What does it take for a city’s talent to shape global ambitions? In Pune, HR leaders aren’t just responding to disruption—they’re rewriting the playbook. By embedding adaptability into leadership frameworks and linking performance to purpose, they’re cultivating talent that’s ready to drive global growth, even in the face of uncertainty. 

Long known for its engineering depth and academic rigour, Pune is now becoming a crucible for HR leadership—one that marries operational excellence with emotional intelligence. As global mandates intersect with local realities, a strategic reset is surfacing for the corporate world—building resilient systems, flattening hierarchies, nurturing culture carriers, and redefining how leadership is measured and developed.

At People Matters Surge HR, a power panel featured industry leaders shaping the people agenda in and from Pune: Naresh Kumar Pinisetti, President of HR and governance at Deepak Fertilisers and Petrochemicals Corp. Ltd., Priyotosh Das, Director and Global Head of Total Rewards at Zensar Technologies, and moderated by Preeti Ahuja, Chief People Officer at Husk Power. Together, they offered valuable perspectives on how to drive growth and innovation by anchoring talent strategies in purpose, adaptability, and trust.

Rooted In Pune, Scaling The World

Setting the tone for a dynamic conversation on leadership, agility, and purpose, Preeti Ahuja said, “Pune is known as a powerhouse of talent, culture, and business innovation. But what makes it even more exciting is that many companies born here are now making a mark on the global stage.”

Building on that perspective, Priyotosh Das shared how his technology services firm has embedded its cultural ethos across 19 countries. Pune, he noted, has played a pivotal role in this journey, not just as a talent hub, but as a cultural compass. He highlighted three key drivers:

• Educational and talent ecosystem: Pune's status as an education hub fuels a strong talent pipeline, historically in manufacturing and now increasingly in IT and GCCs.
• Strategic geography and cultural appeal: Its location attracts talent from both North and South India, and its cosmopolitan-yet-authentic vibe — from food to festivals — fosters belonging.
• Cultural ethos of organic growth: Reflecting the region’s preference for thoughtful progression, Zensar’s global growth strategy, including acquisitions, emphasises respectful integration over rapid consolidation.

Rethinking Rewards: Personalisation, Purpose, and Performance

Das highlighted how expectations around compensation have evolved from job security to meaning, personalisation, and measurable impact. He remarked, “Everyone has different needs. A recent graduate will have very different expectations from their compensation compared to someone in mid-career or a more mature life stage. Recognising this, many organisations, including ours, are increasingly moving towards hyper-personalised rewards, offering a range of benefits that individuals can choose from based on what matters most to them.” From flexible benefits to incentive-linked performance metrics, Zensar has reimagined its rewards philosophy to align with business outcomes, promote shared accountability, and embed cultural relevance across its 19-country footprint. 

Redesigning Rewards For Impact

Reflecting on his manufacturing firm shaped by hierarchy and characterised by multiple generations, Naresh Kumar Pinisetti shared how his organisation has transformed its rewards philosophy to drive motivation and performance. While traditional monetary rewards like variable pay and long-term incentives were aligned to performance benchmarks, the real shift was reflected through an increased focus on non-monetary drivers. Pinisetti shared, “When it comes to driving motivation, money alone isn’t enough. Drawing on the author Daniel Pink’s framework and my own 40 years of experience, the key motivators are clear: autonomy, mastery, and purpose. These are the elements that inspire people to go beyond the transactional and stay deeply engaged."

Backed by meaningful partnerships, they flattened the hierarchy, introduced feedback-driven forums and built a culture of open dialogue. Performance reviews now include peer and team feedback, while initiatives like ‘Manager as Coach’ help leaders guide rather than instruct. As Pinisetti noted, this cultural transformation, though challenging, played a crucial role in sustaining operations and delivering record profits, even through the peak of the pandemic.

Building Future-Ready Leaders: Navigating Local Roots and Global Roles

On cultivating leadership for a global landscape, Pinisetti shared how his organisation redefined its leadership framework in the face of new global complexities. He noted that while performance management has traditionally focused on what is achieved and how it's achieved, covering both technical and behavioural competencies, the leadership lens had to evolve.

They have embraced the BANI framework—brittle, anxious, non-linear, and incomprehensible—a shift inspired by anthropologist Jamais Cascio. This framework helped the organisation better navigate disruptions like the COVID-19 pandemic, supply chain crises, and geopolitical conflicts. To support this, they rearticulated leadership role models within the organisation, focusing on adaptability and resilience, especially for leaders who are locally based but operating across global geographies.