Personnel Today Awards shortlist 2024: Employee Experience for Large Employers

The entrants of the Personnel Today Awards 2024 employee experience award for larger employers, engaged with employees and thought deeply about important factors like morale and retention. The firms that have been shortlisted for the award this year are listed below.

Eksim Holding

Dicle Elektrik’s internal communication team and employer branding team launched the Dicle Family Visits Project to boost morale and loyalty among field personnel working in Turkiye’s southeast Anatolia. The project targeted blue-collar employees who faced challenging working conditions in provinces such as Diyarbakir Sanliurfa Mardin Siirt Batman and Sirnak. The initiative was managed by the corporate communications directorate of Eksim Holding and Dicle Elektrik’s occupational health & safety directorate. It involved selecting 200 field employees who excelled at adhering safety rules.

Senior managers made home visits and gave away personalised gifts, such as Hero Electrician figurines and books that were age-appropriate for workers’ children. These visits enabled managers to communicate directly with employees, listening to concerns and suggestions. They also broke down hierarchical boundaries and strengthened a feeling of belonging and security.

The project was well received, and it created a safer working environment. The initiative was a success in promoting communication and safety practices. Employees were honoured by this personal attention. The project will expand its scope from 200 to 1,000 visits by 2025, following the positive results.

The Dicle Family Visits Project set a new standard for employee engagement within the energy distribution industry, showing how thoughtful gestures and personalised attention can enhance worker motivation and loyalty.

Firstsource Solutions Limited

Firstsource Solutions is an Indian company based in Mumbai that provides IT and customer support solutions. It has around 5,000 staff in the UK. The company has a number of major clients, including Sky, EON and Lloyds Bank. Firstsource developed an employee engagement model based on four pillars – connect, culture and celebration; and career – to create a motivating and supportive work environment.

Firstsource, despite its best efforts, has had difficulty in retaining staff, with an attrition rate that peaked in 2022 at 7.6%. In order to address this issue, Firstsource implemented a comprehensive framework for employee experience designed to reduce employee attrition, stabilize the workforce and increase employee commitment.

FirstConnect and FirstWorld are platforms that facilitate global connectivity and resolve grievances. The company celebrates employee accomplishments through initiatives like the FirstReward program and the recognition campaign. These have increased the level of appreciation among the workforce.

Firstsource has developed several initiatives to promote career development. Firstsource Academy offers training in robotics and analytics. It also has partnerships with universities like Ulster University to provide higher education. This has resulted in an attrition rate of 4.8% per monthly, a reflection of the company’s ability to retain talent and improve its workplace.

HSBC Legal partners with Project X Partners

HSBC’s Legal function, which comprises around 1,600 staff worldwide, partnered up with Project X Partners in order to improve employee satisfaction and address workplace challenges through the Legal People Programme. This initiative was designed to create an environment that encourages employees to feel heard, valued and empowered. The 2021 employee survey of the legal team revealed lower levels of engagement compared to HSBC’s benchmark. Only 58% participated. A six-week sprint of discovery was undertaken to understand the issues. Over 100 legal staff were involved in workshops, interviews and data analysis.

Three strategic objectives were developed based on the findings: creating a healthy and inclusive culture, engaging employees through the legal strategy, and developing their abilities to create an international legal team. The programme was designed bottom-up, and legal colleagues were actively involved in the design and implementation of initiatives. It helped to establish trust, accountability and transparency. Senior leaders committed and supported these changes.

The program has improved employee engagement significantly, as the participation rate in the annual survey increased to 81% by 2023. Other engagement indicators also rose. Notable achievements include increased diversity, equity and inclusion efforts as well as expanded recognition schemes and improved career opportunities. It has a positive effect, fostering a motivated and engaged workforce in HSBC’s Legal function.

SUEZ Recycling and Recovery UK

Due to the pandemic, and a possible hostile takeover, SUEZ Recycling and Recovery UK faced many challenges. As part of a strategy to improve morale and instill a sense purpose, the chief executive and chief business services officers introduced a day dedicated for employee volunteerism. The initiative was launched in 2022 and focused on people and planet. It aligned with the company’s commitment to social responsibility and wellbeing.

The company hired a sustainability director in 2023 to complete a team that was dedicated to promoting sustainability and social value. The team worked closely with the HR department to integrate volunteer days in every employee’s life, and encourage a culture that values giving back. The People and Planet app was used to track and share employee activities. The initiative supported local communities and raised PS158k to Macmillan Cancer Support. Plans are to expand the support to other charities.

This initiative has had a positive impact on staff retention and engagement, as evidenced by the results of surveys. In 2023, nearly 6,000 volunteer hours were donated by 12% of employees to different causes. This initiative is part of the company’s commitment to create social value. In 2022, PS2.6 billion was generated, which supported both employee wellbeing as well as business growth.

Teleperformance UK & Ireland

Teleperformance UK places a high priority on employee experience. It focuses on each stage of the employee’s lifecycle in order to achieve success for the workforce as well as the company. The shift from a traditional workforce to a hybrid one posed challenges for maintaining a cohesive culture after the pandemic. The company made sure that employees felt connected and valued, regardless of whether they were onsite or remote. Communication, engagement, culture and access to resources were key areas of focus.

Teleperformance improved communication by integrating digital tools like Microsoft Teams, and providing open channels for feedback. The company’s engagement efforts included mental health support and wellbeing programmes. Employee resource groups were used to promote diversity and inclusion. Corporate social responsibility initiatives also supported employee involvement in the community.

Leadership was crucial in maintaining visibility and accessibility, through regular CEO townhalls as well as leadership training to manage hybrid teams. These efforts have resulted in a significant improvement of employee satisfaction as evidenced by higher engagement scores, lower absence and attrition, and recognition from external sources for being a great workplace.

The company has been externally certified for the third consecutive year as a Great Place to Work with an impressive 49% participation rate. The Trust Index Score was 74% (+4%pts from 2022) and 79% of Teleperformance employees said it was a great company to work for. This compares with 54% employees of a typical UK-based company.

These initiatives have had a positive impact on both the employees and business. They include improved communication, increased engagement and significant cost savings.