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• Retaining Top Talent Means a Focus on Development

  Richard Oyen on March 2, 2011 | 0 Permalink | Reply
  

  Retaining top talent has long been a key goal for HR professionals.  With the economy keeping external opportunities limited the past few years, this has limited these top employees from leaving.  But somewhere in the back of our minds is the fear that  when opportunities start to increase people will start to leave. As mentioned in the recent SumTotal White Paper, the study that showed that up to half of these top performers are already looking  Implementing is a call to action.  And implementing Retention programs at that time could be too late.

  Now is the time to invest in developing your people. Make sure that managers have the skills, tools and information they need to develop their employees. Research has shown that people who feel they have received adequate training are far less likely to leave than those who feel they were simply thrown into the job to sink or swim (see Hequet 1993; Umiker 1994).  Managers need to ask questions to find out whether people have had all the training, orientation and on-boarding they need. Even if they have what they need to get the job done, offer to help people receive additional training so that they know they’re growing professionally and keeping abreast of developments in their field, not stagnating.  If people feel that they are learning and growing through being with your company, they are far more likely to stay.  Taking the time and effort to invest in them will pay off.  An integrated system makes this much easier to do than ever before.

   

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• 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.

   

• 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.

   

• Let them eat pie

  Richard Oyen on May 5, 2010 | 0 Permalink | Reply
  

  With the economy still down and unemployment rates up, compensation has had its share of recent bad press—particularly when there are some companies still shelling out high-dollar bonuses and other inflated pay packages to top execs. The reality is that many employees are struggling through this time to maintain some semblance of stability in their personal finances, so when they hear about compensation these days, they often sense a painful lack of equity in how money is distributed.

   If these are your employees grumbling, you cannot afford to disengage them right now. Earlier this month, in a special talent management feature, Forbes writers reminded us “a company is only as good as the people it keeps.” Deloitte also recently issued the last publication of the results of their survey series “Managing Talent in a Turbulent Economy” and identified guideposts for executives to consider when moving past the recession. Way up on the list is, of course, employee engagement. And one of the most critical means of engaging—and thereby retaining—your workers is by ensuring compensation is properly aligned to performance.

   It’s no secret that people are motivated by money. They are also motivated by non-monetary “perks,” such as flexible work schedules, reimbursable expenses like cell phones, and opportunities for paid training or tuition. But people are equally driven by fairness, and by the knowledge that they will be rewarded  for the quality of their work and the effort they expend. That’s why we’re seeing a growing trend toward “performance-based pay” strategies, where companies try to link compensation to an employee’s goals and objectives, as well as to the company’s overall success.

   Yet while we’re seeing this trend, we’re also dealing with lingering budget crunches.  A Hewitt survey of 640 companies found they planned to raise hourly wages only 2.5% this year. That’s the smallest raise since 1976. The same companies also said executive pay increases would drop from 3.8% to 2.2% in 2009. These decreases might strike some as an implication that it’s time to curtail compensation hikes altogether—but that’s not the case at all. In fact, now is precisely the time to focus on your compensation processes so you can get the most benefit from your budget.

  Your employees want a piece of the pie, and—if they’ve earned it—you want to give it to them because it helps drive them to increased productivity and value for the company. But if you have ever tried to divide one cupcake to a group of toddlers, you know that the smaller the pie the more difficult it gets to split up.  Just because you have a much smaller pie to divide than in previous years doesn’t mean you don’t offer it to anyone, don’t get everyone the same tiny percentage and it definitely doesn’t mean you just hand it over to the C-level tier. What you do is make certain you divide it accurately and equitably across the entire organization.

   How do you know who gets what? In essence, you establish a direct link between performance appraisals and compensation processes. But you can take this further to ensure greater ease and advantage:

  • Automate compensation management and link to performance appraisals. Automation is key because it reduces time and effort, quickly pinpoints top performers, and helps guarantee you are using valid and relevant data.
  • Improve compensation alignment. When you are properly aligned, you pay employees at the right market rates based on accurate performance data.
  • Look past the wallet. Remember the other forms of compensation that motivate the workforce, including time off, paid perks, and career development.
  • Avoid errors. Both compensation and performance management are tricky endeavors, full of confidential data. Don’t rely on manual-entry spreadsheets to track this kind of information—they are notoriously easy to botch. Automated and integrated systems help reduce the need for data entry and eliminate human mistakes.

