Catalydd
Website:
catalydd.com
Job details:
Position Title: Senior HR Officer
Department : HR & Admin
Reports To: Managing Director
Direct Reports: None initially; may include an Admin Assistant/junior HR Executive as headcount and the function scale up
Key Interfaces: Managing Director (policy sign-off, escalations), Accounts
(payroll-accounts interface), Production/Quality/Purchase Heads (attendance,
training records, statutory registers), statutory authorities and consultants
(PF/ESI/PT/Labour offices) as needed
Location: Plant — Wadu Sanaswadi Road, Wadu Budruk, Pune (on-site, full-time)
!! Budget : 7 LPA !!
Job Purpose
This is a standalone, self-directed role. The Senior HR Officer owns the entire HR & Admin function for Balaji end to end, — the incumbent is expected to figure things out, take decisions, and be personally accountable for the outcome.
The role has two equal halves. On one side, the Senior HR Officer is the architect of the function: drafting the complete policy framework from a blank slate and putting every statutory compliance requirement in place and keeping it audit-ready on an ongoing basis. On the other side, the Senior HR Officer runs the full day-to-day HR & Admin operation — payroll, recruitment, attendance, grievances, admin — and is also responsible for training coordination and employee engagement across the plant. Success in this role means the Managing Director should be able to stop thinking about HR/Admin as a gap in the business and never have to go back to firefighting it.
Key Responsibilities
Policy Design & Statutory Compliance
- Collect employee master data, map the current org structure and reporting lines, and complete a compliance gap assessment against applicable central and Maharashtra labour law.
- Independently draft, finalize, and own the Employee Handbook and its core policies: attendance & working hours, leave, code of conduct, dress code, grievance redressal, disciplinary action, POSH, IT & data usage, travel & reimbursement, performance appraisal, and exit.
- Design and implement the HR SOPs (recruitment & onboarding, induction/training, payroll processing, leave & attendance management, performance management, grievance handling, disciplinary action, exit/full & final settlement) and build the offer/appointment letter templates and HR forms library from scratch.
- Complete all applicable statutory registrations — EPF, ESIC, Professional Tax (PTEC/PTRC), Maharashtra Labour Welfare Fund, POSH Internal Committee, Gratuity provisioning, Factory Licence verification/renewal, Bonus Act compliance, Maternity Benefit Act alignment, Minimum Wages tracking, and Contract Labour/Employees’ Compensation cover where applicable.
- Set up and personally maintain all statutory registers and records: accident register (Form 25), health register, leave-with-wages register (Form 15), muster roll, wage register, overtime register, personnel files, and statutory notice-board compliance.
- Own every statutory filing cycle personally, end to end, self-reviewed for accuracy before submission — there is no second layer of review to catch errors.
- Roll out every finalized policy to employees, including personally delivering POSH and policy-awareness training sessions.
- Track the Labour Codes transition (replacing the Factories Act, EPF Act, ESI Act, Bonus Act, Gratuity Act, Maternity Benefit Act, Minimum Wages Act, and Payment of Wages Act) and update policies, registers, and filings as Maharashtra’s rules are notified.
Routine HR & Admin Operations
- Own end-to-end monthly payroll processing, payslip generation, and attendance/leave management and reconciliation.
- Own monthly statutory filings (PF ECR, ESI contribution, PT/PTRC return) and half-yearly/annual returns (LWF, Bonus Act, POSH annual report, PF/ESI reconciliation, Factory Licence and contractor licence renewals) with zero missed or late filings.
- Lead recruitment and onboarding for open roles independently, from sourcing and screening through offer, appointment letter, and induction.
- Run the performance management cycle — quarterly check-ins and annual appraisals — per the documented policy.
- Own grievance intake, investigation, and closure (acknowledged within 48 hours, resolved within 15 working days) and manage disciplinary cases per the documented process.
- Manage the admin function day to day: facilities, vendors/AMCs, asset registers, travel administration, insurance renewals, front-office/visitor management, and record archival.
- Prepare and present a monthly HR MIS/dashboard to the Managing Director covering headcount, attrition, open positions, compliance status, and grievance status.
- Keep all statutory registers, records, and notice-board postings current and inspection/audit-ready at all times, without prompting.
