100 quotes - Talent Management

100 quotes - Talent Management

Talent Management has gained importance over the years and as long as we need smooth and uninterrupted flow of business; it is going to be an indispensable part of any HR strategy. Following definition clearly outlines what is Talent Management:

“Talent management is an integrated set of processes, programs, and cultural norms in an organization designed and implemented to attract, develop, deploy, and retain talent to achieve strategic objectives and meet future business needs.”

-  Silzer and Dowell

Following presentation, include a collection of 100 quotes on Talent Management.

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100 quotes on Talent Management from Vijay Bankar

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Appreciate to receive your valuable insights in the comments. You may also consider sharing related Quotes known to you in the comments.

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Developing Leadership Pipeline

Developing Leadership Pipeline

Every year we see surveys carried out by HBR, PWC, Deloitte, and Gartner, and major concerns for management as highlighted at the top of the list are factors such as: developing bench strength, leadership pipeline, and leadership readiness. The following quote describes the importance of Leadership. “The first lesson is: To hell with centralized strategic planning. If you don't have a good leader, it's all nothing; it's just a bunch of papers flying around.” - Robert Townsend

Developing Leadership pipeline has always been an important concern for HR Professionals. Moreover, getting a proper candidate for replacement is usually a very demanding task because that results in disturbing smooth flow of business. As Pam Brown says, “Every household has a box of odd keys. None of them will ever be found to fit any lock.” This happens when we are looking for leadership candidate from the internal talent pool. Hence, to maintain the flow of business, HR professionals have to address this issue by creating Leadership Development Program.

Following image outlines the activities for effective implementation of the Leadership Development Program. As suggested by experts and authors, the ownership lies with Management and Line Managers while HR can provide support through collaboration.   

Establish Competency Model:

The competency-based methodology was pioneered in late 1960's by Dr. David McClelland, founder of Hay McBer Company, also Psychologist at Harvard University. Subsequently many others have also contributed for the development of Competency-based HRM. It was primarily focused on assessment of employees, not just on the basis of intelligence, but on the basis of a set of competencies. Competencies are the knowledge, skills, behaviors, and attitudes that lead to high performance. [More details in “Competency-based Interview Assessment”]

For example during the tenure of Lou Gerstner, at IBM, they selected 300 employees for Senior Leadership Group (SLG) and appointed Hay Group for developing eleven "IBM Leadership Competencies." Normally companies select 10 to 15 competencies. Then they carry out the Executive assessment for actual level of each competency. Next, they analyze the gap between actual v/s. expected. The gap is minimized using Learning & Development initiatives along with Coaching and Mentoring.

While designing business strategy, Competency Models become a valuable tool for defining critical skills required for achieving success. Simultaneously it also facilitates the integration of talent Management and other HR processes within an organization. According to Jeffery S. Shippmann, "Competency approach typically include a fairly  substantial effort to understand an organization's business context and competitive strategy and to establish some direct line-of-sight between individual competency requirements and the broader goals of the organization".

Assessment of Employees:

Once we have established the set of competencies, we have to assess employees, and select them for the ‘Leadership Development Program’. In many organizations, ‘assessment’ is an on-going initiative that goes on throughout the period of employee development. The following image clearly depicts the process developed by Silzer & Church for identifying hi-potential talent.

Most of the companies use a combination of assessments to select employees. [More details - “First who then What”] Using more than one assessment instrument provides us concrete data in terms of their scores, which facilitate decision-making about their selection. The assessment instrument must be used by accredited experts while selecting them based on their validity, reliability and proven track record. Here is the list of assessments compiled by William Bergquist (Assessment Instruments: A Resource List)

Rob Silzer & Allan Church state that, “Some organizations collect these data to help make the high - potential decisions, while other organizations assess individuals only after they have been reviewed and accepted as high - potential talent.” The amount of resources, efforts, and cost involved influence the decision to use these assessments.

Performance Appraisal Data:

The appraisal process is an important source of employee performance data. However, its effectiveness depends on choosing appropriate method and tool. As they say, "When all is said and done, a company, its chief executive, and … (the) whole management team are judged by one criterion alone—performance." - Harold Geneen & Alvin Moscow.

An obvious outcome of this process is a list of ‘high performers’. However, according to CEB – SHL, “Only 1 out of 7 High performers is High Potential.” (The HR Guide to Identifying High-Potentials-2014) Hence, further assessment of these candidates becomes essential before selecting them for Leadership Development Program.

