MAKING STAFFING WORK
In this demanding and changing work environment, the merits of an effective competency mapping processes, appropriate assessment evaluation processes, sharply identified tools and techniques to build a competency based HRM system become even more valuable. Tasks and jobs are becoming less useful methods of describing the work of individuals and organizations. People attributes, functional depth, business acumen and competencies, demonstrated by behaviors, are proving to be a more appropriate unit of analysis for understanding and appreciating top performance and success factors. They are also a more valuable method for describing work and the strengths and the weaknesses of individuals and organizations. In the future, organizations will need to be built around this form of competencies. But investigation is needed to check whether organizations have the understanding the ability and the willingness to experiment with newer uses of competencies across the organization.
The business case for Assessments, competencies is clearly to cater to the future needs to manage Talent, build Careers, Processes that build HR Management and for improving business performance. In the research paper, “Staffing” - Talent management – competency development: key to global leadership a case study based paper, Author(s): Rakesh Sharma, Jyotsna Bhatnagar in the Industrial and Commercial Training Volume: 41 Issue: 3 2009, draw lessons on how building a talent management strategy based on competency profiling becomes a critical impact area within the field of strategic HRM. The case study discusses an Indian pharmaceutical organization, the environment and the issues arising in context to talent management. The case discusses a well-designed talent management strategy. The talent mindset has helped the organization in recruiting the best talent from the best pharmaceutical organizations. The attrition of the top and valued talent segment has come down. Some of the key positions have been filled through succession planning. The case study is in a lesser known but emerging sector of the Indian economy. The case has concentrated on attracting and developing and retaining key talent, it does not concentrate on developing average talent into key talent. The implications lie in whether to grow talent or buy talent. What signal through a communication strategy should a HR manager give when determining for talent segmentation? How to develop talent and retain employees when there are not challenging options available in the internal labor market? This paper provides insights to HR practitioners on how to attract, acquire and manage talent in a tight internal and external labor market. It also provides empirical support for, and theoretical understanding of, the strategic HRM literature on talent management theme.
To prove that Talent management is critical for future success of organizations and ensuring your people give you the competitive edge, Nick Stephens, in Strategic Direction Volume: 26 Issue: 7 2010 says, HR and people management have become increasingly important in the current economic climate. This paper examines how these key issues are approached. The study confirmed that well-managed talent is crucial for success in the highly competitive global drugs market. Assessing leadership potential, retaining talent and evaluating the cost of recruiting senior executives were all identified as key issues for today's life sciences executives.
Identified Trends
1. Assessing Leadership Potential
2. Building a Pipeline for augmenting staffing pool
3. Managing talent
4. Sector Learning
5. Integrated HR System
The research findings appear to demonstrate the need to focus on the three critical stages in the Competency Mapping process to help greater use of the “after assessment functional processes”. The three stages involved continue to be Data Gathering, Data Analysis and Validation and is supported by either in house managers, experts or consultants.
Data Gathering and Preparation - In the 1st stage of Data Gathering and Preparation, organizations study identified jobs, major categories of skills, behaviors required for those jobs and by identifying probable Competencies demonstrate their effective usage. Probably the most crucial stage is to determine the dimensions that the assessment center will measure. Sometimes, an organization already has a competency framework but, more often, it has a framework that needs modification. Selecting the right sample of jobs, an appropriate number of successful performers, trained assessors and a validated set of tools and simulations become important considerations here. Once the dimensions have been established, the exercise-dimension matrix is prepared. The matrix is an essential tool that ensures that every dimension is measured several times and that each exercise measures several things. The construction of the matrix is simple: a grid is produced, with the types of exercises arrayed across the top and the dimensions listed down the side. It is then a matter of considering each cell and judging whether the exercise is an appropriate measure of the dimension.
Data Analysis - The next stage is the data analysis, which includes reviewing and finalizing the list of the competencies, constructing the competency definitions for those finalized competencies and assigning the proficiency levels to the competencies. Here organizations have used extensive conceptual approaches to use theoretical frameworks, expert advisory, and teaching material to apply what is conceptually valid. Organizations tend to let go one of these stages to fast forward the process.
Validation - The last stage is the validation wherein the content Validation Session takes place. After which the proficiency levels, minimum standards of the Critical competencies are reinforced which would ultimately lead to refining and redefining the competency definitions if needed. Each of these steps is critical to be followed in the competency mapping process and while building a framework.
How to improve the Use of AC outcomes in Staffing & the need to do so is best understood when talent needs precede other HR considerations. The first component of the Workforce Assessment enables (a) identification of stakeholders, (b) understanding of an organization’s current business goals/strategies, and (c) the foundation to link workforce actions to the achievement of the business goals/strategies. (d) Introduction of a Competency Mapping Framework and (e) Identification of an Assessment Process.
