Human Talents

GRI G4 10 | 11 | 51 | 52 | LA1 | LA4 | LA5 | LA9 | LA11 | HR3 | HR4 | HR5 | HR6 | HR8 | HR10 | HR12 – Material issues: Aspects: Employment; Occupational Health and Safety; Education and Training

PRINCIPLES ARE
ATTRIBUTES
THAT CREATE
VALUE

“We distinguish ourselves for being who we are, serving our clients the way we do and projecting to the market the image of a sustainable Company” Marineide Silva Peres,
Algar Telecom’s Human Talents Officer

It is precisely in the Human Talents department that our concern about people and the interaction between the Company and different environments can be seen most clearly. We are structured under the Network Company Model, created by Algar over 25 years ago. We call our employee associates, and that translates all that we expect and aim at: collaboration, mutual growth and respect.

Our ‘way of being’ has shown throughout our history that principles are attributes that create perceived value and can be the recipe for a company’s success if it is based on a truth and a purpose. However, bringing a group of 17.6 thousand associates–from the technician that visits a client’s home to senior management–in sync requires great dedication.

In 2014, we managed to disseminate our culture even more effectively through two internal campaigns: Gente servindo Gente, [People serving People], a corporate campaign run throughout the Algar group; and Cliente Sempre [Always the Client], targeted to associates from the Telecom business. The results of our natural inclination to serve through business can be measured by analyzing the opinions of different stakeholders:

Associates Organizational climate
4% better

Market Among the Best
Companies to Work for

Clients 87% satisfaction rate

Communication Channels

Our history and features naturally made us inclined to dialogue; therefore, we have special communication channels to interact with associates, in addition to daily discussions between leaders and teams.

Fale com o presidente [Talk to the CEO]: a quarterly meeting of all associates with the CEO, usually via chat.

TV Algar: a weekly corporate TV show that can be accessed through Algarnet (Algar’s intranet) on a computer, cell phone, tablet or even watched on TVs in all the Company’s facilities and regional offices.

Intranet: this is where the Company’s main news is published and internal campaigns (internal marketing) are run.

Portal TH [HT Portal]: a corporate communication channel available to all associates with services related to vacation notices, pay slips and earnings reports.

Toda Hora [All the Time]: real-time news about the main Company events This bulletin is aired on TVs installed in social areas.

Mural: important company news posted on bulletin boards.

TH com Lideranças [HT with Leaders]: quarterly meeting of the department with all leaders.

PINT: Programa de Integração de Talentos [Talent Integration Program], which introduces the Algar culture to new associates

Associates’ Committee

It is composed of associates representing all the Company’s Results Centers and Regional Offices. The members are chosen by their own peers and have the mission to “help introduce and maintain the Company’s best management practices, as well as improve the Company’s relationships with its associates continuously”. Therefore, it is always available to meet, listen to, and represent the opinion and position, of associates.

Satisfaction

We are recognized throughout Brazil for adopting the best human talent practices; as a result, we are among the best companies to work for in Brazil according to Época–Great Places to Work. The Organizational Climate Survey conducted in 2014 indicated 89% of positive results, up 4% from 2013.

OUR ASSOCIATES

ur professionals are guided by the vision People serving People, one of our distinguishing features, especially when providing services. We place great value on people who enjoy building relationships, take pleasure in helping others, work well in teams and have an inborn talent for innovation. This set of skills has supported our growth and helped us build long-lasting relationships.

Another feature that has helped us expand our business, especially in the Telecom market, is a clear understanding of each one’s role in the execution and success of the Company’s strategic planning. The latest DSG (Degree of Strategic Guidance) survey indicates 78% of the associates are aware of their effective contribution to the business.

Over 95% of our associates are concentrated in the Southeast Region, where the Algar companies are headquartered. However, we have started expanding to other regions more consistently, including to other countries–Colombia, Argentina and Chile, where we already have 166 associates. Our number of associates rose by 27% between 2013 and 2014 due to the Asyst acquisition. At the close of 2014, we had 17,573 associates, 147 of whom were executives and 17,426 were non-executives, in addition to 193 interns.

Our associates different working hours–55% work full time whereas 45% work part time–and 75% are women. This is due to the type of service our contact center provides.

