From satisfied to committed employee

Rewarding achievements and right behaviour to reinforce company values as a consistent practice forms the basis for HR policy today. CSC India has continuously focused on building employee skill sets.

Whether offering an opportunity to experiment in its state-of-the-art technical labs or writing white papers to get rewarded when their ideas come to fruition, the IT major has been proactive. Neelam Gill Malhotra, director, HR, CSC India, on changing employee mindset and how companies need to think ahead and reward significant contributions of employees beyond their routine jobs.

There’s an increasing emphasis on work- life balance across companies. Does that say something about how corporates look at their human resource now?


Yes, definitely. Human resources are being viewed by most organisations in a more holistic manner. Work-life imbalance and stress feed on each other as happier employees are more productive and loyal. Flexible working opportunities and a platform for employees to maintain a healthy balance between work and home, benefit everyone. Having an engaged employee is largely dependant on the ability of the organisation to keep pace with changing employee expectations and providing a platform to strike that perfect balance.

How is the ‘reverse brain drain’ going to impact the job market, especially at the middle and top levels?

Reverse brain drain is aptly attributed to either frustration abroad or seeking opportunity in the country of origin. Challenging work environment in India has knotted well with personal reasons for returning. Adjustment to domestic work culture, however, is at times, a challenge for them. An opportunity to work in India is being rightly perceived as a career enhancing move, not just for Indians abroad, but also for expatriates. At the same time, many technology companies, both MNCs and Indian, are eager to hire returnees with Western managerial experience or technology specialisation.

Youngsters entering the job market are aggressive, brash and demanding. Does this call for a rethink in the man management approach?

With the change in the socio-culture milieu, the mindsets are changing. Self assertion is a positive sign by itself and also exudes positive energy to others. The maintenance of momentum is a real challenge for the management. Organisations are looking at innovative ways to manage and carefully channelise this positive energy so that new entrants do not get ‘perceived’ distortions.

What new techniques are being deployed by corporates to retain talent. What are the new HR trends in vogue that you see domestically and internationally?

There has been a shift from having a satisfied employee to a committed employee. In order to retain, the organisation has to be willing to listen and act upon feedback, create a more open work environment, be more accepting to all kinds of diversity, and enable their employees to realise their potential. Every organisation is striving hard to come up innovative ways to have an engaged employee.

The trend in the industry, be it domestic or international, has been to have programmes such as Employee Assistance Programmes, which deal with the emotional health of employees, reward and recognition programmes, wherein appreciation leads to motivation, diversity, career planning, flexible working conditions and other such employee friendly policies.

Given the scarcity of talent across sectors, how critical is it to ensure that employees are multi-skilled so that they are pressed into service at short notice?

An organisation values both the super specialists and the multi-skilled employees. One cannot be replaced with the other. An organisation today is ready to invest time, effort and money to train its resources and preserve them as corporate wealth to cater to any sudden vacuum.