Best companies to work for: How Abbott India is scaling new heights through its inclusive employee programme

In addition to offering competitive salaries and benefits, Abbott prioritises creating a meaningful work experience. This it does through its well-defined development process that ensures that employees can upskill and grow in their careers. Mukerji elaborates, “We offer development opportunities for employees to strengthen and upskill, with access to appropriate training in their professional and personal journey.” This includes training programmes like cultivating a growth mindset and digital capability building, along with the development of market-specific skills.

It also has an innovative learning platform for employees. Through virtual and e-learning resources, employees can access a comprehensive knowledge base. Plus, “learning gigs” on the company’s Career Connect portal offer short-term, cross-functional projects that enhance skill sets and support growth.

“All our initiatives are based on ensuring that we help our employees build purpose-filled careers within the organisation. We help our people thrive both at work and in their personal lives,” says Mukerji. To make this happen, the firm focusses on employees’ physical, mental, social, and financial wellbeing, she says.

Mukerji says the firm’s sales training, business excellence, and learning and development teams address specific skills and market competence training requests. “We believe that development and training programmes should go beyond business and [we] have customised these on various market-leading topics such as cultivating a growth mindset, digital capability building, resilience, annual collaboration, and strategic planning.”

Underpinning all these initiatives is the leveraging of technology to streamline processes. In 2020, Abbott launched SmaHRty, an AI-powered HR chatbot that provides instant answers to employee queries about policies and benefits. “We empower our teams with innovative digital tools for a seamless employee experience and realised efficiencies. The chatbot enables the HR team to be more productive with their time by streamlining, automating, and accelerating the process of resolving employees’ queries,” says Mukerji.

To reflect the communities Abbott serves, it has laid emphasis on diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives. Mukerji says, “As part of our global 2030 Sustainability Plan, we shared our goal to achieve gender balance across our global management team with at least 45% female representation.” Programmes like the Women Leaders of Abbott (WLA) create a network of female employees and provide access to mentors, networking opportunities, and resources for professional development. Additionally, initiatives like “Happy Feet” are intended to provide a supportive environment for working mothers returning from maternity leave.

There’s also a programme specifically aimed at women returning from career breaks, the “Abbott Second Careers Engagement Program”, that reintegrates them into the workforce with flexibility. Additionally, it has a pipeline of future talent from underrepresented groups in STEM fields.

“Another example is the Working Mothers of Abbott forum, which provides support, guidance, experiential learning, and networking opportunities to support working mothers. The aim is to provide the means for women to enhance their talent and develop professionally,” says Mukerji.

To foster an inclusive environment, Abbott also has employee networks like PRIDE and disABILITY that provide safe spaces for LGBTQ+ and differently-abled employees to connect, collaborate, and advocate for themselves.

The company implements in-depth talent management practices to identify and develop successors for critical roles. This ensures a smooth transition and continued leadership.

With over 12,000 employees, Abbott’s India employee strength is second only to the US one. It believes its dedication to employee growth and well-being has translated into healthy business results. The revenue of Abbott India, the listed entity, grew 9.2% year-over-year (YoY) to Rs 1,437 crore in Q3FY24, while its net profit jumped 26% YoY to Rs 311 crore. The listed entity only accounts for a part of the pharma business. Other businesses, including nutrition, devices and diagnostics, are part of privately held companies.

Considering its results, Abbott’s focus on its employees might become an example for others to follow. 

@neetu_csharma