This time of the COVID-19 pandemic has been quite challenging for companies, which is why they have created various schemes to continue operating, but without neglecting aspects such as the physical and emotional health of employees. Bayer Mexico has adapted to this situation by being more flexible in the way of working.
During his participation in, Héctor Ornelas, Director of Human Resources at Bayer Mexico, stated: “The pandemic accelerated all companies and Bayer is no exception. Somehow it led us to rethink and understand, from all these months that we have been working, that flexibility with collaborators is key and that we need to rely on technology to be closer to them. We had to learn to use tools that we weren’t necessarily using on a day-to-day basis.
He affirmed that for Bayer Mexico —which has been distinguished as a Super Company by TOP Companies and Expansión— a very important part is listening to employees, which is why they opened forums for this; They even created emotional support programs for employees and for the elderly who live at home.
On the other hand, they have given employees some autonomy so that they can carry out their external tasks with clients such as doctors and farmers.
Héctor Ornelas mentioned that the reality of each person is very different: there are those who live alone, those who have children who go to school and must help them, prepare breakfasts, etc., so flexibility to balance their life and work is essential .
Another point that he addressed is leadership, and in this sense they need to see how to help the leaders of the company to face a situation like the current one and give them the tools so that they can better manage their teams, with respect in their schedules, as he mentioned that there will always be emergencies, but they should try not to be the norm every day, for which he also asserted that it is necessary to constantly monitor how people are working.
On the other hand, he explained that in November of last year they implemented a pilot in the offices of Mexico City, where approximately between 12 and 15% of the personnel participated. The idea was for them to come to work to observe how the activities were developed, issues such as the demand for the dining room, the influx of people entering and leaving, and this has allowed them to rethink the way of working towards the future with a scheme hybrid that integrates face-to-face and virtual work.
Another measure that aims to optimize —Super Company recognized in the category of companies with more than 3,000 employees— is the use of space in the office. The aim is to implement a “desk sharing” scheme or shared places, which are used at the request of the collaborators who attend the offices, without having to have a 100% assigned place.
To have a healthy organizational culture, Héctor Ornelas affirmed that it takes a lot of energy, a lot of drive and a genuine intention to really listen to the collaborators, understand their needs and open the forums that he mentioned before, for which he reiterated that timely communication is very important because in the end, the benefit in the corporate culture and in the commitment of the members of the organization is greater.
