HR OLYMPICS SPECIAL


How I see it


Derrick Ahlfeldt, head of HR at Visa Europe


Visa Europe has been a sponsor of the Olympic and Paralympic Games since 1986 and this year marks its 14th Olympics. Its senior VP HR, Derrick Ahlfeldt, explains: “With our headquarters in Paddington, London 2012 poses exciting opportunities for Visa Europe to engage employees with the Olympic and Paralympic Games, as it is right here on our doorstep. We have not been approaching 2012 as a one-off focal point, the impact of which will only be felt this year; but we have been building towards London 2012 as a means of engaging employees for years. “Our success depends on the quality of staff and, with 48 nationalities under one roof, we have built a diverse team.” Visa cards are used to make 1.9 billion


transactions in the UK each quarter and with a rise in usage of contactless and mobile payments, the company needs a workforce that is adaptable and innovative. Ahlfeldt explains: “In order to deliver in this new payments environment, we require skilled and motivated employees, particularly as 2012 will be a unique opportunity to showcase the innovations our employees make possible. “Visa Europe has linked its sponsorship of the games to its overall wellbeing strategy, which is ‘to create an environment


within which employees can make healthy lifestyle choices’. It is an approach that looks at not only physical wellbeing, but also an employee’s emotional, social, environmental, fi nancial, career and community wellbeing.” One example of this link is Visa Europe’s participation in the ‘Fit for 2012’ challenge. This is a corporate challenge designed to promote individual health and wellbeing. More than 200 employees have been competing against employees from other Olympic sponsors, namely Adidas, BMW, Coca-Cola, Deloitte and UPS, in a programme designed to improve health and fi tness indicators, both for the individual and the company. “Specifi cally around games time, there


are a number of initiatives and opportunities that will engage our sponsorship commitments with the commitments we make to our employees,” says Ahlfeldt. “For example, through Visa’s sponsorship of the games, we have a small number of torch relay slots which we have awarded to staff who have been chosen through an internal nomination process, where the focus has been on rewarding individuals for their contributions to the community. “It is paramount our employees benefi t


from our sponsorship by giving them once-in-a-lifetime opportunities that demonstrate Visa’s pride in its employees and Olympic sponsorship.


“Another example of where we are enabling employees to get involved during the summer of 2012 is through volunteering. Approximately 80 Visa Europe employees are currently going through the LOCOG selection process to become volunteers at either the Olympic or Paralympic Games. Visa Europe is supporting their application by giving them paid time off to attend selection and training events, and providing an extra week’s annual leave to enable them to volunteer this summer. “We are proud of our people – and proud of our sponsorship. When you have two assets available, it is only sensible to combine them.”


web was flooded with debate about whether or not India could afford to host the games. Pictures showing children building the stadium were circulated worldwide and criticism of India’s chain of command was voiced on international talk shows. In fact, commenting on the UK’s forthcoming festivities,


prime minister David Cameron has referred to the London Games as a “global drama” – without perhaps being aware of the full implications of the ‘drama’ bit of it. Both China (2nd biggest economy in the world by GDP)


and India (4th biggest economy) faced criticism and controversy because they were under the scrutiny of millions. So, in less than four months, when the Olympic torch is lit


hrmagazine.co.uk


over our own capital city, London, will your business – and our economy (7th biggest in the world by GDP) – be ready to hold its own in front of the world’s probing eyes? Can we confidently greet investors and impress a nervous and excited throng of foreign tourists? A snap poll in January, on hrmagazine.co.uk, of 120 HR


professionals found 75% do not believe the Olympics will be enough to boost the UK’s uncertain economy. Nor have they got their house in order when it comes to mobilising their workforce either: recruitment firm Badenoch & Clark’s poll of 1,000 office workers, also in January, found more than two-thirds (71%) of employers are yet to draft a leave-and- absence plan for the Olympics.


HR March 2012 5


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