Organizational Agility amid COVID-19 gloom helped DBS Bank, NETS and Park Hotel win Kincentric’s Best Employers 2020 accolade

Companies were evaluated on four key areas, namely — ‘Employee
Engagement’, ‘Organizational Agility’, ‘Engaging Leadership’, and ‘Talent Focus’.
A certified Best Employer organization will have its ‘Employee Engagement’ score
on par or better than the top quartile companies with two out of the three of other
factors (i.e. ‘Organizational Agility’, ‘Engaging Leadership’ and ‘Talent Focus’)
falling within the range.

Agility Dividend Pays Off for Top Companies

Of the criteria covered in the Kincentric study, ‘Organizational Agility’ was
found to be a key factor that enabled Singapore employers who are in the top
quartile to do exceptionally well. Such firms, were found to perform 14% better
on ‘Organizational Agility’, demonstrating that the ability to make rapid tactical
shifts in business decisions and people strategy amid a prolonged period of
uncertainty such as the COVID-19 pandemic, mattered the most for their
employees.

Andrew How,
Market Leader at Kincentric Singapore, said “The need for speed has never been
greater and in a period where many businesses had to adjust and adapt to the
new normal, our Best Employers have proven that they are able to accelerate
their decision making to remain agile and are always responsive to any
unexpected changes. Beyond that, the ability to manage change nimbly,
demonstrates a change-ready culture that is entrenched within the companies,
where employees trust the leaders, are inspired by their vision, and feel
equally engaged in driving future success in the face of disruption. Organizational
agility, especially in the form of management preparedness will remain a key focus
for years to come as they embark on a new workplace transformation.”

An open culture
and mindset nurtured by a resilient and engaging leadership were also found to accentuate
change readiness, promoting the generous exchange of ideas, and sets the right
foundation for ‘Organizational Agility’. Additionally, 85% of employees in such
companies based in Singapore, agreed that their organizations have a work
environment that is accepting of diverse backgrounds and perspectives.
Employees also rated their senior leaders 15% higher than other firms for
inspiring them to be excited about the organization’s future.

Top Companies Reskill
and Retrain Employees

Top quartile
companies in Singapore were also found to pro-actively retrain and upskill
their workforce, with 78% rating their organizations highly for being
supportive of their learning and development, as compared to 64% at other
companies in helping employees remain adaptable during these uncertain times.

“We
would like to congratulate all our winners for displaying extraordinary traits
of employer excellence, especially in an extremely unique and challenging year.
We hope that they, and other organizations will continue to strive for success
as we head into an equally exciting new year,” added Andrew How, Market Leader
at Kincentric Singapore.