Best Practice: Employee Engagement Survey

16 September 2013, Singapore: When working for a large organziation with employee engagement survey begin 'internalized' in the organization work culture / processes, we don't face any problem in designing or developing the survey questionnaires as it is usually outsourced to a consulting firm. In smaller organization, I used to work for ... we had to develop and design the survey from ground "zero" ... and the hardest was to tabulate the results manually ... 

I would like to share this very short article from Gallup ... which I came across few years back ... happy reading. Some of the questions maybe helpful to some HR professionals who are desperately ... need support.

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The Gallup Q12

(From the Gallup Management Journal, “Feedback for Real” Author: John Thackray)

The Gallup Q12 is a survey designed to measure employee engagement. The instrument was the result of hundreds of focus groups and interviews. Researchers found that there were 12 key expectations, that when satisfied, form the foundation of strong feelings of engagement. So far 87,000 work units and 1.5 million employees have participated in the Q12 instrument.

Comparisons of engagement scores reveal that those with high Q12 scores exhibit lower turnover, higher sales growth, better productivity, better customer loyalty and other manifestations of superior performance.

The Gallup organization also uses the Q12 as a semi-annual employee engagement Index – a random sampling of employee across the country.

The engagement index slots people into one of three categories.

• Engaged employees work with passion and feel a profound connection to their company. They drive innovation and move the organization forward.
• Not-Engaged employees are essentially “checked out.” They are sleepwalking through their workday. They are putting in time, but not enough energy or passion into their work.
• Actively Disengaged employees aren’t just unhappy at work; they’re busy acting out their unhappiness. Every day, these workers undermine what their engaged co-workers accomplish.

The results of the latest engagement index:

• Engaged employees – 28 %
• Not-engaged employees – 54%
• Actively Disengaged – 17%

In other words, 71% of the workforce is either under performing or actively undermining their work.

Exhibit 1: The Gallup Q12

Exhibit 2

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Best Practice: Performance Management Training for Managers

16 September 2013, Singapore: Enclosed is another good "best practice" article from Halogen Resources Center. The article is short and sweet. You don't need to have a PhD to understand it. Happy reading ...

The role of the manager

• To accomplish or facilitate work through others.
• To effectively direct and develop their employees. 

Managing performance — a year round activity

Performance management isn't about annual performance appraisals.

It's an ongoing, 2-way dialog with your employees about expectations, priorities and performance. It aims to develop your employees, ensure their success and maximize their contributions to the organization. 

The vital importance of performance management skills

The Corporate Leadership Council found that more than half of the most important drivers of employee engagement and performance are related to effective performance management skills:
• setting clear goals and expectations
• providing regular feedback
• supporting employee development and success 

Reaping the benefits

Research proves it! Managers who are effective at employee performance management produce better business results, including:
• 50 percent less staff turnover
• 10 to 30 percent higher customer satisfaction ratings
• 40 percent higher employee commitment ratings
• 200 percent higher net profits.*

The Ken Blanchard Companies, The high cost of doing nothing: Quantifying the impact of leadership on the bottom line (2009). 

What can you do to be a better manager?

• Build a trusting relationship with each of your employees
• Regularly dialogue about expectations and priorities
• Give your employees formal and informal feedback on an ongoing basis
• Help your employees to continually develop 

Continually sharpen your skill

Work to continually improve how you:
• Communicate
• Set goals
• Give feedback
• Develop your employees
• Recognize and reward performance
• Build trust 

Best Practice: The 70:20:10 Model of Learning And Development

15 September 2013, Singapore: In one of the article entitled "Best Practice: Employees Development", it mentioned the '70:20:10' model.

