Are You Behind in the Race for Employer of Choice? Does it Matter in an Unstable Economy? (Part 2)

Becoming an employer of choice relies heavily on getting better at selecting the talent and developing the leaders to lead a culture that inspires people and delivers an employment experience that drives retention and employer brand. With all the challenges facing organizations, it is important to not make this more complicated than it needs to be. The key is to stop talking about what needs to improve and take concrete steps toward implementing them. Change the way you identify and select talent. Engage leaders in learning experiences that integrate coaching and application-based learning elements. Stop measuring engagement. It’s about practice and experience versus simply learning the academic aspects of leadership. It is time to make game-changing improvements that help you become the employer of choice in the communities you serve.

The Approach You Are Taking for Hiring is All Wrong

Companies are changing their approach to talent acquisition. Technology, assessments and virtual simulations are becoming common practice. However, most still underperform when it comes to identifying and selecting the right talent. This is because simply changing tools without changing mindset and adapting skills won’t bring the desired change. Companies should take a balanced scorecard approach to identifying and selecting talent. 

Many organizations still use the standard job description for their selection practice. To find the best match for your organization, you need success profiles that highlight more than tasks. A greater focus needs to be on experiences, aspirations and behaviors that align with your culture, and professional behaviors that correlate with successful performance. Think long-term. What capabilities are needed to move the business forward and sustain outcomes?

If you want to be able to change with market and workforce demands and become an employer of choice, you will have to change your approach. This will not be easy, but if you don’t, you will be just like everyone else recycling the same talent that goes back and forth from company to company. Stop drying up the pipeline and start developing it.  

It’s Time to Stop Talking About Developing Next Gen Leaders 

Books are constantly written, training programs are sold, delivered and fail, and companies try to recruit the best leaders away from each other. It’s time to stop the madness and focus on simple, clear and practical solutions. This is the only approach that sets you apart.

Organizational development, learning, and human resource professionals can get too theoretical and academic with their approach to development. They spend time building competency models with 10, 12 or 15 leadership competencies versus focusing on simple behaviors we know impact success in people leaders. We make it too difficult for managers to coach their people and even more difficult for people to understand what behaviors they need to develop.

Learning professionals must focus on practical application and personalize the development experience for each respective leader as this will drive accountability. When a person knows and takes accountability for behavior that needs to change, they will change it. Communication, building relationships, coaching others, learning agility, personal integrity, change resiliency and focusing on the entire organization (systems thinking) are key drivers for success in global leaders. You must develop these leadership attributes. Your culture, and subsequently your status as an employer of choice, depends on it.

Leading from the Middle

For most people, their managers are the face of the company, as that’s the leadership they interact with every day. Middle managers are the ones who bring business strategies to the workforce, and they’re responsible for much of the work of executing these strategies.  In essence, the middle bring life to the strategic plan. Yet companies are still directing most resources toward developing leadership higher up the ladder. What’s worse is that middle managers are often chosen for their technical expertise, not their ability to lead or manage. 

This results in middle managers who are often not skilled leaders, and they’re not being given opportunities to develop better leadership capabilities. They are being set up to fail. Plus, this lack of success inevitably trickles down to those who report to that manager as they’re not being supported as well as they should. The dominos continue to fall as engagement levels drop, attrition rises, and the pool of talent to draw from within the company shrinks. 

The good news is that the problem is easily solved by directing more development resources to the middle. It’s also important to acknowledge that most companies can’t bear the hard or soft costs of sending managers off for weeks of training. Instead, those higher up the chain of command should be mentoring and providing guidance in the moment, along with practical and formal leadership training. This trickles down to the employee level increasing job satisfaction and the overall attractiveness of your company to the workforce.

So, You’re Measuring Engagement. Now What?

Surveying employees without taking action on the data you collect is the number one roadblock when trying to improve engagement. When people feel that nothing is being done to improve the work environment after survey results have been collected, they’ll begin to lose trust in management and will stop responding altogether to future surveys.

