If there is one thing Vidya Munirathnam knows, it is that impact lies in the details, like the warmth of a coffee chat or the charm of a mascot named Benny. As Vice President of HR at Lowe’s India, Vidya blends strategy with storytelling, ensuring employees feel heard, valued, and inspired. From transforming complex benefits into engaging narratives to driving impactful reskilling programmes, her people-first approach is shaping a culture of connection and growth. In this conversation, Vidya shares how Lowe’s India is evolving beyond cost efficiency to become a global innovation hub, all while fostering a workplace where employees thrive.
Lowe’s India celebrated Sambhav, which marks the organisation’s 10th anniversary in the country. Congratulations! How does a cultural congregation like this become a long-term reinforcement of Lowe’s India’s core values?
Thank you! Yes, it has been an incredible journey for Lowe’s in India, and the celebration was a powerful reminder of pride, nostalgia, and a sense of realisation into the journey we have had!
At Lowe’s India, fostering a sense of belonging is not left to chance; it is a deliberate effort embedded in our culture. Sambhav has truly marked a significant milestone for Lowe’s India, celebrating our achievements while reinforcing the core values driving our growth. For us, cultural initiatives go beyond celebration, they contribute to building an agile, high-performing workforce aligned with the organisation’s vision. To reinforce Lowe’s core values and messaging from our Total Home Strategy, we had the global leadership team, including Marvin Ellison, Chairman, President and CEO, Seemantini Godbole, Executive VP and Chief Digital and Information Officer and Janice Dupre, Executive VP of HR visit our India office and celebrate Sambhav with us. We created multiple opportunities for the global leaders to personally recognise the outstanding work being done by our teams.
To create a deep sense of purpose, our Global CEO also announced Lowe’s India’s commitment to support local communities with an investment of $2 million over the next two years. This investment will enable various projects in skill development, such as STEM learning and coding and projects that focus on the conservation of natural resources and the adoption of renewable energy. This cultural congregation brought together associates and leadership to celebrate the unified spirit of One Lowe’s.
The role of GCCs has evolved from cost arbitrage to value creation. How is Lowe’s India positioning itself beyond traditional operational support to become a strategic driver of innovation for Lowe’s globally?
It is typical for GCCs to function as the ‘back-office’ support or the R&D centre that helps drive cost savings and contributes largely to the bottom line. However, at Lowe’s India, our role extends beyond that.
When we commenced in Bengaluru in 2014, Lowe’s India began as a modest initiative with a team of just 11 associates. Today, we are a thriving GCC of over 4,500 talented professionals driving pivotal functions in technology, merchandising, supply chain and more. This shows the evolution of our India office and how we are empowered to function as one team with the US, working towards a common goal. In the last five years, Lowe’s India has grown more than 100% in headcount. These years have been critical in strengthening and expanding our core capabilities beyond engineering. We have evolved from cost arbitrage to talent arbitrage as everything we innovate is directed at the success of the business and aligned with the global strategy and goals. This ensures teams in India play an equal role in driving business impact.
With the ‘One-in-a-box’ leadership model, our leaders in India have more accountability, ownership and freedom to strategise for the business globally, enabling more cross-functional collaboration between locations.
Many companies invest in upskilling but struggle with reskilling mid-career employees. How does Lowe’s India navigate this challenge?
The real question is, ‘How do we keep up with the ever-evolving demand for talent and new skills?’ And that’s where agile learning strategies and skill-based workforce planning come into play. One of the core pillars of our talent strategy to become an employer of choice is our commitment to promising futures through continuous learning and development.
At Lowe’s, we do not follow generational stereotypes but instead, we adopt a persona-based approach that segments associates based on their roles, shared values, interests, and professional goals. This personalised approach allows us to craft reskilling pathways that resonate with the unique experiences of each associate which mostly lean towards implementation. Also, these are not just opportunities to improve performance, but also, prospects for upskilling and reskilling the knowledge levels of our associates. To create that sense of belonging, we actively listen to feedback and for this, we adopted the Kirkpatrick Evaluation Model:
- Level 1: We assess learner reactions to these trainings. Our 2024 data shows a Net Promoter Score of 4.65, which indicates the positive impact that knowledge-enhancing opportunities have.
- Level 2: We evaluate learning outcomes. In 2024, we saw a 42% increase in their knowledge level on a specific topic that could impact their performance at work and personal growth.
- Level 3: We reach out to their immediate leaders to measure the behavioural change demonstrated in their day-to-day activities, which saw a 22% increase in 2024, thus showing a steady growth in the benefits of investing in training.
This commitment to continuous learning enables associates to the future challenges of our industry, ensuring they remain key contributors to Lowe’s global success.
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With over 35,000+ hours of learning logged, what has been the most counterintuitive finding about how employees engage with training?
