Month: September 2018

When the late Katharine Graham became chief executive officer of the Washington Post Co. in 1972, she was the first woman to run one of the 500 largest U.S. companies by revenue. In the 46 years since, only 67 other women have had that distinction. Almost every large U.S. company has publicly stated its commitment to gender diversity, and women make up nearly half the U.S. workforce. But women struggle to retain even 5 percent of the CEO jobs at the biggest companies.

1. What do the numbers show?
Among Fortune 500 companies, the number of female CEOs peaked at 31 as of June 2017 before slipping to 24 — 4.8 percent of the total — this May. Among members of the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index, an overlapping list that includes only public companies, 5 percent had women as CEOs at the start of this year, according to Catalyst Inc.

2. Who are the women who broke through?
The list of women named CEO of a top-500 U.S. company includes such well-known names as Ginni Rometty at IBM; Mary Barra of General Motors Corp., the first women to lead a major automaker; Indra Nooyi, who is stepping down as PepsiCo Inc. CEO; and Ursula Burns, whose eight years at the helm of Xerox Corp. made her the first African-American woman to lead a Fortune 500 company.

3. Why have there been so few female CEOs?
There’s no end of possible reasons, ranging from outright sexism to the lingering effect of old-boy networks to a lack (real or perceived) of qualified female candidates. What’s clear is that the issue is a systemic one, developing long before the moment when a corporate board chooses a new leader. Almost seven in 10 CEOs at S&P 500 companies last year had been groomed for the job internally, and corporations tend to go with executives who have run operating units — a level that relatively few women reach.

4. What’s keeping women from leading operating units?
One study found that some men think they’re protecting women from the rigors of assignments that require travel and time away from their families. Women leaders are more common in such units as human resources, legal and marketing, but companies tend not to choose their CEOs from those divisions. (“Middle management is where diversity goes to die,” Sallie Krawcheck, once one of Wall Street’s highest-ranking female executives, said on a recent episode of Bloomberg’s The Pay Check podcast.) Studies show that, once hired, women fall behind in promotions and pay. They earn about 90 percent of the wages of men by the time they’re 32, and 82 percent by age 40. In between is when many women leave the workforce to have children, suggesting they pay a price for motherhood.

5. Will recent progress prove lasting?
It doesn’t look that way. Most of the current female CEOs in the S&P 500 have a man serving as president or chief operating officer, the most likely sources for successors. Among the 100 largest U.S. companies in 2017, the only executive-suite job in which women were a majority was as head of human resources, recruiting firm Russell Reynolds found.

6. What can be done?
More companies are taking steps to elevate junior women executives to important roles, where they can gain leadership experience; to balance the child-rearing load by adding paternity leave for men; and to offer re-training programs to encourage women to return to the workforce. Women made up 36 of new independent directors at large companies last year, the most ever, but still accounted for just 22 percent of corporate boards, recruiting firm Spencer Stuart reported. Investment-management companies such as State Street Corp. and BlackRock Inc. are starting to vote against directors at companies who aren’t doing enough to improve diversity. Some advocate that companies compensate CEOs on how well they improve diversity in the executive ranks — or penalize them for lack of progress.

7. Does this really matter?
Consulting firm McKinsey & Co. found that companies with the highest levels of diversity had profit margins 21 percent higher than those with little diversity, based on 2017 data. A Credit Suisse analysis of 3,400 companies worldwide in 2016 similarly determined that companies with more diverse management had higher returns on equity, dividends and market values, compared with less-diverse companies. On the other hand, companies with female CEOs were 50 percent more likely to be targeted by activists and about 60 percent more likely to be targeted by multiple activists in what are sometimes called wolf-pack attacks, according to research on 3,026 large U.S. companies between 1996 and 2013. One study found that woman-led companies are more likely to see a decline in their company’s stock, even though there’s no difference in profitability.

Source: https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2018-09-28/why-5-percent-remains-a-glass-ceiling-for-female-ceos-quicktake

Professional network LinkedIn has launched Talent Insights, a data-driven analytics tool for talent. The tool offers users two reports – Talent Pool and Company – to help businesses make informed decisions about recruiting and workforce planning, and metrics on peer companies in the industry.

The business intelligence tool offers data and ensures actionable insights by harnessing real-time updates by tapping into the network of 575 million professionals, 20 million companies, and 15 million active job listings. This tool is accessible across various regions, industries and levels within an organization.

A Clear Picture of LinkedIn’s Talent Insights
Elaborating on the report, Eric Owski, head of product for LinkedIn Talent Insights revealed the Talent Pool can offer an analysis report on a specific talent population:

How many professionals are within a talent pool and at what rate it is growing year-on-year.
Of a given talent pool, how many professionals have changed jobs in the last 12 months and how many job openings are there currently for this talent.
At what rate is the talent pool growing, geographically.
An insight into hiring demand based on the number of inmails that professionals sent to others from a talent pool.
An insight into the top employers within the talent pool and how fast it is growing within companies.

Owski also offers insights on what the Company report can offer data on:

How a company’s workforce is distributed globally and its fastest-growing locations.
How a company’s workforce is distributed by title or function and the fastest-growing functions within the company.
A company’s hiring and attrition rate.
Owski said Talent Insights was distributed among more than 80 customers and users at multiple levels in talent organizations to ensure it fulfilled the three priorities LinkedIn set for the tool:

Deliver data on demand
Offer HR leaders and hiring managers the ability to answer complex talent questions within minutes.

Make the insights actionable
Ensure that anyone can read the data. One doesn’t need to be a data analyst to interpret the data.

Deliver real-time updates on LinkedIn
Provide the most accurate data on labor market trends at any given moment.