- Escalate any compliance-default risk, statutory notice, or material employee-relations matter directly to the Managing Director within 24 hours.
Training Coordination
- Identify training needs across departments — technical/shop-floor skills, safety, POSH, compliance, and soft skills — in consultation with department heads.
- Build and maintain an annual training calendar, and plan induction/onboarding training for every new hire.
- Coordinate internal trainers and, where needed, source and manage external trainers or training vendors.
- Maintain complete training records and attendance logs for every session — these also support IATF 16949 and customer audit requirements.
- Track training effectiveness through feedback and post-training evaluation, and refine the calendar accordingly.
Employee Engagement
- Plan and run employee engagement initiatives — feedback surveys, town halls, festival and milestone celebrations, recognition programs — across shop-floor and office staff.
- Build and maintain communication channels between the shop floor and management so concerns surface early, not just through formal grievances.
- Support culture-building efforts that reinforce the company’s policies and values, particularly around safety, conduct, and respect at work.
- Monitor attrition and engagement signals, and proactively recommend engagement improvements to the Managing Director.
Key Result Areas (KRAs) / KPIs
- 100% of the HR policy and documentation set drafted, finalized, and signed off by the end of Month 1.
- 100% of applicable statutory registrations live by the end of Month 2.
- Zero missed or late statutory filings from Month 2 onward.
- Payroll processed and disbursed accurately by the agreed date every month, with zero errors.
- Grievances acknowledged within 48 hours and resolved within 15 working days.
- All statutory registers and records current and available at all times for inspection or customer audit.
- Annual training calendar published by Month 2, with induction training completed for 100% of new hires and training records maintained for every session.
- At least one employee engagement initiative run per quarter, with attrition and engagement signals tracked and reported monthly.
- From Month 4 onward: the full HR/Admin cycle run entirely independently, with the Managing Director having no need to step in on routine matters.
Education & Experience Requirements
Education
Graduate in any discipline; a postgraduate diploma or MBA in Human Resources/Personnel Management is preferred.
Experience
- 7–8 years of progressive HR & Admin experience, including at least 2–3 years in a manufacturing/factory environment covered by the Factories Act (automotive or auto-ancillary experience strongly preferred).
- Hands-on, personal experience filing statutory compliance — PF, ESI, Professional Tax, Labour Welfare Fund, Bonus Act, Gratuity, POSH — not just familiarity with policy drafting.
- Prior experience setting up an HR function from scratch (zero-to-one) is strongly preferred, since this role is building the function, not inheriting a running one.
- Experience in a small or mid-size, owner-driven company is essential — this role requires independent judgement with no external advisory or consulting support to fall back on.
Key Skills & Competencies
- Working knowledge of the Factories Act, 1948 (Maharashtra Factories Rules), EPF & ESI Acts, Professional Tax, Labour Welfare Fund, Payment of Bonus Act, Payment of Gratuity Act, Maternity Benefit Act, and POSH Act, with awareness of the Code on Wages/labour-code transition.
- Practical payroll processing and statutory return-filing experience (PF ECR, ESI, PT).
- Able to work independently from day one, exercising sound judgement without close supervision or an external mentor to lean on.
- Strong documentation discipline and attention to detail — this role exists specifically because informal, undocumented HR practice has already caused real problems at Balaji.
- Discretion, fairness, and integrity in handling confidential employee matters, including POSH investigations and disciplinary cases.
- Proficiency in MS Excel and comfort with payroll/attendance software or a structured spreadsheet-based system.
- Clear communication across English, Hindi, and Marathi, able to work equally well with shop-floor staff and management.
- Comfortable planning and facilitating training sessions and engagement activities in addition to core HR/compliance work.
Other Requirements
- Based near the plant (Wadu Budruk/Sanaswadi, Pune) or willing to relocate — this is an on-site, full-time role, not remote or hybrid, given the nature of statutory registers and shop-floor HR work.
- Must be comfortable owning the HR/Admin function solo — this is a single-person department with no HR team, external consultant, or advisory support to share the load.
- Age: typically 28–40 years (indicative; not a strict cut-off).
- Self vehicle with a valid driving licence preferred, for occasional vendor/statutory-office visits.
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