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Inside Toyota Spain, behind their high-quality vehicles, are talented, passionate people. Generations upon generations work for and remain with Toyota over a lifetime. They are loyal, dedicated, and proud to be part of one of the world’s leading car manufacturing companies.
It begs the question why the company was experiencing a decrease in employee satisfaction and a drop in engagement.
Toyota Spain always had the customer in mind, but they wanted to strengthen their relationship with their employees. Their team reached out to DH Spain where Talent Directors, Eugenia Machado and Valentina Nicoara helped shift the focus to be more employee-centric.
CEO of DH Spain, Carlos Piera Serra and Project Lead, Veronica Fernandez Mesias performed in-depth qualitative culture assessments, focus groups, and interviews to determine the root cause of the company's challenges.
Mutual trust was one of the company's core values, and the DH team discovered that every 4 years the Toyota headquarters selects a new president, so an abrupt change in management could have the risk of impacting trust if leaders don't address change management.
Carlos and Vero knew that leader alignment and sustaining the continuity of this new program was now a top priority. They met with the new president at the time and shared their new approach. He understood the importance of aligning with his new team. They spent a full day with the board of directors and created an action plan.
The business shifted from a product-focused approach to being more customer-centric, but the company needed a change in their structure when it came to their employees. Beyond culture, they needed to address and improve the employee experience.
This is how Experiencia Toyota was born. It was led by Marta Martin, Employee Experience Senior Specialist. She worked closely with DH coach|sultants® to design the program and address every touchpoint the employee has over their time with the company.
Carlos and Vero wanted to pass on the tools and knowledge to Human Resources and CAT [Culture Ambassador Team], in order to co-create a unique initiative for every moment of the employee experience. They created workshops based on DH concepts such as optimism and the science of happiness.
The talent leaders at Toyota Spain could take this methodology and train the rest of their team in order to sustain without DH. One of Toyota’s core values is constant improvement, so they were eager to move forward.
Leaders are responsible for ensuring the happiness of their people. It's not just about interactions with the company, it's about the relationship between employees, leaders, and management.
A survey can tell you that your employees are not motivated or engaged, but an
in-depth qualitative assessment can determine the root cause behind the issues within your organization. Understanding the why is equally important to pivoting and ensuring the success of your company moving forward.
In early 2020 when businesses around world went into lockdown, the employees of Toyota Spain began working from home. The company believe they adapted well because they made sure to stay connected to their employees and their families. They sent out weekly surveys to get a pulse check and see how people were feeling and dealing through the crisis. They also launched competitive challenges and games to ease stress.
The dealerships took the biggest hit, but mechanic shops stayed open and prioritized repairs to vehicles that provided essential services, in order to alleviate the stress of the pandemic throughout the community.
What's more, the employees who worked from home loaned their vehicles to help transport sick people. Proud Toyota owners, of course. You can imagine the sense of purpose this gave their employees.
At Toyota Spain, the philosophies, values and culture they live and breathe are contagious. They have created a ripple effect from the inside-out; beginning with their employees and families, which extends to their clients, and and out into the community. The people at Toyota Spain give their all to the company. They are the heartbeat of the organization.
When leaders can prioritize their people, along with their KPIs, they will reap the benefits. This is what the company calls the Toyota Effect.
The success of your business depends on your workplace culture.
