The Employees Are the face of the company and provide a clear insight into the organisation's dealings. They are more important to us than our clients," says Anant Gupta, COO, HCL Comnet.
That's a pretty telling statement about a homegrown company whose unique employee focus has made it an incubating ground for transformational ideas and processes that have applicability across the HCL group (HCL Comnet is a whollyowned subsidiary of HCL Technologies).
The company's focus on people processes and development is also evident from the relatively high budget allocation for people-related activities. Comnet's HR and training costs are also way above the industry average.
Perhaps, it is this value system that has enabled the company to grow from a mere 20 employees in 1993 to a headcount of 5,400. Unlike its peer, Comnet had a growth strategy as well as employee-focussed themes from as early as 1995. The theme for the first phase (1995-1998) of its growth was "Creating an Identity" and for the workforce it was '"Smile in the eyes of the Employee".
Gupta says it was a tough time for the company due to initial teething problems, but still Comnet decided to give equal focus to the employees as well as the customers.
"During 1998-2001, we decided to focus on 'Creating new businesses' and for the employees, our theme was 'My Comnet' which was about facilitating employee ownership of the organisation," Gupta says.
Phase three (2001-2004) entailed "Creating new paradigms" in respect of creating a niche for itself and the employee strategy this time was "Force of One" a campaign which positioned the employees as the agents of change and innovation. Gupta says passion for growth is the company's latest mantra and the "Employee First" campaign, which was incubated in 2004, is a culmination of all those ideas.
HCL Comnet is now encouraging job rotation every 18-24 months. "We believe in giving exposure and experience to our employees. By presenting them with a new challenge, we try to do away with monotony, thus inducing greater engagement and motivation. As a company, we encourage cross-functional movements.
It has encouraged people to not only assimilate knowledge in their area of operation but to widen the bandwidth and learn other areas," says Piyush Dutt, Head (HR), HCL Comnet.
Over the years, the company has used innovative initiatives to empower its employees to make quick decisions and achieve greater efficiencies. The Smart Service Desk (SSD) is an automated troubleticketing tool for employees to raise online tickets related to their transactional issues with HR, Finance, the IT team, etc. The company has recently launched SSD Voice. Besides, the company has a 360-degree performance evaluation process that focusses on self-determination and self-assessment while "I4Excel" allows employees to do their own selfevaluation.
"MyXtraMiles" is a loyalty point system that gives 'mileage' to employees who receive appreciation from any of the following four sources: peers, subordinates, managers and customers. The points can be redeemed for attractive gifts, including trips abroad. The EHD team comprising HR and finance professionals aids the employees in solving their day-to-day transactional needs. Its mascot "Natasha" is positioned as the employees' personal assistant for policy and information dissemination and communicates with them on a much personal level. The employees are encouraged to post their feedback and suggestions on company issues on its sub-portal iGen, while through the "U&I" feature they can get their queries answered directly by the CEO.
For maintaining work-life balance, HCL Comnet organises games, birthday and achiever parties. Besides, it has started a club for the employee's children called the "Little Comnetians Club", wherein regular events are held for them, informs Dutt.
The company has various recognition-led-incentive programmes/awards too like WYGIWYG Certificates and COO's Party Vouchers. Each year, the employee who has been a consistent star performer is honoured with the "Top Gun" award at the company's annual function. Employees who refer their friends and acquaintances are given financial incentives, and an annual award called the "Top Gun Comnet Builder" is presented to the employee who provides the highest number of references.
With the company doing so much for its employees, it's hardly surprising that it is becoming a permanent fixture on our annual listing of Best Companies to Work for in India. More About