HR Technology Solutions

Ways for HR to support Innovation

2010-11-21T20:33:00.000-08:00

How can human resource professionals become true strategic business partners, contributing to the heart of their firm’s growth agenda? One key answer to this perennial question is to have a deep understanding of the innovation process as well as practical ways to support it. Corporate innovation can be defined as new ideas and actions that result in a new product or service, process improvement or business model. This article looks at specific ways in which HR can become a catalyst for innovation rather than observe from the sidelines or be called upon to implement limited and sometimes poorly conceived objectives.

There are several primary roles human resources can play to make an impact on corporate innovation:
• Shaping the employee life cycle.
• Providing coaching and competencies training for leaders.
• Setting the stage for global innovation.

Shaping the Employee Life Cycle
HR affects the life cycle of each employee--from recruiting and retention to termination or retirement. In a company that seeks to grow through innovation, HR professionals must hire, develop and retain the right people to make things happen. In fact, every stage of the employee life cycle can have an impact on innovation, positive or negative, and it is often up to HR to understand the strategic impact of its role and how it can best contribute.

Coaching and Competencies for Leaders
HR professionals will always have a place at the strategy table with executives if they understand how to grow a business and what the common obstacles are likely to be. When HR knows how to stimulate executives to provide an inspirational example and to construct a hothouse organizational climate in which innovative projects can rapidly take root and grow, it will have their respectful attention.

There are a number of leadership competencies that foster innovation. HR can take the lead in introducing these to the executive team and using a particular combination that suits the organization’s corporate culture and history, customer requirements and the personalities of the people involved.

Setting the Stage for Global Innovation
HR has the means at its disposal to foster the dissemination of innovative products and processes globally. Although management of the international assignment cycle is often delegated at least in part to outside vendors, it can be utilized strategically to support global innovation. Likewise, HR professionals are in a position to remind their executive colleagues that innovation usually has the greatest impact on the bottom line when it is leveraged on a global scale.

Conclusion
HR professionals can become innovation leaders in their own right if they utilize the levers already available to them, including the employee life cycle, leadership competencies and the management of international assignments. They can also learn to help their executive colleagues avoid silver bullet solutions and short-lived initiatives, promoting instead a steady and comprehensive approach to a complex challenge that is at the core of value creation and sustained business growth.

The War for Talent

2010-09-16T03:52:00.000-07:00

•Latest research predicts a shortage of 1 million skilled workers by 2020
•By the year end, for every 2 workers leaving the workforce, only 1 will enter
•2.6 new jobs are expected to be created for every person entering the workforce
•Younger workers are now bosses of the older workers

This is the situation in the battle field are you ready????

The most important corporate resource over the next 20 years will be talent: smart, sophisticated business-people who are technologically literate, globally astute, and operationally agile.

Talent really does matter – for example “top software developers are more productive than an average software developer not by 10x, 100x, or even 1000x … but 10,000x” Nathan Myhrvold, former Chief Scientist, Microsoft.

The war for talent is fierce, no body is taking prisoners; and is likely to become more so with the massive number of employees retiring in the next five years. Top organizations no longer want the tag of “employer of choice” they are adopting to more rigorous strategy of attracting and retaining the right employees through branding.”

Traditional workforce planning is being replaced by talent strategies and skills gap analysis. Once they determine the gap, it becomes clear what talent they need to hire, to layoff, or to develop or transfer internally. One can no longer sit and relax if things are working smoothly, its time we followed Murphy’s Law “if everything is working perfectly it invariably means that you have overlooked something” yes, this is the kind of skepticism that will keep you and your company afloat in this fierce battle, where no one is ready to grant an inch.

Now is the time that one has to shake up the whole organization; filter it and separate the “go getters” from the “flatters”. For if you allow yourself to be flattered (read: fooled) then tomorrow when your company faces the crunch you’ll be the least flattered. When you set out in search for these talents remember; you’ll not find them strolling in the corridor of popularity in the contrary you’ll find them alone… working away. It will be your job to make them a part of the workforce without hurting their productivity.

Traditional marketing policies have to be adapted to make your company attractive to the right kind of people. You being a “successful” company may be attractive to your clients but it does not convey to your employees how much of that success are you ready to share with the people who are helping you to achieve it. Your employees need to view you as a place of” continuous learning, work-life balance, personally-fulfilling roles and innovative reward and recognition programs.

The amount you invest in selling yourself to your clients has to be complemented equally in terms of money and energy for selling yourself to your employees. It’s not very far away when you’ll need to hire HR managers with marketing skills…. Yes you can laugh, but so did the world when they were first informed that the world is round.