I just want to share the resources for 70:20:10 model available in the Internet and mentioned that Charles Jennings is the Guru of 70:20:10 model. You can download Charles' Bio at 

https://www.702010forum.com/about-charles-jennings

References

• http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/70/20/10_Model
• http://www.slideshare.net/charlesjennings/the-702010-framework
• http://charles-jennings.blogspot.sg/2013/06/702010-framework-for-high-performance.html
• https://www.702010forum.com/

Video

• Introduction to 70:20:10 Learning & Development Model

Best Practice: Employee Engagement

14 September 2013, Singapore: Another close HR friend asked me about employee engagement (EE) topics ... so I decided to share this short article on EE best practice  from Halogen Resources ... simple, short article and powerful article that is stimulating and structuring my thoughts.  

Are you frustrating or engaging your employees?

Having an engaged workforce is critical to organizational success. Employee engagement researchers, including Towers Perrin, have shown that companies with high levels of employee engagement have better financial results, including higher: operating income, net income growth and earnings per share. 

What do employees need to be engaged?

The employee engagement research says that to be engaged, among other things, employees need:

• Direction and a larger context for their goals / work
• The opportunity to do their best
• Feedback / praise on their performance / progress
• Opportunities for development and career progression 

How are engaged employees better?

Gallup and others have found that engaged employees are more:

• productive and profitable
• customer-focused
• loyal to their employers
• safe 

So what can you do to boost employee engagement?

Implementing talent management best-practices is one great way to address employee needs and create a culture that fosters employee engagement. 

Talent management best-practices that foster employee engagement

• Maintaining a regular, ongoing, two-way dialogue about performance and learning needs
• Ensuring employees have clear, achievable SMART goals that are directly linked to organizational goals, and regularly revisiting those goals
• Fostering employee development and career progression through coaching, training, succession planning/talent pools, etc. 

Think you're already doing a good job?

• Nearly one third of employees think their managers fail to effectively communicate goals
• One third say they lack the authority to carry out their jobs effectively
• 40% say they don't receive regular, clear feedback on their performance from their manager 

Best Practice: Stay Interview ... Retention and Engaging Employee

14 September 2013, Singapore: A good friend of mine asked me to provide some samples of stay interview questions ... this is for her ... 

Below are 15 possible stay interview questions to get you started:

• Why have you stayed working for this company as long as you have? Reason(s)?
• What do you like best about your job? Least?
• What are specific reasons that could cause you to leave us?
• Do you think your current position fully utilizes your talents?
• What have you learned since working here?
• Do you have anything new you would like to learn this year?
• Is there anything you’d like to change about your job? Team? Department?
• Have you ever considered leaving? What caused it? Has it been resolved?
• What is your dream job? How can our company support your progress toward it?
• Do you feel supported in your career goals?
• Do you feel we recognize you? If not, what kind of recognition would be meaningful for you?
• What is one thing that would make your job more satisfying and rewarding?
• What part of your role is most challenging? What is least challenging?
• Do you feel you are best suited for your position or do you feel better suited for a different one?
• What can I do to help you stay longer?

(source: http://www.recruiter.com/i/retaining-talent-through-stay-interviews/)

Other resources for ‘stay interview’: -

• http://talentmgt.com/articles/view/how-to-measure-engagement-with-a-stay-interview
• http://hiring.monster.com/hr/hr-best-practices/recruiting-hiring-advice/interviewing-candidates/stay-interview-questions.aspx
• http://klaybor.blogspot.sg/2011/08/stay-interview-questions-how-to-keep.html
• http://pgdhrm2011.blogspot.sg/2011/09/stay-interview-contemporary-approach.html

Best Practice: Employee Retention

14 September 2013, Singapore: 

Striking the right balance for employee retention and turnover

We all know that employee turnover costs our organizations money. But…

• Too little and too much turnover are both bad for business
• Though turnover rates vary widely by industry, most organizations aim to keep turnover below 15%
• What's the optimal rate for your organization?

Why do employees leave?

Most managers think employees leave to earn more money. But the top 3 reasons employees leave are:

• Poor relationship with their direct manager
• Lack of opportunity for growth and development
• Lack of challenging, meaningful work 

When/why is employee turnover good?

Employee turnover is one way to bring fresh ideas and perspective into the organization. It can help challenge and rejuvenate processes, products, services, etc.

