How Marico is preparing for the preferences of new-age professionals

Amit Prakash, CHRO, Marico

In its quest to nurture the leaders of tomorrow, FMCG major Marico has created several programmes and signature experiences that maximise their true potential and enable them to make a difference, Amit Prakash, CHRO at Marico, told Moneycontrol in an interview.

Such steps have helped the maker of Parachute coconut oil and Saffola edible oils maker control its attrition to around 15 percent in FY22 compared with over 20 percent across industries.

Marico has also adopted the Ways of Work (WoW) model which enables a flexible hybrid working model and allows it to tap a wider talent pool. Based on a roster system, employees are currently working from the office on alternate weeks in a month. Edited excerpts:

What are your key takeaways from recent HR trends? How has Marico reacted to them?

Today, the fundamental need for any organisation is to create a future-ready workplace and this can be created when the people strategy of the organisation is directly linked to the business strategy.

Diversity and inclusivity have become essential components to achieve business excellence. We recently revamped our diversity and inclusivity policies and established the Inclusion and Diversity (I&D) Council, intending to curate a culture where diverse perspectives across levels are equally heard and valued. We also conduct periodic Glint Engagement Surveys to take feedback from our members to identify opportunities for improving engagement and efficiency.

The pandemic enabled everyone to reimagine the workplace and think differently about how work gets done. Through our new Ways of Work (WoW) model, we have enabled a flexible hybrid working model. This model aims to appeal to the preferences of new-age professionals while delivering on business needs. Location flexibility has also allowed us to tap a wider talent pool.

Thirdly, as businesses evolve continuously, the need to groom and nurture talent within the organisation has been a critical focus across the HR fraternity. At Marico, we have a six-month-long journey in the form of a ‘Lead with Impact Program’ for ‘high potential managers’ that enables them to further sharpen their leadership skills, and business acumen and take accountability.

How has been the attrition in the last two years?

We have always promoted a culture of diversity, inclusion, openness, transparency and meritocracy which has helped us in not only attracting but also retaining our top talent. We have kept our talent value proposition contextual to the future of the industry to attract fresh talent and enable them to stay and grow along with the organisation.

In our quest to nurture the leaders of tomorrow, we have created several programmes and signature experiences that maximise their true potential and enable them to make a difference.

Apart from that, we have taken significant strides in D&I and have created an I&D Council to accelerate Marico’s continuous endeavour to build a diversity ready, diversity conscious, futuristic and inclusive workplace.

We believe that all these endeavours have been instrumental in helping us control our attrition to around 15 percent in FY22, even in the turbulent times of great resignation, when the attrition rate jumped to over 20 percent across industries.

How is the talent landscape in the FMCG sector changing across India?

The talent landscape has seen a major shift in the past few years. The workforce of tomorrow is mindful of the kind of companies they want to be associated with, one who respects individuality, has a significant sustainable impact, ensures flexibility and supports them in their purpose towards society.

Purpose-led goals act as catalysts to improve productivity, enhance engagement and provide job satisfaction. The future workforce believes in driving meaningful outcomes and expects organisations to give them the freedom to be themselves and trust them to get the job done.

Monetary benefits and job security are not enough to motivate this generation, they rather prioritise better work-life balance, mental wellbeing, and purpose-driven roles while weighing the opportunity.

What is the hiring plan for next year?

Leveraging our learnings through the pandemic and re-imagining the Marico of the future, we aspire to attract new-age talent across diverse backgrounds, education, and experience. We recently launched an AI-based recruitment platform to ensure diverse and unbiased hiring.

To further strengthen a diverse talent pipeline, we undertake dedicated efforts to identify and hire differently abled candidates through specialist recruitment partners.

Additionally, through our flagship campus competition ‘Over the Wall’, we engage with students from a range of B-schools, providing them with an opportunity to share innovative business ideas, work on live projects with our team and eventually offer job opportunities to selected students.

What is the prevalent working mode at Marico?

Marico is currently following the hybrid work model. We were the first few companies in India to launch the new WoW design that prioritised the hybrid model, offering our members greater flexibility by giving them the benefits of working from home as well as the office. This enabled them to better focus on their work-life balance while delivering on business commitments.

Basis a roster system, our members are currently working from the office on alternate weeks in a month. We also offer location flexibility options to all our members across grades based on their roles and individual needs, allowing them to work from a location outside the base location of their role.

Further, to prevent any potential feelings of workplace disconnect amongst our members who are working remotely for an extended period, we have ensured that they are always virtually connected via virtual catch-up sessions to build a relationship amongst members.

When guiding junior and mid-level HRs for hiring candidates, what do you advise them to always look for in prospective hires?

Being an FMCG organisation, we believe that there is a need to have adequate social representation to understand the continuously evolving needs of consumers effectively.

Therefore, while hiring, our focus is to attract talent from diverse backgrounds with a key focus on three pillars of diversity: gender, ability and thought. Similarly, for our flagship campus programmes, we hire talent from premier B-schools and undergraduate institutes.

What special requirements does Marico require from managers?

We conduct required training for all our hiring managers and have empowered them with multiple assessment tools to yield sharper hiring results and to identify the right talent that fits in the Marico culture. We have also created data-enabled models for a few functions to predict the success of new hiring during the interview process.

[This interview has been edited for length and clarity]