With over 30 years of experience in sales and business development, Vivek Khanna is the President and Chief Client Partner of a focused HR Outsourcing company, Neeyamo. “Having been a part of HR-related associations, my experience in the field grew multifold. From being an entrepreneur to becoming a business leader, I’ve realised that ‘leadership’ is not a state to achieve but a journey constantly inculcating new learning, “says Vivek.
Neeyamo is a leading platform-based global payroll and HR solutions provider focused on delivering services to multinational organisations with operations across a long list of countries. With an extensive team of professionals serving clients across 190+ countries, Neeyamo leverages its unique service-based model and functionality-rich, next-generation portfolio of HR products to help organisations enable agile and scalable business.
Neeyamo envisions standing at the forefront of revolutionising the global workforce management ecosystem and meeting market-specific requirements including Global Payroll, Time, Absence, Compliance, Workforce Administration, and Employee Helpdesk. Visit www.neeyamo.com to find out more. With 80 native engines, Neeyamo is more than capable of delivering an efficient payroll solution that can also be tailored to meet specific customer requirements.
Below are the highlights of the interview conducted between the World’s Leaders and Vivek Khanna.
Brief our audience about your journey as a business leader. What challenges have you had to face to reach where you are today?
Every business has its challenges. With companies taking rapid strides towards expanding their presence across the globe, the challenges grow manifold. I want to share three major challenges I had to face:
The first one is the most common yet significant. It is being able to define what one’s customers are willing to buy. The inability to understand customers poses a considerable threat to the very existence of a business. Knowing what your customers want is more important than deciding what to sell.
The second big challenge would be aligning one’s team and one’s compatriots to work towards the company’s vision. Getting everyone on the same page is not only of utmost importance, but it also increases the company’s efficiency.
Having worked in the cross-cultural arena with colleagues from Asia to Europe to the Americas, I have realised that bridging cultural gaps and understandings poses another of the biggest challenges I have had to overcome.
Enlighten us on how you have made an impact in this industry through your expertise in the industry?
My work in this industry is twofold: Evangelizing both global background checks and global payroll. I have evangelised the concept of how global payroll is going to become the future.
With respect to global background checks, I was a part of PBSA (Professional Background Screening Association) as the chair of the international advisory council at one point in time and, therefore, interacted with my peers across the globe.
Concerning global payroll, I have had an association with all different global payroll associations, and I frequently speak at conferences and evangelise the whole concept of single-platform global payroll.
What are the challenges you and your team at Neeyamo come across in your day-to-day operations?
One of the major challenges for an expanding company like Neeyamo is market uncertainty. Neeyamo is thriving by expanding its borders, and foreseeing the future of payroll is vital to spearheading the global payroll game. With global expansion comes uncertainty. Tackling uncertainty is a formidable task, and we are accustomed to handling it with great potential.
The market is dynamic, and the global market is no exception. The customer needs are diverse, and catering to the needs of each customer is a demanding task, but at Neeyamo, thanks to the team, the customer needs are not only met but exceeded.
As a global company, complying with regulations is a necessity. The regulations are numerous when activities are global and keeping a tab of the new regulations is a process that needs supplemental attention. Though demanding, we ensure we are abreast of all the local and global payroll compliance requirements.
What people, what books, what life factors have influenced and impacted you?
My father has been the biggest influence in my life. I am grateful to get to observe many things in the course of his journey, like the way he builds relationships, the way he leads his life with total honesty and integrity. His former colleagues are now his best friends.
There are a few books that I recommend for others to read. My favourite one is “How to win friends and influence people” by Dale Carnegie. My other favourite books are Blink and Outlier by Malcolm Gladwell. Last but not least, the Bhagavat Gita is one thing that one should read in its original form as far as possible. It guides one towards being a better person.
I believe failure is an essential factor that impacted my life like no other thing. I have seen both success and failure, and I can say that the effect that failure has on me is immense. There was a period in my life where I failed as one could fail. As they say, the only way from rock bottom is only up. Once one hits that bottom in one’s life and comes up, then one does not fear anything. That is the power of failure.
Describe in detail the values and the work culture that drive Neeyamo.
Neeyamo knows that positive values are the foundation for building healthy relationships. At Neeyamo, being fair under all circumstances is a way of life.
Neeyamo promotes an open and welcoming work culture. We believe that a diverse and inclusive culture can better serve the world and help build a balanced and inspired workforce. We created various platforms to recognise employees’ and teams’ remarkable contributions.
Where do you envision yourself being in the long run, and what are your future goals for Neeyamo?
I prefer to be the most preferred leader in the payroll space. When we look at the realm of HR and payroll, there is a lot that needs to be done. My role gives me access and the ability to interact with stakeholders in global HR and payroll communities across borders. It would be my constant endeavour to push the game of global payroll to the next level and expand our footprint globally.
What would be your advice to budding business leaders?
In this modern age, starting a new business is more realistic than ever, but not all businesses flourish the way they were intended to.
My first advice to any budding business leader is to find their passion and do something they are passionate about. Even a pinch of passion urges maximal use of resources, paving one’s way to success.
