Hendra Gunawan, CEO of the United Overseas Bank (UOB) Indonesia, is the HR Stars Awards 2023 Best CEO With An HR Focus for his firm commitment to employee wellbeing and development. He has displayed this through clear and open communication, allowing everyone in the company a voice regardless of seniority or role. Over time, this has resulted in a tremendous sense of belonging and smooth collaboration across departments.
He works closely with HR in supporting internal promotion and planning out succession as long-term incentives for high-performing employees. He says: “We also provided our people with access to training via webinars, instructor-led virtual sessions and an online learning library. Furthermore, we encouraged our colleagues to pursue ‘Flexi Upskill’ programmes to improve their functional skills or explore their personal passions.”
Each month at UOB Indonesia starts with an HR committee meeting hosted by the CEO himself to discuss and support the new and ongoing initiatives for the company’s people development. Gunawan is likewise intentional in setting clear goals for the rest of the company: this year, he heralded the theme ‘Growing in Unity’ as a means of promoting values of teamwork and collaboration. There is also a CEO Town Hall held every year, where bank employees are gathered in a single forum and told plainly of UOB Indonesia’s current strategy and its latest achievements.
Even during the pandemic, the bank yielded higher employee engagement and retention. Gunawan believes that this “demonstrates the trust our people have in the bank and showcased the strong collaboration to make UOB a better place to work, which employees and co-executives can likewise attest”.
