Shankar Nagappan
Dubai,United Arab Emirates
Summary
Accomplished HR professional with extensive expertise in organisational strategy, workforce planning, and change management. Proven track record in performance management, employee engagement, and goal-setting frameworks. Adept at leading HR transformation initiatives, process improvements, and digital HR tools implementation. Skilled in HR analytics, organisational health measurement, and engagement trends analysis. Experienced in cross-cultural management and multicultural team leadership. Committed to driving enterprise resource planning (ERP), staff recruitment and headhunting, as well as staff performance management to achieve organisational excellence.
Overview
20
20
years of professional experience
1
1
Certification
Work History
Assistant Director – People & Performance
DAMAC Group
Dubai, UAE
05.2024 - 03.2025
- Spearhead Org strategy and transformation for DAMAC group across – Property, Hospitality and Data Center business units, overseeing team of HR professionals and supporting over 2500 employees across multiple regions
- Organization Design – Led strategic restructuring initiative, aligning teams by function to enhance efficiency, streamline operations, and position organization for sustainable future growth
- Led cross-functional change management campaign to drive adoption of new structure, identified AI/automation use cases by function, and developed outsourcing benefit plan to optimize efficiency and costs
- Designed and implemented structured recruitment framework to attract top talent, optimize hiring processes, and ensure alignment with business objectives
- Developed and deployed robust performance management system, integrating goal setting, continuous feedback, and competency-based evaluations
- Built competency model for DAMAC group by functions to enhance core competence through Learning & Development program
- Designed and implemented critical role identification framework to pinpoint key positions requiring succession plan, ensuring business continuity and leadership pipeline development
- Spearheaded HR transformation journey, implementing strategic elimination, automation, and outsourcing strategies, targeting 10% reduction in operational and staff costs (realization in progress)
- Spearheaded development and implementation of HR policies, ensuring compliance with labor laws and industry best practices
- Implemented creative digital rewards program across DAMAC group
Resource Planning Lead & HR Business Partner
KPMG Lower Gulf Ltd
Dubai, UAE
07.2020 - 04.2024
- Directed operations for Audit business, driving talent acquisition, employee performance management, and workforce planning across UAE and Oman regions
- Partnered with senior leaders, including COO and Audit Partners, to develop and implement Audit strategy, transforming operating model to drive growth and enhance profitability
- Led OD programs for Audit practice, resulting in 5% improvement in gross margin and 10% reduction in operational costs
- Led workforce planning strategies, optimizing talent deployment while improving Emirati talent integration and DEI outcomes
- Fostered culture of inclusivity and diversity, launching initiatives that improved diversity hiring and increased representation of underrepresented groups in by 18%
- Established offshore delivery models in India and Sri Lanka to streamline and standardize service delivery, leading to projected cost benefits and 4% improvement in gross margin by year 03
- Developed engagement strategies that improved employee retention rates and workplace satisfaction
- Conducted fit-gap analysis to identify skill gaps and develop targeted Learning & Development programs, ensuring workforce capability aligns with organizational needs
Associate Director
KPMG India
Bangalore, India
04.2019 - 05.2024
- Designed HR strategies, recruitment framework and manpower planning, aligning with business objectives for enhanced performance and engagement
- Led change management initiatives, improving retention rates by 15%
- Utilized HR analytics for strategic decisions, reducing administrative efforts by 18%
Associate Director
KPMG India
Bangalore, India
07.2015 - 03.2019
- Designed HR strategies, recruitment framework and manpower planning, aligning with business objectives for enhanced performance and engagement
- Led change management initiatives, improving retention rates by 15%
- Utilized HR analytics for strategic decisions, reducing administrative efforts by 18%
Talent Business Advisor
Deloitte US & India
Bangalore, India
08.2012 - 07.2015
- Led talent management for Oracle service line, enhancing recruitment and onboarding processes
- Executed employee engagement programs, increasing satisfaction scores by 25%
- Conducted skills gap analysis and identified key focus areas for L&D
- Reduced attrition% by 5% thru staff engagement activities and balancing workload
- Played key role in setting up work class talent program for Deloitte USI
Associate Manager
Mindtree Limited
Chennai, India
08.2008 - 08.2012
- Led HR and Staff Operations team for 3 Industry Groups in IT product engineering space with head count of 1200+ staff
- Established capacity management framework for Mindtree
- Spearheaded campus hiring, induction and deployment
Senior Executive HR
Indium Software
Chennai, India
06.2007 - 08.2008
Recruiter Specialist
Lobo staffing
Chennai
08.2006 - 05.2007
Senior Associate Operations
FADV
Chennai
05.2005 - 08.2006
Education
Master of Business Administration - Human Resources
MKU University
MaduraiBachelor of Science - Computer Science
MaduraiSkills
- Organizational Design
- Workforce Planning
- Change Management
- Performance Management
- Employee Engagement
- KPI Frameworks
- Competency Models
- Fit-gap Analysis
- HR Transformation
- Balanced Scorecard
- Digital HR Tools
- HR Analytics
- Manpower Planning
- Workforce Management
- Manpower planning
- Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP)
- Recruitment
Certification
- Lean Six Sigma Green Belt certified
- Workforce Analytics Certified
Timeline
Assistant Director – People & Performance
DAMAC Group
05.2024 - 03.2025
Resource Planning Lead & HR Business Partner
KPMG Lower Gulf Ltd
07.2020 - 04.2024
Associate Director
KPMG India
04.2019 - 05.2024
Associate Director
KPMG India
07.2015 - 03.2019
Talent Business Advisor
Deloitte US & India
08.2012 - 07.2015
Associate Manager
Mindtree Limited
08.2008 - 08.2012
Senior Executive HR
Indium Software
06.2007 - 08.2008
Recruiter Specialist
Lobo staffing
08.2006 - 05.2007
Senior Associate Operations
FADV
05.2005 - 08.2006
Master of Business Administration - Human Resources
MKU University
Bachelor of Science - Computer Science
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