Workforce ROI - The development of a workforce ROI model includes the development of a competency framework by which the value of human capital can be measured (i.e. mapping workforce segments to the organization’s value chain. This should be a high-level measurement. This step has strong linkages to Human Capital Performance Analytics (HCPA) and could provide the opportunity to introduce the firms HCPA capabilities. This step begins to infuse a sense of metrics and measurement into the process. The organization’s philosophy of measuring people and people-related performance against competencies, the achievement of its goals and objectives should be introduced at this time. It is imperative to test the outcomes of any model with stakeholder information gathered in the initial step. This step has strong linkages to skill assessment and competency modeling capabilities. Depending on the choice of the dimension of talent segment to be evaluated, an opportunity may exist to introduce these competency services and the need to identify and begin with the talent segments with the greatest impact to the bottom line of the organization.
Access to data and information based on pre-assessed information of pre determined competencies are critical to make informed decisions for Workforce Planning. Factual data leads to more accurate forecasting and predictive analysis is an added dimension. As an organization understands and realizes the benefits of managing through assessment and fact-based workforce information, there is an opportunity to introduce capabilities in Human Capital Performance Analytics (HCPA). HCPA focuses on turning data and information into useable knowledge and intelligence for the purpose of driving business outcomes and incentivizes organizations to use AC for effective workforce or manpower plans.
Integrating Competency Mapping and Assessment Processes to Mobility, Networking and Global Careers build organizational competencies has emerged to be of critical significance in global organizations. Although this is largely applicable to companies that operate in multiple locations, transfers, mobility and relocation should be a standardized HR process. And to link such a process to competencies is a critical need in today’s times. As organizations aspire to globalize and spread themselves far and wide or if they seek to attract talent from different parts of the country or the world it is important to establish programs that link mobility features to remuneration and other HR policies. Active networking is vital to individual and career growth. Though it is often confused with selling, networking is actually about building long-term relationships and a good reputation in your groups over time. It involves getting to meet and know people who can potentially assist you in times of need. Networking with peers across businesses and functions will help the participant gain a wider perspective about the business and will enable him to appreciate other people’s work. Networking with seniors will provide opportunities to gain an insight into their wisdom and experience and will enable an exchange of ideas between the different managerial levels and age groups.
The figure below explains the need to establish a program that compressively covers both the enterprise and the employee.
Figure: Staffing & Mobility
High Value Roles - There is a definite need for connecting High Value Jobs and Career Planning to ensure that Succession Planning is effective. Although succession and career planning are treated as critical aspects of organizations and has emerged as a high usage in this research, it has not shown its relevant linkages to other sub systems such as promotion and potential planning, high value or pivotal jobs or the fact that competencies tend to be a dominant factor for building a leadership pipeline in pivotal roles. Succession planning starts where career planning ends and the fact that this research shows competencies tend to have a minimal impact on career planning appears to be an important area for future research and investigation. Career pathing is an essential component of a good succession planning process. Post completion of the program, participants would want to know how this program would develop their careers in the institution. It will be a means to ensure engagement of the participants post completion of the program and higher engagement will have a direct impact on retention. The process would constitute participants from diverse age groups and backgrounds. The career aspirations and needs of each will be different. Thus it is imperative that customized individual career paths are developed for each participant suiting his/ her career goals.
Case for Succession - In November 2007 issue of HBSWK, John Heskett, asks Why Is Succession So Badly Managed? “Should CEO succession processes be certified? CEOs came in for their share of the criticism. Patrick Duffy summed up the gist of many other comments by pointing out that "few CEOs want to accept their mortality.” Respondents to this month's column, says Professor Heskett of Harvard, agree that CEO succession is badly managed, perhaps accounting in large part for the fact that few "inside outsiders" ever make it into the job, despite their often useful qualifications. There were many theories about why this is the case as well as suggestions for how to fix the process. Some even argued that the idea of planned, orderly CEO succession has inherent flaws that can't be fixed. Both boards and their CEOs were cited as reasons for the problem. Phil Clark asserted, "Sadly, many corporate boards are not willing to do the work," suggesting that unless this is made grounds for dismissal, directors are not likely to apply themselves to the task. Edward Hare added, "One needs to get to know an individual, their values, and their real, not hyped-up talents. In today's breakneck world, who has the time for such things?” Several cited the difficulty of selecting a new CEO, particularly from within, given the changing nature of the needs of a modern corporation. As Veronica Serrano put it, "it is easier to get from the outside what the business needs at any particular moment." She also posed the problem of finding insider "CEO material willing to wait in the sidelines." Andrew Campbell commented "you often have to reassess your succession plan when the time actually comes. This makes Boards reluctant to put a lot of effort into succession." C.J. Cullinane pointed out that "if the style or background of a capable insider does not mesh with the CEO, (insiders) seldom get to a position where the Board of Directors can evaluate them." Wesley Calvert said, "The strong tendency to hire top-level management from outside is a natural outcome of the belief that almost any of our competitors has better people than we do." And Lowell Kuehn posted "the outsider is all promise, while the insider is a known property with some established weaknesses."
