Propelling Transformative Phase Fuelling Organisation

“I believe relativity applies to physics, not to ethics,” during her stint as HRBP, a senior leader has pressurised her to bypass a few steps in the selection process of a critical role and hire a candidate referred by him. This really tested ethics because she knew that if she did not honour his request, he would make things difficult for me. However, she ensured that the process was followed in a fair and transparent way without succumbing to his pressure because she believed it is the right thing to do.

An HR graduate from XLRI, Neeharika Bhupati, VP, RBS India has successfully delivered business results and enabled people growth and engagement, alongside leading several large scale enterprises with wide HR initiatives like organisational restructuring, building accelerated talent programs, diversity, building people capability etc.

Creating a great place to build careers and future-ready talent is a vital part of RBS India's strategy to build a bank for the future. In line with the strategy, Bhupati has successfully launched the RBS-ACE programme last year which aims to build a future leadership talent pipeline for RBS India.

Since my initial days, I have been instrumental in designing and launching the 18-month program and hired our first two cohorts of graduates from tier 1 B-schools in India who are currently working on future-ready strategic projects in RBS,” remembers Bhupati. Fondly known for creating business impact by working with people by building the bridge between what is good for the organisation vs what is good for people, Bhupati has come great miles ahead in her life.

At RBS too, things weren’t a cakewalk for her. At the time when she had joined RBS,  that time she was managing the launch of virtual induction for 80 plus interns in light of covid-19 and the team supporting the joining wanted to push back on the deadlines (due to glitches in the new virtual process), which she knew would have impacted their campus commitments. Instead of pushing the team hard, she focused on helping the team identify the right priorities to deliver on time. While the team was initially resistant, they understood the priorities and hence, were able to work together and deliver on time.

“I feel obliged to be able to positively influence and change the lives of many people by helping them develop and grow in their careers and support them in realising their dreams,” states Bhupati.