There are several methods and there is different school of thought, suggesting the use of a particular method. However, according to Laszlo Bock, (Head HR – Google) there is no one particular method superior to others which accurately analyze employee performance. He says they have used several scientific methods and tools, and the only thing that has a significant impact on the process is “Goal Setting”. In the book “Work Rules!” (2015) he further suggests that we must split rewards conversations from development conversations, for improving its effectiveness. Once you have sufficient data with trends / past employee history, it would certainly assist in the accurate assessment of employees.  

360 Degree Competency Feedback:

Many organizations now use 360-degree competency feedback surveys, primarily for providing development feedback to individuals. “We use it when coaching individuals, and in helping teams improve their effectiveness. We never use it as a selection tool, as it was designed to help develop people.” – Hay Group. It provides potentially accurate and diverse information on where employees stand in relation to where they should be in terms of skills and behaviors.

Normally it involves assessment by Self, Manager, Direct Reports, & Peers. There are set of questions (i.e. 5 to 7 questions for each competency) and the raters choose a most suitable answer from the scale. (i.e. Consistently, Often, Sometimes, Rarely, Never) Some of them also have an option for providing written comments about behavior and performance. The report for each employee provides us detailed competency scores, by rater group, with competency definitions along with a summary of strengths and areas for improvement.

However, there is one caution as pointed out by Richard E. Boyatzis, “But when we move to a 360 test, we are asking untrained informants – not trained coders – to assess an individual and his or her behavior. And when informants are responding they need more guidance.”

Personality Inventory:

Apart from 360-Degree survey, some organizations use formal personality inventories, such as the California Psychological Inventory and the Hogan Personality Inventory, to measure personality variables. Such tests normally require an applicant to answer 200 or more (yes/no) questions. These questions attempt to get to the core of the personality, values and the things that make one successful.

According to Rob Silzer & Allan Church, “many organizations administer personality inventories after the individuals have been identified as high potential.” Since, there are legal concerns in several countries about using these instruments for selection, many authors suggest using them for development purposes. Silzer & Church further states that the use of personality inventories has tremendously increased over the years for assessment of potential leadership candidates.   

Other Tests:

We can use several other options for assessment of candidates i.e. career background interviews, Cognitive Ability Tests, Personality Tests, Assessment Centers, individual assessments, Job Fit Test, Culture Fit Test, & Job Simulations etc.

Employee Selection for development:

The next step in this process is preparing a list of potential candidates by using nine-box talent matrix as shown in the following image. By using this tool, we can determine which employees to invest in and the level of investment required.

Once we have identified and designate employees as ‘high potential’ (formally / informally), we have to give them opportunities for accelerated development. Designing formal ‘Individual Development Plan’ [IDP] would facilitate effective implementation of this process. Talent review meetings would be a better option to set expectations around roles and the goals. "The cause of almost all relationship difficulties is rooted in conflicting or ambiguous expectations around roles and goals." - Stephen Covey. The company should provide an opportunity for the boss and the employee to have a conversation to clarify and align their expectations about the development plan. This could be the ‘development discussion’ as mentioned earlier in the appraisal example of Laszlo Bock.

This conversation can include the use of different options for employee development (for achieving expected level of competencies). For example, formal leadership programs (with well-defined curriculum), providing a coach or mentor, in-depth executive assessment, career planning, job rotation, job enrichment, provide experiences, special work assignments (projects, task forces, temporary assignments), or executive education courses. These options play an important part in the development of these high potentials.

As stated by Michael Bergdahl, “Ideas are the easy part of strategic planning; it is the implementation of the tactics that is tough.” Hence, the success of this process hinges on the effective implementation of the Individual Development Plan. According to the study conducted by Corporate Leadership Council (2005) following factors are important drivers for developing employee potential: 1. the quality and skills of the current manager and, 2. a customized and achievable development plan.

Training, Coaching & Mentoring:

We all know the 70-20-10 model normally used as part of Training and Development initiatives. (70% - On the job 20% - Learning from others & 10% - Structured Learning) It is a continuous process, which begins with the identification of high potential employees, and goes on until removing the gap between expected and the actual level of competencies. The focal objective of these initiatives should be capability development and achieving required level of competencies. In fact, it should be reviewed periodically as per organizational requirements. According to Peter Senge, “Over the long run, superior performance depends on superior learning.” 

