At the People Matters SurgeHR Pune conference, the opening session, ‘Talent Beyond Boundaries: Ushering in a New Era of Workforce Transformation’, delivered by Pushkar Bidwai, CEO, People Matters, laid a bold and ambitious foundation for the day's conversations. As organisations rethink their workforce strategies beyond traditional metropolitan strongholds, Pushkar’s address challenged leaders to adopt a fundamentally new mindset—one that values density of talent over volume, innovation over tradition, and exponential over incremental growth.

Reflecting on the rapid emergence of cities like Pune, Hyderabad, and NCR as global talent hubs, Pushkar observed that India’s growth narrative is no longer confined to its Tier 1 cities. "The story we now need to pitch," he said, "is how Pune is creating its own spot on the world map. It's no longer just about the weather or educational institutes; it is about a vibrant ecosystem that is reshaping India's workforce and innovation landscape." He emphasised the importance of challenging long-held assumptions, urging participants not to merely absorb insights but actively interrogate and co-create ideas throughout the day.

The 10x imperative: Lessons in organisational reinvention

One of the most powerful themes of Pushkar's address was the need to abandon incremental thinking and adopt what he called the 10x mindset. Drawing on the compelling contrast between NASA and SpaceX, he illustrated how traditional organisational models, designed for scale but burdened by bureaucracy, are ill-suited for the pace of modern innovation.

"At NASA, massive teams with thousands of engineers worked over decades on deep-space missions," Pushkar explained, "but Elon Musk's SpaceX questioned the very foundations of how space exploration could be organised. A two-person team at SpaceX replaced entire departments at NASA—not because they worked harder, but because they thought exponentially." SpaceX’s emphasis on hiring “10x engineers”—individuals who could deliver results ten times greater than their peers—served as a profound lesson for HR and business leaders: hiring more people is no longer the answer. Building dense, high-impact teams capable of rapid learning, risk-taking, and execution is critical for organisations seeking to lead in the new economy.

"Either we align ourselves with the 10x mindset, or we risk being left behind. The future belongs to those who dare to think exponentially." — Pushkar Bidwai, CEO, People Matters

Pune’s growth story: Beyond talent cost to talent ecosystems

Expanding the lens to India's evolving urban landscape, Pushkar highlighted the pivotal role Pune is playing in reshaping the country's workforce future. Data on the growth of Global Capability Centres (GCCs) and the surge in new-age industries in Pune paints a picture of a city poised to become a global talent destination. "We’ve told the story of Pune to attract talent before," Pushkar remarked, "but today, the narrative must shift. It’s about the quality of growth, the creation of entrepreneurial ecosystems, and the ability to integrate technology, education, and innovation into a sustainable model for the future."

He pointed out that this momentum requires more than infrastructural readiness; it demands a transformation in how organisations perceive, source, and develop talent. The ecosystem approach—where education, industry, technology, and culture work in unison—is central to ensuring that cities like Pune not only attract but also retain and nurture the next generation of global leaders.

Scaling learning: How Walmart leveraged AI for 2.3 million employees

To further underline the shift from traditional models to intelligent, agile frameworks, Pushkar shared a compelling case study from Walmart’s transformation journey. Despite having over 2.3 million employees globally, Walmart successfully reduced training time by 37% by leveraging AI, VR, and personalised learning journeys.

"Walmart faced a massive challenge," he explained, "with standardised training models failing to address the diverse needs of their workforce. They realised that when you are spending $17 billion annually on talent, marginal improvements won’t move the needle. They had to think 10x—saving a billion dollars, not a few million." Through AI-enabled, real-time, adaptive learning, Walmart created highly personalised, efficient learning experiences at an unimaginable scale, demonstrating that even the largest and oldest organisations can rewire themselves for agility and impact.

“When your talent cost is $17 billion, you don’t look for marginal gains. You design for exponential change.”

This example served to debunk the common myth that only startups are capable of rapid innovation. Large enterprises, too, can achieve transformational change—provided they are willing to reimagine the role of technology, data, and mindset in their organisational DNA.

The emergence of agentic AI: Reinventing talent acquisition

Perhaps the most forward-looking segment of the address was Pushkar’s exploration of agentic AI—self-directed AI systems capable of executing end-to-end HR workflows autonomously. He predicted that by the end of 2025, at least 10–12 leading Indian organisations will have deployed fully autonomous recruitment agents capable of sourcing candidates, conducting assessments, managing interviews, and driving onboarding processes without human intervention.

"Agentic AI is not a distant future; it's today's experimentation," he noted. "This is not about replacing human judgment but about freeing up bandwidth to focus on strategic decision-making. Either we align ourselves with this 10x reality, or we risk becoming obsolete." 

However, Pushkar also raised a critical concern: despite rapid technological innovation, HR buyers often undervalue the role of analytics and AI when selecting solutions. 

“Analytics did not even feature among the top five criteria when HR leaders were asked how they choose tech vendors,” he pointed out, highlighting a dangerous misalignment between capability development and purchasing behaviour.

Execution, Not Strategy, Will Define Future Success

Drawing from the findings of the People Matters SHRPA Research, Pushkar shared that while CHROs have become more resilient and adaptive, the real challenge today lies in execution rather than strategy.

"Strategy formulation is no longer the bottleneck," he said. "Where we are struggling is execution—translating vision into reality, particularly around digital transformation and experience enhancement." 

Areas such as talent analytics, change execution, and personalised learning solutions remain critical blind spots for many organisations. Despite heavy investments in HR tech over the last decade, many organisations are yet to fully leverage the potential of these tools, especially in a post-pandemic world where agility and adaptability have become non-negotiable.

A Final Call to Action: Build for Exponential Impact

Closing the session with a resounding call to action, Pushkar urged leaders to commit themselves to the pursuit of 10x outcomes across every dimension of their organisations. "We are not here to deliver 1% efficiency gains," he emphasised. "Incremental thinking is not enough. Every initiative we build, every hire we make, every program we design must be aimed at creating 10x impact."

He invited the community to share their authentic stories, collaborate on building new ecosystems of growth, and participate in initiatives like the People Matters SHRPA Research to co-create a future defined not by limitations, but by possibilities. 

As Pune and other Tier 2 cities become the new epicentres of India's growth, the real differentiator will be the courage to break old structures, embrace new paradigms, and think exponentially.

SurgeHR Pune, through this opening address, served as a powerful reminder: the future belongs to those who dare to rethink talent, technology, and transformation—not incrementally, but exponentially.