Talent Pivots

Recently participated in the Next Gen Chemical & Petrochemical summit which hosted senior accomplished illustrious CXO’s from the Chemical & Petrochemical sectors. Gained comprehensive and current insights on the Chemical Industry value chain and got me thinking about the interesting Talent Pivots in terms of newer roles, niche skills and emerging trends. My thoughts summarized below:

India’s Net Zero target by 2070 would propel and hasten companies to commit and announce their individual companies decarbonization targets leading to companies building and nurturing talent with expertise in Green Hydrogen, Circular Economy, Sustainability, Electrolysis, Renewable Energy. This further having a cascading effect on building an equally robust supply chain with key talent being sought across Scope1 (improvement projects within organizations), Scope2 (electricity, water, bulk procurement) & Scope3 (Partner ecosystem – Framers, Packaging, Logistics, Supply chain).

The recent green credit program & varied PLI schemes by the Government would further accelerate Global bio-fuel alliances, decarbonization, Biodiversity, Natural Resource preservation, Green alumina & EV’s. More and more leadership talent will be sought in these areas with talent pivots happening within the broader chemical value chain. Need for Specialist roles; Product Stewardship, Sustainability, ESG, AI (Digital Twins, Human Machine Interface, IOT ) will increase substantially.

The whole Green Hydrogen ecosystem will require companies to build the value chain; electrolysis, green ammonia, methanol, ethanol blending, and electrification, EV, Batteries, & renewable fuels would be need of the hour. With mobility transportation transitioning to a much more decarbonised value chain; talent will be required in all these sectors namely Railways/Electrification, Aviation / Shipping, Automotive etc. Likewise, the Industrial decarbonization agenda will need talent with to focus on Sustainability, Safety and CSR spends focused towards reducing the carbon footprint.

All the above accelerating Innovation in green chemicals, bio-based materials, R&D, Novel Process development and NPD. These skillsets would be the new sought after talent with expertise in Portfolio sustainability, devising carbon neutral supply chain networks, stage gate reviews, Flow Chemistry and Biochemistry, Blockbuster Platforms, Electro Chemistry thereby expanding conventional horizons beyond manufacturing improvement projects. Talent will be sought in electronic chemicals, Home/Personal care product applications, Speciality & Performance chemicals as large capex investments being made on the ground to cater to global markets.

Talent in the R&D function will seek deep expertise in fundamental research vis a vis application /process development, downstream projects. India would want to mitigate their risks regarding feedstock dependence and seek alternate fuels. COTC; Crude to Chemicals will require talent with expertise in Pyrolysis, Depolymerization, Membrane cell technology, Technology, New Materials & Solvent Treating. The entire value chain of FRP/Carbon Fibres right across Membranes, Solar PV, Battery, Electrolyser materials will need talent specialists heralding a paradigm shift to embrace and acquire bespoke niche skillsets. Lastly the PCF (Product Carbon Footprint) implementation will make it mandatory for companies to revamp and embrace the new Packaging value chain with blockchain technology becoming an integral part.

While the chemical value chain is transitioning to Next gen chemicals and petrochemicals; and talent pivots no longer a wish list but reality; soft skills required for Business Leaders are also undergoing a huge transition. “Pressure to perform”, “Being agile and relevant” while embracing and implementing the Sustainability, climate change, Circular Economy and Decarbonization framework would be the new success mantra coupled with Collaboration, Innovation, and entrepreneurship.

Watch this space for more emerging Talent pivots……!!!