Consistent Performance Pays
As the Indian economy goes through the ebb and flow of growth and progress, the companies, as the key drivers of the economy, too, have to undergo transformation in the way they work and grow. They have to constantly adapt to the changing dynamics to stay ahead of the curve. And those that give a good all-round account of themselves while upholding their core values during challenging times are feted as ‘most respected companies’, admired by peers and competitors alike.
The 2023 edition of BW Businessworld’s Most Respected Companies (MRC) survey was conducted by our knowledge partner TechSci Research. A perception-based study, the survey examines aspects such as corporate social responsibility, women friendly policies, a rewarding work culture in addition to an effective growth plan and financial returns. The study mapped the current perception levels in the minds of employees and self-employed individuals in India. A total of 21 sectors were identified, and 553 respondents were used for research, including senior and mid-level employees.
Overall, Reliance Industries, the country’s largest private sector company, emerged at the top closely followed by Tata Consultancy Services based on the chosen parameters. The top five companies included Amazon India, HDFC Bank and Google India. The next five included Hindustan Unilever, Apple India, Wipro, State Bank of India and Infosys. Clearly, there emerges a theme of consistent leadership, healthy financial returns and effective growth plan among all the companies, including those featured in the top 20. The overall list is of 55 companies.
These companies have been ranked based on the specific survey parameters. Financial performance, work culture, focus on developing and adopting new technologies and corporate governance were considered to be the critical parameters. Women friendly policies, prevailing policy framework and the companies’ focus towards CSR activities were also factored in, while finalising the survey results.
Reliance Industries topped the list of companies with the highest Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) spending in FY2022 followed by HDFC Bank, Tata Consultancy Services and Tata Steel. Companies such as Wipro, ITC and Infosys have also appeared in the list of companies based on CSR spending. The survey finding shows high scores to companies that spent significantly more on CSR in FY2022 despite the headwinds emerging from the second wave of pandemic in the first half of fiscal year 2021-22. Mukesh Ambani's Reliance spent Rs 1,185 crore on CSR in FY2022 while Tata Consultancy Services spent Rs 727 crore on the same. HDFC Bank spent Rs 736 crore on its CSR initiatives, a 15.92 per cent increase over the previous year. HUL took part in a significant number of CSR activities impacting millions of lives. Most companies profiled here contributed large sums towards CSR and sustainability goals thereby earning high scores in this perception-based survey.
According to TechSci Research: “The survey was aimed at identifying the most respected companies in FY2022 based on the people’s perception across various sectors in India. The major rating parameters of the survey included financial health, work culture, corporate governance and CSR activities. In the parameters, the research focused more on financial return, effective growth plan and corporate social responsibility because even after pandemic, companies were able to achieve profit and they helped the society by indulging in various CSR activities in difficult times. The survey results show the level of trust and confidence people have in leading corporations operating in India.”
How We Measured Respect
The objective of the study was to map the current perception level in the minds of employees and self-employed individuals in India.
TechSci identified 21 sectors and conducted research across 553 respondents including senior and mid-level employees. The sectors covered included Apparel/Textile, Automobile, Banking, Cement, Chemicals and Paint, Consumer Durables, Ecommerce, FMCG, Handset Manufacturers, Healthcare, Hospitality, Infrastructure (Power, Heavy Engineering), IT/ITeS, Metals and Minerals, NBFCs, Oil & Gas, Pharmaceuticals, Real Estate, Retail, Technology, Telecom (service providers), Energy and Lifestyle.
The entire survey exercise was divided into four stages. It began with the framing of the questionnaire, followed by respondent identification, data collection and finally analysis of the data. The framing of the questionnaire was an elaborate process that included going into the details specific to the companies and sectors, creation of an algorithm of questions to give a scientific perspective to the questionnaire, translation of the questionnaire in relevant languages to elicit effective response from all the sectors.
The questionnaire was designed to gauge the respondents’ perception based on eight parameters, including effective growth plan, financial return, innovative product/services, trustworthy leadership, embracing latest technologies, corporate social responsibility, women friendly policies and work culture.
Respondents from more than 80 companies were identified based on their age and work experience. The largest pool of 227 respondents included those with more than eight years of work experience and aged 35 and above. The next lot of 180 respondents had 4-7 years of work experience and were in the 28-35 age group. The smallest lot of 146 were self-employed individuals aged 30 and above. The database was created targeting employment hubs such as Noida, Delhi, Gurgaon, Mumbai, Pune, Hyderabad, Bangalore, Kolkata and Chennai.
The data was collected from employees through telephonic interviews, links sent through email and LinkedIn. Automated validation checks enabled data hygiene, followed by stringent quality checks on the data files. About 10-15 industry employees and 10-15 non-industry employees were selected from each sector to map the perception straight from the stakeholders as well as from the outsiders. In addition, 20-25 respondents from each industry were identified and asked to rate top 3 companies of their domain. Finally, each of the parameters were mapped on a 5-point scale but financial return, effective growth plan and CSR were given more weightage. In the last stage, weightages were assigned against the eight parameters and a score was calculated for ranking the most respected companies.
Our heartiest congratulations to all the rank holders and best wishes for their future endeavours.