Talent Insights is LinkedIn’s first foray into business intelligence, a branch that aims to help enterprise users make more informed business decisions. While the professional network has launched a number of others services in the past, it is yet to prove itself as more than an IT productivity tool. LinkedIn has included a way for users to look at and plan travels to potential jobs; integrations with Microsoft Suite including resume building in Word and Outlook integration that allows one to extend business corporate directors with LinkedIn.

Source: https://www.thehrdigest.com/linkedin-talent-insights-to-provide-competitive-intelligence-for-workforce-planning/

When thinking about how to develop in our careers, most of us tend to focus on promotions, projects, courses, certifications. We seek out expanded roles, more senior titles, extra money. We overlook one very key piece of the learning puzzle: proactively surrounding ourselves with people who will push us to succeed in unexpected ways and, in so doing, build genuinely rich, purposeful lives of growth, excellence, and impact.

Back in the 1990s, when I was working full-time as a partner in our executive search firm, I pursued one such friend—a leading researcher and writer—and cultivated the relationship for several years. And then, in 1998, during a walk along the Charles River in Cambridge, he surprised me with a challenge. He suggested that, in addition to my client practice and internal leadership roles at Egon Zehnder, I could find even more meaning (and have a larger reach) by using my knowledge of and passion for talent-spotting and development to also become a writer, teacher, and public speaker. I took his advice, and it has drastically changed my life, both professionally and personally.

We typically spend at least two decades in our formal education and, in developed countries, hundreds of thousands of dollars. We carefully choose our places of employment and invest significant time and effort in training within them. However, few of us engage in a deliberate, determined search for those wise individuals who, through their inspiration and advice, can literally make us new.

My dynamic circle of advisers and confidantes has included, in addition to my wife María and my Charles River friend, several other academics in the United States, an undergraduate professor in Argentina, a McKinsey director in Spain, and colleagues working in Egon Zehnder offices across the Americas, Europe, and Asia. They have, throughout my career, successively inspired me into different possibilities I would never had envisioned, from teaching statistics to applying for an MBA, from becoming a strategic consultant to spending three decades and taking on global leadership roles in executive search, from publishing books to teaching executives at Harvard.

They have been companions on my journey, offering honest feedback, helping me to discover new identities and pushing me to become a highly different yet significantly better version of myself. How can you find a similar group? The following guidelines should help:

Think about the people who inspire you. These can be teachers of certain disciplines; inventors; entrepreneurs; business, social, or public leaders. I have always been moved and inspired by specific people, not just abstract professions. I “met” them originally in many cases by reading their work or about them, but also via social media and at conferences.

Don’t be afraid to chase. Conferences are a great place to get inspired, approach, and start a relationship with some of the people you’ve identified. Likewise, contacting even top academics is usually much easier than you think. Other cases may require a much more determined investment. For example, I flew back and forth from Buenos Aires to a little town in Massachusetts just to meet my Charles River friend. While this double red-eye may sound excessive, think how little time commitment it was compared to what we invest in our education, or to the opportunity cost and frustration of a poor career choice or wrong job decision.

Aim for a mix of people inside and outside your organization. Lots of healthy change can and should ideally happen within your own company. However, external contacts can potentially have the benefit of greater independence, a broader perspective with radically new horizons, as well as potential connections across both worlds which will benefit everyone.

Be candid about the reason for your interest. Most truly great people live their lives with genuine passion and want to expand their missions. Most times, they will be delighted to both inspire you and help you see how to close the gap between dream and reality.

Ask them specifically about how to get started. After suggesting my new potential persona, my Charles River friend gave me some invaluable advice about what I had to do. He said to me: “You need three Cs: capability, which you have; connectivity, which at least initially you can do through the global network of your firm; and credibility, which you don’t have yet. In order to achieve it, you need to publish a great article in a credible magazine and ideally a book.” He then put me in touch with a senior editor at HBR, with whom I worked to make that first article happen.

Proactively offer them help. These great companions who lead us to greater lives deserve our very best. I have always offered them that, with no strings attached. That included becoming a pro bono assistant professor, conducting intensive research for a full year for someone’s new book, becoming the critical reader of a best-selling author, and much more. And whenever I get a message from them, I drop everything I’m doing and respond right away. I have constantly done this out of gratitude but, as always, I also gained in the form of more learning, opportunities, and deeper friendships.

Have crucial conversations in the right settings. Meeting face-to-face with no distractions will help you reach a level of intimacy which simply can’t achieve remotely. I would add that many of my life-changing moments have occurred while walking with my trusted friends in beautiful surroundings – whether by a river, in the countryside, on the beach, along a snow-covered mountain, or across peaceful villages. One of my Egon Zehnder colleagues and I have done this in more than 30 different parts of the world. The combination of exercise and nature makes me particularly energetic, enthusiastic and positive – and therefore more willing to consider new possibilities.

Don’t hesitate to ask the truly big questions. What shall I do with my life? What really motivates me? What am I doing that I really don’t like to do? While pondering these questions, in addition to checking my capability, connectivity and credibility, I also engage my friends in conversation about three other Cs: contemplation (Am I in touch with my inner compass?), compassion (Do I show it for myself and others?), and companions (Who else might inspire me to new growth?)

Proactively seeking out and cultivating those who will help us become better versions of ourselves is, by a wide margin, the key for living a truly happy and meaningful life. I sincerely hope these guidelines help you.

Source: https://hbr.org/2018/09/the-key-to-career-growth-surround-yourself-with-people-who-will-push-you

It’s no secret that transformation is one of the biggest challenges facing organisations today, with some grappling with multiple changes at any one time. Roisin Woolnough asks Janice Miller, director of leadership programmes at Harvard Business Publishing, about HR’s role in ensuring transformation is successful.

