This HR Head gets to live his farming legacy in the corporate world!

Highlights

Dominic Jose, Head - Human Resources, Symega Food Ingredients

“I was not calved with a metallic spoon. My begetter was a farmer. An aged saying goes - ‘An Engineer's son- an Engineer, A Doctor’s son- a Doctor and a Farmer’s son- a Farmer!’” says Dominic Jose, Head - Human Resources, Symega Food Ingredients.

Like said, Dominic’s parents were into farming, and predominantly into rubber tapping. Also, cipher expected Dominic to travel retired of this loop and take a firm life. Hailing from a colony adjacent Vagamon elevation presumption successful Idukki, each his relatives and adjacent natives went to the nearest assemblage which would beryllium a maximum of 10 to 20 km. Dominic says adjacent an MBA was a distant imagination for radical there. Most of their world dreams ne'er crossed those boundaries and it would person ended up with a graduation.

“I was the archetypal successful the full household concatenation to interruption the notions. Nothing was easy. First to determination retired of the household to a bigger city, archetypal to get into the firm world, archetypal to get an MBA, and archetypal successful many,” Dominic says.

And, by axenic coincidence, Dominic became the HR Leader astatine Symega Food Ingredients, a starring workplace products company. “From the bottommost of my heart, I americium ace arrogant to beryllium a farmer’s son. Though joining a farm-product manufacturing firm location was ne'er intentional, I americium destined to beryllium astatine the close spot astatine the close time. My existent organisation does resonate with my family’s bequest of farming successful a broader picture. When I look back, I tin accidental that immoderate I person strived for has brought maine to wherever I americium today,” helium says.

Dominic draws his interior spot from his parents’ bold nature. Just similar however they stood up and faced each the adversities successful farming (due to earthy calamities similar dense rain), helium decided to look his hurdles without cribbing connected things helium couldn’t person power over. “It’s the farming attack of my parents that is inbuilt successful me. Though they didn't archer maine that this is the mode of doing it, I was conscionable observing it. And I inactive judge that that's what is keeping maine going forward,” helium says.

Why HR?

According to Dominic, sharing his earthy moments from beingness and being an outspoken idiosyncratic has ne'er portrayed him arsenic a anemic person, alternatively it has lone fixed immoderate insights to radical who person a hard locomotion successful life. “When I was young, cipher was determination to usher maine connected the close and incorrect paths. Maybe, I could beryllium that airy and this prompts maine to beryllium successful the limelight. People mostly speech astir overmuch lighter and much acquainted aspects similar books they read, movies they watch, etc. I truly wanted to make a quality and springiness abstraction for radical to speech astir those things, which radical are usually hesitant to speech about,” helium points out.

“When I started moving successful enactment roles (even earlier becoming an HR Head), managing a batch of people, and started taking a batch of interviews, I had made it a signifier that I’ll beryllium gathering each the candidates erstwhile and converse with them for astatine slightest a fewer minutes. I support gathering adjacent to astir 500-600 radical a twelvemonth who are successful the last signifier of hiring!” Dominic says.

Battling pridefulness and prejudice

After his twelfth grade, Dominic went to Madhya Pradesh for his priesthood studies. That was his archetypal vulnerability to a caller world. He felt truthful lonely successful a highly competitory world. Language was his biggest challenge. He couldn’t convey thing successful English. He felt highly hopeless. But helium wasn’t consenting to springiness up. Even immoderate radical from the North had precise bluntly asked him, “Why are radical from Kerala achromatic successful colour?” He didn't person an reply to specified stereotypical questions. He remained calm successful specified situations and chose soundlessness implicit arguments. But his interior dependable would ever say, ‘Watch me.’

The priesthood travel taught him galore values and prompted him to strive for passionateness amidst rejections. In 1 assignment, 20 of the students successful the batch were asked to enactment successful a distant colony for a period without a azygous penny. Dominic learned that a batch of radical successful the spot were depressed arsenic they couldn’t get a authorities job. They were clueless astir the future. “Even I had a akin experience. All my friends got selected for the interviews that we went together. And radical would look astatine maine similar I person perfectly nary constituent successful trying for a firm career. No 1 was determination to motivate me. I didn’t cognize what to bash with the rejections. It was past that I made up my caput that if I became an HR, it would not beryllium astir rejecting people but guiding them connected however to contiguous themselves amended successful the adjacent interview. That could beryllium imaginable lone if I was an HR and that's besides a crushed wherefore I chose this path,” helium says.

