Employer Brand in India:

A Strategic HR Tool
Published by the Society for Human Resource Management
“andEmployer brand is about capturing the essence of an organization in a way that engages current
prospective talent. It expresses an organization’s ‘value proposition’—the entirety of its culture,
systems, attitudes and employee relationships, providing a new focal point for the company.”
Manmohan Bhutani, Vice President, People and Operations, Fiserv India
Employer Brand in India: A Strategic HR Tool
Introduction
Today, an effective employer brand is
essential for competitive advantage.
Increasingly, Indian corporations are
becoming intentionally strategic to uti-
lize the employer brand to attract and
retain talent and, ultimately, to expand
and grow. To gain an understanding
of how the concept of employer brand
is being leveraged by multinational
corporations with operations in India,
the Society for Human Resource
Management (SHRM) interviewed
Indian HR executives in three diverse
industry sectors: 1) the banking and
financial services industry (BFSI), 2)
global supply chain solutions, and 3)
clinical research organizations (CRO).
Their stories reveal an intense focus to
connect with their Indian marketplace
by using many strategies successfully
demonstrated in the global marketplace.
Banking and financial
services industry (BFSI)
Manmohan Bhutani, Vice
President, People and
Operations, Fiserv India
www.fiserv.com
Global supply chain solutions
Vijayan Pankajakshan,
Director – Human Resources,
CHEP India Pvt. Ltd.
www.chep.com
Clinical research
organizations (CRO)
Mukund Mandayam, Director,
Human Resources, Quintiles India
www.quintiles.com
This article provides a glimpse into
the world of three specific Indian
companies—each relatively new in
India—and offers an insider’s view of
their respective challenges, benefits and
opportunities to develop and promote
their employer brand to gain market
share in India. Written at a meta level,
giving a broad perspective, and based
on research studies and on-the-ground
experience in India, this article presents
insight into the employer brand as a
differentiator for talent management
in India. Though it is not intended to
exclusively represent the employer brand
experiences of all Indian corporations,
this information will be of interest
to both Indian and non-Indian HR
professionals: Indian corporations
seeking to learn more about the value
proposition of the employer brand
from an HR perspective, multinational
corporations exploring doing busi-
ness in India, and non-Indian HR
professionals and organizational leaders
learning about evolving human resource
management practices in India.
The Value of the Employer
Brand in India
“The Employer Brand—A Strategic
Tool to Attract, Recruit and Retain
Talent” highlights that HR uses the
employer brand for three main reasons:
1) organizational culture and employee
fit; 2) positive outcomes for recruiting;
and 3) retaining talent with corporate
values and a team-based culture.1
At its most effective, the employer
brand is a long-term strategy with a
transparent message that promotes the
organization as an employer of choice.
The evolving and expanding focus
on Brand India is one of many great
changes occurring in the Indian
business landscape. In India’s Global
Powerhouses: How They Are Taking on the
World, author Nirmalya Kumar points
out that brand building—the image and
the recognition—is a long-term effort
that requires substantial resources. “The
shackles of Brand India, where even
sophisticated people outside India see
it as associated with call centers and
software engineers, are not consistent
with creating and managing […]
consumer products.” He notes impor-
tant exceptions where the stereotypical
India image can be beneficial, such as
in niches related to what may be seen as
“exotic India” (foods or fabrics, etc.).
At the same time, he says that “Brand
India is also complex. In terms of hard
power (i.e., cash) […] India is poor,
especially compared to China […] How-
ever, when it comes to soft power (ideas
and values), Brand India—because of its
history, large private sector, functioning
democracy, and free press as well as
the relatively peaceful coexistence
of its multicultural, multi-religious
population—has a positive image.”2
“ The rise of India, Inc. can
be summarized in four words:
from local to global.”
Nirmalya Kumar
India Unleashed, 20093
The increasing focus on competitive
advantage is leading many firms to
rethink their employer brand. “India,
Inc.”—a common term used in India to
refer to India’s corporate sector—aims
to positively build on opportunities
as the world economy strengthens,
and the employer brand is a prime
example of a progressive HR practice
in India. As highlighted by Indian
management researcher and author
Jyotsna Bhatnagar, the employer brand
is an important differentiator in India
for talent management. The fit between
employer and employee is important
Employer Brand in India: A Strategic HR Tool 1
for hiring compatibility. Yet, research
shows that Indian companies do not
always intentionally develop employer
branding interventions. “Infosys,
Wipro and TCS did not intentionally
build their brands; rather, they focused
on building a productive workplace,
resulting in happy employees, and their
brands were the result of that founda-
