'Funsters' At Work

In 1990, Hexaware was set up with a dream to make a
difference to global corporations by making them more competitive. With complete
faith in Indian talent and the ability of the engineers to add value to even the
largest multinationals by providing the right technology solutions, Atul Nishar,
founder chairman of the company set off on his journey. According to Nishar,
should be seen in the context of the software exports from India being just
around $100 mn at that time and virtually no listed company in this business.
So, clearly, the motivation went much beyond revenue or valuation aspects.

As Hexaware is in the business of providing
solutions-software services and BPO business-people are the key resource.

A new participant in the 'Best Employers' rankings this
year, the company with a high retention rate (rank 3) and salary increments
matching the industry average helped Hexaware rank 1st on the HR scorecard.

Being fair to all employees has been very important to me
and I have personally provided inputs and support to our various HR
initiatives,” says Nishar. He adds, “I also believe that when the senior
management maintains an ongoing communication with employees, it has a positive
impact. So we have regular open-house and interactive sessions in Hexaware.”

HR Challenges

Help employees maintain a work-life balance Recruit the right talent with the right skills Accuracy in strategic alignment of HR to business Employee retention

All Round Growth

Amberin Memon, project director, has been with the company for nine years.
Memon says that it has been a fruitful and satisfying journey. Memon says that
she got an opportunity both vertically and horizontally where she was able to
dapple and innovate around technology and also got a chance to play with
numbers, which was never her area of work or experience.

Abhijit Talukdar, associate VP, heads the new technology
delivery unit and has been with the company for 6 years. For him, retention is a
big challenge, which cannot be addressed by just extra compensation. According
to Talukdar, one has to build the environment and make people feel part of the
culture, learning and grooming everyday. He has selected 10 members of his team
and put them in charge of their respective clients. These members are
responsible for complete interaction, delivery and services to these clients.
They are given the liberty to interact directly with the customers and
understand the business and their needs.

PK Sridharan, executive director and head of India
operations opines, “We have realized that the productivity level of all
individuals and teams are fully aligned, committed and energized to successfully
accomplish the goals of Hexaware. Annually, we identify where the employee fits
in and exactly what their contribution should be, and how it will ensure that
the company gets there. We measure it and provide them with feedback,” he
adds.

What's commendable at Hexaware is not just the HR
initiatives at the corporate level that strive to build a culture and
environment for their people but the individual project leaders like the
Associate VPs who go that extra mile to build a camaraderie in the team and get
to know the members better. “At Hexaware, HR problems are not only the HR
teams but even the leaders at the company are oriented to them”, says Malini
Moorthy, assistant GM-HR.

Work—Life Balance

Hexaware believes it is a competitive paymaster, yet the company puts in
that extra effort to make its employees feel part of the ever-growing family.
Very active on the HR front, the company helps the employees strike a work-life
balance through initiatives involving not only the employees but also the
families throughout the year. 

Chandrashekhar Vaze, associate VP, enterprise group, says
that Nurturing talent through development programs and asset creation through
training is the mantra for Hexaware. For most in the industry, growth
opportunities in terms of skills and organization are most attractive.
Challenges and complexities in projects, which allow them to innovate and expand
their horizons keeps them to their jobs. Creating Leaders through richer
employee experience is the motto for the company leaders.

Communication channels are transparent to make sure that
sharing is there at all levels. Hexaware has also launched employee rewards and
recognition programs to acknowledge the best efforts in the organization. Job
rotation is encouraged to achieve employee satisfaction.

Aesthetics Matter

Paying attention to basics helps create the right environment. For example
the canteen is vibrant and colorful, themed around the village nooks and corner,
right from the 'panwala' (beetlenut leaf) to an open sky 'dhaba'. The
menu is repeated only after 60 days, and there is an in-house dietician
available every day of the week.

There is a well-equipped gym open in the mornings and the
evenings for letting employees flex their muscles.

Gym and Tonic

The well-equipped library houses books not only on IT, but also comics to
fiction of all kind. Hexaware is particular about cultivating reading habits
amongst it employees. Latest publications of all kinds are stacked at each level
of the building for easy access. A concierge desk takes care of the employees'
travel needs. Services of doctors, dieticians, and gym trainers don't get
mentioned but are very important for the employees.

HR Initiatives

The HR department conducted an internal satisfaction survey amongst its
employees and identified the top pain areas. The pain areas cannot be addressed
by HR alone but include all members of the organization and is primarily steered
by the management.  The in-house
training department is branded 'Hexavarsity'. The foundation training
program (FTP) launched in 2004 is now a full-fledged program. This is a training
program for all employees where a group is taken to a college campus on the
outskirts of a city for six weeks and are trained on technology, processes and
soft skills like team interaction, communication etc.

H3O is another feather in the hat of the HR team. It is a
completely employee driven group that caters to the delivery of corporate social
responsibilities in case of untoward incidents such as the tsunami. Fun at work
is a popular program being run at the organization for over a year now. The team
calls itself the 'funsters' and innovates around projects and occasions like
various festivals of all religions.

The HR team has HR Orbit a dedicated portal for all HR
related information, forms and policies for the employees. Good HR policies
could be seen as a reason behind the increasing number of employees who rejoin
Hexaware.

For the management, the HR team is an important business
partner that enables the senior level to drive its various initiatives. On the
CEO's balance scorecard, people are top priority.

Minu Sirsalewala

minuvs@cybermedia.co.in