Figure: Staffing & Succession Planning
There is a need to LINK Compensation & Reward Strategies to Competencies. Although competencies have become a practice in other sub systems to some extent, compensation has continued to lag behind. While some organizations did attempt to link competencies to reward mechanisms their experience was consistently successful as stated by one of the respondents. It is important for organizations to commence the linkage to competencies and compensation at the hiring stage itself. It is a process that commences at the workforce planning level when jobs are articulated and type of resource requirements are debated. It is at those stage competencies that are required and the pay that we need to connect to get top talent should be debated. As we can see from the figure it is important to articulate competencies, communicate such competencies to staff concerned, define performance standards and competency standards to be achieved and encourage ownership and accountability. To link pay after this becomes significantly more effective from a change management perspective.
Case for Succession – In The Trainer’s Tool Kit (2nd edition), Cy Charney and Kathy Conway Published by AMACOM provide Ten Ways That Take the "Success" Out of Succession Planning
“Executives and employees alike often disparage the lack of visible and effective results in the organization’s succession planning process. This holds true whether the process is formal or casual, highly transparent or secretive.
The following ten common mistakes can undermine results
1. Delegating full responsibility to human resources. The executive team is ultimately responsible to all stakeholders for the ongoing health of the organization. HR can be a facilitator, providing intelligence about best practices and employee skills and interests, but it cannot commit the organization’s resources to the task, nor assess the emerging business challenges to create successor profiles.
2. Focusing only on the senior team. A senior team is mobile by definition, as its members are highly visible to competitors. Realistic plans must also include key groups and positions that are fundamental to your success and not easily replaced internally or accessed on the open market. These positions may be buried deep in the classification structure, but are no less critical to continuing success.
3. Replacing people, rather than developing them. A plan that simply identifies drop-dead successors typically overlooks the broader talent base available and may not be addressing fundamental changes in the competitive landscape. It is important to invest in all high performers who have the opportunity to grow organizational capacity.
4. Not consulting with potential successors. More than a few organizations have been shocked when a top succession candidate has left the organization for a better opportunity, completely unaware of the plans for him or her. It’s vital that succession candidates have an opportunity to discuss their development interests and goals to create a realistic action plan that excites them.
5. Identifying successors at every level. A master chart that identifies likely successors for too many positions and levels within the organization drains energy from an organization. Employees need to feel some organizational “breathing space” to grow skills and to be recognized for future opportunities.
6. Making assumptions. Not all people equipped to advance to the next level actually want to do so. Not all key jobs are fully understood by potential successors. Success depends on frank conversations as much as on detailed skill profiles.
7. Not updating plans regularly. An annual plan typically doesn’t reflect ongoing intelligence about business dynamics and employee achievements. Refine the plans as often as necessary.
8. Relying exclusively on an incumbent’s perspective. An incumbent is one of many who should scope out position requirements and a successor profile. Internal and external clients, direct reports and the senior team all have important insights about creating this profile.
9. Outsourcing successor development. Successor development cannot be done wholly off-site. The key ingredients of a plan involve internal exposure and experience, direct client contact, industry events and mentoring by key decision makers and role models. External courses can supplement, but not replace, your unique requirements
10. Calling the recruiters too late. The time to place a call for a key search is well in advance of a vacancy. Develop ongoing relationships with recruiters that specify target organizations and identify unique skills and emerging needs. Create opportunities for recruiters to understand your business thoroughly. Your search, when activated, will be more comprehensive”.
Case for Balancing Awards - In April 2013 HBSWK, author Dina Gerdeman, says It would seem to make sense that when companies recognize their workers with awards, they are likely to see a boost in morale and perhaps even inspire them to work harder. But new research suggests that some awards may actually have the opposite effect, according to a recent paper called The Dirty Laundry of Employee Award Programs: Evidence from the Field, written by Harvard Business School Assistant Professor Ian Larkin, along with professor Lamar Pierce and doctoral student Timothy Gubler from the Olin School of Business at Washington University in St. Louis. It turns out that sometimes rewarding employees for good behavior can actually backfire, leading to a drop in motivation and productivity and calls it, “How to Demotivate Your Best Employees”. Ultimately, the researchers concluded that rewarding one behavior sometimes can "crowd out" intrinsic motivation in another. Despite the fact that a particular award may have brought more harm than good, many other types of award incentives have proven beneficial for companies. But Larkin says corporate managers should manage them closely to make sure that employees aren't gaming the system and that the programs aren't fostering unintended negative effects. "Many award programs have created value and are cost-effective for companies," he says. "Our paper shouldn't be taken as a blanket criticism of awards. You can't say awards are good or bad. It depends on how they're implemented. This particular attendance award may have been especially flawed because rather than rewarding workers for exceptional performance, it rewarded them for fulfilling a basic job expectation”.