70% - On the job learning	20% - Learning from others	10% - Structured Learning
Action Learning & Problem Solving Placements, Job rotations Self-directed and incidental learning Projects and special assignments	Subject Matter networks User Generated content Collaboration platforms Coaching, Mentoring Feedback	Workshops, Classroom Webinars Online Learning E-learning M-Learning

Following quote clearly outline the importance of learning and development initiatives. “You can have the best product and store location around but if your staff is weak or poorly trained you will experience mediocre results.” -  Michael Bergdahl, Walmart

Many organizations provide Coaching & Mentoring to facilitate the development of selected employees. Like training, this initiative is also an ongoing process. Due to budgetary constraints, companies are becoming more selective while using external coaches. Normally companies use them for senior level positions.

“External coaches can bring greater objectivity, fresher perspectives, higher levels of confidentiality and experience in many different organizations, industries, and business environments.” – “Coaching: A Global Study of Successful Practices,” AMA, 2008

According to Silzer & Church companies are also training HR professionals and Line managers to coach employees internally. In fact, Dave Ulrich says, "HR professionals can coach business leaders to raise employee and organizational productivity by setting standards, giving feedback, and becoming personal leadership trainers."

With impartial view of the situation, they can advise and support high potentials to:

- achieve their objectives.

- enhance their performance.

- create and support their ‘Individual Development Plan’.

- develop certain competencies and capabilities.

- facilitate progression through different levels of those competencies.

“Leaders cannot succeed on their own; even the most outwardly confident executives need support and advice”. - B. George & P. Sims

Promoting to new position:

After successfully implementing IDP, if the employee is ‘high potential’ and ‘consistently exceeds performance expectations’ (improved assessment results) he/she can be considered for placement in the leadership position. However, the support system must provide backing through continuous ‘Training’, ‘Coaching’ and ‘Mentoring’. According to Michael Watkins, while going through transitions, it takes minimum 6 months for an employee to reach the ‘break-even point’. The focal objective of an onboarding program should be to fasten the speed of employees to reach the break-even point ASAP. The company must provide specific feedback, guidance and needed support to the employee during this period.

Managing their transition into new position becomes crucial for Leadership development program. We may have to focus on five aspects of onboarding process to address this issue. These core aspects are (RECAP) - building Relationships and networks, setting Expectations, Cultural indoctrination, Administrative formalities, and structured Process. [More details - “Onboarding”]

Conclusion:

“In conclusion – the phrase that wakes up the audience.” – Herbert Prochnow. Leadership is a vast subject and here we have tried to focus only on very few activities that we can implement for Leadership Development Program. As correctly said by Peter Drucker, “Leaders are not born; they are grown.” Hence, identification of high potentials and their development become important aspects for the internal development of leaders. Leadership development program should be integrated with the overall talent management strategy of the organization. It should also have backing with appropriate motivation (intrinsic - extrinsic), retention and rewards & recognition. As stated by Jim Collins, “The key is to develop and promote insiders who are highly capable of stimulating healthy change and progress, while preserving the core.”

Competency models facilitate the integration of Leadership development program and business strategy of the organization. Performance management system can provide accurate details of the 'high performing' employees. Whereas, we can get valid data pertaining to their actual potential using appropriate assessment instruments. Then we can select most suitable candidates with maximum scores for Leadership Development Program.

We have to establish an Individual development plan for each selected employee. However, the success of this process largely depends on effective implementation of IDP, using proper development options such as Job Rotation, Job Enrichment, Special Assignment, etc. Training & Development is a huge subject in itself and we are taking only surface view out here. Through using proper training (70-20-10) coupled with Coaching and Mentoring on an on-going basis, we can polish the 'rough diamonds' and turn them into 'consistent stars'. HR has a major responsibility once they have been promoted into new positions by providing them support through proper on-boarding. “Leadership occurs when the organization builds a cadre of future leaders who have the capacity to shape an organization’s culture and create patterns of success.” – Ulrich & Smallwood

Developing leadership pipeline is going to be crucial for the ongoing success of any company and HR has a major part to play in this regard. However, HR must share ownership with Management and Line Managers. Because “The most significant contribution leaders make is not simply to today’s bottom line, (but) to the long-term development of people and institutions, so they can adapt, change, prosper, and grow.” - Barry Z. Posner & James M. Kouzes.