ASSOCIATES BY REGION

CAREER BUILDING

Attraction and retaining human talents are major challenges. To face this challenge, we adopt a fair, merit-based compensation policy and a transparent Career Plan, which allow associates to fulfill their growth potentials.

Another key tool in this regard is our performance evaluation, which all associates undergo at least once a year. In addition to measuring individual performance, each associate’s evaluation serves as a basis for a development plan with targets so that he or she can achieve his or her goals. In 2014, all associates eligible for the process–those in service for at least six months–were evaluated for their performance in 2013. The evaluations of associates’ performance in 2014 will be finished in the first half of 2015.

At Algar Tech, all the associates in contact center activities are submitted to monthly performance evaluations. Specific improvement actions are developed and monitored in the following month.

TURNOVER

The overall turnover rate fell from 62% in 2013 to 57% in 2014. In the Telecom segment, the 21% turnover is considered low–3 p.p. below the market average–according to a study of the Sextante magazine in 2013. In Integrated ICT Solutions and BPO, the turnover rate stood at 66%. This high percentage is mainly explained by the type of activities performed by the contact center, which has high turnover rates.

In 2014, we transferred the recruitment and selection processes to the Algar Corporate Solutions Center (CSC). We believe that this change will help us search for new associates since we now have a single bank of resumes, with greater visibility. As a result, applicants started sending their applications for jobs at the Algar Group as a whole, which currently has 24 thousand associates. They are now seen in a comprehensive manner so that they can often be recommended for jobs at other Algar companies This allowed us to increase the search for talents twofold without increasing operating expenses.

COMPENSATION AND BENEFITS

Our compensation system consists of a fixed and a variable portion, in addition to a package of benefits, such as day-care allowance, food stamps, health insurance (appropriate for each region), development opportunities, reimbursement of up to 50% of tuitions for undergraduate, graduate, MBA and master’s degree programs, among others.

The fixed portion consists of the base monthly salary; vacation and premium pays; and 13th monthly pay. Our standardized and clearly defined compensation policy allows transparent, fair management for all.

We constantly monitor market practices and conduct wage and salary surveys regularly by using the Hay methodology for positions and salary management.

Variable compensation is meant to encourage our associates (executives and non-executives alike) to achieve their individual targets, negotiated semi-annually with their immediate superiors, as well as rewarding them for achieving those targets. We also have a profit-sharing plan, under which up to 12% of our annual net income is distributed to associates. In 2014, we distributed R$23.1 million in bonuses under the profit-sharing plan.

Up TO 50%
of tuitions for undergraduate, graduate, MBA and Master’s programs, among others, reimbursed.

12%
of net income is
distributed as bonuses.

R$ 23.1 MILLION
was distributed as bonuses
for associates in 2014.

LABOR/MANAGEMENT RELATIONS

Collective bargaining agreements cover 99% of our associates. Only executives are not covered because they have specific compensation policies. Our trade union negotiations were very intense in 2014 due to the equalization of items such as the workload of Engeset’s associates, added to our workforce; however, we closed agreements with trade unions in a satisfactory manner. We achieved this result primarily because we engaged in open dialogue with our own associates, who are fully aware of the Company’s moves and possibilities. We believe that negotiations were facilitated by this relationship based on mutual understanding. Concerning operational changes, we have no pre-established minimum period for disclosure. However, we make announcements through communication plans or initiatives following our Corporate Policy and in alignment with Associates’ Committee.

EDUCATION, TRAINING AND SKILLS DEVELOPMENT

We are known and recognized for investing continuously in education, training, continuing education and skills enhancement to keep our intellectual capital up-to-date with the latest developments and able to promptly meet the Company’s need to grow constantly.

Our Human Talents department, jointly with UniAlgar, conducts a Survey on Development Needs with our associates every year. The survey covers our associates’ competences and skills, as well as our strategic goals. The results of performance evaluations conducted by immediate leaders are also taken into account.

“The art of educating is the basis for the art of serving”:
UniAlgar’s main concern is to connect this concept the whole time.

Training programs comprise on-site courses and other tools, such as online courses, chatrooms, discussion forums, workshops, meetings, hot sites and a social network. In addition, we use practical innovative teaching methodologies, such as case studies, collaboration, practical projects, storytelling, gamification (use of game design in education) TED talks (conferences to disseminate ideas), MOOCs (Massive Open Online Courses), among others.

