Amit Singh
Chief People Officer
In an exclusive interview with CEO Insights, Amit provides more insights into his professional journey and how he has emerged as one of the most reputed CPOs in the market.
Can you talk more about your professional journey?
I began my corporate journey in IT industry and have had the opportunity to work for companies such as, TCS and Blue Star Infotech. The stint of 2-3 years in IT services was fulfilling and was the building block of my HR career. Around that point, I saw tremendous growth opportunities in the financial services segment, and felt the opportunity is worth considering to learn and create impactful people agenda. My journey in financial services started with IDFC Ltd which later became IDFC Bank and now IDFC First Bank. The journey of close to 11 years with IDFC group had been enriching. At IDFC group, being a part of the startup team at the Bank, was one of the proudest moments of my professional career. Looking back at IDFC stint, I feel it was all a big learning experience, where I was able to build people strategy for businesses from scratch, lead culture transformation and oversee almost all the different verticals of the organization.
Post IDFC, my journey at SBI MF as Head- HR was transformative, as we worked through building the No. 1 Asset management company in the country. Having successfully led this transformation, I got excited to have
joined PNB Housing Finance to contribute to the next phase of growth of the company across products, people, sustainable development, customer experience, and technology initiatives.
Over the years, this diverse exposure has helped me gain a holistic view of business operations.Simultaneously, my professional experience has helped me develop into a change agent who can positively impact the growth trajectory of a business.
In my work tenure of close to 18 years, I have witnessed organizations scale new heights, and I am proud to have played a vital role in this development. I firmly believe that people are the pillars on which great and successful organizations are built. In addition, culture, and employee morale charts its growth trajectory, and I am truly humbled to be able to play mypart in such transformative journeys.
How would you define the changing landscape of the CPO segment?
The ultimate aim for a CPO and as a HR representative is to deliver a positive employee experience. With recent events, the dynamics between employee and the organization have changed. How well we treat our employee and how we set up a fair, transparent, and empathetic ecosystem within the organization has to be the top priority for any CPO. As employee needs are evolving, CPOs must understand this changing dynamics and address their needs promptly.
People agenda has clearly shifted towards building culture, retention, diversity, equity & inclusion, and long-term success of the organization depends on how well the HR department addresses these important aspects. With the growing popularity of hybrid working models, both organizations and CPOs should be geared up and find ways to integrate newer work models keeping engagement, productivity, and collaboration in mind. Another important facet is preparing employees for technology change to derive positive business outcomes for the company.
How do you lead your team to derive positive outcomes for the business?
I firmly believe an HR team can be highly effective, if they have a clear idea about the business and its objectives. Building employee experience and service mindset through different business cycles is
At PNB Housing Finance, we follow a solution & service oriented approach, which helps us offer a unique value proposition
Over the years, this diverse exposure has helped me gain a holistic view of business operations.Simultaneously, my professional experience has helped me develop into a change agent who can positively impact the growth trajectory of a business.
In my work tenure of close to 18 years, I have witnessed organizations scale new heights, and I am proud to have played a vital role in this development. I firmly believe that people are the pillars on which great and successful organizations are built. In addition, culture, and employee morale charts its growth trajectory, and I am truly humbled to be able to play mypart in such transformative journeys.
How would you define the changing landscape of the CPO segment?
The ultimate aim for a CPO and as a HR representative is to deliver a positive employee experience. With recent events, the dynamics between employee and the organization have changed. How well we treat our employee and how we set up a fair, transparent, and empathetic ecosystem within the organization has to be the top priority for any CPO. As employee needs are evolving, CPOs must understand this changing dynamics and address their needs promptly.
People agenda has clearly shifted towards building culture, retention, diversity, equity & inclusion, and long-term success of the organization depends on how well the HR department addresses these important aspects. With the growing popularity of hybrid working models, both organizations and CPOs should be geared up and find ways to integrate newer work models keeping engagement, productivity, and collaboration in mind. Another important facet is preparing employees for technology change to derive positive business outcomes for the company.
How do you lead your team to derive positive outcomes for the business?
I firmly believe an HR team can be highly effective, if they have a clear idea about the business and its objectives. Building employee experience and service mindset through different business cycles is
imperative for a successful HR professional. I advocate this strongly with my team, and it has helped us address employee growth & development, manage expectations, proactively address grievances, empower managers, and drive the business forward. Bringing simplicity and trust in your conversations with employees is necessary, if one wants to have a long lasting and meaningful relationship between the employee & the organization.
Can you talk more about your leadership style? Also, what is your success mantra?
I see myself as an inspired learner, a big picture thinker, a keen observer, and carry a deep passion for bringing positive changes. I am also keen on looking at subtle and often overlooked aspects of a business to drive growth.
When it comes to my success mantra, it is all ‘hard work’. Over the years this has contributed the maximum to my success. A key strength I have imbibed over a period of time is being composed and resilient while facing overwhelming challenges and approaching the problems with a solution mindset. I also advocate success, growth, and better execution to continuous learning and developing conviction about one’s ideas. Our conviction about our thoughts in our area of work will come only if we supplement it with knowledge and research. And above all, we have to develop the rigor of validating our theory of success as the situations change.
How did you help PNB Housing Finance and its employees to cope up with the rapid changes caused by the pandemic?
At PNB Housing Finance, I have seen the organization taking numerous steps to support employees during the pandemic. Whether it is work from home, technology support, health & wellness support, better insurance benefits, or financial support, we have been with employees all along.
Amit Singh, Chief People Officer, PNB Housing Finance
A versatile professional, Amit possesses unrivalled expertise in leading the HR agenda for businesses in Asset Management, Investment Banking, Securities, Wholesale Banking, and Project Finance. He plays a crucial role within the PNB Housing Finance leadership team in supporting the organization's growth and managing People Strategy for the company. He is also the Director of PHFL(wholly owned subsidiary of PNB Housing Finance) and Pehel Foundation(a CSR arm of PNB Housing Finance). Over the years, thanks to his passion for continuous learning, Amit has broken new business frontiers and reached greater heights.
Can you talk more about your leadership style? Also, what is your success mantra?
I see myself as an inspired learner, a big picture thinker, a keen observer, and carry a deep passion for bringing positive changes. I am also keen on looking at subtle and often overlooked aspects of a business to drive growth.
When it comes to my success mantra, it is all ‘hard work’. Over the years this has contributed the maximum to my success. A key strength I have imbibed over a period of time is being composed and resilient while facing overwhelming challenges and approaching the problems with a solution mindset. I also advocate success, growth, and better execution to continuous learning and developing conviction about one’s ideas. Our conviction about our thoughts in our area of work will come only if we supplement it with knowledge and research. And above all, we have to develop the rigor of validating our theory of success as the situations change.
How did you help PNB Housing Finance and its employees to cope up with the rapid changes caused by the pandemic?
At PNB Housing Finance, I have seen the organization taking numerous steps to support employees during the pandemic. Whether it is work from home, technology support, health & wellness support, better insurance benefits, or financial support, we have been with employees all along.
Amit Singh, Chief People Officer, PNB Housing Finance
A versatile professional, Amit possesses unrivalled expertise in leading the HR agenda for businesses in Asset Management, Investment Banking, Securities, Wholesale Banking, and Project Finance. He plays a crucial role within the PNB Housing Finance leadership team in supporting the organization's growth and managing People Strategy for the company. He is also the Director of PHFL(wholly owned subsidiary of PNB Housing Finance) and Pehel Foundation(a CSR arm of PNB Housing Finance). Over the years, thanks to his passion for continuous learning, Amit has broken new business frontiers and reached greater heights.