Talent Management strategy

A talent management strategy acts as an enabler for an HR to form a standard for

their organisation. ASG technologies also have a similar line of thought wherein
they always put people first as they believe that it facilitates them to attract,
develop and retain the best talent out there in the industry which eventually
culminates to better results.

Talent Acquisition
The recruitment objectives of the organisation include selecting the most
qualified people in their domain with relevant work experience. It is also essential
to have diversity in terms of race, gender and age. For the organisation to have a
healthy mix of young and old talent, there is a particular need to hire young
talented college graduates. ASG targets individuals are passionate towards what
they do, possess integrity and are honest to not only the organisation but also
themselves.

ASG tech is an award-winning global software company who continuously support

innovation. While they big enough to matter, they are small enough to care. This
makes them an attractive choice for their targeted individuals. The recruitment
campaign done in colleges is also on the same lines.

ASG Technologies targets fresh hires mainly from engineering colleges. They
conduct campus hiring process in nearby colleges like VIT Vellore and NIT
Surathkal. There is a mandatory psychometric test to make sure that the
individuals' values are aligned with that of the organisation. The lateral hires are
done through multiple platforms like the company's official website and online
job portals. Apart from this, the company also organised targeted job fairs as a
part of the talent acquisition strategy.
Talent Development

ASG technologies' people first policy also emphasises on the incremental

development of the talent pool in the organisation, which is why they have taken
multiple steps in this direction. The first step was the establishment of the
continuous process to identify any skill gaps that exist among the employees. A
combination of performance reviews, assessments and multi-rater feedback was
utilised, which turned out to be exceptionally valuable in the long term. A
combination of techniques could prove to be exceptionally valuable. Distinct
emphasis was given on consistency to make it more effective.

There is an internal online ASG university which has a plethora of seminars,

training courses on the latest technologies, articles from renowned magazines.
The inputs from the previous step were used to design the initial course structure
of the university. It is continuously updated with the addition of multiple new
courses and seminars every month as per the employee's requirements identified
in the surveys and assessments.

There are also hands-on training sessions organised on new technologies with
certification option available. If the employees want a certification from an
outside agency like aws or google cloud, there is provision for that too. The
organisation bears the cost of accreditation provided two conditions are met. The
first is that the employee would be reimbursed only for those certifications he or
she successfully completes, while the second one is that the certification should
be relevant to the project he is on and should be approved by the immediate
manager.

ASG has also made it mandatory for every employee to complete at least three
and managers a minimum of five courses every financial year from the ASG online
university. Apart from these, ASG also organizes Management coaching sessions
so as to improve the efficiency of managers as well. These policies ensure that
there is a constant development of the talent pool in the organisation.
Career planning

Career planning at ASG technologies focuses on identifying positive characteristics

and uniqueness of the employees while providing the senior management
information about the calibre and capacity of the employees who can move
forward. The organisation's training and development program has benchmarked
a specific set of requirements at each level of the hierarchy. The company has the
same set of requirements for the lateral hiring as well. It also works on fulfilling
the skill gap to have a steady set of promotable employees. The usual trend has
been that a person begins his journey as a junior software engineer and then is
promoted to Associate software engineer after 1-2 years and the next promotion
is to software engineer after 2-3 years. Similarly, the senior software engineer is
achieved after 3-4 years which leads to a principal after 4-5 years.

Succession Planning
#barkha

Compensation and rewards

The organisation follows a structure wherein there is no concept of variable pay

involved. The salary structure is fixed across all levels.

There is a reward system in place for star performers to motivate them. This also
acts as an incentive to stay in the organisation.

A joining bonus is provided to the employees who are due to join at immediate
notice, i.e., within a fortnight of the selection. This is a bonus given only to the
experienced lateral hires and is not applicable to the campus recruits.