In 2014, we offered 690 thousand training hours, a 9% fall in relation to 2013. The average number of training hours is 29 per male associate vs. 50 per female associates. Executives attended more training hours–91 per male executive and 90 per female executive.

Immersion in the strategy

The strategic guidance of 78% of the associates in the Telecom business, measured through the DSG (Degree of Strategic Guidance) survey, mentioned at the beginning of this chapter, shows a result achieved through engagement and awareness initiatives. In 2014, this effort was based on direct communication with associates (newsletters, meetings, events and meetings).

We had to adopt a different approach for the associates being integrated into the operation (about 1 thousand technicians added due to the Engeset spinoff). We created a strategy dissemination plan to lead those professionals into the Company’s culture and strategy effectively.

The digital inclusion of those associates–with computer kiosks created in the workplace, smartphones provided and broadband, pay TV and landline phone services (triple play) offered at special prices–allowed these professionals to have access to courses and online tools. The same acculturation process was conducted in the Integrated ICT Solutions and BPO segment, with the acquisition of Asyst, which was ushered into a different reality by the addition of over 2.6 thousand associates, 120 of whom are based in Argentina and Chile. We started shaping exchange mechanisms for our professionals to allow them to share experiences, culture and skills.

HEALTH AND WELL-BEING

We developed PDI [Programa de Desenvolvimento Individualizado da Saúde, or Customized Health Development Program], which involves clinical, physical, emotional and nutritional evaluations of our associates to encourage them to adopt healthy practices and fight sedentary lifestyles, smoking, obesity, stress and other factors affecting their quality of life. This program is currently offered to all associates. In the case of executives, health targets are taken into account when calculating variable compensation.

Our SESMT [Serviço Especializado em Engenharia de Segurança e Medicina do Trabalho, or Specialized Service in Safety Engineering and Occupational Medicine], a multidisciplinary team with safety technicians and engineers, doctors, nurses, social assistants, nutritionists, speech therapists, psychologists and physical therapists, is in charge of PDI and other health and well-being initiatives. They develop initiatives open to all associates. We also have a CIPA (Comissão Interna de Prevenção de Acidentes, or Internal Commission for the Prevention of Accidents) in all our operational units, each with over 50 associates. Each CIPA is comprised of representatives appointed by the Company and members elected by associates, and its purpose is to detect and report risks in workplaces and request measures to reduce and/or eliminate them. Jointly with SESMT, CIPAs also run vaccination and workplace exercise campaigns. In 2014, 97% of all associates were represented in this formal health and safety committee.

HUMAN RIGHTS

The Algar culture fully supports defending and showing appreciation for Integrity.

We follow the guidelines our Code of Conduct and Ethics in our labor relations. The Code is presented in the Talent Integration Programs since it is an integral part of our General Policy for Human Talents. We are against any kind of discrimination and adopt all applicable measures to prevent this type of conduct in our business. The rules set forth in the Code, available on our website and known to all associates, are clear and strict about not using and not accepting child, forced or compulsory labor by partners and suppliers.

dditionally, our supplier contracts contain clauses that require observing the principles of respect for human rights and labor practices. We also monitor and prevent these practices, by requiring specific documentation from all independent contractors (working papers, associates’ records, health examinations, proof of payment of FGTS [Fundo de Garantia por Tempo de Serviço, or Workers’ Severance Pay Fund], PIS [Programa de Integração Social, or Brazilian Social Integration Program] and COFINS [Contribuição para o Financiamento da Seguridade Social, or Tax-Like Contribution for Social Security Financing]), checking the Ministry of Labor and Employment’s Slave Labor List regularly and inspecting partners and suppliers for these practices. The Company recorded such incidents involving its own or its suppliers’ operations in 2014. Nor did it identify any operations and suppliers in which the right to exercise freedom of association and collective bargaining may have been violated or at significant risk. Neither the Company’s locations of operations nor its suppliers’ violate, or conflict with, the rights of indigenous peoples.

Three incidents of discrimination were reported at Algar Tech in 2014. All three were reviewed and found to be true. In two cases, the Company followed the recommendations and dismissed the leaders involved. In the third case, a formal warning and an apology to the aggrieved associate were recommended. There were no other incidents of discrimination on the grounds of ethnicity, color, gender, religion, ideology, nationality or social origin in 2014.