Continuous improvement
The Shared Service Center (SSC) is primarily responsible for coordinating a series of central improvement processes aimed at further boosting the professionalisation of the organisation at Unica.
Partly in response to the COVID-19 pandemic, flexible working really took off in the course of last year. In 2021, a project group compiled a series of policy proposals for structurally embedding flexible working at Unica. One real-life outcome is an allowance for working from home for employees that came into effect in October 2021. In addition, calculations were made of the impact on business travel in the event of structural flexible working (from home), in the light of future mobility needs. In terms of accommodation, too, the effects on business accommodation needs were also assessed, in the event of structurally lower occupancy levels. The recommendations will be elaborated in 2022 into an integrated policy that will subsequently be implemented.
The uniform guideline developed in 2020 for the alignment of newly acquired companies has been operationalised since 2021, as part of a Post Merger Integration (PMI) process. This process is supervised and prioritised by a steering committee that includes the coordinating staffing director, the cluster director and the director of the acquired company. In consultation, they identify the key synergetic advantages, and come up with a clear list of practical actions for the short, medium and long term, aimed at improving the integration process.
Besides the modernisation of the ICT landscape for primary processes at Unica, work is underway on simplifying the HR processes with which employees have to contend. The tasks for employees and line management will be simplified and improved, and standards will be laid down in systems, so that labour-intensive, customised solutions can be minimised. In 2021, a series of modules from this programme were launched, including Flex Benefits. In this module, throughout the course of the year, employees can decide for themselves whether to make use of their flexible benefits for additional payments or additional time off. By simplifying the choices, employees are able to make use of their flexible benefits to meet their needs at any given moment. New functionalities aimed at simplifying HR processes for employees and management will be added in 2022 and will help to reinforce the image of Unica as a modern employer.
