SHRM at Nestle
SHRM at Nestle
SHRM at Nestle
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Project Report of SHRM
On
Nestle
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Table of Contents
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Nestlé is the world’s leading nutrition, health and wellness company. The company employs
more than 280,000 people and has 456 factories in 84 countries. Nestlé products are sold in
almost every country in the world.
Founded in 1866 in Vevey, Switzerland, where it is still based, Nestlé has often been called “the
multinational among multinationals”. Only about 1.5 percent of its sales are generated in its
home country, and all but 12 of its factories are situated abroad. The CEO is Paul Bulcke, and the
General Management includes a Belgian, two Canadians, one Dutch, a Frenchman, a German, a
South African/British, three Spaniards, one Swiss, one American and a Swiss-American.
Nestlé is a truly public company with over 250,000 shareholders of which around one third are
Swiss. No single shareholder owns more than 3% of the stock. US investors, who, together, hold
over 30% of the capital, can purchase ADRs through a sponsored program. As the world’s
leading nutrition, health and wellness company, Nestlé is the worldwide leader in product
categories such as soluble coffee, infant nutrition, bottled water, condensed and evaporated milk,
ice cream, as well as chocolate and malt drinks, and culinary. The Group is also a co-leader in pet
care.
The Company is committed to delivering shareholder value through sustainable, capital efficient
and profitable long-term growth. Over the past years it has concentrated on furthering organic
growth and performance improvement
HISTORY OF NESTLE:
Nestlé was the result of a series of mergers of many small companies. In the mid-1860s, Henri
Nestle, merchant, chemist and innovator, experimented with various combinations of cow’s milk,
wheat flour and sugar. The resulting product was meant to be a source of nutrition for infants,
who could not be breast-fed by their mothers. In 1867, his formula saved the life of a
prematurely born infant. Later that year, production of the formula, named Farine Lactee Nestlé,
began in Vevey and the Nestle Company was formed.
Henri Nestle wanted to develop his own brands and decided to avoid the easier route of
becoming a private label. Henri also wanted to make his company global. Within a few months
of the launch, Henri began to sell his products in many European countries. In the company’s
initial years, Henri took various steps to facilitate research, improve product quality and develop
new products.
Meanwhile in 1866, two Americans, Charles and George Page had founded the Anglo-Swiss
Condensed Milk Company. The company launched a milk based infant food, which competed
with Nestlé’s products. In 1875, Daniel Peter, a friend and neighbor of Henri developed milk
chocolate. Peter became the world’s leading chocolate maker, and later merged his company with
Nestlé. The rivalry between Nestlé and the Anglo-Swiss Condensed Milk Company intensified
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but ended in 1905, when the two companies merged under the Nestlé banner.
World War I created a new demand for dairy products. Nestle grew mainly by executing
government contracts. The end of the war created a crisis for the company as people started using
fresh milk again, instead of condensed and powdered milk. In 1921, Nestlé recorded its first loss,
which was partly due to the worldwide postwar economic slowdown. Louis Dapples, a Swiss
banking expert restructured the company, streamling its operations and reducing the debt burden.
In 1930, the Brazilian Coffee Institute approached Dapples, seeking new products. After eight
years of research Nestlé developed a soluble powder that revolutionized coffee drinking around
the world. The product was launched under the brand name Nescafe and became an instant
success. The onset of World War II speeded up the introduction of Nescafe. The beverage also
became a popular drink among American servicemen in Europe and Asia. The end of World War
II triggered off a new phase of growth for Nestlé. Many new products were added as the
company grew through acquisitions.
After 1974, Nestlé’s financial position deteriorated. Oil prices rose and growth in industrialized
nations slowed down. The Swiss franc appreciated and the price of coffee beans and cocoa shot
up. This situation was partially offset by Nestlé’s rapid growth in emerging markets.
In 1981, Helmut Maucher took over as CEO. His policies had a significant impact on Nestlé’s
style of functioning. Maucher pursued a two-pronged strategy to improve the company’s
financial situation: First he embarked on internal restructuring and divestments; second he
decided to continue with strategic acquisitions. Between 1980 and 1984, he divested a number of
non-strategic or unprofitable businesses, amounting to nearly SFr8 bn. The divestments included
certain food products that were not consistent with Nestlé’s emphasis on high value added
segments. To improve the company’s financial situation, he embarked on a cost-cutting exercise.
