Personal Development Lands DHL At Top – Best Workplaces in Latin America 2009

LIMA, Peru – If you think that work and fun don’t mix, you’d be surprised by the atmosphere at DHL Bolivia, the country’s leading courier and express mail service provider.

DHL Bolivia has institutionalized good times with its annual Service Week, which fosters teamwork by having employees wear costumes to work, perform skits and decorate work areas. During a recent Service Week, one team dressed up as top chefs with white aprons and toques and served a surprise lunch to the members of another team. Another division transformed a work area into a mini discotheque and then danced for the audience.

DHL goes out of its way to find the means to keep employees motivated and happy. “We want people to be pleased to come to work,” said Aldana Fernández, the director of human resources at DHL Bolivia. “We want them to feel that there is a sincere concern for their well-being.”

The efforts to create a positive work environment landed the company in the No. 3 spot in the Great Place to Work ranking. DHL Bolivia is the only Bolivian company included in the Latin American regional ranking.

In Bolivia, many companies, particularly those with workers in the informal sector, are only concerned with the bottom line, Fernández said. “Their HR departments are just administrators of the staff, paying salaries and giving vacation time,” she said. “There is no strategic effort by human resources to support the labor environment and therefore boost the company’s objectives.”

Securing a top spot in the list of best workplaces was no small feat for DHL Bolivia considering the global economic downturn, which has forced most corporations to undertake drastic cost-cutting measures, ranging from slashing investments to layoffs.

DHL has not been able to avoid cutting costs by reducing its staff and holding back on spending. The company launched a savings campaign, encouraging employees to cut down on every day expenses, such as those related to paper, telephone and water usage.

Yet the challenges have helped forge more unity and cooperation among the staff. “When facing an economic crisis, it is difficult to generate development and growth opportunities [for employees],” Fernández explained. DHL Bolivia has designed programs to help its workers grow personally and professionally. “They learn new things, and don’t feel like they are stuck in a rut,” Fernández said.

One initiative is cross training. An employee is temporarily transferred to a different department; taking the place, for example, of someone on maternity leave. Workers get a first-hand look at the day-to-day responsibilities and challenges of different areas of the company. These experiences give employees the sorts of insights that make them more sensitive to the needs of colleagues when working together, Fernandez said.

The company also emphasizes promoting from within, a policy that helps motivate and retain employees who see opportunities for advancement. A case in point is Tatiana Cabrera, DHL Bolivia Customer Services Lead, who previously worked as an agent for Western Union, which provided its services through DHL offices.

“It’s clear that DHL values the personal development of its employees, which is reflected in its day-to-day internal company policies,” said Cabrera, who joined DHL more than four years ago. “I love being able to work and have fun at the same time.”

Salaries are also competitive for the 128 people the company employs.

Even customers laud DHL’s employees-come-first policy. “DHL forms part of a growing trend in Bolivia, whereby corporate entities with an international scope are increasingly concerned about the well-being of their employees,” said Diego Cavero Belaunde, CEO of BCP Bolivia, a leading bank and long-time client. “One of the company’s strengths is the value they place on teamwork.”