Stop Smoking Start Living........

“Our greatest glory is not in never failing but in rising up every time we fail.” - Ralph Waldo Emerson 

Most people, who have quit smoking, have had at least one unsuccessful try in the past. It is not important how many times you try to quit. The only important thing is, that eventually you stay quit 

Improving Employee Performance

Every manager wants his employees to perform well using their abilities to the fullest. Practically speaking does this happen all the time.. Well we all have experienced ups and downs in our productivity; though we try to give our best due to the circumstances we are unable to give our cent percent.

At these times a clear two way dialogue will help in understanding the root cause of the performance and the solution for performing better can happen.

At JIC we follow few simple steps to improve our Employee Performance.

Encourage Communication:

We encourage employee communication at all levels. During our meetings we encourage employees to voice out the difficulties they are facing, if the issue can be resolved immediately we do it there itself. The team leaders explain to them the organisational policies, culture and the changes which take place. We also share with them the effective ways to overcome future challenges.

Find out the reasons why an employee is under-performing:

When we see our employees are under-performing, the HR manager and the Unit Head try to analyse the situations rather than jumping into conclusions. They approach the employee with an open minded attitude, get into particular discussion with him and ask open ended questions (those which cannot be answered with a simple yes or no). They listen patiently to the answers and discuss the issues to determine the root cause of the problem. In case a personal or domestic problem is surfaced, they try to make adjustments to the regular routine for a short period, or if an exception is made, they make sure that other employees are informed about it; as this might be sited as an example in the future.

Create positive work environment:

A positive work environment is created to make the employees feel they are very important to the company and the time they spend it worthwhile, because of which the staff doesn’t feel restrained at any point in time. If they feel that they have any work related queries they are empowered to approach his immediate Supervisor/Unit Head at any time.

Provides Effective Training:

The employees are provided on the job training which helps them stand at par with the company standards.

The effective training provided by our training department equips them to be more efficient and more productive.

Fun is important element too:

Too much work can lead to less productivity. Our HR initiated a program called fun day picnic. The employees are given a time off and are taken to different places wherein they can have some entertaining games, activities etc, this rejuvenates them to come back afresh and perform well in their assignments.

Rewards & Recognition:

 We recognize and reward the employee’s performance (regardless of small or big) and his contributions towards the company’s growth. This boosts and motivates other employees to perform well.  

Importance of workplace safety at JIC

Workplace safety is a matter of concern for employers and employees. Each of us has a responsibility to ensure the safety of us and also of others affected by our activities at workplace.

As an employee we should act responsibly and perform the work according to the applicable safety standards and follow the directions given by the employer so that we do not endanger the health and safety of others at workplace.

At JIC we aim for safety culture at workplace and we are striving to achieve perfection and excellence at our work environment.

Safety has become a way of life for us. There was an instance where one of the chefs was asked by an external safety inspector to use the meat cutting machine without a PPE (Personal Protection Equipment) purposefully, the chef was reluctant and informed the inspector that he will not do so, as he is concerned about the safety of others around him and also himself.

Safety culture can be achieved neither through compulsion nor it can happen overnight. It is necessary to inculcate the safety first and later it would get its fruit as a cultural outcome.

As Employee wellness is always on the priority list of our organization agenda, their safety was a basic requirement hence employee safety became a part of JIC's organizational DNA since its inception.

Though we knew the importance of safety culture our knowledge on work safety concept was insufficient initially, we overcame it by implementing the BS OHSAS 18001 in the year 2011 and thus we took our first step towards our journey for excellence in safety.

 Our strategy to achieve safety culture was to keep it simple by addressing the issues and communicating the safety concept.

Communicating safety to the employees is a challenge as we have a very large workforce from different parts of the world. Our Training department plays significant role in educating our employees through videos, posters and multi-lingual communication.  

We follow a 3 tier induction program for our new employees to ensure safety culture is inculcated from the beginning of their journey with us. The first tier induction from HR covers the general aspect of safety rules and regulations of our company and also of the Emirates. The second tier induction from HSE takes it further to the details of risks and hazards related to workplace and the safety measures that need to be practiced as part of our regular work and the third and the last induction is provided by the departmental heads to ensure that the employees understand the work safety related to their specific job roles.   

Our employees are empowered and encouraged to report any kind of safety deviations to the management. This helps in addressing the exact root cause of the lapses and resolving it.

                                  

As mentioned in our earlier blog we at JIC consider Safety as every individual’s responsibility. Our Journey towards perfection in safety is never ending.

