Interview | Hiring at Amway India is aligned with core organisational values: CHRO Shantanu Das

At Amway, we have not witnessed any major impact from these trends. The primary reason being, as a global organisation, we have always been driven by the strong founder fundamentals of ‘Freedom, Family, Hope & Reward’.

Rewards and recognition, a hybrid work model and various policies, including Flexi leaves, women-centric policies, etc, which allow our employees the liberty to balance their personal and professional lives, have proved to be excellent ways of developing a stable and efficient workforce.

Having said that, I feel that this trend will put pressure on employees, too, to upskill. And on employers to be open to a change in work arrangements, to focus on learning and development, and to train people managers to lead their teams with empathy.

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In that context as well, at Amway we always try to upskill and analyse skill gaps and provide the necessary training. We firmly believe it is an important key factor that helps an organisation accomplish its goals, improve efficiency and productivity. It has had a positive impact on employee retention at Amway as well as the overall business.

What is your take on the moonlighting debate?

It is imperative to understand what differentiates a great company from an average one.

I think it’s fine to encourage employees to continue pursuing their passions and provide them opportunities to share their success in fields outside their work domain. This instils a sense of being valued and appreciated.

At Amway, we not only encourage employees to continue to pursue their hobbies and passions but also give them a platform —‘Beyond Work’ — unless it conflicts with the company’s interests and affects their performance.

However, what does not go with our culture — and we do not believe our employees would do this — is taking up employment opportunities outside Amway while staying with the company.

What kind of attrition has Amway seen in the last two years? How do you predict the future in this regard?

We have always believed in providing our employees with a good work-life balance and empowering them through multiple initiatives that reflect in many of the benefit programmes.

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With the current working model and the various flexible and developmental policies at Amway India, we have not witnessed major attrition. Our employees are at the heart of who we are, and all our policies as well as the hybrid working model with flexibility have been great pull factors for our employees.

What is your hiring plan for next year? What is the strategy to attract the best talent?

We want to tap all sources to hire the best talent from campuses, employee referrals, and the job market through portals/consultants etc. The strategy we follow to attract the best talent is looking for candidates who are stable in their jobs, who fit our organisation’s culture, who have the potential for next roles, and who are not offer shoppers.

What are the roles you are hiring for?

The health and wellness industry in the country is witnessing growth and this is set to open multiple avenues for the right talent. With Amway being one of the leading players in that space, we will continue to expand our product portfolio through science and innovation and focus on strengthening our workforce across functions, including the science and innovation, research and development, digital, e-commerce and marketing functions.

How is Amway enabling flexibility for its employees? What percentage of employees currently work from offices? What does the future look like since most companies are planning to embrace work from the office?

We continue to have a hybrid model, where our employees are encouraged to come to the office at least three days a week, with the flexibility of deciding the days and number of hours they want to operate from the office, in consultation with their uplines/HODs.

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We believe this is an excellent method to ensure work-life balance and develop a stable and efficient workforce. Also, our policies involve flexi leaves, which allow our employees the liberty to balance their personal and professional lives.

We have 50-60 percent of employees working from the office and would like to follow this practice in future too, giving our employees the convenience to work in a favourable environment without hampering productivity.

The pandemic has brought a significant change in the way we behave and working from home is one of them. I think today all corporations should support a hybrid work culture that increases productivity and work-life balance.

What kind of progress have you made on the diversity and inclusion front?

Amway’s diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) vision reflects aspirations that spring from our heritage. Our strategy rests on three strategic pillars. ‘Inclusive and accountable leaders’ advocate for and display inclusive behaviour and are responsible for integrating DEI into their operations.

Secondly, we are creating an environment where employees feel valued and safe being themselves, and sharing their diverse perspectives. Employees are given tools and resources to remove barriers to inclusivity. Workplace behaviours reflect sensitivity to employee needs and cultural norms.

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Thirdly, we have a diverse workforce to support our LRBP (Long Range Business Plan). DEI is embedded into all talent practices and processes, including community engagement, recruitment, employee development, promotion & compensation. Goals are established considering the existing Amway Direct Selling Partner population and needs, untapped customer segments, and underrepresented employee populations.

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

Agility is key. While our hiring is very process-oriented, we ensure it is agile, smooth and aligned with the core organisational values arriving from our Founder Fundamentals, which are ‘Partnership, Integrity, Personal Worth, Achievement and Personal Responsibility’.

These values are in the very DNA of the Amway world and our competencies are a result of the above values. Our selection process has a significant weightage on fitment to ‘Amway Values’ at all levels.

What special requirements does Amway India have for managers?

While we look for job fitment, prior experience and skill sets, the right candidate should also manifest Amway’s core values.

Our managers undergo regular training to help them enhance their feedback skills and role modelling in day-to-day conversations with teams.

This helps our workforce become more effective in their roles, increase engagement and motivation, help employees grow professionally, develop skills to perform at a higher level, and drive better organisational outcomes while building a future-ready business.

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[This interview has been edited for length and clarity]