People Management Blog

Updates from July, 2010

• Adding up the benefits of integrated talent management

  Richard Oyen on July 27, 2010 | 0 Permalink | Reply
  

  This is the time of year when a lot of companies suddenly start paying attention to talent management—or, rather, their lack of it. That’s because July is typically the time for mid-year performance reviews. When organizations have under-prioritized things like learning and performance management between January and June, they begin to realize in July how better, more integrated talent management systems could have saved them significant time, effort, and expense.

  Just how significant? Let’s look at some numbers:

  • Bersin & Associates’ 2009 Talent Management Factbook stated that organizations with superior talent management systems actually earn 26% higher revenue per employee and realize a 40% lower turnover among high performers. Plus, those companies that implement effective talent management strategies are better positioned to hire and develop great leaders. They’re also more adaptable to changing economic conditions, and better able to plan for future workforce needs.
  • Ernst & Young report found that companies with integrated talent management programs delivered 38% greater return on equity than companies with non- or partially integrated programs, while companies that aligned talent management to business strategy experienced, on average, a 20% higher return on equity.

  So what does this mean?

  1. Talent management solutions give you the ability to track employee performance on a project basis throughout the year, so there’s none of that mid-year or end-of-year scramble to get a grip on the workforce.
  2. Integrated talent management extends the advantages even further because it effectively links your performance monitoring with your learning and development systems. In other words, integrated solutions help you evaluate performance data to identify skill gaps and then seamlessly apply the necessary learning to fill those gaps—so you have a more holistic view of your workforce’s strengths and weaknesses. And, considering your employees are your company’s greatest asset, this is a perspective worth gaining.
  3. When you implement integrated talent management systems, you will see tangible business results in the form of higher employee productivity, increased employee potential, and decreased turnover, all of which offer substantial return on investment and ultimately lead to greater revenue.

  In a recent press release, SumTotal reiterated its commitment to assisting customers in tackling talent management challenges through innovative, unified solutions. We want to ensure that organizations don’t waste their talent. It’s too valuable, and the numbers continue to prove that fact. Don’t wait till the next performance review cycle to learn that lesson.

   

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• Four strategic tips for your performance management implementation

  Richard Oyen on July 22, 2010 | 1 Permalink | Reply
  

  In today’s somewhat precarious economy, the concept of Employee Performance Management (EPM) is getting a lot of attention. That’s because we’re all looking for ways to better engage the workforce, so we can retain our star employees and build competitive advantage.  We’ve been told that a solid EPM strategy can help us identify these top performers and even pinpoint gaps in skills or competencies that must be filled in order to improve overall team productivity.

  But how do we find that “solid” strategy? Is there a way to ensure success? And just how specific does an EPM strategy need to be with respect to your organization’s requirements?

  Let’s take a quick look at some of the best practices we’ve learned over the years:

  	1)	The first step toward obtaining EPM success is to know what you need. In this sense, it is extremely important to understand your organization’s specific challenges. You need to know the parameters of your EPM initiative—what you’re hoping to accomplish, the systems you plan to integrate with, and the features you absolutely demand.
  	2)	Next, consider your EPM options and the total cost of implementing each one. Depending on your budget and requirements, you can choose between in-house or outsourced solutions—and you should weigh the costs of these various systems against having no system in place at all (which often equates to the cost of missed opportunities for driving value).
  	3)	Consider the risks and benefits of all your available strategies, and then compare vendor solutions. Who is out there to meet your requirements and your budget? Which company offers you reliability and partnership you can trust? Be sure to check references of other customers that have faced similar situations as your own. And don’t forget to ensure that your preferred vendor knows how to integrate with your existing systems or processes in order to maximize efficiency. Additionally, remember that all of this advance planning and thorough investigation will no doubt save you time and money down the road.
  	4)	Finally, after you’ve deployed your EPM system, be sure you are working to derive real value from it. Just because you put an EPM system in place doesn’t mean it’s guaranteed to be successful. You have to use the system effectively. That means leveraging reporting and analytics functions to understand the data you uncover. It also means having the foresight to see how performance data can tie into learning and compensation management in order to build a stronger workforce capable of greater productivity.

  For more specific details on how these steps can help you strategically approach performance management, download this informative white paper from SumTotal. Or, if you have questions, feel free to post them here.