Brajesh Kumar

Seasoned HR leader with 26+ years of experience driving enterprise-wide Human Resource Management, Industrial Relations, Strategic Compensation & Reward Architecture, HR Operations, and HR Business Partnering across automotive and manufacturing-led sectors. Proven expertise in leading country-level HR strategy, enterprise HR operations, strategic business partnering, and organisation-wide people initiatives, including serving as Acting Country HR Head (2017–2021), across geographically distributed plants, engineering facilities, and shared services environments. Adept at strengthening HR governance, executive talent acquisition & critical role hiring (2000+ hires), succession planning, compensation benchmarking, employee engagement, and leadership capability development while partnering with business leadership to align HR priorities with organisational growth objectives.

Recognised for standardising complex HR frameworks, stabilising Industrial Relations environments, and leading enterprise-wide HR systems and process excellence initiatives focused on governance, operational excellence, organisational effectiveness, and service delivery excellence. Strong capability in building leadership pipelines, driving Individual Development Plans (IDPs), and leveraging HR metrics and workforce insights to enhance workforce continuity, policy consistency, compliance, retention, and organisational effectiveness. Dynamic people leader with extensive experience mentoring HRBPs, plant HR managers, and cross-functional teams while delivering strategic and execution-focused HR outcomes aligned with CHRO and Head HR mandates.

Head of Country HR Operations, Country Total Rewards and HRBP - Corporate Office - HELLA INDIA AUTOMOTIVE PRIVATE LIMITED (Forvia Group) - India

(2011-01)

Progressed from Plant HR Head to Corporate HR Operations Head & HRBP, while continuing oversight of electronics manufacturing plants until Dec 2025; subsequently elevated to Acting Country HR Head (2017–2021) and later entrusted with Country Total Rewards (C&B), alongside HRBP for Shared Services and IT organizations.

• Plant Head – HR | 2011 – 2025
• Acting Country HR Head | 2017 – 2021
• Country HR Operations Head - Corporate HRBP – Country Corporate Office | 2014 – Present
• Country Compensation & Benefits Lead | 2015 – Present
• Global HR Shared Services (Learning Management) | 2019 – Present

Head of Country HR Operations, Country Total Rewards and HRBP - Corporate Office - HELLA INDIA AUTOMOTIVE PRIVATE LIMITED (Forvia Group) - India

(2011-01)

HR Strategy, Governance & Multi-geography Workforce Management

• Directed HR strategy, HR budgeting, and enterprise HR governance across eight business areas, supporting HR operations across 10+ locations.
• Standardized fragmented business-unit HR frameworks into a unified HR governance model across pan-India operations.
• Managed pan-India HR operations, aligning workforce planning, employee engagement, and HR service delivery priorities.
• Oversaw distributed workforce across manufacturing plants, R and D centers, Global Business Services, and Global IT Center environments.
• Partnered with Service Delivery Strategy team to design HR service delivery models across Asia, Europe, and NAFTA regions.

Head of Country HR Operations, Country Total Rewards and HRBP - Corporate Office - HELLA INDIA AUTOMOTIVE PRIVATE LIMITED (Forvia Group) - India

(2011-01)

Compensation, Talent & Succession Management

• Led compensation benchmarking, salary restructuring, and pay equity correction initiatives to address market gaps and strengthen employee retention.
• Designed talent management and succession planning pipelines for business-critical roles, strengthening organizational continuity across functions.
• Strengthened recruitment across plants, technical centers, and corporate functions through talent acquisition strategies.
• Developed Individual Development Plans (IDPs), leadership development programs, and capability frameworks to address critical skill gaps.

Head of Country HR Operations, Country Total Rewards and HRBP - Corporate Office - HELLA INDIA AUTOMOTIVE PRIVATE LIMITED (Forvia Group) - India

(2011-01)

Industrial Relations & Workforce Stability

• Maintained stable, disruption-free operations and zero disputes across manufacturing facilities for over 15 years.
• Drove production efficiency improvement from 57% to 100% through structured workforce stability and IR management initiatives.
• Resolved legacy union issues, workforce grievances, and compliance gaps through structured employee relations interventions.
• Eliminated overtime culture by implementing compliant workforce deployment and sustainable manpower planning practices.
• Strengthened plant governance by addressing policy deviations, disciplinary concerns, and non-compliant workforce practices.

Head of Country HR Operations, Country Total Rewards and HRBP - Corporate Office - HELLA INDIA AUTOMOTIVE PRIVATE LIMITED (Forvia Group) - India

(2011-01)

Digital HR Transformation & HR Systems Excellence

• Drove end-to-end Digital HR transformation across career from early payroll automation and HRMS implementation to current AI-enabled HR tools and workforce analytics platforms.
• Implemented HR dashboards & analytics-driven reporting mechanisms, improving compliance tracking and HR decision-making.
• Standardized HR policies, SOPs, and governance frameworks across previously independent business locations.
• Led HR support for Global IT Competency Centre operations, delivering HR services across 42 countries.

Head of Country HR Operations, Country Total Rewards and HRBP - Corporate Office - HELLA INDIA AUTOMOTIVE PRIVATE LIMITED (Forvia Group) - India

(2011-01)

Leadership Development & Organisational Impact

• Strengthened talent pipelines and leadership bench strength through internal mobility and targeted development interventions.
• Led HR teams, HRBPs, and plant HR managers across business units, ensuring service delivery and strategic alignment.
• Mentored HR teams, enhancing execution excellence, stakeholder management, and business partnership capability.
• Built strong organizational credibility through disciplined execution and successful implementation of strategic HR initiatives.
• Won "Suppliers HR Excellence Award 2018" from MSIL, "HR Excellence" Silver & Gold category awards in 2017 & 2018 from ACMA.

Assistant Manager HR & IR - Carrier Airconditioning & Refrigeration Limited - India

(2007-05 - 2010-12)

Led statutory compliance across factories, branch offices, dealers, and service centres while managing industrial relations, union negotiations, and personnel administration. Also served as Corporate HR Coordinator for ACE (Achieving Competitive Excellence) initiatives, driving process excellence and HR alignment across the organisation.

Executive Human Resource - Kansai Nerolac Paints Limited - India

(2004-06 - 2007-05)

Supported Greenfield factory setup through end-to-end HR planning, campus hiring, and large-scale recruitment of 500+ employees. Managed implementation of HR policies, core HR processes, and CSR initiatives to support organisational growth.

Executive Human Resource - Hindusthan National Glass & Industries Limited - India

(1999-08 - 2004-06)

Led HR process automation and systems improvement by driving automation of payroll, time office, absence management, and performance management systems. Managed payroll, personnel administration, recruitment support, and performance management across the organization.

MBA - Human Resource - Institute of Management Technology Ghaziabad (2008)

Post Graduate Diploma - Computer Applications (PGDCA) - Indira Gandhi National Open University (2002)

Diploma - Information System Management - Aptech Computer Education (1999)

B.Sc.

• Chemistry, Physics & Mathematics - Tilka Manjhi Bhagalpur University (1998)