CARING@Nagarro: Mansi Gupta on being ‘CARING’

CARING - being empathetic, respectful and non-judgmental - is a core value here at Nagarro. At the same time, it’s an acronym for six other core values⁠ - Client-centric, Agile, Responsible, Intelligent, Non-hierarchical, and Global⁠ - that are part of our org DNA and reflect our unique culture. After interviewing Nagarrians from around the world to understand their perspectives about these values, I created a series of blog posts, with each post focusing on one of the values. This seventh blog - the last of the series – focuses on what it means to be CARING, and why this core value is a ‘true North‘ as well as a lodestone at Nagarro.

My interview partner for this blog is Mansi Gupta, who always wants to bring out the best in people and lives the value of CARING in her professional and private life. Colleagues are not just resources to her, but individuals with their own opinions and needs.

Mansi lives in New Delhi, India, and is in her sixth year at Nagarro. She leads the Internal HR Systems team, as well as the learning and development team called NagarroU.

Read on to learn about Mansi´s views on CARING and how she identifies the connection between this value and her work.

[Sabrina Floh] Did you join Nagarro because of its values?

[Mansi Gupta] Before I joined Nagarro, I was an entrepreneur and worked for myself. It was a time when I was able to gain a lot of experience but working independently was losing its charm. This led me to explore other options.

A friend told me a lot about Nagarro and its culture and values. What she described really resonated with me. The entrepreneurial approach, the fun work culture, and the openness to experimentation are just a few reasons I fell in love with the place. When I got the opportunity to work at Nagarro, I jumped on it. So yes, it’s fair to say that I joined Nagarro because of its values.

When you think of the term ‘CARING’, what comes to your mind first?

I would say individuality. That is my deepest association with this word. This means that we're not thinking of people as resources or merely as a group. Rather, we see people as individuals and treat them accordingly. No member of Nagarro staff is viewed as a faceless entity or a placeholder. We reject stereotypes and embrace individuality. Nagarro has always been considerate of individual constraints and preferences. We always strive to be kind and maintain a caring mindset through all our interactions.

What makes this value so important?

CARING is an acronym for our six core values, and this combination of values defines how we interact and behave with each other. This encapsulates our culture, mindset, and communication style.

While it may be easy to forget that we are dealing with people who have their own aspirations, perspectives, priorities, and lifestyles, I think it is of utmost importance to remind ourselves of that fact every single day.

I work in a support function, with a team entrusted with setting up programs and writing policies, and our decisions often apply to everyone. If we forget that there is a person behind every number on a page, we are in danger of becoming desensitized. Therefore, the ‘CARING’ value is important as it reminds me of the humanity within each of us. We all need this reminder to be nicer and kinder to each other.

When did you have your first job-related contact with ‘CARING’?

Right from the very first day: from the way we were introduced to company policies to everything that happened when I met the initial contact points. I still remember the way I was treated when I came in for my job interview. I was made to feel welcome and comfortable in every way. As I said before, instead of feeling like a faceless resource, I felt like a person.

But even before my first day at Nagarro, I encountered a situation that reflects our values. In one of my first interview rounds, I got to know our CEO Manas Fuloria, who is the embodiment of this value. I was completely blown away by the way he was so down-to-earth and approachable. I never got the sense that I was speaking with the head of the company, and this reflects our non-hierarchical value as well. This is a value that I see every single day through so many interactions that it´s hard for me to highlight only one situation.

Is there any specific area where Nagarro’s CARING approach is most visible?

The first expression of this value for me is in casual interactions. Being able to communicate with each other in a truly non-hierarchical way gives everyone the opportunity to exchange ideas that can lead to bigger things.

Secondly, this value creates a certain mentality and changes the way we approach things. Consequently, good communication leads to positive reactions, better policy and decision making, and improves the way we manage our teams. It’s about having a CARING mindset.

Can you give an example of how we’re living this value at Nagarro?

The first thing that comes to my mind is through Nagarro University (NU), our learning and development platform. NU has many certification and learning policies in place and there’s a certain way of how we approach trainings. However, Nagarro’s directive to the team is that an individual’s requests should never be overridden by policy. Our priority is to meet the needs of the individual. When policies become guidelines, there is more room for individual solutions. This is just more proof that ‘the person’ comes first.

Additionally, we enjoy the freedom and empowerment that exists in each of us across all levels and hierarchies. No manager is needed to approve judgement calls, so every single person, no matter their position, can take decisions, wherever required.

How do you integrate the value ‘CARING’ in your daily work?

I would probably add to my earlier answer. As a person leading these teams, I face making about 100 decisions every day. There are always exceptions, because Nagarro has close to 7000 people as of now, which also means that there are 7,000 different requests to consider. I try my best to give careful thought to each request, and try to never just say, “That’s impossible.”

I feel that it’s my duty to instill the same values in my team. Rather than providing them with ready-made decisions, I encourage them to reach these conclusions on their own by asking them to put themselves in the other person’s shoes and decide what would be right for each situation.

Would you say that all employees understand the meaning of our core value ‘CARING’?

I’d like to believe that they do. I can tell from my own experience and the feedback I receive, that we are introduced to these values from the very first day, beginning with the induction during the onboarding process. Though the process begins with formalities, new employees soon experience Nagarro’s mindset in an informal way, every single day. After experiencing how we interact with each other and by reading blog posts on the topic, new staff members begin to see reminders of our values all around them. We have t-shirts, mugs, and posters all over the place – each of them highlighting our values. Our employees talk about it frequently, so it is already a part of our common vocabulary. I would like to believe that everyone is aware of it.

Do you think our customers notice our ‘CARING’ approach?

I'm quite sure they do. It's always more pleasant to deal with people who are nice, and show empathy and care. This is apparent in the way we interact with each other and with our clients. As a result, we tend to be happy and satisfied in our workplace, which again leads to better productivity and healthier conversations. All this enables us to react to situations and crises in a more positive way. The CARING value instills positivity, and this overall positivity is contagious. So, I am quite sure our customers notice it.

Mansi, any last thoughts that you want to share?

Yes, there is a quote I really love by Max Ehrmann that I would like to share. I came across it when I was a teenager and it has followed me ever since, “With all its sham, drudgery and broken dreams, it is still a beautiful world.”

If you are CARING to others, you will view the world as a nicer place. No matter how difficult the situation or unpleasant the circumstances are, there is always an opportunity to bring out the best in oneself and in the rest of the world as well.

This sums up our talks around our CARING values. You can view the previous blogs from our CARING series here: C for Client-centric, A for Agile, R for responsible, I for Intelligent, N for Non-hierarchical, and G for Global.