Human Capital magazine issue 11.02

GET APP AND GO

Top HR apps revealed P14 ISSUE 11.02

VIEW FROM THE TOP

Executive recruitment P34 PROFILE

HR at AstraZeneca P50 CELEBRATING 10 YEARS

HUMAN CAPITAL MAGAZINE HCAMAG.COM

Survival of the

Smartest Top tips from HR leaders Microsoft l Suncorp l Campbell Arnott’s l IAG l

HR Director of the Year 2012, Rose Clements, Microsoft

HR SUMMIT 2013 EXCLUSIVE COVERAGE P20

editor’s letter

Express yourself! Got a burning issue to get off your chest? Check out the readers’ forums at hcamag.com

Augmented reality: It’s just around the corner From social media to ‘big data’, each new year brings a buzz word in the technology space. It helps that Australians are generally early and quick adopters of new technology, grasping the potential well before their international brethren. In the corporate space, the same might just apply to HR and particularly recruiters. They will adopt anything, it seems, that makes their job a little bit easier and more efficient.

And what a brave new world it is. Day-to-day HR decisions can now be made with a touch, swipe and click – the range of mobile phone apps grows each and every day. It’s now possible for HR professionals to conduct much of their day-to-day functions ‘on the go’, from quick approval for interviews, leave requests, accessing corporate KPIs… even determining the ‘happiness’ of their workforce.

It’s a rapidly changing market and HR professionals are advised to jump onto App Store (or whichever means they obtain their apps from) to get the newest breakthrough apps. If you’re new to this, our guide starting on page 14 might provide some clues. What do the experts say? Basically, we ain’t seen nothing yet. ‘Augmented reality’ is just around the corner. While still in development phase, this has the potential to transform areas as diverse as L&D and recruitment interviews by adding a layer of ‘additional information’ over the real view. For example, in the workplace health & safety space, a mere gaze across a site will bring up real-time analysis of incidents, corrective actions and potential hazards.

Film lovers may recall Tom Cruise in the science fiction film Minority Report: memorable scenes show him flipping and pulling ‘screens’ of data and layers of information out of thin air – almost creating a composite of elements. A new reality, as it were.

Yet as HC’s resident technology guru Ari Kopoulos states, we need to plan our approach carefully. “Ultimately, it’s a tool. And it has to add value to the organisation by enhancing the experience rather than just being another gimmick.”

Wise words indeed.

In the workplace health & safety space, a mere gaze across a site will bring up real-time analysis of incidents, corrective actions and potential hazards

EDITOR Iain Hopkins JOURNALIST Stephanie Zillman PRODUCTION EDITOR Carolin Wun

ART & PRODUCTION SENIOR DESIGNER Rebecca Downing TRAFFIC MANAGER Abby Cayanan

CONTRIBUTORS People + Culture Strategies, The Next Step, Kenexa, Frontier Software

SALES & MARKETING MARKETING EXECUTIVE Anna Keane COMMUNICATIONS EXECUTIVE Lisa Narroway NATIONAL COMMERCIAL MANAGER Sophie Knight ONLINE COMMERCIAL MANAGER Sarah Wiseman

CORPORATE CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER Mike Shipley CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER George Walmsley MANAGING DIRECTOR – BUSINESS MEDIA Justin Kennedy CHIEF INFORMATION OFFICER Colin Chan HUMAN RESOURCES MANAGER Julia Bookallil Editorial enquiries Iain Hopkins tel: +61 2 8437 4703 iain.hopkins@keymedia.com.au Advertising enquiries National commercial manager, HR products Sophie Knight tel: +61 2 8437 4733 sophie.knight@keymedia.com.au Subscriptions tel: +61 2 8437 4731 • fax: +61 2 8437 4753 subscriptions@keymedia.com.au Key Media keymedia.com.au Key Media Pty Ltd, regional head office, Level 10, 1–9 Chandos St, St Leonards, NSW 2065, Australia tel: +61 2 8437 4700 fax: +61 2 9439 4599 Offices in Singapore, Auckland, Toronto hcamag.com Copyright is reserved throughout. No part of this publication can be reproduced in whole or part without the express permission of the editor. Contributions are invited, but copies of work should be kept as HC can accept no responsibility for loss.

Iain Hopkins, editor, HC Magazine

Human Capital wants to hear from you. Email us:

COPY & FEATURES

editor@hcamag.com HCAMAG.COM

1

HC MAGAZINE 11.02

contents

Check out the HC archive online:

hcamag.com

REGULARS

04 | In brief: news 06 | In brief: hr insight

FRONTLINE INTELLIGENCE

08 | In Step – HR career experts 10 | Legal 12 | HR consulting 13 | Technology

20

Cover story: When the going gets tough…

Times are tough, and the pressure is on HR to prove why their initiatives are effective and necessary components of business success. Iain Hopkins and Rose Sneyd talk to four leaders in their field for their insights into getting ‘back to basics’ in HR during 2013

50 | Profile: No looking back This month’s profiled HR professional tells Iain Hopkins about life-changing moments, adopting global HR initiatives and bringing corporate values to life

50

14 | Get app and go HR, like so many other areas of business, is moving ‘on demand’ and is becoming increasingly ‘mobile’. Human Capital looks at some of the best apps for HR professionals and recruiters

34 | The view from the top Is it really doom and gloom in the executive search market, or just a period of transition?

Human Capital talks to key practitioners to find out

HCAMAG.COM

3

IN BRIEF

news DISCRIMINATION

HIRING MYTHS SHATTERED

The month in numbers

75% WORKPLACE LEGISLATION

DRAFT ANTI-DISCRIMINATION LAWS OPEN FLOOD GATES OF OPINION

The federal government is currently receiving public submissions in response to its draft anti-discrimination laws – and there has been a watershed of doubts and issues raised.

Naysayers believe the laws go too far, will limit freedom of speech, and increase the scope for lawsuits. According to the Australian Human Rights Commission president Gillian Triggs, the fact that the draft laws prohibit the use of “offensive” and “insulting” speech is too broad and open to interpretation. “I would suggest the government consider taking the words ‘offensive’ and ‘insulting’ out [of the legislation]. It does raise a risk of increased litigation,” Triggs said. She added that discrimination cases should be based on the higher test of “intimidation, vilification or humiliation”.

Currently the draft law says a person has been discriminated against if someone treats them “unfavourably” on the grounds of “protected attributes” that range from gender to race, disability, age, religion or sexual orientation.

WHS

STRESS AND BULLYING ADD TO COMPO COSTS

Compensation costs for stressed and injured federal public servants doubled last financial year – the bill ran to nearly $1bn.

Comcare, the federal government’s workplace compensation insurer, recorded losses totalling some $564m for 2011–12. In a public document released by Comcare, the insurer said the blow-out was the result of a number of adverse factors, namely an increasing number of people harmed at work, in particular the incidence of mental illness claims, and that people harmed at work are not recovering as quickly as they should, evidenced by increases in the average duration of lost time for recent claims and poor return to work for long-term incapacity claims.

Mental health claims made up 8% of Comcare claims during 2011–12, and bullying accounted for nearly half of all mental health-related cases. Three in every four claims related to “body stressing”, and 15% were caused by slips, trips and falls.

4

HCAMAG.COM

Percentage of Australians who admit to turning to alcohol to unwind from a hard day at work (76% male; 67% female)*

48%

Percentage of employers in Oceania that allow employees to bring their own device to work. Just 22% of employers in European countries are in favour of BYOD^

12 million

Number of Aussies now on Facebook; 3 million are using LinkedIn; 2 million prefer Twitter# Sources: *Febfast, a charitable trust that encourages people to take a break from alcohol in February ^The IT Risk/ Reward Barometer survey, conducted September 2012 by not-for-profit IT organisation ISACA #Australian Internet and Social Media Statistics, October 2012

Almost half of unemployed Boomers have said age discrimination “was a barrier in getting a new job”, according to an AARP study. But hiring managers beg to differ – they say they are three times more likely to hire someone age 50 and up than a Millennial, a person in their early 30s and younger, according to a new US survey by Adecco.

In the survey, more than 500 hiring managers revealed why they prefer hiring older workers to younger ones.

They considered mature workers more reliable (91% vs a mere 2%) and professional (88% vs 5%). They felt older workers had better writing skills than Millennials: just 9% of managers said post-50s needed to work on that skill, versus 46% who felt Millennials needed improvement.

They also felt Millennials made major mistakes in interviews, such as dressing inappropriately (75%); posting potentially compromising content on social media channels (70%); and failed to ask questions that conveyed their interest in a job or company (60%).

RECRUITMENT

DECLINE IN JOB ADS INDICATE HIRING SLUMP

The number of online job advertisements fell in December 2012 to the lowest level recorded since January 2010.

According to ANZ Bank, the level of job advertising in Australia is 20% down on the most recent peak in February last year, and almost half the peak reached before the GFC. Behind the figures is a slump in advertising for mining jobs in Queensland and WA. Without a solid pick-up in the non-mining sectors as growth from mining investment shrinks through 2013, ANZ predicts that the unemployment rate is set to drift higher to around 5.75%, from 5.2% currently, by mid to late this year.

According to the monthly figures, job ads fell 3.8% last month, following on from a 2.8% decline in November.

IN BRIEF

HR insight/workplace stress Around one in seven Australians (13%) report experiencing ‘severe stress’, and 32% identify workplace issues as a source of stress, including long hours, heavy workloads, job insecurity and interpersonal conflicts. Two-thirds (66%) of Australian respondents said one way to reduce stress is to give employees more choice and power in how and where they work. What’s the global outlook?

GLOBAL TRENDS

Over half of global business workers have been experiencing a rise in workplace stress. For global business people, more than one-fifth report a sharp increase in workplace stress. ‘Increased focus on profitability’ is reported as the most cited cause of workplace stress internationally.

China reported the greatest overall rise in workplace stress (85.9%). The Netherlands and Germany were the best overall, with 47 and 48% respectively.~

In France, in 2004, 49% of workers cited they do not have enough time to finish their work, and that the pace of work has increased, with 41% also indicating that management has unrealistic targets.^^

The US experienced the highest increase of stress in the business community (35%).

38% say their stress levels have been higher in the past year, with the top causes of stress being either finance or workplace-related.~

In some countries, education level is related to stress level. In Poland and Spain, the higher the level of education, the higher the level of work stress.**

FAST FACTS

In Europe, workers cite tight deadlines, which rose from 50% in 1991 to over 60% in 2010.~

A total of 3.2 days per worker are lost each year through workplace stress

HOW ARE PEOPLE COPING WITH STRESS? ^^^

Stress-related workers compensation claims have doubled in recent years, costing over $10bn each year A survey of over 5,000 workers indicated that 25% of workers took time off each year for stress-related reasons Work pressure accounts for around half of all psychological injury claims while harassment and bullying represent around a quarter of such claims Australian businesses lose over $6.5bn each year by failing to provide early intervention/treatment for employees with mental health conditions

STRESSFUL OR NOT? 10 MOST STRESSFUL JOBS 2012* 1. Enlisted soldier 2. Firefighter 3. Airline pilot 4. Military general 5. Police officer 6. Event coordinator 7. Public relations executive 8. Corporate executive (senior) 9. Photojournalist 10. Taxi driver

6

WWW.HCAMAG.COM HCAMAG.COM

In Australia, 49% of respondents cited personal finance as the top source of stress, while 48% said their job is the main stress factor.~

10 LEAST STRESSFUL JOBS 2012* 1. Medical records technician 2. Jeweller 3. Hair stylist 4. Dressmaker/tailor 5. Medical laboratory technician 6. Audiologist 7. Precision assembler 8. Dietitian 9. Upholsterer 10. Electrical technician

40% reported drinking alcohol to manage stress

KEY SYMPTOMS OF STRESS^^^ Headaches, other aches and pains Sleep disturbance, insomnia Anxiety Anger, irritability Depression Fatigue Feeling overwhelmed and out of control Feeling moody, tearful Difficulty concentrating Low self-esteem, lack of confidence High blood pressure Upset stomach, indigestion, diarrhoea Weakened immune system Heart disease

69% reported eating something to manage stress 57% reported shopping to manage stress

DID YOU KNOW? Research suggests that females suffer more workplace stress than their male counterparts.

According to the survey, women’s stress levels were 10% higher for those in supervisory positions, 8% higher in service and production jobs than men, and 6% higher in middle and upper management than men in the same position^ Sources ^^^Australian Psychological Society *CareerCast, assessed by participants rating the following: Travel, amount of (0-10); Growth Potential (income divided by 100); Deadlines (0-9); Working in the public eye (0-5); Competitiveness (0-15); Physical demands (stoop, climb, etc. - 0-14); Environmental conditions (0-13); Hazards encountered (0-5); Own life at risk (0-8); Life of another at risk (0-10) ; Meeting the public (0-8) ^ The Kenexa Research Institute, a global survey of almost 30,000 workers **European Working Conditions Observatory (EWCO), “Work-Related Stress,” (2010). ^^European Foundation for the Improvement of Living and Working Conditions, “Work-Related Stress,” (2007). ~Regus, “Stress Out? A study of trends in workplace stress across the globe”

WWW.HCAMAG.COM

7

FRONTLINE INTELLIGENCE

recruitment

Craig Mason is the Managing Director of The Next Step, a specialist consulting practice in the human resources market. For more information call (02) 8256 2500 or email cmason@ thenextstep.com.au. Website: www.thenextstep.com.au.

