Bala Purushothaman will begin serving as Procter & Gamble’s chief human resource officer (CHRO) on January 1, 2023, according to a recent announcement. Bala is now the fourth Indian to have recently joined the company’s global leadership, joining Shailesh Jejurikar as COO, Sundar Raman as CEO of Fabric & Home Care, and Kirti Singh as Chief Analytics & Insights Officer. Tracey Grabowski, who has worked for the company for more than three decades and served as the Global CHRO for more than four years, is retiring and will be replaced in the position by Bala.
Bala began his career with P&G in India in 1992 as a Management Trainee in the Human Resources department. He went on to work across multiple countries, including Thailand, Singapore, Russia, and the United States. A visionary leader with a depth of experience and passion for diverse people and cultures, Bala is responsible for developing and leading P&G’s people and organization strategy. This includes attracting and developing diverse talent and building a culture that drives innovation and productivity to support P&G’s business strategy and people across 70+ countries.
Bala Purushothaman, Global Chief Human Resource Officer (CHRO), P&G, said, “I feel honored and humbled that P&G entrusted me for this critical role. In three decades with the Company, I have learned from the diversity of our people and the uniqueness each brings.
At P&G, we are leveraging the talent of our people as a competitive advantage by delivering a truly superior employee experience. We do this by attracting great people for a career, giving them early and increasing responsibilities, inspiring managers to be coaches, and including everyone. Our focus on employee development is the biggest differentiator for P&G. I can’t wait to get started, and I look forward to working with our incredibly talented teams worldwide.”
Born in Chennai, Bala earned his bachelor’s degree in Computer Science & Engineering from the University of Madras and a Master’s degree in Human Resources from the Xavier Labour Relations Institute (XLRI) in Jamshedpur.
