For the second straight year, Accenture finds itself among the Top 10 in our annual Best Firms to Work For survey. To Mark Foster, group chief executive, global markets & management consulting at Accenture, the recognition reconfirms the powerful synergy between "our clients, our people and our success as a company."
"Every day we are helping clients respond to the unique and complex issues they face and delivering sustainable outcomes and results to help them thrive in both the near- and long-term. This, in turn, offers our people an incredibly stimulating career—which then brings success to our organization," Foster says.
"For our people, it is incredibly satisfying and challenging to be employed by a company that helps create outcomes for clients more quickly, surely and collaboratively than other organizations. Working with other professionals around the world who share a set of common values and this greater sense of purpose creates bonds between our people that are unheralded elsewhere."
From an Accenture business perspective, he says, this combination brings the firm stronger and more sustainable growth. "That we can offer this type of success for our clients, a continually enriching environment for our people over decades—and continue to grow and thrive as a business—is the hallmark of a best firm to work for."
Foster says Accenture's "secret sauce" is its culture and sets the firm's people and teams apart from other firms. "We attract and nurture diverse talent." While most firms would make this claim, Foster says Accenture has many mechanisms in place to keep its "finger on the pulse" of its people, including the People Research Group, whose job is to gather input from employees around the world and provide insights to leaders.
Other ways Accenture solicits feedback from employees includes: The Global Employee Survey, pulse surveys, leadership surveys, team success surveys, human capital assessments and site visits. "Our talent is a critical part of our overall business strategy," Foster says. "We actively seek new ways to differentiate
our employee value proposition to best position us in the market for top talent."
In the past year, for example, Foster says Accenture has made significant investments in five key areas—Total Rewards, Career Opportunities, Career Development, Recognition and Connections, which is designed to keep employees in touch with each other—that have made the biggest impact to the firm's overall culture.
Q&A with Mark Foster
On the survey, Accenture excelled in the areas of Career Development and Culture. We asked Mark Foster, group chief executive, global markets & management consulting, why the firm scored so high.
Career Development
We believe we have a responsibility to educate, energize and inspire our people, as well as to create opportunities for our people to grow and develop in their careers. As a result, once hired, our people do not have to leave Accenture. We offer different career paths and opportunities to help our people build their careers and their resumes within and beyond Accenture. We tailor our training programs to individual needs, and the courses people take depend on their skills, experience and areas of interest. Our people attend a mixture of instructor-led and self-study courses.
Culture
We believe that Accenture excelled in the area of Culture due primarily to the importance we place on our core values and Code of Business Ethics. Accenture's six core values are: Stewardship, Best People, Client Value Creation, One Global Network, Respect for the Individual and Integrity. These values are the foundation of our business, driving and shaping all other aspects of corporate behavior, including our diversity commitment, our corporate citizenship efforts and our environmental programs. Our management consultants bring Accenture's culture to life through a passionate commitment to client service. We are obsessed with delivering strong outcomes, building deep relationships, nurturing diverse talent, collaborating effectively, and balancing our clients' need for innovation with practical solutions. This culture helps us to attract and retain the best talent.
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