JIC Employee Engagement

Creating an environment where our employees are motivated to get connected with their work and their colleagues has become a way of life in our organization.

We believe that the employee engagement enhances the bond between the employees and employers. The moment the employee gets a sense of personal attachment, he gets strongly motivated to give in his best efforts and in turn he becomes one of the reasons for the organization’s success.  

Strategies are designed in line with the organizational goals to ensure our employees are committed to our organization’s goals and values and at the same time are able to enhance their own sense of well being. We have introduced numerous welfare, cultural, and recreational facilities as part of our employee engagement process.

Various indoor and outdoor sports competitions are conducted on a fortnightly and monthly basis to inculcate the sports spirit within the employees. Employees representing their teams participate enthusiastically depicting the winning spirit.

Various recreational activities are conducted for employees’ recreation at the recreational facility provided for the employees. 

We acknowledge our employees on their achievements through recognition and rewards. 

 Knowledge sharing sessions are conducted to educate and equip our employees on the work related issues.

Understanding that communication is very essential for effective functioning of any organization, all the upcoming events and the latest news is communicated to the employees on a regular basis through our various internal communication channels(like internal newsletters, JIC Portal, meetings, etc).

Corporate Social Responsibility has become an integral part in our organization. In our CSR initiatives like Blood Donation Campaign, Health Camp and different environment related activities our employees’ voluntary support has helped to accomplish the desired results. 

We encourage employee engagement by acknowledging the employees need for bonding and team work, by doing this we have seen that there is active involvement of the employees and definite change in their behavior which gave them more recognition, accolades and rewards.

Excellence Es

When we talk about organizational excellence, what comes to mind? People think Organization excellence is development, achievement etc., but these developments or achievements are for whom? Most apparently our stakeholders are benefited directly or indirectly from the development of the organization. It is these stakeholders who base their expectations on what the organization delivers to them and eventually decide whether the organization is excellent or not. 

It is necessary that all stakeholders of the organization are aligned to the organizational strategies and vision. Especially when employees form the most integral part of the organizational excellence, it becomes necessary to keep the employees in front and develop them. 

The focus is now to build on the characteristics of the organizational excellence.

EDUCATE

ENABLE

ENGAGE

EMPOWER

Explaining in detail how these 4 Es aid us further in developing the human assets (Our Employees) who in turn are instrumental in achieving the organizational excellence. 

EDUCATE

It is a well know fact that Knowledge is wealth. To ensure organizational excellence and sustainability, the desired knowledge should be imparted throughout the organization. It is necessary to educate employees with the apt knowledge to proceed in the right direction. In this process the organization should use various tools and techniques to create platforms for the employees, wherein they can make use of these platforms to improve their abilities. Various forums should be created to identify the talents of individuals and use these talents to demonstrate their capabilities and creativity at a given task. These abilities can be used as an example when explaining the probable issues and the remedy given by using their skill and presence of mind. 

  ENABLE   

Unless the employees are provided with proper resources they will not be able to accomplish the task which is kept ahead of them. Design a matrix with appropriate information which acts as a guidance to complete the given task. Equip them with the right equipment and guidance to complete the task within the set timelines. 

ENGAGE 

For any successful outcome Engagement is the vital factor and it acts as the major component in achieving the desired results. Creating platforms where the team discussions on the action plan for the day’s activity. Committee Meetings etc., which engages the employees to remain, focused in completion of the given task. These kinds of activities engage the employees and their active participation helps them to become the key to a successful outcome for an organization. Creative awareness in the stakeholders about the requirements eases the difficult tasks. Engaging internal and external stakeholders helps in redefining the organizations’ approach and strategic planning which lays a platform to a successful and excellent organization. 

EMPOWER      

Empowerment is the important and the core factor in employee excellence. It is necessary to have a clear structure and process for empowering employees. Usually organizations empower employees with the knowledge and encourage them to take decisions to meet and anticipate client and customer requirements but fail to address the vital aspect as to what kind of decisions and responses should be taken to ensure effective solution of a given situation/problem. Organizations should have clear process outline addressing various scenarios related to operational, processes and customer handling for individual departments/designations to take appropriate decisions and also to ensure effective service recovery and process flow.  

Here’s an understanding of 4 Es in the Word “EXCELLENCE” 

Engagement : Disengagement : Re-engagement

An Employer of a company strives hard to improvise on the employee engagement and eventually there are no evident results. This effort will feel in vain to the employee and not take the employer to any heights unless the employee is willing to feel motivated. 

