Harsha Mashelkar

20+ years of experience driving HR transformation, talent management, employee engagement, industrial relations, and organizational effectiveness across shipping, ports, manufacturing, and life sciences sectors. Currently leading the HR function for 830+ employees across 12 locations, partnering with senior leadership to align people strategy, workforce planning, and business objectives while managing end-to-end HR operations. Proven success in talent acquisition and retention, having recruited 220+ specialized professionals in a year and 250+ niche scientific talent, while consistently improving employee retention and engagement outcomes.

Extensive experience in HR Business Partnering, Change Management, M&A Integration, and Organizational Restructuring, successfully managing HR integration and divestment projects involving 200–483 employees. Expertise in Industrial Relations, Labor Law Compliance, Employee Relations, and Stakeholder Management, and delivering zero lost-time incidents due to labor disputes. Skilled in building high-performing HR teams, driving succession planning, leadership development, CSR initiatives, and HR analytics, while managing teams of 5–7 direct reports and supporting workforces exceeding 1,500 employees.

Head HR India at Fleet Management Limited (2022-08 – Present)

Acting as Chief HR Advisor to the India Leadership Team, driving people strategies aligned with business objectives and organizational growth.

• Mentored and developed the HR team, achieving 95% retention within the HR function through focused capability building and employee development initiatives.
• Redesigned the onboarding framework, resulting in a 10% reduction in time-to-productivity and enhancing the overall employee experience.
• Led employee engagement and internal communication initiatives, strengthening organizational culture and leadership visibility across the workforce.
• Directed the HR workstream for a strategic divestment project involving 200 employees, ensuring seamless transition and business continuity over a 6-month period.
• Strengthened governance, compliance, and policy implementation frameworks to mitigate people-related risks and enhance operational effectiveness.
• Led enterprise-wide people transformation initiatives that improved organizational effectiveness, resulting in a 5% increase in employee engagement scores over a period of 2 years.

Head HR, Admin & CSR at APM Terminals Pipavav (2016-12 – 2021-03)

Acted as strategic HR partner to the Managing Director and Executive Leadership Team, supporting business transformation and organizational effectiveness initiatives. Led a multidisciplinary function comprising HR, Administration, and CSR, while overseeing 84 indirect reports across the organization.

• Revamped industrial relations practices, achieving zero lost-time incidents due to work stoppages and fostering a stable employee relations environment.
• Led the Great Place to Work journey, driving employee-centric initiatives and embedding a high-performance culture.
• Implemented workforce restructuring and manpower optimization initiatives to improve organizational efficiency.
• Designed and executed CSR programs with responsibility for a ₹12 Crore budget, earning recognition from government and community stakeholders.
• Implemented employee development initiatives that delivered an average of 7 man-days of training per employee annually.
• Partnered with executive leadership to drive workforce optimization and organizational redesign, delivering annual cost efficiencies of ₹02 Crores while maintaining business continuity and employee productivity.
• Led culture and employer branding initiatives that contributed to achieving Top Employer / Great Place to Work recognition for 04 consecutive years, strengthening talent attraction and retention.

HR Business Partner – R&D & Sales at Syngenta (2008-02 – 2016-12)

Partnered with R&D and commercial leadership teams across multiple research centers and business units to drive workforce effectiveness and capability development.

• Designed succession planning frameworks that identified and prepared 10 high-potential leaders, significantly strengthening leadership pipelines.
• Leveraged HR analytics, KPIs, and workforce dashboards to support strategic decision-making and proactive risk management.
• Facilitated HR integration and change management initiatives during the merger of Devgen Seeds with Syngenta India, ensuring smooth employee transition.
• Led the HR workstream for a manufacturing divestment involving 483 employees, managing stakeholder engagement and transition planning over a 6-month period.
• Developed and delivered leadership and behavioral skills programs for 150+ employees across diverse business functions.
• Spearheaded the implementation of the HR Centre of Excellence model, resulting in a 15% improvement in hiring efficiency.

HR Executive at Syngenta (2006-05 – 2008-02)

Managed recruitment, learning, and workforce support initiatives for a manufacturing workforce of 540 employees, ensuring alignment with operational requirements.

• Designed and implemented leadership development and succession programs that improved internal leadership readiness from 20% to 40%, strengthening the talent pipeline for key roles.
• Championed diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives, increasing representation of diverse talent in leadership positions by 15% and enhancing organizational culture.

Senior Executive – Personnel & Human Resources at Cartini India Ltd. (2005-12 – 2006-05)

Managed HR operations for 120 employees across 2 manufacturing facilities, with a primary focus on employee relations, compliance, and workforce administration.

Assistant Manager HR at Cross Craft Pvt. Ltd. (2004-12 – 2005-12)

Managed the complete employee lifecycle, including recruitment, onboarding, performance management, employee engagement, and policy administration.

Executive HR at Siemens Ltd. (2003-10 – 2004-12)

Supported generalist HR activities for the Medical Engineering Equipment business, ensuring smooth execution of HR processes and employee services.

Post Graduate Certificate in Senior Leadership – XLRI Jamshedpur (2021-01 – 2022-01)

Post Graduate Diploma in Business Management (Human Resources) – Goa University (2003-01 – 2005-01)

Bachelor of Laws in Law – V.M.

Salgaocar

College of Law, Goa (2000-01 – 2003-01)

Bachelor of Commerce in Commerce – S.S.

Dempo

College of Commerce & Economics, Goa (1997-01 – 2000-01)