  For more information on how your company stacks up when it comes to delivering performance-based pay, I’ve written an article that helps you score your efforts and take steps toward improvement.  Above all, remember that your employees are your greatest asset. If they’re worth keeping, they’re worth rewarding the right way.

   

• What’s in it for me?

  Richard Oyen on November 25, 2009 | 0 Permalink | Reply
  

  It’s ironic that, even as you put forth effort into crafting a talent development strategy for the good of the entire organization, you also face the challenge of stating your case and gaining approvals. There you are, trying to make improvements across the board, and everyone wants to know why and how and what will it cost and what it will mean for my group?

  Still, that’s the reality of organizational checks and balances—so bear this in mind when you plan your talent development efforts. You’ll need to make a business case with easy-to-spot benefits for all the departments on your roadmap. And that means taking stock of who is affected, and what those organizational components are seeking in terms of efficiency, features, technology, and payoff.

  Every company differs, of course. But most departmental needs center around the same concepts. The fourth installment of our eBook, “Making the Business Case for Talent Development,” covers some of the basic questions you’re bound to hear.

  For example:

  • Your CFO wants to know, “Where’s the ROI?” You’ll need to take the time and effort to calculate real numbers that prove the worth of your initiatives. We offer a few tips here and in this white paper.
  • Line managers will ask, “Are you making things easier or just making busy work?” Think about their pain points, and make sure your strategies are designed to maximize efficiency of learning and performance processes on a day-to-day level. Workforce Management has some good advice regarding how to really add efficiency—including ensuring that you cut out process steps or add self-service technology that empowers them.
  • Employees resoundingly inquire, “How will his benefit my career?” Remember that talent development is about employee productivity, engagement, and career advancement—both for the good of the company and the good of each individual team player. Find concrete ways to reassure your workforce that your new talent development solutions are designed to further their growth, help them acquire skills, and assist them on their career paths. The company does not succeed without their success. And if you’re wondering where you stand on employee engagement (and how much work you might have ahead of you), take a look at the Q12 from Gallup, which helps gauge how connected employees feel to their jobs. How would your employees stack up?

  As always, the most vital component of your business case—and a huge indicator of its outcome—is communication. Communicate, communicate, communicate. Offer regular updates. Make phone calls. And absolutely put in face time with the people who make decisions and filter information throughout various departments.

  Here at SumTotal, we like to remind people that there is no substitute for talent, and no better way to achieve company goals than to develop talent. As you make your business case, you have a chance to prove this point. A hefty responsibility? Sure. But one that definitely has rewards. And that is what’s in it for you.

   

• Be prepared

  Richard Oyen on October 29, 2009 | 0 Permalink | Reply
  

  In business, we learn early on that preparation is key to success. As much as we get excited to launch new strategies or programs, we know we will hit roadblock after roadblock if we do not take the time to plan ahead. Remember that your approach to talent development is subject to the same rules. Talent development is, after all, a complex set of initiatives touching numerous departments, processes, and people. Failure to prepare for the way your programs will impact all of these arenas will surely result in failure of the overall effort.

  Yet even as many organizations grasp the importance of laying the groundwork, they have difficulty starting with ground zero. In talent development, ground zero is Human Resources. We are the department that owns much of the responsibility and legwork inherent to learning, performance, and compensation. So as companies seek to align objectives and processes across an entire organization, they must remember to first set the example for those they seek to change.

  I know—this sounds daunting. HR has many, many processes at work, and often many balls in the air. But that’s exactly why it matters so much. All of these tangents must be strategically streamlined, not only so they map to company strategy, but also so they simply make sense and are more efficient.