Turnover of employees who aren't performing or aren't the "right fit" is also beneficial for the organization. 

The importance of conducting “Stay Interviews”

Exit interviews help you gain insight into why employees are leaving. But employees are often reluctant to tell you the real reasons why.

"Stay interviews" help you identify employee motivators and dissatisfactions so you can retain employees. They're really an engagement discussion between a manager and their employee. 

Tracking your employee retention and turnover metrics

Tracking your employee retention and turnover metrics over time is important for spotting trends and addressing them before they threaten your business. But general metrics aren't really helpful. Segment your data by location, department, manager, and by employee performance levels. 

How do you keep your top performers

• Ensure employees get the feedback and direction they need to succeed
• Foster employee development and career progression
• Know who your high performers are, and what motivates them
• Train managers in performance and talent management best-practices 

Best Practice: Employees Development

14 September 2013, Singapore: This will be my quick reference when I need to do some presentation or briefing on employee development.

Employee Development (ED)

If you spend the same amount of time and energy developing people as you do on budgeting, strategic planning and financial monitoring, the payoff will come in sustainable competitive advantage.

Larry Bossidy and Ram Charan, 2002

Employee development as an important business tool - can help your organization:

• build alignment
• increase employee morale, engagement, productivity and retention
• preserve organizational memory / knowledge / domain expertise
• establish and maintain a competitive advantage

The new employee agreement – employability

Employees now view their relationship with their employer as a partnership. They expect the organization to commit to developing and enriching their skills and experiences — making them more employable. The return on this investment? Loyalty.

  

The 70/20/10 model

The Center for Creative Leadership says we learn:

•       70% of what we need to know on the job

•       20% of what we need to know through feedback, coaching, role models, mentors

•       10% of what we need to know through formal training

Best Practice: Succession Planning

13 September 2013, Singapore: Another great (and short) secondary research article for my colleagues in the HR Center of Excellence (CoE) for Talent and Workforce Planning.  

Succession planning vs. Replacement planning

• Replacement planning is the process by which organizations identify 1 or 2 potential interim replacements for each executive/leadership position. It is temporary, tactical and does NOT replace a succession plan.

• Succession planning is the strategic process by which organizations identify their high-performing/high-potential employees and develop them to take on progressively greater responsibility and leadership in the organization. 

Succession planning — diving into your talent pools

Why do you need a succession plan?

• To be able to respond effectively to change
• So you can recruit and retain the best talent
• To support organizational growth

According to PricewaterhouseCoopers' 15th Global CEO Survey 2012, developing a leadership and talent pipeline is the top concern of CEOs globally.

Succession planning is fundamentally about development

The focus should be on developing strength (talent pools) in all key areas that deliver a competitive advantage.

• Developing your high-performing/high-potential/high-knowledge employees (in part so you can retain them)
• Developing the strategic competencies the organization needs to thrive and succeed both today and tomorrow — in all key areas
• Developing and maintaining corporate knowledge and a leadership pipeline 

A few succession planning basics

• Allow for multiple career paths — development and progression don't need to be linear
• Make sure no one in the organization is irreplaceable
• Keep a balance — bringing some new blood into the organization is a good thing
• Create talent pools — always have multiple potential employees, at various levels of readiness, prepared to assume greater responsibility 

More succession planning basics

• Develop talent in all key areas of the organization — not just for leadership roles
• Focus on developmental work experiences (up to 90% of the learning we do is on the job)
• Allow talented individuals to develop at their own pace, respecting their life circumstances
• Don't forget the vital importance of knowledge transfer 

Why talent pool-based succession planning?

• Proven to be more effective than traditional organization chart-based programs that focus more on replacement planning
• Establishes and develops a large number of promotable employees for all key areas in the organization
• Increases employee engagement and retention
• Supports your 3–5 year strategic plans, ensuring the organization has the knowledge/skills/competencies/ experience required for continued success 

Best Practice: Developing & Retaining Top Talent

13 September 2013, Singapore: Came across this "best practice" article for developing and retaining top talent. Happy reading ...

