In Conversation With Shweta Shridhar, HR Business Partner, Asian Paints

S: When my MBA began, one of the subjects that I gained an interest in was Organizational Behaviour. That primarily laid the foundation of what I was going to choose as a specialization in the second year. Also, I have always felt that it is the people of the organization who make it great or otherwise and hence the interest in HR as a subject.

T: From your two years in LBSIM, what is the one key learning that still impacts you?

S: My biggest learning from LBSIM has come from interacting and working with multiple people coming from very diverse backgrounds. That has helped me develop the skill of listening and appreciating different opinions, aligning individuals with different perspectives to achieve a common goal. This has greatly helped me in my professional journey.

T: What do you miss the most about your LBSIM stint?

S: During MBA, I was a part of various academic and extra-curricular societies and communities. In some roles, I even got to develop a leadership style by managing teams. That part of multi-tasking and hustling with a plate full of goals to be achieved is what is now missed the most. I especially miss being a part of the HR society (HRythm) where we used to design and conduct workshops/sessions that helped us apply theoretical knowledge in practical scenarios.

T: Apart from your career, you have a side hustle named Tan’d, please tell us more about it.

S: I truly believe that it’s those little things that bring much joy in life. Tan’d is our attempt to add these little joys in people’s lives.

Tan’d is a lifestyle and utility brand that currently operates in the space of home décor, kitchen & dining, and stationery. We strive to design and curate aesthetically pleasing products that have the ability to spark joy. We work with craftsmen across the country to create products which are a perfect amalgamation of original craft techniques and contemporary designs.

T: What’s your take on work-life balance and how do you maintain it?

S: While I believe strongly in the concept of having a work-life balance, I feel it has now started being interpreted wrongly. In my opinion, work-life balance is not about defining strict working and leisure hours but going beyond these definitions and striving for achievement and enjoyment daily, irrespective of the activity. This means you choose to do things that help you achieve and at the same time also help enjoy the process even if it is a project from work. Personally, I try to pick up work and other activities which are engaging and provide me with a sense of fulfilment.

T: If you had to give one piece of advice to the MBA community, what would it be?

S: Be curious and learn as much as you can. The learning need not come from only textbooks but by engaging in other projects, activities etc. As I said earlier, in MBA most of the learning is experienced outside the classroom than inside and that’s the mantra to live by. Dump your inhibitions, don’t shy away from trying your skills at new things because that’s how learning really happens. Nothing substitutes experience.

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Tanya Shridhar is an alumna of MICA, Ahmedabad (PGDM-C 2018-20) and has interviewed multiple industry stalwarts in the last couple of years. We recommend you to read the following interviews!