Succession Planning for Leadership Development

Succession Planning for Leadership Development

A report on “Global Human Capital Trends 2014” (pdf) prepared by Deloitte, which surveyed 2,532 business and HR leaders in 94 countries concludes that the most important and urgent concern for HR professionals today is developing “leadership” pipeline to achieve strategic objectives. In fact, it has appeared as ‘highly urgent’ at number one in the list of concerns followed by ‘Retention and engagement’, and ‘Reskilling HR’.

The report states that “Building global leadership is by far the most urgent: Fully 38 percent of all respondents rated it “urgent,” almost 50 percent more than the percentage rating the next issue “urgent.” Companies see the need for leadership at all levels, in all geographies, and across all functional areas. This continuous need for new and better leaders has accelerated.”

Now, as an HR professional we have two choices available, first, recruiting from other organizations and second, proactively develop leadership pipeline. We may also look at it as make v/s. buy decision in the form of developing v/s. hire. The most tempting and easier option for HR professionals is off course to hire since developing leaders is time consuming and tedious process. However, many management authors suggest otherwise.

For example Jim Collins, in ‘Good to Great’ says that “Larger-than-life, celebrity leaders who ride in from the outside are negatively correlated with taking a company from good to great. Ten of eleven good-to-great CEOs came from inside the company, whereas the comparison companies tried outside CEOs six times more often.” In the November 2015 issue of Harvard Business Review, Adi Ignatius, has compiled a list of 100 ‘Best-Performing Ceo’s In The World’ and among them 86 have come from within the company to successfully lead their organizations.

Hence, HR professionals have to make serious efforts to address the crucial concern of developing leadership to maintain the flow of business. “Succession Planning and Management” becomes the most suitable option for HR Professionals in this context. It is something like digging the well before you get thirsty. However, justifying such investment of time, efforts, and resources for this purpose in the form of ‘return on investment’ is a complex proposition for HR Professionals.    

What is Succession Planning & Management:

William Rothwell (Effective succession planning 2010) states that “A succession planning and management program was defined as a deliberate and systematic effort by an organization to ensure leadership continuity in key positions, retain and develop intellectual and knowledge capital for the future, and encourage individual advancement.”

He further says, “Succession planning can mean more than just finding warm bodies to fill vacancies.” Succession Planning is much more than merely preparing a list of employees for replacement of vacant positions. In fact, “It’s not a replacement issue. It’s a strategic responsibility to be shared among the stakeholders.” – Kets de Vries. The ‘Replacement planning’ typically ask line manager to identify up to three people within the company as backup candidates. However, succession planning is a proactive effort to ensure a continuous flow of business by development of talent within the organization while carefully planning learning and development initiatives. 

He includes ‘succession management’ in ‘succession planning’ since it should not stand-alone. He firmly believes that it must be put together to develop talent in real time to meet dynamic business needs. In-short ‘succession management’ broadens the scope by enhancing manager’s role to build talent by coaching, giving feedback and helping employees to develop their potential.   

The following quote underlines the positive impact of succession planning. “After working with hundreds of organizations on their talent and succession planning programs we know the benefits of a successful program are broad — from reduced time to fill critical positions and reduced turnover costs, to cost improvements in developing high-potentials and enhanced competitive advantage.” – William Rothwell.

We all know the importance of culture in any organization. Moreover, the leadership of the organization has a major impact on shaping & developing the culture of the organization. Hence having a proper candidate in the leadership position becomes even more crucial. Succession planning and management can certainly address this concern by providing appropriate employees being groomed and developed within the company, who are well aware of the company culture. Normally succession planning is carried out annually in line with the Workforce planning process. However, it must be a continuous process and reviewed quarterly or even monthly in parallel to the workforce planning process.

Kim Lamoureux very well narrates the strategic importance of this process. He says, "By identifying and developing talent, creating a corporate culture that assumes the talent will move to those places where it is needed for the company to meet its business goals and maintaining a broad, nonhierarchical view of talent management, succession programs become part of the business strategy." 

Individual Development Plan (IDP): Succession planning and management is tied to strategic plans through individual development planning processes. Michael Watkins, the author of ‘The First 90 days’, has developed the STARS framework that can be used to develop individual career plans in line with the strategic requirement of the company. (STARS is an acronym for five common business situations leaders may find themselves moving into: Start-up, Turnaround, Accelerated growth, Realignment, and Sustaining success.)

Individual development planning options available for each position would differ in line with the strategic situations mentioned earlier. Hence, integration of individual development plan with the overall Succession plan is crucial for achieving strategic objectives. The following quote underlines the importance of appropriate integration. “A career plan without a succession plan is a road map without a destination.” – William Rothwell.