How would you define transformation?
Transformation has become the new normal as organisations adapt in the face of ever-changing technology impacting the bottom line.

It occurs when an organisation makes a strategic decision in response to changes. This could be a merger or acquisition, expansion into a new market, building new innovation capability or incorporating new technological innovations, such as cloud technology, Internet of Things (IoT), analytics or machine learning technologies.

It’s as much a leadership process as it is a strategic, technological and cultural process.

What is HR’s role in transformation?
It is essential. HR needs to partner with senior leaders and effectively communicate with all levels of the organisation to ensure any concerns are addressed immediately before they become widespread issues. It has to ensure senior leaders and all employees are aligned on the strategy and purpose of the organisation.

Learning and development functions also have a very important role to play in particular, with L&D leaders helping drive transformation by:

Creating leadership alignment by coaching executives to share authentic, compelling stories
Encouraging leaders to become teachers and lead by example
Developing new capabilities for emerging business trends, from personal adaptability and resilience to a growth mindset and commercial acumen
Moving away from detailed competencies and job descriptions to create flexibility for innovation outside of formal roles
Helping to prepare leaders for their role in transforming the company through learning experiences that help them anticipate the challenges of organisational transformation and how to overcome those challenges
L&D has to partner very closely with business leaders and help leaders to ensure transformation can and will happen effectively. However, there is a disconnect between L&D and line of business (LOB) leaders on how well senior executives and board members support the company’s L&D team.

According to Harvard Business Publishing’s 2018 State of Leadership Report, only 50% of LOB managers said that leadership development was a primary driver of or played an important role in executing their organisation’s transformation plans.

Yet, organisations that say leadership development is critical to their success are 29 times more likely to have a successful transformation than those where leadership is viewed as not important. They also come out on top compared to peers on crucial metrics such as revenue growth, market position, and future growth.

Why is strategic alignment so important?
Strategic alignment helps organisations execute strategy with speed, proficiency and broad impact so that valuable opportunities are not missed and emerging threats are mitigated. In aligned organisations, strategy is more likely to deliver anticipated results when they’re needed.

Senior leaders throughout the organisation must be aligned with the strategic change and be accountable for helping execute the new strategy. They must also have a keen understanding of how the new strategy aligns with the long-term purpose of the organisation and its capabilities. Leaders must act as strategic thinkers, responsible for scanning, synthesizing, and adapting strategy in line with market trends.

You believe agility is a key factor too. Why is this the case?
Agility is critical to transformation. Organisations are reshaping how they work to become more agile both in terms of creating and executing strategy.

Transformation is a major undertaking, so if the timeline extends to several years, leaders need to be able to shift or adjust their approach to adapt to new market conditions in real-time before they can fully implement the new strategy.

In order to maintain agility, many organisations are moving away from formal, time-limited strategy statements to high-level, purpose statements that articulate “Why we exist.”

Agility requires a lot of collaboration. From agile teams working on new product development to strategic networks that require individuals to collaborate across the business, leaders need stronger strategic networks and alliances internally and externally.

How should HR and organisations approach transformation?
They need to ensure all levels of employees are on board early on to drive successful transformative changes. They should approach transformation strategically. It often requires not just a fundamental change to the business model, but also a fundamental shift in the capabilities of leaders and employees.

Senior leaders need to have a clear vision of how this transformation will improve the organisation, instead of just implementing new technologies for the sake of it.

Which companies lead the way on this?
One organisation that’s clearly operating in a transforming industry is The Coca-Cola Company. The company’s global learning and leadership development team uses many innovative techniques to keep talent equipped for its evolving needs.

For example, the team is experimenting with crowdsourcing to uncover potential talent. Coca-Cola makes projects visible company-wide, so individuals can choose to participate in a project in a different group to develop new skills and involve themselves in work that’s beyond their function.

This practice supports learner-driven development and taps into employees’ personal interests in learning beyond their current role.

Given all of this, what might the L&D department of the future look like?
L&D teams will tightly link their efforts to their organisation’s strategy and prove highly adaptable in the face of ongoing change.

Our research also reveals three key areas of focus – building organisational alignment, developing learner-focused programs, and expanding the definition of partnership – that L&D teams will need to help them become an adaptable, strategic function primed to move the needle for their businesses.

Just as companies need to be agile, so do L&D practitioners. L&D needs to be a disruptor, identifying interventions and experiences that it can execute immediately, even amid extensive change.

The ability to adapt and change in the moment will prove crucial. It needs to build agility within the learning experience by fostering new behaviours and mindsets, streamlining capabilities and building resilience across its organisation.

L&D teams will also benefit by partnering more closely with leaders in other departments, businesses and industries to strengthen their business acumen and gain insight into other approaches that can spark innovation and creativity in their leadership development programs.

Leaders in our client roundtables predict that L&D groups of the future will partner with specific internal customer segments, such as a research and development team or an analytics group, rather than around traditional content areas.

As a result, they’ll deepen their understanding of their audiences and will be able to customise learning approaches to each segment. Practices like these will generate more-effective programmes and strengthen alignment between development experiences and business results. This is the most important component that HR can bring to the table.