Business drivers – a key to HR in 2013 In 2013, understanding organisational business drivers will be more important than ever for career success in HR. In a softened economy and a highly competitive marketplace, recognising the customer needs of each business and developing the internal capability required to meet those needs is a first order priority for HR leaders.

So the trick is working out what are the key business drivers impacting an organisation and then what to do about them.

CHANGING BUSINESS DRIVERS

This month, we are taking a case study approach to understand the approach that one experienced HR leader has adopted to build organisational capability in response to a change in business drivers.

The Consumer Goods sector is, like most marketplaces, under increased cost pressures.

The public are demanding more for less and retailers need to respond. This is resulting in wholesale change through all levels of the supply chain in retail, particularly in the grocery categories. Retailers are changing their models.

This change in retailers’ behaviour is fundamentally altering the business drivers of their suppliers. To help untangle this complex picture, we talk with Tony Martin, Regional Human Resources Director, Asia Pacific for Energizer. Tony has responsibility circa 7,000 employees in commercial and manufacturing operations in both developed and emerging markets in Asia-Pacific, including China.

HR’S RESPONSE

In looking at his remit across Asia-Pacific, Tony indicates that the business drivers of Energizer’s various businesses were all being impacted. He indicates that retailers across all geographies are all changing “at pace”.

Retailers across Asia in both developed as well as emerging markets are adopting similar models to those being adopted in Australia and originally emanated out of the UK. This has a tremendous impact on the business drivers of FMCG companies in all categories as they keep pace with this change.

There is a need to obtain the balance between value and quality. As Tony says, “it’s 8

HCAMAG.COM

Business leaders are looking for cold hard outcomes from HR in a challenging marketplace not just sales anymore but it is now about business management. Companies can’t just get stuff shoved on the shelf anymore to maintain the numbers.”

So by understanding this business driver, Tony and the team at Energizer are assisting their organisation to move from an Account Management mindset to true Business Management and partnering with customers.

Energizer needs to understand the customers’ business plans and help them to differentiate their offering. That’s a very different capability to that of the past.

HR’S ROLE IN THIS CHANGE

By understanding this change in business drivers, HR at Energizer is navigating the change process to shift internal capabilities.

They are doing this by driving cultural change strategies with a focus on building commerciality. (This cultural shift has been partnered with a program to ensure internal processes are improved in which HR has also played a major role.)

As well as driving the capability shift, HR has also facilitated a project with 40 people from across the region to get to the heart of growth opportunities and to deliver productivity savings.

Clearly, Tony’s HR team at Energizer needs to understand the business and its drivers to be involved in this deep commercial intervention.

In Tony’ view, this isn’t just about knowing impacts and pressures on the top line but also

impacts that affect cash flow and working capital requirements, forecasting, margin management sources of productivity leakages and the like.

As Tony indicates, at the end of the day, these are the things that are driving the business. The business leaders are looking for cold hard outcomes from HR in a continually challenging commercial marketplace.

These activities are also being employed to help the business grow in emerging markets and, where opportunity provides, to acquire businesses.

For Tony, it’s about HR delivering outcomes and better HR service delivery, ensuring stronger alignment to business needs and a more consistent and professional customer experience.

OPPORTUNITIES FOR A DIFFERENT ROLE IN HR

Tony agrees that there is an exciting role for HR professionals to help build business capability to meet changing business drivers.

But he says that this will require a different tool kit for HR Business Partners. They will need to be able to: • Know the business through the numbers but also be able to quote customer trends and comment on competitor data • Develop core change management techniques and marry these with facilitation skills • Develop a strong, confident approach with business leaders based on fact and logic • Cultivate a capability to understand unintended consequences and help business leaders see linkages • Focus on improving the balance between innovation and governance requirements

THE FINAL WORD

A key aspect of Tony’s role is facilitating and developing business strategy. Clearly, to do this successfully he has needed to understand the business drivers of the Energizer business.

In a constantly changing marketplace, the development of commercial skills and the agility to deploy them as required will be essential for HR professionals who want to be taken seriously.

MARKET MOVES

radar

Recent HR Market Moves Cate Hathaway is the new Head of Human Resources for the St. George Banking Group for Westpac. Over the last decade, Cate has held senior HR roles at Boral Limited including GM HR for the Cement and Corporate Divisions. In addition to her significant general HR experience, Cate has a strong background in insurance, OHS and Workers Compensation.

Janet Jackson has recently joined DuluxGroup as Safety and Sustainability Manager for Selleys/Yates. Janet had a background as a chemical technologist before moving into health, safety and environment, and has since spent 11 years working in heavy industry and scientific organisations, such as Australian Metal Recovery, Cement Australia and CSIRO. Gareth Russell has joined the team at News Ltd as their new Head of Business Partnering for News Life Media and Centre Functions, which includes Technology, Innovation, Marketing and Finance.

Gareth’s last role was with Perpetual as Senior Business Partner, People & Culture, and prior to that Gareth held the role of HR Manager, Retail and Business Banking at Westpac.

SunRice is adding to its HR team in Sydney. Steve Ivanovski has recently joined as Group Remuneration & Benefits Manager, and Liam Burns as HR Manager - Operations. Paul Di Michiel is moving across to SunRice from Objective Corporation as a Senior HR Manager.

Shailendra Tripathi has recently joined QBE to head up the safety function as OHS & Welfare Manager. Shailendra has an engineering degree and experience in quality, product development, risk and OHS working within the

manufacturing and rail industries before most recently working at Roads & Maritime Services managing WHS for RMS contractors.

Judy Vergison has accepted an interim assignment with Murray Goulburn as People and Culture Manager – National Operations, based in Melbourne. This role will draw on Judy’s significant experience in delivering strategic and business focused human resource management solutions to manufacturing and service industries undergoing major change in Australia, New Zealand and Asia. Recently this included experience in a large global organisation, including expatriate management, major change management and global talent management processes.

Isabel Lozo is the City of Sydney’s newly appointed HR Operations Manager. Isabel has over 17 years’ experience in senior HR roles with dynamic and iconic Australian companies including various businesses within the Coles Group including Coles Myer, Officeworks and Bi-Lo Supermarkets. Isabel is an experienced manager of national HR teams with a remit across all people functions including OD and transformation, acquisitions and restructures, industrial relations and talent management in businesses with up to 10,000 employees.

Treasury Wine Estates has appointed Megan Collins as their Melbourne-based global Chief Human Resources Officer.

Carving a remarkable career in GE and most recently NAB, where she was General Manager, People & Culture, Business Banking, Megan will bring a wealth of commercial human resources expertise to Treasury Wine Estates.

Simplot have recently been successful in making another key appointment in Allison Shevlin as General Manager HR Supply Chain. Allison spent a number of years with Sensis before gaining her FMCG stripes at Murray Goulburn. She is thrilled to be joining the well-established team at Simplot.

Lisa Kinnear joins Energy Australia in Melbourne as a Senior Business Partner for the Energy Markets and Corporate groups. Lisa has experience in the energy sector at Vestas Wind Systems in Melbourne and at Wood Group PSN in Aberdeen. The team at Energy Australia will be delighted to have her join them.

By supplying Market Moves, The Next Step is not implying placement involvement in any way.

HCAMAG.COM

9

FRONTLINE INTELLIGENCE

legal

Greg Harrison, Consultant P: 8094 3118 E: greg.harrison@peopleculture.com.au Margaret Chan, Associate P: 8094 3116 E: margaret.chan@peopleculture.com.au People + Culture Strategies

Drug & alcohol testing: what are the limits?

Drug and alcohol testing in the workplace has always been a contentious issue, striving to balance the competing needs of employers’ obligations under work health and safety legislation to ensure the health and safety of their workers and employees’ concerns about their privacy.

WHO CAN BE TESTED AND WHEN? Theoretically, all employees can be tested for drug and alcohol use. However, testing is predominantly used in industries and roles where there would be a high level of risk to the health and safety of employees and others if an employee was to work while “under the influence”.

While random testing and post-incident testing are most common, employers may also impose a contractual requirement that employees submit to drug or alcohol testing prior to commencement of their work day or shift.

The key thing for employers to note, however, is that the imposition of such tests, the group of employees to be tested and the frequency with which tests are administered, should be determined based on considerations of the employees’ roles and be able to be justified by reference to the health and safety risks.

CAN AN EMPLOYER DICTATE WHAT TESTING METHOD IS USED?

The short answer is yes – but this is subject to the qualification that the method chosen is not “unjust and unreasonable”.1 Recent decisions have confirmed that what is just and reasonable will generally be ascertained by reference to the purpose of the testing.2 Usually, testing is conducted to enable the employer to ascertain whether the employee may be impaired following the consumption of drugs or 10

HCAMAG.COM

Testing enables the employer to ascertain whether the employee may be impaired by the consumption of drugs or alcohol and therefore not fit for work alcohol and therefore not fit for work.

Two common drug testing methods currently used in Australia are urine testing and oral fluid testing. While some employers appear to favour urine testing, unions and employees argue that oral fluid testing should be used instead, since it is most effective a few hours after drug consumption – indicating recent consumption and possible impairment. In contrast, urine testing may return positive results several days after consumption when an employee is no longer impaired, but would reveal to the employer what employees do in their own time, raising issues of privacy.

With evidence indicating that neither method is currently considered to be more accurate nor superior, oral fluid testing is a quicker, less offensive and reasonably reliable means of determining an employee’s fitness for work and therefore less likely to be viewed by the Commission as “unjust and unreasonable”.

WHEN IS AN EMPLOYEE “OVER THE LIMIT”?

Employers can (subject to any legislative limits applying to certain occupations) set their own limits through their policies – including adopting a zero tolerance approach, but should ensure their managers are aware of their obligations under these policies.

In early 2012, an employee dismissed for failing her employer’s pre-shift breath test on two separate occasions was reinstated after Fair Work Australia identified inconsistencies in the permissible Blood Alcohol Concentration limit found in her employer’s policies and heard evidence that her managers had failed to apply the disciplinary procedures set out in the policy consistently.3 However, consistency does not mean that the same threshold needs to apply to all roles within an organisation. Although it may seem unfair, the Endeavour Energy4 decision last year confirmed that it is perfectly acceptable for different thresholds to apply to different groups of employees. In fact, having a “one-size-fits-all” approach could actually be unjust and unreasonable.

Instead, employers should conduct a risk analysis of all roles and determine thresholds accordingly.5 Ultimately, for any drug and alcohol testing regime to be successful, it is important to gain the trust of employees by engaging them in education and training programs prior to roll-out.

1. Australian Federated Union of Locomotive Engineers v State Rail Authority of New South Wales (1984) 295 CAR 188 2. Endeavour Energy v CEPU [2012] FWAFB 4998; CFMEU v HWE Mining Pty Ltd [2011] FWA 8288 3. Wendy Day v Sodexo Remote Sites Australia Pty Ltd [2011] FWA 8505 4. Endeavour Energy v CEPU [2012] FWA 1809 5. Ibid, at [14] (Hamberger SDP)

HCAMAG.COM 11

FRONTLINE INTELLIGENCE

HR consulting

Stuart Havill, Senior Consultant at Kenexa, and IBM Company, Australia Level 2, 451 Little Bourke St, Melbourne Phone (03) 9602 3899 or email stuart.havill@kenexa.com

Employee engagement – an indication of your culture If you have spent time exploring the notion of organisational culture, you will no doubt be familiar with the popularised phrase ‘Culture eats strategy for breakfast’.

First coined in the mid-1970s by management consultant Peter Drucker, there has since been no shortage of studies that demonstrate the impact that organisational culture has on business performance and success.

Organisations that proactively go about managing their culture attain greater returns across key metrics such as revenue, profit and customer service than those that don’t.

Strategy remains just as important, but if your culture does not support, or is not aligned with your strategic direction, then it is highly likely your chances of success are diminished.

The importance of culture and its role in achieving success was exemplified to me recently when I read the biography of 2012 Rugby World Cup winning All Black Coach, Graham Henry. Appointed in 2004 as head coach, Henry was shocked to discover that despite taking over the reins of a successful legacy that has for so long been a major contributor to New Zealand’s national identity, he had instead inherited a group of individuals who were far from satisfied with the internal workings of the team.

Although extremely proud to represent their country at the highest level, players were unhappy with the team environment and instead gained far greater satisfaction when playing for their local team than the national one.

Fortunately for Henry, he was able to identify early on that the team’s culture was something that needed to be addressed immediately if he was to have any chance of leading his team to success.

