The "Sofidel People" project, an initiative launched following the 2016 survey on organisational well-being, continued in 2019.
The three areas identified for action concern improving internal communication flows and digitalisation, improving the spread and knowledge of company processes and procedures and optimising human resource management.
Sofidel People.
Improving internal communication flows
With the aim of encouraging internal communication and employee participation, the Group’s communication tools have been enhanced with:
- an Intranet where employees can find communication and information tools, an area dedicated entirely to human resources and a series of tools to facilitate their daily work;
- the Soft & Green newsletter in order to develop the company’s culture on sustainability issues;
- Sofidel Channel, an internal communication channel present in the Italian plants, to reach those who do not work in the offices.
Sofidel People.
Spread and knowledge of company processes and procedures
The project relating to expanding knowledge of processes and procedures is being implemented through various initiatives. One of these was the purchase and implementation of a proprietary e-learning platform. This tool allows a more rapid, organised, widespread and traceable dissemination of company procedures that require training. The platform has been active for the entire Group since January 2018 and during 2019 it was used to distribute company documents, tutorials and training courses. Another project launched in 2019 aims to make it easier for employees to access information on the company's organisational structure. The project concerning software for the graphic representation of the organization in real time has been completed. Checks are being carried out on some IT solutions that guarantee access to the programme link for all users.
Sofidel People.
Optimising human resource management
Defining the distinctive Sofidel leadership style is one of the improvement projects in the Sofidel People initiative. It aims to promote greater uniformity and effectiveness in the management of human resources and represents a challenging and long-term project for the Group. Among the various initiatives identified from 2018 onwards by the HR Managers of the various countries to optimise personnel management, the following HR projects were completed during 2019:
- The Recruitment project, which aimed to standardize the approach and operating procedures for recruiting processes managed by the various HR Managers of the Sofidel Group's foreign subsidiaries.
- The Induction project, which aimed to standardise the induction and initial training process for new employees at Group level.
- The Remote Management project to define and share at Group level the macro information necessary for the correct approach to managing foreign colleagues who report to a manager in a country other than the one in which they are working (for example, overseas colleagues who have a Line Manager at corporate level).
In recent years the company has been developing the concept of Safety at Work, which has always been one of its main priorities, from protecting employees from physical and psychological harm to promoting their health and well-being.
The protection of the health of workers, contractors and visitors is ensured by constant monitoring of the working environment, by implementing the best safety standards on machines and plants and by implementing training programmes and information activities.
In this regard, Sofidel continued the "Workplace Health Promotion (WHP)" and "Welfare" projects during the year.
Workplace Health Promotion (WHP).
The programme dedicated to improving health
The Group, which respects the principles of the European Network for Workplace Health Promotion, considers that real and lasting improvement in the level of health and well-being of workers can only be achieved by combining the following elements: improvement in the work environment and work organisation, promotion of active participation, encouragement of personal development and the adoption of healthier lifestyles. With this in mind, in Italy Sofidel has joined the ‘Workplace Health Promotion’ (WHP) programme, a long-term project set up by the Region of Tuscany, which involves the adoption of good practices in relation to diet, physical activity, addictions (alcohol, smoking and gambling) and road safety. Specifically, during the year, the issues developed last year relating to nutrition and physical activity were further implemented and training to combat smoking and boost road safety was introduced. In addition, specific events were organised, in collaboration with the North West Tuscany Local Health Authority, the traffic police section of Lucca and the Vallelunga ACI, with the aim of spreading information and training relating to the anti-smoking campaign and road safety. In order to raise awareness of the WHP programme within the company, a specific section within the company intranet has been further developed, where employees can consult the relevant information material. In December, at the end of the project three-year period, Sofidel and Soffass received an official certificate from the Region of Tuscany confirming the implementation of good health promotion practices in their workplaces. The Workplace Health Promotion programme will be rolled out to the other Group countries in the coming years.
Welfare. Programme based on supporting the costs of employees for socially useful activities
With this project Sofidel has made available to workers a basket of essential goods and services (from education, assistance, health and supplementary pensions to the “shopping trolley”), guaranteeing them the possibility of tax advantages and significant discounts while continuing to use their preferred supplier. This project was successfully implemented in Italy in 2018 and continued in 2019, with the possibility of extending it to other Sofidel Group subsidiaries also being considered.