Work Culture

Aligning HR with business

Symphony Services has ensured that its HR initiatives are aligned with its business strategies, says Vinutha V.

Symphony Services offers comprehensive, high-end capabilities that address the market demands of today’s global enterprises in the product development space, which includes market analytics and support services. Both its offshoring development centre in Bangalore and the sales & marketing unit in the US were set up simultaneously in 2002. With 2,500 employees in India, Symphony operates in Bangalore, Pune and Mumbai.

Symphony has formulated its HR activities around its business strategies, which are based on customer intimacy, operational excellence and product leadership of the company. Says Mahalingam C, Senior Vice-president, HR, Symphony Services (India). “Right from the inception of the company we made sure that our HR initiatives align with our business strategies. Each accomplishment of the employees in the company contributes to the business strategies. From hiring to retention or rewarding systems, everything is gelled with the business plans.” Aligning business strategies with HR activities needs a great amount of proactive approach. By 2006, Symphony aims to strengthen its Pune workforce. To be able to attract quality talent, Mahalingam says, the company should scan the talent market well in advance, and be ready with the implications. Symphony puts forth its comprehensive understanding of the talent market for every new client acquired. This helps its clients select people based on its requirements.

Constantly communicating

The induction is carried out to make employees familiar with the company’s policies and values. Usually, this is carried out in the first six months of the arrival of the new recruits. Based on a client’s requirements, Symphony takes care of the training for the new employees. This is always carried out at three levels: classroom, e-learning and onsite training. Symphony believes that a predominant channel for motivating its employees is constant communication. It emphasises one-on-one meetings of employees with their managers. The company even trains its managers to make these 45 minutes’ meetings extremely effective. The Symphony People Manager is a programme to train people on one-on-one, skip level and all-hands meetings.

At Symphony, managers are trained to review performances more effectively. Employee performance is measured in relative terms. By doing this, the company believes that its performance can be improved.

Keeping employees happy

A happy employee can serve a company’s clients in a better manner. To know the level of satisfaction of employees, Symphony conducts an Employee Delight Survey, every six months. The survey has eight main criteria—employees’ work organisation, management, work-culture, company benefits, career development,

training and development. Mahalingam says that the participation rate for this survey has been increasing every year. This year it was 83 percent. He further adds, “When employees are confident of a company’s approach towards taking on action plans based on employee feedback, they come forward to take part in the survey. It is also a great tool to contain attrition rate.”

Workforce profile

Hall of Fame

Symphony has a well thought out reward schemes in place. It is not only manager who can recommend subordinates for an award; even peers can refer someone who has helped an individual at work for the Thank You Reward. No doubt, the company has certain checks and balances for referring this award. The Hall of Fame is given every month to those who have gone out of their way to delight customers. Symphony believes a great company becomes home for great managers. Hence, it encourages them by giving the CEO Award. This also bolsters other managers to emulate the same. Mentors who successfully volunteer to motivate other employees are given the President Awards.

Regular events such as Thank God It’s Friday, frequent bashes, ethnic days and trips are common. Symphony encourages integrating employees’ families through events. Recently, it marked its annual day Junkar, which was entirely driven by employees and their families. Fun has become a necessary ingredient for companies and Symphony encourages its workforce to ‘work hard and play even harder.’ It is planning to appoint a chief fun officer soon. To ease employees to find their match within the company, Symphony will shortly post employee details on its Intranet.

vinutha@expresscomputeronline.com