HRM Magazine Asia - April-May 2020 Issue

www.hrmasia.com

APRIL-MAY 2020

AN INSIDE LOOK AT WHY TEAMS ARE SUPREME AT CISCO HOW TO BUILD A THRIVING REMOTE WORK CULTURE

John Sumser explains how organisations can utilise the possibilities of intelligent tools

TAKING THE NEXT STEPS IN Price inc. GST $9.95

INTELLIGENT TOOLS

TIMES

SOFTWARE

• • e • • • $

Payroll

Payslip

HRIS

Leave

Timesheet

Claim

Appraisal

Training

{65) 6295 1998 sales@timesoftsg.com.sg SG :DI SMEs GO DIGITAL PRE-APPROVED

EDITOR’S NOTE

W

We will also be launching the eagerly anticipated HRM Asia Webinar Series this April.

The monthly webinars will be dedicated to CHROs, as well as HR and Talent leaders across the region.

And it is no different at our HRM Asia office, where we have implemented work-from-home measures to ensure the health and safety of our colleagues.

This is why I am writing this Editor’s Note from home, and why the April/May HRM Magazine Asia is a digital-only issue.

For the April-May issue, gracing the cover is technology industry commentator John Sumser, who will be joining the lineup for HR Tech Festival Asia. While highlighting how organisations can utilise the possibilities of AI and other intelligent tools, he also gives an alternative perspective to how intelligent tools may be traditionally perceived.

Dear HRM Magazine Asia readers, SENIOR JOURNALIST

Shawn Liew JOURNALIST

Daniel Teo GRAPHIC DESIGNER

Adrian Taylor adrian.taylor@mac.com SALES DIRECTOR

Luke Kasprzak ACCOUNT MANAGER

Edwin Lim MARKETING DIRECTOR

Yee Ling Chua MANAGING DIRECTOR AND PUBLISHER

Joanna Bush PHOTOGRAPHER

Tom White tomwhitephotography@gmail.com PRINTED BY

Times Printers Pte Ltd

PUBLISHED BY

e are ushering in a new era of work as the global workforce grapples with the COVID-19 outbreak and adapts from working in physical offices to working from home.

At this unprecedented juncture, staying safe and healthy should be the number one priority for everyone, including all of us at HRM Asia. Therefore, we have had to make the difficult decision to move the HR Tech Festival Asia 2020 from May 12-13 to September 29-30, in view of the current situation.

We will also be discussing and delving into the role of HR in a crisis such as this with HR technology commentator Steve Boese, while Lekha George, Cisco’s Head of People & Communities, ASEAN and Korea, reveals how the company is digitalising its HR processes and strategies.

There has never been any doubt about the importance of the HR function in organisations. In fact, it has now become more important as HR will play a pivotal role in preparing and equipping the workforce during this crucial time of change. And at HRM Asia, we understand the challenges you face as HR leaders being at the forefront to manage during these unprecedented times. Being your trusted source of information and marketleading content for HR across Asia for the last 19 years remains at the forefront of our mission to support you.

Having said that, there are still many things to look forward to and navigate in this rapidly changing world of HR. And we are excited to announce the HR Tech Fest Connect 2020 on May 12-13, where we will see the biggest gathering of the region’s top HR leaders, luminaries and professionals – virtually. Catch industry thought leaders such as Josh Bersin, Jason Averbook and Yvette Cameron LIVE at the virtual conference to get first-hand knowledge and advice on how you can prepare your workforce for the future of remote work, which is now.

DANIEL TEO, HRM Asia Pte Ltd 109 North Bridge Road, #05-21 Singapore, 179097 Tel: +65 6423 4631 Fax: +65 6423 4632 Email: info@hrmasia.com.sg ©HRM Asia Pte Ltd, 2020.

All rights reserved. Republication permitted only with the approval of the Publisher.

MCI(P) 028/07/2017 ISSN 0219-6883

Journalist, HRM Asia CONTACT US: Read something you like?

Or something you don’t?

Perhaps there’s some insight we haven’t considered?

Have your say on HRM Asia’s news, features, and contributions by emailing: info@hrmasia.com.sg

MEET THE TEAM

Shawn Liew

Senior Journalist shawn.liew@hrmasia.com.sg

A P R I L- M AY 2 0 2 0

Daniel Teo

Journalist daniel.teo@hrmasia.com.sg

HRM ASIA.COM

01

CONTENTS

A P R I L - M AY 2 0 2 0

ON THE COVER

10

TAKING THE NEXT STEPS IN INTELLIGENT TOOLS

At HR Tech Festival Asia in Singapore this September, John Sumser, technology industry commentator, and founder, principal author and editor-in-chief of the US-based HR Examiner Online magazine, will be delivering a keynote address on how organisations can utilise the possibilities of AI and other intelligent tools to rethink how HR is executed. Here’s a preview of what to expect from his presentation.

“As work becomes more and more distributed, HR’s role as the provider of answers and continuity grows.

This is an area where automation really helps.”

– JOHN SUMSER

F E AT U R E S DISRUPTION 14 IS SOMEONE ELSE SOLVING

PROBLEMS BETTER THAN YOU

TECH FEST 12HR CONNECT 2020

This May, HRM Asia is launching HR Tech Fest Connection 2020, a 100% virtual conference that aims to prepare the workforce for The Future of Remote Workore from May 12 to 13 in 2020.

02

HRM ASIA.COM

A P R I L- M AY 2 0 2 0

The word ‘disruption’ is a term conveniently used and something that many businesses strive to achieve. Neal Cross, Advisory Board Member at Razar Fintech, explains what exactly disruption is.

WANT TO GET CONNECTED? Get in touch with us here

instagram.com/hrmasia/

linkedin.com/company/hrmasia

facebook.com/HRMAsiaMag

44

16

16TEAMS ARE SUPREME

Lekha George, Head, People & Communities, ASEAN and Korea, Cisco, discusses the company’s culture, and how it won the Great Place to Work accolade.

THE WORKFORCE 22 NAVIGATING EVOLUTION TOGETHER

HRM Magazine Asia previews what is set to be the biggest HR and Technology conference in the region: HR Tech Festival Asia, taking place in Singapore from September 29 to 30

A THRIVING REMOTE 24 BUILDING WORK CULTURE

Robert Glazer, founder and CEO of Acceleration Partners, shares his best advice on how to create a thriving and productive company culture when your team does not share an office space.

AND THE 26 CORONAVIRUS CHALLENGE TO HR EVERYWHERE

US-based HR technology commentator Steve Boese examines the impact the COVID-19 pandemic is likely to have, and highlights whey HR has an increasingly important role to play in a rapidly changing world.

24

COMPETENCIES FOR 30 BUILDING DIGITAL TRANSFORMATION

The Institute of Singapore Chartered Accountants describes the pivotal role that the HR team plays in ensuring that the workforce is ready to embrace and harness the benefits of digital transformation.

30

26 REGULARS 04 06 32

HRM FIVE NEWS TWO CENTS A P R I L- M AY 2 0 2 0

HRM ASIA.COM

03

HRM FIVE

REMOTE WORKING: THE NEW NORMAL? The coronavirus outbreak is continuing to cause unprecedented disruption around the world, including in the workplace. A recent survey by research firm Gartner highlighted that globally, 88% of organisations have encouraged or required employees to work from home, regardless of whether or not they showed coronavirus-related symptoms.

While it is hoped that the world can return to a reasonable level of normalcy in the not-too-distant future with the successful containment of COVID-19, the concept of remote working is promising to permanently shift working patterns and redefine the way we work forever. If you are one of the companies considering the merits of building remote work forces, here are some pointers that may help bring more clarity to your business plans.

Keep communication lines open Working remotely does not mean isolation from your fellow co-workers and business partners.

Virtual platforms such as Microsoft Teams, Skype and Zoom keep lines of communication open, and if you are looking for more productive experiences, virtual reality brings a more personalised touch to not only meetings, but education and training programmes.

HR in the cloud Organisations are constantly looking to increase efficiency and productivity. Where remote workers are concerned, cloud storage allow them to work productively and securely from any location with reliable Internet connection. Working with realtime data, scalable cloud-based platforms also allow key organisational goals, values and tasks to be turned into trackable, actionable metrics.

