It takes immense determination and fortitude for one to pursue their passion and not settle for what’s fate. Not many are courageous enough to take the leap toward their dream and achieve their aspiration. But IIM Lucknow has been producing thousands of such courageous and intellectual minds who are setting new benchmarks in the business ecosystem in India and globally as well. One such elite alumnus is Ashima Kumar, who stands as an epitome of perseverance and inspiration to the one who wants to shine. Right from the beginning of her career, leadership & mettle were deep-rooted within her. Starting her professional journey with Infosys to working at ICICI Bank, Lateral Praxis (India), Closets By Design, and now PharmaACE, Ashima explored a unique journey across sectors from IT to Banking and Interior designing and finally to Pharma. Her journey across disciplines and geographies in the Service Industry gives her a varied and vivid perspective and approach to strategizing and solving problems.

She aspired to be a leader and pursued it. Women Entrepreneur India engages in an exclusive interaction with Ashima to explore her unique expedition. We sincerely hope that our Endeavour will be able to motivate several young women to promote leadership bound to integrity and ethics.

Take Us Through Your Early Educational Journey And The Prior Industry Experience That You Bring To The Table. How Have The Learnings Helped You In Your Career Today?

I did my MBA in Marketing and Finance from IIM Lucknow, after completing my B.Com from Narsee Monjee College. My earlier studies happened in Mumbai, Delhi and a couple of other cities. Also, I got to work in multiple countries and cities in several sectors in various appellations. All of these experiences have shaped me into an adaptable and flexible individual. Each stint has taught me something valuable and shaped my approach to work and business. I have been able to hone skills like critical thinking, project planning and execution, relationship building, and effective communication to name a few. These skills form the bedrock of working effectively in the areas of Training and Development and Corporate Communication, which is my current role at Pharma ACE.

I enjoyed writing right from my school days and it evolved into occasionally blogging for various websites before I finally decided to turn it into my career. I worked for a few years as a Communication Strategist for a Mumbai based firm. In my work at PharmaACE too, I was lucky to see the domain and product side first before starting full time in my current capacity. My interest in people and prior experiences makes me better at my job in Corporate Communication.

What Plans Do You Have In Place For The Company As A Head Of Training & Development And Corporate Communication?

As PharmaACE’s business expands exponentially, we are constantly looking to expand our employee base. We hire the best-experienced professionals from the Industry to meet the demand. But we also absorb some of the brightest fresh talents from the best colleges in India like the IITs, IIMs, and the best Pharma colleges too. As I also take over the responsibility for Campus Hiring for PharmaACE, the challenge is to make sure that we do not just train everyone to the highest standard, but also shrink down the deploy ability time from a few months to a few weeks.

To do all this successfully, we are constantly reviewing and updating our training material and methodology. I am also constantly talking to employees across the board and seeing what they need to work well, for the success of PharmaACE lies in the success of our employees. We regularly identify and award employee excellence and this motivates people to continue performing well. We also provide platforms to come to share their expertise and talents. This is helping people increase their confidence and also helps people connect with each other.

 "A hearty admirer of respectable ratan tata, ashima believes that it is important to not just chase profits but also ensure that the journey to said profits is an ethical one"

Training is a continuous process and not just a one-time activity. I believe is it important to future proof our employees to make sure that they are always ready to take on the next challenge in front of them. To that end, my attempt is to make our Training System as agile as possible. We are constantly re-evaluating and revamping our current set of training and adding new ones wherever we spot the need. We are also making sure that every employee has a customized experience with our learning system and they are able to follow the training plan that suits their projects, clients, practices and personal strengths and weaknesses.

What Are Some Key Business Philosophies And Strategies That You Leverage To Ensure Organizational Success?

Being People-centric and Client-centric are key to success in the Service industry. Our Business Philosophy is to “Make the Client Shine” and we do that by training our employees to be experts in the domains and technologies. We maintain a constant feedback loop with the clients and employees alike and this helps identify gaps if any and allows us to address them before they start affecting our projects and deliverables.

Personally, I believe that one needs to have empathy, discipline and respect for everyone and their time. We make sure to continuously reinforce this point through regular employee catchups and our Soft Skill Training, Code of Conduct Training, etc.

Ashima Kumar,  Head Training & Development And Corporate Communication

 Some Tips For Career Success

According to me, Active Listening and Prioritization form the foundation to work successfully.

Communication Is Key -Effective communication is crucial in order to succeed at any stage of your career. You need to be articulate and have clarity of thought. This is one skill that every professional should keep polishing and working on.

Get Out Of Your Comfort Zone - Look for new areas of growth be it a natural progression of your current area of expertise or a completely new area which interests you. Always look for ways to keep upskilling to ensure constant growth.

Don’t Let The Gaps In Your Career Intimidate You – If you have taken a break for any reason from your corporate career, do not be afraid to venture back. You still have the same skill set as you did before and then some.