Article: INDUSTRY AWARDS: Agro-based Industry

Culture

INDUSTRY AWARDS: Agro-based Industry

Monsanto India Ltd. At Monsanto India Ltd., employees have the opportunity to explore cross-functional roles, irrespective of a formal professional degree in the specific line of business. Testifies Sekhar Natarajan, India Region Lead, Monsanto India, “I joined the company 30 years ago and have had the opportunity to work in a new role every 3-4 years spanning various departments - from commercial to marketing. At Monsanto, people are in charge of their careers and have the opportunity to pursue their passion and their dreams.” Monsanto India ranks #1 in the Industry Category of the Agro-based/ Dairy/ Poultry sector and #33 in the Great Place to Work® Institute’s Study. People Matters speaks to Sekhar Natarajan, India Region Lead and Atul Sharma, Director Human Resources, to gain an insight into what makes Monsanto India a great workplace.
 

We believe in communicating to not only our existing employees but also the prospective employees what we do, how we do and why we do it

 

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Monsanto India Ltd.

At Monsanto India Ltd., employees have the opportunity to explore cross-functional roles, irrespective of a formal professional degree in the specific line of business. Testifies Sekhar Natarajan, India Region Lead, Monsanto India, “I joined the company 30 years ago and have had the opportunity to work in a new role every 3-4 years spanning various departments - from commercial to marketing. At Monsanto, people are in charge of their careers and have the opportunity to pursue their passion and their dreams.” Monsanto India ranks #1 in the Industry Category of the Agro-based/ Dairy/ Poultry sector and #33 in the Great Place to Work® Institute’s Study. People Matters speaks to Sekhar Natarajan, India Region Lead and Atul Sharma, Director Human Resources, to gain an insight into what makes Monsanto India a great workplace.

In your opinion, what makes Monsanto India a great workplace?
Sekhar Natarajan: There are so many reasons why Monsanto is a great workplace, but fundamentally it is our culture. We like to differentiate between ‘what is done’ vs. ‘how it is done’ in our organization. It is our culture bundled with people’s passion that drives our business - as everyone in our organization contributes to the lives of millions of farmers - be it our Front Line Sales Managers, our Finance Team or our Leadership team. The entrepreneurial nature of our colleagues, the inclusive culture of the organization where everyone is part of one family, the non-hierarchical culture and team orientation add to the excitement of working in Monsanto. Our culture helps in bringing together diverse thoughts and enables us to take richer decisions. At Monsanto, we encourage diversity of thinking and encourage the ability to say ‘no’ to decisions and practices our employees feel may not feasible.

How do you blend culture, business and people all in one thread?
Atul Sharma: In keeping with our culture, we at Monsanto don’t focus just on Star performers but on creating an environment wherein every one can perform to the best of their potential and beyond.We very strongly encourage the practice of cross-pollination of ideas to bring out the richness of diversity that adds value and facilitates high work productivity. In terms of business, we constantly innovate: be it in our our R&D efforts or supply chain, farmers connect, manufacturing practices or IT . We’ve helped improve farm productivity, farmer income and livelihoods. Our colleagues agree that there is no better satisfaction than to see the smile on the faces of Indian farmers, witness transformations in rural India as higher incomes pave the way to prosperity, better lives and education for future generations.

What practices differentiate Monsanto India from others of its ilk?
Sekhar Natarajan: I think our biggest differentiator is our people. I truly believe that even if you have good products, technology or methods, there is no substitute for good people. And this is why, we are proud of our people who have relentlessly served not only the organization but have truly made a difference in the lives of millions of farmers. Our Development Performance Reward (DPR) system is the backbone of our organization. We provide the orientation , integrate people into the culture of our organization, and provide an opportunity to build on our value systems based on people’s aspirations. We provide our colleagues a favourable work environment to help them do their best to make a difference and be the change agents of our organization. So, I think our people, my colleagues, are our biggest differentiators.

How do you retain and attract talent given the complexity of the bio-technology industry?
Atul Sharma: We believe in communicating to not only our existing employees but also the prospective employees what we do, how we do and why we do it. Our colleagues are as excited about the transparency we maintain within the organization as they are about the nobility of our business – of helping millions of farmers enhance their lives and contribute to the food and feed needs of our country. Our commitment to people development and constant endeavour to help them do better professionally and personally – as guided by our Global Competencies of developing and maintaining Relationships and Networks, acting with Courage and Candor, developing Initiative and Foresight, being Agile and focused on Result Orientation – helps us provide enriching careers.
 

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Topics: Culture, Employee Engagement, #BestPractices

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