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P&G: Pure Passion
(Contn.)
The Larger Family
 But that's
just the tip of the iceberg. I got married last year, and incidentally I
must mention that my boss made sure that I left office by 5.30 pm during
those early days. But what impressed me were the roadshows P&G held to
initiate not just me but also my wife to Singapore. HR people from
Singapore came down and showed us videos on Singapore. Not just that. The
company will help my wife find a job in that country. And just in case she
needs to study a bit more, P&G will provide us with an allowance. Yes,
family life certainly matters at P&G. Back to you Shweta.
Shweta: Thanks Sandeep. I have to
agree with you about the thoughtfulness of the organisation. I have an
experience to share on this front. When I joined P&G, my results
weren't yet declared. When they did come in later, I emerged the overall
topper at Narsee Monjee. What provided further delight was the
congratulatory message I received from my country manager the next day. It
made me feel very valued.
I should also make a mention of Project
Pride, which is a team set up to help employees play an active role in
setting up P&G's new go (Group Office) in Andheri. Employees are free
to give their feedback on how the layout, amenities, workstations of the
new office should be designed. What's more, a mock-up workstation has been
set up in the current office, to enable employees get a feel of the new
set-up, and to suggest any changes that should be made. All this makes us
feel that we are one big family moving into a new house.
It's not just the lure of an overseas
posting that keeps people going at P&G. It's also the potential for
growth. Don't believe me? Check out what V. Shankar, our Associate
Director (Customer Business Development), has been up to for the past 11
years at P&G.
Shankar: People regularly ask me
what is it about P&G that keeps me with them. I have a standard answer
for that. There are three factors at play here. The first is the
fundamental culture of the organisation. It's informal, open, and
transparent. There's also a sense of youthfulness, not necessarily to do
with age but with approach-there's a willingness to try out new things all
the time.
Like my other colleagues, I too was pushed
into the deep end fairly early. Some 45 days after I joined in 1990, I was
pitched headlong into the launch of Ariel in Vizag, involved in taking the
product into the market and conducting sampling exercises. It was a bit
scary, but I too had plenty of personal coaching to rely on.
I feel that the biggest learning I
received-which I have been able to apply later on-was during an 18-month
stint in the US, where I picked up various tools and techniques when
working with a large P&G retail customer. Most important, I worked
across a large number of brands, and that's one of the biggest advantages
of being with P&G: you get an opportunity to work across brands,
across regions as part of a multi-cultural company. And once I returned in
March, 2000, I was able to apply many of those tools and techniques to our
India operations.
That l-Curve...
Shweta: Thanks Shankar. In fact,
India is a huge pool of talent for our overseas operations. That's why we
have to ensure that our people stick with us. Sunil will now tell you
about this novel tool P&G has devised to control the flight of P&G
fast-trackers to other companies. Sunil, incidentally, is in his 20th year
in P&G.
Sunil: Yes, India is a huge source
of talent for the AAI region. You could call us a net exporter. In the
coming year, the total number of people from the Indian operations who are
posted overseas will touch 250. So, as you can imagine, we need to ensure
that whatever talent we have stays within the group. That's why we've
devised this tool, called 'Open Job Posting', which matches people with
the company's business needs, and lets employees take charge of their own
careers. It allows for any executives seeking to move across jobs to place
their profile and requirements on our intranet (a special section,
'Creating My Future', has been created for this purpose). In the past,
employees who wanted a change had to go up to their line managers, who
then used their personal networks to scout for openings. This typically
takes a long time, and employees were dependent on their managers to
facilitate the change. Now employees have control over the process. From
the company's point of view, OJP discourages employees from looking
outside P&G if they are looking for new opportunities. Recently, two
of our plant technicians from India were posted in Brussels via this tool.
And everybody, right up to director level, can make use of it.
Now, Sail The Spectrum
I'd like to make one more point here. We
look for diversity. One way to ensure that is to rotate people a lot to
hasten their development. But even at the recruitment stage, we try to
ensure that we are building a diverse organisation. So we don't just hire
management grads. For instance, consider the case of Jayati Singh, our key
account manager in the CBD division, who has a masters in sociology from
the Delhi School of Economics. As Jayati herself points out: ''CBD, which
focuses on distribution of our brands, is multi-functional. Here, personal
skills and traits matter.''
