'Word of mouth is the best advertising'

Word of mouth is the best advertising in creating a big brand like Taj in the service industry, according to Tata Group Advisor H N Srinivas.

Addressing delegates on ‘IR Experience in Manufacturing Industries and Service Sector’ at the ‘Industrial Relations Summit - 2015’ in Bengaluru on Friday, organised by the National Institute of Personnel Management (Karnataka Chapter) and the Karnataka Employers Association, Srinivas said, “Word of mouth is 10 times better than an advertisement campaign, hoardings, newspaper advertising, etc., to build a brand name in the consumer’s mind.”

Giving an example of the Taj brand which has 24,000 employees across 58 locations in India, Srinivas said, “Out of 100 unsatisfied customers in the service industry, only five will complain formally. The remaining 95 will spread the negative image of the bad experience of service to others.”

Srinivas explains, “Through conversation, customers form an opinion in communication. More than 80 per cent interactions takes place outside the supervision of a supervisor. The goal of our conversations in the service sector industry is 10 times more which forms the best practices in advertisement. With lots of research, we have decided that we need to hire people for value and train them in skills. So, we started to identify good schools in India and are continuously hiring from them,” Srinivas added.

Taj Group believes in building an organisation where every employee regardless of level and position is treated with respect and affection, Srinivas said.

Ill-equipped to engage

Dr.Reddy’s Laboratories President and Global Head HR Dr Chandrasekhar Sripada said, “Creating a skilled talent pool from among our communities is more important than just dipping into existing skill pools.”

Chandrasekhar adds, “The right hiring is the foundation of building a great workforce. Companies must invest in training people with employable skills and build renewable skills. Most of our frontline and mid-level managers are ill-equipped to create deep engagement. We have what I call a reluctant manager phenomenon. Most managers want the status and power of ‘bossing’ over people, but can’t guide, train, and develop their people.”

Jayadeva Institute of Cardiovascular Sciences and Research Director Cardiology Dr C N Manjunath said, “The rule has been made such that in cases of emergency, the required treatment, including valvuloplasty, angioplasty, and open heart surgery procedure is immediately undertaken without any deposit, whether the patient has less money or no money.”

Chandrasekhar further said, “In his view, sustainable industrial relations climate can be built only on the foundations of socially responsible hiring and progressive people management. Industrial relations is, therefore, not about laws, negotiations and unions. It’s about skills, training, and effective people management.”