“Our goal is to provide a larger platform for career development, allowing our employees to grow and thrive within our organization,” Arup’s people and culture director says
Jenny Pong, people and culture director for APAC, is leading a major transformation in how Arup, the global design and engineering firm, manages talent and organizational structure.
For the next year her team will focus on integrating Arup’s East Asia and Australasia operations into a single Asia Pacific (APAC) region, spanning 6,400 people across 30 offices.
“Managing a change of this scale is critical, as it involves aligning processes, changing business structures and systems while at the same time ensuring our members are supported to continue doing great work for our clients,” she explains.
The integration is designed to remove barriers that limit career growth and create a platform for employees to thrive. Alongside structural change, her team is working to deliver an “industry-leading experience” for employees, keeping engagement and morale high, Pong says.
“Our goal is to provide a larger platform for career development, allowing our employees to grow and thrive within our organization,” she says.
Building future leaders through learning and technology
This focus on experience aligns closely with Arup’s broader talent strategy, which emphasizes developing next-generation leaders who demonstrate curiosity, courage and forward-thinking.
“Our talent strategy is intrinsically tied to our business strategy to ensure we are supporting and delivering on our overarching business objectives,” Pong says.
The APAC integration provides an opportunity to strengthen expertise in new business lines and locations. Internal courses are being designed to reskill and upskill staff. This approach maintains high technical standards while opening internal growth pathways.
“While our team members are experts in their respective fields, we've recognized the importance of ensuring they have the opportunity to retrain, reskill and explore opportunities to continue learning, rather than solely relying on external hires,” Pong explains.
Training and development are central to this, particularly in adapting to technological change. AI is being embraced to enhance operational efficiency and tackle complex problems.
“We are committed to advancing alongside technological developments and ensuring we have the training and skills to meet the needs of future industries,” Pong says. “We believe that by embracing AI, we can foster a more innovative and efficient working environment, which in turn supports our overall business strategy.”
Aligning agility with leadership development
Arup’s APAC integration highlights a larger trend in HR: combining organizational agility with people-focused strategies. Talent pipelines are designed to anticipate future business needs, while staff development equips employees for evolving roles.
“We’re committed to developing our internal experts to thrive in new business areas, ensuring we maintain the high level of excellence of our work and facilitate internal growth opportunities,” Pong says.
Despite the focus on technology, Pong emphasizes human qualities remain central. Leadership traits such as curiosity, courage and forward-thinking are critical.
“These future leaders must embody core elements such as curiosity, courageousness, and a forward-thinking mindset,” she says.
Redefining HR as a strategic driver
Pong’s view of HR challenges conventional frameworks that focus on policy and compliance. She predicts disruption as businesses navigate faster-moving, complex environments. As a result, HR must evolve into a strategic partner, directly contributing to business outcomes.
By being proactive, HR can anticipate challenges and opportunities rather than simply reacting. She sees this shift as essential to adding real value and positioning people and culture as catalysts for organizational change.
“Traditional HR functions that focus on policy, principles and procedures face disruption under the dynamic conditions in which businesses operate today,” she says. “A good HR function should be agile and willing to change alongside the business.”
Ultimately, the integration offers a space to cultivate these attributes while improving collaboration across offices and signals a shift in how HR can drive business outcomes. By prioritizing career development, employee experience and proactive change management, Pong and her team are redefining people management in a complex, evolving global organization.
“We should aim to anticipate future challenges and opportunities to become catalysts of change within the People and Culture space,” she says.