Shweta: Thanks Sunil. Yes, with the
new distribution network in place - there are no stockists in it - CBD
assumes a crucial role. People often ask me why I chose public affairs.
After all, drafting press releases isn't the most challenging of
jobs-certainly not for a topper. Well, I have news for you. At P&G,
there's a very thin line dividing public affairs and marketing. As my boss
Anthony Rose, who looks after brand communications and media relations for
the AAI region will agree, public affairs is a part of every marketing
initiative. In fact, public affairs has been largely responsible for
dealing with the issue of counterfeits-due to which we lost 15 per cent of
our business last year. The decision to amend the Copyright Act too has a
lot to do with our efforts. And of course, public affairs has been
involved in the promotions of each of our brands, right from Whisper in
college campuses to Febreeze cleaning solutions in Chennai households.
Okay, now that I have made that point, let
me move on to what makes me tick at P&G. Doubtless the best thing
about P&G is its work culture. It's non-hierarchical and informal. So
much so that I can walk into Gary's (P&G India's Managing Director)
office and bounce ideas off him (not that I do it too often).
On the first Friday of every month, Gary
has these open house 'Let's Talk' sessions, in which there is an informal
sharing of thoughts, learnings, and ideas. Gary updates us on the latest
developments at the company, whilst employees make their comments and
voice their concern on any issue. For instance, at the December session,
Gary said that P&G India was 10 per cent ahead of its targets as of
November, that Ariel shipments were the highest in the past four years,
and that India and the Philippines were exceeding their targets. Then one
employee brought to our notice that loose Ariel was being sold in stores,
and others give their reactions to the orientation programme that was
underway for employees and their families who were making the transition
to Singapore.
In addition to 'Let's Talk', we have
various other communication channels. There's the annual action plan
deployment meeting, in which results and goals are shared with the entire
organisation. That's also a time to recognise outstanding performers, who
get 50 shares of P&G (US) besides a one-minute video film made on
themselves. Then there are programmes like 'Diagonal Slice' and 'Improving
Lives', in which a cross-section of the organisation-across levels and
functions-shares feedback.
Each function also has an outbound training
programme every quarter. Our function-External Relations-recently took off
to Kihim (a beach 120-odd km off Mumbai), were via a series of adventure
sports we learned the benefits of collaboration and teamwork. To encourage
teamwork, we have had exercises where employees at the go join in launches
and taking the product to the stockists. Not too long ago, for instance,
almost all the 350-odd employees joined the Ultra Convoy-they had to
assemble at Mumbai's Shivaji Park at 5.30 in the morning-which placed
50,000 packs of Ultra in 6,000 outlets! And one more thing: before a
product is formally put to market, we have an employee launch in 'The
Den', the hangout where our employees can relax with a game of carrom, or
even catch a quick nap.
Flexibility At Work
Let me also talk about the flexible working
opportunities P&G has introduced for its employees. The first option
is fairly straightforward. We put in eight-and-a-half hours a day, but
after checking with our managers, we can adjust when we come into work,
and, accordingly, when we leave. Another innovative option is a
three-month sabbatical for employees who have put in at least five years.
Then we've just flagged off the work from home option, by which employees
don't need to come into office once a week. Finally, employees can also
choose to work half-a-day for perhaps a year. Of course, they will be paid
accordingly.
People often wonder-at least one sceptical
journalist did last fortnight-how a company that has resorted to
separation schemes manages to emerge as one of the best companies to work
for. Well, it's simple really. As Shankar puts it rather well: ''Change is
managed well at P&G-with respect for the individual. And that's the
starting point.'' I'll leave it to Sunil to describe how P&G handled
separations in a painless and dignified manner.
Sunil: The best thing about P&G
is that we communicate openly, whether it's good news or bad. We also try
to remind our employees that every decision is business-driven, and they
should look at it as an 'adult business deal'. Recently, for instance,
when we shut down a plant in Mumbai, we told our employees that the
business demanded that we do so. And as long as we are transparent about
it, you should be adult enough to manage it.
Of course, it's not as if we leave it at
that. In fact, separation is always the last option we offer the employee.
