Putting People First: A Retrospective of Our Award-Winning Clients in 2022

Putting people first is the core of a positive employee experience. As the previous year unfolded, the HR world witnessed unprecedented transformations. Companies found themselves navigating a multitude of challenges, from the complexities of high turnover rates to the complexity of remote work and the pressing issue of employee dissatisfaction. These factors created an urgent need for businesses to reassess their strategies, redefine working conditions, and foster a culture of employee well-being and engagement.

Throughout 2022, organizations faced the daunting task of retaining top talent in an increasingly competitive market. The challenges of turnover rates prompted a shift in mindset, with companies investing more deeply in initiatives aimed at attracting, nurturing, and empowering their employees. The focus extended beyond compensation and benefits, emphasizing the importance of creating a work environment that fosters growth, recognition, and work-life balance. HeartCount offered support to its clients during the times of change, offering weekly surveys that provided HR and management with real employee insights and helped them make timely decisions. 

Now, let’s take a moment to reflect on the journey of some of our most prominent clients throughout the year 2022, whose effort we recognized and awarded with our People First Award. We asked them one simple, yet meaningful question:

What kind of challenges did you face in 2022 that HeartCount helped you resolve?

The fact that employee turnover is lower compared to previous years gives us an extra boost and serves as a sign that we should continue with our weekly pulse checks.

Marija Jakovljević L&D Business Partner @ Balkan Bet

Putting People First in 2022

Visit our blog post to find out who won the People First award 👇🏻

Balkan Bet

“How to understand employees, motivate them, or provide support if we receive the main feedback only once a year through a satisfaction survey? We wanted to find a way to be there for each individual as often as possible, regardless of whether they are having a good or bad day, and regardless of where they are located in Serbia. By implementing the Heartcount application, we have become available to each and every one of our 1,200 employees. We strengthen and continue to nurture and promote clear and transparent communication at the company level. Additionally, the fact that employee turnover is lower compared to previous years gives us an extra boost and serves as a sign that we should continue with our weekly pulse checks. At Balkan Bet, Fridays are reserved for the Heartcount survey and we have a shorter working time of up to 2 hours.”

Marija Jakovljević, L&D Business Partner @ Balkan Bet

Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Serbia

“The economical turbulences shaking the entire world have far-reaching effects on the Serbian economy and require, more than ever, adaptation, flexibility, innovation, a significantly higher level of activity and initiative in our work in order to fulfil our mission – to be a purposeful support, a useful and reliable partner in improving the business, growth, and development of our members. The challenges facing the economy demand a new way of thinking, a new set of skills, as well as specific knowledge to better understand the complexity of business processes. More than ever, employees are expected to demonstrate professional mobility, flexibility while respecting high professional standards. We strive for the level of success in achieving set goals to increase day by day, successfully performing delegated tasks as individuals, but also as teams, mutually helping one another. The data we obtain through Heartcount helps us better understand our employees, how they feel at work, what they see as challenges, and to identify potential obstacles they face in their work. To understand their needs in terms of personal growth and development. To recognize what influences job satisfaction and to do everything we can to reduce dissatisfaction. This is important to us because each employee has a special significance and value for our system.”

Ivana Damnjanović-Trifunović, HR Director @ Chamber of Commerce and Industry of Serbia

Timely and appropriate responses directly contribute to the creation of a positive organizational culture, making the company an even better place to work.

Katarina Ivanović HR Director @ I&F Group

I&F Group

“The post-COVID period, which conditionally still continues, has brought new challenges in the form of the question “How to motivate employees upon their return to the office?” In addition to all the physical limitations and the possibility of remote work during the pandemic, our main dilemma and concern was how to stay connected, motivate colleagues, and achieve their satisfaction. The answer to these questions is effective communication – what is good, what is bad, which areas need improvement and advancement. To address these and similar questions, it is crucial to find a way to obtain those answers, and in that regard, Heartcount has helped us. Heartcount surveys employee satisfaction on a weekly basis and enables timely response. Timely and appropriate responses directly contribute to the creation of a positive organizational culture, making the company an even better place to work.”

Katarina Ivanović, HR Director @ I&F Group

Unifix

“We believe that being part of a team of people who are close-knit, motivated and happy in their work is a necessary condition to satisfy our customers in turn. We strive for this daily; we want to be the leaders of a company made up of motivated people who burn with passion for their work. It is natural for us to identify ourselves as a “Happy Performing Company,” where people are at the center of our project, not just in words but with all the attention they deserve. That is why we have relied on Heartcount, so that we can always be aligned on the well-being of the team and demonstrate the company’s closeness to every single employee, especially those who are physically far away from the headquarters, every week. For us, Heartcount is indispensable to better understand employees’ needs and help them be happier with their work every day!”

Gernot Seebacher, CEO @ Unifix

Interested in making it on the next year’s People First Companies list?

Let’s connect & chat on how Heartcount can help your business grow.

HeartCount was our ally last year as well, and thanks to it, we were able to keep track of the pulse of our employees, see and hear their specific impressions, problems, and doubts.

Jelena Stojiljković HR Business Partner @ Strauss Adriatic

Strauss Adriatic

“Last year the labor market was marked by high inflation, which resulted in a reduced purchasing power of wages. Companies that were able to implement salary increases through their operations and budgets faced the fact that these increases can hardly keep up with the rising food prices in Serbia, or in some cases, cannot keep up at all. Additionally, recruitment difficulties persist, especially for specialized personnel. Our company was not exempt from these challenges. We did our best and managed to implement salary adjustments for a large part of the organization, but we accepted the fact that we only neutralized or “softened” the impact of inflation. Heartcount was our ally last year as well, and thanks to it, we were able to keep track of the pulse of our employees, see and hear their specific impressions, problems, and doubts. Through Heartcount, employees not only help us by communicating how they feel but also share insights from the market and provide suggestions for specific activities.”

Jelena Stojiljković, HR Business Partner @ Strauss Adriatic

Resolute Software

“Heartcount has been an instrument for enhancing the happiness we have in Resolute. Through this platform, we have actively listened to our employees’ feedback and demonstrated our commitment to improving the workplace by valuing their opinions. Additionally, the transparency within our company structure has increased as we share feedback received among our employees. This has helped us to be more open and honest about our challenges and the need for improvement. By leveraging the data collected through Heartcount, we have fostered better communication and trust between our employees and the HR team. Using Heartcount to collect employee feedback has been a remarkable success, prioritizing employee happiness and satisfaction and resulting in a strengthened company culture, increased trust, and improved business outcomes.”

Antoana Evtimova, Talent & Culture Lead @ Resolute Software

HQ

“Our team has been growing steadily for the past two years, and we need a platform that shows us results so that we can react in a timely manner and, together with our employees, build the company culture. Throughout last year, Heartcount faithfully reminded us to improve our internal systems based on the impressions and suggestions from our colleagues.”

Olga Arsov, Employee Experience Specialist @ HQ

Again, congratulations to our clients who showed dedication, resilience and success in navigating the intricacies of the year behind us.