tion,” says Mr. Bhatnagar. “For other
organizations in India, such as RMSI
and Google, which already have strong
“ Employer brand values in our company are particularly
significant, as the global economic crises and demand contraction
have brought to the fore the criticality and urgency of
environment care and protection issues as an important
criteria for maintenance and development of goods and services
into the future.”
Vijayan Pankajakshan, Director – Human Resources, CHEP India Pvt. Ltd.
employer brands, their goal is to ‘live’
the brand.”4 As illustrated in Figure 1,
the value of the employer brand in
India is multifaceted and mirrors those
values seen as critical by most successful
multinational corporations. If effectively
marketed internally and externally, the
employer brand in India has a strong
value proposition, with core corporate
values at its foundation. A powerful
employer brand has the capacity to
attract and retain talent and represent
quality to its customers, with the goal
of gaining global recognition in a
sustainable manner. “Every employer
brand is an investment that should
demonstrate a return comparable to
other forms of business investment.
The employer brand strongly supports
corporate brands, and vice versa. Ulti-
mately, the key to a successful employer
brand is to ensure that expectations
are fully aligned with the realities of
working for the organization,” says
Manmohan Bhutani, Vice President of
People and Operations at Fiserv India.
As Indian firms focus on strategies of
turnaround, diversification, expansion
2 Employer Brand in India: A Strategic HR Tool
and internationalization, human
resources and human capital perfor-
mance in India have become increas-
ingly important. Consequently, HR’s
role in effectively using the employer
brand has tremendously expanded and
grown in importance. A brief historical
snapshot provides background about
the increasing role of human resource
management in India and the employer
brand as a strategic HR tool. The
HR profession in India began in the
1920s with concern for labor welfare
in factories. After India’s independence
from Great Britain in 1947, the HR
profession evolved, expanding in the
1960s into three areas—labor welfare,
industrial relations and personnel
administration. The profession further
matured in the 1980s and was more
commonly known as human resource
development (HRD). With the
liberalization of the Indian economy in
Figure 1 | Six Key Points for Effective Employer Brand in India
Attract/ Quality/
retain best
customer
talent service
Strong value proposition
Source: Employer Brand in India: A Strategic HR Tool (SHRM, 2010)
1991 and subsequent economic reforms,
the importance of the HR function
dramatically increased. In the 1990s,
the focus was on HRD as a key tool
for business survival, and the HRD
scorecard became a method to measure
effective people development activities.
With the arrival of many multinational
corporations (MNCs) in India, there
has been an increase in progressive
HR practices as well as an expansion
of different types of HR terminology,
such as human resource management
(HRM). In the past 10 years or so, the
human resource profession in India
has become increasingly sophisticated.
It continues to evolve, using Indian
human resource management practices
combined with best practices from the
West that fit the needs of the organiza-
tion. Globalization has led to a blending
of work cultures—East and West.5
In the 2009 book The Changing
Face of People Management in India,
management researchers Pawan S.
Budhwar, Ingmar Björkman and
Virender Singh emphasize that global
HR policies are now being modified
to appropriately (and culturally) fit
Indian companies. For example, many
MNCs have a policy that enables the
company employees to fire people
without any explanation (known as
“termination without cause”), and
Core
Recognized Employer of
icon choice corporate
values
this policy goes against Indian culture
and legislation. Slowly, this global HR
policy is being modified in operations
in India, with an explanation provided
when someone is removed from their
position. Remuneration practices are
another example of HR policies that
need to be modified to fit local India
standards.6 These changes point to the
importance of MNCs being locally
sensitive in terms of talent management
in the Indian space and, ultimately, the
impact on the employer brand in India
from the standpoint of the company’s
reputation as an employer of choice.
Spotlight on Three Indian
Industry Sectors
The employer brand experience in
India, as seen through the eyes of the
three Indian HR executives interviewed
by SHRM, has both differences
and similarities. As illustrated in the
descriptions of three diverse industry
sectors, the employer brand is critical to
attain a powerful corporate footprint in
modern India as it moves deeper into
the global marketplace. Three major
themes emerged in these interviews:
1) Each of the three Indian corpora-
tions is relatively new to the
Indian marketplace, and thus
the power of their employer
brand is in development.
2) For each organization, the focus is
to become an employer of choice
within its respective sector.
3) A top strategic focus of the
employer brand is to attract, develop
and retain talent in the highly