Source: https://www.personneltoday.com/hr/whats-the-role-of-hr-in-successful-business-transformation/

Every time Washington Kamau lands a new job, he immediately starts preparing his growth strategy to a higher rank. And so, for the past six years, the 29-year-old has occupied four different job positions in different organisations. The accounting graduate first enrolled for CPA classes at Strathmore University before joining the University of Nairobi (UoN) where he obtained a degree in Economics in 2012. When he went for internship at Crown Solutions Limited where his stipend was Sh25,000, he outperformed his fellow interns and got his first job as an assistant accountant at the end of the three-month internship at the consultancy firm, which was then a start-up.
A year later, when Crown Solutions could not match up to his ambitions, he landed a job with Meghan Holdings as an accountant. And earlier this month, Crown Solutions, which has grown to own various subsidiaries countrywide, offered him a job as a financial accountant with a six-figure salary. He attributes his speedy rise to unrelenting professional development, proving his worth at the workplace and continuously looking for opportunities. “Whenever I take up any job, I always envision the next step I can take in my career progression and I start focusing my efforts on that position. I grab any opportunity that comes my way to improve my worth at the organisation. Most times, my zeal is appreciated,” says Kamau. Kamau, who pursued a Master’s in Science and Finance at UoN, advises early career millennials to prove their worth to their employers. “Don’t be too comfortable when you get your first job. You can easily climb the ladder wherever you are even as an intern. Recruiters are looking for someone who can add value to their organisations,” he says.
Hashtag spoke to HR experts who gave tips for those looking to blossom in their careers: Understand how the organisation operates Honeycare Africa HR manager, Zachary Gachuru, says not all organisations support ambition in early-career employees. It, therefore, helps that you understand the nature of the organisation you are working for before you invest in any efforts for growth. “Not all organisations provide avenues for career growth. I know of conservative managements that perceive overly-ambitious employees as threats. They look at you as someone who is out to take their jobs,” says Gachuru. It also helps to know whether or not the management can compensate your ambition before you present your request for promotion. If the management cannot, they could decide to let you go. Seek professional development and offer to train colleagues “Invest your time and resources in acquiring an extra skill that can improve efficiency at your workplace,” says Kamau. This, he says, can be acquired through on-the-job training or through the extra courses you enlist for outside the workplace. To those in the accounting field, for instance, Kamau proposes relentless professional development in and outside the workplace. “Take an extra course in financial modelling or even Access courses. You will realise that not many people at your workplace know the relevance of Access in accounting. Go on to offer workplace training after you acquire an extra skill that not everyone else has. All these efforts won’t go unnoticed,” says Kamau. Even then, Raphael Maithya, Amazon Fronts Limited business development manager, warns against focusing on too much paperwork at the expense of acquiring skills. “Don’t take an extra degree course expecting that you will get a promotion by presenting your papers to the management. Today, a diploma holder with six months of experience stands a better chance at a job interview than a Master’s graduate who has no experience. I usually tell undergraduates to only master what they know and not what they want to become,” says Maithya. Advice management What turned Maithya’s internship into a job at a recruitment firm was a small conversation he had with his boss. “I was just finishing my internship when I requested to meet my boss at the HR firm. I told him to think of introducing training at the company as part of the company’s advertising tool, an idea that pleased my boss,” says Maithya. He says what would have been his last week at the company saw him get his first job at the HR firm where he was put in charge of all the career mentorship and training. Two months later, his zeal earned him two external accounts and he was promoted to accounts manager. “Always talk to (the) management whenever you see a gap within the organisation. It could be your next big position,” says Maithya. Have a clear goal Patrick Mutisya, Eagle HR CEO, says that knowing what you are looking for in terms of career growth helps you direct your efforts and resources to your goal. “Having a clear goal helps you focus your growth as early as during an internship. Your early career choices should support your future career growth,” says Mutisya. He says having a clear vision also helps you choose the right mentors to shape your career path. “People who mentor you should be those within your field. An accountant has no business enlisting the services of a successful athlete,” says Mutisya. Mutisya says focused employees also surround themselves with equally dedicated people who are eager to grow. “Look at people who are dedicated to their jobs and are ambitious to grow. In public offices, don’t adopt the behaviour of employees who are looking to retire and report to work late and do so little,” he says. Make your worth visible Kamau advises people who seek professional development and go out of their way to gain an additional skill to ensure that their efforts get the attention of the management. “Some in the management may try to ignore your efforts out of fear. They dread the day you will go to them looking for a better deal in the form of a promotion or a better salary,” he says. “In such a case, make them know that you are working hard. Have a tactical way to report every additional task you perform outside your mandate and notify your immediate boss when you decide to take extra training,” says Kamau. Grow your networks After you have exhausted all efforts that warrant a promotion, a salary increment or some sort of career progression, some companies may try to curtail your growth. Kamau says this should be the time you open yourself up to opportunities outside the organisation. “If you give your all to an organisation and you are not appreciated, you can move to the next place that sees your worth. You should never be stagnant in your career growth,” he says. This, he says, calls for you to put your profile out there in case someone in your networks is headhunting for a role that suits you. Maithya says organisations are increasingly looking for new hires through networks. “Recruiters are no longer advertising for all the positions they intend to fill. Instead, they headhunt and reach out to potential employees,” says Maithya. Seek opportunities in startups Kathleen Lihanda, founder and CEO of My Career Identity, says early career employees have a better opportunity to grow in startups than in well-established organisations where roles are cut out. She says it is easy for an accountant in a startup to perform other roles such as those of a receptionist, HR and even the IT expert. The experience in turn equips the young employee with a variety of skills to help them fit in any work environment. This, however, is not the case in big organisations where there are usually enough people to perform any given task. The career coach, however, says that positions in startups are not always appealing to first-time job seekers who usually prefer opportunities in bigger organisations. “When I talk to job seekers, most of them say they desire to work for Safaricom, Equity Bank and such well-established and prestigious firms. But I also encourage them to accept jobs at startups because there, they will have an opportunity to learn as much as they can in any department,” says Lihanda. Kamau, who did his internship at a startup, says it is easier to grow and get a permanent job at these establishments since they nurture their own potential employees. “My first job as an accountant was at a place I went for internship. They have now taken me back into a senior role with a good salary. Startups give you the best exposure and training, hoping that you can one day work for them,” says Kamau. When ambition backfires It is possible for an ambitious employee with unrelenting efforts for growth to achieve their career goals in a short time. But being overly ambitious, career experts say, can sometimes backfire. “Employees who are too ambitious are always looking for opportunities to make the best for themselves out of their employers. Some even resort to shortcuts to accomplish their career goals,” says Patrick Mutisya, Eagle HR CEO. He says employees who opt for shortcuts include those that keep hopping from one employer to the other looking for greener pastures. These, he says, are the hardest to pass a job interview. “During the interview, they always find it hard to explain why they keep changing employers and why they can’t keep a job for a long time. Recruiters are always skeptical about people who can’t keep a job for a long time because such employees can decide to leave whenever other opportunities come their way,” says Mutisya. He says that the least amount of time that one ought to stay on a particular job position is one year, with the first six months go into familiarising oneself with the organisation. He says recruiters pay attention to the number of years spent in a given job position, especially when hiring CEOs and when filling top management positions. “Someone looking for the position of a CEO should have spent at least five years in one position to oversee the implementation of their company’s strategic plan. Anything less than that reduces one’s employability chances,” he says. Overly ambitious employees also risk losing their jobs in conservative setups, career experts say. Honeycare Africa HR manager, Zachary Gachuru, says such employees are seen as a threat, who are out to take other people’s jobs. RELATED TOPIC

