Gagan Jyot, Senior Vice President – HR, RMSI Private Limited

Turning Employees into Everyday Heroes

Just weeks after she walked onto the Bombay Stock Exchange stage on 27 February 2026 to receive ‘India’s Most Influential HR Leader’ award, handed over by leaders from the Ministry of Finance, Maharashtra State Women’s Commission and KPMG, Gagan Jyot was already back where she belongs. Not in the spotlight, but on the ground. One group of her RMSI colleagues was wrapping up a relief camp in a climate-hit Uttarakhand village; another was teaching coding to street children in a Delhi shelter; and a fresh batch of Gen Z volunteers had just returned from a Yamuna cleanup, their LinkedIn posts glowing with a new kind of pride.

While the rest of corporate India was still debating the March 2026 KPMG-AIMA Women Leadership Survey that 79% of women want top roles, yet board seats hover near 1% and many companies are slipping backwards on gender gains, Gagan was quietly proving the numbers can move. At RMSI, a geospatial powerhouse that maps everything from smart cities to disaster-resilient fibre networks, she has spent 28 years turning HR into the bridge between the profit and purpose. She doesn’t talk about “CSR boxes”. She talks about children who once begged on streets and now dream of engineering seats, about widows who found roofs and livelihoods, about young employees who joined for salaries and stayed for the chance to matter.

This March, amid national conversations on Rights, Justice and Action at the Gender Equality Summit, Gagan Jyot feels more relevant than ever. She is Senior Vice President – HR at RMSI Private Limited, the company that quietly powers the world’s largest companies with geospatial intelligence. But her real signature is the way she has stretched HR far beyond the office walls, into flood zones, slum classrooms and the hearts of underprivileged communities, proving that the strongest culture is one that cares.

We sat down with Ms. Gagan Jyot for a conversation that feels less like an interview and more like a masterclass in leadership with soul.

Your nearly three-decade journey at RMSI is inspiring. Loyalty like yours is rare in Indian corporations today. What kept you anchored here?

People often ask this, and honestly, the years slipped by because every day felt alive with challenge and excitement. I joined in 1998, before I was married, and watched RMSI evolve through every possible phase, starting as a Stanford-incubated American outfit, becoming British under DMGT, then an independent Indian company after the 2011 Management buyout.

The toughest stretch came right after the de-merger. Those were challenging times, but we turned it around with global expansion, new offices, landmark clients, while I rose from junior HR to the leadership table. Each win kept the fire burning. It never felt like “just a job.” It has always been like building something that would last.

What key experiences shaped your people-first approach in HR?

The de-merger crisis was defining. Competitors whispered we’d collapse. Yet employees came to me saying, “We’re with you; if the leaders stay, we’ll stay and fight.” We lost no key talent, no major clients. Our culture held firm, and RMSI remained a dream destination for geospatial experts.

That proved culture is not fluffy, it’s a glue in tough times. Another milestone: hiring and training 3,500 specialised people in 18 months for a marquee client’s first India centre. We hit the numbers and became their trusted partner and later expanded to the US. Those moments showed me that when people feel valued, they deliver extraordinary results.

What inspired you to find Helping Hands, and how do you encourage similar efforts elsewhere?

The idea had been simmering for years. I always felt that we, as an organisation, must give back beyond profits. Launched 20 years ago, Helping Hands started as a fully employee-run group, where people met monthly to pick causes like teaching children at the nearby Nithari Village School, running a skill development centre for widows and single women, conducting workshops for the physically disabled and wild life and marine conservation programs.

It grew into our DNA. We now fund it yearly, covering LGBTQAi+ support, street children’s rehabilitation, education for underprivileged girl children, and livelihood programmes for women and widows. Leaders join in, and we’ve won CII awards for wellness and women initiatives. I tell other leaders: Start small, let employees own it. When compassion becomes collective, it transforms the organisation.

In your 2018 article on corporate culture and startup success, what RMSI example best shows building a sustainable culture?

We’ve built a high-performance culture that’s genuinely people-centric. Culture shows in actions, not posters. Our value-led hiring stands out, we seek “cultural add,” people who strengthen us, not just fit in. This mattered hugely during global growth, blending diverse teams across countries through trust and collaboration. It nurtures talent and fuels results.

What obstacles tested your resilience as an HR leader, and what did you learn?

Global expansion challenged existing HR systems and processes. We needed agile, tech-savvy processes for a fast-changing workforce. The real test was mindset, getting everyone to embrace continuous learning and teamwork.

We reframed it as a chance to rebuild: better communication, skill-building, deeper engagement tied to business goals. The payoff? Four straight years at #1 in ‘Great Place to Work’, Forbes featured, Aon Best Employer wins, and consistent CII and NASSCOM honours. It taught me: Trust people to shape change, put them first, and transformation becomes powerful. That’s why I stayed, because it’s so fulfilling.

How do you manage a multi-generational workforce, and what’s your views about mentorship and reverse mentoring?

It’s enriching. Baby Boomers bring wisdom, Millennials drive execution, Gen Z adds fresh energy. Blending them well has fuelled our success.

Our mentoring framework is strong. I mentor personally and it cascades down. Cross-functional mentoring brings outside perspectives. Reverse mentoring thrives here: Gen Z’s AI fluency has upskilled everyone. Older generations now rely on AI tools they learned from juniors. It’s a true knowledge cycle.

From your work with underprivileged children and communities, what one change would build more empathetic, skilled leaders in RMSI and India?

Embed empathy and life skills in education and leadership training early. Academics matter, but emotional intelligence, social responsibility and collaboration are just as vital.

Our NGO work shows the power: Mentorship builds confidence in kids and shifts our Gen Z volunteers, from career-focused to impact-driven. They start wanting to create change, not just climb ladders. If schools, companies and communities team up to teach both competence and compassion, we’ll raise skilled professionals who are also responsible citizens, building a fairer, sustainable India.

What advice would you give young HR leaders on balancing career goals with social impact?

Gen Z is sharp, sensitive and tech-native. My advice – “Be yourself, embrace change, and tie your work to a bigger purpose. Link technology and growth to a cause, whether community work or inclusion. When you do, you’ll achieve wonders and help shape a stronger India”. This generation has the potential to take India forward at a much faster pace.