AI and automation

While automation will continue to replace jobs globally (and create new ones in the process), organisations that are applying artificial intelligence (AI) to their workflow processes are beginning to reap the benefits. For instance, remote work teams can better manage their time thanks to AI-powered productivity applications and time management systems, while AI is helping incident reporting systems identify problems before they are reported.

04

HRM ASIA.COM

A P R I L- M AY 2 0 2 0

Internet usage on the rise As remote working becomes more prevalent, the burden on online infrastructure will correspondingly increase. This will be particularly true for corporate networks now being connected over virtual private networks (VPNs). VPN security thus, will be thrust firmly into the limelight, as no organisation would want their networks to be compromised.

Digital workplace here to stay As connected devices and virtualisation tools begin to proliferate in the workplace, the digital workplace will become less and less defined by location.

However, at the end of the day, it is worth noting that it is not about where you work, but how you work. Organisations need to embrace technology to build a collaborative and inclusive digital workplace, instead of a loose group of remote workers.

NEWS ASIA

MALAYSIA

MALAYSIA SLASHES MINIMUM EPF EMPLOYEE CONTRIBUTION RATE TO 7% THE MALAYSIAN GOVERNMENT has reduced the minimum employee contribution rate for the Employees’ Provident Fund (EPF) to 7% starting from April 1 in a bid to cushion the impact of COVID-19.

Currently, employees contribute 11% of their salary to EPF, while employers must put in a minimum of 12% for salaries more than RM5,000 and 13% for salaries lower than that.

Contribution rate for employees above the age of 60 remains unchanged at 0% while the minimum employers’ share of EPF

statutory contribution rate is 4%. Employees have the option to remain at their current contribution of 11% by submitting a special form available on the EPF website.

(The COVID-19 outbreak has infected 81,000 people in over 47 countries, with Malaysia recording 23 cases so far.

And with the outbreak impacting Malaysia’s businesses, the government hopes the latest measure will help stabilise the economy during this period)

SINGAPORE

SINGAPORE EMPLOYERS REQUIRED TO REPORT SALARY CUTS

INDONESIA

GOJEK PARTNERS INDONESIA GOVERNMENT TO IMPROVE DIGITAL LITERACY RIDE HAILING APP GOJEK has partnered with Indonesia’s Ministry of Communication and Information Technology and the University of Gadjah Mada to help improve the country’s digital literacy.

While digital usage in Indonesia is among the highest in the world, with around 170 million internet users, digital literacy is still relatively low.

And Gojek, which is a platform that provides ride hailing and delivery services and even massage services, will be launching a public awareness campaign on the various types of online fraud and how to avoid falling victim by instilling good cybersecurity habits through in-app games.

06

HRM ASIA.COM

A P R I L- M AY 2 0 2 0

COMPANIES IN SINGAPORE are now required to report any cost-saving measures that affect employees’ salaries to the nation state’s Ministry of Manpower (MOM).

Effective March 12, the latest rule is intended to be a temporary measure until the economy recovers, and applies to all employers with 10 or more workers.

Employers who fail to inform MOM of their cost-saving measures will be investigated and action will be taken. MOM has also provided suggestions on how companies can handle spare manpower such as deploying employees to other departments or implementing flexible work schedules, where they can reduce employees’ working hours by creating a ‘time bank’ of unused working hours which can be utilised in the future.

Indonesia – schools closed, work from home.

HONG KONG

UNEMPLOYMENT RATE HITS 9-YEAR HIGH IN HONG KONG

THAILAND

THAI STATE WORKERS TO GET FREE ACCESS TO INTERNET

THE UNEMPLOYMENT RATE in Hong Kong hit 3.7% for February 2020, the highest recorded figure since January 2011.

Official figures released by Hong Kong’s Census and Statistics Department showed the unemployment rate rose 0.3% for the three months to February, from 3.4% for the November to January period.

Total employment fell by about 0.9% or 34,400 to 3.77 million from December to February, while the labour force shrank by around 0.6% or 22,500 to 3.9 million. The underemployment rate from November to January also went up from 1.2% to a five-year high of 1.5% in December to February, with increases mainly seen in the construction, transportation, retail, accommodation and food services sectors.

TO ENABLE WORKERS

from state officials and state enterprise employees to work effectively from home during the COVID-19 outbreak.

In collaboration with four digital platform providers and six telcos, the Thai government will provide free Internet access via fixed and mobile broadband for three months to state officials and employees from 24 ministries in Thailand.

They will also be allowed to download free online platforms such as Microsoft Team, Webex by Cisco, Hangouts by Google and Line.

According to Buddhipongse Punnakanta, Thailand’s Minister for Digital Economy and Society, more than half of the work done by state officials and employees can be conducted remotely.

INDIA

INDIA’S TELECOM INDUSTRY CALLS FOR OPERATIONAL CONTINUITY INDIA’S DEPARTMENT OF TELECOM (DoT) has called for state governments to permit the movement of field staff of telecom companies and infrastructure providers, and give other permissions to ensure uninterrupted operation of critical communications networks amid the COVID-19 outbreak.

The DoT said that in case of restrictions being contemplated for the containment of COVID-19, all critical telecom infrastructure should be permitted to remain operational. “For accessing critical telecom infrastructure locations, the movement of the staff of telecom service providers/telecom infrastructure providers must be permitted,” added the DoT.

A P R I L- M AY 2 0 2 0

HRM ASIA.COM

07

N E W S I N T E R N AT I O N A L

US

US

UNITED AIRLINES SLASHES FLYING CAPACITY AS MORE GOVERNMENTS

around the world continue to impose travel restrictions in the wake of the coronavirus outbreak, United Airlines became the latest airline to cut flying capacity.

The third largest airline in the world will slash 50% of its flying capacity in April and May, a move United Airlines expects to extend into the peak summer travel period. With less passengers inclined to travel and cancellations on the rise, United Airlines foresees occupancy rate to be in the 20-30% range, if not worse.

Calling the impact of the coronavirus outbreak an “unprecedented challenge”, United Airlines announced that in the first two weeks of March 2020, the airline welcomed one million fewer passengers than it did in the same period last year. This in turn, is expected to translate to a US$1.5 billion loss in revenue compared to last year.

US PASSES CORONAVIRUS RELIEF BILL US PRESIDENT DONALD TRUMP has signed into law the Families First Coronavirus Response Act. The bill will provide free screening, paid leave and enhanced unemployment insurance benefits for people affected by COVID-19.

Specifically, US workers will be provided with up to two weeks of paid sick leave if they are being tested or treated for COVID-19, or have been diagnosed with it. Also eligible would be those who have been told by a doctor or government official to stay home because of exposure or symptoms.

Payments will be capped at US511 a day, while workers with family members affected by COVID-19 and those whose children’s schools have closed would still receive up to two-thirds of their pay, up to a limit of US$200 a day.

EUROPE

VOLKSWAGEN SUSPENDS EUROPEAN PRODUCTION WARNING THAT 2020 would be a “very difficult year”, Volkswagen, the world’s largest carmaker by sales, will be temporarily shutting down most of its European plants.

According to Volkswagen, the COVID-19 outbreak will, throughout 2020, pose “unknown operational and financial challenges,” prompting the company to shut down production at factories operated by the group’s brands. Production at Volkswagen plants in Spain, Slovakia and Italy have already halted operations.

Frank Witter, chief financial officer at Volkswagen, said, “Currently, it is impossible to make a reliable forecast [on COVID-19]. We are making full use of all measures in task force mode to support our employees and their families and to stabilise our business.”

08

HRM ASIA.COM

A P R I L - M AY 2 0 2 0

US

US LABOUR MARKET TO SHED 1 MILLION JOBS IN APRIL DRIVEN BY THE CORONAVIRUS OUTBREAK,

a global recession is now an inevitability. This in turn, could make April one of the worst months for job growth on record for the US labour market, according to Kevin Hassett, former chairman of the White House Council of Economic Advisors and, current vice-president and managing director of the Lindsey Group.

As many as 1 million jobs could be lost this April, as Hassett predicted that firing will retain status quo. This, however, will be offset by practically no new hires, as US businesses adhere to remote working guidelines and brace for a period of sharply reduced demand while Americans selfisolate.