Do you really know what your employees need to be successful? Leaders often make assumptions about what their employees want and need. Talk to them. Leaders need to have candid discussions with their teams to understand what they meant by their responses to the engagement survey and how they measure success in improving the work environment. Examine the drivers of engagement with your teams to identify strengths, opportunities and priorities. This will enable success in solving core issues. Assumptions lead to wasted time and resources and will only slow down the process of making improvements. In order to get actionable feedback, it is imperative your employees feel safe providing real feedback, and your leadership team needs to be open to hearing it and committing to change.

It is easy to want to improve everything. To sustain change, you must focus on a few key priorities until behaviors, processes or practices have changed. Switching around priorities leads to confusion, which will lead to a lack of productivity and an indifference towards engagement.

Communication…Communication…Communication! Organizations must share not only results, but progress being made on improving results. We believe you can never over-communicate what actions leaders and the organization are taking to improve. Promote storytelling in the workplace. This helps drive ownership and involvement of a diverse mix of employees by engaging them to share stories.  

The key is to not simply survey. Feedback is a gift to accept, cherish and do something with. Don’t chase the “shiny new coin” of expansive data or fall into the trap of analysis paralysis. Keep it simple by creating action plans and sharing the stories as you improve based on this valuable feedback.

One Common Theme

The way you identify, develop and engage talent has a direct correlation to the reputation your company has in the market place and subsequently on your status as an employer of choice. There are resources that can help you make the changes you need to make to get there. The LAK Group believes that the workforce of the future is demanding changes to how organizations attract and retain talent. Our innovative approach to helping organizations define and implement game-changing talent strategies is key to helping companies become the employer of choice in the communities they serve. Contact us to learn more.

Are You Behind in the Race for Employer of Choice – Does it Matter in an Unstable Economy? (Part 1)

Many corporate leaders are dusting themselves off, picking themselves up after a crazy time, and are trying to look towards the future. The most important thing you can do right now, is focus on those people who have ridden out the storm with you and upended their lives to get you through, your employees. They have worked with toddlers hanging onto their legs and dogs barking in the background, and somehow made it through an unprecidented time in their lives – all while still being productive. Being an employer of choice sets your company up to be successful now and in the future. And the best time to focus on your employees and set yourself up for future success is now – in a down economy. In this two-part series we will cover a number of factors that contribute to creating a workplace people want to be a part of.

In order to become an employer of choice, there are a number of areas of focus you need to address. In part one, we’ll focus on being aware of and embracing a changing workforce, purposefully creating culture, and providing high-touch outplacement when needed. If you are asking the question,“How can we get talented people to come work for us?,” you are already behind your competition. The good news is, you are not alone. If you make the appropriate improvements, you can advance your position as a destination employer. But you have to make significant changes to how you approach HR and your talent management processes. 

The Workforce is Changing

Attracting, retaining and engaging employees is vital to being an employer of choice. A new mix of employees, including  Generation Z, rapidly-rising millennials, Generation X (who are taking over the C-Suite), career-swappers, and people re-entering the workforce, are all emotionally and intellectually ready for a new way of working. They have different needs. They understand that the workplace, technology, and the world are all evolving, impacting the way we do things. This new workforce no longer wants to just “come to work.” They want to be part of something more meaningful – purpose-based work that is mutually beneficial for them and their company. 

The way companies have operated in the past will not drive sustained growth in the future. You will not be able to attract a diverse pipeline of talent if you do not change. Period. So, what are you doing to re-shape the structure of your organization? How are you adapting your approach to a more agile way of identifying, selecting, developing, rewarding, retaining and exiting employees? What is your new talent proposition that will make you the employer of choice in the communities that you serve and attract people of all generations?  

The Talent Pipeline Has Changed              

Generation X is moving into the C-Suite, with Millennials not far behind. This has shifted a greater focus on talent management. The Boomers are retiring or retiring differently than in the past, and organizations are finding that their succession plans have left them unprepared to sustain the desired organizational culture. The pipeline was not built as anticipated. In fact, a recent study from the Association for Talent Development (ATD) found that only 14% of organizations rate their succession planning process as successful. 

Organizations must scrap their old succession management practices as they simply don’t work. Leaders and human resources don’t have enough candid conversations about talent. Talent identified as successors are frequently not promoted in lieu of an external hire. Ask yourself:

• How many of your “ready now”candidates are placed into the next open leadership role? 
• How many successors are identified as ready in less than three years and sit in that same category for over three years? 
• How many of your successors are less than five years from retirement? 
• How many of your emerging talent even know they are thought of as successors? 
• And most importantly to being an employer of choice – will these successors be able to maintain the desired culture? The issues go on and on and on.