In the workplace, however, a prevailing culture may not be as readily apparent as it was for Henry. While understanding and managing culture is fundamental to success, 12

HCAMAG.COM

I suspect that for many organisations the idea of going down the road of a ‘cultural change’ initiative can be a step too far.

So what options are there then for those organisations that want to gain an appreciation of their culture, but for whatever reason are not ready or prepared to make the leap to a fully-fledged cultural initiative?

Because engagement and people are such a core part of culture, a carefully planned employee engagement survey is an effective way to get a firm grasp of your organisation’s culture. For example, the Kenexa measure for employee engagement would help you understand employees’ level of ‘pride in the organisation’, ‘satisfaction with the organisation as a place to work’, ‘willingness to advocate the organisation as a great place to work’ and ‘commitment to staying with the organisation’.

More importantly however, with robust analysis a well-designed engagement survey will give you more than just a measure of employee engagement levels. It will also identify for you specific factors within the work environment that are having the

greatest impact on employee engagement levels (pride, satisfaction, advocacy and commitment), and therefore your organisation’s ability to perform.

An employee engagement survey is a relatively easy way to gain an appreciation of ‘what it is like around here’. Where it differs from an organisational culture assessment is that the survey itself doesn’t sufficiently provide an explanation as to ‘why it is like this around here’. What is does give you however, is the opportunity to sit down with your employees and share the results, and to discuss in depth what the results really mean from their perspective, i.e. finding out ‘why it is like this here’.

Done right, it is this process of ‘action planning’, as it is more commonly known, where the greatest value of an engagement survey lays in shaping your organisation’s culture. It just may even be the catalyst for your organisation to go the extra step and explore its culture to greater depth.

Regardless, before any decision can be made in relation to the direction of your organisation’s culture, you need to know what you are working with to begin.

FRONTLINE INTELLIGENCE Nick Southcombe is the General Manager of Frontier Software, an Australian-based global provider of HR and Payroll software and associated services. Nick can be contacted at nick.southcombe@ frontiersoftware.com.au or by phoning 03 9639 0777. Website: www.frontiersoftware.com

technology

Mobile HR now a reality

Q

Increasingly, we are hearing about HR applications becoming available on smartphones and web-enabled devices. Is this just a fad or can real productivity gains be made by using this technology?

A

The pace of change across the technology landscape is breathtaking and it can be challenging to identify fads from those advancements that deliver real value to the enterprise and, more importantly, HR. It’s difficult to ignore the popularity of the smartphone and web-enabled devices; adoption of these devices has accelerated in recent times. In fact, the number of smartphones in the Australian market is set to exceed 13 million by 2013, according to the latest figures from mobileSQUARED. HR vendors with agile solutions are making versions of their software available for smart devices. The term for this innovative HR technology is ‘mobile HR’, and it is a key trend that will provide savvy HR practitioners with another tool to ease the tactical burden and improve efficiency.

With these devices so widely used, many tech-savvy organisations can harness this technology and drive productivity by providing access to their Human Capital Solution from smart devices.

THE MOBILE WORKFORCE

As the workforce evolves and the way organisations deliver HR information matures, the use of mobile HR can drive productivity and deliver increased HR service levels to the enterprise.

Generation Y easily adapts to this technology and remains engaged with employers that can provide information in an anytime/anywhere format.

It’s no secret Gen Y has grown up in an instant world – where everything is available at their fingertips. With mobile HR, the ‘instant’ generation can become more engaged when their personal information,

No longer are HR and Payroll required to be at their desk to ensure workforce initiatives are executed and remain on track leave requests and payment advice are available via this innovative technology.

Talent acquisition is a growing concern in some industries and mobile HR can assist.

Recruitment is an ideal user of this technology. Imagine the time savings that can be achieved when job applications can be made from a smartphone or web-enabled device and interview requests or candidate updates can be sent via SMS. Many recruiters are using social media to advertise roles, and capturing applicants through this medium will increase the quality and quantity of applications. The employer brand is also enhanced by streamlining the process and being seen as an innovative technology user.

Mobile HR is a great fit with industries that have a dispersed and mobile workforce.

The ability to complete and submit timesheets or expense requests on the fly gives management real-time access to workforce costs and expenses.

MOBILITY FOR HR

Mobile HR transforms the HR function. No longer are HR and Payroll required to be at their desk to ensure workforce initiatives are executed and remain on track. With

mobile HR it’s easy to manage approvals and change requests anywhere/anytime.

REPORTING

Management can also benefit from mobile HR capabilities. Line managers will discover productivity savings with the ability to approve leave requests and manage timesheets from anywhere. Reporting is also available at their fingertips, delivering 24/7 access to workforce data – when they need it.

SECURITY

Some organisations are cautious when considering using smart devices for fear that sensitive data may not be secure. As long as your Human Capital Solution provider has developed the solution with a solid security framework, there will be no increased data security risk.

POLICIES

With the growing use of mobile HR and similar technologies on smartphones, employers need to consider their smartphone usage policy to ensure everyone understands how the devices are to be used and what is expected.

In North America, there have been cases where employees have claimed over-time while using smartphones outside of office hours. A well-documented usage policy will minimise the risk of litigation and ensure there is no expectation of unfair work practices.

Mobile HR represents an exciting evolution for HR – the ability to deliver workforce data to smartphones and web-enabled devices will revolutionise HR service delivery. The productivity savings that accompany this technology are enormous and should be considered by any organisation that is preparing a business case for the implementation of mobile HR. Adopting this type of technology can remove the tactical burden from HR and provide more time for them to focus on developing workforce strategy and driving execution.

HCAMAG.COM 13

GET APP AND GO

HR, like so many other areas of business, is moving ‘on demand’ and becoming increasingly mobile.

Human Capital looks at why this is happening and lists some of the best apps for HR professionals and recruiters From software providers to HR outsourcing services, the number of mobile offerings in HR and recruiting is on the rise. Some vendors are offering mobile versions of their web-based services. Others are developing mobile apps for iOS, Android and Windows Mobile platforms. The challenge for vendors is to determine which functions their customers most need on the go.

CONVENIENCE AND CONNECTIVITY

The convenience factor of mobile technology can’t be overstated. “It’s all about delivering tools and resources to your people – wherever they are,” confirms Kyle Lagunas, market analyst at Software Advice. Thus, with the right technology, a shift supervisor can view and approve time off requests or schedule changes without logging onto his desktop computer. A hiring manager in 14

HCAMAG.COM

HR TECHNOLOGY

HR apps outside sales can review candidates on her way to a client lunch. “That level of connectivity can foster a more productive – and engaged – workforce,” Lagunas adds.

John Hansen, senior director, HCM applications development, JAPAC at Oracle, says that connectivity has two flavours: being able to rapidly access the information you need to do your job in order to make the most informed decision; and secondly, connectivity across the business. “The collaborative aspect is where you can start joining people together across the enterprise who have mutual requirements for data or information.”

Ari Kopoulos, national sales & marketing manager at EmployeeConnect, says the impact is wide-reaching.

“The unprecedented connectivity, convenience and power mobile technology offers is revolutionising the way information is delivered, consumed, and responded to. It’s a medium that facilitates real-time decisionmaking,” he says.

For most executives, he adds, mobile technology is a way of life. Armed with dashboards, customer details and content, they can enter conversations about products and services, and be strategic decision-makers wherever they are. From a back-office perspective, many HR processes such as approval and notification can be accelerated.

Mobile technology has also redefined the user experience, offering a boost to employee engagement.

Kopoulos explains: “That moment, where the fingertip meets the screen, creates a level of intimacy and control lacking in a keyboard or mouse. This action is so natural; the user focuses on outcomes rather than the process. It’s engaging, empowering and slightly addictive, and integration into every function of the workplace will be expected by the next generation of workers who live and breathe technology.”

Andrew Cross, managing director, technology, at recruitment firm Ambition, says the potential for HR to avail itself of technology solutions which streamline and improve its value proposition is exciting. What those applications might be is the big question.

“With the volume of data that is now collected, there is a great opportunity for a tool which captures and aggregates the information on an employee and stores it in a secure manner. That one-stop shop, if you will, could contain previous work experience, skills and qualifications, pay and benefit entitlements and any other employment-related content,” he says.

Hansen adds that Oracle and other vendors are now undertaking an evaluation into what’s appropriate to move into a mobile environment. “What are appropriate functions and capabilities to roll up into apps? Is it solving an existing problem? Is there some new type of capability we need to support, some sort of new business process? It’s much more than just moving traditional desk-bound capabilities into a mobile environment.”

What is appropriate? Not all HR data is necessary;

much of it is still processing and transactional data – this does not lend itself to on-the-go functionality. However, Hansen says it’s “particularly interesting” to provide aggregated views of HR data to multiple constituents across the business, and then add in cross-functional information in order to answer relevant questions that managers or department managers might have.

For example, who are the best sales people in my team?

What are our production results to date? Who are our largest customers and which of my people are managing those? “Increasingly, we’re adopting this approach where we team HR data with cross-functional data so it’s contextualised based on the roles or department or sort of organisation that’s using the mobile data. Mobile applications are purpose-built to display this type of information,” Hansen says.

THE ROAD TO NOW

The recruiting industry has always been quick to adopt new technology. From the fax machine to applicant tracking systems to social tech – and now mobile – there’s a large demand for tools that make their lives easier. This is evident in the number of mobile offerings in the recruitment space. Lagunas notes this development is much higher than, say, mobile performance management or training and development apps. While demand for mobile HR and talent management tech is growing, the market for mobile recruiting is still a step ahead of the rest.

Cross agrees that the focus to date has been on acquiring and managing talent, yet he feels that no one system has captured the hearts and minds of corporates.

“What’s missing for many is not so much the features and benefits but rather the correct customisation required to get the best sync with an organisation’s business process flows. I think we’ll see further development in this space for a couple more years but the exciting area for most business managers is in the analytics space.”

THE ROAD AHEAD

Indeed, Cross notes that while Australia has yet to heavily trade on the benefits available from mining employee data, he believes this will start to happen in 2013 as Big Data tools become more user friendly and accessible for the SME marketplace. “We don’t know what we might start to find if we creatively start to mine our employee data but the potential for improvements in all areas of the workplace is plentiful,” he says.

Lagunas adds that video recruiting platforms are increasingly popular, as they are major time savers for recruiters. “I wouldn’t be surprised to see more mobile apps using video to deliver content and messaging – livestreams of training courses, onboarding videos, etc,” he says.

HCAMAG.COM 15

HR TECHNOLOGY

HR apps “A rather new technology in late experimental stage but slowly making its way into applications is augmented reality” – ARI KOPOULOS

Don’t forget!

You can get all the HCAMAG.COM HR news, features and profiles from your favourite magazine in the Human Capital iPad app. Go to the homepage at hcamag.com or visit the iTunes store.

16

HCAMAG.COM

Location awareness is a critical area for development.

“We haven’t really thought about what this will allow us to do,” Hansen concedes. “When we talk about location we also need to talk about presence – not only where someone is, but also that presence dimension – are they online or offline? If they’re online are they active or idle?

We’ve seen this in messenger applications and some of these areas, but if you do know where someone is you also need to know if you can access them or what sort of access mode they’re in.”

Even more interesting, Hansen says, is when other people are checking in and it’s possible to get a sense of who else is in that location or will be at the location.

“Then we start thinking about more sophisticated things like receiving location-based alerts and having information tailored to the location you’ve just moved into, pushing quite specific info down to you, or even filtering or limiting the information you receive. It’s being smart about what options might be made available to certain business functions, certain transactions, and displayed in certain screens based in that particular location.”

Kopoulos believes mobile technology’s greatest value proposition for HR may come in learning. “On many levels it’s set to revolutionise the command and control nature of learning, evolving into a perfect learning companion,” he explains. “Naturally, it requires a partnership with the right application that’s native to social applications and facilitates collaboration and knowledge sharing.”

Online conversations are a vital part of learning and a significant source of new ideas and enrichment of the corporate knowledge base. In this regard, mobile offers an almost instantaneous exchange wherever you are.

As such, Kopoulos notes, the way learning content is presented in the workplace is set to change. “We are becoming less tolerant of complexity, long texts and delay in searching. Mobile technology offers a more immediate, richer learning experience. It gives us the choice to blend options such as media, content and access to thought leaders and mentors, addressing our

personal learning styles and preferences,” he says.

Added to this is a burgeoning trend towards applying game mechanics and psychology to business processes in order to drive and align employees towards a common strategic goal. Applications that harness gamification express the process in terms of challenge progress, status, reward, social media recognition and expression.

“A rather new technology in late experimental stage but slowly making its way into applications is augmented reality,” Kopoulos says. “AR enhances your perception of reality with interactive data and sensory input, in semantic context. An obvious and immediate application of AR is in learning. Although a few years away, you can expect a future of truly immersive learning experiences where content is truly sticky and reality is blurred.”

Other ‘what if’ scenarios that may benefit from adding a layer of additional information over the real view include performance review conversations with scrolling peer reviews, competency analysis and learning milestones.