The battle field is ready; the swords are drown the fight is on. So be prepared remember that the fight is not meant to be easy. “Resources are scarce” we have heard that since ages; now is the time that we do something about it. So check your arsenal. Prepare you battle cry and fight for tomorrow as if there is no

Improving Sales Performance

2010-08-12T20:33:00.000-07:00

The sales staff of any organization plays a vital role in not just representing the Company to its customers but also in pushing sales and meetings the Company's crucial sales targets. If there is one department that gains tremendously through training and morale boosting, it is undoubtedly the sales department.

Why Training Is Essential?

Devising a well equipped training programme goes a long way in improving an employee's overall job performance which would otherwise improve only through years of work experience. Therefore, sales training is really a means to an end - reaching high job performance levels as early as possible. Even though some believe that salesmanship is an art which cannot be acquired through training, there are still some arguments in favour of sales training.

Here are some advantages of offering regular training to your sales staff -

Training Can Create A Successful Salesperson: Despite the common belief that a salesman is born and not made, experiences have shown that just like other professional activities, the art of selling can also be acquired and learnt through proper performance based training.

Morale Boosting: Whether we talk about a new sales personnel or an experienced sales staff member, training enables them to perform better. Knowing that your Company cares for you and wants to help you improve your skill sets can be a great morale booster thus, creating loyal employees. Add to this the fact that, new sales staff members can pick up the job quickly if given the right training and encouragement.

Recruitment & Selection: costs decline because of regular and effective training, Moreover, the rate of sales personnel turnover also shows a downward fall if the Company includes regular training in its agenda.

Company Policies and regulations: No matter what the selling process might entail, to develop a well informed sales team, it is important to acquaint the sales staff with all Company policies, rules and regulations.

Product Knowledge: A well devised sales training programme can improve the salesman's overall product knowledge. Knowing the product well and understanding its uses, features and benefits can help the salesman to sell the product with extra ease, confidence and belief. A well trained and informed sales person can help in giving the customer useful advice and assistance as well as the fullest possible satisfaction that comes from buying a good product.

Unification of Sales Efforts: With a trained sales person, supervision becomes much easier and all different kinds of sales activities such as advertising, publicity etc can be effectively unified.

Reduction in Wastages: Trained sales personnel are able to minimize wastages in unnecessary traveling and spend more time in actual selling activities. They are also able to concentrate on accounts which have the greatest potential.

Every organisation today, small or large, it recognising the importance of sales training and is including the same in its Company policies. If you haven't already, this is the right time to start training your employees.

Employer Branding – A New HR arena

2010-07-20T22:03:00.000-07:00

This is a market oriented era. If you have a good brand value in market, you will get good response if not; it’s very difficult to convince people.

From an HR point of view branding is very important. If your organization has a good brand image in the market, it will help you in getting right workforce at right time and at the same time you will have a control over the employee cost. An organization with no brand name has to shell out lots of money to attract and retain the right candidate.

Branding can be done in two ways: (1) External Branding and (2) Internal Branding.

Lots of factors may influence the branding strategy of an organization, like A) Nature of Business B) Nature of market C) Target reception D) Budget flexibility E) Long term mission of the organization F) Organizational structure. Etc. These are the few to count on but there may be many as per the business.

External Branding
External branding refers to branding which is done by using external sources and which may (or may not) require some investment in monetary or other forms. Let’s see the different means of doing external branding.

(a) Use of Job Sites – As HR the first thing which comes to the mind is recruitment, so Job sites also offer good branding opportunities through different means like Pop ups, pop ins etc. It’s always better to go for pop ins as most of web browsers come with pop-up blockers.
(b) Banners – Banners are also a good mean for branding. Banners can be of both types’ means Online Banner and Street banners. By Online banner, your organization name will be flashed on different web pages as per your choice and price. Street banners are good for bigger requirements.
(c) Road Shows – Road shows are also an important mean for creating brand awareness. You can organize talks, presentations, seminars etc. for attracting people towards your organization.
(d) Corporate Social Responsibility – Corporate social responsibility refers to corporate getting associated with society for some noble cause. The association can be in any mode either getting associated with a Charitable Trust or a NGO or some other public venture. Corporate can align and attach with any of these and share the stage. Always keep in mind that choose as per you organization status meaning if you are a small firm, do associate with a medium sized organization and if medium you can align with either of these- large or medium. Idea should be you get a nice coverage in the popularity cake.
(e) Public Events – Public events are one of the major ways of creating a brand image. An organization can participate in any of the public event and assuring that it does not get disappeared in the crowd of many brands or big names.
(f) Newspapers – Branding can be done through newspapers as well. If you target the local public, you can go for advertisements considering the individual day circulation, target readers, rapport of newspaper, type of newspaper etc. If you target only to employ people for your workforce requirement, you can place job Ads which may seem expensive at the first glance but in terms of attracting the correct workforce, it can do magic.
(g) Email – For mail ids related to job portals, you can create an auto reply which can contain brief description of the key aspects of candidate’s and public interest and at the same time introducing your company to the public. It should be informative as well as crispy so that the audience reads it and just doesn’t do Shift Delete.
(h) Tagline – Create a nice, attractive tagline or a punch line for your brand and give it a significant visibility in all your branding efforts. The tag line should be in accordance with your organization values, goals, work etc. so that it reflects an overall image of the brand everywhere.
(i) Align with celebrity – Aligning with a celebrity is also a good way of creating a brand image. But this may cost you big bucks and ultimately increasing your cost dramatically. This is an expensive method of branding.

