Chief Chat: Mondee’s chief people officer, Geetika Gupta

Travel software company Mondee named Geetika Gupta its chief people officer in May. As the former global HR and talent lead at Accenture, and a consultant before that, Gupta has had a unique vantage point into the different ways organizations can transform their HR strategy.

In an interview with HR Brew, Gupta discussed her path into the field and what it’s like to manage global teams and adapt to a new era of technology.

How did you first get into HR?

It was almost 23 years ago. I was in India. My introduction to the HR world was actually through the learning lens. I worked for a company called IIT in India…There was an ad in the newspaper, which said, “Shakespeare is dead. Do you want to be the next writer?” or something on those lines. Back in school, I loved writing.

My introduction to HR was as an instructional designer, [then I] grew in the learning space, expanded into talent management, and then slowly expanded into HR…The first 15 years of my HR experience was more with the consulting lens…working on external HR consulting projects on behalf of the companies that I was working with, mostly for many financial services clients.

If they were going through an HR transformation, if they were going through some sort of organizational transformation, which required a new approach to HR, my job was to come in, evaluate where they were, and propose strategies.

How do you think being an HR consulting leader differs from being a head of HR?

I wouldn’t say they’re very different. At the end of the day, I’d say two things. One, it is about people, whether you’re doing it internally for the organization or you’re doing it for another client. People are the strongest or the biggest asset that most organizations have, but [HR strategy] has to make business sense and profitability at the end of the day.

I would say one of the biggest differences is that I think you have more room, in an executive leadership role, to be able to put some practices in place, see the impact that they create, and then build on it. Oftentimes in a consultative role, you come there for a short period of time, you do it, you move on. And I’ve seen many times where consultants get it wrong is like, you know, a lot of the vision or the strategy doesn’t get implemented in the same spirit, and it fizzles out over a period of time, which I think is the advantage of being in an executive leadership role.

Given your experience in multiple countries and managing global workforces, what are some of the nuances of HR leadership in that environment?

I think people’s needs, at the heart of it, they’re all the same, whether it’s around well-being, psychological safety, the sense of belongingness or connecting to the purpose of the organization, I think that’s pervasive, irrespective of what part of the world you’re operating in.

Given all the changes to the way we work over the last few years, how do you think technology is shaping HR strategy?

Technology has been a great booster or enabler to HR. I’ve seen my own and my team’s role change significantly with technology…

I think the biggest value add to the role of HR that technology has brought in is through the data lens, and really having that analytics and insight. I think, from that perspective, the HR role has really elevated in the organization because we are now bringing that data-led mindset. We’re now able to drive much more of that critical decision-making, because there’s just so much more value-added insights about our people and about their needs, where they are located and what they’re doing, how a recruitment pipeline is looking.

Instead of spending time on the more administrative stuff, they’re really spending more time being true partners to the business in having sort of that seat at the table and really being part of the decision-making process.