Aanchal Popli’s HR Journey | From SOIL PGPM HR to Jaguar Land Rover

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From SOIL to Jaguar Land Rover: Aanchal Popli’s Journey in Global HR Leadership

14 Nov 2025
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Today, Aanchal sits at the heart of Jaguar Land Rover’s people strategy in the UK, guiding insights that impact a global family of more than 44,000 employees.

The Beginning: A Curious Student Who Wanted to Do HR Differently

Before becoming global people analytics professional, Aanchal was simply someone who wanted to understand people more deeply.

She chose SOIL’s PGPM HR (2018–19) because she didn’t want to do HR the traditional way. What excited her was the thought that HR could be so much more than admin, and it could be data-driven, people-focused, and genuinely strategic.

At a time when people analytics was just beginning to gain momentum in India, she felt curious enough to explore what this new, emerging space could offer. That curiosity eventually defined her entire career.

The SOIL Experience: Where Learning Becomes Personal

When Aanchal thinks back to her days at SOIL, it isn’t the exams or grades she remembers. It’s the moments that shaped who she became. Classes with Anil Sachdev didn’t feel like classes at all. They felt like a pause. A chance to slow down. To breathe. To reflect.

It was a space where students weren’t just learning; they were reconnecting with themselves.

“It was a stress buster. Anil Sir played old Bollywood songs, shared stories about leadership, and reminded us that HR begins with understanding humans.” For Aanchal,

SOIL wasn’t just about academic learning. It was where she learned mindfulness, empathy, values, and emotional strength and qualities that would later define her leadership style. Mindfulness, compassion, ethics, and awareness sound soft. But in the boardroom? They’re bulletproof.

The Action Learning Projects, faculty interactions, and peer learning helped her see HR through a more practical, experiential, and human lens.

Watch the whole video here:

Building the Skills That Shape Modern HR Careers

Aanchal’s journey shows how the future of HR belongs to those who can balance:
- Data literacy
- Human understanding
- Business acumen
Right after SOIL, she joined Gartner as an HR Analytics & Insight Specialist and a role that introduced her to the world of data lakes, dashboards, talent insights, and workforce metrics.

But more importantly, she realised something fundamental:

“Data is powerful, but it means nothing if you don’t understand the human emotions behind it.”

This philosophy has become the core of her leadership approach.

Her next role at Expedia Group expanded her exposure to global workforce practices, performance review cycles, and people sentiment analytics. She handled end-to-end processes that shaped employee experience across geographies.

She wasn’t just learning tools, but she was learning what makes organisations run.

Moving to the UK and Joining Jaguar Land Rover

Today, Aanchal works as a Senior People Insights Consultant at Jaguar Land Rover, UK, overseeing people’s insights for a 44,000+ global workforce.

Her day includes:
- Planning stakeholder meetings
- Working in agile sprints
- Leading data-backed workforce decisions
- Running people dashboards
- Studying workforce segments
- Supporting diversity and inclusion goals
- Mapping employee sentiment and experience
Despite AI and automation transforming the industry, she believes:

Having the requisite knowledge of data tools like Tableau, Power BI, and HR automation tools improves the understanding of HR leaders.

“No technology can replace human sentiments. Data informs. People decide.”

This understanding of equal parts analytical and empathetic is what makes her a modern HR leader shaped by SOIL’s values.

Lessons for future HR leaders

Here’s what Aanchal wants every young HR professional to carry with them:
- Listen like you’re the last safe space someone has: Because sometimes people don’t need solutions—they just need to be heard.
- Speak numbers like you’re telling a simple story: Data should make things clearer, not more complicated.
- Understand the business before you open a dashboard: If you don’t know how the organisation runs, the metrics won’t make sense.
- Ask the “dumb” question: It’s usually the smartest one in the room—and the one everyone else is too scared to ask.
Inspired by Aanchal Popli’s journey? Take the next step towards your own career in HR, people’s analytics, and leadership. Explore SOIL’s PGPM HR program, which has shaped thousands of HR careers.

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FAQs
Is SOIL’s PGPM HR worth it for analytics?

Aanchal Popli had no experience in analytics when she started learning with SOIL PGPM HR. SOIL teaches experiential learning and data tools, which are in demand for the current needs of the industry for analytics, making it worth it.

I am from a non-technical background. Can I still pursue PGPM HR?

SOIL encourages students from diverse backgrounds to pursue PGPM HR. The focus of the program is developing people management, communication, and leadership skills, which does not require any prior technical knowledge.

How does SOIL’s PGPM HR prepare for global roles?

SOIL’s PGPM HR combines a globally focused curriculum and hands-on experiential learning and immersion, which helps participants and prepares them for a global world.