Internal Branding
Internal Branding is comparatively a cheaper way of branding. You can use your internal organizational staff for this purpose.

(a) Front Office – Always pay attention to your front office because first impression is last impression. It should be kept neat and clean with a pleasant receptionist who always maintains freshness and welcomes the guests with courtesy.
(b) Stays Interview - HR can always conduct stay interviews in which they can interact with the employee and ask them regarding their career prospects, there alignment with the company, there feedback regarding their concerned departments, etc. These feedbacks can be analyzed and used for different purposes by which you can create an internal brand image of the country.
(c) Exit Interview – An exit always carries a fair chance of initiating the chain reaction among the employees so always be very careful in analyzing the exiting reasons so that you can overcome the justified ones in the future.
(d) Employee Satisfaction – Employee satisfaction is always very important for any organization to grow. A satisfied employee is a productive employee. If your employee is satisfied, you can relax because they will create a good and positive rapport for the company in the market outside.
(e) Policy Information – Always design your policies very strategically. A policy should be designed in such a way that it holds good even after a long period of time. A frequent internal policy change sends a message to the outer world that the company is not consistent and knowledgeable and reliable.
(f) Customer Orientation – Customers are always the most important factors. Always keep your workforce motivated towards delivery of customer oriented services. Customers can be of either type, internal or external.
(g) Employee Participation – Always try to ensure the maximum participation from the employee side, either in terms of internal events participation or external events.
(h) Trained Employees – Always ensure proper training of employees before they are engaged in work. The training should be in all the aspects like policies, vision, mission, organization. This will project a good picture of organization on the new employee.

These are few to count with but based on the requirement and strategy, the list may increase or shorten.

Competency based development

2010-05-16T22:12:00.000-07:00

Everyone today is talking about competency based development. Let’s start from the beginning, i.e. the meaning of competency. There are many definitions of competency doing rounds, for the article we’ll look at competency as a trait or characteristic that allows an individual to successfully accomplish work or task assigned. These characteristics are the culmination of individual’s; skills, knowledge and attributes. The traits or characteristics are known as competency only and only if they allow or result in superior performance.

The next question is often asked why use competency as the predictor of performance? Why not simply look at the individual’s performance?

Well the answer is simple while in the short term which might mean in the current role the performance of the individual might be a good indicator but for future performance competency is not only a better option but more often than not the only option. The reason being that; people perform tasks or jobs using their competency to achieve desired results. While work or jobs might change, competencies are of more enduring nature and immune to change in the job or work context. To summarize competencies are what individuals use to perform successfully and without it consistent performance is not possible.

Now that we have attempted to state the meaning of competency we take on our next important phrase “employee development” is the pursuit of any activity that leads to continuous learning, personal growth, and which contributes to the achievement of both an individual’s and their employer’s or organization’s objective(s) on the longer term.

Keeping the above two definition in mind we have tried to list down certain steps which might be used work towards doing a pilot and then institutionalize competency based employee development.

The Background
• Identify a champion, target employees, and structural framework for an employee development process
• Assess the need for a competency development process; get an estimate for the organization’s competency needs
• Complete employee competency assessments and define estimates of target employees’ competency acquisition needs.(A SWAT of the target group’s competencies)

The Plan and Implementation
• Understand the target groups “personal aspirations”
• Develop a plan for implementation of the competency based employee development services
• Brief all stake holders and obtain resource support to implement the start-up process plan
• Create a steering committee (there should be representatives from all stat holders)
Implement and evaluate the start-up process

The follow up
• Make case studies of the implementation and spread the learning’s amongst the stake holders
• Institutionalize the learning and take the process to a larger group

How to build an engaged workforce?

2010-04-15T01:00:00.000-07:00

You must be really surprised with the high attrition in your organization despite paying such good packages and must be wondering that why the competitors are not facing the same.

The scenario has completely changed and it’s no longer the good package that builds up a committed workforce.

The employee longs for much more than the just the salary that he takes home. The concept that plays a very important role in today’s scenario is Employee Engagement.

So what’s this Employee Engagement?

It’s the psychological commitment of the employees to the assigned task. It means that how well an employee relates himself to his work, how dedicated the employee is towards his work and so on.