When it comes to succession planning, the question that is asked most often is whether ‘to tell or not to tell’ the employees about their inclusion in the list. William Rothwell says, “The issue may not be to tell everyone or not to tell everyone whether they are listed on succession plans. A better series of questions relates to when to tell, who to tell, and how to tell.” I had attended several webinars and most of the experts in the field of succession planning advocate the view of communicating to employees about their selection due to advantages for e.g.:

• to motivate successors to learn more.
• be willing to build their competencies in anticipation of future promotion.
• to be less willing to leave the organization, and,
• to improve employee morale.    

Approaches to Succession Planning & Management:

Following are the three approaches suggested by William Rothwell for carrying out this process:

Top-Down Approach: Management Leaders in the organization direct this process from the highest levels through HR Department. They decide on required competence, appraisal process, assessment tests, and learning & development initiatives.  

Bottom-Up Approach: In contrast to the above approach, this one is directed from the lowest levels. Employees and their immediate supervisors actively participate in all activities pertaining to Succession Planning & Management. Decisions are closely linked to the individual development plans that help these employees to assess their strengths, weaknesses, and future potential. Employee’s track record of accomplishments becomes crucial for Top Management to monitor the process. 

Combined Approach: Integration of the ‘Top Down’ & ‘Bottom Up’ approach result in developing the Combined Approach. Management Leaders are involved in setting up the process, whereas Line Managers and Employees are involved in every step of the process. Efforts are being made to integrate the individual development plans with overall Succession Planning and Management. 

Succession Planning and Management Process:

Getting buy-in (and participation) from Top management along with line managers becomes crucial for the success of this process. In fact, it’s the important ingredient for the success of any other HR initiative for that matter. William Rothwell has suggested Seven-Pointed Star Model for Systematic Succession Planning and Management as shown in the following image.

A systematic approach to carrying out this process would be influenced by the Culture, Values, Norms, and strategic requirements of the organizations. However, this model can become the foundation of the Succession Planning and Management process. These seven steps precisely outline the process and can be followed for successful implementation in any organization. Following are the steps involved in this process:

Step 1: Make the Commitment

Step 2: Assess Present Work and People Requirements

Step 3: Appraise Individual Performance

Step 4: Assess Future Work and People Requirements

Step 5: Assess Future Individual Potential

Step 6: Close the Developmental Gap

Step 7: Evaluate the Succession Planning Program

Succession Management Maturity Model:

Bersin & Associates have developed a Succession Management Maturity Model as shown in the following image. 

Level 0 : No Succession Process

Level 1 : Replacement Planning – Companies focus on Senior Level Positions. List of high potential is created however, it is not supported with the formal development plan.  

Level 2 : Traditional Succession Planning - Companies focus on critical Senior Level Positions. Carry out their appraisal and establish development plans.

Level 3 : Integrated Succession Management – Only critical Positions at all levels are covered in this process.  Focused on integration with other Talent Management initiatives and business strategy.

Level 4 : Transparent Talent Mobility - Companies completely understand the capabilities and potential of their workforce. Talent decisions are based on what is best for the business as a whole.  

Companies can enhance the effectiveness of their succession management process by assessing their level and taking proactive steps to move up the ladder from level 1 to level 4.

     

Softwares with inbuilt option:

Normally companies use traditional organization chart-based programs that focus more on replacement planning using spreadsheets. Hence, software implementation can be a wise option to ameliorate the administrative burden while simplifying the entire process. There are many softwares available for implementing Succession Planning & Management while ensuring integration with other Talent Management initiatives. These softwares become more important because of their ‘scenario planning’ capabilities. They provide accurate details of different possibilities and options available to HR Professionals depending upon the circumstances and facilitate the decision-making process.  

Current Trends in Succession Planning:

The white paper, "The HR Guide to Identifying High-Potentials" (2014) prepared by CEB - SHL Talent Measurement states that,

• “50% HR Professionals lack confidence in their HiPo Programs.
• 5 out of 6 HR Professionals are dissatisfied with their HiPo Programs.
• Only 1 out of 7 High performers is High Potential.
• 55% will drop out of the HiPo Program within 5 years.
• 46% of Leaders fail to meet their business objective in a new role.”

The Report “The State of Succession Planning” (pdf) (January 2015) compiled by Halogen Software states that “The overall average succession planning intelligence score for all respondents is 48 percent. Not an impressive result given the importance and impact of succession planning.”