Let us look at the learning here, “The hope is that with the award "you get them to do what you want them to do in a habitual way," Larkin says. "But we can say it's the exact opposite. There was only a change in behavior while people were eligible for the award.". Second, and perhaps more significantly, stellar employees who previously had excellent attendance and were highly productive ended up suffering a 6 to 8 percent productivity decrease after the program was introduced. This suggests that these employees were actually turned off—and their motivation dropped—when the managers introduced awards for good behavior they were already exhibiting. These workers may have believed that the award program was unfair; after all, they had been showing up to work on time before the attendance program, so they wondered why an award was necessary and why some employees who used to show up late were winning the award. "The award demotivated these employees," says Larkin, who interviewed workers at the plant to gain additional insight. "People believed it was unfair to recognize people who only changed their behavior because of this award. They felt that 'I'm a hard worker, and now they're giving awards for something like attendance. What about me?' "
Figure: Staffing & Compensation
Organizational optimization is best achieved through a greater use of Competencies, Assessment for Right Sizing, Optimization & Rationalization. Right sizing, downsizing and optimization are a critical area for use of competencies. While principles of natural justice necessitate that the LIFO (last In First Out) is done for managing exits it is most desirable to still follow a LIFO after performing a formal assessment practice. Here again consulting is very low in its emphasis when compared with manufacturing and service industries. It is reflective of the issues confronting these industries. But the need to use competencies cannot be forgotten. Organizations are in a position to establish an engaged workforce when they get to know that even while downsizing merit matters.
Case Optimize Engagement - Authors, V. Kumar and Anita Pansari in SMR Fall 2015 espouse the need for clarity in Measuring Employee Engagement. “For companies to get the most out of employee engagement, it is imperative that they develop a thorough understanding of their current employee engagement strategies and the effects those strategies are having on employees. To assess an organization’s current status, we developed a measurement system that includes a scale for examining the various components of employee engagement and a comprehensive scorecard that pulls everything together. The scorecard is composed of a number of items used to measure the individual employee engagement components (based on a 1 to 5 scale, with 1 being lowest and 5 being highest). This approach allows managers to identify the areas in need of development. We developed the scorecard through an extensive research process of academic literature and managerial interviews across the world. After pretesting the scorecard and conducting additional interviews with managers, we modified the items to ensure more accuracy and to capture the essence of the variables being measured. An organization’s overall employee engagement level is directly influenced by the components of employee engagement (employee satisfaction, employee identification, employee commitment, employee loyalty and employee performance) and are therefore the result of the aggregation of these components”.
Figure: Optimizing Organizations With Competencies & Assessments
Linking competencies to HRM Sub Systems helps organizations to seamlessly handle many aspects of employee satisfaction and HR challenges. But there continues to be issues in linking competencies to other HR sub systems. The common pitfalls in implementing a competency based HR system and a competency mapping system are, that at times the system measures those competencies which are not aligned with the strategy of the organization, at times there is a lapse in communicating and educating the people involved, many times there is no accountability etc. This is best resolved when focus groups are extensively used to understand those behaviors that work for the organization and those behaviors that have in turn elicited superior performance. There is a need for organizations to understand the powerful play of competencies in all aspects of the HRM enterprise to demonstrate the need for an integrated competency based HRM organization.
Figure: HRM Systems & Technology integrate with the Talent Agenda
Organizations need an integrated view of corporate vision, strategy, HR strategy, competency strategy and the underlying processes with higher levels of performance, effective careers and employee engagement as a final outcome. An organization takes several steps to encourage the support for Competency Mapping System activities or any performance measurement and improvement efforts within its organization. This is done with the help of the strategic goals and the shared vision of the organization. Thus the strategic goals and the vision of the organization and consequently its competencies have to align with people competencies. One cannot argue the relevance of carrying out the Competency mapping system, if the factors that determine successful performance acts as the basis for action, as it is an effective way to match individual competencies to position, project team and job requirements. It helps to prioritize competencies by job role, project, or position, and track individuals’ abilities to fulfill requirements. Also it integrates training and administration applications to focus on training efforts. Competency mapping system runs a gap and match analysis between the individuals, jobs, teams and positions so as to increase skill sets to meet organizations scope and growth.
Figure: Integrated Talent Management Process for Effective Staffing
Integrated Teams - An integrated team based development framework should be deeply rooted in values, laws governing business, principles that support community, social and diversity views and eventually the business should have the resilience and the capability of transforming itself. The process of competence management aims at continuously improving competencies so that the organization is capable of persistent high performance. The process starts with the organizations vision, strategy and objectives. In practice, in competence management we must first crystallize the organizations vision, strategy and objectives. After that we must define the core competencies that bring significant competitive edge to the company and added value to the customer.