competitive Indian marketplace.
Fiserv India
A Fortune 500 company, Fiserv, Inc.
(NASDAQ: FISV) is a world leader in
information management, technology
solutions and e-commerce systems
for the financial services industry.
Fiserv started its India operations in
October 2005, with a goal to become
“is critical
In India, a global brand
for competitive
advantage. This is particularly
true for upcoming industry
sectors, such as clinical
research outsourcing, as
companies work on their
employer brand to become
recognized icons in the
areas of expertise.”
Mukund Mandayam, Director, Human
Resources, Quintiles India
the preferred offshoring partner
for the BFSI sector. Today, Fiserv
has more than 2,000 employees in
India and operates through multiple
delivery centers in Noida and Pune.
It also offers near-shore services from
Costa Rica. The IT services portfolio
of Fiserv India includes application
development, maintenance, support,
testing, architecture and infrastructure
management for banking, payments
and insurance industries. The BPO
(business process outsourcing) portfolio
includes account setup and manage-
ment, fund posting and disbursement,
title verification, client reporting,
receivable management and collections
services for investments, mortgage and
insurance industries. Within a short
span, the India operations of Fiserv
have achieved key industry certifications
that demonstrate its commitment
to process maturity, information
security and regulatory compliance.
As Manmohan Bhutani, Vice President
of People and Operations at Fiserv
India, notes, “The establishment and
adherence to ‘corporate values’ goes
a long way in ensuring a purpose-
ful, unified and high-performance
employer brand. The Fiserv values
describe the characteristics we respect
and behaviors we expect from all
associates. They are the foundation for
a common culture and pronounce the
meaning of Fiserv employer brand.”
Quintiles India
Quintiles India operates in the midst
of a rapidly growing pharmaceutical
market. The company helps clients take
advantage of a well-established corpo-
rate infrastructure, government policies
favoring R&D, growth in the health
insurance sector, and tertiary care and
hospitals available for clinical trials.
Other advantages are that Quintiles
India has solid relationships with
leading medical centers and experienced
English-speaking investigators. All
studies are conducted to FDA and ICH
GCP (good clinical practices) standards.
India’s highly literate population
provides fast, efficient access to broad
population groups with common and
special disease profiles, allowing for
rapid patient recruitment and faster
study start-ups. The key services include
access to patients, biostatistics, central
laboratory services, clinical monitoring
and site management, data manage-
ment, drug safety/pharmacovigilance,
ECG services, project management and
regulatory services. Quintiles India is
located in four major cities: Mumbai,
Ahmedabad, Bangalore and Gurgaon.
Clinical research (CR) is a growing
field in India. As Mukund Mandayam,
Director of Human Resources at
Quintiles India, states, “Being the larg-
est CRO [clinical research organization]
in India and the only fully integrated
biopharmaceutical services company
offering clinical, commercial, consulting
and capital solutions worldwide lends
itself to being branded as an employer
of choice by potential employees.”
Initially, CRO had the role of an
outsourcing service for clinical trial
management. Recently, many CROs
have begun offering comprehensive
management of complex drug trial
processes. Up until the 1990s, India
was not a preferred destination for
major global pharmaceutical companies.
Yet, in the past 10 years, with the steady
rise in global demand for world-class
clinical trial management capacity
and productivity, the CRO sector in
Employer Brand in India: A Strategic HR Tool 3
India has been expanding rapidly.
With India’s rich technical resource
pool, highly skilled doctors and
trained medical personnel, the research
infrastructure is highly attractive
to international organizations.7
CHEP India Pvt. Ltd.
CHEP India operates in the broad
industry sector of global supply chain
management and, more specifically, in
the space of equipment pooling solu-
tions. Established in 2008, the India
affiliate of Brambles (a global MNC
headquartered in Sydney, Australia,
with $4 billion in revenue in the year
ending in June 2009), CHEP India is
in the early stages of its operations in
the country and currently has about 50
employees. India is the 45th country
of presence for Brambles and is one
of the last potentially large markets
to be won over (China is already in
the footprint). The unique challenges
of CHEP India are two-fold: 1) to
establish a business model, which is the
first of its kind, and 2) to cope with
and strategize the way forward in a
country where there has been consider-
able lag in development of macro and
basic infrastructure (e.g., ports, roads,
airports, transportation standards).
Brambles, with a corporate history of
more than 60 years, is a leading global
provider of support services, operating
in 45 countries across Europe, North
America, South America, Africa and
Asia-Pacific, employing more than
12,000 people worldwide. Brambles
has a primary listing on the Australian