CANADA

SMALL CANADIAN COMPANIES CUT WORKING HOURS THE CORONAVIRUS OUTBREAK has forced almost half (43%) of small employers in Canada to reduce hours for staff, while one-fifth have started temporary layoffs.

Announcing the figures in a recent survey, the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB) described the early economic impacts of COVID-19 as “massive”, with half of small businesses already seeing a drop in sales, while 40% of those affected reported a decrease greater than 25%.

“Even more alarming is our finding that a full quarter of small firms would not be able to survive for more than a month with a drop in business income of more than 50%,” warned Dan Kelly, president of the CFIB.

UK

UK COMPANIES URGED TO IMPROVE COMMUNICATION CHANNELS COMPANY LEADERS IN THE UK are poor at welcoming feedback, listening to what employees have to say and then implementing change to address concerns, revealed the O.C Tanner Institute’s 2020 Global Culture Report.

Two thirds of UK companies (66%) are not good listeners and only 46% of them listen to employees when there is a problem. More discouragingly, 28% “actively retaliate” when employees provide negative feedback, with just under half of employees (49%) feel that their ideas are taken seriously.

Robert Ordever, managing director of O.C Tanner Europe, said, “Listening is far more than just asking for feedback. It’s about communicating the results of feedback, acting on what you are hearing and broadcasting the changes widely.”

A P R I L - M AY 2 0 2 0

HRM ASIA.COM

09

THOUGHT LEADERS

JOHN SUMSER

TAKING THE NEXTSTEPSIN INTELLIGENT TOOLS

At HR Tech Festival Asia in Singapore this September, JOHN SUMSER, technology industry commentator, and founder, principal author and editor-in-chief of the US-based HR Examiner Online magazine, will be delivering a keynote address on how organisations can utilise the possibilities of AI and other intelligent tools to rethink how HR is executed.

Here’s a preview of what to expect from his presentation.

B Y S H AW N L I E W

hen it comes to artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning and automation, there exists an almost resigned acceptance that these technologies will forever change the way we live, interact and work.

While this may be a statement that is hard to argue against¸ the rise of these “intelligent tools” does not necessarily translate to diminished human control. “Intelligent tools are assistants, and cannot give you answers,” says Sumser, speaking exclusively to HRM Magazine Asia. “They can offer solid input to your decision-making. But, unless you are careless, the decisions should always belong to people.”

Highlighting that any intelligent tool is only as good as its data, he explains, “An intelligent tool is something that uses machine learning, AI, or some other form of

10

HRM ASIA.COM

advanced statistics to help you make sense of data. They are very good at understanding the past, and not so good at understanding the future.”

Sumser considers the use of intelligent tools as a journey, rather than a destination.

It stands to reason then, that for the best possible result, organisations should continuously improve the questions they ask, as they adopt and use intelligent tools to make themselves more flexible over time.

“All intelligent tools require diligent maintenance both of the tool and the data itself. The underlying models have a tendency to drift and need readjusting from time to time. Sometimes, when the circumstances change radically, the entire model is thrown off kilter and must be rebuilt.”

Redefining HR Tech In the on-going wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, many HR functions are being rebuilt, as many things then were previously taken for granted are being upended by

D AP EC R EI LM- BMEARY 22001280- J A N U A R Y 2 0 1 9

circumstances. In particular, Sumser believes that the way we think about HR Tech in general, and AI/intelligent tools in particular, have changed forever.

He cites the example of Socrates.ai, a tool that integrates all HR Tech systems, employee manuals and other sources of policy into a single conversational database, in turn creating an intelligent knowledge manager. “As work becomes more and more distributed, HR’s role as the provider of answers and continuity grows. This is an area where automation really helps.”

Through keystrokes, browser behaviour, work documents, communication/video streams and other collaboration networks, HR departments are already receiving tons of data from employees. The role that intelligent tools will increasingly play, is to understand both the content and structure of this data. “We will redesign work based on data, and we will be using intelligent tools to manipulate and understand that data,” predicts Sumser.

And as the world moves toward the next plateau of COVID-19, he advises organisations to start thinking about what business they will be in then. “Make decisions about restructuring and efficiency with something more than just cost-savings in mind, [because] many industries will be forever changed.”

Integrating machine intelligence with the workforce Much like the world is continuing to adapt to COVID-19, organisations will learn more about intelligent tools as they go along, says Sumser. “What we thought was right last week, or even yesterday, usually turns out to only be a part of the whole answer.

Being comfortable that we are continuously learning is a skill that can be taught.”

For any workforce looking to use intelligent tools, competencies of numeracy and the ability to be comfortable with maths and statistics, are basic requirements. Beyond that, avoid the fallacy of doing things in a certain way just because the machine says so, emphasises Sumser.

“Because all decisions are made at a point in time with a given set of data, nothing is certain. But, by keeping close tabs on your expectations and assumptions, you can

make good decisions and keep learning.”

There is a misguided inclination to trust the outputs of a machine just because it is a machine, while losing confidence when the machine makes an apparent mistake.

Neither point of view is helpful, as he explains, “Machines are like novice interns.

They do what they’re told, only stop when you tell them, and can’t innovate. Introduce intelligent tools to the workforce with the reminder that the machines are not the human. It is the human who is responsible and accountable.”

Making a statement on ‘AI Safety’ During his keynote address at HR Tech Festival Asia 2020, Sumser will also be highlighting the concept of ‘AI Safety’, the essence of which he defines as the anticipation and monitoring of unintended consequences. Likening it to an ethics

committee in earlier times, he describes a team of people who are tasked with thinking out worst-case scenarios and monitoring outliers.

To begin, make an inventory of all the intelligent tools in your systems. Then, clear monitoring of performance degradation should be an essential part of every single instance of intelligence in the system. This is because most data models age as their underlying assumptions become invalidated by the data they process.

Next, understand the importance of monitoring the health of the underlying data. “Imagine, for example, that one of your intelligent tools estimates the risk that a person will leave their job,” Sumser elaborates. “The models are built on historical data from an extraordinarily good economic climate with serious talent shortages. That data won’t be inherently useful in a downturn with high unemployment.”

Intelligent tools also have the net effect of moving decision making closer to the places that produce value. Safely managing the workforce’s newfound responsibilities, thus, involves patience and understanding, as does the fact that sometimes, entire data sets need to be discarded. “Once the model is completely out of synch with reality, you have to start over. One replaces models in intelligent tools the way one replaces tires on a car. Instead of patching the old ones, get new ones,” says Sumser.

He goes on to reveal the most important aspect of ‘AI Safety’, which is monitoring and governance, and recommends that every organisation should have a team that monitors, assesses, and questions intelligent tools deployments. “Because we learn so much, this has to be an ongoing function with rotating membership, which helps keeps the group’s perspective fresh.” To find out more, join John Sumser at HR Tech Festival Asia 2020. Registrations are now open at www.hrtechfestivalasia.com

“AS WORK BECOMES MORE AND MORE DISTRIBUTED, HR’S ROLE AS THE PROVIDER OF ANSWERS AND CONTINUITY GROWS. THIS IS AN AREA WHERE AUTOMATION REALLY HELPS.” – JOHN SUMSER

A P R I L - M AY 2 0 2 0

HRM ASIA.COM

11

F E AT U R E

HR TECH FEST CONNEC T 2020

HR Tech Fest Connect 2020:

The Future of Remote Work Is Now HRM Asia is launching the HR Tech Fest Connect 2020, a 100% virtual conference that aims to prepare the workforce for The Future of Remote Work

12

HRM ASIA.COM

A P R I L- M AY 2 0 2 0

T

he world of work is being profoundly affected by the global virus pandemic.

In an effort to protect their employees as they continue to conduct business during the COVID-19 outbreak, we are seeing a seismic shift in the way companies have adapted their workforce operations.

This has brought about a radical new way of thinking about how the workplace should operate. It shows that there is not an absolute need to have everyone congregated

together in one place. However, when we work virtually, we lose the power of a shared physical space. Technology needs to bridge this gap and enable teams to effectively communicate through the new technology platforms at our disposal.

