From forging partnerships with global academic powerhouses to capitalising on India’s vast talent reservoir, Anand Kabra, Chief People and Transformation Officer at Apexon, sheds light on the organisation’s innovative strategies and its broader impact on the global talent ecosystem.
In the era of artificial intelligence, Anand Kabra, the Chief People and Transformation Officer at Apexon, discusses the intersection of talent management and technology. With over 25 years of experience in fostering people-focused cultures, he shares insights on Apexon’s upskilling approaches, integrating varied business values, and the potential of generative AI in HR. Kabra’s perspectives are invaluable for leaders aiming to harmonise innovation with human values in the digital world.
Highlights from our discussion on continuous learning, strategic partnerships, and the transformative power of AI on talent:
How does Apexon address the rising need for digital and analytical proficiencies among employees?
At Apexon, our strategy is centred on digital engineering to transform businesses. We’re active in diverse domains like IoT mobile app development and full-stack application development, and we prioritise innovative solutions over merely updating old systems.
We must keep our teams updated with tech advancements. Thus, we’ve instituted a comprehensive upskilling plan, incorporating continuous learning through several platforms, with an aim for 40-60 learning hours annually per employee. Our affiliations with institutions such as the Indian Institute of Technology in Chennai and Imperial College London allow us to pioneer AI research. Collaborating with academic experts, we address specific client challenges, diving into pioneering projects like generative AI. This extends to sectors like banking and healthcare. Our engagements range from leveraging platforms like Microsoft’s Power BI for data reporting and analytics to tackling complex tasks involving neural networks and NLP algorithms.
Merging multiple businesses during Apexon’s growth phase must have posed unique challenges. Could you delve into the nuances of this integration and the cultural obstacles encountered?
We successfully integrated five distinct companies, each with its unique cultural values, talent pool, and expertise. Our integration plan prioritised unity and cohesion while respecting the policies and characteristics that contributed to the success of each company.
The first step was establishing a shared structure. From an HR standpoint, we implemented non-negotiable universal policies. However, we remained adaptable in other areas; for example, recognising the need for specific skilling investments tailored to the needs of different employee groups.
To align our brand identity with our goals, we chose ‘Apexon’ as it resonated with what we were trying to achieve – reaching the summit, the apex of our abilities – and that fed ideally into the company’s value proposition. Deloitte, who assisted us with the integration, ran a post-integration survey that revealed high satisfaction levels from employees across the board. Can you share some of the learnings from the post-integration survey?
The survey covered various aspects including company communication during the transition, employee engagement quality, and the influence on career prospects.
A notable question gauged interest in “town hall” sessions. Most employees felt enhanced communication was needed, especially since the integration spanned six months. Despite our increased communication efforts, feedback indicated room for improvement.
Our survey’s highest rating related to how the integration might benefit employee careers. Many were optimistic about the promised changes and potential for skill development and career progression.
These insights have shaped our people-centric approach, paving the way for growth.
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Apexon has a significant footprint in India’s tier 2 cities. Can you elaborate on the talent distribution there and your overarching strategy?
Apexon prioritises client-centricity, emphasising strong customer relationships as essential in the digital and data solutions domain.
India is home to our most substantial workforce, and the pandemic has reshaped client expectations, ushering in a more flexible, location-neutral mindset. This evolution enhances our service delivery.
Though we have a global presence, India serves as our central hub. The country boasts remarkable product engineering talent, yet this is sometimes underappreciated due to the delay in technology diffusion from incubation centres like California, which takes around six to eight months to reach India. Bridging this gap would place India’s talent availability on par with leading tech countries like the US.
Does Apexon’s product strategy involve crafting proofs of concept ahead of anticipated market demands?
Instead of an “inside out” approach, we’re deeply attuned to real-world market demands, which distinguishes us from traditional digital service providers. Our proactive teams are already armed with thoroughly vetted proofs of concept when a client comes with a problem. Our emphasis isn’t just on creating products but on discerning actual industry issues. Alongside our academic partners, we collaboratively craft efficient solutions.
Given Apexon’s focus on being a digital-first entity, how do you envision integrating generative AI into your portfolio?
Even as a nascent technology, generative AI has enormous potential. Customers are rightly intrigued, and it’s not just CIOs enquiring about it. Business leaders are asking us how generative AI will disrupt their space. Currently, our focus lies on developing and testing specific use cases that involve generative AI. We are actively approaching customers to collaborate on the internal testing of these use cases.
Also read: Around 20 to 25% of Hiring is Centred Around New-Age Technologies: Shalini Nair Kumar, Amadeus Lab
Are there any generative AI use cases you’re implementing internally as part of your HR practices?
Absolutely. We are leveraging generative AI to assess employee sentiment within our organisation. By combining chatbots and integrated surveys, we have been able to effectively gauge how employees are feeling on a daily basis. This information is then mapped against the individual employee’s history as well as the overall morale levels of the organisation. We consider various factors such as recent role changes, participation in upskilling courses, or involvement in projects with tight deadlines. This data allows us to make timely HR interventions when necessary, and even drive changes in company-wide policies if negative patterns in employee sentiment and underlying connections are identified.
Additionally, we are developing a solution that aims to measure employees’ propensity to reach new levels of productivity and recommends tailored upskilling materials based on their progress. Instead of following a standardised path for upskilling, each team member will receive personalised recommendations based on their current knowledge and productivity levels.
If employees feel prepared for new challenges, the algorithm will recommend four or five key areas for training and guide them in the right direction. This approach will eliminate the rigid structure often associated with upskilling and training, empowering employees to take charge of their professional growth and achievements.
By generating job descriptions tailored precisely to a specific role, algorithms can swiftly analyse thousands of applications within seconds, narrowing down the pool of viable candidates to a select few, say around five or 10 individuals. This process, which traditionally takes days or weeks, becomes accelerated, allowing organisations to gain a competitive edge in a highly aggressive talent market.
What role do you think generative AI will go on to play in terms of talent acquisition and employee training?
The recruitment process is traditionally tedious for both companies and applicants. Teams can spend a lot of time filtering resumes, often questioning if they’ve chosen the right person, while candidates must navigate extensive interviews.
Generative AI has the potential to significantly reduce the recruitment cycle from weeks to just a matter of days. By generating job descriptions tailored precisely to a specific role, algorithms can swiftly analyse thousands of applications within seconds, narrowing down the pool of viable candidates to a select few, say around five or 10 individuals. This process, which traditionally takes days or weeks, becomes accelerated, allowing organisations to gain a competitive edge in a highly aggressive talent market. Generative AI addresses cost, quality, and speed, offering advancements in all three areas. Furthermore, it provides additional insights, such as predicting an employee’s likelihood of integrating well within a company or their potential for career progression.
About the expert: Anand Kabra boasts over 25 years of global HR expertise anchored in servant leadership and strategic insight. Renowned for designing impactful HR programmes and nurturing stakeholder relationships, Kabra deftly aligns company values with business results.
