SYKES sets the bar for global excellence as one of the Top Workplaces in Asia
For its outstanding efforts at shifting
focus on its people and promoting a sustainable workplace for them, Business
Process Outsourcing pioneer and top call center in the Philippines Sykes Asia,
Inc. bagged the Top Workplaces in Asia Award at the recently concluded 2019
Asia Corporate Excellence & Sustainability (ACES) Awards.
The ACES Awards recognizes successful
companies and individuals in Asia across two main domains: leadership and
corporate social responsibility. It values the services and achievements of
businesses, both large and small and national and international, for their
contributions to their communities and the world.
SYKES was commended for its various
programs focusing on developing employees to help them achieve the perfect Work
Life Balance while also allowing personal growth, making them one of the best
BPO companies in the Philippines to work for.
Specifically, ACES was impressed with
the high employee involvement in various engagement activities at SYKES. The
awards organization believes that these not only bring together employees of
similar interests but also serve a greater purpose of providing meaningful
contributions to society and communities.
“SYKES takes great pride in being
recognized as one of the Top Workplaces in Asia, as this just proves that our
employee-focused initiatives centered on promoting a healthy and lively working
environment are succeeding. Helping people is what we are all about, not only in
servicing our clients, but also in the way we take care of our employees. We
allow them to do meaningful work and learn in a fun and supportive office
environment that helps them grow their careers,” said John Sneed, Senior Vice-President of Area
Operations and Shared Services at Sykes Asia, Inc.
Under John’s guidance, SYKES has also developed
various initiatives focusing on employee empowerment that the 2019 ACES Awards
deemed him as one of the Outstanding Leaders in Asia. Currently based in Cebu,
Sneed notes that his win would not have been possible without his belief in the
importance of creating the perfect business environment.
“My experience at SYKES helped me find
and focus on the ‘power of its people’ – how supporting the employees and
creating a strong culture can deliver amazing results,” Sneed shared. “I have
always been a believer that creating the right environment for the employees,
setting them as your number one priority, and introducing various programs for their
growth and innovation ultimately support the work that we do.”
Promoting
work-life balance
SYKES dominates the Philippine BPO
workplace with almost 18,000 employees, about 4,000 of which are stationed in
Cebu. Despite this large population, SYKES maintains a healthy work-life
balance by conducting year-round engagement programs. This is to ensure that
everyone in the organization grows as employees and as individuals with their
mental and physical well-being of utmost importance.
Every year, employees look forward to
activities such as the Year-End Celebration, Sports Fest, Family Day, and
Customer Service Week.
During the Year End Celebration,
thousands of SYKESers gather in one venue and are treated with food,
entertainment, and raffle prizes to celebrate a fruitful year. SYKES’ grand
YEC, as in previous years, serves as an opportunity to appreciate all the
employees who excelled in their professions and gave equally excellent customer
service for the company.
Customer Service Week, commonly
referred to as CS Week, is an internationally recognized celebration observed
every first week of October to show how much the customer service industry and
the people who serve and support customers on a daily basis are valued and
commended. SYKES has been organizing this week-long activity for decades to
celebrate the hard work and efforts of its employees ─ the core and reason behind the organization’s continued
success.
Additionally, SYKES launched funded
interest groups dubbed as SYKES Choices (for Manila) and SYKES Involve (for
Cebu). These groups refer to recreational organizations for employees by
employees. They include a dance club, table tennis club, outdoors club, motorcycle
club, and anglers and fishing club, to name a few. The groups provide an opportunity
for employees to enjoy their hobbies and interests with their fellow employees outside
work.
SYKES employees are given the
opportunity to further expand their skills under different talent development
programs, such as the Career Selfie (Self-Improvement Education), SPARK, and
ALPHA (Accelerated Leadership Program for High Achievers). These programs
provide classes focused on developing business leadership and management abilities
necessary in career advancement.
Social
commitment
Being among the top BPOs in the
Philippines in 2019, SYKES also provides its employees with opportunities to
give back to the community through several corporate social responsibility
campaigns across different sectors through SYKES Cares, the philanthropy
program of SYKES in the Philippines. Primarily established as an education
advocacy arm, SYKES Cares has launched programs geared towards increasing access
to education by providing educational facilities and equipment to underprivileged
communities. Through the years, SYKES Cares has developed its endeavors for social
well-being (English training programs for BPO aspirants), economic growth
(rebuilding of communities and educational establishments), and environmental
protection (tree-planting activities and energy conservation programs).
At the heart of everything that SYKES
does is its purpose – to help, one caring interaction at a time – be it for the
clients, the customers, the employees, or the community.
Because of these efforts, employee
reception at SYKES as a workplace is always positive. Employees or brand
advocates share how it is a great privilege and opportunity to be working at a
pioneer in the Philippine call center industry. Moreover, the recent SYKES Global
Satisfaction Survey revealed that 82% of employees admitted that they are proud
of working at SYKES, and 73% said that they are likely to recommend a friend to
work in the company.
Starting its operations here in 1997, SYKES
is the first multinational call center to operate in the country. It is also
the first BPO company in the Philippines to venture out of Manila, opening the
first call center in Cebu in 2003. With over 22 years of experience in the BPO
industry, SYKES is a recognized industry leader in providing customer care and
widely considered to be the top BPO in the Philippines due to its innovative
services and supportive work environment that merit the ACES Awards, among
other local and international accolades.
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