So, this new future of work approach requires a shift in mindset, skillset, and practice from business and HR leaders as they help remote workers manage effectively.

It is likely that COVID-19 will stay with us for a long time and businesses will have to continuously adjust and fine-tune

SESSION SPOTLIGHT THE INAUGURAL HR TECH FEST CONNECT 2020 will see a lineup of over 40 HR thought leaders and luminaries share their insights into the strategies and tools HR leaders can use to build effective remote work teams.

These include Josh Bersin, Industry Analyst and Thought Leader; John Sumser, Futurist and Technology Commentator; Jason Averbook, Co-founder and CEO, Leapgen; Jean Leslie, Director of Operations and Knowledge Transfer and Senior Fellow, Centre for Creative Leadership; Pallavi Srivastava, Asia-Pacific and Greater China Talent Leader, Global Technology Services, IBM; and Robert Glazer, Founder and CEO, Acceleration Partners; Yvette Cameron, Co-Founder and EVP, Velocity Career Labs, among others.

Here’s a sneak preview of what you can expect over the two-day online conference:

Virtual Teamwork: Tried and tested ways to set-up for success across the organisation their operational measures and workforce management policies to ensure that operations can proceed as usual.

HR leaders, being on the front line during these unprecedented times, are being forced to explore into unknown territories, often at scale, and find ways to support the business function as they accept this as the new normal.

To help HR leaders make a successful transition to The Future of Remote Work, HRM Asia is pleased to announce the launch of the highly anticipated HR Tech Fest Connect 2020, a 100% virtual conference that will see the biggest online gathering of HR thought leaders and luminaries such as Josh Bersin, John Sumser and Jason Averbook, among many others.

The two-day online conference, which will be held on May 1213, focuses on the future of remote work and explores the strategies and tools HR leaders can use to build effective teams that are able to work across boundaries, functions, cultures, geographies, and time zones through the core areas of Leadership, Technologies, Communications, Recruitment and Wellbeing.

The HR Tech Fest Connect 2020 is completely virtual and free to attend.

Register now at www.hrtechfestconnect. com to immerse yourself in two full days of exclusive free content that will equip you for the future of remote work.

The proliferation of a mobile/virtual workforce dramatically changes the way we need to assess and develop effective virtual teams. This session will share strategies and tools for building effective teams that are able to work across boundaries, functions, cultures, geographies, and time zones. These insights stem from the Centre for Creative Leadership’s research with over 140 virtual teams from around the world.

Attendees of the session will learn how to increase their own effectiveness in virtual teaming as either a member or leader. They will also be given tips on how to recognise the shift in mindsets and skillsets required to lead virtually, and hear about researchbased best practices that contribute to an effective virtual environment.

Speaker: Jean Leslie is Director of Operations and Knowledge Transfer and Senior Fellow at the Centre for Creative Leadership. She will be speaking on May 12, from 2pm to 2.45pm (SGT).

Self-sovereign identity: A paradigm shift for the talent profile It is time that people are put back in control of their data – at least that is what many startups, major HR tech vendors, and higher education institutions are saying through their growing investments in research and development of self-sovereign digital identities, based on blockchain technology.

The concept of portable, validated, secure digital career credentials is a complete departure from the traditional talent profiles we currently develop for our workforces, and will disrupt the technologies and processes HR relies upon every day.

This presentation will discuss what is happening in the HCM marketplace, and where, in the employee lifecycle, self-sovereign career identities will add maximum value for individuals, managers, HR leaders and organisations as a whole.

The session will explore use cases for self-sovereign career profiles that support individuals competing more effectively based on skills and “stackable” verified credentials; removing bias from hiring and internal talent mobility initiatives; and speeding time to talent insight, acquisition and deployment, while reducing friction, cost and risk associated with data privacy and security considerations.

Speaker: Yvette Cameron is a former Gartner analyst and now heads the Velocity Network Foundation, which is the vendor-neutral non-profit that focuses on HR/Edtech blockchain standards. She will be speaking on May 13, from 11.15am to 12pm (SGT).

A P R I L- M AY 2 0 2 0

HRM ASIA.COM

13

F E AT U R E

DISRUPTION

Neal Cross: Disruption is someone else

solving problems better than you The word ‘disruption’ is a term conveniently used and something that many businesses strive to achieve. But what exactly is a disruption?

A

B Y DA N I E L T E O

fter leading the digital transformation at DBS Bank, Neal Cross left his role as Chief Innovation Officer last year to join the board of Razer Fintech, the financial technology arm of gaming company Razer.

The British expat is now tasked to replicate the feat and help Razer Fintech bring disruption and innovation into the growing and fiercely competitive digital banking and virtual payment space. The company now has its own virtual payment app (Razer Pay) and entered a partnership with Visa last year to allow payments without the need for a bank account.

The word ‘disruption’ is a term conveniently used and something that many businesses strive to achieve. But what exactly is a disruption?

There is no better person to answer that than Cross, who was awarded the most disruptive Chief Innovation Officer (CIO)/ Chief Technology Officer (CTO) globally by a panel which included Sir Richard Branson and Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak.

“I feel that we really need to dig deeper on what digital disruption is and how we can become disruptors ourselves. The common consensus is that disruption was caused by technology, but in my

14

HRM ASIA.COM

A P R I L- M AY 2 0 2 0

mind, it was really caused by a misalignment between what a company thinks it does and what their customers think it does,” he said.

“If you talked to most banks, for example, they would say that their business is giving their clients savings accounts, car loans, life insurance and investments. Now, if you ask their customers what they think the bank does they may well answer that they feel banks help them with their child’s education because they give them a savings account.

“The bank helps them solve their transport problems as they give them a car loan and car insurance. So, in my mind, every company has just one job to do and that’s to solve their customers’ problems and really, disruption was caused by someone else solving your customers’ problems better than you.

“Now this is true all the way through history, not just for today’s wave of disruption. Whether it’s rail roads being disrupted by road haulage, or the film camera being disrupted by digital cameras, the same pattern plays out: the companies involved didn’t really understand and focus on the problems that their customers needed to be solved,” he added.

Razer submitted an application to secure a digital full bank licence with the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) in January. And the company said that its fintech arm will build Razer Youth Bank if it receives approval.

Looking ahead to bringing another wave of disruption, Cross enthused, “I don’t think that any organisation has really nailed youth banking to date even though many have tried. I really want to see what it takes to bank the next generation and deliver this in a way that makes sense to them and the emerging world they live in.

“So many things across work, play and education are changing faster than ever before and I would love to build a bank that is hyper tuned to these changes so that it remains consistently relevant.

“I’ve had a sneak peek into what Razer Fintech has planned for its digital bank venture and am highly excited to see how I can come in to help them build towards a vision that is very much aligned to mine.

“It would be such an achievement to produce financially savvy citizens through this initiative, adults moving through life who are financially happier and making better decisions about their future,” he added.

Are you meeting your candidates’ expectations?

Candidates in today’s consumer-driven society are inundated with choice. They’re also savvier and better informed than ever.

As companies strive to differentiate themselves in a crowded market, articulating your authentic employer brand is increasingly important. The rapid adoption of consumer tech is also transforming the way we attract, engage and inspire talent across the entire candidate journey.

Invest in candidate experience today to attract the talent of tomorrow At Resource Solutions, we take brand advocacy for our clients very seriously.

We’re proud to have won Best Candidate Experience at The RAD Awards for a campaign conceived and managed by our Talent Marketing & Insights team in Asia.

Find out more about our award winning PayPal campaign at https://info.resourcesolutions.com/HRM-Asia.

Visit http://info.resourcesolutions.com/HRM-Asia, or email Mairianne Reardon at m.reardon@resourcesolutions.com to discover how our specialists in Asia can support your talent strategy.

F E AT U R E

CISCO

TEAMSARE SUPREME

BY JUSTIN HARPER

16

HRM ASIA.COM

A P R I L- M AY 2 0 2 0

For the first time ever, Cisco has topped the list in the authoritative Great Place to Work survey. HRM Magazine Asia speaks to Lekha George, Head, People & Communities, ASEAN and Korea (standing) for Cisco about its company culture and how it won the coveted award.