While the employee strength was reduced significantly, the inventory and outstanding debt were
brought down.
In 1990, Nestlé formed a joint venture with General Mills called Cereal Partners Worldwide to
promote Nestlé breakfast cereals. It covered 70 countries accounting for about 75 per cent of the
breakfast cereal consumption outside the US and Canada. Nestlé also formed a joint venture with
Coca-Cola, called the Coca-Cola Nestlé Refreshment Company, to market tea and coffee-based
ready-to-drink beverages.
In 1996, Nestlé decided to end its 50-50 Clinic Nutrition joint venture with Baxter Healthcare
and established Nestlé Clinical Nutrition to provide orally consumed nutrition products to
hospitals and nursing homes.
Nestlé opened the 20th century by merging with the Anglo-Swiss Condensed Milk Company to
broaden its product range and widen its geographical scope. In the new millennium, Nestlé is the
undisputed leader in the food industry, with more than 470 factories around the world. Nestlé
launched a Group-wide initiative called GLOBE (Global Business Excellence), aimed at
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harmonizing and simplifying business process architecture; enabling Nestlé to realize the
advantages of a global leader while minimizing the drawbacks of size.
The Company’s strategy will continue to be guided by several fundamental principles. Nestlé’s
existing products will grow through innovation and renovation while maintaining a balance in
geographic activities and product lines. Long-term potential will never be sacrificed for short-
term performance. The Company’s priority will be to bring the best and most relevant products
to people, wherever they are, whatever their needs, throughout their lives.
VISION OF NESTLE:
“Nestlé’s aim is to meet the various needs of the consumer everyday by marketing and
selling foods of a consistently high quality.”
MISSION OF NESTLE:
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“We strive to bring consumers foods that are safe, of high quality and provide optimal nutrient to
meet physiological needs. Nestle helps provide selections for all individual taste and lifestyle
preferences.”
CORE VALUES:
A prerequisite for dealing with people is respect and trust.
Transparency and honesty in dealing with people are a sine qua non for efficient
communication. This is complemented by open dialogue with the purpose of sharing
competencies and boosting creativity.
To communicate is not only to inform; it is also to listen and to engage in dialogue.
The willingness to cooperate, to help others and to learn is a required basis for
advancement and promotion within our company.
3. SWOT Analysis
STRENGTHS:
Parent support - Nestle India has a strong support from its parent company, which is the
world’s largest processed food and beverage company, with a presence in almost every
country. The company has access to the parent’s hugely successful global folio of
products and brands.
Brand strength - In India, Nestle has some very strong brands like Nescafe, Maggi and
Cerelac. These brands are almost generic to their product categories.
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Product innovation - The Company has been continuously introducing new products for
its Indian patrons on a frequent basis, thus expanding its product offerings.
Operated factories in 77 countries (all six continents), a truly global company.
Considered the innovation leader in the global food and nutrition sector(3500 scientist in
company R&D network)
Low cost operators (beat the competition by producing low cost products, edging ahead
with low operating costs)
Offering thousands of local products.
Have a great CEO, Peter Brabeck, and a very strong workforce.
WEAKNESSES:
Exports – The company’s exports stood at Rs 2,571 m at the end of 2003 (11% of
revenues) and continue to grow at a decent pace. But a major portion of this comprises of
Coffee (around 67% of the exports were that of Nescafe instant to Russia). This
constitutes a big chunk of the total exports to a single location. Historically, Russia has
been a very volatile market for Nestle, and its overall performance takes a hit often due to
this factor.
Supply chain - The Company has a complex supply chain management and the main
issue for Nestle India is traceability. The food industry requires high standards of
hygiene, quality of edible inputs and personnel. The fragmented nature of the Indian
market place complicates things more.
Some of their product were positioned as too scientific, and consumers didn’t quite
understand (i.e. LC-1 was a food and not a drug)
OPPORTUNITIES:
Expansion - The Company has the potential to expand to smaller towns and other
geographies. Existing markets are not fully tapped and the company can increase
presence by penetrating further. With India's demographic profile changing in favor of the
consuming class, the per capita consumption of most FMCG products is likely to grow.
