Diversity, Flexibility and Inclusion at the Core: Cencora’s Global Culture of Unity

At Cencora, an empathetic, inclusive approach is more than a guiding principle for working in the healthcare industry; it’s how the company keeps its global work environment healthy, too.

A pharmaceutical solutions business focused on improving the lives of both people and animals, Cencora has customers around the world — so it needs to also have offices and teams around the world. The company’s large global footprint has led to a team culture that understands the importance of meeting people where they are. 

According to Pune, India-based Senior Director of IT Nikhil Wadgaonkar, Cencora’s enthusiasm for diverse ideas and flexible communication is key to the team’s success thus far.

“Our international culture is a cornerstone of our identity, reflecting our commitment to creating healthier futures for all,” said Wadgaonkar. “We strive to foster a diverse, inclusive and collaborative environment.”

 

Tools That Align a Global Team

By combining a suite of communication and collaboration tools — like Microsoft Teams, Slack, Zoom and more — with regular check-ins to confirm teams stay aligned on their goals, the Cencora team maintains an essential sense of unity among its 46,000 distributed workers.

Five thousand miles away from India, Senior Director of Product and Technology Jonathan Holloway leads more than 75 remote, U.K.-based team members at MWI Practice Technology, Cencora’s animal health business. Also in Holloway’s care is a customer portfolio of 1,500 veterinary practices ranging from companion to farm veterinary care, including emergency veterinary hospitals. Staying organized, informed and aligned is critical for Holloway’s team members, especially as their work intersects with the larger Cencora organization.

Using the framework of objectives and key results, team members can stay focused on how critically their work integrates with the work of their colleagues that they may not see every day. Paired with ample cloud-based documentation is a cadence of weekly leadership meetings and regular virtual town hall meetings to underline where the team is going together — with the bonus of frequent opportunities for team members to celebrate each other’s successes.

Alignment and stability are two essential elements for Cencora’s success thus far according to Holloway, who has witnessed a significant amount of growth first-hand and learned what strategies make for a successful team culture.

“Consistency of events and communication is imperative in a fully remote environment,” he said. “This allows us to align on what is important for the group.”

 

 

International Unity

Both Holloway and Wadgaonkar stress the importance of team alignment and communication as fundamental to the daily operations of Cencora’s team, and every year, Cencora provides a wealth of opportunities for team members to be further connected to their colleagues around the world.

Three major global events — centered around Global Inclusion Day, International Women’s Day and Pride Month — are broadcast to the worldwide Cencora team in multiple languages to connect team members more closely with their international peers. These events include keynote speeches, interactive workshops and virtual networking sessions for colleagues to introduce themselves and exchange business insights.

Additionally, Cencora team members are invited to explore other opportunities to connect with the global technology community outside of the organization, understanding that an outside-in approach to learning is key to staying abreast of industry trends. Its approach is also coupled with a focus on the growing representation of women in the industry: Women at Cencora are regular attendees and speakers at the Women in Tech global conference.

 

 

Professional Development Across Borders

Beyond external conferences, Cencora provides a multitude of learning and development programs designed to boost team members’ skills and continue their education. In addition to learning platforms, the company provides a tuition reimbursement program for its U.S. team members.

Also, when the need for additional team members’ support arises — such as an office opening or a large project — Cencora’s global mobility programs allow team members to work for short periods in different regions to gain firsthand cross-cultural experience and improve their understanding of how the company’s international teams connect. 

Educational programs — including training, online courses and certifications — are also provided to help Cencora team members further their careers while staying in the loop on industry trends.

Wadgaonkar explained that, by infusing team members’ development programs with a global perspective, Cencora is enhancing the overall uniformity of its product offerings.

“These initiatives are crafted to ensure consistency across regions while also accommodating local needs and preferences,” he said.

 

 

Must-Have Elements for a Successful Global Team

As an international team, Cencora is literally working around the clock to meet the needs of customers in different regions of the world — and managing time zones is one of several challenges that come with global team collaboration.

With an emphasis on practicality and flexibility, Wadgoankar’s team members have adjusted their schedules to a rotating calendar that shifts to accommodate certain time zones as needed — thereby accommodating global team members and their needs. Supported by a backbone of tech-powered tools and a standardized methodology for working and communicating together, Cencora team members lean into an open mindset and embrace the diversity of backgrounds that make their teams special.

“We encourage open communication and creating a safe space for team members to share their cultural perspectives to build mutual respect and a more cohesive team dynamic,” said Wadgaonkar.

With experience working on a distributed team in several previous roles, Holloway reiterates the critical importance of communication that actually reaches the right people regardless of where they are working from. At Cencora, repeating a message is a standard rather than an anomaly — and it is well worth the repetition to keep every team on the same page.

“Effective communication is essential for success here, and the need to overcommunicate due to the remote nature is really important,” said Holloway.

With a recent branding refresh aimed at centralizing worldwide pharmaceutical services under one name, Cencora’s values lie in keeping people at the center of everything it does, including customers, patients and fellow team members. The name “Cencora” evokes the idea of a centralized team at its core, and by going to great lengths to ensure its teams remain interconnected, Cencora is able to extend that inclusive mindset to the diverse needs of customers around the world.