Stock Exchange and a secondary listing
on the London Stock Exchange. CHEP,
one of two business groups in Brambles,
delivers supply chain efficiencies to
more than 300,000 customers around
the world. The business model is based
on pooling and sharing of resources
between companies in an industry
(e.g., wooden/plastic pallets in the
fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG)
industry and customized containers for
the automobile industry). The unique
4 Employer Brand in India: A Strategic HR Tool
combination of product and embedded
service significantly reduces not only
direct costs but indirect wastages of
product damage and also provides an
opportunity for customers to engage
in environmentally sustainable business
practices, saving time and hassles of
managing the pallet system. With
a global network of service centers,
CHEP helps manufacturers and growers
transport their products to distributors
and retailers. Combining superior tech-
nology, decades of experience and an
unmatched asset base, CHEP handles
pallet and container supply chain
logistics for customers in the consumer
goods, produce, meat, home improve-
ment, beverage, raw materials, petro-
chemical and automotive industries.
As Vijayan Pankajakshan, Director of
Human Resources at CHEP India,
explains, “We are in the space of
returnable packing solutions, for various
industries, based on the concept of
pooling. Pooling is a business model
that serves manufacturers of products
and end customers/consumers (modern
and small retail stores). Beyond that, an
important dimension of value delivered
is that all the players in the chain need
not, for example, buy, stock, repair,
move, etc. wooden/plastic pallets and
not lock up costly warehousing space.
We own the assets (pallets/containers),
and customers pay a rental fee for
the service, based on volume, time
the customers’ products are placed
on our assets and distance travelled.”
Mr. Pankajakshan points out that the
business model is environmentally
responsible due to the element of
repair, reuse and sharing assets many
times over: “The relationship with
CHEP’s customers develops into a
trusted partner/adviser role, and that
offers us many more opportunities
to contribute to their success.”
India’s War for Talent
India is seen as the “land of
opportunity” by many multinational
corporations, and they bring the
vitality of their employer brand to
India. “Almost every Fortune 500
company is setting up (or considering
setting up) operations in India that will
be integral to its global value chain.
The rush by multinationals to set up
Indian operations and the rapid growth
of Indian outsourcing companies has
resulted in a war for talent,” explains
Nirmalya Kumar in India Unleashed.8
Whether in a recession or a growing
economy, successful talent management
requires an effective employer brand.
Yet, finding and keeping the right
people is not easy. “High-quality
talent is expensive and in demand,”
notes Nayana Prabhu, Vice President
of Learning and Development at EXL
Service in India, in a recent SHRM
report titled Indian Human Resource
Management and Talent Mindset.9
“about
Employees who feel good
the synergy between
the business model and brand
values tend to stay longer and
be more engaged, leading
to higher productivity.”
Vijayan Pankajakshan, Director — Human
Resources, CHEP India Pvt. Ltd.
Trends indicate a shift in the global
landscape regarding talent—for both
employees and organizations. SHRM’s
report Future Insights: The top trends
according to SHRM’s HR subject matter
expert panels points out that “talent
management continues to be a high
priority and must be more efficient than
before while leveraging cost awareness
and monitoring demands for key
positions. Finding and retaining quality
talent continues to be essential to
business sustainability, but is difficult in
global markets that may act differently
in terms of opportunity and salary
movement: Should multinational com-
panies treat everyone equally or deploy
different strategies in different countries
to pay for and retain talent?” The report
emphasizes that economic uncertainties
fundamentally change the motivators
that attract and retain employees.10
These trends reinforce the importance
of having an effective employer brand
to recruit and retain the right kind of
talent needed by the corporation to
establish, attain and/or retain its com-
petitive advantage in the marketplace.
Retention of talent is also closely linked
to employee engagement, an important
factor for productivity. As highlighted
in a SHRM article “Leveraging
Employee Engagement for Competitive
Advantage: HR’s Strategic Role,”
employee engagement has emerged as
a critical driver of business success in
today’s global marketplace.11 Research
by Towers Perrin identified key drivers
of attraction and retention in Indian
companies in its global workforce
study. Some of the most important
factors included the organization’s
reputation as a good employer, career
advancement opportunities, challenging
work/varied work assignments, ability
to balance work and personal life, the
organization’s financial status, and
senior management acting ethically
in business management decisions.12
The link between the employer brand
and employee engagement can be
seen in viewpoints of the Indian HR
executives interviewed for this article.