Candidate interviews may also benefit, with feedback from references, body language analysis and real-time fact checking. Perhaps even health & safety, where a mere gaze across a site will bring up real-time analysis of incidents, corrective actions and potential hazards.

WHERE TO GET THEM

While some apps are available as standalone products on the Android Market or App Store, many Software-asa-Service (SaaS) providers have mobile versions of their web applications created specifically for use on mobile devices.

Apple iOS apps can be found on the App Store; Android apps on Google Play; BlackBerry apps on BlackBerry App World; and Windows Phone apps on the Windows Phone Marketplace.

Although it’s a rapidly changing market, with new apps launched every day, Lagunas has created his own list of top HR apps via his online blog (blog.softwareadvice. com). Here’s just a small sample of what’s out there:

ACQUIRING TALENT

KENEXA 2X MOBILE helps hiring managers to approve job requisitions and hiring on the go. It links with Kenexa’s cloud-based 2x Recruit applicant tracking solution, enabling all information to be automatically captured and updated in real-time. The application focuses specifically on key hiring tasks, and syncs with Kenexa’s SaaS-based applicant tracking system.

Therefore, hiring managers can execute the most basic actions needed to move the hiring process along. Its straightforward design offers an intuitive interface for hiring managers who are constantly on the move, making it easy for them to communicate with the HR team wherever they are. The app is free, but users must have a Kenexa licence.

JOBVITE This candidate sourcing solution takes a new approach to making referrals, promoting open positions and finding qualified candidates. Jobvite leverages social networks such as LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook – enabling users to send job invitations (or Jobvites) to members of their networks. For those preferring the old-school way of recruiting, Jobvites can also be sent via email. This handy little tool enables recruiters and HR staff to track jobs and the sources of referrals. So finding the most coveted job applicants – and building a relationship with them – has never been easier. The mobile site is accessible anywhere, but you need a Jobvite subscription to plug in.

In addition, countless tech vendors offer their services via websites that have been optimised to work on mobile platforms. One example favoured by Lagunas is WOWZER, a recently released mobile app for Apple iOS devices. It’s a video interviewing application that makes it easy for recruiters to build an interview with pre-recorded questions, and lets candidates record responses on their own schedule, cutting out the more timeconsuming aspects of candidate screening. It’s Wowzer’s focus on candidate experience that sets it apart. Clear instructions and helpful tips put candidates at ease, educating them on the process along the way. And at the end of each interview, candidates have a chance to share feedback.

HC ALSO LIKES:

123PEOPLE.COM by yelster digital. This free search engine app is handy for recruiters as it can pull data on potential job candidates from social media and other public sources, and share results via email, Facebook or Twitter, or save to Instapper to read later. Works on Android and Apple iOS devices.

BIZX MOBILE by SuccessFactors Inc./SAP is a mobile extension of SuccessFactors’ BizX human capital management software suite (and free for SuccessFactors customers). Recruiters can use it to approve offers and requisitions and track candidate feedback. Employees can use it to look up company organisation charts, access personnel contact information, share files and collaborate on projects. It’s offered in 18 languages and runs on all iOS, BlackBerry and Android devices.

CARDMUNCH by LinkedIn. Recruiters can use this free app to turn a smartphone into a business card reader. Photograph a business card and the data is transmitted to CardMunch servers where it’s transcribed and pushed back to an address book. If a recruiter uses LinkedIn, which bought CardMunch in 2011, data is automatically added to their LinkedIn connections.

Works on iOS devices.

HCAMAG.COM 17

HR TECHNOLOGY

HR apps MANAGING TALENT

VORTEX’S MOBILE MANAGER CONNECT is a SaaS-based solution that allows users to effectively manage staffing needs on the go. With the application, you can review, edit and approve submitted time cards, violations, alerts and time off requests. Managers can also review report information and perform actions on behalf of employees, such as entering time adjustments.

Employees can view and edit their schedules, review and submit timesheets, punches, and job transfers, or request time off. Plus, it easily syncs with existing HR management and payroll systems alike. While the app is free, users must hold a Vortex Connect license in order to use it.

DIVERSITYDNA is a free mobile diversity training app that provides insights into how cultural differences impact workplace conduct. Through a series of short YouTube videos, users can learn some of the important ways in which we differ in values, beliefs, norms and assumptions – and how these differences actually impact workplace behaviour. This mini training course covers the basics of cultural diversity, and enlightens individuals in best practices for communicating in the workplace.

For HR professionals with limited resources who are interested in educating their workforce, this simple, straightforward tool is a great start. The best part? The app is free from the iTunes store!

RYPPLE FEEDBACK is a SaaS application that takes the most basic function of performance reviews, and ramps it up for a far more engaging experience. Similar to a social network, Rypple makes it easy for leaders to recognise achievements and offer regular feedback to employees. The design provides managers with better visibility into the performance and activities of employees. Managers are able to track the feedback and accomplishments of team members, so reviews can encompass all of an employee’s activities and performance over the course of a year. Simplicity is the key here. For all it does to make performance reviews a more interactive, ongoing process, this program is equally user-friendly at every level. It makes setting goals, monitoring activity, documenting performance, and scheduling reviews (or ‘loops’, as they call them) a snap. Rypple currently offers various subscription options, from free to US$9 per user per month.

In addition, tech vendors offering their services via websites that have been optimised to work on mobile platforms are gaining traction. Lagunas is a fan of SILKROAD’S POINT, a talent management platform that fuses social technology with onboarding, learning, career management, and performance management. While offering many standard talent management functions 18

HCAMAG.COM

(onboarding, learning, performance management), Point also tracks 20 indicators to graph an individual’s expertise in various skills – and makes ‘influence profiles’ highly visible in the organisation. The more influential an employee, the more likely he or she will appear in a search for relevant skills and competencies. Point also enables employees to connect with the people they need to work with to get their jobs done. From day one, new employees connect with co-workers and join relevant groups as a part of the onboarding process.

METRICS AND REPORTING

AQUIRE INSIGHT is a SaaS-based analytics suite that uses your existing data to analyse your organisational hierarchy and the trends within it. With trend analyses, talent management measurements, and scorecard metrics, HR executives can run powerful analytics to assess their progress against stated goals. Users can create charts and reports that are easily linked and distributed via Microsoft Office, making it easier for managers to visualise workforce trends and take action on them – but access is limited to users with Aquire InSight subscriptions.

ACCERO WORKFORCE INTELLIGENCE is a reporting and analytics tool that fully integrates with the Accero Cyborg solution. The app has more than 200 predefined HR metrics, scorecards, charts and graphs built in, and offers traditional reporting capability as well. These tools are designed to clearly illustrate actionable HR information, allowing HR professionals to keep tabs on their organisation wherever they go.

Workforce Intelligence gives HR professionals and business leaders the means to make informed decisions with integrated workforce data wherever they are. The app is currently offered only to Accero Cyborg subscribers, but there are plans to expand its availability down the line.

ADDITIONAL RESOURCES

INTERNATIONAL SOS provides mobile travel assistance solutions for business travellers and expatriates. This app delivers key medical and travel security information on over 200 countries and 300 cities around the world. The app is integrated with International SOS’ global assistance infrastructure so members are provided with immediate access to location-specific alerts as they are issued by the International SOS medical and travel security teams.

CONCUR by Concur Technologies Inc is ideal for managers on the move or other employees who travel for work.

This app can be used to capture images of receipts, eliminating the need to save paper originals. The app also lets employees book travel and create expense reports.

Managers can use it to approve expense reports and travel requests, and perform audits. Runs on iOS, Android and BlackBerry devices.

YAMMER by Yammer Inc./Microsoft Corp. This app extends Yammer’s tool for creating private, secure internal social networks for communications and collaboration to smartphones and tablets. Employees can use it to send and read individual and group messages, upload photos and find co-workers. Runs on iOS, Android, BlackBerry and Windows Phone devices; some features are only available on iOS and Android phones.

Free for Yammer customers.

HAPPY@WORK by Happy@Productions is a new app for Apple and Android, developed by a New Zealand tech start-up, and designed to help employees identify what their values are at work and to decide whether their current employer is fulfilling these. The app asks the employee 22 targeted questions, such as ‘How much do you value job-related training at your workplace?’ It takes 10 minutes to complete and, at the end, some interesting statistics are revealed. These include: how happy the employee is at work (and how he or she compares with others); how engaged he or she is; and his or her flight risk over a one- and two-year period. It also provides a breakdown of the things that the employer does well and not so well, providing practical and ‘proven’ advice to improve the employment situation.

HCAMAG.COM 19

COVER STORY HR’S BEST

hr summit 2013

WHEN THE GOING GETS TOUGH…

Times are tough, and the pressure is on HR to prove why their initiatives are effective and necessary components of business success. Iain Hopkins and Rose Sneyd talk to four leaders in their field for their insights into getting ‘back to basics’ in HR during 2013

Photography by: Pulch Photography, pulchphotography.com

20

HCAMAG.COM

ROSE CLEMENTS HR DIRECTOR

Organisation: Microsoft Industry: Software and IT Biggest HR issue in 2013: “The technology industry is extremely fast paced and dynamic. Things are in proto-type around the world right now that will significantly change the way we work and play, connect and communicate in every aspect of our lives – things most people cannot even imagine.

This means a very fast paced dynamic organisational environment which requires stamina and self-awareness for employees if they are to operate successfully. And so health, wellness and resiliency are key focus areas.

Like other organisational capabilities we have built, our aim will be not just to respond to the symptoms, but to address the core – by helping our people to help themselves. Educate, equip and empower them to take care of themselves and to make decisions that balance their personal needs with the needs of the organisation in a way that doesn’t overly rely on process and procedure.”

“I

had this fantastic idea; I took it to my manager but then nothing happened”…Bright ideas; poor execution. How often do those two sit together in the corporate world? As proven time and time again, an essential success factor in implementing HR strategies is to have a high degree of leadership capability that can turn abstract concepts into real and actionable outcomes. In a highly complex world, this is easier said than done.

Perhaps it pays to go back to basics. What does leadership mean in 2013 – and how has it evolved over the last 20–30 years?

HCAMAG.COM 21

COVER STORY HR’S BEST

hr summit 2013 For Rose Clements, HR director, Microsoft Australia, leadership is a selfless activity: People face more choice than ever before about where they invest their time, talent, energy, and ideas. As such, a leader must ensure that the proposition in following one leader over another has to have a mutual value proposition (a ‘what’s in it for me’ angle) to be attractive. “Leadership to me does not mean glory or power, hierarchy or seniority or any of the old fashioned notions,” the 2012 HR Director of the Year says. “Rather, leadership is about helping individuals and teams to be better together. Then they have the ability to be on their own bringing combined efforts towards a greater or higher purpose.”

Clements notes that in most organisations, but especially progressive ones like Microsoft, the concept of leadership has evolved far beyond the traditional ‘command and control’ stereotype of the industrial age.

Indeed, Clements feels it’s evolved from leaders focusing on the end and the means to the end towards providing greater autonomy, flexibility and empowerment for team members to create the means using their own judgment and determination. Meanwhile, she says, the leader focuses more on the end game. “Team members need to be equipped to deal confidently with ambiguity, change and increasing complexity – and leaders must become enablers to this confidence,” she says.

The ‘end game’, referred to above, remains critical.

Like a ship’s rudder, the long-term objectives and goals can hold a company steady and allow it to navigate stormy waters. “Leaders need to think big and think beyond,” Clements says. “They need to be visionaries focused on a horizon of possibility beyond where their team members are operating.”

The catch, and one where many fall down, is being able to bridge between the future of what can be achieved, and the present reality. Leaders therefore need to help team members believe that the future is both desirable and possible. As Clements points out, this is challenging in 2013 because the global landscape is unstable and so creating a firm compelling picture of future opportunities is difficult.

Who would want that burden? Are younger people still interested in pursuing that path? Would they prefer to take the road more travelled – perhaps by remaining as technical experts in their chosen field? Clements concedes that with leadership comes enormous accountability and responsibility for the wellbeing and success of others that many younger people have simply not yet appreciated. “That’s not to say that they can’t – but it takes a level of wisdom to realise this. Many simply have not had enough years under their belt to see this.”

Yet whilst wisdom generally comes with age and experience, Clements says it is mostly attitudinal.

Therefore leaders can come from people young and old “if they bring the right attitude of accountability and 22

HCAMAG.COM

Leadership to me does not mean glory or power, hierarchy or seniority or any of the old fashioned notions – ROSE CLEMENTS

responsibility to their leadership role”.

Specifically, Clements believes younger people can bring ideas and innovation in abundance (and this is a form of leadership) but there is still value in experience.

Hence diversity (age, gender, experience and so on) is core to a high performing team to optimise and harvest from these varying perspectives.

So, with this right mix of attitude, diversity and wisdom, how can that execution piece be more effectively handled? After all, it’s easy to spruik ‘grand plans’ or ‘corporate visions’, and to craft ‘ideas on a page’ – but executing these is another matter. Simply stating, ‘this is the plan’ is not enough.

Clements is clear on this: a leader needs to be able to demonstrate the ‘from/to’ gap in terms of both the ‘what’ and the ‘how’.

