Anil Salvi, Managing Director & Group Head- Human Resources and CEO – Real Estate Consulting Business at JM Financial Group. Prior to this, Anil was leading the Human Resources function at Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) in India as Head HR. Previously he has worked with companies like Deutsche Bank, Syntel Inc., and Blue Star Limited.
He has experience of over 30 years of which he has spent nearly 23 years in the Banking and financial services Industry. Anil holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Economics and completed his Master’s Degree in Human Resources from Bombay University in 1990.
Q1. What are the most pressing HR challenges in financial services industry for FY25?
The financial services industry especially in India is undergoing a massive change being powered by the growth trajectory the economy is witnessing and rapid adoption of technology. There is significant traction generated in financial services industry due to the tier 2 and tier 3 markets penetration facilitated by the technology.
The end result is massive demand for skilled professionals across skill sets and levels. While, the skill demand has increased exponentially, supply of talent with the necessary skills and competencies falls well short of industry needs.
This talent gap is creating a rush, resulting in unsustainable compensation practices and engagement terms. And since the practices adopted are reactionary, the same is leading to a high employee turnover, as either the employees are unable to deliver the expected performance or employers are not able to meet the employee’s expectations.
Organizations across the sector are struggling with talent acquisition and ability to retain, primarily due to the intense competition for skilled professionals.
Q2. How do you suggest we mitigate this challenge?
There is no quick fix to this challenge, as it stems from a fundamental mismatch between talent demand and supply. While the talent pool will eventually meet industry needs, it is not going to happen in a hurry.
The industry would need to acknowledge this and think of solutions beyond engaging in aggressive competition to poach talent at any cost, an approach which may prove to be ineffective in the long run. The options that the Firms must revisit;
A. Reskilling the existing workforce: Evaluate the current talent pool and explore possibilities to retrain employees for new or evolving roles. These individuals are already familiar with the organization’s culture and operations, making them more likely to stay engaged and loyal.
B. Hiring and training fresh talent: Although traditionally less favoured for large-scale talent acquisition, hiring fresh graduates and providing them with rigorous training can be a valuable strategy. Industries like IT and BPO have successfully built their workforce around fresh talent, proving that investing in new talent is a sustainable approach to filling future skills gaps.
C. Outsourcing non-core roles: Consider outsourcing non-inherent roles to specialized firms. These firms often have the ability to create dynamic ecosystems that attract and retain talent more effectively, due to the challenging opportunities and career growth that they can offer to their employees.
By adopting a more holistic approach and combining strategies as above, organizations can address the talent gap over a period and make the talent management effort more sustainable.
Q3. How do you foresee these challenges impacting workforce management and talent acquisition in your Industry?
Addressing talent challenges requires a nuanced approach, as the drivers for attracting and retaining employees vary based on roles and levels.
At junior level the drivers are reward, the manager credentials, recognition, opportunities for growth and exposure. In fact, the manager is often one of the top reasons for both attracting and retaining employees and training the managers is certainly in organizational control.
For mid- and senior-level professionals, the right culture and organizational leadership calibre besides transparent and meaningful participation in success of the Firm, including equity and leadership visibility would play a crucial role.
When it comes to tech roles, the emphasis is not only on compensation and recognition but also on the platform they will work on and the exposure they will gain to future and relevant technologies.
In short, there is no one-size-fits-all solution. Each segment of the workforce has its own priorities, and addressing these needs thoughtfully will require a well-articulated and long-term strategies which would need to remain nimble.
Q4. How does JM Financial define resilience in the workplace, and why is it crucial?
The strength and unique value proposition of JM Financial has always been rooted in its culture, its value system and its employees.
The Firm has steadfastly protected its integrity driven culture, trusted in employee capabilities and doing business ethically. The firm has environment where the employees are encouraged to explore diverse roles and opportunities within the organization. This has led us to be consistently rated as a firm with high employee engagement levels.
We are proud of numerous examples of campus recruits becoming business leaders and the leaders from support functions transitioning into business leadership roles—an uncommon practice that speaks volumes about our commitment to the growth and development of employees.
Q5. What strategies does JM Financial implement to foster resilience among employees?
Empowerment, empowerment and empowerment. Empowerment is at the heart of everything we do. By empowering our employees, we give them the autonomy to make decisions, while also providing the support and resources they need to succeed.
The firm inherently is entrepreneurial in nature and encourages employees to take initiative, driving a culture of ownership and resilience.
Q6. What strategies does JM Financial implement to support employee well-being?
At JM Financial when it comes to staff wellbeing, we are level and function agnostic. Our staff wellbeing and health policies are consistent across all levels, ensuring that every employee has access to the same resources and support.
The firm maintains an open-door policy, with direct access to HR and management, and is always responsive to any specific employee needs.
Q7. Any concluding remarks?
For the organisational HR to be successful in the long run, the function needs to prioritise its efforts on urgent vs important grid. Very often, we get consumed by urgent deliverables at the expense of long-term strategic priorities. Also, we as a function need to recalibrate our deliverables along with that of organisational goals.
As companies become increasingly dynamic, the HR function must evolve as well, developing new skills and competencies that align with the changing organizational necessities and demands of the business on continuous basis.
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