Engineering trust

Poona-based engineering major Forbes Marshall has ranked among the top 25 Best Workplaces in India for the year 2008 in a survey conducted by the Great Place to Work Institute in association with The Economic Times. This is the second time the company has secured this honor since it started participating in the survey from 2006. Different criteria in the study included trust, credibility, fairness, respect, pride and camaraderie as perceived by employees towards their organization.

"Our company has been rated on pillars like family spirit, culture and employee trust,” director Rati Forbes told Business India, June 15, 2008. Of the top 25 companies, only four from the manufacturing sector made it to the elite list. Over 250 organizations participated in the study in India, covering more than 36,000 employees. Information Technology (IT), engineering/manufacturing, finance, real estate, hospitality and FMCG (fast moving consumer goods) companies took part in the survey, with 24 percent being from the IT sector, states a press release from Forbes Marshall.

Forbes Marshall factory and director Farhad Forbes (center) with Tarun Das (left) of the Confederation of Indian Industry and Bobby Kuriakose, HR head, Forbes Marshall

"A comfortable and engaging work environment, open communication, management training programs and the absence of hierarchy are some of the key aspects of Forbes Marshall that make it one of the top 25 places to work,” details the press note. A noteworthy "best practice” that the study mentions is the weekly value added meetings that are conducted with managers and directors.

The Great Place to Work Institute based in the US conducts the study every year across 40 countries, covering one million employees and "is one of the oldest, most comprehensive and respected workplace studies in the world,” Forbes Marshall adds.