As a fast-growing scale-up, we are fortunate to have employees from a variety of cultural and professional backgrounds, with diverse expertise and skills. As we continue to expand globally, we wanted to give you all a look inside our unique culture at Sine and the wonderful people who make it great to be a part of.
In our new series, Humans of Honeywell Sine, we will be regularly interviewing different members of the team about their interests inside and outside of the tech world, their Sine stories and much more.
This month, we are pleased to be joined by our People and Talent Specialist, Mugdh Setia. As she celebrates her one year with the Sine family, we caught up with Mudgh to find out more about her role at Sine and how she makes Sine the best workplace it can be. Her long-reigning ping pong victories should not go unnoticed, so keep reading to find out more!
I did my honours in Psychology, as human behaviour has always been my area of interest. While I initially thought I’d be a clinical psychologist, I soon found my passion for organisational behaviour in my last semester. Fortunately, the year I graduated, I received a prestigious scholarship from Melbourne Business School to pursue a Master of Management degree with a specialisation in HR, where my tryst with HR officially began.
I have four pieces of advice to offer.
Firstly, for someone who’s wanting to get into the People Ops space, please don’t be in a hurry to draw a specialisation. If given a choice, choose to go in a ‘generalist’ or ‘coordinator’ position which helps you gain perspective on different functions of HR and how they interact with each other. Doing that will also help you choose your specialisation wisely down the line.
Data, data, data – HR Analytics is the sin-qua-non of the HR world. So, rather than running away from my numbers, try and master the magic of data from day one. It might not come to you overnight, but it’s an essential skill that will provide you an edge over others.
HR as ‘strategy’ – There will be parts of your job that might across as administrative, but that’s totally how you look at it. HR no longer fits in its traditional definition of a siloed function; rather it sits at the core of each business, constantly interacting with other functions. Even in the smallest of tasks, think like a business partner and question how that task is making an impact on your business.
Lastly, if given an opportunity to be an HR in a start-up and be an HR in a larger organisation – the learnings in both settings are different yet pivotal.
I was looking at roles in South Australia and ended up cold messaging my current manager (Tip: never estimate the power of cold messaging). But why I decided to pursue Sine was primarily because of two key reasons. Firstly, I thoroughly enjoyed the interview process – in three rounds of interviews we spoke about everything under the sun e.g., from weddings in Delhi to strategic initiatives at the leadership level. I didn’t have to pretend, and it felt like the team genuinely wanted to know who I am as a person. Secondly, having done my background research – Sine seemed like a diverse and inclusive workplace which was one of my key considerations.
Can there be an article where I just answer this question? It’ll be hard to summarise.
Though I have many favourites, I’ll choose my top 3. Firstly, it’s “Good People”. It’s rare to find a growing organisation wherein each person is equally kind-hearted, friendly, funny, super smart, high performing yet very humble. It’s the team that makes Honeywell Sine what it is today.
Secondly, you’ll often hear me saying in interviews, “Being at Honeywell Sine is like having the best of both worlds”. I love working in a start-up culture while having the benefits, career progression opportunities, and support of a Fortune 100 company. Scaling up within a Fortune 100 comes with its challenges, but that’s what makes it fun; every day is new learning.
Lastly, I love that everyone can bring their authentic self to work and they’ll be appreciated for their uniqueness.
The first one has to be the International Women’s Day 2022 which had a long-lasting impact on me. Hearing stories from my colleagues of breaking gender biases in their own professional career was so inspiring and motivating at the same time.
The second one has to be the Grad Meet & Greet 2022. As a young graduate two years ago, I remember applying for 10+ Grad programs, without any idea about the know-how of these organisations. To foster a better experience for future graduates, this event allowed us to welcome young talent onsite and show us a glimpse of who we are and what we do. After all, grad programs should be a mutual culture fit.
I have moved to 3 cities over the last 4 years of my Australian journey and so, I’ve always been in a “tourist” state of mind. I am a serial café-hopper and love to explore new cafes over the weekend where I can enjoy a coffee with a friend or journal. The Australian fitness culture is also growing on me, so I love a good F45 sweat session after work to keep the endorphins going.
I was an All-India Arts Topper 2014-15 and had the golden opportunity to witness the India Republic Day Parade'15, as a guest of Hon'ble Prime Minister of India, Mr. Narendra Modi and, chief guest Mr. Barack & Michelle Obama.
Does the Sine team sound like something you’d like to be a part of? Join us!
