Rethinking Workplaces : Empowering Employees

How we work today has seen a seismic shift when compared with the pre-pandemic days. A novel virus at its peak brought the world to its knees and imparted novel lessons to reimagine the world out of our comfort zone. Organizations tried and experimented with novel methods to keep their folks engaged and connected. Workplace transformation gained currency. A virus untagged the work-worker-workplace troika but technology stitched them digitally.?

The future of work is flex, and companies have been quick to realize it. However, workplace transformation goes much beyond injecting cosmetic changes. It is a blend of top-down actionable leadership and bottom-up scaffolding.?

Respect. Autonomy. Appreciation. Being Valued. Flexibility. I might be missing on a string of other expectations that workers have at workplaces. To attract and retain the best talent, workplaces must be adaptive and resilient. Your workplace transformation can be subtle or dramatic, it boils down to your existing work culture. But every baby step that you take in creating a flex workplace will bring in real bottom-line results. For example, an evolving workplace strategy is BYOD (Bring Your Own Device), a concept resonating with the millennials.?

Workplace transformation is intertwined with attrition. Fifty seven per cent of workers across sectors in US who quit in 2021 did so because they felt disrespected at work. Organizations with a strong learning culture have 30-50 per cent higher engagement and retention, says a report by Deloitte. What’s more, reimagining transformation is incomplete without blockbuster technologies especially the Metaverse.?

Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (DEI) - The Awesome Threesome?

It's cool to say diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI), but there's a deeper meaning behind them. People in a diverse and inclusive organization understand that while we're similar, our differences help us perform and win. BCG studied 1,700 companies in eight countries, including India, Germany, and the US, and found that companies with above-average diversity generated 45 per cent more revenue from innovation than those with below-average diversity (26 per cent). Innovation comes from the diversity of thought. The diversity of our people leads to diversity of thought.

The CSM Workplace : Topping DEI with Resilience & Re-skilling

The workplace ecosystem at CSM Tech showed its resilience when a pandemic started knocking down world economies. We were swift to shift gears to remote and blended work models when Covid quarantined our people and imposed curbs on their mobility. Our forte in digital technologies enabled us to connect our folks seamlessly without ado. Our onboarding of fresh talent and experienced hires was smooth as the pre-pandemic recruitment days. To keep employees focused and aligned to the company’s Mission, Vision and Values during the stressful pandemic, we hosted consistent mental wellness sessions and health check-up camps.?

CSM is now an organization manned by 1300+ people, borderless and geographically dispersed. Our dispersed workpool is overseeing projects across multiple states in India, the US, Canada, Dubai, and a bunch of African countries like Sudan, Ethiopia, Tanzania, etc.

Celebrating DEI:?CSM Tech is a great votary of DEI. We have tied up with Swabhiman (State Disability Information and Resource Centre), a non-profit organization to hire specially-abled people in our organization, leading to better problem-solving and increased productivity. Also, we are committed to mainstreaming Persons with Disabilities (PWDs) by offering them equitable opportunities at workplace. We transcend gender barriers in workforce with equal opportunities for males and females with around 25 per cent of the workpool being women.

To make hiring more inclusive, CSM is open to start its returnship programs by hiring moms with career gaps of more than 2-3 years. Through the Konnecta portal, we connect experiences and chronicle the achievements of our former employees. With our constant engagement, we've had a positive boomerang effect with former employees coming home and now holding important roles. At CSM Tech, we keep the doors ajar for ex-employees who wish to join us back.

Talent reskilling & upskilling:?We believe that failing to learn is learning to fail. At CSM, we offer a plethora of upskilling and reskilling opportunities for our resources to help them acquire the best of industry skills and stay ahead on the learning curve. Some of the training sessions we have are: Ignite, Knowledge Transfer, TGIF, Tech Talk etc.

Signing in to the future

The workplaces of tomorrow will integrate diversity with creativity and marry innovation with inclusion. Futurist workplaces will be inspiring too, spurring individuals to juggle blue sky visioning with muddy-boots thinking.?

Author: Jayajit Dash