As noted by Mr. Bhutani, of Fiserv
India, “As the employment market
gets more competitive for the best
talent, the key to success in recruiting
becomes how well the organization
differentiates itself from others, both
in attracting and in keeping talent.”
Mr. Pankajakshan, of CHEP India,
recommends that “employee engage-
ment levels be measured at least once
in 18 months to check how the brand
is being experienced.” At Quintiles
India, notes Mr. Mandayam, “the
brand signifies quality, customer service
and is a recognized icon in the clinical
research domain across the world.”
SHRM’s recent poll of HR practitioners
about HR leadership competencies
sheds light on talent needed in India in
HR leadership roles. These competen-
cies will be essential for HR leaders
in India to help lead their organiza-
tions and successfully leverage their
employer brands in today’s competitive
marketplace. According to this research,
in India, the top five competencies
for knowledge, skills and abilities and
other qualities needed by a senior HR
leader to be successful are 1) strategic
thinking, 2) effective communica-
tion, 3) business knowledge, 4) HR
knowledge, and 5) leading change. In
addition, the poll reveals that the top
five competencies for successful senior
HR leaders in a global organization are
1) global intelligence/global mindset,
2) strategic thinking, 3) business
knowledge, 4) effective communication
and 5) cross-cultural intelligence.13
If effectively marketed
internally and externally, the
employer brand in India has
a strong value proposition,
with core corporate
values at its foundation.
Thus, for HR executives and organi-
zational leadership in multinational
corporations seeking to do business
in India or those companies working
to successfully expand their current
marketplace with India, it is essential
to thoroughly understand the factors
related to talent management, as seen
through the employer brand lens—such
as leadership competencies, engagement,
attraction and retention drivers. The
broad factors related to talent in India
that form the foundation of an effective
employer brand are true for most global
organizations and illustrate the rapid
movement of the multinational corpora-
tions in India and their influence on
the workplace. It is important to realize
that while many corporations in other
countries are already well-versed in such
factors, Indian corporations are grap-
pling with them at an increasing rate.
Sending the Right Message
To learn more about developing
the employer brand in India,
SHRM asked the three Indian
HR executives about the lessons
they have learned about the value
proposition of the employer brand.
The executives shared their focus on
the employer brand, with examples
from their respective organizations
and with an emphasis on strategies
to use the strength of their employer
brand for improved talent management.
The viewpoint of Mr. Mandayam, of
Quintiles India, is representative of
the other two Indian HR executives:
“The employer brand must be genuine.
It is not simply a recruiting tool. The
brand may encourage the employee to
choose your company, but when it is
genuine, that’s the reason they stay with
your company. Globally, we have seen
measureable increases in our retention
since first introducing our employer
brand.” In fact, Mr. Mandayam
explains, “No matter the generation, we
have found that our employees strongly
identify with the important work we do,
which ultimately brings new medicines
to patients. This requires us to work
with an unwavering commitment to
patients, safety and ethics—and our
employees relate very closely to this
message.” At Quintiles India, employer
brand initiatives include showcasing
the company and employees in relevant
conferences and expositions, participat-
ing in campus road shows, and winning
an award, for two consecutive years
(2008 and 2009), as one of the top 50
companies of Great Places to Work in
India. Mr. Mandayam points out, “We
use the employer brand to present the
value proposition to our internal talent,
which transcends compensation and
general rewards. Being the largest CRO
in India—and the only fully integrated
biopharmaceutical services company
Employer Brand in India: A Strategic HR Tool 5
offering clinical, commercial, consulting
and capital solutions worldwide—
lends itself to being recognized as
an employer of choice by potential
employees.” All of these opportuni-
ties convey the right message to the
marketplace and attract the right talent.
Mr. Bhutani, of Fiserv India, empha-
sizes that a brand can be tailored to
create the greatest resonance with a
number of different audiences and talent
market sectors without compromising
consistency. To establish a successful
employer brand, companies need to be
involved in extensive public relations
and marketing activities focused toward
current and prospective talent. “At
Fiserv, we firmly believe in two essential
principles: The client comes first,
and people make the difference,” Mr.
Bhutani points out. “We ensure that
our people practices provide the highest
degree of employee satisfaction and
work/life balance, as they are our most
valuable assets. Fiserv strives to enhance
the capability of employees throughout
the entire employee lifecycle by com-
petency mapping, training and career
