nokia ranked number 1 company in europe for leaders

nokia ranked number 1 company in europe for leaders
Mobility leader also ranked number 3 globally for leadership development
Nokia - the world leader in mobility - was recognized as the number 1 company in Europe for leadership development in a recent global leadership study by Hewitt Associates, in partnership with The RBL Group and FORTUNE Magazine. The company was also recognized as the 3rd best global company for leadership development, as part of the 2007 Top Companies for Leaders study, conducted with 550 companies throughout Asia Pacific, Europe, Latin America, and North America, in the most comprehensive research on leadership in the global marketplace.
As a result of interviews with the executive board and an evaluation of company data, each of the Global Top Companies was selected by an independent panel of judges. The judges found in each case, that the development of leadership amongst those companies formed a critical part of the organizational fabric – a factor that is one of the most instrumental in Nokia’s business plan. “We believe success in this fast moving industry calls for authentic, high performing, inspiring and engaged leadership to create value for employees, customers and shareholders alike,” said Manne Tiensu, HR Director, Nokia Middle East and Africa.
“To receive this level of recognition both on a European and a global scale makes the entire Nokia Corporation proud. It shows that our inherent company commitment to developing leaders and other leadership investments have paid off,” he added.
The study also cited the top five factors that distinguish the Top Global Companies. 70% of the Top Global Companies said that business growth was the most pressing challenge facing their organizations over the next three to five years and 85% of them said that leadership must be closely tied to their business agenda - something that Nokia already believes important.
“We have long realized that a well defined leadership programme must be synonymous with business development, so we developed our leadership programme – The True Nokia Leader. The programme is used constantly in people management, from development to evaluation, and with a well-defined series of measures, we constantly assess leaders and their progress, to enable them to be at the top of their game, and deliver value to the growth of the business,” Tiensu said.
Additionally, the study found that those companies that topped the global poll placed a strong emphasis on building leadership that differentiates them from other organizations, thus exceeding expectations of employees and investors alike. ‘Nurturing global talent’, the study said, ‘is vital in ensuring the growth of an organization’ - a nod to Nokia’s existing strategy.
“We believe our investments in leadership development help us to attract and retain the best talent to Nokia – we realize that leadership is truly value driven so we have put a lot of emphasis on how leaders develop, share and commit to the vision Nokia has for its business. Hence the true Nokia Leader is somebody who can bring the Nokia’s values Engaging You, Achieving together, Passion for innovation and Very Human to life,” he said.
The company has carefully tailored management training programs across all levels, and offers assessment and mentoring to support managers in developing their individual competencies. “Coaching is a vital part of facilitating dialogue about career aspirations, competence development and creating a high quality Personal Development Plan,” Tiensu added. “Job rotation also plays an important role, in order to nurture and empower the best leaders to drive Nokia’s development,” he added.
“We have an ambition to become the company with the ‘Best Leadership in our Industry,’ – by ensuring our commitment to developing staff. If we can achieve this, we can maintain our position not only as being a global leader in leadership development, but in ensuring our outstanding performance as a global business,” Tiensuf concluded.