HDFC Securities Hires Neetika Bhatia & Puneeth Bekal for Leadership

With the restructuring on cards, HDFC Securities witnessed a management change as it appointed Neetika Bhatia, and Puneeth Bekal as its new CHRO and CMO, respectively.

Why the change in management?

According to them, NBFCs, banks, and MSMEs are the most likely to undergo restructuring in the current market phase, where every firm is focussing on digitizing their businesses. Keeping this in mind, HDFC Securities, recently launched its app— HDFC Sky. With this, they want to change the way they do business, and that’s why the management changed.

Who is Neetika Bhatia?

Neetika Bhatia graduated from MDI Gurgaon in 2006 and has experience of over 17 years. Before working for HDFC Securities, she worked at Citi, where she worked in different roles. She has experience in Talent Management, Strategic HR management, Rewards, International talent supervising, and other such roles.

She worked closely with firms that were in their early stages of IPO, pre-IPO, ESOP policies, and performance management frameworks, amongst other finance-related fields.

Such a vast experience, especially in the field that HDFC securities closely works in, made her one of the best choices for the job.

In a few interviews, she even talked about how she will be leading several areas at HDFC Securities. These being:

• Focusing on transforming the organization into a Learning Organization through initiatives such as succession planning, leadership, and manager capability development.
• Addressing challenges related to the company's transformation into a digital and tech-first entity,
• Scaling up teams, hiring top-notch engineering and digital talent, and facilitating deeper client engagement and advisory in the retail business.

From what is understood, she is particularly motivated to shape the company's approach to talent attraction, retention, and upskilling.

Who is Puneeth Bekal?

Puneeth Bekal is the newly appointed Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) for HDFC Securities. Additionally, he will be leading HDFC Sky as its Executive Vice President.

Before joining HDFC Securities, Puneeth Bekal served as the Director of Marketing for Mastercard, where he led the India and South Asia business. During his five-year tenure here, he was a part of the sponsorship deal with the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) and the International Cricket Council (ICC).

In fact, before Mastercard, Bekal held key positions in companies such as Godrej Group (Nature's Basket), Lodha Group, CEAT Tyres, and Reliance Communications.

At HDFC Securities, Bekal will be leading the:

• Marketing initiatives for HDFC Securities, focusing on creating a new age, digital-first marketing ecosystem.
• Making HDFC Securities a strategically unique position in India
• Overseeing HDFC Sky and working on its initiatives such as flat pricing offerings and investment advisory services.

With his background and network, Puneeth seems to be a perfect fit for the role. Especially, with his experience at Mastercard, will help HDFC Securities to rebrand their company well.

What does this management change mean for HDFC Securities?

The strategic appointments of Puneeth and Neetika by HDFC Securities signal its focus on brand restructuring.

The hiring of a seasoned professional like Neetika Bhatia suggests how HDFC Securities wants to undergo HR management as they shift towards a digital and tech-driven organization.

This move aligns with HDFC Securities' launch of the app, HDFC Sky. So, this shows that HDFC Securities is slowly shifting towards becoming a digital-first company.

Plus, the changing of CMO and CHRO at the same time also indicates a push towards growth and competitiveness as they restructure both, the internal and external environment of the company.

The synergy between the roles of CMO and CHRO acknowledges that both external factors (like marketing strategies) and internal factors (like organizational development and talent management) are adapted to the new normal of an app-first mindset amongst consumers.

This effect can be seen on HDFC Securities’ share price in the unlisted market segment. If you want to invest in HDFC Securities stock price as well, then you can check Stockify.is a growing stock trading platform for unlisted shares.