Shirish Kulkarni

Shirish is a distinguished HR professional with a robust academic foundation, holding a postgraduate degree in Human Resource Management from Symbiosis Institute of Business Management, Pune, he also holds a degree in law from Pune University. His career spans 39 years across esteemed multinational corporations like KSB, SKF, PHILIPS, SANDVIK, MICO (now BOSCH) and HAL (Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd).

Beginning as a Management Trainee at HAL, Shirish rose to become HR head for the Asia Pacific Region at KSB, culminating his journey as Director – HRD for KSB Ltd., overseeing HR, IR, CSR and Administration for 17 impactful years.

His expertise lies in aligning HR strategies with business objectives and successfully driving organizational development initiatives, across various operational levels – from factory to corporate roles. His career trajectory spans various levels, from factory to corporate roles, showcasing a deep understanding of HR, IR, and OD dynamics amid evolving industry landscapes.

His strategic leadership in HRD roles has been instrumental in fostering robust organizational structures, employee engagement, talent management, succession planning and driving organizational performance through well-structured HR interventions. His leadership development initiatives have resulted in most managerial and leadership positions being filled by internally groomed talents.

Shirish has successfully handled complex scenarios like managing large workforces while standardizing HR processes across business verticals and locations, steering change initiatives, designing and executing successful wage settlements, introducing voluntary retirement schemes to enhance overall operational efficiency.

Shirish is known for his strategic vision, passion for people development, and execution skills.

He strongly believes in HR’s potential as a business partner, capable of accelerating growth across organizations, regardless of their size.