“I spent two summers working in HR,” she says. “I liked the analytical side, so I thought I would be suited to reward and benefits.”
On graduation, she studied for a Masters in HR and business, making sure she would be Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development-qualified with the course she chose.
“After that, I joined a company on an HR graduate scheme and that’s where I got my in-depth experience of benefits,” she says. “I really enjoyed that because I could see the link between the business objectives and what we were trying to do.”
Balavarnan went on to work as an HR generalist in a temporary position before moving to McGraw Hill as an HR reward and systems analyst. She has since been promoted to senior compensation and benefits analyst, and is keen to maintain this dual focus.
