Singapore, January 2026 — Ramya Balakrishnan has started a new position as Vice President Global Talent & Development at Coty, taking on global responsibility for shaping the organization’s talent strategy, leadership development, and learning architecture. Based in Singapore, she will lead enterprise-wide initiatives to strengthen leadership pipelines, future-ready skills, and a high-performance culture across Coty’s worldwide operations.
Ramya Balakrishnan steps into this global role following her tenure at Coty as Senior Director – Global Talent Management & Strategic Workforce Planning, where she partnered closely with the C-suite to design succession frameworks, performance systems, and workforce strategies that enhanced organizational resilience. She led a global team across New York and Toronto, building talent infrastructure aligned with long-term business priorities and embedding strategic human resource planning into growth decisions.
Prior to joining Coty, she spent nearly three years at Sun Life in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, serving as Director, Talent – Digital Business and Technology Solutions and later Director, Future of Work – Global Talent Partnering & Innovation. During this period, she built a learning culture for a 6,000-employee digital business unit, advanced hybrid work models, and created talent marketplace adoption frameworks. Her work helped position Sun Life as a forward-looking organization prepared for new ways of working and leadership.
Earlier, Ramya led Talent & Performance Management at Maxis in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, overseeing a 5,000-strong telecom workforce. She conceptualized a five-year talent strategy, revamped performance and high-potential programs, and implemented the Talent-to-Value framework to support business transformation. Her efforts strengthened leadership succession and agile talent principles across the organization.
A significant part of her career was shaped at Unilever, where she held multiple regional and global roles including Global Lead – Talent Channel Transformation & Ecosystem – Future of Work and Head of Leadership and Organization Development for Malaysia, Singapore, Myanmar, Cambodia & Laos. She drove employer branding breakthroughs, launched digital recruitment platforms, and pioneered freelancer and internal talent marketplace models that became global best practices.
Ramya began her multinational HR journey with GE as Manager, Regional Talent & Organization Development (ASEAN) and later with Dell Technologies as Supply Chain HR Business Partner & Employee Relations Lead, managing end-to-end people strategies for manufacturing operations in Greater Chennai Area, India. Alongside her corporate roles, she has served as Adjunct Faculty at Bharathidasan Institute of Management Tiruchirapalli, contributing to the development of Digital HR capability among MBA students.
She holds a Master of Business Administration in Human Resources Management from Bharathidasan Institute of Management Tiruchirapalli (2008–2010), providing a strong academic foundation to her global HR leadership.
About Coty
Coty has pioneered innovation in the beauty industry since 1904, building a legacy of firsts and bests that continue to redefine global beauty standards. The company empowers people to express their unique vision of beauty while embracing diversity and sustainability. Working with employees, partners, and customers worldwide, Coty is committed to creating Beauty That Lasts—products and experiences that are good for people and the planet through science-led innovation.
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