Though helium dropped his priesthood studies later, Dominic continued his graduation successful Madhya Pradesh astatine Vikram University with Philosophy and Psychology specialisation. He spent his aboriginal mornings connected the terrace speechmaking English newspapers and besides brought Grammar books. Gradually, helium picked up English and gained assurance successful speaking the language.

Job hunt and associated struggles

When Dominic shifted to Bangalore for his archetypal job, helium had to look a batch of rejections, arsenic helium didn’t person a polished inheritance to claim. His complexion and ethnicity were the large factors that made him susceptible to discrimination. In the archetypal 2 years of his career, helium was not definite however to woody with people. A fewer 100 rupees, 2-3 pairs of apparel and his unrelenting passionateness were each that helium had successful his archetypal job-hunting days.

During his job-hunting days successful Bangalore, Dominic realised that helium was the slightest qualified among the candidates with MBAs and MTechs, and that excessively for jobs with a wage scope of astir Rs 10,000 to Rs 15,000. Once helium was retired of radical discussions for a home telephone centre occupation which offered conscionable Rs 9,000. “That’s erstwhile I thought, possibly I don’t person the close qualifications. Thus, I pursued an MBA successful HR astatine Bangalore University successful 2005. I self-funded my studies with aggregate part-time jobs. I adjacent utilized to proviso newspapers successful the aboriginal mornings astir 4 o'clock,” helium says.

Dominic has been progressive successful sports since his schoolhouse days and has played Volleyball astatine the University level. “My tallness gives maine an vantage to beryllium a volleyball player. I inactive play it astatine slightest erstwhile oregon doubly a week. And being backmost successful Kerala gives maine much mileage for my sports aspirations,” helium says.

To prolong his studies, helium besides played for tiny clubs which earned him Rs 600 a day. He besides worked arsenic a shot lad successful Cricket and Hockey matches conducted by clubs successful Bangalore, which would fetch him Rs 800-900 a day. Mostly, helium travelled successful buses oregon walked to those places. Though helium had to skip immoderate classes, helium managed to be astir of the classes, arsenic the lucifer timings were aboriginal greeting oregon precocious night.

When the remainder of his batchmates were privileged to enactment successful their homes oregon individually rented houses and had the luxury of cars and bikes, Dominic stayed with his six friends. “I was the lowest paying idiosyncratic and sometimes I hardly paid anything. They utilized to inquire me, ‘When volition you wage the rent?’ At that time, I had successful my caput that I would enactment truthful hard that my aboriginal children would beryllium capable to payment from the privileges and wouldn’t person to conflict similar me,” helium says.

In the mediate of each this, Dominic was perpetually sending hundreds of occupation applications. He got rejected successful 9 interviews successful a row, including a call-centre occupation that offered a wage of Rs 40,000. He aboriginal got into a trainee HR presumption with conscionable Rs 3,500 salary. At times, Dominic didn’t person capable wealth to wage for tickets and helium utilized to locomotion 2 kms to the office.

Walking backmost to his bequest roots

When Dominic returned to Kerala aft his graduation, helium had 2 choices, 1 to enactment with his parents and instrumentality up the rubber plantation enactment wherever helium had to get up each time to region the rubber tapping. The different prime helium had was to conscionable tally away. His parents neither told him to enactment backmost nor to leave; the determination was wholly his. But Dominic was definite that helium should determination out.

“While waiting for the bid astatine the Ernakulam railway presumption with conscionable a fewer pairs of dresses, and hardly 2 1000 rupees successful my hands, I had conscionable 1 thought successful my head, ‘If I had to ever instrumentality to this spot aft 10 to 15 years, I’ll person a batch of wealth successful my manus and a almighty role. After 18 years, God blessed maine to bash this. Now, I americium backmost successful Kerala, moving arsenic an HR Head successful an organisation with adjacent to 1,000 people,” Dominic says.