The primary behaviors of engaged employees are
• Speaking positively about the organization to coworkers, potential employees and customers,
• Having a strong desire to be a member of the organization,
• Exerting extra effort to contribute to the organization’s success.

The association of the candidate with the organization begins from the day when he’s given the offer letter.

• The candidate should be made feel that he is a new member in the family. The time lag between the joining date and the offer letter should be well managed by the HR
• A New Year mail or birthday card though seem to be a very small thing but it really has an impact
• A new entrant must feel welcomed it does not call for standing at the entrance and greeting him with a garland. What we are talking about is that before the actual joining of the entrant a proper seat and all the essentials that he needs for carrying out his task should be made available
• There should be proper structured inductions, which make the employee fully aware of the environment he’s entering into. Thus it can be said that the task of getting your employees engaged begins from Day 1

Now after the first day initiative, let’s see the essentials that make the workforce engaged:-

• The employees must be fully clear with what is expected out of him unless and until he knows what the organization expects out of him he won’t be able to give his 100%
• Unless and until the boss lends the helping hand whenever the subordinate needs it don’t expect your workforce to be engaged The materials and the equipments those are essential for carrying out the task by the employees should be provided to them
• The peers should be supportive enough and the whole team should function efficiently The employees should be informed at a regular interval about their performances and due arrangements should be made which help them overcome their loopholes
• Fair and appropriate reward, recognition and incentive systems it increase the trust of the employees in the management and thus adding to the motivation and the level of commitment towards the organization

Besides the above listed one many other factors might be affecting the engagement level depending on the particular business requirement. Don’t forget upon the birthday bashes, annual functions and other small - small events that add to the motivation level of the employees and give them a good break from their hectic work life. The employee engagement requires a two-way relationship between the employer and the employee.

Do listen to the ideas of the employees and acknowledge them it really adds to their morale and the confidence level. Work upon the engagement process and see wonders happening in your organization. It will really make a difference try it out.

EXIT INTERVIEW- Purpose, Process and Format

2010-03-14T23:57:00.000-07:00

Gone are the days when people use to stick to one job for rest of their life. The trust is lost and the faith is lost as well from both sides. If an employer is having a policy of hire and fire, employees are also free to change their jobs whenever they want. As we need experts to take hiring interviews…we also need experts to take EXIT Interviews. Not everyone can take exit interview.

Purpose While attrition is a natural process for organizations, replacing employees is expensive. The cost goes beyond merely placing an advertisement for the opening in a newspaper. It includes training a new employee, staff time for selecting a new employee, lost productivity while the position is open and lost productivity until the new employee gets up to speed. Understanding why people voluntarily leave the company can provide an opportunity for the firm to make changes to reduce turnover rates -- and reduce the associated costs.

The exit interview serves a number of important functions. When trends in voluntary separations are tracked, the firm may be provided valuable insights on discrimination, training & development, lack of opportunities, concerns relating to benefits & compensation etc.

Conducting the Interview HR managers are a critical part of the separation process. Exit interviews are traditionally conducted by HR staff members with the knowledge and input of the immediate manger of the departing employee. Using HR managers as interviewers, improves the chance employees will open up and provide more valuable feedback. One need to ensure that exit interview is not taken by same department manager or same HR representative of the employee, otherwise employee will not open up or end up with arguments.

There are a number of key issues to keep in mind. The interviewer should always begin the process on a positive note - perhaps by offering a thank you for the employee's service to the organization. And above all, the employee should always be treated with dignity and respect. In some sensitive situations, employees may even be asked how they would like their departure to be handled with peers. It is important for every organization to ensure that all employees leaving the company (especially those leaving for disciplinary reasons or lack of performance) have been provided due process. Every individual must be given the opportunity to have his or her side of the issue heard. It is always important to provide documentation. If the employee has resigned, a letter of resignation should be included with the termination paperwork.

The primary key to an effective exit interview is preparation. The planning becomes an essential component of success in conducting the exit interview. Interviewers should plan out issues to be covered and the questions to be asked. Structured interviews are recommended with the use of questions prepared in advance.

Introspection/ Probing the Reasons Interviewers usually want to determine the real reasons of voluntary separations. This provides an opportunity to make changes - particularly when the separation may also be impacting other people. For example, management is often cited as a common reason people leave the organization. It is good for the company to know the reasons so they can take corrective action.

It is critical to get beyond the "politically correct" reason that the majority of employees provide when leaving a position. The critical portion of the interview should probe the employee for feedback about the working conditions and how they might be improved.

Conclusion With the recognition exit interviews can provide an opportunity for valuable feedback, new approaches are being used. Trends in exit interviews today include outsourcing and automated surveys. Some companies have opted to delegate the exit interview to a third party firm that specializes in conducting these interviews. The rationale is departing employees may be more open and honest with an objective third party. These interviewers are often trained in asking probing questions and can elicit more information.

