Top business process outsourcing (BPO) player SYKES has won a Silver and Bronze from international business award body Stevie Awards for Great Employers.

The Stevie Awards is one of the most premier award bodies acclaiming competence across the business industry. SYKES received recognition for its agile and innovative response to the challenges posed by the coronavirus pandemic. It won a Silver Stevie Award for implementing the Most Innovative Work-From-Home Plan, and a Bronze Stevie Award for having the Most Innovative Workplace Redesign.

COVID-19 pandemic preparedness

Even with limited time and resources, SYKES was able to comply with international and national guidelines in its workplace redesign, implementing health measures across all its sites so employees can ease into the new normal. The expansion of the company’s existing work-at-home (WAH) plan has enabled 75 percent of its entire workforce to work remotely.

Meanwhile, for those who are reporting on-site, SYKES has offered free shuttle service and temporary accommodations with stringent sanitary and physical distancing regulations. All employees were also provided with a SYKES care package consisting of face mask, face shield, and alcohol or hand sanitizer.

“We are grateful to have received recognition for our strong initiatives to maintain business as usual, while still ensuring the safety and securing the employment of our people in the face of the pandemic. These awards attest to our organization’s values that are fundamental in making our business successful: speed and agility, our employees’ commitment, and the ability to operate well in challenging circumstances. As important as these external recognitions are the many client commendations we received for partnering with them effectively and efficiently in this pandemic without sacrificing the quality of our service,” said Cecile May Venancio, Sr. Director, Branding & Communications, APAC, in a press statement.

Remote work

The Stevie Awards for Great Employers also commended SYKES’ innovative WAH plan, where it deployed thousands of PC setups, including accessories, office chairs, and WiFi connection, to provide WAH access to roughly 12,000 employees.

The contact center also set up OneLeap, a one-stop shop online portal where employees can learn best practices on how to easily transition to their new work environment. OneLeap offers master classes on remote work how-tos like managing a WAH team, documents on systems and platforms for telecommuting, documents needed when transitioning to the new work environment, and more.

The portal also provides insights on other work aspects such as managing client expectations, helping family members adapt to the setup, and gaining operational insights, among others. With the implementation of this setup, SYKES has transformed its business operations, while focusing on employee needs and safety.