  Frequently, this level of alignment will require additional skillsets, or even additional players. And that’s okay. Don’t be afraid to acknowledge the fact that you are expanding your company’s mindset when it comes to the workforce and productivity. You are building a foundation for growth. You’re making an investment in your organization’s future that requires time and effort.

  Another thing to keep on your radar is your ultimate talent development goal. In our latest eBook chapter, we focus on the idea of preparing your HR group prior to implementing a new talent development program. One of the points we stress is understanding where your organization stands on a “maturity” graph with respect to its objectives.

  I feel strongly that this is a vital tool you should use when embarking on your talent development program. Think about the difference it makes when, for example, you take a golf lesson and have your swing analyzed. It is often amazingly helpful to have a fresh perspective on what we are doing right—and where we have room for improvement. Our Talent Development Maturity Model gives you a simple way to gauge your strategic sophistication. Most of us fall somewhere between administrative use of talent development components and a tactical approach to software usage. Yet we strive to also incorporate greater efficiency and ultimately hammer home the strategic value of our company talent. As you move forward, and understand where your organization fits on the graph, you can take great strides in preparing adequately for the changes to come in your organization.

   

• Bosses beware: Your employees might be plotting behind your back

  Richard Oyen on September 1, 2009 | 0 Permalink | Reply
  

  No, they’re not out to hurt you—but they might desert you. We’ve been talking to customers for quite some time about the importance of employee engagement and building lasting employee loyalty during these belt-tightening times. And just this past Sunday, USA Today writers Laura Petrecca and Anita Bruzzese reminded us why engagement is so vital:

  The boss’ perception: Given the rough economy, workers are thrilled just to have a steady paycheck. The employee’s reality: Many are frustrated, secretly seeking new opportunities — and soon could be scooped up by another company as the economy recovers.

  In their article, titled “Economic Recovery Gives Frustrated Workers Job Options,” Petrecca and Bruzzese inform companies that there is actually a large discrepancy between the satisfaction that managers believe their employees have—and what the employees themselves will tell you on the sly. Many workers feel rebuffed by poor communication from management, particularly about layoffs. They have suffered through paycuts and loss of benefits as budgets hit lockdown status. Shockingly, this can make them feel somewhat bitter. Let’s just say that a lot of resumes have been polished in the past nine months. People will always seek the greener grass.

  So what should you do if you think your workforce is on the verge of jumping ship? Can you regain loyalty?

  Absolutely. The USA Today writers cite expert opinions that employers “should have strong retention strategies, such as helping workers develop new skills and allowing flexible work schedules.” We at SumTotal completely concur.

  Here’s our take on what companies should do right now:

  • By aligning employee goals to corporate strategy, you ensure that workers have a map in front of them for driving worthwhile business results. At the same time, you give managers the ability to measure performance objectively and keep everyone focused on the right tasks at the right time.
      
  • By giving employees plans for career development, you prove to each individual that you see their value to the organization and their potential for future success. You also give them the opportunity to expand their competencies and grow their own opportunities.
     
  • By rewarding them with appropriate compensation—both monetarily and through incentives such as stock plans, skills training, flexible scheduling options, and even personal expressions of gratitude—you motivate them to stay put and forge ahead.
     
  • And by offering managers increased development options as well, you strengthen their leadership abilities while helping them better guide and communicate with their employees. Strong leaders make a strong team.

  Take heed, employers everywhere. As the economy shows signs of picking up, don’t let your employees pick up and leave. Never take your talent for granted. This is the best time to optimize your talent development strategies, hands down.

   

• Cultivating a high-performance culture

  Richard Oyen on August 17, 2009 | 0 Permalink | Reply
  

  In my role, I’m often asked to define the real benefits of unified talent development. You know, the ones that go beyond the numbers and affect real people in their day-to-day work environments.

  My response? There might be no greater benefit than the creation of a high-performance work culture. Consider this the utopia of talent development, where employees are driven, engaged, skilled, fairly compensated, and successful. Everyone is either in the right role and succeeding at it, or on a clear path to get there. Workers unite as a team in shared values and productive behaviors. And the business as a whole is thriving, growing, and improving because of this environment. A highly productive workforce, after all, breeds a high-performing business. Wouldn’t that be great!

