Company: The Audacious Agency
Company Description: The Audacious Agency helps businesses to enter awards. Their mission is to help business owners shine the light on all they do, using decades of experience in PR and branding, to educate and guide entrepreneurs to leverage awards to stand out and be well known, well paid and wanted.
Nomination Category: Company / Organization Categories
Nomination Sub Category: Company of the Year - Health Products & Services - Large
 Nomination Title: King Faisal Specialist Hospital & Research Center
- Which will you submit for your nomination in this category, a video of up to five (5) minutes in length about the achievements of the nominated organization since 1 January 2021, OR written answers to the questions for this category? (Choose one):
Written answers to the questions
- If you are submitting a video of up to five (5) minutes in length, provide the URL of the nominated video here, OR attach it to your entry via the "Add Attachments, Videos, or Links to This Entry" link above, through which you may also upload a copy of your video.
- If you are providing written answers for your submission, you must provide an answer to this first question: Briefly describe the nominated organization: its history and past performance (up to 200 words):
Total 181 words used.
Founded in 1975, KFSHRC offers a healthcare service that is somewhat more diverse and comprehensive than its competitors' facilities. We treat complex cases, difficult and treatment-resistant chronic illnesses, and perform exceptional organ transplants.
With a caring team of 15000 people strong, patients get the most exceptional care when they come to us. Like many other businesses, the global pandemic affected us, and working with many vulnerable members of society placed extra pressure on us to implement stringent safety protocols. While many organisations were able to move to a remote working structure during COVID, we were only able to do this to a certain degree.
Nurses, patient care professionals, and physicians are required on site. We transitioned to an Oracle system, which brought us more stability in terms of data and human practices. We carry a large portion of the local economy.
Our practice in Riyadh employs 11000 people, our practice in Judah employs 3400 people, and our newest practice in Medina employs 1000 people. This branch was opened in stages, accelerating certain aspects of work while others were completely shut down.
- If you are providing written answers for your submission, you must provide an answer to this second question: Outline the organization's achievements since the beginning of 2021 that you wish to bring to the judges' attention (up to 250 words):
Total 205 words used.
We introduced new organisational policies, with great success. Prior to COVID, we had already debated introducing flexible work schedules and remote working options, but the work it takes to actually implement was quite big and bold, and we hadn’t done it. However, when the lockdown happened, we achieved in two hours what we couldn’t do in two years.
We successfully drafted two pages of work policies and guidelines that would apply to any member of staff who didn’t directly work with patients, like those working in finance, HR, and supply chains. This left predominantly nurses, maintenance cleaners, and those directly with patients on-site. We managed to send at least 50% of our employees to work from home, which is massive for a business like ours.
Considering we don’t use contractors, every role possible within the hospital is filled by an employee. We didn’t go into this blindly, however, and ensured employees understood that while they may work from home during this time, it’s not a vacation.
We introduced weekly performance updates to gauge work performance and rate each department. Through this, a detailed policy eventually emerged, and employees could clock in and out of work so that we could ensure working hours were being followed.
- If you are providing written answers for your submission, you must provide an answer to this third question: Explain why the achievements you have highlighted are unique or significant. If possible compare the achievements to the performance of other players in your industry and/or to the organization's past performance (up to 250 words):
Total 249 words used.
We successfully implemented flexible working options, resulting in a significant increase in productivity and higher employee retention rates during the lockdowns. Utilizing Microsoft Teams and WhatsApp overcame communication and technical challenges and kept everyone connected and supported. Despite the pandemic, none of our employees took a pay cut, and those exposed to the virus were given free accommodation, meals, and internet in the hospital. We also brought back employees stranded around the world by working with relevant embassies.
We implemented a hospital system for remote working, using Oracle systems for ERP, and have a performance management module to keep our team on track. We also developed a customized "learning journey" for each employee to track their training and recommend skill development based on their role, seniority, and other criteria. Our performance system measures and monitors objectives, behavior and skills, taking into account cultural norms.
McKenzie assessments (Organizational Health Index- OHI) are conducted annually to acknowledge high levels of performance. We link these results to outcomes for budgeting salary increases. We also offer IDP, an optional individual development plan for employees to improve their careers and move up the corporate ladder. Our training focuses on core learning outcomes, technical, and people skills, including soft and cultural skills.
Our two-day onboarding program includes educational activities about Saudi Arabia for new employees. Nurses, our largest employee population, are offered a buddy system to support new recruits. Our company's actions during the pandemic demonstrate our commitment to our employees' well-being, development, and engagement.
- You have the option to answer this final question: Reference any attachments of supporting materials throughout this nomination and how they provide evidence of the claims you have made in this nomination (up to 250 words):
Total 249 words used.
Our aim is to provide the highest level of specialized healthcare services and be the employer of choice in the market. Our initiatives, outlined in the support document show the important work we do and why the initiatives we implemented have enabled us to retain high-performing nursing staff and recruited high-caliber nurses both in the local and international markets.
Our initiative was fast-tracked due to COVID, transitioning from in-person physical learning and more towards online e-learning via our online platform. Design implementations made the course materials accessible from home, and we ensured that the relevant physical learning materials were sent to participants.
We’ve gained more viability, more maturity as a business, and a cohesive plan to move forward. Our actions have demonstrated to our team that we care about them, they're valued, and we want to invest in their career growth.
The response has been overwhelmingly positive; these efforts are now part of our annual outcome.
As with all brave and audacious new ideas, there are lessons to be learned and ways to improve, especially in the early days. So far, we've learned we can improve by planning better for 2022/23. This would include giving each employee their own customized “learning journeys”, tracking what training they've had, what training is recommended, and suggestions for advancement within the company, seniority, and other criteria.
The team consists of an acting learning head, training specialists and analysts to help work as internal customer service providers. It's a small team servicing 15000 employees.
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