The information solicited from the exit interview is only valuable if it used. It must be disseminated to the appropriate people within the organization and then actually used to make positive changes. Otherwise, the company has missed a valuable opportunity.

Work place conflict resolution

2010-02-14T19:11:00.000-08:00

Meet with the antagonists together. Let each briefly summarize their point of view, without comment or interruption by the other party. This should be a short discussion so that all parties are clear about the disagreement and conflicting views. Intervene if either employee attacks the other employee. This is not acceptable.

Ask each participant to describe specific actions they’d like to see the other party take that would resolve the differences. Three or four suggestions work well. If the situation needs further exploration, use a process in which you ask each participant to additionally identify what the other employee can do more of, less of, stop and start.

All participants discuss and commit to making the changes necessary to resolve the conflict. Commit to noticing that the other person has made a change, no matter how small. Commit to treating each other with dignity and respect. It is okay to have reasonable disagreements over issues and plans; it is never okay to have personality conflicts that affect the workplace.

Let the antagonists know that mediator will not choose sides, that it is impossible for a person external to the conflict to know the truth of the matter. Finally, assure both parties that you have every faith in their ability to resolve their differences and get on with their successful contributions within your shared organization. Set a time to review progress.

Actions to Avoid in Conflict Resolution
Do not avoid the conflict, hoping it will go away. It won't. Even if the conflict appears to have been superficially put to rest, it will rear its ugly head whenever stress increases or a new disagreement occurs. An unresolved conflict or interpersonal disagreement festers just under the surface in your work environment.

Do not meet separately with people in conflict. If you allow each individual to tell their story to you, you risk polarizing their positions. The person in conflict has a vested interest in making himself or herself “right” if you place yourself in the position of judge and jury. The sole goal of the employee, in this situation, is to convince you of the merits of their case.

Do not believe, for even a moment, the only people who are affected by the conflict are the participants. Everyone in your office and every employee, with whom the conflicting employees interact, is affected by the stress. People feel as if they are walking on egg shells in the presence of the antagonists. This contributes to the creation of a hostile work environment for other employees. In worst case scenarios, organization members take sides and the organization is divided.

Inspired Leadership

2010-01-24T22:06:00.000-08:00

Leadership is almost certainly the most written about and discussed topic in organizational literature- even more so in today’s turbulent times.

Organizations and societies these days have become excessively focused on short term and narrow thinking. There seems to be a strong desire to acquire financial wealth quickly without paying attention to the means adopted for doing so. It is this evident lack of value based leadership and indulgence in unethical practices, which has led us not only to an economic crisis, but also to a crisis of confidence.

Why do people become self-centred? What makes us turn a blind eye to the plight of millions of poor people around us? Why do we use methods and processes that damage the eco-system? What makes us continue to lead our lives without reflecting upon these issues? Why do we attract more people of the same kind who reinforce this thinking rather than ‘diversity’ that challenges our assumptions?

These are extremely important questions. It has taken us many years to reach the current state, and this poses a serious danger to our society. Let us look deep within and introspect about what has made us cause this to ourselves.

The erosion of human value begins with the selfish pursuit of own ambitions without paying attention to the means that are fair and just. When many others see me become ‘wealthy’ by adopting these means, they too emulate the dangerous ways. Organizations that have become large corporations by following these methods have made millions of shareholders wealthy, but only in the short run. The system has become so corrupt that the evil network of politicians, self serving bureaucrats and businessmen are working seamlessly to benefit their own selves while giving ‘lip service’ to serving society. The only way to overcome this problem is to pay attention to a new model of leadership. We need to develop ‘Inspired Leadership’ by overhauling our existing ways of working.

Inspired Leadership has five dimensions. Ethics is at its centre. When we know the difference between our fundamental ‘rights’ of thinking and the ‘right’ action to take, we become more ethical. Self awareness and mindfulness are necessary for us to become more conscious of the choices we make. If only we were to pay attention by invoking our own consciousness, we would become aware of the consequences of our ways of living. This would make us more compassionate towards those who are suffering and are less fortunate- the people whom we have been ignoring and even exploiting. It would make us think deeply about how to use the earth’s resources in a sustainable way and learn about why global warming and the green economy are critical issues of today for everyone of us. Further, this would make us attract people in our organization who are genuinely diverse and bring multiple intelligences of creativity, emotional and social ability and spirituality. Such people would challenge our assumptions and help us become even more evolved and aware. These are therefore the five pillars of Inspired Leadership: Ethics, Mindfulness, Compassion, Sustainability and Diversity.

