We don’t want to be the biggest, we want to be the best,” says P. R. S. Oberoi, executive chairman, The Oberoi Group. This is perhaps the motto that has catapulted The Oberoi Group into the selected list of the best employers for 2016.
“Our values guide and inspire us to do what is right and not what is easiest,” says Vikram Oberoi, managing director and chief executive officer, The Oberoi Group.
The company believes that its competitive advantage stems from a single-minded focus on creating memorable experiences for its guests. Every key stakeholders in the organisation are wired towards this motto and drives it as a culture through behaviors, people processes and work environment. The Oberoi Centre of Learning and Development has been a key specimen of this culture for many years.
“In a world where technology and guest expectation is changing fast, The Oberoi Centre of Learning and Development as an institution has been able to consistently set learning and development benchmarks which have redefined the boundaries of service excellence,” says K. S. Bakshi, executive vice-president-HR, The Oberoi Group. One of the most coveted initiatives at The Oberoi Group is it liberates its team members from the need to seek prior approval for any initiative they believe will delight guests is ‘eMpower’. This initiative enforces a sense of ownership and pride in guest service and delight, the company claims.
The other initiative that helps the company offer the best services to its guests is achieved through its ‘Small Improvement Teams’ spread across the hotels of The Oberoi Group. Small Improvement Team comprises of team members directly involved with service delivery contributing to enhancing the overall guest experience by carefully analysing the Guest Questionnaire Scores to look for concerns or any area with a low Net Promoter. The Small Improvement Teams strive to provide solutions, through innovative ideas, to address the concern areas and develop an action plan mapped with the relevant training.
According to its annual report, the increase in salaries of managerial personnel for the group stood at 16.55 per cent for 2014-15 over the previous year. The group has structured the remuneration to align with the company’s interests taking account of the company’s strategies and risks. Under ‘drive performance’ the executive compensation has been linked to individual and company performance. Then the group has created two more programs called the ‘external equity’ and the ‘internal equity’. Under external equity, the executive compensation is designed to be competitively benchmarked with the general industry compensation as applicable for various roles. Under the internal equity program the executives performing similar role which have similar complexities are paid at similar compensation levels.
In order to encourage the chefs, the Oberoi Centre of Learning and Development conducts culinary workshops where chefs travel to various hotels. This program also creates training opportunities for chefs.
ashish.sinha@businessworld.in
BW Reporters
Ashish Sinha is an experienced business journalist who has covered FMCG, auto, infrastructure, tourism, telecom among several other beats. Ashish has keen interest in the regulatory scenario impacting different sectors. He writes on aviation, railways, post and telegraph, infrastructure, defence, media & entertainment, among a wide variety of other subjects.