In the book ‘Rise of HR’ Fagan Stackhouse and Neil Reichenberg refer to the 2014 IPMA-HR talent management survey wherein only 27% of the respondents have agreed that their companies have Succession Plan in place. They further outline the reasons, for example:

• “Management being more focused on day-to-day business,
• Lack of sufficient time to make succession planning a priority,
• Lack of resources,
• Fears within the organization that succession planning will result in favoritism and pre-selection, &
• Lack of commitment by top leadership.”  

The above-mentioned facts do not portray a positive image of the status quo. However, there is immense scope for improvement. Investment in the proper software tools would definitely assist HR Professionals in this process. If we manage to secure buy-in (and involvement) from Top Management as well as Line managers and convey them the benefits of effective Succession Planning and Management, it would certainly result in the smooth flow of business with enhanced competitive advantage.

I would like to conclude with a quote from the book ‘The Jack Welch Lexicon of Leadership’s (2005):

“One of the driving factors behind GE’s success. If it wasn’t for GE’s rigorous succession planning, Jack Welch might never have become GE’s eighth CEO. Both Reg Jones (GE’s seventh CEO) and Jack Welch started searching for their successors six years prior to their retirement, and the board played an important role in the process.” - Jeffrey A. Krames

(Download Files from the CD-ROM - Effective succession planning - William Rothwell 2010)

Work Rules !

Work Rules! from Vijay Bankar

Summary of the book by
Laszlo Bock, Senior Vice-President of People Operations, Google
"Work Rules!"
- Insights from inside Google that will transform how you live and lead. 

Onboarding – help employees in transition to ‘swim’ & not let them ‘sink’.

“To adapt an old saw, transitions are marathons and not sprints,” - Michael Watkins. [Tweet this]

Importance of onboarding is significantly increased in these days since the average turnover at work is less than four years & lifetime employment strategies are out of date. (“The Alliance” by Hoffman & Casnocha) It means that roughly one-fourth of our employees are in the process of transition or are affected by them since their peers (Boss-Subordinates) are going through transitions. It might be on account of appointment in new position or promotion or transfer at a different location.

Aberdeen research found that 90% of organizations believe that employees make the decision to stay at within the first year. Traditional orientation programs are completed on the first day or in some cases in a week.  However, such short-term strategies do not reflect in improving retention, productivity, and engagement.

There are some organizations where the onboarding process is taken more seriously considering their impact on turnover and bottom line. It goes on beyond the traditional orientation program; it begins with recruitment and continued till completion of a year. This is because according to Michael Watkins, it takes minimum 6 months for an employee to reach the “break-even point” as shown in the following image.   

The book that impressed me was ”The First 90 Days” by Michael Watkins, which was named “the onboarding bible” in 2006 by ‘The Economist’. I feel that every organization must give a copy of this book as part of onboarding material at least to their Managers, Hi-Potentials, and C-suite executives.

RECAP – Framework

Considering the view of Mr. Watkins, we may break the onboarding process into its five core aspects with RECAP framework. This framework would help us to simplify the process. And, it would also let us address employee performance issues attributed to inadequate onboarding programs. 

  

 Now let us look at each aspect of this RECAP framework.

1. Relationship

The focal objective of an onboarding program is to improve the speed of employees to reach the break-even point quickly. And developing and strengthening of relationship networks becomes a key aspect in this process. The employee has to develop strategic relations with following:

Internal Relationships:

1. Boss, 2. Subordinates 3. Peers 4. Key Executives from other departments.

External Relationships:

1. Customers, 2. Suppliers, 3. Vendors, 4. Other stakeholders

According to Watkins, “alliances, both internal and external, are necessary if you are to achieve your goals.” [Tweet this] First and most important among all is a relationship with the boss and hence organizations must carefully plan to develop this relationship. As they say employees leave their bosses and not their companies.  However, on the part of an employee - make your boss look good. “If you make your boss look good, your boss will make you look good.” - Ethan M. Rasiel. (The McKinsey Way) [Tweet this]

The second important relationship is with their subordinates especially for securing early wins. “…Silicon Valley’s success comes from the way its companies build alliances with their employees.” Hoffman & Casnocha. [Tweet this] Organizations must take appropriate actions to properly introduce the employee to his / her subordinates using most suitable communication channels.

Companies may opt for assigning buddies or mentors to facilitate this process. Microsoft, for example, assigns mentors to new employees at all levels of the organization as part of their New Employee Orientation (NEO) program.