counseling sessions. Fiserv celebrates
and rewards employees through quar-
terly and annual employee appreciation
programs. With the changing landscape
of the financial services industry, Fiserv
launched its new brand identity in
2009. Our new brand marks significant
energy, progressive thinking and a fresh
approach to the opportunities that lie
ahead. The new brand globally unifies
Fiserv as a company that is proud of its
rich heritage and has the potential to
empower its clients. Fiserv’s industry
leadership plays an integral role in
building a strong employer brand.”
Over the past 25 years, Fiserv has
been recognized for its innovation and
product superiority. A Fortune 500
company, Fiserv has maintained its
leadership in FinTech 100 at the top
position in five of the last six years.
Mr. Pankajakshan, of CHEP India,
mirrors the experience of the two
6 Employer Brand in India: A Strategic HR Tool
other HR executives. “The employer international marketplace, it is impera-
brand should have synergies with that tive to integrate CSR into the company
of the businesses. In addition, the business goals. Author Sanjay Agarwal
employer brand has to have a core that points out, “As Indian companies
is relevant to employees across cultures grow global […] coupled with socio-
and nuanced for local conditions and economic and regulatory pressures
sensitivities. Of particular importance is […] there is a shift from corporate
to ensure top management knows that philanthropy to corporate social invest-
investing in employer branding reduces ment (CSI)” (CSI is the Indian term to
costs of hiring and also reduces rates of describe an organization’s investment in
attrition.” In CHEP India, the brand a range of community activities). The
value is based on sustainability, which trend for Indian businesses to focus
has a profound positive impact on the on CSR initiatives—both to build the
reduction of consumption of limited brand and to stand out among other
natural resources and/or nonbiodegrad- organizations—has increased in the past
able materials. This value is one that five to six years. The growing awareness
resonates with a certain population of CSR as a socially responsible busi-
of Indian talent that is interested in ness practice can be observed in some
sustainability and the environment. multinational corporations operating
To get its message out, the company in India. In the Indian context, CSR
targets certain business schools to has been found to increase the ability
locate students who have a curriculum to attract and retain employees. Mr.
in subjects related to supply chain (e.g., Agarwal notes that the big corporate
procurement, logistics, transportation, houses in India realize this aspect of
network planning, operations manage- CSR and have set up initiatives.14
ment and packaging development). To
find talent, the company focuses on In a 2008 report Corporate Indian
high-visibility events, from CHEP India Companies: Forging New Talent
senior managers giving guest lectures Pipelines and Creative Career Pathways,
at universities to participating in SHRM interviewed Indian HR leaders
cricket matches with the students. Such from eight different industry sectors
activities help to form a key network about talent management initiatives.
to better attract the right talent. SHRM found that Indian organizations
emphasized the importance of giving
Indian CSR Initiatives for to the community, such as contributing
Brand Recognition company funds to support schools and
Traditionally, companies in India have hospitals in rural areas and support
had philanthropic and community education in underprivileged communi-
programs. As highlighted in the book ties, from paying for student meals to
Corporate Social Responsibility in India, supplementing teachers’ salaries.15 The
as Indian organizations move into the SHRM survey report 2007 Corporate
“ Fiserv is a socially responsible corporation and believes
that it has a responsibility to give back to the community in which it
operates. To mark its 25th anniversary, Fiserv is running a global
campaign of donating 25,000 volunteer hours for community
service. Employees have stepped forward in overwhelming
numbers and are regularly contributing to the improvement
of the underprivileged.”
Manmohan Bhutani, Vice President, People and Operations, Fiserv India
Social Responsibility: United States, Aus-
tralia, India, China, Canada, Mexico
and Brazil—A Pilot Study revealed
that the top driver of corporate social
responsibility programs, for all seven
countries, is contribution to society. As
seen in Figure 2, data from India indi-
cate that CSR outcomes have a strong
impact on the company’s public image,
improve employee morale, increase highlight its employer brand, it plans
employee loyalty and position the to do so in the future. “We are about
organization as an employer of choice.16 18 months into our India entry phase
of the organization. Our brand is not
The findings of these research studies amenable to mass advertising, and hence
are reflected in the values of the we would like our product solutions
organizations highlighted in this to take root first and as a reflection,
article. For example, while CHEP India we would be able to strongly position
does not yet use CSR as a vehicle to CSR activities linking to the employer

