Caring and engaging, ADP Canada has employees’ backs

As one of the country’s largest HR and payroll service providers, ADP Canada prides itself on ensuring Canadians get paid. But when the pandemic hit, rules and regulations kept changing. It was all hands on deck as employees and managers strived to help customers cut through the COVID-19 confusion.

“There were so many regulations changing in such a short period of time, our call volume increased five-fold,” says Hendrik Steenkamp, director of HR operations and advisory services.

“The company put out a request for volunteers to take calls, so I put my name forward.”

Having one of its top executives field questions alongside service reps might be unusual at other companies, but not ADP Canada. Headquartered in Toronto and part of the larger ADP family with nearly $15 billion in revenues, the company offers a wide range of HR, payroll, tax and benefits solutions. Despite its size, it’s kept its people-first focus, creating a caring and inclusive corporate culture.

“I enjoy working at ADP because it’s like a family and people care about you. The pandemic is a very unusual situation for us to be in, but I know my company has my back,” says Steenkamp.

It’s this inclusive and engaging culture that helps ADP Canada attract and retain talent. The company’s executive team believes that having employees from all backgrounds drives innovation and growth. Led by a chief diversity officer, ADP’s multicultural mosaic is reinforced by its business resource groups. These encourage LGBTQ+ and women in business initiatives to drive business processes as well as other aspects of the employee experience.

That open-minded and compassionate company culture helped ADP Canada quickly adapt when the pandemic was declared.

“We saw unprecedented change overnight. With the majority of ADP associates working from home and nearly 200 federal policy changes introduced since the pandemic hit, we’ve continued to ensure our clients’ payrolls get processed accurately and on time and Canadians get paid,” says Jeff Livingston, manager external brand and communications.

“It’s so inspiring to see everybody pitching in and going above and beyond. That’s just part of our culture and it makes me really proud to work for this organization.”

With employees working remotely, ADP Canada uses constant communication to maintain that sense of belonging. Executives hold virtual town halls and teams meet using collaborative technologies. Prior to COVID-19, the company dispensed with traditional annual performance reviews in favour of a weekly check-in platform called “Stand Out”. That paid off when remote work became the norm, since the tool is 100 per cent online and lets employees relay to their managers how they’re feeling, what their priorities are for the week and if they need help with a project.

Despite the challenges posed by the pandemic, ADP Canada has found ways to continue with its community engagement. Instead of associates making their annual three-day trip to the U.S. to participate in the 275-mile, AIDS awareness-raising “Cycle for the Cause,” employees participated locally, cycling for 275 minutes and helping to add to the more than $100,000 raised since its inception.

The company has also continued to deliver its innovative training programs, moving them online. It’s a company focus that Livingston appreciates.

“ADP Canada really invests in their people and they believe in me,” he says.

“I’m encouraged to launch creative projects. I really value that and enjoy being able to share something cool with our clients and fellow ADP peeps.”