Expanding across various geographies can be challenging for startups and SMEs. How can leaders ensure they build a shared culture and don't lose focus on their vision as they scale up?

Suresh Kumar Chitralayam, Director of People and Operations of Vuram shares the expansion journey of the company and talks about the correlation between innovation and well-being.

His expertise includes talent acquisition, wellness plans, employee engagement, compliance and audits, facility management,  family participation, and social cause initiatives.

What is your business and talent outlook for the next 6 months?

We look forward to hiring 500 professionals additionally by the end of 2022, including technology professionals and fresh graduates to employ a minimum of 100 freshers and 400 lateral hires projecting to increase its strength by 51.3% worldwide in the coming two months. From 970 people in September 2022, our aim is to reach a global strength of 1400 people towards the end of the year. 

The organisation has undergone its next phase of expansion in 2022, announcing three new offices in India by 2022 in Hyderabad, Jaipur, and Coimbatore, apart from existing facilities in Chennai, Bengaluru, and Tiruchirappalli. Vuram expanded its global presence to the United Kingdom in 2022 from its existing offices in India, Canada, Mexico, the Netherlands, Australia, and the United States of America.

What are the top talent challenges you are addressing at present? 

Culture-aligned talent acquisition: The scope of culture alignment is crucial when it comes to identifying talent. It is easier to secure candidates with the relevant experience and technical skills, but identifying people who could integrate into the organisation’s work culture remains a challenge.

People who can integrate themselves into the culture are essential to ensure social and emotional well-being at the workplace.

With people working in a hybrid work model, it is essential to nourish the bond between people for professional and personal growth and well-being.

People engagement while hybrid working: Embracing a hybrid working model transformed how organisations work.

With the changing work model, the people team must constantly support and research effective ways to enhance the dynamics within the organisation.

The people team has rolled out numerous ways to enhance remote working with work-from-home support, remote IT support, steps to ensure mental health and emotional well-being, virtual learning opportunities, workations, social engagements, and more. However, the entire process is ongoing and requires constant research and implementation to nourish the work culture and support people to be at their best at work. 

Learning and knowledge sharing: While hiring identifying people with a learning mindset is essential. While technical skills and emotional quotient could be learned over time, having a learning mindset for upskilling, reskilling, and unlearning cannot be trained in the short term.

What will be your big advice for HR leaders of fast-growing companies?

Nourish an empathy-first approach to work in a trust-based ecosystem driven by kindness and compassion.

During uncertain times, it is crucial for organisations to support their people with job security, compassion, and opportunities to grow.

It is essential for the people teams to inculcate these traits in the DNA of their operations to nourish an ecosystem that inspires compassion, and kindness, and assures holistic well-being. 

How are you driving more innovation at work?

Innovation and well-being are interlinked. Ensuring emotional, financial, physical, social, and holistic well-being positions people to be at their best at work and deliver exceptional results. Besides, it allows them to make the best use of resources to work, learn, and innovate.

Shaping and sustaining a work culture that stimulates ideas provides platforms for open communication and celebrates innovation is crucial.

At Vuram, we have numerous people-driven initiatives to upskill, reskill, innovate, and advocate best practices. For instance, Tech Talks is one initiative where people regardless of their years of experience can use the platform to give Talks on the latest technology and best practices driving the industry.

The talks are developed into videos that will be shared across the tech community and students helping them to gain industry-wide recognition. Creating opportunities to express ideas and recognition for innovation is essential to maximize human potential.  

As a leader, how do you ensure you stay resilient and enable your team to thrive through unexpected disruptions? 

Resilience is nourished by empathy, happiness, and trust. During the pandemic, our immediate response to the economic uncertainty was to guarantee 100% job security for our people. Trust and compassion inspire people to be their best personally and professionally.

Unless we are happy with what we do, the actions are meaningless. It is crucial to have happiness at the heart of each activity undertaken.

Despite the economic uncertainty, our organisation grew 112% when it comes to organisational strength to support more than 153 happy clients in over 18 industries. The prime objective of the people team is to ensure well-being and happiness at the workplace allowing people to grow personally and professionally.