A recent KPMG study indicated that, 83% of mergers were unsuccessful in producing any business benefit as regards shareholder value. The prime reason being, employees who are at the core of an organization are apprehensive of a proposed merger because they fear layoffs, loss of identity, lack of increment, unfamiliar management work practices etc. This leads to a loss of employee productivity, morale, motivation and eventually results in instability amongst the work force. However these can be ironed out and a successful company can be built, if there is effective employee coaching, hand-holding and communication, that employee welfare will always be in the forefront. This was a valuable lesson I learnt over coffee with K S Vijay Kumar, Executive Vice President, HR, RFCL.
RFCL is one of those organizations which has gone through a bumpy ride. There was a time when the organisation was part of the large Ranbaxy family and then there was a leveraged buyout by none other than ICICI Venture Fund Management Company. Many employees saw it as a threat because everything said and done, ICICI was not in the leagues of Ranbaxy and certainly not in the Pharma sector.
I was very keen to understand about the approach adopted by Vijay and his team. Below are four key points from our free wheeling conversation that has helped RFCL build a great and respected workplace.

Employee communication:

In order to build trust, develop enthusiasm and motivate employees, an open and two ways communication has been practiced and encouraged. At a time, when the grapevine was at its best with rumours floating around, the organization thought it was best to address the communication from the root level. For this it was encouraged to keep all employees informed about everything that was happening around them. Townhalls and Newsletters became a regular feature to address any issue, however small it may have been.
The organisation’s open door policy helped them to align the employees with the larger business objective and also made them partners.

Appreciation and Inspiration culture:

The senior management used instant recognition to boost the confidence of the employees. Small things like a pat on the shoulder, a certificate, an appreciation card, group celebrations, rewarding the performers created a sense of belonging to the organization.
Employees became more forthcoming in suggesting ideas about how to make the organization a better workplace and it needs to be highlighted that most of these suggestions were implemented.

Buddy program: New employees in the organisation have to be nurtured so they are not lost in the maze of information and people. The management team started the practice of assigning a “Buddy” to make them comfortable with the organisation and integrate with the culture of the organisation culture.
The program helped in not only straightening the initial confusion and operational queries that a new joinee usually has, but also familiarizing with the work ethics.

Entrepreneurial culture:

The management team must be given credit for encouraging employees to come forward and take the ownership and initiative of the project, they are involved in. Vijay recommends that if an employee is given authority and responsibility to do a work, it is likely that the person will outperform the expectations.
During the transition phase, the core team used this as a platform for the management and employees for achieving the common vision of growth.
It has been 5 years since RFCL was acquired, since then the company has addressed many challenges and headed towards the path of growth. Vijay attributes this success to the employees who have shown trust and faith in the company.

It is with a great pride Vijay concludes that because of the work put in by the employees that today RFCL has been ranked No.2 in the Biotechnology and Pharmaceuticals industry segment and finds a place in the Top 100 Great Places to Work in India.
It only goes to show how a a tuning between the management, employees and the organisation can work wonders in creating a great workplace
Keep your feedback coming

Regards,
Sanjay