There is a solution. Engage external partners to help with talent reviews for more candid discussions. Create a succession plan for the middle leadership levels in your company. Get better at using assessments for the identification and development of top talent. Finally, tell people they are future successors and have an impactful development discussion. It should not be a secret.

Culture Drives Success – But, It’s Not About Ping Pong Tables

A recent Gallup study found that only 34 percent of employees are actively engaged at work. Additional research finds that 51% of U.S. employees say they are actively looking for a new job or watching for openings. Clearly, many employees are ready to look elsewhere for the next step in their careers.  

The culture of a company is not just about whether you’re allowed to bring pets to work, play ping pong in the cafeteria, take a siesta in a pod, or have bocce ball courts on your rooftop. Those may be fun, but they do not have a sustainable impact on culture. Remember, culture is an outcome that comes from leadership behaviors. Putting on a “culture band-aid” is not going to make you an employer of choice. It is not going to lead to exceeding objectives set in your strategic plan or drive revenue growth and cash flow optimization. Leaders are the answer. Leaders drive culture from the top down.

Today, organizational culture has reached a tipping point. CEOs most commonly mention it as a critical internal factor in the success of a sustainable business model. It has now become one of the most important, even overused, words in corporate board rooms, and for good reason. Most people know that culture matters and has a strong impact on business results. Companies that focus on culture are becoming the destination for top talent and the younger generations in the workforce.

However, you can’t simply change culture for the sake of change. There must be a link to business strategy and purpose. Align your current-state to the behaviors that will drive your future-state culture. Then, freeze old behaviors and anchor new behaviors in leaders. Integrate and align human resource and business practices so they provide a path to a new culture. And make sure rewards complement desired behaviors and hold leaders accountable to how they “show up” each day.

An organization’s culture comes to life by either default or design. Shaping a culture supporting your business can change the behaviors and mindset of leaders, teams, and the company, creating a defining competitive advantage in being an employer of choice.

High-Touch Outplacement Supports Employment Brand

One of the factors driving demand for high-touch outplacement is the evolving purpose of work in the lives of employees. There’s also mounting stress among workers due to the cost of education and repayment of student debt while people struggle to find meaningful work.  And with the stress our economy is facing in this down market, workers will have added anxiety around being able to find any new work, much less work they enjoy.  

The problem is that while trying to reduce harm is a noble pursuit, if outplacement is not done right, it can have a negative impact on the individual and the company. Too many companies are missing the mark and are finding themselves, their employees, and the outplaced worker in positions of stress, distrust and disengagement. Employees are customers and they talk to other customers.  A negative experience will impact retention, engagement of remaining employees, customer opinions and business outcomes. 

For businesses that genuinely care about people and their wellbeing, and for companies that want to protect their image and reputation while preserving the productivity and engagement of their workers, outplacement services are the answer. Meaningful and personal — or what we call On Purpose — outplacement services are a major element that defines corporate culture, elevates employer branding, enhances the cultural fit, and reduces distrust both within and from outside the company. There are financial and , most importantly, it is a kind and compassionate thing to do for people who are likely facing one of the worst times in their lives.

One Common Theme

Companies need to shape talent processes to promote an environment that is attractive to the new workforce in order to become an employer of choice. The workforce has changed and therefore the talent pipeline has changed, culture drives success and high-touch outplacement is needed. 

But there is still more to consider. In our second post on this topic, we’ll explore why traditional hiring practices are not working, how companies need to step up their game when it comes to developing leaders, and how to better address employee engagement (or lack thereof).

5 Ways to Overcome Change Resistance in Your Organization

When faced with the idea of change management, many people think of detailed plans for decision-making, communication and implementation. Others talk about change management as an afterthought to implementing a major change within an organization. The challenge with these mindsets is that there is often not enough emphasis placed on the people part of the change. To manage change well, the people who are affected need to be given as much consideration as the process, technology and financial angles. After all, people are needed if the change is to be successful.

