An award-winning company set up more than 100 doctors and nurses in a 24/7 global health line which fielded more than 100,000 calls from employees - including Kiwi workers - during the height of the pandemic.
The company, Indian-based IT services and consulting giant HCL Technologies, used their technology prowess to set up the medical team available around the clock for consultation with employees and their families.
"They were able to reach us any time day or night no matter what country they were in," says Debasis Sarkar, senior vice president of HCL Tech's human resources department and HR head for the Middle East and Asia Pacific regions.
"It showed them they were not alone during the pandemic and that we, as a company, were able to stand with them during these challenging times. As a result the call centre received over 100,000 calls."
Designed to help keep staff as safe and comfortable as possible during the pandemic, it was established at the same time as a number of other "employee-first" initiatives saw HCL Tech named as a 2022 Top Employer in 17 countries - including New Zealand.
The award was made by the Top Employers Institute, an independent organisation headquartered in Amsterdam which recognises and certifies companies across the globe for employment best practice.
HCL Technologies, which has more than 208,000 employees in over 50 countries including 1600 in New Zealand and Australia, was recognised for its dedication to fostering employee growth while continuing to drive value for its clients around the world.
Sarkar says the ranking demonstrates HCL Tech's commitment to encouraging work environments that are collaborative, flexible and compassionate to its employees.
"We are an employee-first, employee-friendly company which places great emphasis on strategies of inclusion and diversity among our workforce," he says. "Through them we aim to attract, grow and retain talent; we believe diversity inspires creative thinking and leads to sustained innovation."
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While the company was feted with the award for strategies such as these, Sarkar believes the establishment of the health line - which is still operating and offers free consultations by phone, video or email - is a good example of how the company values its employees and their families.
Part of the response HCL Tech set in train during the early stages of the pandemic in January 2020, the health line focused on employee safety and wellbeing, demonstrating how its leadership team is well tuned to global and local environments.
Sarkar says, HCL Tech quickly mobilised remote working for all its employees globally and set up online cybersecurity and digital workplace training modules.
"An internal Covid-19 microsite was developed to keep employees engaged and informed about our pandemic response while predictive analytics on the impact of Covid-19 through our virtual situation room helped our leaders make real-time decisions."
Sarkar believes HCL Tech's pandemic management definitely set an industry benchmark. The company provided PPE (personal protective equipment) kits, masks and gloves free to its employees, sanitised workstations and consistently conducted temperature checks at office entries and exits among other measures.
"With staff multi-tasking at home, sharing limited living spaces with family as they worked and many having to deal with their children's education from home, maintaining their morale was our goal during the pandemic," he says.
He says feedback from staff and clients was positive; 90 per cent of employees were "very satisfied" with the Covid response and 99 per cent of clients rated it as "very effective" or "effective".
HCL Technologies has been operating in New Zealand since 1999. As well as being recognised here, it has been awarded the status of Top Employer in Australia, Brazil, Canada, France, Germany, Guatemala, Malaysia, Mexico, The Netherlands, Philippines, Poland, Singapore, South Africa, Sweden, United Kingdom and the United States.
Sarkar says HCL Tech builds an inclusive workforce which goes beyond demographic differences to encompass gender, generation, nationality, culture, ethnicity, age, sexual orientation and the differing abilities of individuals.
Among these is a disability inclusion programme which seeks to integrate disabled people based on four tenets – employ, enable, engage and empower. To this end, the company hired 55 "differently-abled" employees in 2021.
"We believe our effort towards creating an inclusive environment should translate into people feeling valued, treated equally and with respect, feel safe to express their opinion, to do their best and empowered to take decisions," he says.
"We are proud to be recognised by the Top Employers Institute once again, particularly given the global workplace challenges of the past two years and we remain focused on continuously improving the policies and practices that empower our colleagues to think innovatively about the challenges of tomorrow.
"Ultimately, this has enabled us to build a workplace in which our teams can fuel their career and personal development, while delivering cutting-edge solutions for our clients."
Top Employers CEO David Plink, says HCL Tech has continued to show it prioritises maintaining excellent people practices in their workplace. "In the past year they continued to meet the challenges of the wider world of work while working determinedly to positively impact the lives of their workforce."
The institute has recognised more than 1800 companies for employment best practice in 123 countries and regions in the last 25 years.
For more information go to: www.hcltech.com/geo-presence/new-zealand and
HCL Technologies Named Top Employer 2022 in 17 Countries Globally