IMF HR Head Kalpana Kochhar To Join Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation

Indian economist Kalpana Kochhar, who heads the Human Resources Department of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), is retiring next month after serving for over three decades with the organisation to join the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

Before joining the Fund, she was an Assistant Professor at George Washington University in Washington DC.

As Director of Human Resources, Ms Kochhar oversaw the IMF’s HR policies and the recruitment and retention of more than 4,000 IMF employees from nearly 150 countries based in Washington, DC, and in overseas offices.

“In her 33 years at the Fund, Ms Kalpana provided a shining example of strong leadership and dedication to the Fund’s mission. She brought a keen intellect and remarkable passion to her work and always focussed her efforts on helping those we serve. Her work helped to shape the Fund and, while we wish her the very best in her new role, she will be sorely missed,” IMF Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva said.

In the past five years, she led the successful review and modernisation of the IMF’s compensation and benefits programme, as well as the successful implementation of a large and complex human capital management IT system which helped to simplify, streamline and modernise HR at the Fund.

As Deputy Director in Asia and Pacific Department (APD), she was responsible for setting up and executing the IMF’s strategy for Asia, including guiding analytical work and policy advice to several Asian countries to help promote economic growth, financial stability, and gender equality.

As Deputy Director in the Strategy, Policy, and Review Department (SPR), she led research and policy formulation on gender equity, income inequality, jobs and growth, and structural reforms.