Deploying technology to deliver results

2009-11-26T19:46:00.000-08:00

Many will recollect the vintage Personnel Departments where stacks of files and reams of forms were stock in trade. The Personnel Officers were busy processing forms and maintaining records, submitting one report or the other almost all day long, intercepted by meeting with union representatives or few employees then again going back to those stack of papers. Senior managers too were doing nothing very different, except they had Assistants to get the reports. Personnel Department was considered a support function by business leaders who called the organizational direction. And those in the erstwhile Personnel department took pride in calling their function “grease that oiled the organization’s wheels”. One day folded into another, predominantly doing transaction work. How times have changed. HR function today stands out as a major strategic partner to business and HR professionals are shaping organization’s destiny.

But has HR become smarter? Has it leveraged technology to make a bigger impact? And have the HR professionals kept pace with the times and become technology savvy? And in doing so, have they freed themselves from service delivery mode and become partners to business?

HR service delivery will continue to assume a greater importance as businesses combat challenges of spiraling cost, demands of global workforce and processes, need for instant and round the clock information, flexible and changing organizational boundaries and of course rising customer expectations.

HR function has been a late entrant into the area of making technology work to its benefit. Technology can provide HR professionals scope to dramatically improve and automate processes and at the same time, streamline delivery services, besides reducing cost of such activities. Decision making process and employee satisfaction can improve substantially as the workplace embraces higher level of technology. In many organizations, HR services delivery has been adversely impacted due to ineffective use of technology.

As per Forrester Research, HR professionals spend nearly 50% of time on administrative activities. Much of this can be saved with implementation of HR Management Systems which would eliminate routine paper work besides reducing costs by automating basic HR activities. It would also facilitate better decision through accurate and timely reporting and analysis.
Hackett Group study found that high-performing world-class companies operated with 16% fewer HR staff than the others mainly by more efficient use of IT. Self-service technology contributed to higher levels of efficiency and productivity and simultaneous reduction in costs. The study also established that HR leaders in these companies had a deep understanding of technology and made a strong effort to derive as much value as possible from the technologies they had deployed.

Use of Second-Life concept to onboard new employees and inducting them into company culture has received favorable response from tech-savvy generation. Besides using technology for basic activities like disseminating information on company policy, benefit enrollment; organizations are now using it extensively for talent Management, skill development, self paced learning and simulations. It has made significant stride in improving communication with employees through simple yet highly effective techniques like e-notice boards, interactive chat forums, share nets, virtual town hall meetings etc. Even use of Podcast as means of disseminating knowledge or information is fast gaining popularity for its simplicity and acceptance by younger generation. Technology is being leveraged to build employees’ skills though ‘Touch Point’ calls or short e-meetings which enable employees to discuss business and technical topics with experts in a small group setting. Use of 'Mail Cast', a five-minute, flash based tutorials is a creative way of spreading knowledge, convey policies and processes and also provide an interactive learning platform, it provides good pointers in those few minutes.

Despite current economic challenges, progressive organizations are continuing to invest and find value in HR technology systems. According to a Towers Perrin's study of HR service delivery and technology, close to a third of the respondents have increased their investment in HR-related technologies, and 55% are maintaining their technology budgets at 2007 levels. For organizations to sustain or even increase their HR-related technology spend in a year of such economic uncertainty and cost-cutting is a testament to the importance companies are placing on managing their talent and having the right systems and capabilities in place to do that well.
The human resources function in its journey of evolution is migrating from an isolated back office and occasionally bureaucratic function to one that is viewed as a competitive advantage helping organizations achieve strategic business objectives. A little help from technology is going a long way …

Workforce Analytics and HR

2009-11-06T00:05:00.000-08:00

Not only does the development of workforce analytics such as cost per hire, time to fill, absence rates, benefit costs per employee and other metrics change the way human capital issues are viewed outside of the HR function, it is also helping to transform HR into what is known as a “decision science.” HR as a decision science means that as a function it has analytical rigor and empirical precision with a measurable impact on business results. The use of workforce analytics supports this by helping to define what is to be measured in order to better understand the return on investment of HR programs and processes and using the data derived from these measurements to make further improvements and drive change as it relates to human capital and talent. As Boudreau and Ramstad write in their work on a decision science for human capital talent, “the marketing decision science enhances decisions about customers, and the finance decision science enhances decisions about money, so a talent decision science should enhance decisions about talent, both within and outside the HR function.”

The evolution of HR into a decision science depends largely on the ability to measure human capital accurately because, without measurement, the human capital notion is just a concept and difficult to apply in the real world. Increasingly, measurement and application depend on technology, especially when forecasting or using complex calculations that take into account a large amount of data. As a result, new technical applications are being developed across HR functional areas and may be used to better link HR functions. For example, workforce analytics were first developed with a significant focus on the cost of benefits and compensation, while knowledge management systems were developed to track and measure company skills, knowledge and the effectiveness of training programs.

As human resource technologies evolve, it will become easier to link human capital measurement systems and, in so doing, better understand how different types of human capital interventions relate to and impact each other.