Nurture your high performers and maximize corporate potential. Research has found that:

• The top performer differential is 2.5 to 10 times that of an average employee (Sullivan, 2008)
• In knowledge intensive organizations, like IT or healthcare, the gain can be as much as a 100 to 200%
• "Superstars" produce up to 12 times more than the average employee (Corporate Executive Board)
• The more top performers you have, the greater the organization’s productivity

Why are top performers important to your business? According to Dr. John Sullivan, top performers:

• Produce as much as 10 times more than the average worker, while they often require less than two times the pay
• Generate most of the innovation and new ideas
• Help others to improve their performance, because they serve as mentors, trainers and role models

What attracts top performers to your organization

• Value alignment
• A compelling employee value proposition
• Challenging/interesting work opportunities
• Development opportunities
• Prestige or a positive reputation

What do you need to do to retain top talent? In Engaging and Retaining Top Performers, December 2009, Towers Watson says:

• Have a clearly articulated and compelling vision and set of values 
• Ensure your senior leaders support this vision and values in their words and actions 
• Include top performers in strategies and plans to improve company competitiveness 
• Equip top performers to work to the best of their abilities 
• Improve manager effectiveness and capabilities 
• Emphasize career progression and personal growth

Difference between Shared Services-Center of Excellence-HR Business Partners

05 Sep 2013, Singapore: I was reading a white paper article on assessment center (AC) ... why we should not send HR people to attend training first but instead send them to AC to evaluate their competencies and expose them to AC. A section of the article caught my interest when it explain the difference between Shared Services, Center of Excellence and HRBP ...   

Shared Services

Centralized teams of (sometimes outsourced) HR professionals tasked with handling routine requests, complaints or questions. These typically include payroll issues, employee relations, benefits questions. Note that this work used to represent the lion’s share of old school HR generalist work; now for many remaining in such roles ... it’s vanished.

Centers of Excellence

More specialized and seasoned teams of HR professionals, with deep expertise in a particular area, responsible for building enterprise-wide processes and tools to drive sustainable, scalable HR results. These areas typically include Talent Acquisition, Talent Management, Organization Development, Learning & Development, Compensation & Benefits, etc.

HR Business Partners

Strategic HR generalists assigned to senior business leaders throughout the organization to act as talent advisers  They partner with these leaders to plan and implement talent solutions to drive business results. They liaison between the Shared Services, Centers of Excellence and their business group to add relevance and value.

Source: www.designsontalent.com

7 Deadly Career Mistakes That Your Boss Won’t Tell You About!

01 September 2013, Singapore: This is another "Success in HR" article by Alan Collins. I have been working for almost 20 years ... I don't need my my boss to tell me these stuff. If you want the details, please visit his website. 

Deadly Mistake #1: Failing to realize that you must always be looking.

Deadly Mistake #2: Not recognizing that loyalty is for your family.

Deadly Mistake #3: Not having your updated resume posted online ready to go…at all times.

Deadly Mistake #4: Not recognizing that even though visibility rarely shows up on any HR 

Deadly Mistake #5: Failing to grow your personal network…consistently.

Deadly Mistake #6: Not engaging in physical exercise.

Deadly Mistake #7: Failing to differentiate yourself from the rest of the HR pack.

-The End-

5 Simple Truths: You Must Remember When Climbing The Ladder of Success In HR

31 August 2013, Singapore: I came across this article by Alan Collins searching for topic on CoE (Center of Excellence . I will keep it sweet and short - I think every HR professional who inspired to be at the top should be aware of the 5 TRUTH. 

Truth #1 – Your education, HR certifications and smarts mean nothing…without ACTION.

Truth #2 – You are in business for yourself

Truth #3 – Happiness and success in HR are two different things.

Truth #4 – You will never feel 100% ready when an opportunity lands on your doorstep.

Truth #5 – Your good friends will come and go.

-The End-