“I’ve found that the ‘how’ focus has historically been regarded as subservient to the ‘what’ and yet in my mind and thankfully, within Microsoft Australia, this is given equal if not greater weight.”

Citing a specific example, Clements explains that traditional organisational capability development would have focused on behaviour, whereas Microsoft has focused on the attitudes and mental models that create the behavioural predisposition. “Consciously developing more constructive thinking styles that then become predictors of constructive behaviours, in turn, is far more sustainable and less situational specific and means that execution excellence is more reliable in a dynamic business world.”

Clements is adamant that this is a critical function of HR. Developing leaders is, for HR, “like the air that we breathe”.

And Clements walks what she talks. To build leadership capability, she says HR must first take a leadership role itself with the leadership team – to define the future of leadership, its impact and why it is a critical element to successful business performance and then demonstrate how this future can be realised from the

current state. She adds that HR team members have to be credible leaders themselves to achieve this. Without this, HR is simply an operational function executing programs defined by others.

Microsoft has invested heavily in its leadership initiatives, and the end result is a rich and wide variety of programs, from formal development programs, on-thejob experiences and learning through others such as through mentoring, shadowing and the like. In terms of specifically building talent pipelines, the company has embedded a rigorous discipline around succession planning. This is dovetailed with open and transparent conversations about career planning. “We’ve taken the ‘taboo’ out of having these conversations,” she says.

Thus, Microsoft’s leaders are themselves involved in building their own succession plans, drawing from both internal and external talent. Clements explains: “They can say, ‘this is what I hope to do next and by when. By the time I’m ready to do that, my business will look like this. Therefore, these are the kind of capabilities and attributes my successor will need to have, and here is a list of people who I propose as ‘ready now’, ‘ready in a few years’ etc’.”

Building these pipelines is an iterative and leader community process involving a number of stakeholders across the business. In short, every employee is a ‘talent sourcer’ and every manager – as part of their role – is regularly refreshing their point of view on their succession plans and workforce needs. HR facilitates this practice.

While some may baulk at such openness and ‘power’ granted to employees, Clements is quick to assure that there is a meeting point between an individual’s objectives and the objectives of the business.

“We do this through collaboration, teamwork and participation in the broader business agenda. For example, our executive team focuses on bringing the collective of our experience to bear on each other’s business areas – we are not simply a collection of functional leaders bringing our own silo’d point of view to the table about our business segment – rather we collaborate, team up and participate in the decisionmaking with a whole of organisation perspective.”

This necessitates a high level of broad business acumen from each leadership team member. As part of their development plans, these leaders are engaged in problem solving and sharing ideas across the organisation. Likewise, for all Microsoft leadership programs, the goal is to bring real-time internal and external issues into the training to be discussed, digested and debated rather than dealing with hypotheticals.

“Managers coach and build managers and we have built a strong community across our people leaders. That creates a safe and vibrant environment for this to happen,” Clements says.

See Rose talk about the role of leadership capability in translating HR strategy to execution at HR Summit Sydney, 10–11 April

HCAMAG.COM 23

COVER STORY HR’S BEST

hr summit 2013

STEVE ROWE

GROUP GENERAL MANAGER, PEOPLE & CULTURE Organisation: Insurance Australia Group Industry: Insurance Biggest HR issue in 2013: “IAG is a very devolved organisation with multiple business units and divisions; that’s our model. We’ve done a lot of work to identify ways and means to leverage opportunities across those divisions. We wrote out a program for a group strategy, and it’s all about finding ways to be common rather than ways to be different. There are areas that can be aligned, areas such as talent, leadership, succession, culture.

Our biggest challenge in 2013 is to link these plans, and then implement our group plan so we can leverage the benefits across the whole organisation.”

EVENT PARTNER

GOLD SPONSOR

LEARNING SEAT

Learning Seat is Australia’s leading supplier of online compliance management solutions for corporate and government entities. As the trusted provider and partner to Australia’s major industry bodies, Learning Seat supports over 700,000 users across Australia and New Zealand. By creating and delivering exceptional content, Learning Seat has helped organisations of all sizes to properly and effectively deliver and manage staff and contractor training to reduce risk and executive liability.

The Learning Seat solution represents a unique combination of advanced technology with a strong foundation in compliance management, training and instructional design to provide powerful yet simple turnkey solutions for every organisation.

24

HCAMAG.COM

MARSH

Marsh in Australia comprises over 1,000 employees, providing risk management, insurance broking and risk consulting services to a range of businesses, government entities, individuals and professional associations.

In 2011, Marsh in Australia was named Large Broker of the Year for the fourth year running by the Australia New Zealand Institute of Insurance and Finance.

Globally, Marsh is the world’s largest insurance broker and risk advisor, with over 24,000 employees, and provides advice and transactional capabilities to clients in more than 100 countries.

Contact: Jason Bailey, commercial director

Contact: Travis Kemp, general manager, employee benefits

P: 1300 133 151 E: enquiries@learningseat.com W: www.learningseat.com

P: 03 9603 2299 E: travis.m.kemp@marsh.com W: www.marsh.com.au/cps

A

I’m a big believer that it’s conversations that drive outcomes. You have to create that space – talk about this stuff. Rather than simply saying, ‘read this book’ or ‘do that course’

ny business leader knows the key to getting an initiative off the ground is getting buy-in from other leaders, building a watertight business case, and using small victories to fuel bigger and more expansive steps.

Such is the case with the diversity and inclusion initiatives at Insurance Australia Group (IAG). The first step in what is promised to be an “all encompassing” diversity and inclusion strategy were witnessed last year.

In April the company set the bar high and is taking extraordinary steps to welcome women into the fold, especially at executive level, but ultimately these will stretch company-wide.

For a key element, dubbed the ‘welcome back payment’, IAG opted to double the salary of new mothers in its workforce for the first six months back on the job, to entice them back from maternity leave.

It brings IAG’s paid parental leave entitlement to a total of 20 weeks’ full pay. The extra entitlement is in addition to the 14 weeks’ paid parental leave already on offer at IAG, making it some of the most generous arrangements in the finance sector.

Between 500 and 600 IAG employees (under the brands of RACV, NRMA and CGU) go on maternity leave each year, and those on leave will also be entitled to the annual remuneration review during their time off to ensure they keep up with colleagues who may have received pay rises.

The parental scheme is part of IAG’s strategy to ensure one-third of its senior management positions are filled by women by 2015. Steady progress is being made, with women currently making up 28% of senior roles. Rowe is conscious of the wider implications: “It’s not just an optional extra; there’s a new conversation going on… around the business benefits of diversity and inclusion – particularly around gender diversity,” he tells HC.

Indeed, Rowe suggests diversity and inclusiveness is a pre-requisite for business success, especially as IAG’s customer base is so broad and diverse. As such, 2013 will see the lead taken from gender diversity extended to age and ethnicity diversity. This, he states, is important not just at the sourcing and recruitment stage of the employee lifecycle, but all stages: reward & recognition, succession, developmental opportunities, and so on.

“We’ve recognised, as people leaders, that where you’ve got diverse teams, who have different perspectives and different ways of doing things, you get better outcomes.

It’s a no-brainer for us to invest – it makes commercial sense,” he says.

It is, after all, difficult to be adaptive and identify emerging risks, trends and opportunities if everyone in the team has had the same life experiences.

LEGAL SPONSOR

STRATEGIC SPONSOR

PEOPLE + CULTURE STRATEGIES

People + Culture Strategies (PCS) is an Australian workplace and HR law firm that services Australian and international employers in all aspects of workplace relations.

PCS offers a unique value proposition: we focus on partnering with clients through approachable and pragmatic advice, provide flexible pricing models to suit organisations large and small (including monthly retainer arrangements) and deliver a comprehensive program of education events, webinars and other value-add activities. In addition, our expertise extends to non-traditional services to our clients’ HR/Legal functions including investigations, coaching and mentoring programs, strategic planning, industry-leading training and facilitation.

– STEVE ROWE

ASPERITY EMPLOYEE BENEFITS

With Asperity’s Reward Gateway, your staff will have access to a huge range of genuine discounts at retailers that they already shop at, on your own bespoke website. This is backed by ongoing communications to guarantee engagement and a comprehensive management system to measure usage of the program. Over 650 companies globally, representing more than 1.5 million employees, have chosen Asperity to deliver this exceptional, cuttingedge benefits program.

Contact: Joydeep Hor, managing principal

Contact: Scott Sampson, Head of Business Development – ANZ

P: 02 8094 3101 E: joydeep.hor@peopleculture.com.au W: www.peopleculture.com.au

P: 02 9112 0100 E: benefits@asperity.com.au W: www.asperity.com.au HCAMAG.COM 25

COVER STORY HR’S BEST

hr summit 2013

IAG has also recognised the different skills older and younger people have and it has introduced a mentoring program to share them.

A clear example of this in action – pertinent to the insurance industry – is how a young, single caseworker with limited life experience might struggle to understand the distress a third party motor insurance wrangle might cause to a 50-year-old with a family and mortgage. A concerted effort to improve the diversity of the workforce in that part of the business, particularly around older workers, could pay dividends, with higher

STRATEGIC SPONSOR

STRATEGIC SPONSOR

DDI ASIA PACIFIC

For over 40 years, DDI has helped the most successful companies around the world close the gap between where their businesses need to go and the talent required to take them there. Our areas of expertise span every level, from individual contributors to the executive suite: • Success Profile Management • Selection & Assessment • Leadership & Workforce Development • Succession Management • Performance Management DDI’s comprehensive, yet practical approach to talent management starts by ensuring a close connection of our solutions to your business strategies.

You’ll find that DDI is an essential partner wherever you are on your journey to building extraordinary talent.

26

HCAMAG.COM

We’ve recognised that where you’ve got diverse teams, who have different perspectives and different ways of doing things, you get better outcomes. It’s a no-brainer for us to invest – it makes commercial sense

Significant investment is being made at an educational and awareness level, specifically around unconscious bias. It’s a rare person who does not hold biases, whether they are consciously aware of it or not. Rowe is a realist: “You can never break them down completely. We have them, and we’ll always have them. The important thing is to understand those biases, how they are shaped, and what sort of decisions they result in,” he says.

The starting point has been educating senior leaders and managers, who are the drivers of culture. Earlier in 2012 the company brought in an expert – a professor advising our senior leaders on how unconscious bias plays out in decision-making. Rowe says the CGU business area is doing particularly well in this area and has just worked with the 100% Project, a not-for-profit organisation that aims to address gender inequality as it affects leadership positions, opportunities and culture in mid–large Australian organisations. The 100% Project’s mission is to challenge organisational leaders to change the practices and mindsets within their organisations to fully realise the leadership potential of women and men.

“We’re now looking to partner with more experts on how to establish transformational development programs across IAG that tackle unconscious bias more broadly.

Again, it’s more a journey than a destination; we’re never going to get to the end, we’re never going to remove bias, but we do recognise it’s pivotal to tackle it,” he says.

And then there are the benefits. Although the mature age initiatives are still in early days, the company has already rolled out online support and service tools for mature workers, who themselves often have elderly parents to care for.

Further policies include using long-service leave in small blocks – including single days – and a shorter working year option, meaning employees can purchase up to six weeks’ extra annual leave.

– STEVE ROWE

VERIFY

Verify, a division of Veda, Asia-Pacific’s leading data intelligence and insights company, is the fastest growing and most innovative provider of candidate background services in Australia today. With leading edge technology and an extensive range of services ranging from identity, criminal history, licences and qualifications through to pre-employment medicals and online psychometric assessment services, Verify is able to provide organisations of every size with an outstanding verification service confirming that their candidates are who they purport to be and that they have the necessary skills, experience and qualifications.

Contact: Samantha York, sales & marketing associate

Contact: Peden Bhutia, sales and marketing support co-ordinator

P: 02 9466 0324 E: samantha.york@ddiworld.com W: www.ddiworld.com.au

P: 02 9278 7990 E: sales@verifycv.com.au W: www.verifycv.com.au

customer satisfaction levels and the ability to improve mentoring opportunities across the team from older worker to younger.

What’s the key to making diversity and inclusiveness a business imperative? Rowe offers two clear areas to concentrate on: sort out the metrics and ROI stats; and create a culture in which the conversation can happen.

“There is no silver bullet – that’s a cliché but in this case in particular it’s so true. Firstly you must have metrics to back up what you’re saying. Measuring performance is important. But take the small wins and feed it into a bigger picture.

“Also, create the time and opportunity in the schedule to have face-to-face conversations at every level of the organisation. I’m a big believer that it’s conversations that drive outcomes. You have to create that space – talk about this stuff. Rather than simply saying, ‘read this book’ or ‘do that course’.”

While Rowe concedes it’s possible to “get overwhelmed” with the diversity issue, as there are so many different aspects, he says it’s critical to have a focus area. “We want to concentrate on those three key areas first – age, ethnicity, gender. That said, I think where there’s an appetite, where there’s passion, you should go there. Get people involved, let it go viral, and see where it leads.”

