Proactive and impact-oriented Talent Manager & HRBP with over 11 years of experience driving people strategy and recruitment in high-growth product-based and startup environments. With deep expertise across the full employee lifecycle and 1 year of dedicated HRBP ownership, I bring a unique blend of talent acquisition leadership and HR partnering. Skilled in aligning HR initiatives with business objectives, I've successfully led scalable hiring operations, designed and executed engagement & retention programs, and collaborated with leadership on organizational design, performance management, and compensation planning. Known for building high-performing teams and delivering measurable impact through data-driven decision-making, people-first policies, and agile workforce planning.
Hi, I’m
POOJA GUPTA
Talent Manager
Noida
Summary
Overview
12
years of professional experience
8
Certifications
2
Language
Work History
Instant Systems Inc.
Talent Manager
02.2023 - Current
Job overview
- Led a team of 9 members comprising recruiters, operations specialists, and HR business partners.
- Collaborated with senior leadership to formulate and execute HR/Recruitment strategies aligned with business objectives, resulting in enhanced employee performance and retention.
- Established a Talent Acquisition (TA) dashboard featuring KPIs and metrics to assess recruitment effectiveness; provided insights to senior leadership on trends, challenges, and improvement opportunities.
- Conducted monthly performance governance at regional and functional levels through dashboards and meetings with VP of Products, CEO, and CTO at a global level.
- Served as trusted advisor to departmental managers on employee relations, performance management, and talent development.
- Implemented and managed compensation and benefits programs, including salary benchmarking, incentive plans, and employee recognition initiatives.
- Drove performance management processes including goal setting and performance reviews.
- Career Journey at Instant Systems Inc. — 10+ Years
Instant Systems Inc.
Executive Talent Manager
11.2019 - 01.2023
Job overview
- Managed end-to-end candidate process; evaluated skill level, managed offer process, created offer drafts, salary calculation sheets, and reference checks.
- Worked closely with business/delivery heads to understand and prioritize open requirements; held weekly reviews with senior management.
- Delivered high-quality work in a high-paced, dynamic work environment; managed sourcing strategies, timelines, and deliverables across products.
- Directly reported to the CTO and CEO; led and managed the recruitment team for close to 7 years.
Instant Systems Inc.
Sr. Talent Engagement Specialist
07.2017 - 10.2019
Job overview
- Extensive experience in the full cycle of hiring: Direct Recruitment, Employee Referrals, Campus Recruitment, Domain Expertise, and Fresher Hiring.
- Spearheaded talent development initiatives encompassing career management, succession planning, talent pipeline management, and skill development.
Instant Systems Inc.
Talent Engagement Specialist | Technical Recruiter
05.2014 - 06.2017
Job overview
- Started as a Technical Recruiter; built foundational expertise in niche and passive hiring across product-based companies and startups.
- Reviewed and analyzed business metrics, including retention rates and employee experience, to propose systemic improvements.
Education
Bharati Vidyapeeth UniversityDelhi
MBA from Human Resource Management
01-2019
University Overview
Gautam Buddh Technical University
B.Tech from Electronics & Communication
01-2013
University Overview
Skills
Succession Planning
Niche/Passive Hiring
HRBP
Stack Overflow/GitHub Sourcing
Compensation Management
Campus Recruitment
Talent Mapping
Employee Engagement
Benefits Negotiation
Talent Acquisition
Odoo Implementation
ATS/Workday/Odoo
Diversity & Inclusion
Stakeholder Management
AREAS OF EXPERTISE
AREAS OF EXPERTISE
- Business Partnering: Expert at partnering with leadership and senior management to develop, implement, and drive results increasing organizational effectiveness — including workforce capability, organization design & structure, and day-to-day employee lifecycle management.
- Talent Acquisition: Developed and implemented global talent acquisition strategies aligned with business objectives, including defining the TA roadmap, identifying talent needs, and designing innovative recruitment strategies to attract top Next Gen leaders.
- Succession Planning & Compensation Benchmarking: Hands-on expertise in career pathing, succession planning, compensation structure implementation, and driving performance management processes including goal setting and performance reviews.
ACHIEVEMENTS
ACHIEVEMENTS
- Hired 37 interns for the entire internship program within a 2-month deadline during peak hiring season.