  No utopia is easily within reach, of course. I remind our customers, and those who would be customers, that arriving at this destination requires effort—and once you are there, ongoing maintenance is critical. Still, a high-performance culture is not some pipe dream. This is an ideal that’s definitely doable, and one you should most definitely work to achieve.

  Before you embark, though, ask yourself what kind of corporate culture you currently have (and if you think you don’t have one, read this article for some help). Every business has their own unique way of doing things, and a system for rewarding or correcting certain behaviors. And every employee is different as well. Many emotional factors come into play when you’re dealing with human beings, which Gartner blogger Kathy Harris recently described. All of these elements, or values, contribute to your business culture.

  Bottom line: If you don’t like the results you’re currently seeing, chances are that your organization needs some culture shock. Taking a laissez-faire environment to new heights of productivity requires guidance, patience, and planning. You’re not simply dealing with strategies and products—you’re dealing with people. And your people are your greatest asset.

  Want more information? We’ve got a new white paper available that offers roadmaps to help you, and of course, our unified talent development suite is specifically designed to ignite greater performance in your workplace.

  Have feedback, questions, or ideas? Please post your comments for us.

   

• Why workforce alignment matters

  Richard Oyen on July 23, 2009 | 0 Permalink | Reply
  

  Do you remember being at a childhood party and playing the annoying game of telephone? (Surely I’m not the only one who had to endure this!)

  Here’s how it went: You sat with your friends in a line, and the person at the front of the line whispered a secret message in the ear of the person right behind them. The message was then passed down from person to person, in whispers, until it reached the end of the line. And the great ‘fun’ of the game (in theory, because it was never actually that much fun) was that the person who ultimately revealed the secret message was never, ever correct. What started out as “I think Jane Doe has a stuffed teddy bear in her room every night” usually ended up as “I eat plain dough and don’t care, that’s right.”

  My point in dredging up this childhood memory is simple:

  • Trickle-down communication is miscommunication.
  • Miscommunication results in misalignment.
  • Misalignment leads to missed opportunities.

  Anyone in business today can attest to this. If you expect your executive goals and strategies to eventually make their way to the factory floor through second hand messages or other diluted forms of communication, you can also expect that those strategies will arrive garbled and inaccurate. And this is a huge problem for businesses.

  When employees across various departments and organizational levels aren’t operating from a unified strategy, it makes it next to impossible to come together to work toward common objectives. You can’t help employees establish goals with any purpose because you don’t know the overarching drivers behind their goals. And if you do set goals, they’re likely to be out of synch with company goals or inaccurate, which disengages your employees. Just read the results of this 2008 survey from Salary.com to see what happens to productivity when employees feel disengaged. In other words, you are wasting valuable resources and squandering the potential of your workforce.

  In our current economy, the last thing in the world you can afford is to be wasteful—particularly when it comes to your talent. The most effective way to reach your business goals is by developing your talent. And the way to start developing your talent is by first ensuring that employees are aligned with business strategies and objectives. Everyone has to be on the same page before you can move ahead.

  In a nutshell, this means:

  Creating a unified business strategy, and then making sure all employees understand that strategy, clearly and accurately. No games of telephone here!

  Ensuring all employees are in the right jobs, with the right skills, at the right times, in order to push the business strategy forward.

  Continuously setting, tracking, and re-evaluating organizational and individual goals with the sole purpose of furthering the company’s objectives. Having the ability to cascade goals in your performance management solution helps tremendously.

  Prioritizing critical tasks and eliminating or refining any non-strategic activities, so employees stay focused.

  Regularly assessing performance against goals to hold workers accountable, and providing that feedback to employees.

  Putting it all together with other aspects of talent development, such as learning and compensation, so employees are engaged and equipped to reach objectives.

  Check out these links for more details:

  • When Workforce Goals Meet Corporate Strategy
  • The Pillars of Performance Management