Interestingly, we found that employees engage more effectively with training when it is seamlessly integrated into their daily work rather than treated as a separate activity. Traditionally, learning is seen as a distinct event, but we have found that associates are more motivated when training aligns with their day-to-day responsibilities. In fact, in 2024, over 4,000+ associates logged more than 40,000 hours of learning, highlighting our commitment to cultivating a leadership pipeline that aligns with Lowe’s global vision. By offering different resources, we enable associates to immediately apply what they have learned, making the process more practical and impactful. This approach helps increase engagement and ensures that the skills gained directly benefit their work, improving individual performance and overall team outcomes.
GCCs often focus on rapid scaling, but sustaining a strong culture within a fast-growing workforce can be challenging. What deliberate steps is Lowe’s India taking to maintain a unified culture while expanding its talent base?
At Lowe’s, we operate as one global team, working towards common goals. Everything we innovate is directed at the success of the business, not for local individual wins. To drive efficiency and collaboration, our unique ‘One-in-a-box’ Leadership Model ensures global leadership, enabling faster decision-making, more accountability, ownership, and freedom to strategise for the business globally. Through empowering cross-functional collaboration across locations, this model ensures faster decision-making and improved alignment with Lowe’s broader objectives. To maintain this unified culture, we also have our global CEO and other members of the executive leadership team visit India and connect with our associates here to create that alignment with the broader organisational goals.
This level of synergy with our US teams creates a sense of direction and collaboration which also positively impacts the sense of belonging among our associates in India. Team collaboration is strengthened through digital tools and AI-driven platforms that streamline teamwork and knowledge-sharing, keeping us aligned as we grow. By providing career development opportunities, we also empower employees to upskill and evolve within the organisation, making them active contributors to our long-term vision.
Lowe’s India tailors communication methods to different generations, even using mascots to simplify complex benefit programmes. What results has this yielded for the organisation?
We are a multigenerational workforce, and this is our asset as an organisation. As companies grow, their workforce demographics shift, bringing new perspectives, work styles, and expectations. To create an inclusive and engaging environment, we have integrated multigenerational diversity as a key pillar in our agenda. A critical part of this is our tailored communication strategy, which ensures that employees across age groups receive information in ways that resonate with them. From leveraging digital channels to hosting interactive sessions and even using mascots to simplify complex benefits programs, we make information that is accessible and engaging for all.
One such initiative is introducing Benny, the official Benefits and Wellness Mascot, who has been instrumental in enhancing benefits communication and employee engagement. Benny made her debut in 2023 during the launch of Lowe’s Insurance Flexible Benefits, marking the beginning of a more interactive and engaging approach to benefits awareness. Since then, she has been an integral branding element across all benefits-related communications, making complex policies more accessible and engaging for associates. To date, Benny has successfully supported the onboarding of over 37% of Lowe’s associates, ensuring they have a clear understanding of the benefits available to them. By making benefits communication more engaging and interactive, Benny has reinforced Lowe’s commitment to associate well-being, fostering a culture of awareness and accessibility.
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What is one unconventional or surprisingly effective way you have seen corporate messaging resonate with employees?
One unconventional yet highly effective initiative that has resonated with our associates is our informal leader coffee connects, introduced last year. These casual yet purposeful gatherings have proven to be a powerful platform for fostering engagement, aligning employees with Lowe’s business goals, and reinforcing our core values.
Known as Breakroom, this initiative creates a relaxed environment where associates and leaders can connect over coffee, engage in open conversations, ask questions, and exchange ideas. This informal setting breaks hierarchical barriers, allowing associates to gain valuable insights directly from leadership. Since its inception, Breakroom has successfully hosted six sessions, each serving as an opportunity for meaningful dialogue. These sessions have enabled associates to understand Lowe’s strategic vision better, feel more connected to the organisation’s direction, and develop a deeper sense of belonging—all over a simple yet impactful cup of coffee.
If you could time-travel 10 years into the future, what are the capabilities or cultural traits you hope will be the defining moments of GCCs in India?
What I envision for the next decade is that GCCs should invest more in workforce upskilling and strengthening leadership development and career growth pathways. To thrive in the future, GCCs must prioritise a culture of employee well-being and inclusion, which will create a high level of engagement, innovation, business outcomes, and retention, thus building a strong employer brand that is authentic and employee-driven. Also, with skill-based hiring replacing traditional career paths, employees will take on dynamic, expertise-driven roles, ensuring adaptability in an ever-evolving tech landscape.
Vidya Munirathnam is the Vice President of HR at Lowe’s India, leading key functions such as business partnering, total rewards, talent acquisition, and culture. With nearly two decades of experience across the retail and semiconductor sectors, she is known for her collaborative leadership and commitment to fostering high-performing teams. Vidya also drives the expansion of global HR functions in India, including HR systems and payroll. An engineer with an MBA and MBL, she blends technical expertise with strategic acumen. Beyond work, she enjoys parenting her two children and has a passion for teaching.
