A happier workforce is key to business success. Recognising the benefits of a happy and engaged workforce, organisations across the globe are revamping their policies to offer a better employee experience. It is a known fact that engaged employees feel more connected with their employers’ mission, culture, and values and stay on the job for longer duration. Hence, this leads to no extra cost and time on hiring.
Shantanu Chakraborty, Director (HR), People Experience and Technology at Amazon, says our HR or People Experience and Technology (PXT) practices are deeply rooted in our Leadership Principles, serving as the guiding force behind all operations, from recruitment to engagement to performance management.
“Grounded in the principle of ‘customer obsession’, Amazon’s HR practices are crafted to ensure that our employees not only possess the requisite skills and resources but also embody our overarching goal of exceeding customer expectations at every turn,” he adds.
In line with this, says Chakraborty our approach to employee experience and engagement is deeply rooted in innovation, operational excellence, and ensuring well-being and inclusivity. “By prioritising these core principles, we not only drive exceptional outcomes for our customers but also foster a dynamic and supportive work environment for our employees.”
Also Read: Fostering happiness and creating thriving teams
Commitment to innovation
As an organisation, Amazon strives to bring changes, which may be small or big, impact one or many, and build a better workplace. “We ensure that the experience of our employees is superlative and takes precedence for us. We ‘Strive to be the Earth’s Best Employer’ therefore, the status quo is never enough for us, and we continuously challenge our old policies and processes and dig deep to understand what we can do to enhance employee experience and make every day better for employees.”
According to Chakraborty, they constantly work backwards from their employee’s feedback and innovate on their behalf just like they innovate for their customers. For example, we seek feedback and ideas from our employees to solve for papercuts (Papercuts are ‘ugh’ moments that employees experience during their working experience). “This feedback has led to improvements such as better food in the cafeteria, quicker elevators, etc. Furthermore, in response to input from our employees, including hiring managers, we recognized the opportunity to attract great talent by developing programs to onboard women who have taken a career break for any reason.”
Launch of ‘rekindle program to help people professionally reintegrate and resume their corporate careers, ‘My HR’ portal, where employees can find answers to all their HR processes-related questions or even connect with live support, thereby providing them with scalable and frustration-free mechanisms are other examples of innovation, Chakraborty shares.
Operational excellence
Organisations must recognise that fostering a workplace where all individuals can thrive is not just a moral responsibility but also helps employers ensure they are drawn to their mission, culture, and leaders. People are introduced to our 16 Leadership Principles (LPs) as part of the hiring process, and they are included in all elements of our employee development programs. They provide the framework we use to ensure we make consistent decisions across all of our businesses worldwide while keeping in mind local nuances of customers and employees, as well as regional cultures,” explains Amazon HR.
Ensuring inclusivity and well-being
For Chakraborty building a culture that is welcoming and inclusive is integral to people doing their best work and is essential to what we can achieve as a company. “Therefore, we foster a culture that is conducive to growth and offers people equal opportunities to unlock their full potential while empowering them to do more.”
By embracing diverse perspectives and talents, says Chakraborty, we aim to better understand, serve, and represent our diverse customer base.
The other thing that he points out is offering a range of great benefits that support employees and eligible family members, including domestic partners and their children. “These comprehensive benefits begin on day one regardless of employees’ level, tenure, or position. Our flagship wellness initiative focuses on the overall health & wellbeing of our employees enabling them toward better work and life where we have programs ranging from physical, emotional, social and financial well-being and support through consultations.”
He also emphasizes training people managers to have a higher emotional quotient to better support their teams. “These initiatives ensure that employees feel valued and supported in their professional and personal lives, creating an environment where they can perform at their best.”