The reason for Employee disengagement might be because his needs whichever may be was not met and looking beyond what he is doing right now.

The Manager should empower the employee to speak up and strike a conversation with him to understand his grievances better and help him perform his job with excitement. A manager’s role should be able to understand how to tap into the excitement for the benefit of the employer and the employee.

The secret to resolve the issue is only through effective listening and being observant.

When you clearly understand and identify what a disengaged employee needs, work out a strategy with him addressing the issue and provide him with the resources, while removing the hurdles to maximize work efficiency.

 Al Jazeera International Catering introduced a fast track program for the employees called the Sareeyah Program. This program enables the employees to have a fast track development in their career to grow within the organization.

"One of our employees, who joined as a cleaner was not active in his regular work, he was disengaged because he was interested to do something different from what he was doing at that moment. He had a dream of becoming a Cook like most of us.  He came to the HR Manager and spoke about his dissatisfaction he had for the work he was doing at that time, HR took an initiative and put him in the Sareeyah Program. He was given an opportunity and appropriate training to pursue his dream of becoming a Cook. He was also monitored on a daily basis and after completing the Program, he proved himself with good performance and the Management promoted him as Assistant Cook. His note worthy change from a Cleaner to an Assistant Cook had an impact on his colleagues and others".

He is now promoted as a Filipino Cook and with the journey in mind he is re-engaged and has become an inspiration to others who have the passion and potential to pursue their career dreams and the most important thing is to take up the courage to speak what's on his mind.

In conclusion, it is the mutual initiative of the employer and the employee to re-engage the disengaged employee and make dreams into reality.

You.

Mother you are so kind and gentle, so silent yet so strong.
Your teaching of kindness knows no limits.
You guide your children to greatness.
You never complain about your chores.
You adorn yourself with strength and Vigor
You are my source of inspiration
You during my difficulties, nursed me with patience and love. 

I agree that many Women have done exceeding well in the past but Mama you surpass them all…. 

Happy Mother's day!

“JIC wins the Green Era Award - Green Initiatives for 2015”

JIC won the Green Era award 2015 in recognition of the outstanding Environmental Commitment and also for being innovative and creative in pursuing the Sustainability Green Initiatives. It is published in the Emirates Business Magazine (May Edition).

Woo hoo, Check it out.

Handle with Care

In our Service Industry it is often a situation where the customers are not satisfied with the service provided. One person or the other has their grievances. If this person is not satisfied with the service provided, he might complain or share his bad experience with others, restricting others from taking our services.

If the complaint is dealt with in a positive way the customer feels that his problem is resolved and might forget the bad experience and might even propagate the good experience for the excellent service provided. This situation is a “WIN-WIN” Situation. 

Another situation where the weekly menu served at one of our Desert sites was becoming too monotonous for the client, he was not satisfied with the Menu and being hot, sand everywhere and all the way out in the middle of the Desert they didn't really having a choice than having our food with disappointment. When this complaint was raised to us, we came up with a concept called THEME DINNERS. This concept was accepted by the client and during the weekends they had a very good time and our special meals as per the mentioned 'theme' in that week. This was again a “WIN-WIN” Situation, wherein the client was satisfyingly Happy and we had won over their disappointment. 

Dealing with a different kind of complaints

When we had these kinds of situations, our priority was to listen to their grievances and decide on the best course of action. We tried solving their grievances as effective as we could but it was beyond the ability of the Supervisor in charge. This matter was escalated to the Management as there was a rift in the anger and bitterness of the client. We neither wanted to upset the client nor give in to their demands. A situation where the Management’s Intervention was needed, hence it was escalated for their decision. They came up with a solution wherein the client was satisfied and we were happy that we could provide a solution to the issue.

Procedure for handling complaints 

It is obvious that the client is upset with the service provided hence he complained about it. Our main objective is to listen to his complaint and provide him with a solution by following these steps:

• When a client is complaining remember that he is angry with the services provided, if you are defending your services it might aggravate his anger and end up in arguments
• Let the client have his say and remain polite until he narrates his part
• Try to reason out with the client and make him understand the situation
•  If you cannot resolve the issue, escalate it to the Supervisor in Charge providing him all the details of the complaint.
• Record the complaint.
• Let the supervisor in charge investigate and analyze the complaint and offer a solution to the client by apologizing for the inconvenience caused and assuring him that the situation will not repeat and resolve his issue immediately.
• If it is still beyond the ability of the Supervisor in charge to resolve the issue, then he can escalate it to the Management explaining the problem and also the solutions provided to the client.

Now, go handle it.