Durga S. Pai

German MNC in the Telecom, Automotive, Aerospace & defence and Industrial Sector providing interconnect solutions

• Led pan-India HR operations, coordinating HR teams across two manufacturing units and multiple sales offices to enhance operational effectiveness.
• Spearheaded talent management and succession planning initiatives to ensure alignment with organizational goals and future leadership needs.
• Drive leadership hiring for Sales and Shared Services, including Data & AI functions.
• Manage liaison and statutory approvals for new product verticals and greenfield facility setup.

Indian MNC in the Power/Energy Sector into steam and Gas turbines with presence in 75+ countries

• Heading HR for the Global After Market, O&M and OEM Business
• Developed HR strategic framework to enable business expansion across SEA, MENA, LATAM, USA, and Africa.
• Managed HR operations for Overseas, regional Sales & Service offices across India.
• Managed talent management, performance evaluations, compensation & benefits, HR policies, diversity initiatives, capability development, and employee engagement to enhance organizational effectiveness.
• Partnered on leadership hiring, built talent pools for key roles, and enabled employee mobility through talent mapping.
• Conducted people due diligence for overseas mergers and established post-merger people strategy.

A Dürr Group (Germany) company into CNC machines

• Heading HR, Admin & EHS for HOMAG India & APAC operations and shared service verticals of Software Controls, Schuler Consulting, Benz Tooling, Technical Writing and hotline support.
• Partnered with executive leadership to define long-term mission and goals; aligned HR priorities with business strategy in collaboration with the global HR team.
• Established a Center of Excellence(COE) for Sales & Service; revamped the learning platform and launched 65 new learning modules to build capability.
• Restructured compensation & benefits aligned to the new Labour and Wage Codes; implemented STI linked to KPIs and sales incentives tied to business objectives.
• Scaled the Shared Services business from INR 2 Cr to INR 8.7 Cr through talent strategy, targeted hiring, and robust review mechanisms in India.
• Conducted 9-box grid evaluations for leadership and critical roles; created IDPs to strengthen succession planning.
• Merger of 2 entities
• Set up a greenfield facility in Bangalore in compliance with the Factories Act and Karnataka Factory Rules; commenced operations on schedule.

Indian MNC in the Automotive sector into hydraulic gear pumps for diesel engines in India and the UK

• Heading HR, Employee Relations, and Administration for pan-India operations across three manufacturing units and regional offices for the Hydraulics (India) and Homeland Security businesses.
• Developed and implemented policies across recruitment, learning & development, employee engagement, payroll, performance management, welfare, compensation & benefits, and statutory compliance.
• Managed industrial relations and union negotiations, including long-term settlements.
• Resolved long-pending contract labour issues in Unit III, enabling permanent closure and restart of operations.

Fortune 500 French MNC in building materials

• HRBP and Corporate-HR
• Drove group-level HR projects.
• Led the People Development & People Involvement pillar under the WCM program; increased employee involvement from 65% to 98% and satisfaction from 57% to 89%.
• Managed performance reviews, increments, performance-linked incentives, bonus administration, and salary revisions.
• Designed and implemented a performance-linked incentive plan for management by defining balanced scorecards and MIP goals.
• Managing talent Acquisition for Middle and Senior management levels including campus connect.
• Resolved a 3-month employee strike and concluded two long-term settlements with the union.
• Handled employee relations, disciplinary actions, legal matters with government authorities/courts, POSH cases, and statutory issues.
• Advised group entities on employee grievances and dispute resolution.
• Rolled out HR policies and procedures across the business.
• Improved gender diversity across group entities.
• Top Employer Certification (2015- 2020).
• Enabled business growth into five new product lines.
• Introduced job chats, skip-level meetings, and town halls to strengthen communication and employee dialogue.
• Led HR digitization (SAP, PeopleSoft, intranet) to streamline processes and improve employee experience.
• Conducted competency assessments, people reviews, career development planning for high potentials, and succession planning for leadership/critical roles.
• Defined grade structure and rationalized salary structure.
• Ensured on-time MIS reporting and documentation supporting ISO 9001, OHSAS 18000, and ISO 14000 certifications.
• Consolidated group HR policies in India post-merger (2016).

Media and entertainment company

• Regional HRBP (South) for Citicable Network Ltd for Bangalore, Mysore & Trivandrum Office and content development staff for regional channels.