Most global companies have understood the importance of Human Resource management for being successful. Human resource management has become central to excellent performance. The more skilled and well managed a company’s staff is, the easier it is for the company to achieve strong performance and productivity. It is why the focus of businesses has remained on hiring only the best. However, apart from hiring, it is also critical to manage them in a way such that they can deliver with dedication.
Employee motivation and engagement have become critical to organizational success. Human resources if managed well can be a source of competitive advantage. Otherwise despite investing in all the other aspects of business, a company can fail to be successful and competitive. All the leading global companies have invested in HR management to help employees deliver excellent performance. Coca Cola is a leading beverage brand known for excellent human resource management.
Creating an environment of learning and development:
There are a few things that are critical to motivating your staff. Apart from good salaries and recognition, it is essential to motivate them using other means too. The first thing is to create an environment of trust and respect. Coca Cola has made it a priority that its employees are treated with respect. The organization provides them with a rewarding work life and helps them develop. It has created an environment where its employees can excel and develop better skills. The focus is on performance improvement to help employees move continuously towards their career goals.
A learning environment is just as essential for employee development and motivation as good salary. Br providing employees with a learning environment, Coca Cola ensures that they receive continuous learning and find fast growth in their jobs. It ensures that all the people who are working for it have the resources that enable them to learn and build their careers. However, learning is not possible without fun and Coca Cola ensures that its employees get the necessary fun at work. Coca Cola is a great place to work where people can achieve their dreams and full potential.
Training and education:
Coca Cola has focused on equipping its associates with knowledge and skills they need to become achievers. It has showed its commitment by providing its people at all levels with education and development programs to enable their growth. It established its own Coca Cola University (CCU) which provides various types of courses through classrooms, e-learning, and field training that can help its associates with personal and professional development both. There are several areas or competencies that are included in Coca Cola’s curriculum. “CCU’s learning portfolio focuses on leadership; marketing; human rights; ethics and compliance; diversity; sustainability; finance; and other competencies. We offer thousands of courses to associates through CCU. In 2009, more than 27,000 associates participated in 1,720 CCU classroom sessions worldwide, and 39,100 associates participated in e-learning courses”.
Another important step that Coca Cola has taken to encourage its associates is to provide them with reimbursement to help them pursue higher level education. Associates with graduate or undergraduate level education are provided various levels of reimbursement to receive higher education at accredited colleges and institutions. Apart from it, the associates are allowed to learn from other e-learning courses beyond the CCU. They can also participate in external training programs and conferences that improve their skills and abilities. For attracting and retaining he best, Coca Cola has continued to invest in employee development programs with “ emphasis on employee development plans, internal talent management, leadership development for managers and employee performance management.
Employee engagement:
Employee engagement is an important factor behind employee motivation. To ensure that employees do not feel left out or frustrated companies use employee engagement programs to make them feel valued and included. The success of Coca Cola also depends on how committed and motivated its employees are. For this purpose the company has used several programs that keep the employees engaged. In this regard it also holds regular dialogues with its employees as well as organizes employee surveys and representative groups.
It also measures employee engagement and their satisfaction with their work lives regularly. Coca Cola uses employee exchange programs. Employees of one nation are sent to another to learn and derive cultural insights. Such programs can be key to employee satisfaction. However, Coca Cola also employs other methods of employee engagement and motivation. In Great Britain its employees are provided with discounted gym memberships, free exercises classes, free coca cola drinks and fruit, a restaurant that serves healthy food options, flexible working schedule and other health and personal welfare related benefits.
Payments and Rewards:
Payments and rewards have become increasingly important to keeping the employees happy. It is crucial to pay the employees fairly if a company wishes to attract and retain the best workers. Coca Cola offers competitive pay and motivating benefits to its employees. Its compensation packages and benefits compare with the other best employers in the world. A number of elements are considered to develop a satisfying package for its employees. Apart from the financial compensation, pensions, healthcare and holidays are also considered an important part of the employee compensation. Coca Cola ensures that its reward programs are benchmarked regularly against a group of peers that include key players in local and global markets.
Performance management:
Performance management is also a key area requiring focus if a company wants its employees to perform at their best. Discussions and feedback play a key role in employee performance management and ensure that the employees are aware of their performance goals and that their personal and organizational goals are aligned. Performance management also helps at identifying gaps in skills and fill them with training. At Coca Cola the employees are encouraged to seek training through its annual performance review system. The performance review system of Coca Cola includes the mid-year and year end career discussions between the associates and the managers. It provides the associates with an opportunity to assess their annual performance against the set goals and objectives. These face to face discussions allow managers and associates to discuss training and development. It also enables them to outline a plan for training and enrichment. After that proper training is provided to the associates based on the review. This system ensures a regular cycle of discussions and feedback which recognizes any kinds of gaps and enables their fulfilment.
Diversity and Inclusion:
Coca Cola is on a global diversity mission. It recognizes the importance of diversity which is at the core of its business. In its diversity mission it aims to mirror the rich diversity of the global marketplace. Its global team is rich in diversity which is made up of associates from diverse backgrounds that possess diverse talents. Such kind of diversity fosters performance as people with diverse talents generate diverse ideas. Several teams globally are dedicated to strengthening the diversity practices at Coca Cola. Diversity is not seen just as a philosophy but also as a core and integral part of the organization’s identity. After all the long term future of any global company depends on its ability to operate in a multicultural world and embrace ideas from diverse backgrounds.
However, apart from diversity, inclusion and employee empowerment are valued at Coca Cola. Its associates are also a part of its diversity program and participate in it through formal and informal methods. Coca Cola remains committed to the creation of an environment where every employee feels included and is provided an equal chance of growth and development. Its employment policies and practices are developed to ensure that employees have a free and fair environment to work in. There are policies in place that ensure non-discrimination as well as equal opportunity for all. It ensures no discrimination on the basis of age, sex, religion, place of origin or any other basis. To ensure that employees can find an open environment to talk freely about innovative ideas and can communicate openly on various issues.
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