Peak Performance

2009-10-18T22:42:00.000-07:00

When assigned with an important task it is essential that one establishes a series of yardsticks or measures that can be used to evaluate progress, day by day & hour by hour. The more clear & specific the measures set, the more accurate will be one, in hitting targets on schedule.

If a task needs to be accomplished, then resolve to accomplish at least one specific part of a larger goal each day, & never miss a day. Without imposing oneself in the form of deadlines no task can be accomplished.

By focusing on the task, one’s performance on the job is already at work. Consistency in performance will only lead to superlative results. There are 3 keys to peak performance in achieving goals.

• Commitment: Make a firm commitment to achieve a particular goal. This will put aside all excuses, it is very much like stepping on the accelerator of one’s subconscious mind. This will help is one being more creative, determined & focused than ever before. The people who are in the top positions are those who make clear, unequivocal commitments & then refuse to budge from them, no matter what happens

• Completion is the second ingredient in peak performance. There is a big difference between doing 95 percent of a task & doing 100 percent of a task. In fact, it is very common for people to work very hard up to the 90 percent or 95 percent level & then slack off & delay the final completion of the task. This is a temptation that one must fight against. Instead one must continually force, discipline themselves, to resist this natural tendency & push through to completion

• Every time when you complete a small task, you feel happier. When a large task is complete, one feels happier still. When various steps on the way to the completion of a large task are finished, at every achievement one gets an endorphin rush. One feels continuously happy & exhilarated

• Closure. The third C, after commitment & completion, is “Closure.” Bringing closure to an issue in personal or business life is absolutely essential for to feel happy & in control of situation. Lack of closure – unfinished business, an incomplete action of any kind – is a major source of stress, dissatisfaction, & even failure in business or at work. It consumes enormous amounts of physical & emotional energy

“Depend-ability” – Completion of assigned tasks in the said order will earn one the tag of “Depend-ability”. This has a direct bearing on compensation and promotion.

The happiness & the enjoyment which one achieves as a result of completing any task well are indescribable. The feeling of fulfillment, achievement puts us on a pedestal & we are eager to take on more & more difficult project as a challenge. Thus, one’s mental state will always be high & positive. When one attaches pleasure & happiness instead of pain while discharging function, one gives PEAK PERFORMANCE.

Unlocking Human Potential through HCM

2009-07-27T06:19:00.000-07:00

In a fast-paced world there are many challenges that companies / business leaders must rise up to meet. Business infrastructure, cutting edge communication systems, information enriched processes etc. Though business confidence of leaders has been very high, they are concerned about sustaining performance.

Performance can be sustained by harnessing Human Capital within the organization rather than cost-saving-dominated IT agendas. This is a complex task for business leaders and HR who have to manage teams across geographies and cultures.
The solution to this complex task is Human Capital Management (HCM) software. Organisations are expanding their use of HCM. Some are using sophisticated tools to identify and implement people programs that impact business results directly and dramatically. These organizations produce significant return on investment and revenue growth.

The changing role of HR
Increasingly, HR professionals are required to be strategic partners in managing the people resources of an organisation. In this new role, HR is responsible to
• Automate key strategic and administrative HR processes
• Streamline and decentralize employee services & practices
• Communicate effectively and transparently
• Provide on-demand reports and analytics

A HCM technology helps HR make a paradigm shift from being processes managers to strategic partners. Companies are web-enabling their HR function to get rid of complexities, and boost productivity.

Strategic HCM processes including performance management system, training management, will see more aggressive adoption and would be linked to business plan.
Organizations with sophisticated requirements for strategic processes such as performance management and training management can usually find more robust functionality from a specialized HCM vendor.

Getting the Most out of HR Software

2009-07-23T02:31:00.000-07:00

To receive organization-wide endorsement and financial approval for new investments in a strategic HR solution requires a thorough business case that pinpoints all costs, potential benefits, and even project risks. The case for investing in HR software in your company depends on certain key parameters:
· Do you consume over 20% of your total operating costs on your people?

· Does hiring and retaining talent feature regularly in your strategic &meetings?

· Are you looking for way to better align individual performance to business goals?

· Are you creating a new performance culture within your company?

· Are you looking at cutting costs of delivering HR services and processes?

· Do you wish to forecast and plan people programmes to deliver measurable outcomes?