As the release of a steady stream of research papers and white papers makes clear, Australia has a long way to go until it is truly the ‘lucky country’ for all. Yet, Rowe remains hopeful that we’re on the cusp of something big.

“There seems to be change occurring. I was part of Susan Ryan’s Mature Age Workers conference earlier in 2012, and I feel as if we’re on the edge of something. It’s quite exciting in this diversity and inclusiveness space. If we can push a little bit harder we’ll take a quantum leap forwards,” he says.

WORKSHOP SPONSOR

See Steve talk about building the business case for investing in a diverse and inclusive culture at HR Summit Sydney, 10–11 April

WORKSHOP SPONSOR

BUPA

At Bupa, we exist to help our members live longer, healthier, happier lives.

As a leading healthcare organisation, we’re well placed to support and look after you and your family’s health. We are part of a global family that reinvests its profits to provide better services for our members.

At Bupa, we’re committed to helping find a healthier you.

Contact: Carl Buik, workplace health management consultant M: 0407 685 152 E: carl.buik@bupa.com.au W: www.bupa.com.au

MB LAWYERS

MB Lawyers is an Australian law firm specialising in Australian immigration law, with a particular focus on corporate immigration. We assist the HR function to arrange for the relevant Australian work visa for their new employees or current key staff to transfer to Australia.

Particular expertise in the Subclass 457 (temporary work visa), permanent residence via employer nomination, business sponsorship, monitoring and compliance, other work visas, and liaising with the Department of Immigration.

Contact: Marsha Bassily, managing partner, solicitor and registered migration agent P: 02 8999 8012 E: mbassily@mbls.com.au W: www.mbls.com.au HCAMAG.COM 27

COVER STORY HR’S BEST

hr summit 2013 SONYA HUGHES

DIRECTOR OF TALENT MANAGEMENT & STRATEGY Organisation: Campbell Arnott’s Industry: Consumer goods Biggest HR issue in 2013: “The business environment we’re in really challenges us to be more agile, to make faster, better decisions, and really – at the heart of our business – is the consumer who we always need to keep in mind…So we take that business strategy and we link it to our talent acquisition approach, for example, making sure that we have that lens when we’re selecting people into the organisation; we look at our learning and development initiatives, making sure we are incorporating those things in our standard suite of offerings.”

B

efore ‘going to market’ for talent, do you know the value of the bright sparks sitting within your organisation? Have you considered their hidden potential? That’s a word of advice from Sonya Hughes, director of talent management and strategy – Campbell Arnott’s. “I believe a key leadership responsibility is having an understanding of the talent that you have in your team and the organisation, and also what you need in order to deliver the business strategies for the future,” she tells HC. Having an in-depth understanding of the talent on staff enables businesses to plan for the future, to identify current gaps in skills and knowledge and to decide how to fill them: by partnering with the talent acquisition team to acquire certain skills, or with the HR team to develop internal staff. With this in mind, the HR team at

SPEAKER GIFT SPONSOR

WORKSHOP SPONSOR REDBALLOON

Working with organisations of 20 to 20,000+ RedBalloon for Corporate is Australia and New Zealand’s leading provider of experiential gifts and employee engagement programs; fuelled by thousands of experiences and gifts RedBalloon creates recognition, reward and incentive solutions that contribute to having happy and extraordinarily productive employees.

Programs are meaningful, commercially focused and most importantly FUN! For the latest in Reward and Recognition research visit http://corp. redballoon.com.au/rewardandrecognitionreport and download the 2012 Report for free.

28

HCAMAG.COM

JLT

JLT Benefit Solutions provides consultancy and administration services to corporate and private clients across a wide range of company paid and voluntary employee benefits.

Contact: James Wright, engagement consultant

Contact: Stuart Whitbread, general manager – benefit solutions

P: 02 8755 0020 E: james@redballoon.com.au W: www.redballoon.com.au

P: 02 9290 8023 E: stuart.whitbread@jlta.com.au W: www.jlta.com.au/employee.aspx

We’ve thought about it in terms of attracting and onboarding, but then, what’s beyond the end of the two-year graduate program? How do we retain them? What are their next roles?

Campbell Arnott’s concentrates on encouraging leaders to discuss talent within the organisation and on developing robust relationships between HR, talent management, and the talent acquisition team.

However, there are a few areas in which Hughes identifies room for improvement. One is verifying whether talent identified is truly high potential; another is taking a more expansive view of talent; and a third is identifying talent gaps early on. Regarding the second area, Hughes says that she and her team are trying to broaden their traditional view of what constitutes talent.

This means including people who are subject matter experts or who have unique skills or knowledge that are essential to their business’ success.

Finally, in terms of predicting talent gaps, Hughes comments that this facilitates talent building from within. “Where we’ve got skills that are really hard to find in the market, we’ll make sure that we’ve got an internal build strategy in place to meet the needs for that business,” Hughes says.

When it comes to the development of the next generation, Hughes emphasises the importance of investment. “We recently completed an analysis of our leadership pipeline and succession planning and we realised that the years that we have consistently invested in graduates, and provided ongoing talent and development programs to support them, we’ve really seen that return on investment,” she observes.

Aware of the crucial nature of such investment, Hughes has been involved in an overhaul of Campbell Arnott’s graduate offering. “We’ve thought about it in terms of attracting and onboarding, but then what’s beyond the end of the two-year graduate program? How do we retain them? What are their next roles? How do we keep progressing them through the organisation?” To cover off that crucial first step of the graduate employee

lifecycle – the attraction phase – Hughes and her team are beginning to exploit social media to assist with recruitment. “We’re really leveraging the social media piece… ensuring that we connect with graduates and are very targeted in our branding and employee value proposition [EVP] for that key group,” she says. One example of their forays into the social media space is their efforts to leverage their leaders’ LinkedIn networks to promote new roles.

Campbell Arnott’s has also been mining their current graduates for tips in appealing to others in the market.

And they have been providing invaluable insight. “We were using one of our products, which is ‘Tiny Teddy’ and we had this tag line of ‘Un-bear-leivable Opportunities,’ which we really thought was capturing the fun element of our culture,” Hughes recalls.

But graduate employees frankly explained that the ads did not appeal to their demographic and that they would prefer a more sophisticated approach. The new campaign and program is called the ‘Appetite’ program for ‘Life, Career, and Development.’

BRONZE SPONSOR

BRONZE SPONSOR

MARQUÉ CONSULTING

Ensuring that you have the right employees in the right position – maximising each and every one to their full potential – requires a degree of skill, strategy and experience, which few can offer. Marqué Recruitment & Consulting provides expert Recruitment, Psychometric & Talent Assessment and HR solutions to any type and size of business, nationally.

– SONYA HUGHES

PEOPLESTREME

PeopleStreme provides the largest human capital software Technology Roadmap globally.

PeopleStreme’s mission is to unlock the full potential of your workforce through providing the best human capital management software and deployment services in the world.

Recognised by Gartner Research as a “cool vendor” in human capital management in 2011, PeopleStreme must be doing something right.

Contact: Rita Haitas, director

Contact: Kerryn Wood, human capital consultant

P: 1300 758 226 E: rita@marqueconsult.com.au W: www.marqueconsult.com.au

P: 03 9869 8880 E: kerryn.wood@peoplestreme.com W: www.peoplestreme.com HCAMAG.COM 29

COVER STORY HR’S BEST

hr summit 2013

See Sonya talk about talent acquisition and onboarding strategies at HR Summit Sydney, 10–11 April

The next step – onboarding – is ‘absolutely critical’ in Hughes’ view and is something that she is seeking to improve at Campbell Arnott’s. For her, the manager’s interactions with the new employee during onboarding are a ‘key moment of truth’ that can make or break the EVP. One initiative that Campbell Arnott’s uses to welcome people is to hold a ‘house warming’ during which, in addition to standard induction fare, new employees participate in a lunch. “Part of ‘house warming’ is cooking with our products and sitting down and enjoying lunch together – it’s a great way for them to connect with other new people joining the organisation and to start to build their network,” Hughes says.

Next is retention: a key component of which is the Campbell Arnott’s ‘total rewards’ package, which was developed in tandem with the Asia HR team. Because people are motivated by very different things to come to work, whether its career progression or flexible work,

Hughes and her team have been working with managers to ensure that diverse levers are included in their retention strategies. As a result, managers are provided with a checklist and a practical set of tools in order to assist them in retaining key talent and people in key roles.

“We’re getting a lot more targeted and sophisticated in terms of it’s not a ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach, it really is down to what motivates an individual,” Hughes explains.

Getting all of this right is particularly important in the current environment where local skills shortages mean that employers have to look for talent globally, rather than locally – a more complicated and costly process.

However, sometimes it is necessary to cast the net overseas to overcome limited supplies of talent. It is important, therefore, to develop an employment brand that is attractive to global talent, Hughes emphasises.

For her, this entails offering not only great work, but other ‘lifestyle factors’ that would make the move appealing. And it means bringing their EVP to life. “Most companies have an EVP and talk about it, but what we’re really trying to do is take steps to live and show employees who we are and how we operate,” Hughes enthuses. One example of this is Campbell Arnott’s ‘Sunshine Fridays’ concept: during the period of daylight saving, employees in certain locations are allowed to knock off at 2:00pm on Fridays. Hughes remarks that almost every interviewee asks about ‘Sunshine Fridays.’

With Campbell Arnott’s products, such as ‘TimTams’, ‘Shapes’, and ‘Country Ladle’ soups, present in 97% of households in Australia, you might suppose that these strong consumer brands would naturally translate into an appealing employer brand. Yet Hughes says there’s still plenty of work to do. “Our candidates are consumers so we need to be mindful that when we are recruiting people, that they have a fantastic candidate experience and that we always treat them as customers,” she says.

EXHIBITOR

EXHIBITOR

1300APPRENTICE

BECHALLENGED

1300apprentice is a not-for-profit organisation which takes on all legal employer responsibilities of the trainee/apprentice over the duration of the training term. We facilitate the process in partnership with our host employer and manage the recruitment, OH&S and training of the trainee/ apprentice to successful completion of the qualification.

Enabling businessess to be siccessful

Contact: Rebecca Johnson, business development manager

Contact:Oliver Sheer, managing director

P: 02 9715 7344 E: r.johnson@1300apprentice.com.au W: www.1300apprentice.com.au

M: 0421 667 631 E: oliver@bechallenged.com.au W: www.bechallenged.com.au

30

HCAMAG.COM

BeChallenged is an interactive teambuilding business. Uur unique approach to helping businesses reach their full potential and achieve their goals means your team will learn while having fun. We work on the philosophy of ‘what works for you’, and we customise all our programs to address your specific needs and objectives.

AMANDA REVIS

GROUP EXECUTIVE (HUMAN RESOURCES) Organisation: Suncorp Group Industry: Wealth management and insurance Biggest HR issue in 2013: “To really deliver against what is a very stretching business strategy and to do that within a very challenging market or environment – both a very competitive market and challenging economic circumstances. From an HR perspective, supporting that business challenge, we need to make sure we’ve got the right talent with the right capability, delivering the best they can to meet our customer needs.”

I

n an uncertain economy, it’s a matter of survival; critical to survival is the HR department’s ability to demonstrate the ROI on its initiatives. And while it may not be a new concern from a business point of view, it has fuelled significant debate since HR’s rise to the executive ranks. Amanda Revis, group executive (human resources), Suncorp, puts this down to the rise of people-heavy organisations. “From a people perspective, the reason the spotlight’s gone on it is there’s more service-based organisations now, where the portion of the operational costs are higher on the people side,” she tells HC. While measuring the productivity of machinery in a manufacturing environment is fairly straightforward, measuring the ROI of human beings is less so.

Revis, who has a background in business planning, finance, and accounting (as well as HR), stresses the importance of talking the talk – in business terms. “As an HR function, you need to be able to speak the language of

EXHIBITOR

EXHIBITOR

BLANCHARD INTERNATIONAL

Blanchard International is a global leader in workplace learning, productivity, performance, and leadership effectiveness solutions. We help companies improve their performance, productivity, and bottom-line results; by drawing on the latest learning and change processes to provide training, coaching and consulting services that move people and organisations to peak performance.

CHARLES STURT UNIVERSITY

Charles Sturt University (CSU) is a national university for excellence in education for the professions, strategic and applied research and flexible delivery of learning and teaching. CSU offers a number of courses via distance education and has a proven track record as a distance provider.

Our Master of Human Research Management is AHRI accredited and along with our MBA is highly regarding in the public and private sectors.

Contact: Catherine Hadaj, client relationship manager

Contact: Maria Farrell, course director

P: 02 9858 2822 E: catherine.hadaj@blanchardinternational.com.au W: www.blanchardinternational. com.au

P: 02 69332485 E: mafarrell@csu.edu.au W: www.csu.edu.au HCAMAG.COM 31

COVER STORY HR’S BEST

hr summit 2013

business, so you need to be able to understand the business, what drives business results and how the numbers work, and to be able to link what you’re doing from a people perspective to those numbers,” Revis argues. “I think, at the end of the day, it goes to the heart of the credibility of the HR profession,” she adds.

