Up the ranks: Rohini Sachitanand undertakes role of Head of People & Culture, APAC at NTT DATA, Inc.

She looks forward to spending time having open and honest conversations with the team and business leaders to understand their ambitions, challenges, and what success looks like for them.

Seasoned HR leader Rohini Sachitanand (pictured above) has been appointed the Head of People & Culture, APAC, at business and technology service provider, NTT DATA, Inc.

Based in Singapore, she reports directly to NTT DATA's Global Chief People Officer, Stijn Nauwelaerts. This close working relationship, she says, ensures strong alignment between global and regional priorities, while giving APAC the voice and space to shape what works best in local contexts, in an exclusive with HRO.

Taking on the role at a time when the organisation is continuing to transform and prepare for accelerated growth amidst an AI era, Rohini says her top priority is simple: to listen, learn and genuinely connect. "I want to spend time having open and honest conversations with my team and our business leaders to truly understand their ambitions, challenges and what success looks like for them."

She elaborates: "By doing so, we can build a clearer strategic roadmap that aligns with our north star and brings our operating model to life in a tangible way. In turn, this will pave the way for creating more future ready talent pipelines, meaningful career paths and opportunities for people development – work that I care deeply about."

As NTT DATA has been named a Global Top Employer in 2026 for the third year in a row, with the regional team earning the seal as well, Rohini affirmed her commitment to build a consistent, high-performing people strategy grounded in data, strong leadership and best practices to drive business performance, employee engagement and growth.

She shares: "As I step further into this role, I hope to be a true thought partner to the business – someone who deeply understands what our stakeholders need by using data and insights to guide smarter, more strategic decisions. In doing so, I hope to support and empower the team with a way of working that feels simpler, more intuitive, and more human."

The intent, she says, is also to strengthen NTT DATA's approach to people development, succession planning and capability building, so that every employee—no matter their country, role or level—has the opportunity to thrive.

On the occasion of her appointment, we at HRO also took the opportunity to dive into a deeper conversation with Rohini on broader talent developments. Read on for the quick chat and insights:

Q. What challenges do you anticipate in this role, and how are you preparing to tackle them?

APAC is an incredibly diverse region, and with that diversity comes different needs, priorities and expectations. Balancing global direction with local realities will always be central to this role, so that everything we do creates real, strategic impact.

Like many organisations, we are navigating several People and Culture challenges against ongoing global complexities. These include closing skill gaps, managing change fatigue, supporting our employee wellbeing, and continuing to be an employer of choice in every country we operate in.

Succession planning is especially critical in a region as dynamic as ours, and it is an area I am personally committed to strengthening.

Even so, I am optimistic about where we are headed and how we are showing up for our people. We already have strong programmes in place like our GenAI Academy, which ensures everyone has access to foundational and advanced AI training relevant to their roles. Initiatives like this show what is possible when we design with inclusion, trust and long term growth in mind – and I am excited to scale these efforts further.

Q. What kind of culture do you aim to foster within your HR team going forward?

I want to cultivate a culture that leads with inclusion, integrity and respect: values that lie at the core of NTT DATA’s people-first philosophy and reflect our ambition to be the place where people grow. This includes creating an environment where everyone feels safe to speak openly, challenge constructively, debate and align behind decisions once they are made.

In shaping this, we need to move forward with purpose, clarity and heart.

My hope is to build a caring team that is always learning and curious; focused on our people and clients; collaborative by nature; and able to have fun while doing meaningful work.

At the end of the day, culture is what we create together – and I want our team to feel proud of the impact we make.

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Lead image / Provided by NTT DATA