- Scaled virtual hiring drives from 30 to 237 candidates on first execution, significantly accelerating role closures.
- 'Certificate of Merit' — Prelims round of LUMOS Robot Game Competition, TECHKRITI 2012, IIT Kanpur.
Interests
Web-Surfing, Drawing, Painting, Paper Crafting
KEY INITIATIVES
KEY INITIATIVES
- Initiated campus recruitment at Instant Systems and launched & executed the 1st campus drive successfully from scratch.
- Designed and implemented the 1st AI-based proctoring online test for Associate Developers.
- Implemented the Employee Referral Reward and Interviewers Reward program with the VP of Products.
- Initiated 'Frolic Friday' — a team-building and engagement event running since 2015.
- Automated interviewer feedback collection using LimeSurvey; successfully implemented and actively used since launch.
- Launched online virtual drives for remote candidates, scaling interview participation from 30 to 237+ on first execution.
AI-POWERED RECRUITMENT & TALENT OPERATIONS
AI-POWERED RECRUITMENT & TALENT OPERATIONS
- Proactively integrates cutting-edge AI tools across the end-to-end recruitment lifecycle to accelerate hiring speed, improve candidate quality, and elevate stakeholder communications — reducing overall time-to-hire and enhancing team productivity:
- Claude (Anthropic): Used for intelligent candidate screening, drafting customized JDs and outreach messages, summarizing resumes, and generating structured interview frameworks tailored to role requirements.
- ChatGPT (OpenAI): Applied for talent market research, creating evaluation scorecards, writing HR policies, and brainstorming engagement & retention strategies at speed.
- Mapify: Converts lengthy talent reports, stakeholder meeting notes, and industry insights into clear visual mind maps — accelerating leadership reviews and team alignment.
- Grammarly: Ensures all candidate communications, offer letters, HR documents, and client-facing reports are polished, professional, and error-free before delivery.
- Gamma: Designs compelling hiring decks, talent pipeline presentations, and org-design proposals that impress leadership and speed up approvals.
- Grok (xAI): Leveraged for real-time industry trend analysis, compensation benchmarking, and competitive talent intelligence to stay ahead of market shifts.
Certification
Team Leadership & Team Management Masterclass — Udemy (2022)
Languages
English
Bilingual or Proficient (C2)
Hindi
Bilingual or Proficient (C2)
Accomplishments
Accomplishments
• Hired 37 interns for the entire internship program within a 2-month deadline during peak hiring season.
• Scaled virtual hiring drives from 30 to 237 candidates on first execution, significantly accelerating role closures.
• 'Certificate of Merit' — Prelims round of LUMOS Robot Game Competition, TECHKRITI 2012, IIT Kanpur.
KEY INITIATIVES
• Initiated campus recruitment at Instant Systems and launched & executed the 1st campus drive successfully from scratch.
• Designed and implemented the 1st AI-based proctoring online test for Associate Developers.
• Implemented the Employee Referral Reward and Interviewers Reward program with the VP of Products.
• Initiated 'Frolic Friday' — a team-building and engagement event running since 2015.
• Automated interviewer feedback collection using LimeSurvey; successfully implemented and actively used since launch.
• Launched online virtual drives for remote candidates, scaling interview participation from 30 to 237+ on first execution.
Timeline
Leadership Skill certification
02-2026
How to Negotiate to Get What You Deserve
12-2023
Talent Manager
Instant Systems Inc.
02.2023 - Current
Team Leadership & Team Management Masterclass — Udemy (2022)
02-2022
The Business Intelligence Analyst Course 2022 — Udemy
01-2022
Effective Business Writing to Build Employee Engagement — Udemy
12-2021
Leadership Series — Udemy (2021)
11-2021
World-Class HR: 21st Century Talent Management — Udemy
08-2021
Executive Talent Manager
Instant Systems Inc.
11.2019 - 01.2023
Sr. Talent Engagement Specialist
Instant Systems Inc.
07.2017 - 10.2019
Human Resources by Open2Study (Final Score: 88%)
12-2016
Talent Engagement Specialist | Technical Recruiter
Instant Systems Inc.
05.2014 - 06.2017
Gautam Buddh Technical University
B.Tech from Electronics & Communication
Bharati Vidyapeeth University
MBA from Human Resource Management