Tanguy Catlin and Paul Willmott in McKinsey Quarterly indicate, “Teamwork and collaboration are important in any context, digital or otherwise. Wharton’s Adam Grant says the single strongest predictor of a group’s effectiveness is the amount of help colleagues extend to each other in their reciprocal working arrangements. But collaborative cultures take on even greater importance as companies look to boost their DQ, since many lack the established digital backbone needed to unify traditionally siloes parts of the organization, from customer service to fulfillment to supply-chain management to financial reporting. Less than 30 percent of the 150 companies McKinsey surveyed say they have a highly collaborative culture. The good news is that there’s plenty of room for improvement. Some of it comes from technology: by moving into cloud-based virtualized environments, for example, companies can provide appropriate contexts where teams come together and participate in collaborative experimentation, tinkering, and innovation. In this way, they can learn and make decisions quickly by evaluating data from customer experiences”.
Figure: Building a Business of Staffing Framework
In today’s world where diversity, equality and rights play a dominant role and are predicated on the notion of providing objective that is accurate, information. This means that discriminations made in the center should be on the basis of demonstrated competency rather than on other grounds. Differential performance or scores associated with membership of a particular ethnic, gender or other group should always be investigated further. If this does not reflect real differences in performance potential on the job, it could well lead to illegal indirect discrimination under the law. Performance at the center overall and in the different exercises should be tracked against sub-group membership. For large groups of participants and centers that are used over long periods, statistical analysis should be undertaken. Whatever the numbers passing through the center, immediate qualitative review of procedures should be initiated whenever group differences are suspected.
Organizations need to integrate competencies to action learning projects. Action Learning enables each participant to identify a leadership challenge that he or she is facing at work. Part of the curriculum will involve designing and implementing an action plan to address this challenge. In this project, learners will be assigned a project that is in another function of the same business or the same function in another business. The objective is to help participants build a wider appreciation of functions and businesses across the Group. The initiative is designed to sharpen their outlook and provide an outside-in view to the project at hand. Continuous coaching and mentoring sessions will focus not only on performance metrics but also on development of competencies, technical skills, behaviors etc. This will be a continuous process extending to post completion of the program as well. It will ensure that participants receive the much needed guidance and insights and benefit from the experience of the senior leaders.
Here is an effective list from AMA staff writer on “Coaching Dilemmas: Traps and Pitfalls to Avoid
1. Allowing Disorientation to Continue
2. Failing to Follow Up
3. Making Implied Promises
4. Changing Management Styles When Coaching Doesn't Work
5. And One More Mistake – Don't talk at them, not to them, about the change.
6. Undermining Employees' Self-Esteem
7. Focusing on Attitudes”
Quarterly Feedback – Periodic feedback will ensure that participants are on the right direction and if not then deviations can be corrected. Web Based Learning – Along with classroom and on-the-job trainings, web based learning programs can also be conducted. This is specifically useful for participants who cannot attend scheduled classroom training due to geographic constraints. Networking with / Shadowing senior leadership – This will provide opportunities, especially to the young participants, to interact with senior leadership. This will enable an exchange of ideas and will provide both the parties to widen/ update their knowledge base. Peer to Peer learning –Sessions should be organized wherein participants post completion of their respective projects, can come together and share their experiences in a group, in form of open forums / discussions. The participants can talk about the problems faced during the project and how they resolved it. Then the participants who are listening can provide their comments on how the issues could have been solved alternatively and/ or what could have been done better. This will facilitate exchange of ideas and provide deeper understanding and knowledge to all participants at the end of the session.
Figure: Learning Talent Management Syntheses
Case for Reflective Learning - Excerpted from HBSWK April 2014, Authors Giada Di Stefano, Francesca Gino, Gary Pisano, and Bradley Staats from Harvard say that, “Knowledge plays an important role in the productivity and prosperity of economies, organizations, and individuals. Even so, research on learning has primarily focused on the role of doing (experience) in fostering progress over time. To compare the effectiveness of different sources of learning, the authors take a micro approach and study learning at the individual level. They argue that learning from direct experience can be more effective if coupled with reflection—that is, the intentional attempt to synthesize, abstract, and articulate the key lessons taught by experience. Using a mixed-method approach that combines laboratory experiments and a field study in a large business process outsourcing company in India, they find support for this prediction. Further, they find that the effect of reflection on learning is mediated by greater perceived ability to achieve a goal (i.e., self-efficacy). Together, these results reveal reflection to be a powerful mechanism behind learning, confirming the words of American philosopher, psychologist, and educational reformer John Dewey: "We do not learn from experience ... we learn from reflecting on experience.” Learning from direct experience can be more effective if coupled with reflection-that is, the intentional attempt to synthesize, abstract, and articulate the key lessons taught by experience, reflecting on what has been learned makes experience more productive and that reflection builds one's confidence in the ability to achieve a goal (i.e., self-efficacy), which in turn translates into higher rates of learning”.
