CEOs Face Increasing Pressure To Consider Beyond Business Success: Vikram Chhachhi, DHR Global

Vikram Chhachhi was elevated as Managing Partner, India, DHR Global in December 2022. DHR is a leading player in the segments of executive search, leadership consulting, and emerging leader search solutions in more than 50 markets spanning 22 countries. In an interview to BW Businessworld, he talks about his present role, the shifts in hiring process, how leaders are approaching their careers and impact of their decision on businesses. Excerpts from an interview:

Tell us about your journey at DHR and top learnings so far.
In my role as the Managing Partner for the firm’s India operations, it is all about running the India offices, managing people, and helping both the business as well as our people grow.

Significantly, as a global firm, we are looking at some key global and regional – Asia Pacific specifically – corporate functions being based out of India.

One of the biggest learnings for me has been how to simplify and untangle issues, especially where people and business are concerned.

It is also about the ability to quickly analyse issues at hand and offer guidance and advice on what is the best way to tackle and address those. Also, to be empathetic with all without missing out on the larger vision and goal of the business. A lot of people call the goal as the outcome, but I believe mere outcomes are short-lived.

Looking at industry leaders, especially CEOs, how are they approaching their careers?
Look at the issues that CEOs have to address in addition to just managing and growing their businesses, and people — the environment, the communities those businesses work with and impact, geopolitical fallouts, social impact, corporate citizenship, inclusion, and so on. Each of their career decisions will need to bear the impacts along all these planes, in addition to what business impact they want to make.

Even as late as liberalisation, getting a government job would be a feather in your cap because it gave you stability, steady income, and an income after retirement; you could be a lifer with one government organisation.

Even at the leadership level, until not long ago if a CEO left an organisation anywhere between in three to five years, people would have a lot of questions to ask. Today, if the CEO wants to move out after three years, and she or he has had made business impact, they are not scrutinised. So, a tenure showing effective impact can be of three to five years, as most recent surveys on CEO tenures across organisations show, globally.

Now, when it comes to millennials and Gen Z or the subsequent generation, even if they like you and you like them, they will be around just for a year or two. But a lot of them just consider going

from one gig to another, in more of a project-to-project approach. They are not looking for a forever commitment, unlike earlier.

Do short stints by senior leadership impact business? How do you address it?
Organisations are focusing in a big way on how to instil business continuity irrespective of what happens in case of a quick issue of CEO exit or an unplanned exit. A lot of companies have built-in business continuity and do a lot of work on risk management. Risk for them is not just an asset, a business, or a capital, but it’s also human capital and leadership.

Even health has become a big factor in hiring top leadership. Somebody having a health issue and running a CXO or CEO role needs to disclose his health concerns as it’s a risk for stock performance and can hit commercially.

When we are assessing people there are only a few client for whom fitness levels are a crucial factor. This question is rarely asked even though it’s very critical. I don’t think everyone looks at it holistically, but mental alertness, physical health, and how you engage is important.

What are the broad shifts in hiring processes, especially in the Covid scenario?
Like most businesses, even this one has gone through a significant transformation. The transformation is in terms of the hiring cycle and the process, as the need for speed is higher primarily because that's the client’s need. The process itself, from pre-engagement to the final hiring as well as integration, has become even more diligent and intense and we are joined at the hip with clients.

Two, like any other business, we are also trying to see how balanced our hybrid work model can be, not just for ourselves, but also when we are delivering for the clients; without losing out on our high-touch, high-engagement approach.

The most strategic transformation that has happened for this business is how do you keep your engagement with clients and business leaders at par with the pre-pandemic scenario, and do it better, more efficiently and with tighter rein on resources – people, time, and travel.

Technology has also created a sharp edge for us. All of us, whether it’s a large global firm, a boutique, or a small local firm, have access

to the same data, the same people, and the same career journeys of leaders. What you do with that and how do you differentiate yourself with all your tools is the big question everyone deals with. What are your insights on businesses, and leadership, and what is the invaluable advice that you provide to clients while executing projects have always stood the test of time as key differentiators for firms and individuals in this profession. These are critical aspects of the leadership search and advisory business that build your reputation with clients, specially for matters related to the Board, CEO and CXO levels.

We talk about the global economy slowing down. In that context, what kind of demand for senior leadership roles can we expect in the coming time?
If we consider economies like ours and most of Asia, we still have at least a couple of decades of steady growth. So, if you have 10-15 years or even 5 years left in your career then you are in the right place in the world because many opportunities will keep coming your way. There is a shortage of talent and I cannot overstate it, especially for India, and Asia-Pacific, as we encounter it on daily basis.