First, we explore the possibility of placing them in other assignments. I
can give you plenty of instances. Recently, five people who became surplus
at our Hyderabad plant were retrained, and moved to a different location.
Then a few from the CBD's administration department were moved into the
planning function. And when our Kalwa R&D facility was shut down, one
of the scientists moved into market research, another into consumer
research, and a few others were moved to our UK operations.
But such retraining and relocating can't
work always. That's when we offer the separation packages, which are in
keeping with industry standards. But here too we offer consulting help on
re-employment, and use our contacts with head-hunters to place these
people. When the Kalwa plant was shut down, placement consultants who are
on our panel visited the plant, took bio-datas of employees, and even
provided coaching on how employees should handle interviews. Then, those
wishing to invest the money are also provided consultancy services. But
more important than all this is of course the candour and open
communication with which we handle the entire exercise.
When I leave the P&G go for the last
time, my mind is numbed by all the jargon and abbreviations I've been put
through-Action Plan Deployment, Diagonal Slice, OJP, ILT, MCO... But as I
try to clear my head with a sip of tea from the stall below the building,
and decide on trying out the baked bean sandwich, the sceptic in me takes
over. The transparency, open culture, focus on employees, the smiles and
the comfort on their faces, their enthusiasm-is it all for real? Then the
words of Shankar echo in my head. ''My career is my company's
responsibility. Performance is mine. My life in P&G has just begun. In
the past 10 years, P&G has invested plenty in me. Now I will retire
from P&G.'' I guess, even if one employee can say so much, there must
be something about P&G.
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Why
P&G is number 2 |
| Youthful',
'motivated', and 'exuberant' are probably the adjectives that best
describe the typical employee of Procter and Gamble. The company, as
described by their employees is ''a great place to work'', ''has a
strong caring for its people'', ''has trust in us'', and is ''a
people company''.
So what does P&G really do
that sets it apart as a 'people company'? The company's
'principle-based' approach is truly remarkable. All its systems and
practices follow from this. Using this approach, practices are
aligned to the needs of each employee, which means that the
interpretation of a certain type of policy would depend only on the
individual employee's need; not on his role or level in the company.
The type of housing entitlement of an employee, for example, is
dependent on the marital status and number of dependents, not on how
senior the employee is.
P&G prides itself on looking
after the health of employees and their families. Some of the
related benefits provided include unlimited medical coverage, an
onsite doctor, education on health management, and first-aid
workshops. Newsletters on health, stress-reduction programmes,
subsidised health club facilities, and nutrition counselling come as
add-ons. Technically, there is a cap on sick leave, but this is
rarely enforced and employees are free to be ill as long as they
want to!
In the recent past, P&G's
Indian operation has had to go through a period of tumultuous
change, thanks to certain larger business imperatives. However, the
company seems to have managed the process skillfully.
Employee-friendly change management programmes and workshops helped
minimise employee apprehension, and rendered the transition smooth.
In the near future, several of P&G's employees are relocating to
Singapore. The company is taking care of all their needs, right from
educating them on all facets of the new location, through workshops
and one-to-one counselling sessions. Over and above this, the
company will take care, for a period of two years, of the expense of
any education, training support, or job help, the employee's spouse
might need in the new location.
The best way to drive change in
a company is through the people who need to live it everyday. That
ensures not only an employee's commitment to change, but also a
smooth and effective execution. All initiatives at P&G are
driven through taskforces, with the hr function playing merely a
facilitating role. The taskforces are vested with anything they
could possibly need-the budget, the empowerment to take decisions,
and most importantly, the drive and commitment. For instance,
working late was becoming an area of concern, so employees created a
taskforce, went out, collected data on the work-life practices of
other companies, and introduced things like flexi-time,
telecommuting, job sharing, compressed work weeks, and reduced
hour-employment.
To continuously improve, P&G
has a dedicated database which collects employee suggestions on just
about anything. Last year, 15 per cent of the employee population
made suggestions, and a large proportion of these were implemented.
Employees believe it is their workplace and that they are
responsible for making working at P&G a great experience. The
organisation supports them and gives them the means to achieve this.
Madhavi Misra and Purva Misra,
Hewitt Associates LLC |
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