Source: https://www.standardmedia.co.ke/business/article/2001297049/experts-tip-for-those-looking-to-blossom-in-their-careers

 

The shortage of talented manpower has been a key challenge area for employers.

According to survey by Manpower Group, the shortage of talent is on a 12 year high and recruiters find it difficult to fill skilled positions. Data indicates that there is also a shortage of applicants. These jobs require hard & soft skills. In India, the talent shortage is about 56% whereas the global average is 45%.

Companies are already identifying various methods of upgrading their employees’ skills – using OJT (On-the-job training), ODT (Outdoor training) sessions, Seminars and hiring an outside agency.

On the other hand, nearly half of the world’s employed population are unhappy in their jobs, according to a study by Kelly Services. While there may be many reasons for this, the macroeconomic environment has forced companies to deal with fluctuations in the headcount. According to the survey, almost half of the respondents changed their employers in the past year where personal growth and advancement was regarded as most important reason.

These findings indicate a hassle between shortage and retention of talent.

A parameter that could help closely link the shortage of talent with retention of talent is what I’d like to call a job of convenience (JoC)”. When there is a convergence of factors such as job satisfaction, competence and personal growth, this would result in positive impact, while these factors diverge, it leads to a negative impact. The role of the leadership in establishing culture of reward for performance employers will be key in setting a conducive work environment.

Here are a few tools companies can use to bring these factors together:
Career lattice involves giving your employees an opportunity to not just move up a fixed career ladder, but also take advantage of other parallel opportunities. There are a set of pre-defined guidelines to check eligibility to fill a vacant position from the available in-house talent pool.

STEP 1: In this method, employees are scrutinized based on the past performance in their present job role, which could be assessed from a performance management system (like Weight standard approach, 360 degrees, Management by objectives, Balanced Score Cards etc) adopted by the organization.

STEP 2: These employees are then be nominated for advance functional and cross-functional training where the employee has a leverage to attend or not to depending on his interest type of training method adopted here is OJT.

STEP 3: Employees are trained depending on the skills required for the position they are going to fill tenure of training may vary from organization to organization generally it is one year at least. This training is closely monitored where 360-degree feedback (i.e. from subordinates, superiors from customers, suppliers, and present department) is taken about trainee.

STEP 4: Based on results training may extended/ canceled or close successfully.

Career Lattice is a continuous process for generating talent pool within the organization for future requirements, this method should be executed with precision. to assess himself and know his limitations and interest.

Other ways of assessing a job of convenience is through:

Psychological assessments that are conducted to check the emotional and professional development of employees. There are a number of online tools are available like SHL, Thomas etc.

Competency mapping + Job analysis could be conducted if job analysis is done for every designation in the organization where a fresh feedback from the departmental head is taken on a pre-defined scale for behavioral and professional parameters.

Promotional interviews, jury members interview shortlisted employees who fulfill after all assessments for the final conversation before making the final decision.

The role of leadership is crucial understanding the importance and timely adoption, implementation of above-mentioned techniques will give you the upper hand over global factors effecting talent. By generating “Positive JoC” hassle between shortage and retention of talent could be efficiently addressed.

Source: https://www.peoplematters.in/article/life-at-work/is-finding-a-job-of-convenience-the-key-to-solve-talent-crunch-19304

Digital transformation is rapidly changing the way we work – but as most note, transformation won’t take place overnight. How can HR prepare ahead and lead the change in an organisation?

HRD sat down with Grace De Castro, founder and chief empowerment officer at Vision et Agir Management Consultancy, Inc. to find out her take on how digital disruption is transforming HR.

A HR guru, life coach, as well as business and career strategist, De Castro has had plenty of corporate experience in her 20-year career to understand how each wave of transformation impacts HR.

Prior to her foray into entrepreneurship, she held various HR roles at global companies such as Unilever Philippines, Levi Strauss, Shell International, Globe Telecom and Nestle.

De Castro began our chat by quoting CIO Insight: “change is about using external factors to modify actions to achieve the desired results, while transformation is about modifying beliefs so that natural actions achieve the desired results”.

“I subscribe to this and believe that transformation starts with the self before one can even think of leading others,” she said about the quote.