Companies may organize events to let new employee socialize with their peers and other key stakeholders in the organization (Internal & External). It would also help us in their cultural indoctrination besides enhancing their understanding of formal as well as informal structures prevailing within the organization. Since they do tend to focus on their own department and neglect to develop strategic relations with important stakeholders in other functions.  Developing these relationships becomes more crucial for an employee to secure valuable resources as well as a buy-in for important initiatives. “Often, insufficient time is devoted to lateral relationship building with peers and key constituencies outside the new leader’s immediate organization,” -Michael Watkins.

Needless to say, developing strong networks beyond organizational boundaries are equally important for us since “In a highly networked era, who you know is often more valuable than what you’ve read.” - Hoffman & Casnocha. [Tweet this] They further say, “…who he knows in the industry can be just as valuable to the company as what he knows in terms of skills. Thus, the alliance at work: growing their professional networks helps employees transform their career; employee networking helps the company transform itself.”

To conclude this point, if we nurture strong and healthy relationships at work it would foster an environment of cooperation & collaboration that would boost employee morale.  

2. Expectations

Another important aspect of RECAP framework is setting expectations right in the first place. If done properly it would certainly result in helping the employees to reach the break-even point quickly. "The cause of almost all relationship difficulties is rooted in conflicting or ambiguous expectations around roles and goals." - Stephen Covey. The company should provide an opportunity for the boss and the employee to have a conversation (preferably during the first week) to clarify and align their expectations about the roles and goals.

They both must agree on short- and medium-term goals and on time-frame. It is equally important to convey the employee, how the progress would be measured. (i.e. specific type of appraisal method & tools). The measure of success must be communicated clearly to employees and ensure that he / she had understood it properly. Because "Ambiguity about goals and expectations is dangerous." - Michael Watkins. [Tweet this] This discussion must be structured and explicit, rather than vague and implied. Such discussion must take place at regular intervals during the onboarding process.  

The company must also communicate effectively to the employee about kind of support being provided (i.e. coaching & mentoring) during this period. Especially in terms of Learning & Development initiatives provided through LMS or other platforms.  

The period for review must be discussed with the employee, which normally should be 30-60-90 days, after 6 months and finally a yearly appraisal. The company must provide specific feedback, guidance and needed support to the employee during this period. As stated by Michael Bergdahl, Wal-Mart “Deal with problem employees, preferably during the orientation period”. [Tweet this] He further says, “Wal-Mart deals with its non-performing employees each and every day and thoroughly orients its new hires. You should, too.”

LinkedIn adopted a concept of “Tour of Duty” for setting expectations. (Hoffman & Casnocha) They have Rotational Tour: for the beginners, Transformational Tour: More personalized, for a specific mission & Foundational Tour: For C-suite Executives.

 

3. Culture

As we look at the RECAP framework, Culture appears at the center, which highlights its significance in the onboarding process. Management guru, Peter Drucker underlines its importance, he says, “Culture eats strategy for breakfast.” [Tweet this] No matter how great your strategy is it won’t succeed unless you have the right culture. This becomes even more important if you have the responsibility to shape the culture.  

So what is culture anyways? And why it is so important for onboarding process?

“Culture is a product of the collective attitudes, values, beliefs, and behaviors of the people who work within an organization.”- Michael Bergdahl, Wal-Mart. According to Michael Watkins, “…these elements of the culture are often invisible and can take time to become clear…  Leaders who are onboarding into new organizations must, therefore, focus on learning and adapting to the new culture.” The above video clearly describes his views about the importance of culture during the transition.

He further says, “a deep understanding of the culture and politics is a prerequisite for leadership success—and even survival… If the company hires people who aren’t likely to fit with the culture, then little can be done to reduce the risk of derailment through onboarding.” Hence, it is important to hire people with an appropriate set of values, beliefs and background. Recruitment process must address this issue in the first place. There are various assessment tests available to find out the right cultural alignment. Even Jim Collins advocates having “right people” in the first place. (First who then what) And Tom Peters suggest, “Hire for attitude and train for skills.” [Tweet this]

Hence, companies must strive to provide cultural indoctrination to their new employees so that it would help them not only to survive but also to thrive in the new environment. According to Michael Bergdahl, (What I learned from Sam Walton, 2004) Wal-Mart provides to their managers a week-long cultural orientation and indoctrination session at the University of Arkansas at Fayetteville. Cultural training is considered a positive investment in the business and is looked at as a necessary expense of doing business.  

