“Blended education format in our vocational education pedagogy can be the way forward.”

Every single time that she works with a client, magic happens! Over the years, Asha Hariharan has made it to the top to be among some of the most experienced and popularly known for her art of makeup and hairstyling. Founder of Asha Hariharan Academy of Hair and Makeup, and Beyond the Fringe Salon, she has recently taken on a new role in Enrich as its Education Director. She shares her perspective on teaching, training and learning, with Shriyal Sethumdhavan.

While the beauty and wellness sector has always been among the fastest growing, dearth of skilled manpower is one of the biggest challenges faced. How do you view this scenario and how can all the stakeholders – industry experts, professionals, regulatory authorities, and others – work in tandem to arrive at a solution?

First, we need to collectively promote the industry and the profession. Industry leaders such as the BWSSC play an important role in creating awareness amongst people and schools so that as a culture, we accept the beauty profession from the early stages.

Second, beauty education needs to be standardised. While we have multiple single players and academies, we need an organised body that will define minimum standards of education at various academic levels. There is a high need to have stringent teachers training courses so that education has a high standard that delivers the right quality at every academic level. The urgent need of the hour is to create skilful teachers that are experts with high standards of education delivery and knowledge.

The two-pronged efforts are the only way to build skilled manpower at an entry level. This can be achieved by the formation of an industry body that can advise on curriculum, teachers training courses, and guidelines for academy accreditations to run these programmes; The BWSSC charter, I believe was to look at this and set the path for our industry.

From Asha Hariharan Academy (AHA) of Hair & Makeup, what practices or set ways of educating would you tryto imbibe within Enrich as the Education Director?

At AHA, our education methodology has helped us to create successful students from the foundation – they are advanced, and highly competitive. The industry can expect much more with the collaboration of two organisations who are passionately contributing to the growth of the industry.

Enrich Beauty is a powerhouse of systems and processes that recognises the need for dynamic education to fuel the salon industry. Hence, this is a perfect fit for our sector to grow.

What will your key focus be on your new role at enrich?

My key focus is to keep the large and ever-growing technical workforce competent, current and create the Enrich AHA! A brand of progressive and skilful education for career seekers and professionals.

Enrich is one of the only salon chains to offer certified courses in salon management. Do these courses also focus on how can the industry incentivise its salon staff to not only stay, but prosper?

Our management courses are directed towards salon managers and single salon owners who are seeking and striving hard to maximise the profits and run the salon successfully. Human resources are of course the important chapter in this syllabus, which addresses staffing, nurturing, and retaining of staff.

In the past two years, the shift has been towards online teaching and training owing to the pandemic. How effective, in your opinion, is the online teaching as compared to offline?

Ours is a vocational professional that needs 70 per cent of its education in the practical form. Online education can play a role in addressing theory with a support by expert demonstrations and online testing, however hands on and in classroom teaching can never become irrelevant for us. However blended education format in our vocational education pedagogy can be the way forward.

Beauty and hair salons is known to have some of the highest turnover rates of any professional industry. Would you agree, and why?

Yes, I agree! There are many reasons for an organisation to have high attrition rates in our industry. The obvious ones are personal growth, the dreams of starting their own businesses, new opportunities, and new roles. Then there are new business models that shows trained workforce the lucre of money and flexible work timings that lure them away. There is region specific floating workforce that goes back to their hometowns at will, not fearing for losing their jobs as they feel it is an employee’s market.

“One should never feel enough in terms of knowledge and practice if they wish to grow personally and professionally.”

To be balanced, there are enough companies and salons that do not do enough to retain employees, while on the other hand, there are people concerned organisations who still face high attrition even after doing everything that is required. This may not necessarily be the case in times to come.

What are the common mistakes that the budding hairdressers and makeup artists tend to make that can be avoided or corrected through constant education?

Hairdressers and makeup artist settles into a comfort level with limited knowledge acquired in their jobs that could prove bad for them. One should never feel enough in terms of knowledge and practice if they wish to grow both personally and professionally. Even though it is difficult to find time, it is essential to invest in continuous education and improvement.

Learning has no age, and is a constant process – your views on the same?

It’s been said, “There are five important things for living a successful and fulfilling life: never stop dreaming, never stop believing, never give up, never stop trying, and never stop learning.” I believe in this.