Earlier this year, I had the opportunity to meet Dr Ram Charan in New Delhi when he came to deliver his address at the Great Lakes Global Thought Leader Series. He came up with an interesting theory: Four elements will disrupt every single business existing today: Software (access to technology), sensors (include alarms/alerts in the system to identify changes in the business), algorithms (for complex analysis and decision making) and data (base for everything else). These elements will have the ability to completely transform every single business we now know exists.

The changes are all around us: Technology has essentially transformed the way businesses work and also led to the birth of new game-changers. From retail to banking, from FMCG to media, from family-owned enterprises to start-ups that are proving to be the nemesis for certain big businesses, we can’t even begin to fathom the depth of these changes and the pace at which they are going to affect business models and talent decisions.

The prevalence of social media has single-handedly changed the way the new generation is perceived, how they work and what they do. It has also put pressure on organizations to change the way businesses work to suit the needs of Generation Y. Besides technology and social, mobility has undergone a drastic transformation and hence also created a shift in the way companies operate on a global scale. SMAC has become mainstream for the top 30 per cent of any industry and it is essential that they adopt the new technology paradigm or risk becoming obsolete.

Our cover story, The DNA of SMAC-KING Talent, argues that HR leaders are in an enviable position today to lead this transformation and align the business changes to the organization’s new requirements.

As inevitable as this trend is for business, so it is the changes that organizations will need to undergo to adapt to this new paradigm. The changes could be to the company culture that is conducive to a SMAC working environment, organization structure that adapts to a wired and networked ecosystem, managerial paradigm that adapts to this new way of talent efficiency, including disrupting HR processes as we know them today.

In this context where the business nature is changing and the vision and mission is adapting to the new reality, HR has the opportunity to lead the architectural change in the organization and the managerial DNA. Here are some of the opportunities for the HR leader today: One is to lead the transformation from a hierarchical to a wired and networked organization structure—this will mean a huge transformation starting from culture to organizational structure. Secondly, they can lead the transformation on how communication, collaboration and teamwork takes place and this will be the base for the newly conceptualized effectiveness. Thirdly, they can lead this change proactively and not play catch up as changes occur from top down (due to business factors and also bottom up (due to Gen X and Gen Y).

It is time for HR to proactively embrace this new organizational DNA and build harmony.

In other columns, we have the Big Interview with Venky Mysore, the CEO of this season’s winning Indian Premier League team Kolkata Knight Riders, who talks about building a base for creating a legacy of success and reinforced the need to have a higher vision and mission. Besides our regular columnists, we also have a timely piece on Union HRD Minister Smriti Irani.

As always, we would be happy to know your views on the stories in the magazine. Please feel free to mail in your feedback and suggestions.

Hope you enjoy reading this issue.

Happy reading!
Esther Martinez Hernandez Editor-in-Chief