Differentiating Change from Transition

In the simplest terms, change is the thing that happens; it’s usually an external event such as a change in leadership or the deployment of a new strategy. It is also typically inevitable. While many people are uncomfortable with change for a variety of reasons, on a basic level, we all come to terms with change as a fact of life. On the other hand, the transition is where the work must happen. William Bridges is considered an expert on change, and his research, books, seminars and consultations focus on providing methods for organizations to deliver better approaches to transitions. He defined transitions as the “psychological process that people go through as they internalize and come to terms with the new situation that the change brings about.”

If businesses are to manage change successfully, it starts by understanding the transitional phase as distinct from the change itself.

Focusing on People’s Needs

Bridges points to the need to embrace the ending for the transition to begin. The first stage of his model directly faces the resistance people are likely to have, along with the emotional upheaval that comes along with forcing people from their comfort zones. A range of emotions, from fear and anger to uncertainty and frustration, are likely to be present and leaders must be equipped to guide their workers. The second stage is the Neutral Zone, the bridge between the old and the new. Here is where people are equipped for the new reality while continuing to overcome challenges such as resentment, anxiety and low morale.

In a similar approach, the ADKAR model comes from an organization founded by Bell Labs engineer Jeff Hiatt. The five-step model starts with awareness: making sure employees understand the changes and why they are necessary. Next is desire: translating reasons into personal motivating factors for workers. The third step is knowledge: providing education and mentoring to close knowledge gaps while overcoming challenges and resistance factors.

Another change expert, John Kotter, has dedicated his career to researching change and then helping businesses implement actionable processes. His 8-Step process begins with similar steps of assisting others in understanding the need for change and visualizing the new future and then building a coalition to bring about buy-in and to overcome barriers.

Each model has a slightly different approach, but all begin at the same place. What will your workers need to overcome emotional obstacles and resistance to change while also building comfort and confidence with concrete skills and personal guidance?

Getting to the Other Side

Drawing from these experts and experiences with organizations, here are some concrete steps for managing change in your organization.

1. Create Guides. Kotter recommends a coalition, and the ADKAR model calls for a visible sponsor. Whomever your guides are, they should facilitate the transition by working with leaders and managers to champion the change, motivate others, align priorities and be accessible throughout the transition.
2. Dedicate Enough Resources. This is where organizations will have an opportunity to demonstrate their focus on the people who are most affected by the change and who are likely to be most responsible for the minute implementation details. It is critical to allocate enough resources to every aspect, including emotional support and tangible skills training.
3. Generate Buy-In. Kotter advises highlighting WIIFM, or what’s in it for me as a way to help people see not just their role in the change, but also how the new methods will bring about positive impacts for them individually. The Bridges model counsels leaders to be patient during the transition, especially if it seems like progress isn’t being made, and to create goals with quick wins to improve motivation and give everyone a positive perception of the transition.
4. Find Allies in Middle Management. Because of their position in the middle, this group can either be a catalyst for resistance or a close ally during transitional times. Effective communication is critical, including one-on-one sessions and group meetings. Equip this group with all the tools they need to be allies, including an understanding of the reasons behind the change, tools and support for their teams, and involvement during the early phases of the change, especially while planning roll-outs of new methods, protocols or other daily functions.
5. Look for the New Beginning. The final stage of Bridges model is the new beginning, the stage at which people are open to learning and are newly committed to their role in the company while keeping an eye out for slipping into old habits. Kotter’s model builds this idea into a few steps where quick wins are used to drive acceleration until new behaviors and successes replace old habits. ADKAR concludes with reinforcement, or the stage where the focus is on sustaining the new ways rather than further transition. In all three models and every experience, this step happens slowly and not everyone will reach it at the same time. The key is to recognize when the first few reach this step and maintain the momentum until the entire team crosses the finish line together.

A New Future

Eckhart Tolle once said that some changes look negative on the surface but you will soon realize that space is being created in your life for something new to emerge.” In business, the purpose of change is almost always to make room for the new and improved. By taking the time and resources necessary to focus on what the individuals who make up your workforce need to not only survive changes, but also to embrace them and prosper, you’ll be focusing on the most vital area to ensure long-term success for your organization.