption, response and recovery costs and lasting brand damage

With stakes this high, it is no surprise that almost all executives (99%) surveyed for the report said that security resilience is a high priority for them.

The study identifies the top seven success factors that boost enterprise security resilience, with a particular focus on cultural, environmental, and solution-based factors that businesses leverage to achieve security. Its findings are based on survey responses from over 4,700 participants across 26 countries.

Seven success factors of security resilience

The report has developed a methodology to generate a security resilience score for the organisations surveyed…

Why intrinsic rewards are essential to driving employee engagement

Managers and leaders can reinstate trust in the team by trying to be as open as possible, listening to understand, empathising, offering support, and mentoring the team as and when required.

In today’s tough talent market, it is an ongoing quest of all business leaders to attract and retain the best talent to possess that competitive edge. Organisations realise that talented and motivated people not just bring their competencies but also their heart and soul to work and hence it’s essential that they are offered the most lucrative rewards for their contribution.

Traditionally, rewards only meant pay and financial perks, but today rewards are way beyond that. The concept of total rewards is broader than just financial benefits and if we further focus on human psychology and what motivates people, it is the intrinsic factors more than the extrinsic ones

Intrinsic rewards focus on how people feel at a workplace, what is their emotional connection with their peers and leaders, how is their growth trajectory looking like, are they feeling invested, do they feel empowered, and most importantly, do they feel belonged

Intrinsic rewards might not look so easy to crack, but it is extremely critical and viable for businesses to focus on intrinsic rewards, as, unlike the financial benefits that can be outmatched, intrinsic rewards are core to an organisation in the form of its culture.

Some proven examples of great intrinsic rewards are:

Creating trusted and healthy relationships

Trusting the talent at your workplace and establishing positive interpersonal relationships is proven to spell a…