Figure 2 | Positive Outcomes of CSR Programs (by Country)

United States

Differences Based on
Australia
(n = 309)

(n = 214)

(n = 134)

(n = 844)

(n = 135)
(n = 82)

Canada

(n = 88)
Mexico
Country

Brazil
China
India

Canada > Australia

Stronger public image 74% 65% 67% 67% 76% 67% 81%
Brazil > Australia

U.S. > China, Mexico

Australia > China, Mexico
India > China
Improved employee morale 61% 63% 58% 26% 50% 61% 68%
Canada > China
Mexico > China
Brazil > China, Canada

U.S. > China

Increased employee loyalty 48% 44% 43% 28% 41% 55% 59% Mexico > China
Brazil > China, Canada

Increased consumer/customer Brazil > Australia, India,

45% 36% 40% 51% 45% 48% 60%
confidence Canada

India > Canada

China > U.S., Canada
Increased brand recognition 42% 44% 56% 61% 41% 45% 66%
Brazil > U.S., Australia,
Canada

Position as an employer of Brazil > U.S., Australia,

39% 38% 35% 37% 44% 40% 59%
choice India, China, Canada

Canada > China

Increased employee retention 24% 24% 16% 12% 29% 32% 23%
Mexico > China

Increased recruitment of top Brazil > Australia, China,

19% 18% 18% 17% 25% 24% 25%
employees

Competitive advantage 17% 15% 22% 13% 17% 26% 19%

Increased workforce Brazil > Australia, China,

15% 10% 15% 7% 12% 19% 26%
productivity Canada

Positive financial bottom line 15% 8% 16% 6% 14% 14% 19%

Note: Data sorted in descending order by the U.S. data. Sample sizes and percentages are based on the total number of respondents by country who answered this question. Percentages
do not total 100% due to multiple response options. HR professionals who indicated “not applicable; we do not have corporate social responsibility programs” were excluded from this
analysis. Blank cells in the last column indicate that no statistically significant differences were found. The data from outside of the United States were based on a pilot study; caution should
be exercised when interpreting results with small sample sizes.
Source: SHRM 2007 Corporate Social Responsibility Pilot Study

Employer Brand in India: A Strategic HR Tool 7

brand,” says Mr. Pankajakshan. One “Employees are involved in all stages, should be involved in developing/
example of a current internal CSR from decision-making to implementa- refurbishing the employer brand, with a
program at CHEP India is to plant tree tion of projects, and this allows them to 360-degree view of all potential target
saplings in the name of its employees to make a difference in society and touch stakeholders for the employer brand.”
replenish this resource, representative many lives. This sense of achievement
of being environmentally responsible is a great learning experience and a The challenge—and importance—of
for the wood used to make pallets. matter of pride for our employees,” says effectively meshing different cultures,
Mr. Bhutani. The focus areas of these particularly with today’s environment
In the clinical research sector in India, CSR initiatives are education of the of global mergers and acquisitions,
as companies become better established underprivileged, women empowerment, also came to the forefront. As Mr.
in the marketplace, many are beginning promotion of vocational training Mandayam notes, “It is important to
to introduce CSR initiatives. Quintiles and environmental protection. not directly impose global/Western
India is in the early stages of initiating policies, philosophies, systems and
CSR activities on a large scale, so it Recommendations From processes into the local environment
is too early to draw conclusions. Indian HR Executives without first understanding what the
The three Indian HR executives local talent will accept welcomingly and
At Fiserv India, corporate social interviewed by SHRM were asked for what it will resent.” His comment links
responsibility is an integral part of the their most salient advice about building to the issue referred to earlier—the
business culture. The social service an employer brand in India (see Figure complexity of mixing Eastern and
wing, Arpan, is driven by employees 3). Mr. Bhutani emphasized that “the Western management practices and
organized in volunteer taskforces. employer brand is not just for the the possible detrimental impact on the
Recently, Arpan was involved with key ‘big, glamorous’ MNCs, with their employer brand in the Indian context.
projects for education of the underprivi- own high-profile consumer brands. This point is important for HR leaders
leged. The employees have associated Employer brands, as a strategic HR in multinational corporations to keep in
themselves with various schools in tool, are for every local authority, mind when moving operations into the
Noida and Pune. Interaction with these charity, SME, government department Indian marketplace or merging/acquir-
schools includes regular classes and and academic organization that needs ing Indian corporations. The inter-
tutorial sessions. Employees have also to recruit, retain and engage good viewees’ final recommendation is that
been a part of organizing committees people.” Additionally, it is critical to the view of the brand in India should
at these schools, triggering events like bring in the expertise of the employer’s match in the eyes of both the employee
sports day, picnics and field trips. This workforce to successfully build and the consumer, with a seamlessness
has encouraged the children to learn and disseminate the brand. As Mr. that illustrates thoughtful, intentional
more and become responsible citizens. Pankajakshan suggests, “Employees and strategic communication to the
workforce as well as external stakehold-
ers and the marketplace at large.
Figure 3 | Key Advice and Recommendations for Building an Employer
Brand in India In Closing
In recent years, the world has witnessed
Every employer brand is an investment that should demonstrate a return comparable to other the dramatic entrance and success
forms of business investment.
of Indian corporations in the global
Offer a strong value proposition to talent in India. marketplace. With the continued
influx of multinational corporations
Employer brands are at least as much about retention and engagement as they are about in India—as well as Indian corpora-
recruitment.
tions expanding beyond their own
Retain the core of the brand (if it is an MNC) and contextualize development. borders—the opportunities for India
to contribute to the world economy
Keep the local context in mind: recognize, accept and adapt to the local culture. have significantly increased, with the
likelihood of favorable outcomes for
The employer brand should incorporate sensitivities of employees in foreign countries (if the
Indian company has overseas operations). “Brand India” in the domestic and
international markets. Thus, as India,
The advertising of the employer and employee brand should be as synergistic and mutually Inc. forges forward to make a wider
reinforcing as possible. mark in the world, the employer
Source: Employer Brand in India: A Strategic HR Tool (SHRM, 2010) brand as a strategic HR tool will

