Yvonne Tshepo Mosadi has rejoined Hyundai Automotive SA as HR director effective 1 July.
Coming back to Hyundai is a dream realised for Yvonne Tshepo Mosadi, who previously held the position of HR director in 2019/2020. “I am super excited to reunite with my colleagues who are like family to me. The culture is progressive and felt from every corner of the organisation. Humility is felt from top to the staff on the ground. The openness of the team and willingness to do their best every day is humbling. The environment is set to unleash performance with ease. Diversity and inclusion are not something preached but felt.”
Yvonne returns to Hyundai after a three-year stint as the HR director at Heineken SA, where she had fine-tuned her career path in 2016 as head of HR business partner for supply chain and support functions, as well as employee relations lead.
“One of the uncommon trends with my career is that I have been trusted by my former employers to rework for them. This speaks volumes about my credibility and my work ethics. To date I have worked for three companies twice each – Imperial Logistics, Heineken, and now back to Hyundai.”
She hopes to use her wealth of experience in people management to accomplish a number of goals at the automaker including improving talent and leadership development, leveraging technology to improve the people agenda and refine strategy on employee wellbeing.
“Like most businesses, as the people function we need to up our game in talent and leadership development and leverage more on technology to be more effective in our value chain. Competition is getting tough. The economic pressure has a high impact on employee wellbeing. Our strategic approach to employee wellness needs to be refined to meet the needs of every person in their own unique way and at different levels of their employee cycle and their working environment.”
Leveraging technology
Technology is shaping the future of HR. The demand for technology is increasingly becoming a focal point for business leaders, says Yvonne.
She is of the opinion that technology and digitisation are no longer a choice and HR, like any other division, is expected to up its game.
“The challenge for HR is around execution and driving adoption in order to show the return on investment to the shareholders. HR can expect to be scrutinised for the investment of enterprise tools that the business funds. HR leaders need to become more comfortable with how they use the data and be less prescriptive and be more predictive.”
In order to achieve this, she adds, people leaders will have to achieve new levels of programme management capability, consistency, leverage of data and analytics, and overall command and influence within their organisation. HR will have to take their position at the executive table around the user experience of enterprise technology, and no longer make technology an IT department problem. “What’s most important for HR is how people interact with tech. HR will have to be the gatekeeper on making decisions for the tech that’s best for their people, based on their needs.”
Health and wellness
Yvonne says employee wellbeing and mental health remain the biggest challenge facing HR leaders. “The recovery from the pandemic, coupled with the recent economic downturn, and high interest rates have a huge impact on employee wellbeing. In order to build people first organisations, employee wellbeing is crucial. One-size-fits-all wellness programmes will no longer yield positive results.”
A key focus for her at Hyundai will be on personalisation, flexible work arrangements, technology, as well as focusing on employee engagement to promote employee health and wellbeing. “Employers should create an employee-centric culture that fosters overall employee wellness while increasing productivity, employee satisfaction and improving business results,” she comments.
On a personal level, Yvonne is a mom to three kids and a sister to four siblings. She is passionate about developing young talents to advance their career. She uses her life skills and career experiences to mentor and coach talent in order to empower them to unleash their full potential.
“What is most fulfilling about my career highlights when I look back, is the privilege I’ve had of developing and raising other leaders through mentoring and coaching, and giving opportunities for growth. This fulfils my purpose in life to leave a legacy that will be remembered.”
Yvonne holds an MBA from Mancosa, a human resources management degree from Unisa, and a certificate in labour dispute resolution from the University of Stellenbosch. She recently completed an executive acceleration programme with IMD Institute in Switzerland. She has also successfully completed the management development programme at the Gordon Institute of Business Science.
Her advice to younger HR practitioners looking to reach greater heights? “Embrace a growth mindset and be curious enough to cross the boundaries that are limiting your career progress. Success belongs to those who dare to be bold, different and challenge the status quo. I cannot emphasise more how important it is to be unique in establishing your professional brand. You need to be clear on what you stand for. The world is not forgiving to the people sitting on the fence. Whatever you do, never be forgotten, do your best and give it your all.”