Nestle will have the inherent advantage of this trend.
Product offerings - The Company has the option to expand its product folio by
introducing more brands which its parents are famed for like breakfast cereals, Smarties
Chocolates, Carnation, etc.
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Global hub - Since manufacturing of some products is cheaper in India than in other
South East Asian countries, Nestle India could become an export hub for the parent in
certain product categories.
Health-based products are becoming more popular in the world, including in the United
States
Unaffected by current economic conditions (its share of the UK confectionery market rise
to 15.6 per cent with a 0.5 per cent growth this year)
THREATS:
Competition - The Company faces immense competition from the organized as well as
the unorganized sectors. Off late, to liberalize its trade and investment policies to enable
the country to better function in the globalised economy, the Indian Government has
reduced the import duty of food segments thus intensifying the battle.
Changing consumer trends - Trend of increased consumer spends on consumer durables
resulting in lower spending on FMCG products. In the past 2-3 years, the performance of
the FMCG sector has been lackluster, despite the economy growing at a decent pace.
Although, off late the situation has been improving, the dependence on monsoon is very
high.
Sectoral woes - Rising prices of raw materials and fuels, and inturn, increasing
packaging and manufacturing costs. But the companies’ may not be able to pass on the
full burden of these onto the customers.
Nestlé is a human Company providing a response to individual human needs throughout the
world with specific concern for the well-being of both its consumers and its employees. This is
reflected in its attitude and its sense of responsibility towards people. Nestlé aims to increase
sales and profits but, at the same time, to raise the standard of living everywhere it is active and
the quality of life for everyone. Nestlé is also convinced that it is the people who form the
strength of the Company and that nothing can be achieved without their commitment and their
energy, which makes people its most important asset. Involvement of people at all levels starts
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with appropriate information on the Company’s activities and on the specific aspects of their
work. Through open communication and active co-operation, everyone is invited to contribute to
improvements enhancing Company results and personal development.
Therefore, we can conclude that the models that Nestle follows are:
- High Performance,
- High Commitment.
NESTLE’S SPIRIT:
At Nestlé Pakistan, we make big investment in people, they are our top priority. For us, our
people are the key drivers for our success. Nestlé Pakistan provides its employees a dynamic
professional environment bound by one spirit,’ The Nestlé Spirit' and that makes Nestlé India a
great place to work.
Nestlé Pakistan is a vibrant company enhancing the quality of life of its consumers by
offering them world class food products driven by Nutrition, Health and Wellness. At Nestlé
Pakistan your integrity, professional skills and performance is what matters. We trust our
people and believe in giving early responsibilities and encourage them to actively contribute to
the log term sustainable growth of the business.
At Nestlé Pakistan we believe in building leaders who can take on challenges, innovate and
write success stories. Nurturing starts from day one on the job. Business dynamics and need
directed training programs offer employees with opportunities to acquire and develop desired
functional, people management and decision making skills enabling success at work.
As we achieve milestone after milestones we invite you to be part of this exciting journey and
assure you that the exposure and experience would be unparalleled.
COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE:
Nutrition
Emerging consumers
Premium goods and
“Out-of-home” goods.
Nestle is a company whose HR strategies or practices are developed by keeping in mind the
Business objectives of the company and the strategies devised to run the business. The HR
strategies are always in alignment with the business goals. Nestle is unique in the sense that it
has been able to successfully inculcate its business objective as well as its core values,
consistently in its employees day-to-day activities starting from recruitment till continuous
performance appraisals.
To increase the product growth i.e. productivity human resource strategies are adopted such as
flexible, dynamic employees are attracted, selected and then trained and motivated to be more
productive than the competition. One case in point is the Kit Kat manufacturing plant in York
England, under the managership of Ian Jobson and, ultimately, Nestle CEO Peter Brabeck. In
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1998, Time magazine reports, it took 38 man-hours to produce a ton of chocolate. This year,
using a combination of robotics, automated packaging, and production-line improvements, the
forecast production time is 23 hours. This decrease in production time was feasible because of
process innovation.