As a first step, define your company's goal for investing in new HR software. Next, be sure that all stakeholders are committed to the project. Lastly, create the cost-justification business case - a time-honoured financial analysis to assure that an investment will meet certain payback criteria for the organization.
A credible, realistic business case arms the IT and HR teams with the quantification needed to win over skeptics -- most often a CFO or even a board of directors. It also helps the core team move beyond their emotional connection to the solution and make the case pragmatically, enabling others to perceive the wisdom in the investment, and make a rational decision. However there are certain guidelines you should consider:
Project costs by measuring the one-time and on-going investments required in the solution. What are the tangible benefits like HR productivity improvements, improve employee retention, strategic business impact, lower employee turnover costs, reducing training, administration and total employee costs, compliance and error reduction. Apart from that you need to check the intangible benefits too like brand and strategic advantage, competitive advantage, intellectual capital.
Also the need to consider Project risk is of utmost importance. Risk adjusted analysis is a critical element of the business case, especially with our low tolerance for failure in today’s business environment.
Proven HR software should provide payback between 12 to 24 months, with a 3-year ROI of 150% when deployed to suit specific business needs.

Performance Management

2009-07-22T14:15:00.000-07:00

In this fast moving competitive world, performance management is the key to ensure employee productivity in an organization. It provides an objective platform for setting, tracking and appraising employee performance. It helps HR establish an objective performance culture, develop career plans, allocate compensation efficiently and nurture outstanding performers.
Some features include:

• Employees can identify and set goals aligned to corporate objectives, in collaboration with the managers.

• Collecting of feedbacks from various angles is possible thereby making it a 360 degree feedback system which helps to identify leadership potentials.

• Generate on-demand margin analysis report for realistic budgeting.

• Organizational as well as individual performance is aligned through the normalization process.

• Goal status and modifications can be reviewed periodically.

Performance management is sometimes confused with Performance Appraisal, but Appraisal is just the final part of the management cycle. In short, Performance Appraisal is a backward looking process, whereas Performance management is a forward looking process.
Through performance management organisations can align their workforce to goals and objectives, with the power to be responsive to business opportunities and deliveries.

E-Reqruitment - The Hottest Trend

2009-07-21T14:04:00.000-07:00

The hottest trend in the recruitment business is the ‘E-recruitment’, also known as online recruitment. It is the use of technology for assisting in the recruitment process.With the passage of time, many job portals have been launched in India, be it Naukri.com, Shine.com, Monster.com, they all are acting as a tool for providing job opportunities to people. Many organizations also use there own website or its own intranet for the same.
eRecruitment transforms the recruitment function into a faster, simpler, effective process by aligning the process with organisational benchmarks, right talent and position requirements across locations.
Here are a few pointers to gain maximum effectiveness from eRecruitment:-
• To measure the effectiveness of online recruitment, set up the metrics for recruitment spending.

• In order to attract the right candidate, a detailed job description should be given.

• Give a precise and unambiguous questionnaire to reduce time in searching for a suitable candidate.

• Applicant tracking system should be of a high quality and should be integrated with the back-office.

• Develop a comprehensive website to receive and process job applications whether through direct or online advertising.

There are many benefits of eRecruitment as it is much faster than traditional modes of recruitment. Despite the fact that Internet has a low penetration in India, e-recruitment is picking up speed due to its flexibility and cost benefits and looks like its here to stay.

Shift Management

2009-07-20T13:57:00.000-07:00

Shift work is a form of work scheduling involving a process in which a group of workers succeed each other at the same workstation in shifts. The shifts can be organized either in a rotating, a continuous or a discontinuous fashion. Notwithstanding the patterns of work scheduling, it has been unequivocally accepted that shift work in general disrupts biological rhythms, sleep and social life. In addition, shift work leads to a number of clinical and non-clinical problems. It retards human performance and increases the chances of occurrence of major industrial accidents.

However in order to get rid of such occurrences, firm’s are seeking software’s which provide them with Shift Management facility. By using such Shift Management Systems the company can gain complete control of rotating employees, know availability with easy linking to departments like transport to facilitate people management.
Some systems have features like:

• Assign / Rotate employees through various shifts

• Present overview of employees working in any shift

• Link shift roster to the transport department and schedule pick-ups.

By applying such systems to use, there can be optimization of human shift work which in turn would minimize the occupational health hazards among shift workers. This will result in increasing their performance and augment the productivity of their organization.

Payroll Software

2009-07-17T23:19:00.000-07:00

In this world of mergers & acquisitions and increased employee mobility, the payroll system is becoming complex and tedious to administrate. But technology has considerably eased this as it is now possible to run payroll software from a single point for the entire network using no more than a single database.

Such software has many advantages, which help firms deliver accurate, secure and punctual payroll services without the administrative tedium. Some of the advantages are:

• Companies can easily create multi-company payrolls with unlimited number of employees.

• Calculate tax, gratuity and medical credits calculation

• The software is fully compliant with statutory and legal requirements.

• Considerably reduces the workload on HR and Accounts staff, facilitating privacy, error-free information and speed in accessing payroll details.

• Define formulas with Formula Builder for custom calculations, specifying special conditions

• Reports – Bank transfer reports are prepared bank wise, currency wise

• Apart from HRMS security, User Level Pay Group security (access) is available in payroll. This facilitates the user to view only the pay groups to which they have given rights.