Zong: A Culture Worth Understanding

Prepared by Muhammad Ali – Team lead, CC, Lahore

Zong is… Zong is dedicated to the highest

quality of Service Zong is delivering services with a

sense of warmth & friendliness Zong is the leading cellular service

provider in the universe

Zong’s Commitment to its Employees

We are committed to provide our Employees a stable work environment

It gives equal opportunity for learning and personal growth.

Creativity and innovation are encouraged in Zong

Employees are provided the same concern, respect, and caring attitude within the organization that they are expected to share externally with every Zong Customer.

What Makes Zong Unique?

Zong is a part of China Mobile, the worlds largest Cellular Service Provider.

3G coming soon… Much of Zong’s success is due to the willingness of its

leadership to be innovative Zong’s primary operating philosophy is better cellular

services offered at low rates with alot of VAS’s. Zong management has created a culture where

employees are treated as the company's number one asset.

The benefits it gives it employees, include: bonus, increments and empowering employees to make decisions.

Zong mixes its New Age management techniques, such as celebrating different milestones.

Zong CC’s Organizational Structure

Limited emphasis on formal organizational structure. Open door policy is encouraged

Leadership meetings are shared with employees

Leadership by example Worker responsibility programs &

rotations &Team environment

Decision Making Strategies

Employees are encouraged to be responsible and are given authority to make decisions

Employee input is taken into all policies and procedures

All decisions are shared with the company employee’s

Employee Engagement Surveys are done to help take feedback.

Zong’s Achievements Zong has become a legendary example of the achieving more

in less time. Its achievements are impressive considering the competitive,

cut-throat industry in which it thrives Zong has been named “One of the fastest growing Cellular

Service Provider in Pakistan It has one of the best customer service in the industry & state

of the art purpose built facilities in Pakistan. Zong has always been a good employer in terms of the

industry standards. It has developed strong employee and customer loyalty - a

feeling of devotion, duty and attachment to Zong. 3G Coming soon…

Zong’s Culture is Focused on Relationships

Zong’s most distinctive organizational competency is its ability to build and sustain relationships characterized by One Company One Team One Dream

Focus on relationships is the fundamental driver of leadership, culture, strategy, and coordination at Zong.

Impact of Strong Relationships at Zong Employees embrace their connections

with one another Connections allows them to coordinate

more effectively across all departments At Zong employee’s embrace

Individuality, and empowerment. Zong puts in a lot of trust into its employees.

Impact of Shared Goals at Zong

Motivates individuals to move beyond what is best for their own narrow area of responsibility within their own function

Motivates them to act in the best interests of the overall process of the organization and encourages competition to get better results for everyone.

Impact of Respect for Others at Zong

Encourages all employees to value the contributions of their colleagues

Encourages all employees to consider the impact of their actions on others

Reinforces the tendency to act in the best interests of the overall work process

Zong’s Top Practices for Building High Performance Relationships

1. Leading with credibility and care2. Investing in frontline leadership3. Hiring and training for relational competence4. Bridging the work/family divide5. Creating a better work environment for

everyone6. Measuring performance7. Establishing partnerships all around8. Building relationships with Suppliers &

Customers

Credibility & CareKey to Zong’s Culture At Zong, credibility and care are the two

critical ingredients of effective leadership

Credibility and care are the ability to inspire trust and the ability to inspire in employees the belief that their leaders care deeply about their well-being

Zong’s top management have gained the complete trust of managers in the field, and of frontline employees, by being forthright and consistent in their messages to employees

Role of Leadership in Zong’s Culture

Leadership at Zong is understood as a process that can take place at any level of the organization

Zong’s leadership believes that leadership at the front line can play a critical role in organizational success so it has given more empowerment to the frontline employee’s

In a way New leaders at Zong are told, “Don’t try to learn your job. Your first priority is to get to know your people!”

Training Relationally Competent Individuals

Zong goes out of its way to hire those who will contribute to the “overall operation of the company”.

In recruiting Zong tries to obtain the best who are also team players and able to relate well with other function’s of their respective departments.

They then train newly hired-most of whom come from other cellular service providers and also encourages fresh graduates.

Training Relationally Competent Individuals

Zong’s training is geared toward fostering relational competence, as well as functional expertise

New staff learn about the overall work process and understand where they fit in and how their job relates to and supports jobs of coworkers

Those not able to catch on to Zong’s culture & perspective are let go

Zong’s training department puts every possible support in place to help trainees succeed, and works with those who are truly sincere and put forth the effort.

Training at Zong

Zong “hires for attitude and trains for aptitude.”

Zong has been on the front for also providing different Leadership training programs to its existing employees.

Zongs new Management Trainee Program (MTO) program is a great success & is a part of that learning process.

Incorporating Personal Lives into its Culture

Traditional organizational practices often demand that, while at work, employees disconnect themselves from the aspects of their identity related to family, spirituality, personal pain and tragedy, and race or ethnicity. As a result individual attitudes and performance often suffer.

Zong blurs the boundary between work and personal life and strives to enhance rather than undermine employee ties to family and community

Zong openly recognizes deaths, births, and other major events in the lives of employees and their families, and has established a Catastrophic Fund to provide aid when needed. It has a Magazine that comes out that encourages every employee to contribute their stories are parts of their lives that everyone can know about.

Zong is currently doing well in the cellular industry of Pakistan. But one of the things it does best is taking care of its people.

Event Management Team

Event Management Teams (EMT) have been made to ensure that the company’s rapid growth would not result in barriers between functions. Each region has its own team to organize events, parties, trips and ways for the company to give back the its employees. These events bring family and other personal relationships into the workplace in a highly visible way.

Zong has a long tradition of bridging the work/family divide by seeking to accommodate the needs its employees and families through flexible scheduling and ensuring that employees do not devote too much time to the job at the expense of their families.

Performance Measures at Zong Contact Centers

Performance measures that Zong uses, encourages its employees to focus on learning, rather than on blaming.

This approach to performance measurement is associated with higher levels of relational coordination, which, in turn, contributes to improved performance, faster turnaround times, greater productivity, fewer cut backs, and fewer customer complaints.

At Zong we believe in encouraging our employees by a ‘doing more with less’ philosophy.’

What We Have Done For You – Lahore Contact Center Internal Promotions Celebration of Events *Valentines Day *Away Day

*Spring Festival *Green Day *Eid Milad Un Nabi *Ps3 Gaming Tournament *Foosball Tournament *

Employee Grooming & Communication Skills Training Outbound Team & CFL Team Job Rotations with *QA *WFM *Fraud Control *

Traffic & *Social Media Departments. Salary Increments – 81% , Highest in the industry Highest Commission on sales in the industry

What We Have Done For You – Lahore Contact Center Annual Appraisals Job Grade Movements Quarterly & Annual Bonus Cash Prize Campaigns Mega Prizes on Sales E.g. Motorbike Annual Conference invitations for Agents & Team leads Employee Centric Branding in Contact Center Employee Engagement Survey Open Door Policy & Open Forums Top management visits Relaxed AHT Brackets

What can we learn from Zong

At Zong we believe in the give and take philosophy. The primary lesson from it is that strong working relationships allows our organization to move beyond the traditional factors and we believe is doing more for our employees.

The higher authorities at Zong believe that building Relationships is not just a nice addition to the hard factors of the industry, but are powerful drivers of organizational performance.

Thank you…