Human resources are a combination of ability and skills, some of which are innate and others which have been gained via study and education. The strategic HRM strategy focuses on people management programmes and long-term solutions. The human resources leader serves as a vital interface between management and the employee workforce. A skilled human resources expert can handle tough situations and assist with management of personnel issues. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, they oversee an organization’s recruiting, interviewing, selection, and hiring procedures (BLS).
Some human resources leaders handle all of the company’s human resources activities, including salary and benefit programmes, as well as training and development. While strong analytical skills, managerial ability, and programme coordination are crucial, people who thrive in human resources jobs also have exceptional soft skills, such as the ability to listen to and empathise with difficult-to-manage workers.
With a broad industry experience of 10+ years, Zaitun Khan, Director-HR at MouthShut.com, is an expert in HR who has always been a great team player, is attentive to detail and has the capacity to work in a fast-paced workplace. She has effectively finished her job with obligations in this short period of time by demonstrating that she is self-motivated, goal-oriented, well-organized, and capable of working under pressure. Zaitun leads with a clear, logical mind, a practical approach to issue resolution, and a strong will to see things through. She prefers to work on her own initiative or as part of a team.
MouthShut.com is India’s largest social network for consumer reviews. It offers a place for online product and service reviews. Hundreds of thousands of evaluations have been submitted by customers through online, app, SMS, or video, and they are all available for free to everyone. The firm is a well-known and well-trusted site for consumers seeking to better educate themselves before making purchase selections. Apart from providing a free forum for customers to voice their thoughts or profit from the opinions of others, MouthShut.com also provides a number of programmes for businesses and brands who want to use the vast repository of reviews to enhance their products, services, and brand reputation.
Insight on Early Learning
Zaitun’s own journey to empowerment began right at home. Her aunt, Anjum Khan, a lawyer, has been a huge inspiration to her. “Watching her intelligence and managerial style made her my role model. She would balance every aspect of her life effortlessly, even when it was not absolutely necessary,” Zaitun says. As a child, Zaitun would sit in her aunt’s office and marvel at her intelligence, all while remaining humble. According to Zaitun, her aunt has bestowed upon her the traits of devotion, hard work, and street smarts. She asserts, “My aunt’s law background has been one of the intrigues behind me pursuing my own law degree in Criminology and Business that further helped me in perfecting my job as an HR. She has taught me to be fearless as a woman, and for that I will forever be grateful to her. I believe we adapt our best traits at home.”
Challenges are also a way to get motivated.
As for Zaitun, she believes the most difficult challenge, as well as the most delightful, is being the sole interlink between the company’s employees and its CEO. It is acting as the one perfect connection that keeps them both well-informed and satisfied, making sure that they are being heard. Besides these, heading and forming new teams, especially in marketing and communications, that lead to better branding has also been quite challenging, although equally satisfactory. What keeps Zaitun motivated is the challenges themselves. She says,
“When you have been in the industry for this long, you have to treat all the highs and lows of your job as adventures where you get to learn and grow.” She further adds,
“I am a human being and I do falter, but when I do my daily meditation routine backs me up to maintain my peace of mind and reflect on my present situation.”
Celebrate even minor accomplishments.
Zaitun regularly reflects on her accomplishments, no matter how big or small they may be. She believes that every small move matters and this mind-set boosts her confidence in all areas. For example, her success in becoming the head girl of her school fuels the leadership element of her life. The fact that she has successfully operated her own soft skills training institution helps her with management. While she occasionally reminisces about her days as Miss Devlali Camp in a beauty contest in order to appreciate herself a little more every day. Whenever she needs a little push as an HR at MouthShut, she reminds herself that she has been named Employee of the Month several times and that she has been named one of the “Top 10 Women HR Leaders” by the Women’s Entrepreneurs and she quickly believes in her abilities.
“It is okay to doubt yourself sometimes, it does not mean that you are not a winner,” says Zaitun.
Why HR?
Zaitun feels that her positive attitude is transmissible, and that it has resulted in accomplishments and transformation inside her organisation. All of their experience and collaboration has helped them establish notable brand popularity. She would like to believe that she played a role in increasing the company’s production ratio, particularly during the pandemic. She asserts, “Working from home can be taxing on one’s social life and mental health.” The HR team at MouthShut helps in creating a congenial environment for each employee, so that being trapped at home does not interfere with one’s corporate perspective. According to Zaitun, people often mistake pressure to work as a factor that leads to efficiency, especially in this cut throat market, without understanding that it is the most hampering thought. Zaitun’s HR secret is to devote her time and effort to ensuring that her workers have an amazing work-life balance while also taking care of their mental health. She states, “It is the 21st century and work places are supposed to be like your second home where you are comfortable, so that you don’t hold back to give in your hundred percent. A company’s goal should be to unlock its employees’ maximum potential. “
The Moment when She Realized her true potential
When asked to recollect her most memorable moment, Zaitun admits that it is difficult to pick just one. She has had a fantastic life thus far, according to her. She learns that her school years were great since they were the first time she saw herself and her limitlessness. Those years convinced her that our identities are indeed fractured, and that individuals are a mash-up of all of those bits. She has been the most disjointed in her academic career. Zaitun, a studious and well-disciplined girl who was also gregarious and a friend to many, was overjoyed when she was chosen as Head Girl; it felt as if she could do it all, and she believed it so deeply that she still believes it now. She says, “Hence, I look forward to a life even more remarkable.”
A Wide Perspective on the Workplace Environment
“I would have to say that I seek it in all of it,” Zaitun says of her need for individuality. Decades of capitalism have conditioned the world to fear and despise the workplace and jobs. When there is absolutely no need to create one’s own nasty environment, it is simply something that people have done for years for no good reason. According to Zaitun, a workplace is meant to be a place where people can be themselves while yet working together to achieve success. Furthermore, a workplace is meant to give its employees a purpose, and they should benefit from it in the same way that the firm benefits from them. Zaitun aspires to be a one-of-a-kind location where everyone can work together to change the workplace into a psychologically healthy atmosphere where people come and depart freely and with a purpose.
Defining Empowerment
“You are ‘empowered’ the moment you listen to your heart above everything else,” says ZaitunToday, individuals have overcomplicated the notion of empowerment well beyond its true meaning. Zaitun believes that empowerment occurs when a person follows his or her heart and has the financial means to do so. It is still more difficult for women, and they are subjected to judgmental stares on a regular basis. Zaitun emphasizes,
“Your fight lies in your ability to ignore the redundant, I know I have. If you are a woman with dreams, I want to tell you that the world is changing and that we have hope. I have seen the positive side of that change and if we all agree to take part in it by giving equally as we extract, we have the opportunity for a far better world.”
The Source of All the Positivity
Zaitun meditates every morning to stay energised and to clear his mind of all irrational ideas. It aids in gathering her perspective and channelling her appreciation. She says,
“I might sound like those catchy management books, but trust me it works wonders.”
The ability to remain grounded and comprehend one’s own reality is the best gift one can have. If one decides to do so, life will reward them with the desired tranquilly, according to Zaitun. The hardest and most important lesson she has learned in her 14-year career is to forgive and forget. She opines,
“When you do forgive someone, you really are forgiving yourself and saving yourself from all the pain.”
