A group of nine 2nd year Human Resource Management students from Xavier Institute of Social Service (XISS), Ranchi participated in the 12th National HR Conference organized by SAPPHIRE at XLRI Jamshedpur on 4 February 2023 under the guidance of Dr Kumar Mohit Spring.

SAPPHIRE, the Students’ Association for the Promotion of Personnel Management, Human Resources and Industrial Relations at XLRI aims to integrate practitioners' experiences with academicians' knowledge in human resource development by organising a consortium of events annually that serve as platforms for deliberating and discussing state-of-the-art HR practices.

The theme of the conference was Thriving vs. Surviving: Balancing HR Strategies to Navigate Change. The panel discussion was centred on Courageous Conversations: Steering Through Changing Economic Times, it provided the students with a valuable learning experience and exposure to various HR concepts and opportunity to ask pertinent questions to the panellist to get broader understanding of the theme.

The 12th National HR Conference included panel discussions, case competitions and interactive sessions with industry experts, providing the students with a comprehensive understanding of the current trends and practices in HR. The students were able to gain insights into topics such as talent management, employee engagement, Attrition and retention, diversity and inclusion, and many more.

The students also had the opportunity to network with students of XLRI, professionals from different organizations, allowing them to broaden their perspectives and gain a deeper understanding of HR practices in different industries.

The panelists of the conference were Ms Nitu Bhushan - CHRO South ASIA at Pernod Ricard, Ms Nimisha Rana Pathak - CHRO India at Alvarez & Marsal Pvt Ltd., Mr Tirthankar Ray Chaudhury - Vice-President HR at Bennett Coleman and Co., Mr Mukesh Agarwal - Chief People Officer at Tata Steel Long Products and Mr Ruchir Jhingran - VP HR Head, ITC Ltd.

The second half of the conference included a masterclass led by Mr Calvin Lyngdoh, Vice President of HR at Bajaj Auto. During this session, students were presented with three business cases and were challenged to solve them. The purpose of this exercise was to test the students' business and HR skills and to give them a practical application of the concepts they had learned. This masterclass was a great opportunity for students to demonstrate their knowledge and problem-solving abilities, and it provided valuable real-world experiences.

During the conference, students learnt on topics such as strategic HRM, importance of HR presence, courageous conversations in layoffs, reflecting values in management decisions, adapting to change, role of values in sustainability, and constantly re-inventing. The conference organized by SAPPHIRE was a highly beneficial experience for the students providing them with valuable learning opportunities and exposure to the latest HR concepts.