8 Employer Brand in India: A Strategic HR Tool

take on greater importance in Indian
organizations—in how it is developed,
communicated, marketed and ultimately
yields growth, profits and sustain-
ability for today and into the future.
Endnotes
1
Society for Human Resource
Management. (2008, April-June).
The employer brand: A strategic tool
to attract, recruit and retain talent.
Retrieved from www.shrm.org
/Research/Articles/Articles/Pages
/TheEmployerBrand-AStrategicTooltoAt
tract,RecruitandRetainTalent.aspx.
2
Kumar, N. (2009). India’s global
powerhouses: How they are taking on the
world. Boston: Harvard Business Press.
3
Kumar, N. (2009). India unleashed.
Business Strategy Review, 20 (1), 4–15.
4
Bhatnagar, J. (2009). Talent management
strategies in India. In P. S. Budhwar and
J. Bhatnager (Eds.), The changing face
of people management in India (pp.
180–206). London: Routledge.
5
Saini, D. S., & Budhwar, P. S. (2004).
HRM in India. In P. S. Budhwar (Ed.).
Managing human resources in Asia-
Pacific (pp. 113–139). New York:
Routledge.
6
Budhwar, P. S., Björkman, I., & Singh,
V. (2009). Emerging HRM systems in
foreign firms operating in India. In P.
S. Budhwar & J. Bhatnagar (Eds.), The
changing face of people management
in India (pp. 115-134). London:
Routledge.
7
ResearchandMarkets. (2006, June 14).
Clinical research outsourcing and India.
Retrieved October 15, 2009, from www.
researchandmarkets.com/reportinfo.
asp?report_id=339460.
For additional reading on human resources in India, go to www.shrm.org/Research/Articles/Pages/default.aspx.
Corporate Indian Companies: Forging New Talent Pipelines and Creative Career Pathways
India: Building Sustainable Leadership Competency
Indian Human Resource Management and Talent Mindset
Perspectives on Women in Management in India
8
Kumar, N. (2009). India unleashed.
Business Strategy Review, 20 (1), 4–15.
9
Society for Human Resource
Management. (2009). Indian human
resource management and talent mindset.
Retrieved from www.shrm.org
/Research/Articles/Articles/Pages
/Mgmtandtalentmindset.aspx.
10
Society for Human Resource
Management. (2009). Future insights:
The top trends according to SHRM’s HR
subject matter expert panels. Alexandria,
VA: Author.
11
Lockwood, N. R. (2007). Leveraging
employee engagement for competitive
advantage: HR’s strategic role. SHRM
Research Quarterly, 1.
12
Towers Perrin. (2008). 2007-2008 Towers
Perrin global workforce study. Retrieved
October 1, 2009 from www.towersperrin.
com.
13
Society for Human Resource Manage-
ment. (2010). SHRM Poll: HR leader-
ship competencies. Retrieved from www.
shrm.org/research.
14
Agarwal, S. K. (2008). Corporate social
responsibility in India. New Delhi, India:
Response.
15
Strategic Human Resource Management
India Pvt. Ltd. (2008, November).
Corporate Indian companies: Forging
new talent pipelines and creative career
pathways. Alexandria, VA: Society for
Human Resource Management.
16
Society for Human Resource
Management. (2007, March). 2007
corporate social responsibility: United
States, Australia, India, China, Canada,
Mexico and Brazil—A pilot study.
Alexandria, VA: Author.
Employer Brand in India: A Strategic HR Tool 9
PROJECT TEAM

Project leader: Nancy R. Lockwood, M.A., SPHR, GPHR, Manager, HR Content Program, SHRM Research

Project contributors: Shawn Fegley, Survey Research Analyst, SHRM Research

Steve Williams, Ph.D., SPHR, Director, SHRM Research

Copy editing: Katya Scanlan, Copy Editor

Design: Terry Biddle, Graphic Designer

External reviewer: Aliza Dart-Scott, SPHR, Director of Human Resources, Manufacturing Division, Autodesk, and member of
the SHRM Global Special Expertise Panel

Acknowledgments: Many thanks to the Indian HR professionals and their organizations for their time and generous
contributions to this article:
Manmohan Bhutani, Vice President, People and Operations, Fiserv India
Mukund Mandayam, Director, Human Resources, Quintiles India
Vijayan Pankajakshan, Director – Human Resources, CHEP India Pvt. Ltd.

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