How important are the employees to the organization?

Table of Contents

Assignment Topic
Look at various corporate and organizational websites and notice how important employee are to the organization. Questions

Are there indicators that employees are a key concern?
Or are the employees merely a means to helping the company succeed? What are some methods of building relationships with employees? What communications can help with that relationship-building? Methodology

To answer the above question, I am collecting data regarding the respective companies from the websites and provide my opinion based on the collected data. Companies under study are:
Harley-Davidson
Danone
NIIT

Harley-Davidson
About the company:
Harley-Davidson, Inc. is a motorcycle manufacturer that produces heavyweight motorcycles and a complete line of motorcycle parts, accessories and general merchandise. Company culture:
Harley Davidson believes that employees are the long term competitive advantage of the organization. They provide employees with opportunities for growth and professional development. Employee benefits:

Medical Plan
Prescription Drug Plan
Dental Plan
Vision Plan
Retirement Plan – 401(k) and/or Pension Plan
Life Insurance
Disability Benefits
Employee Assistance Plan
Flexible Spending Accounts
Vacation and Holidays
Tuition reimbursement
Harley-Davidson Stock Purchase Plan
Discounts and/or Financing on Company products
Wellness Resources
Variable Compensation Programs
Employee feedback:
Positives points
Free lunch are provided
Exercise/workout room is available for the employees
Good Pay comparable with other industry standards
Work 4 days a week
Free clothes
Free accomodation
Negative points:
Weird work schedule
Job Rotation
No Paid Holidays & Benefits
Over time
Danone
About the company:
Group Danone is a food company that primarily produces fresh milk products, baby foods, biscuits, cereal products and medical nutrition products. It also co-produces bottled water. The Company operates through numerous subsidiaries in Europe, Asia and Americas. Company culture:

Danone values the employees and offers benefits in terms of equality (comparable to other industry) and equity (based on individuals performance) Employee benefits:
Remuneration based on Geography and Economy
Social Protection
Pension Policy
Profit Sharing
Employee feedback:
Positives points
Good Pay
Challenging Job
Good Social Benefits

Negative points:
Work Time
Bad Logistics

NIIT
About the company:
NIIT is an information technology (IT) solutions organization engaged in application development and maintenance, managed services, cloud computing and business process outsourcing to organizations in the financial services, insurance, travel, transportation and logistics, manufacturing and distribution and government sectors. The Company delivers services across continents directly and through its network of subsidiaries. It is servicing customers in North & South America, Europe, the Middle East, Asia and Australia. Company culture:

NIIT values employees as the most important and strongest asset. Employee benefits:
Healthcare and Insurance
Retirement Plan – 401(k)
Holidays and Vacation
Tax free Commuter Program benefits
Dependent Care Employee Assistance Programs
Family Medical Leave
Health Club
Take a break scheme – eEmployee gets refunded for going on vacation once in a year Dating allowance – Rs:3000/- per year paid on birthday for dating/going on dinner with family Work from Home – 24 days a year an employee can work from home with approval from supervisor Happy Nappy Day – birthday is a compulsory holiday for an employee Employee feedback:

Positives points
Employee friendly policies
Good growth opportunity

Negative points:
Rigid internal process
Very slow decision making
Low pay

Conclusion

Are there indicators that employees are a key concern?
Yes, all the companies under study had indicators that employee are the key concern of the organization in their HR policies.

Or are the employees merely a means to helping the company succeed? No, the companies believe that employees are the long term advantage and asset, it can have. And they provide necessary training and benefits to the employees

What are some methods of building relationships with employees? The commonly used method of relationship building with employees are good remuneration
social and health benefits
vacation and additional resources
career growth options

What communications can help with that relationship-building? Relationship building can be communicated through or as a part of the companies culture, HR Policy and among employees through forums or unions.

References
Harley-Davidson
http://www.harley-davidson.com/fr_FR/Content/Pages/home.html http://www.indeed.com/cmp/Harley–davidson/reviews
http://www.glassdoor.com/Reviews/Harley-Davidson-Reviews-E314.htm Danone
http://www.danone.com/
http://www.indeed.com/cmp/Danone/reviews
http://www.glassdoor.com/Reviews/Danone-Reviews-E3471.htm
NIIT
http://www.niit.com/careers/
http://www.forbes.com/
http://www.glassdoor.com/Reviews/NIIT-Reviews-E19732.htm
Employee – Personal Feedback