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India is home to many a successful and innovative company, but some stand out more than the rest. With policies focussing on issues ranging from employee benefits to creating a positive work environment and opportunities for growth to skill development, Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) has distinguished itself as a great place to work from one that is just good. In doing so, TCS is also setting the template for other firms to follow. And this has helped TCS emerge as the top-ranked firm in the BT-Taggd Best Companies to Work For in India ranking this year.
TCS—which will see Global Head of BFSI Business Group K. Krithivasan take over as CEO & MD from incumbent Rajesh Gopinathan on September 15—understands the importance of adapting and exploring new ways of working in the modern era. “It will help us improve the productivity and consistency of the work that gets delivered, reduce the need for governance, up the pace of delivery, and reduce the need for peripheral functions. There is an immediate and urgent need to provide organisational support for new and emerging work models,” says Milind Lakkad, EVP & CHRO at TCS.
Lakkad expects job definitions to evolve as platforms such as ChatGPT, Bard and AI cobots (collaborative robots) become ubiquitous. AI-based tools/bots, Lakkad says, are being leveraged for a wide assortment of strategies with an emphasis on recruitment, talent management, etc. And investing in new tech skills has not only helped TCS stay in the game, but also remain up to date with emerging tech. “Cloud, DevOps and Data Science have now become horizontal skills driving talent development, and we have been incorporating these technologies in multiple proactive talent building investments,” he says.
For Lakkad, TCS’s core HR policy has a lot to do with attracting, developing and retaining diverse talent. “We believe in building a purpose-driven, happy workplace, where every employee is encouraged to follow their passion, thrive together and stay hungry. We strive to… create a stimulating, rewarding and inclusive workplace,” he explains. Talking of inclusion, TCS boasts 35.7 per cent female workers and recognises that a diverse and inclusive workforce is vital to drive innovation, foster creativity and guide business strategies. “This year, TCS reached a significant milestone to become one of the few firms in the world employing more than 200,000 women,” he says.
The company’s policies, too, create a more understanding and supportive environment for women to work there. For instance, TCS offers an optional 30 days of paid leave to woman associates post-maternity leave, along with ‘leave without pay’ based on requirement and eligibility. “We run a TCS-sponsored online maternity care programme that offers expectant mothers and fathers-to-be expert guidance and counselling through the maternity continuum. We also run TCS Rebegin, an opportunity for women professionals to rejoin the workforce,” he says, adding that the initiative benefits women professionals who have taken a career break and helps them return to the corporate world.
TCS has also introduced a flexible work policy on the maternity continuum along with other benefits that extend beyond women employees. “TCS health insurance now includes medical insurance for same-sex partners and reimbursement for sex reassignment surgery. Further, LGBTQ+ associates may add their partners as dependents in their insurance policy,” he elaborates, while adding that there is complete non-tolerance of unlawful, direct and indirect discrimination, harassment and victimisation.
With a workforce of 613,974 till March 2023, whose average age hovers around 31.4 years across 153 nationalities, Lakkad says that strategic talent development is a key focus area, which has led them to create a culture of lifelong learning. The company’s ‘One HR’ structure has helped the management focus on associates’ well-being, business continuity, compliance and fuelled growth. “Our reimagined HR strategy positions us well to continue delivering outstanding associate experience,” he says.
Lakkad believes that the company’s philosophy of empowering employees, its talent retention policies and a decentralised organisational structure have helped it with succession planning as well. “TCS’s philosophy… has resulted in a large and deep bench of leadership talent that enables robust succession planning and continuity and consistency in strategy,” he explains.
TCS has also invested deeply in reskilling its talent, and this, says Lakkad, has established outstanding learning ecosystems. For instance, close to 400,000 associates are a part of its flagship Elevate programme that offers learning across different grades—including prescription-based learning at junior levels and subscription-based learning at mid and senior levels. This helps associates create a brand for themselves and for TCS to create growth and transformation consultants. “We have intensified our focus on equipping our mid-level managers with future-relevant specialised skills to be the growth drivers for our customers. More than 83 per cent of the target associate pool are already participating and close to 60 per cent are certified in various market-relevant skills,” says Lakkad.
That, and more, is what makes TCS stand out among its peers.
@PLidhoo
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