Imagine someone taking international assignment or dealing with virtual teams. Informing employees about cultures and sub-cultures prevailing within an organization can certainly assist them in proving their metal. Hence, cultural orientation must provide enough knowledge to the employees about the norms, values, and beliefs (stated as well as implied). It would help the new employees to quickly learn them and adapt to new environment and start contributing towards the attainment of agreed expectations.  

4. Administration

Onboarding administration is also an important aspect of the process which deals with providing necessary supplies and completing documentation formalities. As stated earlier the onboarding process should start with recruitment, some consultancies call this part as pre-boarding. Several administrative formalities can be completed even before employee’s first day at work.

Many HR Professionals suggest having an ‘Employee Portal' that would give employees access to company information and forms & documentation. It also becomes crucial in the era of Social Networking and the arrival of millennials especially as part of “employment branding” initiative. Issues that can be handled through portal include: Job Descriptions, Contract, Policy and Employee Handbook, Company History, Welcome message by top management (Video), Offer, Forms etc.

Onboarding administrations also involve preparing in advance and making necessary arrangements before employee walk into the office.  It includes providing Office space, Desk, Laptop, Official E-mail address, Passwords, Access Cards, Business Cards, Stationary, List of important telephone numbers, etc.  HR representative must formally introduce him / her to the team members and accompany for a tour of the office premises. The whole point of these efforts should be to make the employee feel comfortable and at ease on his first day.  

HR representative also need to ensure proper documentation of the employee review while coordinating with the reporting senior during completion of 30-60-90 days, 6 months and annual appraisal.     

5. Process

 

The final aspect in the RECAP framework is developing structured “onboarding process”. We must have more strategic onboarding process for employees, which is unique throughout the organization. It must have appropriate alignment with overall business objectives as well as other functions of talent management such as recruitment, performance, and learning & development.

The company can have different process depending upon the type of the employees. For example, we may have three different processes for (1) Staff, (2) Managers & Hi-Potentials and (3) C-Suite Executives. While the first process may go on for at least six months the other two must go on till completion of a year.

Following image clearly outlines the onboarding process (designed based on the White Paper ‘Onboarding & Orientation’ by Drake International NA.)  

The onboarding process must be integrated with recruitment at pre-boarding and with Learning & Development post-orientation. According to Aberdeen research 77%, Best-in-Class organizations had a process in place to ensure clear accountability given to all stakeholders involved in ensuring that the employee is set up and ready to go on day one.

According to 'The Rise of HR' (2015) Microsoft strives to engage new employees across the globe with their state-of-the-art online program called "The Welcome Experience". It's a virtual campus that allows participants to view executive messages and access learning content customized to their needs.

The Aberdeen report (Welcome to the 21^st Century Onboarding, 2014) states that onboarding and Learning & Development, both processes share similar results, including increased productivity and stronger engagement. Hence, they must be linked together, through this connection; companies can effectively manage to drive productivity and organizational growth. If we integrate onboarding with learning, especially with self-service tools like employee portals new hires begin training, building skill sets, acquire competencies, well in advance especially with the help of pre-boarding process.

It further states that another way to maximize the effectiveness of onboarding is to track the progress of currently onboarding employees to determine if changes need to be made to their own socialization, as well as for future employees. With the help of HR analytics, we can track employee progress. (White Paper- ON24’s Virtual Onboarding Solutions) For example, ON24 Virtual Learning Environment provides real-time reports.

These reports include summary activity and detailed learner information. It includes metrics such as the number of learners, learners by locations, and number of chat discussions. Detailed reports include employees profile, the number of training content and webcasts viewed, and whether or not the learner visited a particular training center. With such integration, we can monitor performance review information (30-60-90 days, 6 months) along with employee learning reports and help employees to improve performance by providing appropriate feedback, coaching & mentoring.    

In conclusion, I would say if we manage to take care of these five core aspects (RECAP) which are pillars of onboarding it would certainly result in improving productivity, retention, and engagement. An important message would be conveyed to the employees that the company does care for their employees. It would also help the employees reach the break-even point quickly and without any hassle. They can easily grasp the dynamics of the organization and immediately start contributing towards the achievement of strategic objectives of the company. Helping our employees to succeed would ultimately result in achieving our own strategic objectives. Because - “If you take care of your people, your people will take care of the customer and the business will take care of itself.” - Sam Walton, Wal-Mart. [Tweet this]