Purnendu Kumar

Talent Acquisition and HR leader with 20+ years of experience in enterprise recruitment, workforce planning and TA transformation across automotive, industrial and technology organizations.

Currently Associate

Director – Talent Acquisition at Cornerstone OnDemand India, hiring 300 positions a year; previously Head of Talent Acquisition at Emerson India, delivering 1,000+ hires annually across ten business units. Known for building direct-sourcing engines that cut agency dependency and hiring time at every organization led.

Associate Director – Talent Acquisition, India - CORNERSTONE ONDEMAND - India

(2025-05 - 2026-09)

• Lead Talent Acquisition for India across business divisions, delivering over 300 positions a year and partnering with business leaders and global TA leadership on workforce needs and hiring priorities.
• Reduced agency dependency from 25% to 11% by strengthening direct sourcing, employee referrals and alternative channels.
• Cut requisition-to-offer turnaround from 47 to 38 days through process and sourcing improvements.
• Use recruitment analytics and market intelligence to guide hiring and workforce planning.
• Mentor and develop the TA team and partner with hiring managers on onboarding.

Head – Talent Acquisition / Senior Manager – Human Resources - EMERSON INDIA - India

(2022-07 - 2025-05)

• Led Talent Acquisition for 10 business units across India, closing 1000+ positions a year across functions and organizational levels.
• Reduced agency dependency from 39% to 23% through direct sourcing, employee referrals & internal talent channels.
• Cut requisition-to-offer turnaround from 56 to 51 days.
• Led implementation of Oracle Recruiting Cloud and harmonized TA policies and processes across business units.
• Aligned India TA strategy with the APAC plan; developed and mentored the TA team.
• Drove campus recruitment, diversity hiring and Return-to-Work / Re-Engage initiatives to build talent pipelines.

Head – Talent Acquisition - PIAGGIO VEHICLES PVT. LTD.

(2011-01 - 2022-07)

Career progression: Manager HR → Senior Manager HR → Head – Talent Acquisition

• Progressed from Manager HR to Senior Manager HR to Head – Talent Acquisition, leading the TA team and closing 300+ lateral positions each year across Commercial Vehicle, Two-Wheeler and Engine businesses.
• Partnered with business leaders on manpower planning, recruitment requirements and talent strategy.
• Reduced agency dependency from 33% to 21% through sourcing, employee referrals and direct recruitment channels.
• Cut requisition-to-offer turnaround from 63 to 54 days, improving responsiveness.
• Managed end-to-end recruitment: sourcing, screening, selection and salary negotiation.
• Used the Predictive Index for candidate assessment.
• Led campus recruitment, onboarding/induction and employee referral programs.

Assistant Manager – Talent Sourcing - LEAR AUTOMOTIVE INDIA - India

(2008-04 - 2010-05)

• Managed talent sourcing across India, supporting recruitment for 11 plants and 3 engineering centers.
• Reduced agency dependency from 30% to 5% and requisition-to-offer turnaround from 65 to 57 days by building direct sourcing pipelines.

Manager – Talent Acquisition - Automag India

(2010 - 2010)

Senior Manager – Recruitment - Genius Consultants Ltd.

(2006 - 2008)

• Led recruitment assignments, client relationships and delivery teams across industries.

Senior Consultant – Recruitment - Intellect Corporate Services

(2000 - 2006)

• Middle- and senior-level mandates across Manufacturing, Engineering, IT, Telecom, FMCG, Banking, Insurance and Consumer Durables.

Sales Executive - Indiacom Directories Ltd.

(1998 - 2000)

MBA - Human Resources & Marketing - Vishwakarma Institute of Management

Bachelor of Arts - Ranchi University