In our “Adventures book”, says, Richard L. Nolan, in HBSWK, September 11, 2013, “we experimented with mechanisms to facilitate active learning such as Jim Barton’s “living whiteboard,” whereby Barton kept a running list of ideas associated with a set of evolving principles of IT management. Another mechanism we used to facilitate reader/student introspection was end‐of‐ chapter/cases Reflections. Also, we experimented with audio versions of book chapters in the classroom. “Cases are not intended to serve as endorsements, sources of primary data, or illustrations of effective or ineffective management.” This footnote cautions that similar to other professions like medicine and the law, there are rarely pat answers to complex decisions in the disciplines of continuously changing fields and those that are imbued in highly complex human situations. Experience and judgment are always in play, and relevant in many ways. Teaching cases, for active learning purposes, are intended to focus on important issues in the purview of practicing managers, and as a basis for discussing these issues in context, determining alternative courses of actions for analyzing and deciding on these issues, and facilitating a process of contemplation by the student in creating his/her knowledge necessary to operate as an effective management leader”.
Figure: Integrated Action Learning Process
The process would involve the following.
There is a Strategic need from a leadership pipeline building process to integrate learning competencies, tools and techniques with Coaching and Mentoring for effective Career Planning. Both coaching and mentoring are processes that enable both individual and corporate clients to achieve their full potential. This is because Coaching is good communication and is based on mutual trust. The dimension to bring in is to enable this process to build strong linkages to competencies, meaning behaviors. Coaching is good leadership. And, moreover, Coaching is a call to character and commitment to people. History proves that people can respond - sometimes heroically. Coaching isn't a "quick fix" tool to control people. Coaching and mentoring share many similarities so it makes sense to outline the common things coaches and mentors do whether the services are offered in a paid (professional) or unpaid (philanthropic) role. This is best achieved when we facilitate the exploration of needs, motivations, desires, skills and thought processes to assist the individual in making real, lasting change, Use questioning techniques to facilitate client's own thought processes in order to identify solutions and actions rather than takes a wholly directive approach, Support the client in setting appropriate goals and methods of assessing progress in relation to these goals, Observe, listen and ask questions to understand the client's situation, Creatively apply tools and techniques which may include one-to-one training, facilitating, counseling & networking and Encourage a commitment to action and the development of lasting personal growth & change. Coaching and mentoring help both organizations and employees to address organizational change initiatives by paying full attention to the part people play in this process. Coaching integrates well with any form of learning processes.
Case for Character in an On Line World - Kaja Perina, in the April 2015 edition of Psychology Today, asks, “Who Cares About Character?” She quotes a powerful story. “Terry Waite was taken hostage in Beirut in the late 1980s, before ISIS, before smartphones, before the Internet as we know it. He endured a mock execution during the first year of his five-year captivity, which was spent mostly in solitary confinement. Years later, during a Q&A session, he was asked to identify the main thing he had learned from his ordeal. The answer, according to the novelist Richard Powers, who was in the audience, came as a shock—it was not the excruciatingly hard-won appreciation for life and loved ones that Powers expected to hear. “Contemporary humanity,” declared Waite “has lost the ability to engage in productive solitude.” Powers was moved, he told The Paris Review in 2003, because Waite’s observation invoked no less than the “care and tending of individual salvation.” In the decade-plus since Powers’s reflection, the middle and upper-middle classes have been seized by the need to compete in a high-tech information economy, to which an online social presence is essentially a required passport. A backlash against the idea of “packaging” oneself—online and in the world at large—is now, however, in full bloom. Increasingly, the charge is made: Let’s avoid the scourge of self-absorption and instead pursue the type of character-focused self-examination that leads to positive engagement with the wider world”.
Learning Processes and Portal is one such example where the employees can actively engage to learn. This is a secured website used by employees, customers, manufacturers and all other target groups with learning objectives. It offers learners consolidated access to learning and training resources from multiple sources. Further to this it may also display classes, their schedules, online courses, programs, links to other websites with relevant content, etc. A highly matured learning process also includes search functionality, a rating system, bookmarking ability, and more. A successful learning portal also incorporates existing content and applications such as legacy Computer Based Trainings and digital handbooks. In fact, a Learning Process can web-enable existing learning applications and content. In the current context, a successful learning process should be able to track the development history of the employee and suggest further learning resources in line with the development needs and interests of the employee
Figure: Coaching Process To Build Talent
Case Communications, Connections and Coaching - Consultants from McKinsey, Toby Gibbs and Suzanne Heywood say that “Strengthening the right connections is critical for people understand the number and nature of their connections and communications, they can decide which to drop, keep, or add. In companies where a lot of people seem to lose time on too many linkages, the leaders’ reflex response is often to clarify links by changing the structure—for example, adding reporting lines or new dimensions to the organizational matrix. But these make the organization more complex and costly to manage; dual reporting lines will almost certainly double an executive’s administrative burden, to take only the most obvious example. Better solutions can come from considering a wider range of linkage mechanisms, their different strategic purposes, and what must be in place to make them work. For example, coaching or mentoring links transfer knowledge across an organization and build future leaders. They require strong, personal, and frequent interactions based on trust. Other knowledge transfer connections, such as those for sharing documents, can be weaker, impersonal, and less frequent. Although these kinds of relationships deliver important gains, they do not have to be formally enshrined in a structure or process”.