Corporate beingness and archetypal challenges

Dominic was not precise assured erstwhile helium got into the firm world, arsenic helium ne'er got immoderate due guidance. His learnings were chiefly from the absorption books. In a dire request to physique collaboration wrong the team, Dominic ended up doing everything successful the archetypal years of his vocation reasoning that was the lone mode of doing things. For galore months, helium spent precocious nights successful offices doing enactment that wasn’t adjacent really assigned to him. “I didn’t cognize however to accidental ‘NO.’ People utilized to telephone maine ‘Bali Ka Bakra.’ Looking back, these are things that I privation I had done differently,” helium says.

Dealing with a toxic manager

There is simply a saying that radical ne'er permission organisations. They permission the atrocious bosses. About 13 years ago, Dominic had the worst clip successful his career. Though the institution was good, his manager was unsupportive. Most of his colleagues had near the occupation due to the fact that of this reason, and Dominic had besides drafted his resignation. However, 1 of his elder mentors successful the bureau suggested that helium should reconsider his decision, arsenic helium didn’t person a program B astatine that constituent and also, helium had galore commitments successful his idiosyncratic life.

“So, I had to enactment successful the aforesaid environment, which I had decided to leave, for 2 years. And the idiosyncratic liable for each the problems had already near the organisation by then. Even if staying successful a toxic spot was difficult, I made up my caput that I privation to go a manager who is ne'er similar that person,” Dominic says.

The toughest portion of HR

According to Dominic, terminating radical is the saddest portion and the baggage of the HR job.

“The precise archetypal crushed that I joined HR was that I wanted to halt the rejections. Still, being successful enactment roles, sometimes, you’ll person to align with contingency plans and concern requirements and volition person to bash things that you ne'er wanted to do. I ever hesitate to instrumentality that measurement but specified hard decisions are portion and parcel of nonrecreational life,” helium says.

“But, by God’s grace, I ne'er had to spell for hefty firings. I ever instrumentality the basal that we prosecute sensitively and bash not marque radical scapegoats for concern losses. Even if the layoff happens connected a tiny scale, I archer my HR colleagues to bring successful a humane touch. I hatred it erstwhile idiosyncratic calls it a pinkish slip. That is much similar treating humans similar machines. This is the crushed wherefore astir IT companies get into controversies now,” Dominic says.

Consulting versus full-time job

When asked astir the comparisons betwixt consulting vocation and full-time jobs, Dominic says, “Consulting is similar entrepreneurship. The much entrepreneur you are, the much you volition beryllium a bully consultant. However, determination is simply a hazard origin successful presumption of earnings. Sometimes, you’ll negociate to marque bully money, oregon other extremity up with thing connected month-ends.”

“Whereas successful a full-time job, you get fixed net astatine the extremity of the month, irrespective of whether you person to agelong yourself for 10 things oregon bash 1 thing. Consulting was ever bully and it is simply a antithetic signifier of life. But I volition ever urge opting for a full-time occupation which gives you a warrant connected the fiscal commitments and astir apt readying things ahead,” helium adds.

Unwinding

Dominic believes that if a idiosyncratic truly wants work-life balance, it's ever truly possible, but it depends connected however the idiosyncratic wants to walk his time. “I cannot alteration the bureau timings, but we tin ever set our idiosyncratic timings. Every day, I aftermath up astatine 4:45 successful the morning. I bash gardening and person a batch of clip for each the worldly I privation to bash till my woman and kid aftermath up. After that I walk clip with my family,” helium says.

Dominic is simply a vivid quality lover. Whenever helium gets time, helium rushes to his hometown, Vagamon which is astir a three-hour travel from Kochi wherever his existent bureau is. “My autochthonal spot has a batch of hills, valleys and greeneries, and it is simply a promising tourer destination. My location is connected a hilltop. It’s conscionable truthful blissful to beryllium there, process my mind, perceive to immoderate bully music, and walk immoderate clip with self. I americium a sports lover. I emotion playing games with my friends and adjacent instrumentality my household to the games,” Dominic says.