Building a Positive Workplace Culture: The Importance of Treating Employees as Internal Customers for Business Growth

In today's context, the relationship between employees and the workplace has evolved beyond the mere transaction of compensation and service. Building great workplaces and treating employees as internal customers is crucial for both the employee and organizational success. By creating a positive and productive work environment, businesses can find a winning hack that benefits all stakeholders.

The Holistic Approach to Employee Experience: Why does it matter?

In today's competitive job market, employees are more likely to seek out companies that prioritize their personal growth, well-being and provide a supportive work environment besides focusing on revenue targets. Additionally, fostering a positive workplace is significant for businesses to not just attract but even retain the top talent in the industry, which can ultimately have a positive impact on their bottom line.

Employee experience has a close connection with customer service in that our employees interact directly with clients and customers, and hence, can provide valuable insights. It is, therefore, beneficial to view employees as customers. Just as businesses meticulously study customer expectations and then design their value offering (be it a product or a service) to sustain their loyalty in the long run, it is vital that they extend the same consideration and attention to their employees.

Establishing and executing policies that exhibit empathy, trust and professional support for employees can have a significant constructive impact on the employee experience and create a more productive and healthier workplace. Establishing a great workplace is not just about offering perks such as free snacks, coffee, and tea; it requires investing in a comprehensive workplace experience strategy that prioritizes meeting employees' needs holistically.

Employee Experience Goals at Teleperformance India: Treating Employees as Internal Customers

As a leading omnichannel customer service provider, Teleperformance recognizes the value of its employees in delivering exceptional customer experience solutions for its clients. The philosophy behind all our people practices is simple yet effective, i.e., "Happy Employees = Happy Customers = Happy Clients". We understand that creating a great workplace extends beyond employee benefits and involves developing a long-lasting culture that promotes a sense of security and belongingness for all employees, where they feel valued, respected, and supported. At Teleperformance India, we are committed to building an inclusive workplace environment by implementing innovative programs across every aspect of employee experience, such as:

• Recruitment: While aligning with our global standards and best practices, we have transformed our selection process into a 100% digital recruitment drive, enabling us to source talent from across India, including Tier-2 and 3 cities, broadening our pool of potential candidates.
• Training & Development: Our training methodology, refined over 40 years, ensures the creation of progressive L&D initiatives that enable career growth opportunities for all employees. For instance, our STEP (Strive Towards Excellence Program), LEAD (Leadership Excellence Accreditation and Development), and JUMP programs are designed to enhance specific, professional skills across grades.
• Workplace Engagement: To encourage employee collaboration and engagement, we have set up clean, safe, and well-equipped ‘campuses’ that provide focused and collaborative workspaces, as areas for relaxation and rejuvenation. Each facility has a Fun Committee Team that plans engaging activities such as sports events, celebrations, and team competitions.
• Motivation & Retention: To nurture and retain the top talent in the industry, we conduct regular reward and recognition programs at both the program and company levels. Recognizing the significance of employee feedback, we have established easily accessible and consistent listening forums, such as our annual Employee Satisfaction survey and HRMS portals, to enable our people to share their thoughts.

An Exceptional Culture: The Path to Success Begins with Your Employees

In addition to providing a work environment that nurtures their professional development, we aim to foster our employees’ personal growth in all aspects of their lives. At Teleperformance (TP), both physical and mental well-being of our people, is one of our top priorities. Our TP Wellness program, which focuses on comprehensive mental health and wellness through awareness campaigns, interactive sessions, assessments, and professional assistance, is an example of our commitment to employee care.

We openly welcome every individual and respect their unique identities, regardless of gender or socio-economic background. For instance, TP Women is our program that supports and empowers women for career excellence while encouraging a healthy work-life balance. An exceptional employee culture that prioritizes employee well-being, happiness, and growth is sets us apart as an employer and has been recognized by several industry bodies, including:

• 10^th certification as a ‘Great Place to Work’ in the Best Employer in India category (2022)
• 3^rd consecutive honor among ‘India’s Best Workplaces for Women’ by Great Place to Work (2022)
• 3^rd consecutive recognition among ‘100 Best Companies for Women in India’ by Avatar and Seramount (2022)
• ‘Best Organization for Women’ award by Economic Times (2022)
• ‘D&I Awareness Campaign of the Year’ award at the 5^th D&I Vision and Innovation Summit (2022)

Teleperformance firmly believes that an inclusive work culture and a supportive work environment can enable an organization to reach its success goals. Our values, gender-smart workplaces and strong Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) culture have in fact, benefited us with an extensive pool of smart, passionate, and driven individuals from all walks of life. It is because of these dynamic people, who bring their talents, visions, empathy, and their whole selves to work, that we have established ourselves as a leading provider of world-class business services and have delivered remarkable customer excellence in every interaction!