Nestlé embraces cultural and social diversity and does not discriminate on the basis of
origin, nationality, religion, race, gender or age. Furthermore, Nestlé believes that its
activities can only be of long-term benefit to the Company if they are at the same time
beneficial to the local community. In short, global thinking and strategies can best be
expressed through local action and commitment.
Diversity
From creating hundreds of the world’s leading brands to offering an amazing variety of
career options to our employees, it’s clear that Nestlé’s businesses are exceptionally
diverse. So it should come as no surprise that Nestle values diversity in the people
working them just as much as they have diversity in their products.
It’s Nestlé’s policy to provide an environment where respect is shown to all individual
employees and where employees are valued, recognised and rewarded on the basis of
their talent and their contribution rather than any consideration of age, gender, race,
sexuality, religion or disability. As an organisation, Nestlé is opposed to any form of
unfair discrimination and believe that an inclusive approach will be of maximum benefit
to all our employees as well as our wider business goals and the society in which we
live.
We believe that to succeed we must recruit and retain talented individuals and value and
respect the differences each of those individuals brings with them.
Nestlé’s Culture
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Nestlé is committed to a number of cultural values. These values come partly from its
Swiss roots and have been developed during its history. They are also evolving so as to
support the permanent reshaping of the Company. They can be described as follows:
Like, open and flexible culture is ensured by way of providing training programs to
employees at all the levels.
TRAINING:
From the factory floor to the top management, training at Nestlé is continuous. And
because it is mainly given by Nestlé people, it is always relevant to the professional life.
Throughout the world, each country runs its own training programmes (e-Learning,
classroom courses, and external courses).
o Literacy training-to upgrades essential literacy skills, especially for workers who
operate new equipment.
o Nestle Apprenticeship Programmes.
o Local Training Programmes-on issues ranging from technical, leadership, and
communication and business economics.
Decentralization: Nestlé recognizes that its consumers have a sincere and legitimate interest
in the behaviour, beliefs and actions of the Company behind brands in which they place their
trust and that without its consumers the Company would not exist.
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o Nestlé believes that, as a general rule, legislation is the most effective safeguard
of responsible conduct, although in certain areas, additional guidance to staff in
the form of voluntary business principles is beneficial in order to ensure that the
highest standards are met throughout the organization.
o Nestlé is conscious of the fact that the success of a corporation is a reflection of
the professionalism, conduct and the responsible attitude of its management and
employees. Therefore recruitment of the right people and ongoing training and
development are crucial.
o Nestlé continues to maintain its commitment to follow and respect all applicable
local laws in each of its
Transparent performance appraisal systems and the freedom given to them to question their
seniors benefit not only the employees but even the organization as a whole.
PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT:
Nestlé’s emphasis on individual achievement is evident from the kind of pay structure HR has
designed for its employees and the company also incorporates practices like Job Enrichment and
Job Enlargement, to motivate employees and to break the monotony of their job tasks. The
correspondent herself works in both sales and brand management departments, which is an
example of job enlargement.
PAY STRUCTURE:
o Nestle strives to offer fair remuneration. Remuneration level is above the average in
industry.
o The variable component of the salary is comparatively big to reward individual
performance.
o In case of higher management level, the variable part is linked to individual & team target
achievements.
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Nestle expertises in Recruitment Services, Talent Management and International
HR, Learning and Development, Information and Administration, and Reward and
Employee Relations. Nestle is recognized as recognized one of the most advanced HR functions
within Nestlé globally. Before implementing the HR practices/policies, Nestle get to the crux of
the business issue and then find an HR solution. While practicing the HR policies, Nestle is
focused more on people and organization strategies.
RECRUITMENT SERVICES:
The Recruitment Services team in Nestle UK is recognized within Nestlé globally as the
benchmark in leading recruitment practices. That’s because at Nestle they don’t just fill jobs.
Instead, they work with the business to proactively identify and fill their talent gaps. Nestle
Recruitment teams constantly stand back and work out new ways to attract the very best talent
and keep ahead of the competition, but it isn’t always easy.
