Toyota’s story: Social inclusion and integration of global teams

“Our corporate training program enables the integration of our multigenerational and international workforce to truly foster cooperation across borders while promoting social inclusion”

With the fourth industrial revolution, the automotive industry, like many others, is facing a time of transformation while adapting to the new consumer profile.

We had the opportunity to speak to the Human Resources team of Toyota Brazil, the Japanese multinational automotive manufacturer. The team shared how the organization is adapting to the 4.0 market.

To overcome new challenges, Toyota is currently going beyond the manufacture of cars, extending towards urban mobility. With a new consumer profile, not only organizations need to reassess their strategies to remain competitive in the market but employees must acquire a new set of skills too: Technical and manufacturing skills are no longer enough – soft skills such as creativity, flexibility and the ability to communicate effectively are also critical.

This shift in talent demand is consequently affecting Human Resources: “Looking into competencies and strategies is our greatest challenge, which leads us to carry out thorough assessments to have a better understanding of where the organization stands today,” shares Amanda Batista, Human Resources Manager at Toyota Brazil.

As Toyota navigates through this period of change, they want to ensure their values and culture remain communicated consistently and homogeneously throughout the organization. To do so, effective communication is key to ensure every employee is aligned with the guidelines and culture of the organization.

This also extends to the numerous training provided from Toyota’s headquarters to its different hubs across the world. Employees, no matter where they are based, need to be able to take part in these training that are held in one common language, English.

“With that in mind, our processes and training, such as language training, need to happen in a structured and standardized way across the globe.” Ms. Batista adds.

Toyota has been running a corporate language training program with us for over 3 years. Their main objective is to provide strategic training that enables their workforce to communicate and operate effectively in an international business environment. “Our corporate training program enables the integration of our multigenerational and international workforce to truly foster cooperation across borders” adds Bruno Brito, Head of Human Resources.

“With 7,000 employees in the organization, we require training solutions that give us a wide reach and flexibility, allowing our talent to access their training at all times, anywhere” shares Bruno.

English proficiency is an opportunity for employees to develop a new set of skills, allowing them to become more competitive professionals in today’s interconnected world. At the same time, the training program has been a key initiative to promote social inclusion since many employees at Toyota Brazil would not have afforded such a high-quality language course on their budget.

Along with the corporate language training program, Toyota has also launched a rewards campaign. This campaign rewards top performers by extending the language course to their own family members. An initiative that is not only key from a business perspective, but it also has a greater impact on society: employees remain on top of their training while the future generation develops a new set of skills.

“We required a language training program tailored to the manufacturing industry to tackle our own needs. That’s how our partnership with Hult EF started back in 2017. The program had a big impact on our employees’ development. They are more committed to their training as they understand the importance of language proficiency in the manufacturing industry and the impact this could potentially have on their own families. At the same time, we are contributing towards our society helping the next generation of talent to acquire the skills of the future and promoting social inclusion” explains Mr. Brito.

“The rewards campaign has shown great results! It enabled us to integrate with society, expediting learning and commitment to our professionals and promoting the development of young people,” adds Cicera Luana Costa, Analyst who oversees all training programs and results.

In line with a strategy of inclusion and development, this initiative has brought excellent results to the organization and the support needed to navigate the 4.0 industry with its cultural challenges and digital transformation.