Need to Introduce the Concept of Advanced Action Learning Based Leadership LABS for top management – Leadership Pipeline Process. Organizations that are unable to respond quickly to the changing needs of clients and stakeholders rapidly loose their efficacy and become stagnant and difficult places in which to work. The emphasis in the Learning Organizations is on the ability of organizations to respond to emerging needs and for staff to quickly learn new skills, behaviors and knowledge. Creating conditions for the above activity to flourish through cultural change and a re-design of organizational processes is best done when behaviors are monitored and influenced through a process of formal feedback through a development center. The aim is thus to change the relationship between managers and staff to induce and reward learning behaviors and the change the attitude of the organization to view learning as a holistic enterprise. This means that organizations need to be aware of both the company, its competencies that drive its performance as a whole as well as the individuals within the company. Up until the introduction of this concept, companies concentrated on their own needs not the needs of their workers. Learning from ones own experience, particularly through Action Learning Sets lead to labs and learning from the experience of others through secondment and job sharing are obvious possibilities.
Figure: Concept of Leadership Labs
This model depicts the establishment of an Integrated HRM Model that brings together HR Processes and a Leadership Center that focuses on building a world-class performance based culture. A Leadership Lab that integrated its learning actions to HR processes and Business Outcomes are in a strategic position to identify and supply a steady stream of leaders for the organizations. And thus evolves this into a Competency Based Organization.
Figure: Building World Class Organizations – Competencies to Build a CEO Pipeline
Case CEO Pipeline - McKinsey Consultants Åsa Björnberg and Claudio Feser say that, “Two-thirds of US public and private companies still admit that they have no formal CEO succession plan in place, according to a survey conducted by the National Association of Corporate Directors last year. And only one-third of the executives who told headhunter Korn Ferry this year that their companies do have such a program were satisfied with the outcome. These figures are alarming. CEO succession planning is a critical process that many companies either neglect or get wrong. While choosing a CEO is unambiguously the board’s responsibility, the incumbent CEO has a critical leadership role to play in preparing and developing candidates—just as any manager worth his or her salt will worry about grooming a successor. Many companies treat the CEO succession as a one-off event triggered by the abrupt departure of the old CEO rather than a structured process. The succession is therefore often reactive, divorced from the wider system of leadership development and talent management. This approach has significant risks: potentially good candidates may not have sufficient time or encouragement to work on areas for improvement, unpolished talent could be overlooked, and companies may gain a damaging reputation for not developing their management ranks. Many biases routinely creep into CEO-succession planning, and their outcome is the appointment of a specific individual. As we well know, decision-making is biased. Three biases seem most prevalent in the context of CEO succession. CEOs afflicted by the MOM (“more of me”) bias look for or try to develop a copy of them. Incumbents under the influence of the sabotage bias consciously or unconsciously undermine the process by promoting a candidate who may not be ready for the top job (or is otherwise weak) and therefore seems likely to prolong the current CEO’s reign. The herding bias comes into play when the members of the committee in charge of the process consciously or unconsciously adjust their views to those of the incumbent CEO or the chairman of the board”.
“Contrary to what you might conclude from all this, the lead in developing (though not selecting) the next leader should be taken by the current CEO, not by the board, the remuneration committee, or external experts. The incumbent’s powerful understanding of the company’s strategy and its implications for the mandate of the successor (what stakeholder expectations to manage, as well as what to deliver, when, and to what standard) creates a unique role for him or her in developing that successor. This approach encourages the CEO to think about the longer term and to” reverses engineer” a plan to create a legacy by acting as a steward for the next generation”.
Figure: Leadership Lab that integrated its learning actions to HR processes and Business Outcomes
Organizations need to institutionalize the process of Critical Jobs/Pivotal Roles through the Competency Mapping and Assessment Center Process. Human potential in an organizational context can be defined as the substance of behaviors exhibited, experiences and orientation which will make him/her successful in a given situation (in an organization a job position), if the individual is placed in that position.”
Case Non Compete - HBSWK July 2011 - Carmen Nobel researches into the issue of how non-compete clauses in talent management “Push Talent Away”. “Several years ago, on his first day of work at a Boston-based speech-recognition software company, Matt Marx's new employer surprised him with a non-compete agreement. The terms stated that if Marx left the company, he couldn't work anywhere else in the industry for two years. While he was disturbed that nobody had mentioned the non-compete before he accepted the job, Marx signed willingly, assuming such documents were commonplace.
“It’s clear that that inventors are leaving states that enforce non-competes for states that don’t.” Fast-forward a few years later. Marx was a manager at a start-up firm in Silicon Valley when one of his employees decided to quit and go work for a direct competitor down the street. "I told him, 'Hey, you can't do that. Didn't we make you sign a non-compete?' " Marx recalls. "He kind of laughed at me and said that non-competes weren't enforceable in California”.