The recruitment process at Nestle is clearly defined and is always in synchronization with the
changing business needs.
o People with qualities like dynamism, realism, pragmatism, hard work, honesty and
trustworthiness are looked for.
o Match between candidate’s values & company’s culture are recruited.
o Recruitment for management levels take place in the head office by top management and
all others at the branch level. The existing employees are promoted to higher posts as per
the requirements. There are no lateral recruitments. Another source of recruitment is
campus placements and human resource consultancies to look for the enthusiastic,
motivated and fresh pool of talent.
o Decision to hire a candidate is finally taken by HR professionals only and no preference
is given to external consultant. This is done to finally have the discretion power in the
hands of Company.
- Nestle management & leadership principles- The Nestlé Management and Leadership
Principles describe the management style and the corporate values of the Nestlé Group,
specifically in the area of interpersonal relations.
- Nestle human resources policy- This policy encompasses those guidelines which constitute
a sound basis for efficient and effective HR Management in the Nestlé Group around the
world.
- Nestle people development review-this policy throws light on Nestlé’s culture and core
values, different training programs and life of employees after work.
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REWARDS AND EMPLOYEE RELATIONS TEAM:
It consists of two expert sub-teams, each with specific responsibility for business-wide
strategic and operational remits.
Employee Relations sub-team provide business-wide advice and guidance to line managers
and the HR community on individual employee relations matters and to HR Business
Partners on broader employee relations and change management issues, as well as
developing and implementing Nestlé’s policies and procedures in this area and undertaking
relevant project work.
EMPLOYEE RELATIONS:
Nestle provides a very healthy working environment which is one of the reasons why
Nestlé’s employees state their commitment level to be very high.
o Employee turnover is less than 5%., which is considered to be very low for a
multinational corporation.
o Nestle has an open culture & upward communication especially in case of grievance
redressal is encouraged.
o Work/Life balance is given importance, as illustrated in the Nestle Human Resource
Policy document.
o ‘Nestle Family’ annual events are organized by their HR department whereby employees
along with their families are invited.
o Emphasis is laid on safety of employees (Nestle Policy on Health and Safety at Work).
CHANGE MANAGEMENT:
o Nestle has adjusted to the ever-changing external environment for the last 140 years since
its inception 1866 without losing its fundamental beliefs and core values. It manages
Change and drives sustainable profitable growth by following the policy of making
gradual changes instead of making drastic and risky changes.
o ERP implementation- In June 2000, Nestle SA signed a much publicized $200 million
contract with SAP and additional $80 to install an ERP system for its global enterprise to
help centralize a conglomerate that owns 200 operating companies and subsidiaries in 80
countries. While the ERP system was likely to have long-term benefits, the project
touched the corporate structure and culture. The structure was decentralized, and it tried
to centralize it. This was initially opposed by employees but with subsequent measures
taken by the HR like training etc., this has been successfully implemented.
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Reward sub-team; on the other hand focus on maximizing return on investment to deliver
Reward that will motivate the employees to perform at the highest level as well as managing
the overall Reward principles and processes including base salary, incentives and Flexible
Reward.
o ‘Passion to Win’ awards- These quarterly awards have been institutionalized to reward
those who over-achieve their targets.
o Long-service Awards- To recognize employees who have been with the company for
more than 30 years.
o ‘Nestle Idea Award’- It was found from the correspondent that the company institutes
Nestle Idea Award every quarter to recognize and award employees who come up with
relevant and innovative ideas which have the potential of being implemented at Nestle.
For all aspects of Reward Nestle apply the fundamental principles outlined below.
Reward Principles:
Performance Driven - The level of your Reward is linked to your performance, hence the
highest performers will see the greatest Reward. There is also a direct link between the
performance of the business and the Reward we're able to offer
Competitive - We benchmark all aspects of Reward to ensure we offer all our employees
a competitive Reward package
Inclusive - Our Reward programme is designed to reflect the valuable contribution which
every employee makes, not just senior managers
Flexible - We've made it our top priority to allow you to tailor the Reward you receive to
your circumstances, whenever possible or practical
BENEFITS:
- Provident fund
- Conveyance Reimbursements
- Residential Accommodation
- Monthly health check-ups & free consultation for self & family etc.
Talent Management and International HR Team, on the other hand, focuses on developing
the potential and careers of all the employees at Nestle, particularly those with high levels of
performance and potential who are likely to be Nestlé leaders of the future. The main task of this
talent management program is to develop the framework and processes which will enable the
company to identify and develop the potential of employees at Nestle. This program supports
individuals with a clear career development plan to go on international assignments out of the
respective locations such as Nestlé’s international headquarters in Vevey, Switzerland, or to other
Nestlé markets around the globe.
