Article: SPECIAL CATEGORY AWARDS WINNERS: BEST COMPANY FOR WOMEN

Employee Engagement

SPECIAL CATEGORY AWARDS WINNERS: BEST COMPANY FOR WOMEN

American Express India WIN (Women’s Interest Network) is an organization of American Express (Amex) employees that is seeking to build a community to support women in the workplace through idea sharing, networking and development forums. Launched in 2007, sponsored and managed by senior woman business leaders, this is a forum meant to celebrate diversity at Amex. WIN India aims to develop a community of employees who participate in addressing various workplace aspects related to women. This is done through various forums such as initiating Guest Speaker Series, Networking, Policy Reviews, mentoring opportunities and more. In 2009, Amex launched ‘GRACE’ – a mentoring program for women employees aspiring to grow into mid-management / leadership roles to help them build successful careers by supporting their professional development. The program is executed by senior business leaders and run in partnership with HR. As a part of this program, 21 young women leaders from across Amex India get an opportunity to undergo a structured mentoring program, work on a cross-functional project and participate in an experiential learning series for a period of 12 to 18 months. This program is designed to help women employees explore facets of the Amex business outside their immediate work areas and works as a platform to help them enhance their networking with leaders from all over the organization. In 2009, a focused team was set up to further the charter of understanding the ecosystem needed for women’s career progression. As a part of this effort, the team analyzed the internal diversity data to understand trends and patterns for developing women. The team also liaised with a reputed external research firm to conduct focus group discussions and interviews with senior and mid-management level male and female leaders to understand factors that aided or impeded women’s career growth. The data was analyzed to identify key focus areas for 2010. Along with internal data analysis, the project discovery team also benchmarked internal practices with industry peers. This helped Amex understand industry best practices to create a conducive and supportive work environment for women employees.
 

With a nearly 50:50 ratio of male to female employees (50.51:49.49 to be more precise!), Ernst & Young Global Shared Services is reckoned as an employer of choice for women

 

In order to ensure safety of female employees, Intel India discourages women employees to stay in office premises post office hours

 

American Express India

WIN (Women’s Interest Network) is an organization of American Express (Amex) employees that is seeking to build a community to support women in the workplace through idea sharing, networking and development forums. Launched in 2007, sponsored and managed by senior woman business leaders, this is a forum meant to celebrate diversity at Amex. WIN India aims to develop a community of employees who participate in addressing various workplace aspects related to women. This is done through various forums such as initiating Guest Speaker Series, Networking, Policy Reviews, mentoring opportunities and more. In 2009, Amex launched ‘GRACE’ – a mentoring program for women employees aspiring to grow into mid-management / leadership roles to help them build successful careers by supporting their professional development. The program is executed by senior business leaders and run in partnership with HR. As a part of this program, 21 young women leaders from across Amex India get an opportunity to undergo a structured mentoring program, work on a cross-functional project and participate in an experiential learning series for a period of 12 to 18 months. This program is designed to help women employees explore facets of the Amex business outside their immediate work areas and works as a platform to help them enhance their networking with leaders from all over the organization. In 2009, a focused team was set up to further the charter of understanding the ecosystem needed for women’s career progression. As a part of this effort, the team analyzed the internal diversity data to understand trends and patterns for developing women. The team also liaised with a reputed external research firm to conduct focus group discussions and interviews with senior and mid-management level male and female leaders to understand factors that aided or impeded women’s career growth. The data was analyzed to identify key focus areas for 2010. Along with internal data analysis, the project discovery team also benchmarked internal practices with industry peers. This helped Amex understand industry best practices to create a conducive and supportive work environment for women employees.

Ernst & Young Global Shared Services

With a nearly 50:50 ratio of male to female employees (50.51:49.49 to be more precise!), there is no doubt why Ernst & Young Global Shared Services should not be reckoned as an employer of choice for women. The Professional Women’s Network, which consists of three programs viz. Women’s Access (mentor-mentee sessions that give women employees the opportunity to network with, and be mentored by senior leaders), Working Mother’s Network (that provides a support system, sense of connection, and role models for new, expectant and veteran moms) and Professional Speaker Series (that provides women with the opportunity to listen to the views and experiences of well known women achievers with different perspectives on challenges and success at the workplace), promotes the development of women employees and aims at nurturing and empowering them. Ernst & Young GSS provides opportunities for professional women in all domains to reflect their leadership potential, the balance between personal and professional lives, internalized constraints, and future directions for a richer, more fulfilling and meaningful professional and personal life. This is done through the Leadership Development Program on ‘Enhancing Leadership Capacities and Potential among Professional Women’ conducted at IIM Ahmedabad. This workshop is meaningful to women searching for new energy and directions in their personal and professional lives. The objectives of the program are to enhance leadership capacities, understand power and authority issues, liberate oneself from any gender entrapments that constrain one’s potential, reconnect to one’s inner potential and wisdom, and to address the interconnectedness between mind, body and spirit in one’s personal and professional life to empower the self.

Intel Technology India Pvt. Ltd.

At Intel India, there is a conscious effort on diversity and inclusion with special programs for women. Says Praveen Vishakantaiah, Site President, Intel India, “At Intel, diversity is a way of life and it’s the key to its success as an innovative leader in technology. As much as 28% of Intel’s global workforce comprises of women. We take great pride in collective and individual talents, skills and contributions of our diverse employees and believe that our business accomplishments are a direct result of our worldwide diverse workforce.” Intel India has undertaken various initiatives to attract and retain women employees. Through the ‘Sparsh’ program, the company caters to the special needs of female employees such as wellness coaching, baking, salad and chaat workshops, Mother’s Room (where a room is provided with the Intel Clinic that ensures privacy and a hygienic environment for managing the challenges of a mother who returns to work), fresh vegetables stall, Intel Store (that offers apparels, bags, gift items, toiletries etc. thereby allowing female employees to shop at their own convenience), etc.
WIN, Women@Intel Network, is a formal platform for women at Intel India which anchors initiatives that foster personal and professional development of the women workforce. WIN events range from organizing career chats / round tables with visiting senior female executives, external speaker sessions and providing a platform for all women to network and discuss various topics. There is a special focus on performance management for female employees at Intel India ensuring that the female employees are not at disadvantage when opting for benefits like time-off, telecommuting, maternity, etc. Mandatory harassment avoidance classes are conducted for all employees and sanitized on Intel’s intolerance towards harassment. Proper forums such as Open Door, Ethics Reporting Website, etc, are established which do a fair and thorough investigation in case of problems.
In order to ensure safety of female employees, Intel India discourages women employees to stay in office premises post office hours. In case they have a need to work from home beyond office hours, they are reimbursed for their telephone and broadband charges completely. Women are also provided with safe transportation facilities to ensure they reach homes safely. Regular checks are conducted by internal security to ensure their safety. The company provides a flexible work environment to its female employees so as to enable them to balance personal life, and offers options for telecommuting, flexible work hours, part time work, time-off, etc.

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Topics: Employee Engagement, Culture, #BestPractices

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