It is no secret that the world of work is waking up to the power that employee experience holds when it comes to sustainable organisational growth. From fast-growing companies to the largest brands, organisations are choosing to focus on elevating EX. And it is no longer just small talk, with organisations willing to invest a significant portion of their budgets in EX, they’re backing up their words with action 

On Day one of Asia’s largest HR and work tech conference TechHR, a keynote session on Revealing PwC’s Rs 600 crores investment in people experience, well-being & A.I. sought to delve deeper into the future of both EX and AI. The session was moderated by Tanmaya Jain, founder & CEO of inFeedo who has been prominently featured in Forbes Asia’s 30 under 30 list. 

inFeedo is among Asia’s leading people analytics and employee engagement platform that helps organisations build a winning culture. Jain spoke with Shirin Sehgal, Deputy Chief People Officer, PwC India. 

PwC is entering a phase of expansion and growth as they start their journey to leverage AI, hire over 30,000 more employees in the coming five years, and invest Rs 600 crores towards elevating employee experience. 

In this journey, PwC is integrating Amber by inFeedo, which is an AI-based product that asks empathetic questions, understands intent, acknowledges with context and helps resolve employee concerns at scale – “a technology-based ombudsperson”. 

Why ‘People Experience’? 

Organisations today are taking a closer look at their present structure and policies and are reorganising in a way that puts the focus on people experience. 

“We are in a people commodity business and that has to mirror what is happening in the market,” Sehgal said. “Nothing better than reorganising yourselves and investing in what is important to the people,” she added. 

Sehgal further spoke about the major areas of investment for PwC – learning and well-being. “Today, loyalty can be created for sure and that loyalty comes from the learning and opportunities you create,” she explained. 

EVP and people experience framework 

Delving more into the people experience framework, Jain, shared an interesting example of how organisations such as Samsung and Godrej looked at people experience.

“These organisations realised they are engaging three generations at a time, where Gen Z will cover a fourth of their workforce in two years. So their entire people experience framework is designed around Gen Z in a way that it is all about a sense of pride, a sense of meaning and a sense of purpose,” Jain said. 

Explaining PwC’s approach to people experience, Sehgal said: 

“Culture is at the top and it disseminates down using frameworks. Strategy can be operationalised by giving it structure. And that structure should be relatable to the people. So we formed a people experience network, which we call Experience Infinite. ” Experience Infinite is a venture into learning, unlocking potential, creating an environment that cares and cultivating a sense of community. 

Sehgal also spoke at length about the importance of middle management and how PwC is looking at investing significantly to empower them. “We want to equip managers with technology and analytics so we can help them create solutions for their people,” she said. 

Importance of empathy in AI design 

Segueing to one of the top trending topics in the world of HR, Jain spoke about AI and its perceived impact on the HR function. “We assume AI will just replace someone at work. The way AI can augment HR is when it truly empathises with employees and becomes an employee advocate,” Jain said.  

“AI will make HR jobs more human. I believe it will never take away an HR job – it will just make the job deeper and more efficient,” she said. 

Final word

Right before closing the insightful session, Jain asked Sehgal for two critical pieces of advice for future CHROs: What should they do, and what should they avoid doing? 

“Never fear questioning the convention. Remember, it is alright to be the divergent view on the table,” she said regarding what future CHROs must do. 

And what shouldn’t they do? “Create solutions that don’t marry with the business vision.” 

About inFeedo

inFeedo is a leader in people analytics and employee experience. They help address attrition and disengagement while creating great employee experiences through Amber, a conversational AI-powered chatbot. Amber facilitates seamless communication, empowers HR teams, and enhances employee engagement.