At Nestle Learning and Development means Continuous Improvement and Creativity and
Innovation. Learning and Development is carried out by Continuous Improvement that leads
directly on to Creativity and Innovation. This process generally involves two stages:
i. A team of passionate and professional development experts is formed to create Core Skill
Development Strategies that will enable continuous personal and professional growth
across the business. After that, the strategies are tailored for each business area with the
help of HR Business Partners and Business Directors.
ii. The next stage is to go online, where the trainees are able to take advantage of our vast
learning and development intranet. This resource has been specifically designed to help
trainees manage their own learning in an easy to use virtual environment. Once you're up
and running there, you'll be able to focus on picking up new skills particular to your job
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and career ambitions with the help of our leadership development programmes, designed
to create the leaders of tomorrow.
Differentiation:
Nestle follows differentiation strategy and to make it a success it has HR strategies aligned
accordingly. To support the differentiation strategy, Nestle practices following HR strategies to
support differentiation:
They favour long term performance measures. Nestlé does not favor short-term profit at
the expense of successful long-term business development.
They believe in extensive trainings of their employees to keep the pace with changing
environment and keep them updated with latest innovations
At Nestle, equal and fair pay practices are followed. Nestlé’s pay structure, rewards &
incentives systems are also designed in such a way so as to promote creativity.
Recruitment process is also totally based on hiring and recruitment of people who bring
in new ideas.
The importance of the human resource function has become evident especially with the onset of
global competition. Not only do human resource managers have to think more strategically and
in step with corporate planning managers, they have had to address real and hard issues about the
impact of intense competition on employment stability. It is one thing to think with executives on
how the human resource section can support corporate activities. It is another to actually
implement cost-savings policies with regards employment.
To guard against the downside of global competition, the human resource managers must be
more proactive in recruiting and maintaining a responsive and efficient work force. Planning
should start at the early stages so that organizations do not bloat needlessly. Human resource
managers must be able to map out human resource strategies such that flexible, dynamic
employees are attracted, selected and then trained and motivated to be more productive than
the competition.
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Human resource managers are no longer administrators or simply implementers. They should be
recognized as strategic partners. Only then can they function well to help top management
especially in a climate of economic uncertainty.
Although, Nestle being a Human Company itself possess many of the above mentioned qualities
that are supposed to be present in the managers of today’s time. But, according to the changes in
the business patterns, globalization, and diverse business of Nestle and rapidly changing ups and
downs in the economy. There are certain factors on which the role of the HR at Nestle is
changing. The HR managers at Nestle along with professional skills, practical experience and
result focus must possess the following qualities:
They should be capable to motivate and to develop people, addressing all those issues
that allow others to progress in their work and to develop their capabilities.
They should be able to inhibit curiosity and open-mindedness as well as a high level of
interest in other cultures and life-styles. This also includes a commitment to continuous
learning and improving, as well as to sharing knowledge and ideas freely with others.
It is responsibility of the HR professionals to create a climate of innovation and to think
outside the box. This implies the right to make a mistake but also the readiness to correct
it and to learn from it.
HR professionals should now be able to inculcate the willingness to accept change and
the ability to manage it.
They should provide international experience and understanding of other cultures. This
will prepare the employees to face the challenges in global markets.
PROGRAMS:
Internship Programs:
For graduate students, Nestle offer a summer internship in brand management for BBA and MBA
students. Marketing Interns are challenged with leading integral aspects of our brands' marketing
plans. This highly competitive program could also give you the opportunity to transition into a
full-time position.
Adequate training programs are developed at the level of each operating company capitalizing on
the availability of local, regional or global resources of the Group. It is the responsibility of HR
staff to assist the management in the elaboration of training programs. Following type of
programs are conducted at Nestle:
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o Training programs enhancing the language skills of the employees.
o Training programs aimed at developing and sharing best practices of the various
management disciplines practiced in the Group. They also strive to strengthen corporate
cohesion as well as to promote networking throughout the Group.
o E-learning programs as a complement to or a substitute for formal training programs.
Practices:
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