Relocation assistance is proffered to every prospective employee (including

campus recruits) who is initially residing outside Chennai. This benefit extended to
the entire immediate family of the employee as well. In this, initial
accommodation is also provided free of cost at a hotel or guesthouse for a limit of
10 days.
Medical insurance is also provided, which has the policy to cover the immediate
family of the employee.

Apart from these, there is a culture of giving the employees gifts during various
festivals. This not only acts as a motivator but also improves the atmosphere at
the workplace.

Performance Management

Performance management at ASG follows a multifaceted approach with an idea

to not only reward the star performers at every level but also motivate and
facilitate all the other employees as well to improve their performance.
There is an introduction to all the technologies and processes during onboarding
itself with an optional training program on the mainframe technologies of ASG.
These initiatives help smoothen the initiation of the employees, helping them in
performing better since the beginning itself.

There is a specially designed OJT (on the job training) module. It includes the likes
of classroom sessions and online modules, which allows the employees to
improve their skills and thus enhance their performance. This is optional in nature
and is specific to each of the departments.

Every department also has Personalised Development Plans (PDP). This is

expected to be in cognisance with expectations and should also show the blocks
where there is a scope of improvement. PDP acts as an enabler, which helps
employees be in a cycle of self-reflection and action to become more conscious of
their abilities and enhance them eventually. The components of PDP is in line with
talent mapping and also helps in equipping the employees for their prospective
positions.

There is also a Performance Improvement Plan, which is two months long and
designed specifically for underperformers wherein they are trained in the areas
they are lagging with the help of small projects. This gives them enough time to
cope up and learn the technology and at the same time gives them enough
confidence.
There is an annual performance review along with quarterly reviews. However,
the culture of a continuous progress review is promoted in the organisation to
make it more agile. The results of the reviews are crucial in the formulation of
changes to the talent management process. Apart from these, the line managers
are encouraged to give progress reviews continuously and inform the appropriate
HR manager in any case of under-performance so that there is an effective
solution provided with expediency.

Retention

ASG Technologies has been taking efforts in every direction to inculcate a culture
wherein the employees form a bond with the organisation from the very
beginning itself and do not feel averse about their workplace in anyway.
The new employees have an induction program on the first day wherein they
learn about their job, the culture of the organisation and the ways they can
contribute to the growth of the organisation in an individual capacity. There is
also a mentorship program in place wherein an employee is mapped to a senior
employee who acts as a mentor. The mentor is there to provide guidance only
and in no way is a supervisor. The recruits usually have a new perspective on the
problems, and at the same time, they have an opportunity to learn a lot from the
mentor so this serves as a win-win situation for all the parties involved.

The compensation, although fixed, is higher than the industry average, which also
acts as an added incentive for employee retention. There are other benefits
provided to the employees like joining bonus and relocation assistance to the
entire family.
There is also a reward system in place to motivate the star performers and act as
an incentive for them to stay in the organisation. There is also a culture to
exchange gifts among themselves during festivals. Along with it, all the employees
receive gifts from the company, which not only acts as a motivator but also
improves the atmosphere at the workplace and eventually plays a vital role in
retention.
ASG organises regular Management Coaching programs for the managers as they
strongly believe that an employee is more likely to quit if he does not like his boss.
The management coaching program is a leadership workshop for managers
wherein they learn how to interact and manage employees and their expectations
in a better way. These programs are mandatory and have been reviewed
positively since initiation.

The human resource department also regularly takes the initiative to stay
connected with line managers as well the employees to identify the underlying
problems. Their objective is to provide expedient and efficient solutions to the
discovered problems.

Any other Talent Management Systems

Talent Management System at ASG is constantly improving, so there are no

explicit alternatives. The policies that seem to be not having the desired effect are
continuously replaced with new enhanced ones.

Measuring effectiveness of Talent Management Systems

Although there are no formal methods to measure talent management system’s

effectiveness, ASG tech can still see a direct consequence of the policies on
attrition, which could predict a trend. There are other aspects also like succession
planning, which act as an informal indicator of the effect.