She then told us when she was starting her HR career “many moons ago”, technology was just beginning to gain a foothold in her function – “dot matrix printers and acetates were still our go-to tech then!”

“Today, the advent of technology has been both a boon and bane for HR professionals. Alongside advancements come stresses of all kinds,” she said.

“From balancing the human with the resources – maintaining the soft touch with all the buzzy high tech that is so prevalent now – to feeling like we are on call 24/7 with no right to shut off, pressure of all kinds run rampant.

“For me, there is a need to cut this culture of busy-ness versus real productivity. And in this oft-times crazy quest to be automated and ’technified’ let’s not forget this basic premise: the human comes before the resources in human resources for a reason.”

”In this oft crazy quest to be automated…let’s not forget this basic premise: the human comes before the resources in HR for a reason.”

On that note, she proposed adopting the “ACE” approaches to navigate the tides of disruption.

The first ACE stands for acceptance, courage and empathy:

– Acceptance: Embrace the fact that old ways will never bring new results
– Courage: Dare to move forward even in the face of adversity
– Empathy: Know that not everyone will be at the same level of understanding or the same pace of acceptance when it comes to any transformation.

“Be patient but firm, be kind but keep your eye on the why,” she said.

The second ACE stands for acumen, communication and engagement:

– Acumen: Know your business well. Understand your brands and your business model
– Communication: Keep lines open, be honest, ensure that various channels are available for people to voice out opinions, seek comfort, and to have a better grasp of the situation
– Engagement: Engagement is key at all levels to ensure buy in and sustainability

“Transformation of any kind can only be truly successful when it goes beyond lip service and people take it to heart,” she said. “And people will always look to HR to know what is happening in the organisation.

“But you do not always have to have an answer. Sometimes, knowing that HR is there, truly listening, is more than enough.”

Besides focusing on going back to the basics of HR’s function, De Castro realistically adds that the best way to deal with any form of disruption is to constantly keep abreast with the market and be ready to evolve.

“HR will need to be ‘RH’ – simply put, human resources will need to become resourceful humans as new technology, new competition, new expectations, and new ways of working unfold in the coming days.”

Source: https://www.hrdmag.com.sg/features/transformation-how-hr-can-own-it-255247.aspx

In a highly competitive and disruptive scenario, typically, there are numerous challenges that business –large corporations or start-ups – are facing. Be it due to local issues that impact talent management or global issues that impact demand and supply, challenges do persist and it is imperative to overcome them to achieve the business objectives. Out of all these, the one challenge that would have a huge impact if not taken care of right away is that of skill shortage. If ignored and not addressed in a strategic manner, the repercussions of skill shortage would be such that coping with it would be as demanding as it was witnessed in the west when there was a tremendous shift from agriculture to manufacturing in the early decades of the 20th century.

The Answer to Skill Shortage

As most leaders agree, the apt solution to skill shortage is Reskilling. Reskilling today is on the radar of every C-Suite executive and has found its way prominently in every strategy discussion. There is a reinforced belief in leaders globally that investment in reskilling is a crucial business priority and enterprises must allocate a considerable budget to it.

According to a recent report by a leading consulting firm, close to 400 million personnel – or roughly around 14 percent of the global workforce—would need to reskill in order to cope up with digitization, automation, and advances in Artificial Intelligence that are set to disrupt the global work landscape. The Cambridge English Dictionary defines Reskilling as “the process of learning new skills so you can do a different job, or of training people to do a different job” or simply put – the process of ensuring one continues to learn new things to prevent becoming obsolete.

As good as it may sound, reskilling does have its pros and some challenges associated with it which can easily be overcome. The benefits would obviously mean that the workforce has the chance to acquire the latest skill sets, knowledge and techniques which definitely is an asset to the business. This is definitely an advantage business globally – in various sectors – would want to leverage. This, in turn, brings in myriad opportunities that further results in wealth creation – knowledge, resources and money. On the other hand, there are challenges which can be overcome, provided are identified.

Factors That Could Benefit Reskilling and Sort Out the Skill Shortage Challenge

Today, numerous businesses are spending huge amounts of time, money and resources in running classroom training programs for their specialists to upgrade their technology skills. The mere reason to introduce classroom training was the fact that online training programs were not getting the requisite response. The results of these in-class training programs are absolutely fantastic and clients want this newly trained workforce to be a part of their projects and the remuneration for the specialists has also improved. Skill shortage as a phenomenon is not the result of an activity or a transaction done overnight. It happens due to numerous factors – factors which may remain unidentified and unchecked – which ideally can be controlled.

The Need to Be Inherently Motivated and Re-Learn

Recent studies and inputs from various people managers have suggested that a large chunk of the workforce – especially in the Information Technology sphere – is not motivated enough to take up the next step in term of knowledge and expertise building. Employees need to realize the importance of their own reskilling and need to ‘buy into’ it rather than having it forced upon them. They need to be motivated inherently and understand the importance of “Unlearning and Re-learning”. Unfortunately, what motivates employees today is instant gratification and they are happy with that. The realization that building on their domain expertise or learning new skills would definitely benefit them needs to be dawn on them sooner rather than later.

Focus, Passion and Collaboration Is the Key

While a majority of our workforce undoubtedly is wonderfully resourceful, every professional need to understand the importance of learning new technologies, concepts and the likes in order to make a mark and face the stiff competition that the business sphere brings today. The new skill sets which the Technology industry needs right now are not very difficult to inculcate. In fact, most of them are easy to learn, provided people show a little determination and focus.

