Tops in Employee Satisfaction
Bayer HealthCare Pharmaceuticals in Canada promotes staff loyalty in a highly competitive employment market
The basketball court and other amenities are part of the Life at Work program that benefits the employees of Bayer HealthCare Pharmaceuticals, as Bayer Schering Pharma is called in Canada. But anyone who knows Phil Blake will realize that the program is about a lot more than just new sports facilities. “The success of our company rests directly upon its employees,” Blake explains. “The company as a whole can only succeed when the well-being of our employees is assured.” For Blake, the workplace environment is a key element in employee motivation and success.
Employees as a competitive advantage
Understanding the importance of qualified employees is one thing. But hiring and keeping these employees is something else entirely. Bayer manages to do both. The company succeeds in attracting outstanding hires, and only approximately 3 per cent of its employees depart for other companies each year. This annual turnover rate is much lower than that of its Canadian competitors.
This outstanding retention rate should not be taken for granted in Canada’s current hot employment market. According to Maclean's, a weekly current affairs magazine similar to the German magazine Focus, Canada is now experiencing the biggest employment boom in a generation. Prospective hires usually have a choice among job offers, so any company that requires highly qualified staff must offer more than a just a competitive salary as inducement. Even then, there is no guarantee that skilled employees will remain at a company.
The low employee turnover rate at Bayer HealthCare Pharmaceuticals is not just a matter of coincidence. Indeed, the company is extremely well informed about its employees’ needs. This is thanks to feedback from an employee survey, which asked for suggestions to improve the workplace. The survey feedback was assessed by an employee committee, which developed a plan to put the ideas into practice. The Life at Work committee also looked at competitors to see what other companies were doing for their employees. The result was the Life at Work program, which was launched in April 2007.
Work and Relaxation
One of the first things a visitor will notice are the new company facilities that bear the Life at Work logo. Free fitness classes are held at the newly renovated fitness studio, which also boasts brand-new fitness equipment. In 2007, the company also completed an outdoor mutli-purpose court that the employees use regularly for volleyball, basketball, tennis, and even ball hockey matches. The teams meanwhile compete against each other in a company intramural league. A golf putting green and driving range also was built this year. Though golf might appear a rather exclusive pastime by European standards, in Canada it is a sport for the masses.
However, sometimes relaxation is better achieved by means other than sports. For this reason, the company also provides the facilities for its employees to take time out of their work day. For example, the Life at Work program has also set up a Quiet Room, a place where employees can take a break and relax for a while without interruptions from telephone calls and emails. Some employees use the room on a regular basis during the day as a brief retreat from their office. This kind of workday break is as important as basketball and fitness activities. “When an employee takes a break to relax, afterwards he or she is energized and able to concentrate on the many important tasks at hand,” says Phil Blake.
Communication within and across hierarchies
The Bayer HealthCare Pharmaceuticals Canada team has accomplished yet another important goal, namely establishing a solid framework for communication. However, setting up a lounge with billiards and foosball tables where employees can come together informally, is unique in the pharmaceutical industry.
The Life at Work program was launched this past April, and its results will be evaluated over the course of the coming year. Bayer Canada has already begun to reap the rewards of the Life at Work program. Bayer Inc. was designated as one of the 100 Top Employers for 2008 by Maclean’s Magazine. Indeed, in the Toronto area corporate rankings issued by the Toronto Star, the largest newspaper in Canada, the company ranks among the 50 top employers. “Life at Work definitely contributed to our outstanding rating,” says Phil Blake. However, the informal feedback by his colleagues is just as important as this official kudos. No wonder, considering what his employees say about Life at Work. One of them puts it in a nutshell: “This new program makes me look forward to coming in to work every day,“ said Paul Newman, Market Manager, Levitra®.
