We will definitely continue to improve our employee health care offerings, not just insurance products, but primarily programs to support psychological health and general wellbeing. We would very much like to make additional protective measures and restrictions for employees a thing of the past. We miss physical encounters, lively smiles and emotions.
How do corporate events "feel" and how will they be held in 2021?
Most events are moving to an online format, which requires mastery of facilitation techniques from event presenters. We are learning and trying to find new formats of interaction with employees. So we bought a special platform for large meetings and corporate events. But all this, of course, does not replace live communication.
What difficulties did you have in translating C&B-programs into an online format?
In general, nothing that comes to mind. We've had all major benefits available "remotely" for quite some time. A VMI policy with access to telemedicine comes in the mail, an employee discount is available at an online IKEA store, and all bonus and payroll calculations are reflected on employee portals.
What challenges and opportunities do colleagues see in 2021? What is the HR community talking about most right now?
At our company in 2021, we are focusing on the topic of employee retention, working through onboarding and training programs, and working through and improving our benefits package to be an even more attractive employer.
The HR community is increasingly asking how to move on after the pandemic. No one will argue that employees who have tried working from home now see a big advantage in companies that have mixed work options, another interesting question is how to handle everything correctly and properly compensate such types of work.
Hopefully, our experience that I will share at the conference will inspire some of my colleagues to be bolder and see mixed formats as more of a plus than a threat.
Tell us a little bit about your "Life After" case study. New formats of work due to changes in the RF Labor Code," which you presented at the Total Rewards online conference?
The Ingka Group manages several types of business in Russia: the retail chain of IKEA stores, distribution centers, and MEGA shopping centers. For each type of business it is necessary to find the optimal approach to work.
At the conference I told about how we determined for ourselves what format of work would be optimal for each area, about how we solve the question of the design of different types of work, and what benefits we see for the business in the new post-coveted normality.