LEKHA GEORGE Head, People & Communities, ASEAN and Korea

A P R I L- M AY 2 0 2 0

HRM ASIA.COM

17

F E AT U R E

CISCO

hile tech firms like Google and Facebook routinely head up these types of attractive workplace lists, Cisco is currently enjoying top rankings. Cisco is a leading networking and security solutions player based in the U.S with offices all over the world. According to The World’s Best Workplaces list, 93% of Cisco employees say it is a great place to work and 9 out 10 employees say that they look forward to coming to work.

“People feel proud to come and work for a company like Cisco. We make sure the teams they work with are good teams and that they have an impact,’’ says Lekha.

People Deal To understand how Cisco treats its employees, a good starting point is its “People Deal’’. This is a promise Cisco makes to employees and what it asks from them in return. “It’s a deal, and like any deal there are two sides. What Cisco expects from its employees, and what its employees expect from Cisco,’’ adds Lekha.

This Deal is broken down into three components: First, Connect everything. Cisco promises to connect its employees with people, information, and opportunities, while it asks its employees to connect with each other to deliver positive outcomes for the company.

The second component is Innovate Everywhere. Cisco guarantees employees an “open and agile” environment that encourages employees to explore ideas and challenge norms. The third component is Benefit Everyone. The company promises to support its employees’ professional development, while encouraging and appreciating individual contributions.

Cisco is big on positively impacting the world, a statement that Lekha repeats often during the interview.

Teams If you could sum up the culture of Cisco in one word, it would be “teams’’. This is an important, if not the most important, reason for Cisco being voted the best place to work globally. In essence, Cisco is broken up into a series of teams, and the characteristics of its best ones are replicated across the company. “People care not just about the company but about their teams. So, we pivot a lot on teams,’’ Lekha explains.

The tech firm looked at the best teams within Cisco and came up with three characteristics it believes are its secret sauce:

18

HRM ASIA.COM

A P R I L- M AY 2 0 2 0

•P eople in the best teams play to their strengths •P eople in these teams feel they are in a trusted environment •T hey all have a shared sense of purpose and know what excellence looks like “We want to replicate that best team experience across Cisco. So, we leverage on those strengths,’’ says Lekha. In essence, everything revolves around teams. There are no annual performance appraisals; instead, there are weekly check-ins with team leaders. Employees talk and reflect on the week gone by, discuss how they added value, talk about what they loved and loathed and list their priorities for the week ahead. They also discuss what support they need for the week ahead. “By frequently checking in, that’s how success happens,’’ stated Lekha.

Culture Focusing on teams is clearly the bedrock of the corporate culture at Cisco. But there are other factors at play. The firm loves breaking things down into numbers (three characteristics, four elements, and so on).

It defines culture through six principles, based on the concept of give and take: • Giving your best • Taking accountability • Giving your ego a day off • Taking difference to heart • Giving something of yourself • Taking a bold step “Conscious Culture means each one of us is consciously aware of how we show up, what we say, how we behave. We feel accountable and empowered to act if we don’t see the culture going in the way the company and leadership wants it,’’ states Lekha.

Top down Like any successful corporate culture, it

starts top down with CEO Chuck Robbins.

He made these initiatives the cornerstone of his strategy when he took over almost five years ago (July 2015). “Right through our 35 years, culture has been important for us. It’s a way of life,’’ adds Lekha.

Culture is broken down into three elements: • Characteristics - behaviours and rituals • Environment - the environment you are creating for employees to feel included and respected • Experience – the company can say lots of things but as an employee you will experience culture first-hand in your team and interactions with that team Lekha says, “These are how we define culture, through these principles. When we talk about Conscious Culture it comes to life through these principles’’. But what exactly is Cisco’s Conscious Culture ? It’s important to understand it as it’s a key driver of employee happiness.

“This Conscious Culture framework is broken into three components, the first being environment. Cisco encourages an atmosphere of dignity, respect and fairness with a strong emphasis on diversity and inclusion.”

possible solution - it’s fun and learning through that environment of fun’’.

Higher up the organisation, Cisco’s executive leadership talk about servant leadership. “They discuss the impact leaders have on their teams and on the community. Our senior leaders are also very vocal about community issues, such as raising funds for homelessness in the U.S’’.

Future of work

“People feel proud to come and work for a company like Cisco. We make sure the teams they work with are good teams and that they have an impact,’’ ’

– LEKHA GEORGE,

HEAD, PEOPLE & COMMUNITIES, ASEAN AND KOREA

The second aspect is Cisco’s characteristics - how the company’s culture is shaped by its behaviours, beliefs and principles. This ties into Cisco’s CSR programme and culture of giving back. The third and final component is experience— essentially, the direct experiences its employees have with the company, through their teams and management.

Leader day Cisco holds an annual Leader Day event to bring together its global leadership and align it with the company’s business goals and beliefs. Events like this help guarantee Cisco’s cultural values trickle down the entire organisation. Leader Day is now in its third year.

“All of our leaders globally are taken offline. About 10,000 of them come together to take the time off to reflect on leadership, to learn, and to be inspired and to inspire.

If you think about it, it’s a significant investment for Cisco in its leadership for them to be able to take a day off and listening to leaders and get a different perspective.”

The theme for the 2019 event was Conscious Leadership - in line with Cisco’s “Conscious Culture”. “We put to them business challenges as well as peoplerelated and community issues and see what they would do. We also gamify the whole process so they can see the big picture. The way we put forward different scenarios to them and then they come up with the best

As you would expect from a fast-moving, forward-thinking tech firm like Cisco, it is always looking at transforming itself. “There’s a huge amount of change happening, in businesses and in the way we work. And what that translates to is that the workplace needs to evolve and how we do work,” says Lekha.

Whether it is digitalisation, AI or robotics, technology is changing jobs, teams and organisations. Cisco is making sure its employees are ready for that change. To help make this future-proof, it focuses on four areas: • Talent agility – to move from where work is to where it will happen tomorrow • Continuous learning mindset – staying mentally agile • Teams and leadership - how teams work, how to make all teams like the best teams, play to strengths, build trust and have a shared sense of purpose • Fostering human networks – learning to leverage connections around me Given its history, Cisco does not want to just be part of the conversation about the future of work. Instead, it wants to lead the conversation. “Cisco enabled the Internet, we built the Internet. All the technologies we create, we use ourselves,” says Lekha.

When Cisco talks about the future of work, it is talking about changing the way it captures information, workflows and introduces new technology. “As we focus on Conscious Culture and pivoting to teams, we are also on that path of transformation digitally,” she adds.

Part of that transformation involves HR itself. “We are not called Human Resources anymore. We are called People and Communities. That’s a reflection of the work we want to be doing going forward. Not just managing resources, but how we can focus and pivot on internal teams and communities externally,” Lekha concludes.

A P R I L- M AY 2 0 2 0

HRM ASIA.COM

19

Integrated HRMS. Designed for a Powerful User Experience.

With an experienced global team of HR specialists and project consultants, BIPO helps companies transform their HR operations to a whole new strategic level with improved employee experience through our all-in-one platform: • • • •

Personnel Payroll Training Finance

• • • •

Leave Management Administration Performance Management Claims

• • • •

Time & Attendance Recruitment Procurement Legal

Company Notice

Business Intelligence

Leave

Attendance

Payroll

Employee

Policy & Forms

Claim

9 Home

Task List

Calendar

My Account

Your leading, one-stop global HR service provider.

To learn more about our cutting-edge technology and award-winning HR and payroll solutions, contact us today! www.biposervice.com | +65 6877 6925 | hello@biposervice.com

Singapore • Mainland China • Hong Kong • Taiwan • Japan India • Indonesia • Thailand • Vietnam • Malaysia • Philippines • Australia

EVENTS

H R T E C H F E S T I VA L A S I A 2020

Navigating the workforce evolution together HR Tech Festival Asia, which is taking place in Singapore over September 29 and 30, is set to be the biggest ever conference for the professional HR and workplace technology communities across Asia-Pacific

S

et against the backdrop where technology serves as the guiding light to navigate the workforce evolution, HR Tech Festival Asia 2020, organised by HRM Asia, will provide a platform for regional HR leaders and professionals across all industry sectors to exchange new knowledge, ideas and innovation that shape the future of work.