This is best evaluated for jobs that need critical skills, those that cannot be easily replaced. Jobs that are classified as critical, pivotal and best identified and managed through a formal competency management process. An effective process is critical for its sustenance as can be seen in this figure below:
Figure: Identifying Pivotal Roles for effective Staffing Practices
Employee Value Proposition establishment could be an ultimate driver for engaging and winning over the commitment of an employee. After all every employee wishes to be valued and treated with respect and dignity. What is the employee value proposition strategy is a closing question that I would like to address in the context of organizations attempting to build competencies. This includes asking what competencies do we value, for customers, stakeholders, vendors, external relationships etc. Who are the other key stakeholders? What are the ways in which the staff can differentiate themselves and achieve competitive advantage? What are the organization’s critical success factors for achieving the strategy? What are the required core competences? How is value created through people and what does the people agenda need to look like? Here we are drawing a clear distinction from the HR Function Strategy and Architecture and instead are looking at the wider people identity, recognition, value proposition, issues and requirements, regardless of function. The important thing to do here is to translate those strategic critical success factors and competence requirements into people value proposition and requirements based on an understanding of how people can bring differentiated value, such as: What are the key roles in the value chain? What is the required culture and behaviors? What are the key people competences and skills? Where does who make in the value chain and important judgments? How can people drive performance, time or cost measures? It is critical to differentiate and have a distinction about the people agenda in the business, from the HR Strategy. The people agenda is the bridge between the business strategy and the HR Strategy and has all the clues about where the priorities are.
Figure: Employee Value Proposition
Expert Opinion
In Journal of Management Vol. 41 No. 5, July 2015, authors Jean M. Phillips Stanley M. Gully from The Pennsylvania State University deal with the issue of “Multilevel and Strategic Recruiting: Where Have We Been, Where Can We Go From Here?
Jean M. Phillips Stanley M. Gully
Examples of How the Strategic Recruiting Model Informs Future Research (See Below)
“At the Organizational Level
What organizational strategies, philosophies, cultures, and images are best leveraged by different employer branding and marketing strategies when recruiting talent?
How do organizational size, resources, and leadership influence recruitment policies, resource allocation decisions, and the adoption of recruiting technology?
How do organizational culture and climate influence recruiting systems and policies?
What are the effects of technology implementation, employer branding and marketing, and resource allocation on firm performance, talent pool creation, and strategic execution, and do these effects differ depending on firm size, image, or other characteristics?
How can different employer branding and marketing message best support different business strategies and competitive advantages?
How can firms best execute horizontal strategic recruitment at the organizational level to support different strategies, cultures, and talent philosophies?
At the Team Level
How can recruiting systems, policies, and practices be horizontally aligned to best support different team characteristics and cultures?
How is horizontal strategic recruitment best accomplished for different team-level outcomes, including team affect, performance, and diversity?
What inputs, processes, and outcomes drive team vertical strategic recruitment across levels in recruitment?
What are the most appropriate recruiting goals and strategies for different subunits?
How does a team’s internal reputation influence its recruiting resources, goals, and strategies, including what type(s) of fit to focus on?
What recruiting sources, messages, and practices are best for different types of teams?
At the Individual Level
What is a key input factor influencing the systems, policies, and practices at the individual level, and how do these influence individual-level recruiting outcomes?
How does alignment at the individual level between the recruiter and hiring manager translate into experiential differences for potential employees or recruits?
How can strategic recruitment at this level be best horizontally aligned to maximize recruiting effectiveness?
How does recruiter training affect outcomes, including diversity and retention?
Are employees equally likely to give referrals for jobs with good and poor managers?
Cross-Level Research Questions
How do organizational recruiting systems, policies, and practices influence team-level recruiting systems, policies, and practices?
Does organizational strategic recruitment climate influence the consistency between organizational-level recruiting strategies and goals and those at the team level?
Do organizations with a stronger strategic recruitment climate realize greater consistency between organizational- and team-level recruiting goals, policies, and practices?
What types of organizational cultures and climates increase or decrease consistency between organizational and team-level goals and strategies?
How do organizational culture, strategy, and leadership influence the goals, norms, localized culture, and strategy of teams, departments, and business units?
How do organizational level employer branding messages influence the recruiting messages and strategies used by teams?
How do team-level outcomes, including strategic retention and person-group fit, influence firm performance, strategic execution, and competitive advantage?
What individual differences influence recruiters’ use of different recruitment practices, the delivery and timing of different types of recruiting messages, diversity recruiting, and structured versus unstructured recruitment and selection interviews?
How do business strategies and human resource management strategies influence recruiting goals across different organizational subunits, and what drives differences across organizational units?
How do different staffing goals influence recruitment and staffing systems and practices?
Do people being recruited for different units of an organization (e.g., research, finance) respond best to different recruiter and hiring manager characteristics and activities?”
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