While there are too many distractions out there and one could easily get distracted, it is crucial to learn how to focus on a few things which are important in the long run. Therein comes the aspect of being passionate to work towards a set objective of learning. One needs to collaborate with like-minded folks – various stakeholders – to ensure the learning process continues. The thought needs to be consolidated that without dedicated and continuous learning, there wouldn’t be any enhancement in a professional’s career – especially in the Information Technology industry.

Mastering the Domain Expertise

Aristotle the great had once said “We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.” Taking a cue from this quotation would definitely be a wise decision for any professional who wants to enter the league of being a “Subject-matter Expert with Deep Domain Expertise.” A professional does not become a Subject-matter Expert instantaneously. One needs to invest huge amounts of time in learning about a particular domain, that too with tremendous dedication. Apart from attending classroom training programs, tools like reading, watching self-help videos and the like needs to be done regularly to achieve the requisite level of expertise. These initiatives would help young graduates to make a wonderful career in the tech industry.

A classic example of this is the case of a leading FinTech company that established its award-winning Blockchain Centre of Excellence. Mere 10 specialists from varied technology backgrounds came together, studied blockchain as a concept, watched a lot of self-help video, read books, attended numerous classroom training programs, spent numerous hours practising the new codes and eventually came out with cutting-edge solutions on the Blockchain that have received acclamation from clients and industry alike.

In Conclusion, “Practice Makes Perfect”

Alvin Toffler, an American writer, futurist, and businessman had famously said: “The illiterate of the 21st century will not be those who cannot read and write, but those who cannot learn, unlearn and relearn.” A superbly growing and ever-changing industry actually provides opportunities for those who want to prove themselves and actually challenge that hypothesis. Believing in oneself, understanding the importance of continuously and passionately unlearning and relearning and holistic collaboration would definitely pave the way to take care of challenges brought about by skill shortage. To sum it all up… “Practice Makes Perfect!”

Disclaimer: The views expressed in the article above are those of the authors’ and do not necessarily represent or reflect the views of this publishing house. Unless otherwise noted, the author is writing in his/her personal capacity. They are not intended and should not be thought to represent official ideas, attitudes, or policies of any agency or institution.

Source: http://www.businessworld.in/article/Why-Does-India-Still-Faces-Skill-Shortage-/22-09-2018-160473/

When employees know their value and are able to communicate it, their career development can excel. Talent management and learning professionals can provide resources for talent in organizations to embrace this mindset and empower employees to take charge of their careers in a manner that enables success. CLOs can help empower employees by helping them find what they have to offer, what they want and how to ask for it, and in turn, they can help employees identify and market their personal brand.

A person’s ability to market their talents, accomplishments and value within an organization and externally is a key part of enhancing their brand. To excel, we must understand how to set ourselves apart. Leaders and managers should be inspiring and helping team members tell their stories. Ask your employees to answer the following questions:

What is your value add – your unique differentiator(s)?
Can you define your personal brand?
How easily can you articulate that brand?
Are you an effective storyteller to share your accomplishments?
Is your personal brand reflected in your storytelling?
Do you actively work on enhancing your brand?
If they answered no to at least two of these questions, it’s time to reassess their own self exploration and commit time to reflecting deeper on the answers. When we use the term “marketing,” people think of products and services. What about ourselves? We must market our talents, accomplishments and value inside our organizations and outside within our industry and community. It is important to get comfortable talking about ourselves in this way. Do we know our story and are we prepared to share it with passion and purpose?

The first step to develop this ease, confidence and comfort is to change our mindset and embrace it as a natural process that requires us to uncover our authentic best self and continue to build upon that as a strong foundation. When we do this, we are so genuine that it becomes effortless; we do not even realize we are doing so. In fact, it is about how we put ourselves out there and how we are of service. Most importantly, we first must understand the value we bring when we are at our best and what is the differentiator that engages our best selves. Our ability to communicate through storytelling is the most effective and genuine way to showcase accomplishments because it taps into our passion and purpose.

Are we prepared to talk about ourselves in this way — packaging our talents and accomplishments — showcasing them and presenting our value internally within our organizations and externally within our fields and communities?

The Three Ps Marketing Technique:

Preparation — conducting your due diligence; define and identify your brand.
Packaging — creating your portfolio; create and build your brand.
Presentation — delivering your message; articulate and enhance your brand.
Preparation

Know yourself and your value — conduct extensive self-assessment and exploration of skills, competencies, accomplishments, strengths, limitations, interests, values, motivations and aspirations.
Feedback — solicit honest input from colleagues, managers, team members, vendors, clients, other stakeholders, as well as friends and family. Be open to hearing others’ insights on your strengths and development areas.
Differentiating factors — upon your own assessment and feedback from others, begin to identify your unique characteristics, traits and/or experiences.
Network — build, maintain and nurture long lasting relationships. Deliberately and strategically establish a network that includes mutually rewarding relationships with contacts from a variety of areas, internally and externally.
Goals — know what you want and have a vision for your career, determine your mission, set goals (short and long term), have a plan in order to create a road map to achieve that vision.
Positive attitude — positivity, optimism and a sense of humor are important in setting a strong foundation. There will be peaks and valleys; stay positive and be happy.
Packaging

Maintain résumé and bio/CV regularly — keep these documents updated on a continuous basis; capture all achievements as they occur.
Keep copies of performance reviews, awards, articles and presentations. These are part of your portfolio, not to be taken for granted.
Create history of your track record — a running list of talents, projects and achievements.
Obtain references, quotes and testimonials — these endorsements will be valuable in your storytelling and in advancing your aspirations.
Create your virtual presence — be selective of the venues you use and display thought leadership.
Serve on committees and boards — professionally and personally giving back is rewarding, it builds new skills and it enhances credibility
Content expertise — establish specific niches, functional and/or technical expertise. Be a sought-out subject matter expert.
Expand your network and enhance your visibility — continue to strategically build long lasting mutually rewarding relationships; give back to others and follow up.
Be well-read and stay current in your field — stay updated on trends, best practices and key initiatives. Write blogs, speak on panels and share knowledge; continue to enhance education and be a lifelong learner.
Create key alliances and partnerships — align with people you admire and respect. Have and be a mentor, trusted adviser, champion, advocate and sponsor.
Presentation