Taking place on September 29 and 30 at the Suntec Convention and Exhibition Centre in Singapore, HR Tech Festival Asia 2020 will also allow some 5,000 C-suite and HR practitioners to pick up key insights from 120 thought leaders on how to successfully navigate the disruption and challenges presented by recent world events, including the global coronavirus outbreak.

With seven carefully curated streams, the HR Tech Festival Asia conference programme is designed to help the workforce leaders of the world add value and build the long-term capabilities of their workforces in a rapidly changing and evolving world.

22

HRM ASIA.COM

A P R I L - M AY 2 0 2 0

Manpower policies unpacked Making a debut at HR Tech Festival Asia is the ASEAN Future of Work conference stream. Curated in collaboration with Singapore’s Ministry of Manpower, this conference stream will see governments, employer groups and labour unions throughout ASEAN, as well as Australia, New Zealand, India, China, South Korea and Japan, come together to discuss skills studies, employment facilitation and HR capability building across the region.

Other conference streams will highlight specialisations and content focused on each of: HR and Digital Transformation, the Smart Workforce and Innovation, Recruitment and Employee Engagement, Talent Management and Development, and HR Tec. In addition, the extremely popular CXO Symposium will feature high-level strategy and workforce planning content for all those at the top levels of business.

2020 will celebrate the achievements of women in the HR Technology sector, and provide a stage for successful women business and technology leaders to share their stories and HR knowledge.

Hear from trailblazers such as Jeanne Achille, founder and CEO of the Devon Group; Diaan-Yi Lin, Senior Partner at McKinsey & Company; Siew Choo Soh, Managing Director, Group Head of Consumer Banking and Big Data/AI Technology at DBS Bank; and Stacey Harris, VP Research and Analytics at Sierra-Cedar, as they highlight how women can continue to play key roles in the HR Tech sector.

Women in HR

Region’s biggest HR and Tech expo

As women continue to break barriers in professional fields, HR Tech Festival Asia

Spread over 20,000 square meters, the HR and Tech exposition will feature more than

200 exhibiting booths. Leading companies such as ADP, Ascender, Microsoft, Pymetrics and SAP will be showcasing the latest products, services and technologies that will help HR practitioners navigate the workforce evolution, and accelerate their digital transformation.

The Expo floor will also host a special zone exclusively for the vibrant startup community in Southeast Asia, dealing in HR products and services across the region.

HR Fest Awards HR Tech Festival Asia is celebrating the outstanding achievements and efforts of the region’s top HR leaders, companies and teams. The winners across each of five HR Fest Awards categories will be announced on the HR Tech stage at the close of

LEADING THOUGHT LEADERS CONVERGE THE HR TECH FESTIVAL ASIA PROGRAMME centres around some of the biggest thought leaders from each of the fast-colliding worlds of both HR and Technology. The ultimate insider from Silicon Valley, R “Ray” Wang; famed researcher and analyst Josh Bersin; and technology industry commentator John Sumser.

Representatives from companies such as Maybank, Hubspot, Facebook and Changi Airport will also share case studies and practical advice on how to successfully strengthen an organisation’s capabilities from the top.

presentations on Day One. The categories for this year’s awards are: •B est Use of Technology •B est Workplace Culture and Engagement (< 500 Employees)

• Best Workplace Culture and Engagement (>500 Employees

• Employer of Choice • HR Team of The Year • Best HR Leader (Individual Award) A P R I L - M AY 2 0 2 0

HRM ASIA.COM

23

F E AT U R E

HR INSIDER

Building a thriving remote work culture Acceleration Partners is a business marketing company that has been working entirely remotely since it began 13 years ago, and has now grown to 177 employees worldwide. Robert Glazer, founder and CEO of Acceleration Partners, shares his best advice on how to create a thriving and productive company culture when your team does not share an office space.

R

emote work has been a key topic for years, but it is particularly urgent today, as the spread of the coronavirus is forcing companies as large as Amazon, Microsoft, and Twitter to telework.

While some employees expect to thrive working remotely, others fear they’ll feel isolated or unmotivated to work in their own homes. Managers worry about keeping a team motivated and effective without daily face time in the office.

Our company, Acceleration Partners, knows the benefits of remote work. Our

24

HRM ASIA.COM

A P R I L- M AY 2 0 2 0

entire organisation has worked remotely since its founding in 2007, and as we’ve expanded to 177 employees in eight different countries. We’ve even been recognised with numerous awards for our industry performance and company culture, and we believe this is because of our remote culture, not despite it.

While transitioning a team to a remote environment isn’t always easy, most businesses can excel under these circumstances if they follow certain practices. Speaking from over a decade of experience leading an award-winning remote culture, here are the keys to success.

Hire the right people It’s obvious but crucial: You cannot build a successful remote business without hiring employees who excel in that environment. If you’re hiring remote employees, you should consider that environment a key point in evaluating whether a candidate is the right fit for your organisation.

We’ve made our remote work policy a part of our interview process. This includes asking candidates if they’ve considered how they’d make the adjustment. It also involves reminding candidates that not everybody thrives working from home and ensuring applicants are aware of this before accepting the job.

Remote companies shouldn’t promise applicants they’ll love working from home and dismiss any concerns out of hand. A key driver of any effective culture is an honest hiring process – businesses need to be clear with candidates about what they value and what they expect, allowing applicants to candidly consider whether that culture fits their needs.

Beyond that, screen for certain candidate traits. Ask interviewees: Do they have trouble setting their own schedule and staying disciplined? Are they self-

Create organisational transparency It can be normal, especially in larger companies, for employees to feel disconnected from senior leadership. Under the wrong conditions, this can be especially true in remote organisations, where an employee may go their entire tenure without having a one-on-one conversation with an executive.

Leaders of remote organisations must proactively address this problem.

We’ve made top-down transparency a foundational part of our culture. This includes having bi-weekly all company briefings where our senior leadership team reports our company financials, progressing sales deals and operational initiatives to the entire company in real time.

When a company’s leadership is transparent – and invites regular questions and feedback – it creates an environment of trust for employees. In a remote environment, it’s vital for workers to feel safe to be open about their workloads and to bring any potential issues to leadership before they become unfixable. motivated? These questions will help reveal if a person is right for a remote environment.

Invest in technology Technology makes it easier than ever for teams to stay connected while working remotely. To ensure employees can connect personally and collaborate professionally, businesses often invest in video conferencing software such as Zoom, GoToMeeting, and Skype, and projectmanagement tools such as Slack and Asana.

Video is an absolute must for remote teams. Conducting as many communications as possible over video calls, rather than phone, ensures employees are more engaged, personally connected and invested in the success of the team.

These types of tools are also crucial for onboarding new employees, or transitioning a team to a remote environment. Employees need to know their organisation is committed to making the remote work lifestyle as comfortable and effective as possible, and these technology investments go a long way in assuring that.

Host face-to-face company meetings While remote employees spend most of their time working from home, it’s important to create opportunities for workers to interact in person, even just a few times each year. While having an annual in-person meeting is a great start – ours is called AP Summit – there are other creative steps businesses can take to foster in-person connections on their teams.

As part of our hiring strategy, we organise most of the company into what we call “hubs,” cities where large collections of our employees are based. This allows us to have semi-annual “Hub Meetings,” where large groups of our employees gather to connect in person and share feedback with senior leadership in attendance. It also facilitates regular collaboration days, inperson trainings and social events.

While remote organisations can’t recreate an office environment completely, prioritising face-to-face meetings goes a long way in bringing your team closer together.

to meet the new challenges as the business grows. Likewise, most employees want a clear path for advancement at work and want their leaders to help them grow even if they aren’t at an office every day.

Leaders need to make professional development a top priority – this includes creating virtual courses that employees can take on company best practices and policies, creating mentoring groups where senior team members can share knowledge with new ones, and setting aside time and resources for in-person trainings.

At our company we’ve taken this a step further – to develop our future senior leaders internally, we’ve started holding regular, in-person Advanced Leadership Training workshops where employees gather to learn from experts on how to grow their personal and professional leadership skills.

Building a great remote culture isn’t easy, especially for organisations that need to make a sudden transition to this workplace model. However, most organisations can develop the culture they need to thrive in this environment if they make it a priority.

