How Can HR Move from Reactive Hiring to Predictive Talent Planning

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In this episode of the Vantage HR Influencers Podcast, we explore how HR leaders can move beyond reactive hiring and build a more predictive, future-ready approach to talent planning.

Host Riha is joined by Vikas Singh Baghel, HR at HCLTech, to discuss how organizations can anticipate workforce needs before they become urgent business challenges. Together, they unpack how HR can use data, skills intelligence, workforce insights, and closer business alignment to identify talent gaps early, plan for future roles, and build stronger internal talent pipelines.

Guest Bio

Vikas Singh Baghel is an HR leader with 19 years of experience across Talent Supply Chain, HR technology transformation, process re-engineering, global delivery models, and large-scale change management.

He currently leads the Global Talent Supply Chain and HR Technology CoE at HCLTech, where he drives global technology implementation across talent supply chain, HR processes, automation, and employee lifecycle systems. His work includes shaping digital and social talent sourcing strategies, selecting global sourcing channels, setting usage benchmarks, improving ROI, and partnering with talent acquisition leaders across geographies to address external hiring challenges.

Vikas also brings deep experience in HR application governance, off-the-shelf product implementation, in-house HR product design, and change management for business stakeholders. In his earlier roles, he built social sourcing teams from the ground up, established a global sourcing offshore unit for Europe, led the enterprise social network HCL MEME, managed the global implementation of IBM Kenexa iTAP, and oversaw recruitment lifecycle and sourcing operations for one of HCLTech’s largest global service delivery units.