From a business perspective, the ability to calculate the ROI of a strategic decision is imperative. Without it, making decisions on where to spend the money, and how much to invest, resembles a stab in the dark. For Revis, having the capacity to measure an HR function’s ROI is, therefore, crucial. “Being able to measure the return on that investment is really important, because otherwise you haven’t got any criteria for deciding whether to invest in people versus investing in something else,” she says.

That raises the question of how this can be done. To begin with, HR must be fully cognisant of their organisation’s business strategy in order to then measure people strategies and people initiatives against that strategy. Revis notes that if the business strategy is, for example, to deliver profitable growth, then the people initiatives should be aligned to the delivery of that profitable growth. “You need to know what the people drivers of the profitable growth are, and then how to

measure those people drivers,” Revis explains. In general, the tools for measurement will range from financial measures to specific, targeted metrics, as well as a mix of lead and lag indicators.

Revis describes how, at Suncorp, her team uses numerous measures, with targets for each, so that they can track progress on a monthly and annual basis.

Because they aim to attract, engage, and enable their talent to deliver on the business strategy at Suncorp, one of their primary measures is the level of employee engagement and enablement. Other measures include those relating to attracting talent, internal succession planning, absenteeism, and employee turnover. A key financial metric is total shareholder return relative to the ASX Top 50.

One example of calculating HR’s ROI at Suncorp is the way they have used the results of their employee surveys, which are taken annually. When analysed, these revealed that those teams with the highest levels of employee engagement and enablement halve the level of employee turnover and absenteeism when compared with those teams that have the lowest levels of staff engagement and enablement. That piece of information can, of course, be translated into a dollar value. “We’ve done the financial analysis to find that a one percentage point improvement in engagement and enablement of our people will drive productivity by quite a large dollar amount – in the millions,” Revis reveals.

“At the end of the day [however], we don’t have to go mad in putting a dollar figure against everything that we do,” Revis asserts. One key area is customer or client satisfaction, which cannot be easily translated into a dollar figure. “We are here because we’re working with our business leaders to help them to be more effective and to drive the development of the employee value proposition [EVP] for the broader employee base,” she says.

EXHIBITOR

EXHIBITOR

You need to know what the people drivers of the profitable growth are, and then how to measure those people drivers – AMANDA REVIS

CONNX

Your workforce is your biggest cost and most valuable asset. ConnX can assist you maximise and leverage that investment through effective workforce planning, process automation and engagement. ConnX minimises the administration burden for personnel allowing you more time to focus on the strategic functions of your job.

32

HCAMAG.COM

EMPLOYMENT INNOVATIONS

Partner with EI to maximise your investment in people. Our hybrid HR solutions are customised to meet your transactional and strategic business needs. EI’s solutions improve productivity and ensure compliance, while making a real difference to your organisation’s bottom line. EI’s employer services include: • Employment law • Migration • Payroll • Human Resources • Recruitment • Employee reward & recognition programs

Contact: Zane Knight, company director

Contact: Amanda Daff, head of client strategy/workplace solicitor

P: 1300 CONNX HR E: sales@connx.com.au W: www.connx.com.au

P: 02 8030 8888 E: amanda@thinkei.com W: www.thinkei.com

But when you can obtain information on how an initiative affects the bottom line, how should you communicate it to the rest of the business? “That’s quite a tricky one,” Revis admits. She sketches a fine line between appearing to be arrogant and communicating to people what they need to know, so that the HR department avoids constant challenges to the investment that they require.

Keeping this in mind, Revis says that when it comes to communication, the most important relationship is that between HR and senior leadership. And at Suncorp she is fortunate to both be on the executive team herself and to have each of her HR leaders from the various businesses on the executive team of each business unit. The means of communication can be formal or informal. One example of the former approach, from Revis’ experience, is a presentation that she made to the executive team at Suncorp and then to the board. “I recently took a paper to the exec team at Suncorp demonstrating each of the elements of our values creation through the HR function and the work that we do and how that translated through to dollar benefits to the organisation,” she recalls.

However, Revis also stresses the importance of communicating the purpose of HR initiatives to leaders throughout the organisation. Ideally, the HR department should include a communications expert responsible for understanding what HR achieves, and then identifies and develops the best way of communicating this to the business, before implementing a communication strategy.

Revis says this is a very important investment for HR, and one that she is lucky to have secured. “We sometimes forget about doing things for ourselves that we do for other businesses,” she observes.

For Revis, her department’s toughest challenge in 2013 will be negotiating difficult economic circumstances to continue to recruit talented individuals with the

necessary skills and knowledge. “I’d say the key focus is on developing the leadership capability across the organisation so we can attract and engage and encourage people to perform the best that they can,” she says.

Other areas of focus include improving employee enablement through the provision of the appropriate technology and the fostering of a culture of accountability, to remove obstacles to progress. She also cites providing adequate career opportunities, flexible work opportunities, pursuing Suncorp’s diversity strategy, encouraging two-way feedback, and having an appropriate rewards scheme as key elements of their EVP that will require focus.

EXHIBITOR

EXHIBITOR

FRONTIER SOFTWARE

Founded in Melbourne, Australia in 1983, Frontier Software is a global leader in Human Resource, Talent Management and Payroll Solutions.

Their flagship solution, chris21, sets the benchmark for functionality and useability. With support offices in Melbourne, Brisbane, Sydney, Canberra, Adelaide, Perth and key global locations, Frontier Software is well placed to service their 1,600 clients.

See Amanda talk about ROI of HR initiatives at HR Summit Sydney, 10–11 April

ONETEST

For more than 10 years Australia’s leading organisations have chosen Onetest to solve a wide range of business issues. Our recruitment and staff development tools promise one thing - truth without bias. Our psychometric assessments, skill tests and employee surveys deliver the insight you need to harness the full capabilities of your most important resource ­‑ your people.

Contact: Nick Southcombe, general manager

Contact: Dan Oak, general manager, central region

P: 03 9639 0777 E: sales@frontiersoftware.com.au W: www.frontiersoftware.com

P: 1300 137 937 E: enquiries@onetest.com.au W: www.onetest.com.au

HCAMAG.COM 33

RECRUITMENT

executive search and selection

The

VIEW from the top Is it really doom and gloom in the executive search market, or just a period of transition? Human Capital talks to key practitioners to find out

34

HCAMAG.COM

Think it’s been tough filling those specialty roles, or even some generalist positions? Spare a thought for those in the executive recruiting game. Recruiting for senior positions has been tough for the last few years – but over the next decade it’s going to get even tougher.

In addition to demographic challenges, companies are finding their recruiting task even more difficult because of a need to hire from a wider talent pool than what can be found in Australia. Companies are now taking anything up to 18 months to find the right people for senior positions.

James McConochie, director of Hemisphere HR, a specialist executive HR agency, says high expectations remain in the current market: “Organisations recruiting at senior level are adamant that all selection criteria are met fully and are willing to wait for the right candidate.

Equally, those candidates willing to make a move are expecting reassurances around security and ongoing investment/development in their new role.”

MAJOR CHANGES

Will those employer expectations be met? In terms of demographics, recruiters are only too aware that the Baby Boomers, those born between 1947 and 1962, have occupied most of the senior roles in business but are now easing into retirement (or at least pulling back on full-time work). Several industries are facing a looming acute talent shortage as up to 70% of Baby Boomers exit the market over the next five to seven years.

Jason Johnson, managing partner at executive search firm, Johnson, and Chairman, APAC Council, Association for Executive Search Consultants (AESC), says there is an emerging trend.

“There’s been a true generational shift going on,” he says. “If you look at CEO succession at some of our iconic companies like CBA, they saw a transition from Ralph Norris, a man in his 60s, to Ian Nurev, a man in his mid-40s. A few years ago Qantas had Geoff Dixon, in his mid to late 60s, handing over to Alan Joyce, in his early to mid-40s. That transition is happening right across the market. It’s an interesting trend, and it will be exacerbated by the departure of Baby Boomers from the market. We’ll increasingly see a group of very highly competent CEOs in their early 40s.”

It also poses a risk. Are these younger executives suited to these senior roles? Johnson says there’s “no question” that very few boards have absolute confidence in their next CEO, no matter the age. But then again, he argues, it’s a difficult role to prepare for. “You can’t be perfectly tested as a CEO if you’ve never been a CEO before and you’re simply coming up through the organisation. But boards generally have a few key development areas in their minds and they hope their internal preferred candidate will accelerate along that

Rules of engagement Thinking of engaging an executive search agency?

Here’s some tips: l Look for someone who will value the partnership they will

have with you, and has similar values to your company. Due to the sensitive nature of information likely to be passed between your company and the recruiter, discretion is a key trait to look for.

l Remember that first and foremost they are the first

person that a potential employee comes in contact with, so make sure you are comfortable with them representing your company.

l Check their credentials. Do they have industry experience?

What is their track record like? Does their agency have access to overseas talent?

l If you’re comfortable with the recruiter make sure they

have excellent methodologies to identify and interview candidates.

path and be ready, or at least not let that development area hold them back too much.”

And this is assuming, of course, that age has anything to do with it. Perhaps equating experience with age is the wrong approach. “The people coming through in that 40–45 year bracket are knowledge workers, highly accomplished and used to leveraging technology, which is such an important part of leadership nowadays,” Johnson suggests.

Malcolm Duncan, president of the board at IRC Global Executive Search Partners, says the real challenge is further down the hierarchy – finding state managers/ general managers in their mid-30s to early 40s who have the people skills and technical knowledge to lead business units at around the $200m–$500m mark.

“Finding the talent that drives the units within a business is harder in this market. Most Baby Boomers who are in their mid-50s now will probably be around into their mid-60s at least – this will give Gen Y an opportunity to come through with the skills and experience. Personally I think the losers will be Gen X – demographically there is less of them and sadly many have not been given the opportunities to take on leadership roles in their late 20s/ early 30s that would have prepared them for the above.”

OTHER KEY TRENDS: SUCCESSION, DIVERSITY AND GLOBALISATION

There are other internal and external factors at play, impacting on executive recruitment. The first is an increased focus on succession management. Johnson says all major companies are tackling the issue of CEO

HCAMAG.COM 35

RECRUITMENT

executive search and selection

DID YOU KNOW?

l The length of time CEOs spend in the top job has declined by nine months in the past five years.

The median ASX100 CEO tenure is now only 3.9 years. If the eight ASX100 companies who have had the same CEO for more than 15 years are excluded from the analysis, average tenure is shorter than an election cycle, at only 3.5 years. l The window of opportunity for a CEO to execute on strategy is shortening – to two to three years – after which time their position is at risk if they are deemed unsuccessful. l Having a new CEO is enough to raise or lower a company’s share price, as investors reconsider the value of the stock.

Over the past 12 years, companies that appointed a new CEO outperformed the market by 11% for the next two years. However, research shows that when a CEO holds their role for more than 15 years, the company significantly underperforms in the market. This places pressure on new CEOs to deliver – and quickly.

Source: ‘CEO turnover: Implications of declining tenure and longevity risk’ by Goldman Sachs Australia, 2012

36

HCAMAG.COM

and leadership succession, and are asking executive search and recruitment companies for consulting on leadership succession, and then delivering executive search assignments.

While Johnson says it’s not possible to plan for every departure, he notes that if you’re running a listed business now in Australia and succession is not on your agenda “you’re probably being negligent”. As a result, exec search firms have adapted to advise and consult around succession – and that sits well synergistically with conventional search businesses.

Quality succession will look not just at the top job but also those key roles underneath. Johnson cites the Norris/Nurev handover at CBA where not only was the CEO transition well handled, but there were several seamless transitions of internal talent to other roles. “It was wonderfully orchestrated and you could see it had a systematic process sitting behind it,” Johnson says.

A second key focus area is diversity, which is increasingly an agenda item for Australian boards and management teams. It’s not before time – especially for gender diversity. According to figures from the Australian Bureau of Statistics, just 3.5% of ASX 200 companies have a female CEO, and only 12.3% of corporate board directors are women. Of ASX 500 companies nearly two-thirds have no female executives.

A recent survey from Executive Women Australia (EWA) found 60% of women think male-dominated referral networks are one of the biggest barriers to their success. With males dominating executive teams and boards, it follows that they would recommend their male friends working internally to similar roles.

And while men usually don’t deliberately sideline women, EWA director Tara Cheesman says it is an outcome of the perpetuating “boys’ club”.

The survey of 500 EWA members found women think the second and third biggest barriers to executive positions are that men are better self-promoters than women, and that many ASX 500 employers haven’t had female executives previously. Cheesman adds that executive roles should be advertised to break the cycle of male employment.

Executive search agencies have a role to play, too.

Many of the assignments undertaken by executive search firms now have a strong diversity lens applied to them.

“What we’re seeing is the increasing use of targets, rather than quotas, and it’s very common nowadays for us to get mandated on a search that has a strong diversity orientation,” Johnson says.