By creating transparency and trust, hiring the right people, and investing in employee growth and enabling technology, business leaders can create a remote organisation that doesn’t just match a traditional work model, but outperforms it.

About the Author ROBERT GLAZER is the founder and CEO of Acceleration Partners, a global partner marketing agency and the recipient of numerous industry and company culture awards, including Glassdoor’s Employees’ Choice Awards two years in a row. He is also speaking at the HR Tech Fest Connect 2020.

Find out more and register for the event here

Prioritise professional development Companies thrive when employees are consistently learning and growing, rising A P R I L- M AY 2 0 2 0

HRM ASIA.COM

25

F E AT U R E

GUEST CONTRIBUTOR

Coronavirus and the challenge to HR everywhere As the coronavirus outbreak continues to create unprecedented disruption around the world, US-based HR technology commentator Steve Boese examines the impact the pandemic is likely to have, and highlights why HR has an increasingly important role to play in a rapidly changing world.

26

HRM ASIA.COM

A P R I L- M AY 2 0 2 0

I

n my last Inside HR Tech column, I wrote the following, â&#x20AC;&#x153;I really hope that by the time I have to draft the next monthly Inside HR Tech column the assessment and analysis of the technologies and companies in the HR tech market and how organisations are leveraging HR solutions to help them achieve their business and talent strategies will be top of mind again.â&#x20AC;?

Well, that is obviously not what has transpired in the last month. If anything, the disruptions to life, work, and people from the continuing coronavirus pandemic are much, much more profound than certainly I, and I imagine many of you as well, could have imagined. And with little evidence, at least here in the US, that the situation is likely to improve soon, (or even not so soon), we are all left to work through a set of circumstances the likes of which, letâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s admit it, we and our organisational structures and processes are almost completely unprepared to navigate.

A P R I L- M AY 2 0 2 0

HRM ASIA.COM

27

F E AT U R E

GUEST CONTRIBUTOR

“Before the coronavirus pandemic, it could be argued that no role in the organisation was more important than HR, since having the best, most engaged, most empowered people was the only way to succeed in a competitive world. I’d argue that now, HR, and your role, is even more important”

– STEVE BOESE

It is now almost certain that the coronavirus pandemic will be the defining event for a generation, maybe two generations. There are very few transformative events in a lifetime, the ones that serve as markers or that delineate history and memory and even cultural identity. These events often compel us to recall and describe the world with a new “before” and “after” framework. Some of these events stand out and endure in our collective memory simply because of the incredible uniqueness and even unexpectedness of the moment. The assassination of President Kennedy in 1963, Neil Armstrong setting foot on the surface

28

HRM ASIA.COM

A P R I L- M AY 2 0 2 0

of the moon in 1969, and I would even add the explosion of the Space Shuttle Challenger in 1986. We remember and continue to reflect on these events because of their acute emotional impact, and for the fact that when they occurred our world, in fact the world, seemed to pause.

The attacks of September 11, 2001 and the subsequent fall out from those events have been the global crisis, to which the current coronavirus pandemic has most often been compared. I think in part that comparison is apt. Both situations were for the most part completely unsuspected by the average person, both have shaken to the foundation our general sense of safety and security, (certainly here in the

US), and both are particularly unsettling due to a sense of ominous uncertainty that surrounded them.

Immediately after September 11, most of us wondered, perhaps even expected, more and similar kinds of incidents.

Where would the next attack happen?

What places or locations should I avoid?

When will it be safe to get on an airplane?

When will we begin to hold large-scale events like concerts and baseball games again? And on and on. Until, at some point that feeling began to ebb, and it became clear that additional or ongoing significant attacks were unlikely. And life, more or less, went back to “normal” or the new normal as it evolved. We

eventually felt safe, but for those of us who experienced those years, there was, and remains, a small, deeply held realisation that things would never be the same as they once were. As an aside, just because it popped into my thoughts, while September 11 was not that long ago, there is already an emerging group of young people who have no personal memory of that day and those events. My college student son was all of 8 months old on September 11, 2001.

Let’s shift the focus to today, (and, for the record, I am drafting this piece on March 20, 2020). The coronavirus pandemic, while sharing some of the effects of September 11, (surprise, sudden

and dramatic impact, lingering doubt and insecurity as to how long and how deep its impact will turn out to be), is already driving several other, different and, honestly, even more unsettling effects on our world and our workplaces.

It is expected that when new data from the US Bureau of Labour Statistics is reported, the pandemic might be the single most devastating job loss event in our lifetimes. Estimates as of today vary widely, but there have been reports suggesting that as many as 3 - 5 million workers will either be laid off outright, or placed on an indefinite furlough without pay. The official US unemployment rate as of February 2020 was just 3.5%. I read one headline this morning suggesting the rate might approach 20% as a result of massive, widespread economic disruption.

All of us in HR and in HR leadership have been wrestling with the incredibly tight labour market for much of the last 8 or 9 years. In about one month the pandemic will completely flip that script and change the HR and workplace narrative for who knows how long. Instead of our primary focus being divided across filling open roles, retaining good performers and developing a deep leadership bench, many of us will be forced into making hard decisions around staffing levels, reducing workers’ hours and cutting costs wherever and however possible.

While September 11 was awful, here is just one bit of context to help understand how the comparison of the coronavirus pandemic to 9/11 is not a perfect one. At the end of August 2001, just 11 days before the attacks, the unemployment rate in the US was 4.9%. In the immediate aftermath of the attacks, and with businesses of all kinds facing significant pressure and disruption, as well as the general uncertainty in the world, unemployment began to climb. But the rate only climbed to a post-September 11 high of 6.3% in June of 2003. By August 2005 the rate had fallen back to the pre-September 11 level of 4.9%, and continued to fall from there, bottoming out at 4.4% in May 2007, (after which it began to rise once again as the financial crisis was beginning). By most accounts, the workplace and labour force effects of 9/11 were relatively mild and relatively short.

The workplace and workforce impacts

of the pandemic, even the most optimistic ones, suggest much more adverse and troubling times for workers and organisations. It is already happening in the most directly impacted industries - airlines, hotels, restaurants, sports organisations - and it is certain to trend worse for at least a few months, perhaps many more. As HR and business leaders, all eyes will be on us to help our people navigate through these unprecedented times and uncharted waters. Before the coronavirus pandemic, it could be argued that no role in the organisation was more important than HR, since having the best, most engaged, most empowered people was the only way to succeed in a competitive world. I’d argue that now, HR, and your role, is even more important.

I will close with a quote from the author Paulo Coehlo, “When we least expect it, life sets us a challenge to test our courage and willingness to change; at such a moment there is no point in pretending that nothing has happened or in saying we are not ready. The challenge will not wait.

Life does not look back.”

Good luck to all. Be safe, be well and please take care of each other. It has never mattered more.

About the Author STEVE BOESE is the Inside HR Tech columnist for HR Executive magazine in the US, and chair of HRE’s HR Technology Conference.

Boese recently spoke at the HR Technology Conference in Las Vagas. He also writes an HR blog and hosts the HR Happy Hour Show, a radio programme and podcast.

A P R I L- M AY 2 0 2 0

HRM ASIA.COM

29

PA R T N E R CO N T E N T

ISCA

Building competencies for digital transformation While talent acquisition remains crucial for businesses to succeed in todayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s complex environment, talent development and retention are other factors that impact the disruption to businesses. The HR team plays a pivotal role in ensuring that the workforce is ready to embrace and harness the benefits of digital transformation.

T

o ensure that the accountancy and finance workforce is equipped with relevant skill sets for the future economy, the Institute of Singapore Chartered Accountants (ISCA) has launched the ISCA Professional Business Accountant (PBA) Programme to enhance the competencies of accountancy and finance professionals amid the digital transformation.

The ISCA PBA Programme will cover topics in the areas of Future Finance, Business Acumen, Professional Values and Ethics, Technical Excellence, and Leadership and Personal Empowerment. This is aligned to the ISCA Professional

30

HRM ASIA.COM

Accountants in Business (PAIB) Framework which provides an overview on the five key DNAs of a Professional Accountant in Business (PAIB). Upon completion of the programme, participants will not only be awarded the ISCA Professional Certificate in Business Accounting, but they will also be able to gain professional recognition by becoming an ISCA Professional Business Accountant (subject to meeting membership eligibility requirements).

