Leaders

Over the last couple of decades, there has been a drastic shift towards sustainability and the demand for electric vehicles (EV) has been on the rise. In India, Greencell Mobility is one pioneering business organization that has been able to make impressive strides in the EV segment within a short span of time. The company is creating a platform to provide Electric Mobility-as-a-Service (eMaaS), initially using electric buses. Greencell predominantly operates in the B2G and B2C market spaces, and aspires to change the way people travel in India, while also improving road mobility in the country. Rajani Tewari is the Chief People Officer at Greencell, and she is an expert when it comes to organization change, design and transformation. Over her 20 plus years of working in the industry, Rajani has been able to design, develop and implement original programs and interventions which have had a positive impact on the various organizations she has been a part of.

In an exclusive interview with Women Entrepreneur, Rajani takes us through her professional journey and how she attained success in the industry.

Can you give us a brief insight into your journey so far?

From the very beginning of my career itself, I have positioned myself as somebody who worked really close

 with the business, help business to transform, and allow them to reach the next level. Post completion of my Doctorate in Human Resource management, my focus is on creating high performance organizations through effective rewarding mechanisms. My specialization is centered upon HR Strategy & Excellence, planning & turnaround management, ensuring that human resources initiatives are effective, efficient, and in sync with strategic business objectives along with focusing on creating a reward strategy which works best for the company. I have also aligned with a lot of universities where I go and do e-Coaching for the students.

 "I Also Ensure That I Never Micro Manage Because It Can Have An Adverse Effect On The Performance & Motivation Level Of Employees”

How has been your experience after starting to work with Greencell Mobility? Also, how have you been able to help the organization to scale new heights?

Prior to joining Greencell, I was working in the education sector, and prior to that I was employed in the healthcare space. Working with these diverse fields for many years has exposed me to different unique scenarios that have helped me to learn and improve myself. When I joined Greencell, we were moving into an uncharted territory and we didn’t know what will and what won’t work in the EV industry. That said, the major highlight at Greencell Mobility is the beauty of team work and employees coming together to meet the organizational objectives efficiently.

Mapping talent was a big challenge for us since we were entering into a new arena and I had to closely analyze the market and our competitors to get the right talent who can have a positive impact on our organization. After that, we have invested a lot into training, knowledge sharing, and building cross-functional teams. Also, every process had to be written from scratch but we are now happy after our ISO certifications knowing that people externally have also validated the work that we have done. One of our biggest achievements as a young organization is that we got certified by ‘Great places to work’. For us, the biggest job was to create a sense of pride for the organization and now, our people remain committed not just to the company but the society as a whole.

As a seasoned industry veteran, how have you attained sustained success in your professional career?

I have a fundamental philosophy that prioritizes on trust. This helps to create strong relationships with the employees and motivates all to work together to achieve organizational objectives. I also ensure that I never micromanage because it can have an adverse effect on the performance and motivation level of employees. With micro managing, you will also fail to identify the unique traits of each individual. I also believe that everybody has a unique ability and complementing each other’s strengths and weaknesses can help the organization to grow. I always say that HR is about creating happy people around you and when people are happy, they are productive.

How do you see the HR industry evolving in the near future?

After the onset of the pandemic, there has been a rapid increase in the adoption of technology in the industry. I am tech-savvy and this has helped me to achieve sustained success in the industry. I also believe that technology will not replace people and it is up to people to use technology for the right purposes. Right now, HR tech space is growing rapidly and there are many innovations happening in this space. The use of social media to create a sense of pride for the organization is also growing now.

 Rajani Tewari, Chief People Officer, Greencell Mobility

A pioneering HR leader who has worked in different industry verticals and has successfully implemented organizational change strategies to help them reach greater heights