Craft and articulate a clear and concise message — create your personal brand statement that captures your true best self; keep it short, simple and be authentic.
Strong communication, active listening and interpersonal skills are essential — be a good listener and read other people so you can genuinely connect.
Be assertive — clearly articulate your desires, value add, “brand” when the opportunity presents itself and be an effective storyteller.
Practice your delivery again and again … and again — telling stories is a more authentic way of delivering your message but it takes practice.
Maintain a give-and-take approach — practice professional etiquette, be sure that you are giving more than getting, thank people who help you, initiate contact and follow up.
Be proactive and strategic with your efforts to be visible — think big picture.
Be your own advocate and know when to reach out to key contacts for support.
Never burn any bridges — always leave positive impressions.
Deliver it with the utmost confidence — confidence is how it all comes together.

Rita Balian Allen is the president of Rita B. Allen Associates, a national career management firm specializing in executive coaching, leadership development, management training and career development. To comment, email editor@clomedia.com.

Source: https://www.clomedia.com/2018/09/21/how-to-help-employees-tell-their-stories-and-create-a-personal-brand/

While researching my new book, Humanity Works: Merging Technologies and People for the Workforce of the Future, I learned that many companies do not understand what the growth of contract work means for their organizations and don’t realize how essential it is to make an informed and strategic decision about how to leverage these workers.

The contract workforce is defined as “a provisional group of workers who work for an organization on a non-permanent basis, also known as freelancers, independent professionals, temporary contract workers, independent contractors or consultants.”

A 2017 CareerBuilder study found that the number of contract workers has more than doubled in the last decade. According to the study, 51% of employers planned to hire temporary or contract workers in 2017. Additionally, 63% of employers revealed plans to transition some temporary or contract workers into permanent roles, up from 58% just a year earlier. This indicates that many contract workers represent quality hires who do such a good job that companies want to bring them on permanently.

Most organizations of a certain size have at least some contract workers, and if you don’t consider expanding this population as part of your talent management strategy, you are missing an opportunity to get ahead of your competition, more quickly achieve your business objectives and fuel your organization’s growth.

Mastering The Legalities

As a modern, 21st-century organization, how do you decide whether to engage contract workers — and in what capacity? The first piece involves understanding what a contract worker is and what it isn’t. There are clear differences between full-time employees and contractors, and organizations that misclassify workers are subject to large penalties. In many countries, a person is considered company-employed if the following statements are true:

They are employed by one company and are a long-term, integral part of the business.

• They use company tools and resources.

• They receive company training.

• They are required to adhere to company policies.

• They receive hourly compensation or a salary and the employer withholds taxes.

• They are eligible for benefits.

On the other hand, a person is considered a contract employee if the following statements are true:

• They are employed on a per-project basis.

• They are employed by many other companies or individuals.

• They use their own tools and resources to complete work tasks.

• They do not receive company training.

• There is no supervision on their work hours or requirements.

• They receive compensation per project and the employer does not withhold taxes.

• They are not eligible for benefits.

The Pros And Cons Of Contract Workers

Next, you should examine the benefits and drawbacks associated with bringing contract workers on board. Let’s address the significant pros first.

Contract workers are cheaper. There’s no getting around this. Even if you pay your contract workers more per hour, the expenses for full-timers, which usually include benefits, taxes, insurance, office space, training and equipment, often increase payroll by 25% or more in my experience.

You can staff on demand. If you can’t predict your workload, hiring contract workers is far less risky because you can bring them on for a short period of time or even for a single project you need to complete. Unlike full-time employees, they won’t be subject to layoffs if business goes south and, because they are already schooled in the area in which you need help, they can ramp up to full productivity quickly.

It lowers your risk of getting sued. In most countries, full-timers can bring litigation against employers for everything from overtime violations to sexual harassment, but contract workers are not offered the same protections.

Despite these advantages, building and maintaining a large contract workforce is no easy feat. In particular:

Your culture of stability will be harder to maintain. By its very nature, a contract workforce is fluid, and inevitably your workers will go in and out through a constantly revolving door. It may be difficult to build a strong culture bolstered by trustworthy employee relationships when the people involved are always different. It is also tougher to onboard contractors with the same consistent messages you deliver to full-timers and ensure that they are properly equipped to represent your company.

You can’t dictate the rules. Employees are usually subject to clear performance expectations, and if you want them to do a job in a certain way, as the employer it’s your prerogative to ask. But contract workers have a lot more freedom and may even retain copyright over their intellectual property unless your agreement stipulates otherwise.

The government might investigate. It’s in the interest of most governments to classify workers as full-timers rather than contract workers because the former ensures that more money flows into their coffers in the form of taxes and insurance. Organizations with extensive contract workforces should be prepared to be thoroughly investigated and be required to prove that independent professionals do indeed meet the definition of contract workers.

The good news is you can mitigate these concerns by carefully preparing a strategy for your contract workforce rather than just hiring workers haphazardly. Hopefully the guidance here will get you started thinking about the core issues, and you can then engage your powers that be and/or a contract workforce consultancy to begin the development of a consistent, legal and fiscally responsible program.

Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/theyec/2018/09/21/should-you-expand-your-contract-workforce-it-depends/#4cfae45565cc