The ISCA PBA Programme is run on an e-learning platform which allows busy accountancy and finance professionals the ease and flexibility of attaining new skill sets at their own pace.

A P R I L- M AY 2 0 2 0

At the same time, businesses can build capabilities of their finance team by ensuring that they are equipped with emerging skill sets and knowledge to handle dynamic business situations.

Organisations will need to continue to acquire, develop and

ABOUT ISCA

retain talents to keep up with the new skills required to drive the future. Constant learning is key to build a more agile team and having a future-ready workforce will help businesses safely navigate the uncertainties in a rapidly changing business environment.

THE INSTITUTE OF SINGAPORE CHARTERED ACCOUNTANTS (ISCA) is the national accountancy body of Singapore. ISCAâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s vision is to be a globally recognised professional accountancy body, bringing value to the members, the profession and wider community. There are over 32,000 ISCA members making their stride in businesses across industries in Singapore and around the world. ISCA is a member of Chartered Accountants Worldwide (CAW), a global family that brings together the members of leading institutes to create a community of over 1.8 million Chartered Accountants and students in more than 190 countries.

ISCA PROFESSIONAL BUSINESS ACCOUNTANT (PBA) PROGRAMME Aligned to the ISCA PAIB Framework which provides an overview of the five key DNAs of a Professional Accountant in Business (PAIB), the ISCA PBA Programme aims to enhance the competencies of accountancy and finance professionals in the key areas identified in the framework.

Hear What Employers Say...

Topics covered within the progamme:

• Self Leadership • Team Leadership

05 LEADERSHIP & PERSONAL EMPOWERMENT

04

DNAs OF PAIBs

02

• Business Partnering • Strategic Business Planning & Analysis • Sustainability Reporting

BUSINESS ACUMEN

TECHNICAL EXCELLENCE

• Business Analytics • Financial Modelling • Corporate Governance • Corporate Finance • Taxation • Business Valuation

• AI/Automation • Blockchain • Cybersecurity • Big Data

01

Lorem FUTURE ipsum dolor sit FINANCE amet, consectetuer adipiscing elit, sed diam no

03 PROFESSIONAL PROFESSIONAL VALUES & VALUES ETHICS & ETHICS

• Sceptical Mindset for Accountants • Ethics

GET IN TOUCH Find out how the ISCA Professional Business Accountant (PBA) Programme can help enhance your competencies.

Scan the QR code to register your interest today!

http://isca.org.sg/PBA

6597 5533

As a Finance leader, I firmly believe that members of the accounting and finance team need to embrace continous learning to stay abreast of the constantly changing workplace. Besides on-the-job coaching, undertaking relevant courses will empower accountancy professionals to handle dynamic business situations. The PBA programme is based on multiple e-learning modules that offers flexibility and encourages participants to learn while managing work and personal commitments.

Ms. Lelaina Lim

Group Chief Financial Officer Eu Yan Sang International Ltd

Sweeping disruption of the accounting industry is imminent.

Technological change and shifting business trends demand a new approach to how the industry creates value. Increasingly, financial controllers and CFOs will use data (structured and unstructured), robotics and predictive analytics to access financial trends and industry information to make insightful forecasts and analysis. The ISCA PBA programme is designed to enhance the competencies of accountancy professionals by equipping them with emerging skills to do more interesting and rewarding work that will add more value to the bottom line.

Mr. Neo Sing Hwee cpdinfo@isca.org.sg

Managing Director Head, Operations System & Control Mapletree Investments Pte Ltd

TWO CENTS

The day home became the workplace

BY SHAWN LIEW

The COVID-19 outbreak has created a wave of remote working around the world – will this herald a permanent shift in how we work?

It is 8.30am in the central business district of Singapore, and an almost surreal quiet has replaced the hustle and bustle of a typical day in Singapore’s financial hub.

Of course, this is not a typical day, and nor will it be for some time to come. As the COVID-19 outbreak continues to sweep worryingly around the world, Singapore has become just the latest country in the world to introduce a partial lockdown. From April 7 to May 4 at least, all work premises providing non-essential services in Singapore will be mandated to shut down. The majority of employees therefore, will be working from home.

Remote working, of course, is not a new concept. What is new, however, is the sheer number of companies implementing remote working today. A recent survey

by Gartner found that 88% of organisations have encouraged or required employees to work from home. This eye-catching statistic, however, needs to be taken into context – for many organisations, such a move is borne out of necessity and in response to COVID-19.

The great hope, of course, is that COVID-19 can be contained as soon as possible, bringing a much-welcomed level of normalcy back to the world. How much the world would have changed by then, is subject to speculation and interpretation. In the workplace, will new shifts in working patterns emerge during COVID-19, and become entrenched post COVID-19?

For the organisations who participated in the Gartner survey, perhaps they should all be asked this question: Do you intend to maintain work-from-home policies after COVID-19 is over? Could organisations come to contemplate that the future of remote working has not only arrived, but is here to stay?

If COVID-19 has taught the workforce anything, it is certainly that technology will not be the impediment to remote working. As more and more employees work from home, communication and collaboration platforms such as Facebook, WhatsApp, Microsoft Teams, Zoom and Slack all reported exponential growth in the number of users. Working from home does not equate to complete isolation from fellow co-workers and business partners, and there are an overwhelming number of tools available today for telecommuting and virtual meetings.

And while we will continue to treat artificial intelligence (AI) and other intelligent tools with a sense of trepidation – whether because we have watched one too many sci-fi films about machines

32

HRM ASIA.COM

A P R I L- M AY 2 0 2 0

rising to usurp the human race, or the more pragmatic fear of losing jobs to AI and its brethren – there is little doubt that intelligent tools, as they continue to be defined by humans, will allow remote working teams to better manage their time and resources. This could be via AI-powered productivity applications and time management systems, or incident reporting systems that help to identify problems before they are reported.

Suggestions that the Internet will collapse under the weight of usage if remote working becomes the new normal are exaggerated, to say the very least. While it is true that not all countries’ broadband networks are as advanced as say, Singapore’s, you would have to be assuming that the majority of the remote workforce are streaming Netflix and playing online video games when they are supposed to be at work. After all, these activities, which the UK’s Internet Service Providers’ Association termed as “evening peak activity”, outweighed the typical daytime demand for broadband connectivity, by 10 times.

The key to whether remote working can succeed therefore, is likely to lie with the human factor.

Consider the example of IBM, which was offering the option of remote working as early as the 1980s. By 2009, the company reported that 40% of its global workforce of 386,000, were working remotely. Then, came the big turnaround in March 2017, when IBM recalled many of its workers back to the workplace.

Detractors of remote working will argue that the lack of physical presence stymies collaboration and creativity. The study of behavioural patterns will tell you that socialising is a basic biological human need that cannot be adequately replaced by nonphysical interaction. While these arguments may not necessarily be erroneous, particularly in many Asian cultures, more and more studies are beginning to dispel myths such as remote workforces lacking focus or motivation.

Moreover, organisations need to recognise and understand the growing influx of Gen Z into the workforce. For these workers born into a digital era, the concept of remote working may not only be appealing but is also viewed, as a key criteria to achieve job satisfaction. And there is nothing to suggest that they cannot excel as part of a growing remote workforce. For them, and an increasing number of the older generation, the future of remote work is indeed, now.

�15

Marketing Institute of Singapore

Marketing Institute of Singapore (MIS) is the National Body for Sales & Marketing, the leading Training Provider for training, learning & development solutions. MIS provides high-quality Executive Development to Programmes professionals and corporations in Singapore and around the region.

We have been voted 5th Consecutive Year

Best Corporate Training Provider Thank you for your continued support and trust in us.

As we strive for excellence, we look forward to bringing you more quality programmes to prepare you for the future challenges ahead.

FOR COURSE ENQUIRES:

Marketing Institute of Singapore T / 6327 7580 W / www.mis.org.sg/seminars E / seminars@mis.org.sg A/ 51 Anson Road, #03-53 Anson Centre Singapore 079904