Mumbai (Maharashtra) [India], April 03: Over 200+ HR professionals, CXOs, and business leaders gathered on March 28 for the SRIF HR Summit 2026 at Vijay Patil School of Management, Nerul, Navi Mumbai — a full-day forum on the future of hiring, workforce strategy, and the governance of artificial intelligence in HR.
The SRIF-HR-SUMMIT-2026 was organised by the SRF Staffing and Recruitment Industry Federation (SRIF), the summit was powered by Vijay Patil School of Management and supported by Her Career Foundation & Taloja Industries Association, under the leadership of Founder Ms. Sarla Sharma and Co-Founder Ms. Dipanwita Chattopadhyay.
With each edition, the summit reinforces Ms. Sarla Sharma’s vision of creating a unified platform where the staffing and recruitment industry speaks as one and moves with collective intent.
The SRIF HR Summit 2026 featured one keynote session, two Panel discussions, and two Summit Perspective Voices.
Ms. Dipanwita Chattopadhyay opened the summit by emphasizing the need for platforms where industry practitioners and academic institutions engage in meaningful, outcome-driven dialogue rather than symbolic exchanges.
Building on this foundation, Dr. Purvi Pujari, Dean of Vijay Patil School of Management, reinforced the evolving role of academia as an active co-creator of industry solutions, particularly across HR, AI, data analytics, and operational strategy.
Setting the tone for the day’s conversations, the keynote session brought a sharp shift in perspective.
Mr. Harjeet Khanduja, Senior Vice President – HR at Reliance Jio, delivered the keynote on “The Talent Power Shift — And What To Do About It.”
His central message was clear: the balance of power between employers and talent has fundamentally shifted, driven by the rise of the gig economy, evolving workforce expectations, and expanding alternative career pathways.
He further outlined a practical framework for response—focusing on building reputation through performance, consistency, identity, and exposure; prioritizing culture over compensation; and nurturing leadership that is both visionary and trustworthy.
Extending the keynote’s perspective, the summit transitioned from insight to a deeper exploration of real-world challenges with
Panel Discussion I on “Talent Scarcity or Talent Strategy Failure.”
Moderated by Ms. Ankita Rudra, HR Leader at Tata Tele Business Services, the panel featured Dr. Brillian S. K., Chief People Officer, TimesPro; Ms. Kiranjeet Kaur Arora, Senior HR Leader, Sify Technologies; Dr. Kavindra Pant, Chief HR Officer, Shapoorji Pallonji Energy Pvt. Ltd.; Mr. Ravi Hemnani, Vice President – HR & Head Talent, Nuvoco Vistas.
The consensus was uncomfortable but necessary: rigid job descriptions, excessive credentialism, and slow hiring cycles are actively excluding capable candidates. The problem, in many cases, is not that talent doesn’t exist — it’s that organisations aren’t structured to recognise it.
Panelists advocated for the Build-Buy-Borrow model as a more agile approach to talent management, and reinforced that retention today is driven less by compensation and more by culture, purpose, and genuine growth opportunity.
Building on the insights emerging from the panel, the conversation was further sharpened through a Summit Perspective Voice.
Ms. Gauri Das (SVP–HR, India Factoring and Finance Solutions Pvt. Ltd.) challenged the room to look inward, emphasizing that internal biases and inflated job expectations often do more damage than market realities. Her perspective was clear—simplify hiring frameworks, trust managers to assess potential, and move beyond rigid checklists.
As the summit resumed post lunch, the conversation progressed from hiring challenges to the evolving role of technology in hiring.
Panel II: AI in Hiring — Think Governance Before Scale
The second panel focused on AI in hiring, a space many organizations are actively navigating, often without clear frameworks or guardrails in place.
Moderated by Ms. Nidhi Mer, Director – HR (APAC) at Septodont, the panel included Mr. Srinivas Rao, Director – Human Resources; SAS Institute , Dr. Sujatha Sudheendra, Head-HR & Training, ABSLI and Head- DE&I, ABC – Aditya Birla Sunlife Insurance Ltd.; Mr. Bhagirath ASVS, Senior HR Manager, Nestlé; Mr. Vivek Sapre, Chief Human Resources Officer, Veranda Learning.
Panelists acknowledged what practitioners already know — AI is embedded in hiring. Candidate screening, video interviews, predictive analytics, high-volume filtering: it’s already running in the background of most large recruitment operations.
The caution was not about adoption, it was about pace. Rolling out AI without governance frameworks invites real consequences: algorithmic bias, data privacy exposure, regulatory risk, and the quiet erosion of the human judgment that hiring still demands. The “human-in-the-loop” principle emerged as the non-negotiable standard.
Extending the panel’s discussion on AI from application to perspective, the summit moved to its concluding Summit Perspective Voice – Panel II.
Dr. Brillian S. K. (Chief People Officer, TimesPro) brought a grounded lens to the conversation, remarking that “AI is the new calculator.” It enhances efficiency, but does not replace the human behind it. He emphasized that organizations integrating technology with a people-first mindset will build workforces that are not just productive, but truly resilient.
In Closing
The SRIF HR Summit 2026 left practitioners with sharper questions rather than easy answers—and that is precisely what the profession needs at this moment.
Across both panels, the conversations reflected a field in active recalibration—redefining what talent truly means, reconsidering how technology should be applied and governed, and re-evaluating how organizations earn trust and relevance in a landscape where talent holds greater leverage than ever before.
SRIF acknowledges the support of Mr. Abhijeet Dandekar, Training and Placement Officer at VPSM, for his role in ensuring the summit’s smooth execution.
The SRF Staffing and Recruitment Industry Federation (SRIF) is a Section 8 non-profit representing India’s staffing and recruitment ecosystem, focused on industry collaboration, knowledge sharing, and workforce readiness.
To Know More Visit : www.srif.org.in
Please note: Dignitaries in the image (from left to right): Mr. Abhijit Dandekar, Ms. Kiranjeet Kaur Arora, Ms. Nidhi Mer, Dr. Kavindra Pant, Mr. Harjeet Khanduja, Ms. Sarla Sharma, Ms. Gauri Das, Ms. Dipanwita Chattopadhyay, Ms. Ankita Rudra, Mr. Ravi Hemnani, Dr. Brillian S. K.
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