Building future-ready and inclusive workforce: Inside Comviva’s people strategy

From the factory floor to the boardroom, Shetty’s professional journey has been shaped by diverse experiences across manufacturing and global corporations. Each step has left her with valuable lessons—discipline from the factory floor, resilience from her family background in defense, and strategic agility from global enterprises. Today, as she leads Comviva’s people strategy, she brings all of these together to reimagine how a technology-driven organisation can stay innovative, inclusive, and future-ready.

At Comviva, diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) are not just policies—they are embedded in the cultural fabric. Shetty is clear that inclusion cannot be reduced to numbers or compliance requirements. Instead, it’s about creating psychological safety where every voice counts. 

“Ask, don’t assume that’s how inclusive workplaces are built,” she says. Comviva’s inclusive approach spans geographies—from India to Africa to Latin America—ensuring that cultural differences are embraced, not erased.

She emphasises that inclusion means challenging assumptions—about how people work, solve problems, and contribute. By encouraging employees to question the status quo, Comviva is embedding inclusion into its DNA, making it easier to run programs that support specific groups while ensuring everyone feels part of the larger mission. 

For Comviva CHRO, leadership is the cornerstone of cultural transformation. She points out that at her organisation, leadership development, ESG, and internal communications sit under one umbrella for a reason.

“We don’t want leaders who just run programs. We want leaders who breathe the values and talk about them,” she explains.

Every leadership initiative is designed with inclusion in mind. Managers are equipped not just with technical or financial acumen but also with the ability to foster openness, respect, and collaboration. Leaders are evaluated not only on business results but also on how meaningfully they adopt inclusive practices in their daily interactions. 

This holistic approach ensures that leaders are not “checking the DEI box” but instead creating environments where innovation and engagement thrive. 

 In today’s fast-changing tech landscape, innovation cannot be left to R&D teams alone—it must be a cultural habit. To that end, Comviva has created the InnoVision, an innovation platform—a space that encourages employees to think boldly, get creative, and co-create impactful solutions for our products and clients. 

The platform acts as a playground for new ideas, giving employees the freedom to test pilots, build prototypes, and explore unconventional solutions. It also deepens employee engagement by providing meaningful opportunities to work on future-ready projects. 

For Shetty, this is as much about people as it is about technology, “Innovation is not just about the next product. It’s about the next idea, the next skill, the next way of working. The lab gives our people the space to reimagine and reinvent.” 

At the heart of Comviva’s people philosophy is its Employer Value Proposition (EVP): Rise, Reinvent, Outshine. 

• Rise – enabling employees to grow in their careers through challenging assignments and mentorship. 

• Reinvent – fostering continuous learning, reskilling, and adaptability. 

• Outshine – recognizing and celebrating contributions that drive business success. 

This EVP isn’t just a slogan—it serves as a guiding principle for all HR practices, from talent acquisition to internal mobility. 

“We see ourselves as the Jarvis for our business—strategic, proactive, and always co-creating solutions,” Bhagwati notes. 

Success in people strategy, Shetty insists, is not just about numbers. While Comviva does track metrics like representation, attrition, and training participation, the real focus is on impact and adoption.

The company uses AI-enabled surveys to understand employee sentiment, slicing data by gender, geography, and function to identify trends. In addition, a strong network of people partners gathers on-the-ground feedback, ensuring that HR is seen not as “policy police” but as an enabler of growth and safety. 

Training programs, such as unbiased recruitment for talent acquisition teams, are evaluated for outcomes—not just completions.

When asked about the trends shaping DEI and workforce strategy, Shetty highlights two key shifts. 

First, more women in leadership. 

“Women bring empathy, collaboration, and inclusiveness—skills that are in high demand in today’s organizations,” she says. 

She is quick to add that these qualities are not exclusive to women, but societal expectations often cultivate them more strongly in women leaders. And as organisations move from hierarchical to collaborative models, such skills are becoming critical. 

Second, the democratisation of talent. With remote work, AI-enabled learning, and partnerships with universities, companies can now tap into talent from regions previously overlooked. In India, for instance, Comviva is expanding its talent outreach beyond traditional metros, opening pathways for skilled individuals across the country. 

“The composition of the workforce is changing. Talent can come from anywhere, and with the right training and access, they can contribute everywhere,” she notes. 

As Comviva accelerates its growth, Shetty’s vision is clear: create an organisation where people, culture, and technology intersect to deliver long-term success. Whether through inclusive leadership, innovation labs, or an EVP that empowers employees to rise, reinvent, and outshine, the goal is to build a company that is as future-ready as the solutions it creates for its clients. 

Her leadership philosophy captures it best: “Culture is not about programs—it’s about everyday behaviors. When people feel safe, respected, and challenged, they don’t just perform, they thrive. And that’s what makes an organization truly future-ready.”