This is not just for gender diversity – although that is the obvious focus point – but also ethnic diversity. Johnson explains: “There’s increasing dialogue there, including ensuring there’s enough Asian experience in management teams and on boards.

The real challenge in the executive search industry is not the identification of talent, it’s the ability to engage candidates and advocate successfully to get them across the line – JASON JOHNSON That’s people who have Asian backgrounds, and also those who have Asian experience – opening markets and working within the complex markets that Asia presents.”

Indeed, just as Australian businesses shift their focus to Asia, so too are executive recruiters. “If you’re a search firm in Australia operating without a presence in Asia you really are hampering your ability to deliver and support clients around their most critical growth markets, most of which are in Asia,” Johnson says.

In the HR space in particular, McConochie says global networks are critical as access to the international candidate pool provides businesses with such a great range of skills and experience that is often not available in the domestic market. An example of this, McConochie says, would be the option to import commercially valuable ‘HR IP’ by sourcing candidates with a proven track record in industries that are still emerging here in Australia. Also, given the relatively small size of our market, he suggests it only takes a short period of economic upturn for the supply/demand dynamic to swing back and we move quickly back into utilising international search capabilities.

Whether it’s running a role that’s based in Sydney or elsewhere in Australia, Johnson says virtually every search assignment should take into account at least the Australians and possibly the Kiwis who are offshore, including those in Asia, who may be looking to return home.

He adds that the talent issues in Asia are more acute than in Australia: talent attrition is significantly higher, shortages of key talent are acute in some areas, so the competition for talent can be fierce. “It’s a much more

HCAMAG.COM 37

RECRUITMENT

executive search and selection

fluid market than Australia, which is a mature market – the average tenure of an executive in Australia is greater than the average tenure of an executive in Asia – it exacerbates the issues there.”

SOCIAL MEDIA

One of the macro-trends impacting the executive search industry is social media. Johnson is aware of the negative refrain that social media is enabling internal recruiters to do some of what search firms have traditionally done.

Duncan notes LinkedIn has rendered “the black box of mystery, the database, irrelevant”.

However, Johnson feels there’s a “real science” to extracting real value from social media, and search firms, like any professional services firms that specialise in one area, should be able to generate a higher level of competence than most internal teams.

Most internal recruiters, he adds, are charged with such wide-ranging responsibilities and are trying to manage a significant number of assignments across a vast range of job families that they don’t have the time or resources to focus on senior recruitment.

“The real challenge in the executive search industry is not the identification of talent, it’s the ability to engage candidates and advocate successfully to get them across the line,” Johnson says. “That’s what will continue to preserve the importance of the executive search industry.”

Duncan echoes this, and says educating candidates on the merits of a client and understanding where they are in their career and life and seeing if that can be a deal for both parties is still the skill and the art.

“The emerging technology is Twitter – enormously useful for engagement and defining your relevance in a

38

HCAMAG.COM

particular segment. The other emerging one is Pinterest which has evolved from a scrapbooking site to creating genuine sector communities online. The future? I think that one is pretty simple: Google owns the world and will be the one to watch in terms of moving into recruitment,” Duncan says.

McConochie issues a word of warning: Technology is a double-edged sword. A candidate’s ability to access so much information about a business (and their people) is also a reality and businesses that lack self-awareness may find themselves missing out on the top talent now more than ever. “This is where perception management plays a critical role,” he says. “High potential busy candidates will make up their minds quickly based on their perception of an organisation, a perception formed by both on and offline information available to them. Rightly or wrongly, this does not always play favourably for some businesses.”

Successful recruitment is still driven by two factors, McConochie says: The message to market; and the relationships that are built in the process. Social media simply acts as an amplifier of a message. If the message lacks integrity, it is irrelevant how many social media platforms are being used; it simply does not get the response required.

“Even when your message is being successfully marketed, if you are not also successfully developing the personal connection with your target candidates they will swiftly move onto the next great opportunity. Some businesses make the mistake of valuing their ability to throw a big digital net over the candidate pool above the experience those candidates may have had in the haul.”

NOT DONE YET

A further enticement to using executive search professionals is having an objective third party onboard.

Whether its executive search or legal services or accounting services, corporate governance demands every board and team is being held to account or will be held to account for running an objective process. “We should be held to account for delivering an objective search that is defensible if anyone ever held it up to the light,” Johnson says.

And this lays to rest one lingering misconception about executive search, or ‘headhunting’ as it’s colloquially referred to – the cloak and dagger approach to pinching talent from the competition. Or even worse, tapping the network of old school cronies. “It’s dead,” Johnson says.

“There’s a few senior executive searchers in the market who rely on the smoke and mirrors and old school tie stuff. By virtue of the strength of their relationships with friends in positions of power, they can get away with it – but it’s one of those things dying out with the exit of the Baby Boomers from the market.”

HCAMAG.COM 39

EXECUTIVE DEVELOPMENT

resilience and mindfulness

Gym for the executive mind Feeling stressed and overwhelmed? Perhaps you might benefit from mindfulness training, an emerging field which has been proven to strengthen an individual’s capacity to navigate stressful and complex circumstances

40

HCAMAG.COM

Executives in our modern corporate world face a bewildering array of demands, and encounter enormous difficulty in achieving and sustaining an appropriate mental perspective and level of energy necessary to get everything done – and in a well considered and focused way.

Observations of this highly stressful and complex arena and their direct experiences in working closely with executives operating in it, have led leadership development consultancy Executive Mandala to undertake a research project during 2012 in collaboration with a group of senior executives from across a number of large organisations. The project was investigating the view that to achieve real and sustainable change, executives require a deep appreciation of the factors driving both their ineffective and their effective responses to stress and complexity. The use of even well-established behaviourally-based assessments is not sufficient to ensure that executives achieve lasting beneficial change in their life and work practices. It is this insight that enables them to build the individual development strategies necessary for achieving longlasting, highly effective leadership behaviour. And this, in turn, supports their ongoing business success.

We can call this deep level of appreciation mindful self-understanding or psychological insight. Helping executives to develop this as a core mind strength capability is the key to expanded development and success – and sustainability.

The six-month research project formed part of a broader research platform designed to meet several questions relating to the primary objectives of an overall leadership development study, namely: 1. Optimise performance in complex corporate environments 2. Build resilience/adaptability/protection against the stressors of everyday corporate life.

The research question framing this six-month project asked whether the explicit training and practice of mindful self-management would enhance executive performance and productivity especially during stressful periods and when dealing with complexity.

During the initial part of the project, executives were asked what problems they faced during such times, and what success would look and feel like for them as leaders.

They were also asked how that success would affect their business outcomes. The responses to these questions were used as qualitative benchmark measures at the project mid-point, at the end, and then six months after its completion.

The PANAS (Positive and Negative Affect Scale) was also used to provide a quantitative measure throughout the project and on completion. The PANAS is a 20-item self-report measure of positive and negative affect developed by Watson, Clark, and Tellegen (1988), and

was chosen mainly for its brevity and focus on emotion and feeling. At each monitor point, an aggregate of PANAS scores for the executive group was also developed, presented and discussed with the executives.

These discussions were further enhanced with the inclusion of presentations on how awareness of our ongoing experience can create resonance, and that this in turn, can mobilise specific social and emotional circuits in the brain. By practising mindful self-management, these specific circuits are stimulated to grow – which ultimately transforms mindful awareness into longerterm resilience. (Daniel J. Siegel, 2007).

Results to date have shown that the majority of executives who took part in the research project have continued to use the mindful self-management methodology adapting it to suit their ongoing needs with good success and, most notably, have observed a significant increase in their ability to face stress and complexity with calmness, composure and competence.

This has enabled them to more easily achieve success in relation to key result areas of their business.

LEARNING HOW TO USE OUR MINDS

Being mindful – or fully conscious – of our emotional and cognitive reaction to specific stimulus is an essential front-end skill for developing more effective and lasting changes to the ways we respond to what we perceive to be stressful and overly-complex events or circumstances.

Executive Mandala sees it as a critical feature for helping clients gain the perspicacity which is the foundation upon which deep and sustainable change can begin to occur. It also helps clients to reduce any ineffective coping approaches, and build and strengthen more positively adaptive ways.

Executive Mandala has introduced a psychoeducational element into their overall approach to leadership development (including coaching) with clients, and sees this as fundamental to the building of resilience and adaptability. Having this psychological self-knowledge ultimately enables them to speed up the rate of change, as they are able to see more readily, and often immediately, exactly what thoughts they are thinking, and what feelings they are experiencing. As a consequence, they are able to see how a certain way of thinking and responding to pressure drives those less effective responses and outcomes. Learning to regulate those cognitive and emotional responses also forms part of the process.

Many of Executive Mandala’s executive clients are strong advocates of “going to the gym”. This enables them to manage their physical bodies and keep themselves fit for the rigorous schedules they are required to keep. Executive Mandala likens the practice of strengthening the mind through specifically chosen activities to “gym for the mind”. This is a comparison HCAMAG.COM 41

EXECUTIVE DEVELOPMENT

resilience and mindfulness Fast and slow fear circuitry w Slo

Diagram 1

Cerebral Cortex Hippocampus

Thalamus

Fast

Amygdala

Stimuli Behavioural, Autonomic & Emotional Responses

executives can relate to, and it can provide the motivation to take time out – even if momentarily throughout their working day – to attend to some mind-strengthening exercises.

WHAT’S HAPPENING IN THE BRAIN THEN?

The integration of sustainable human change and neuroscience has for some few years now, begun to gain traction in scientific and business publications, as well as with some distinguished conference speakers.

One focus of discussion in these arenas has related to instances when certain stimuli, eg, pressure and complexity, generates mal-adaptive and ineffective responses, fear and/or anxiety is at the base.

World-renowned Professor of Psychology and clinical psychologist, Louis Cozolino, has stated, “anxiety and fear are the conscious emotional aspects of the body’s ongoing appraisal of what is dangerous and life threatening. They tell the body that it should be prepared to take action. Anxiety can be triggered by countless conscious or unconscious cues and has the power to shape our behaviours, thoughts, and feelings. At its most adaptive, anxiety encourages us to step back from the edge of a cliff, cross the street when unsavoury characters are coming our way, and double check to see if we signed our tax forms before we seal the envelope. At its least adaptive, it unconsciously steers us away from actions like taking important appropriate risks, pushing ourselves to reach personal goals, or engaging in new and potentially beneficial behaviours”.

Joseph LeDoux (1994) demonstrated through his research that there are two interrelated yet separable fear circuits in laboratory animals. Cozolino (2002) 42

HCAMAG.COM

refers to LeDoux’s theory as being clinically useful for those who are experiencing stress, as it helps them to understand the neurobiological mechanisms of what they are experiencing.

He describes the fast system as reflexive and with immediate action (as shown in diagram 1). This rapid appraisal and response (fight or flight reactions) mechanism is designed for use in survival situations.

The slow system, however, sends sensory information from the receptor (thalamus) to higher circuits for further evaluation. This system is slower because it contains more synaptic connections and involves conscious processing. These circuits of memory and high level processing examine the information more carefully, compare it to memories of other similar situations and make voluntary decisions concerning how to proceed.

The elements of this theory – which are shown in diagram 1 – are proving valuable in helping executive clients to more fully appreciate, from a scientific perspective, what is happening to them in those moments when they react in non-effective ways to stressful and complex circumstances.

Executive Mandala continues to conduct research on how mindfulness training might serve to strengthen the slow system within the neurological architecture, thus heightening capacity to view stressful and complex circumstances in a less reactive way.

Feedback from one surprised and delighted CEO who had commissioned Executive Mandala to work with his senior staff included, “this particular individual is more confident and more effective in the leadership team – and just as importantly, more effective in life due to the confidence they have in themselves as a result of this approach”.

With results of this kind to build on, we continue to develop our unique psychological framework for use in individual coaching and leadership team workshops. The hallmark of this work, as indicated above, is the front-end development of deep psychological insight, enabling executives to regulate their emotions, develop and strengthen their mental capacity, and make long-lasting changes to how they operate in today’s high pressure and complex world.

One pleasing consequence of this research project is an increase in the number of requests by executives to run “executive mind strength” programs, which are starting during the first quarter of 2013. These will be conducted through Executive Mandala’s ‘Executive Mind Centre’.

Further information Contact: Barbara Jones, managing director of Executive Mandala on 0411 517 186 or email barbara.jones@executivemandala.com.au or Simon Mundy, senior associate of Executive Mandala on 0427 405 832 or email simon.mundy@executivemandala.com.au

HCAMAG.COM 43

LEADERSHIP

collaboration

Why can’t we

play nicely?

What are the barriers to collaboration in your organisation? Is it possible to create the conditions for success? Rob Metcalfe says it is – and here’s how What do the iPhone, Spain’s recent success in Euro 2012 and the Enlightenment of the 18th Century have in common? Many things, perhaps, but certainly none would have been possible without collaboration. So collaboration must be good, right? Well, it turns out that it ain’t necessarily so…

Morten Hansen points out in his book Collaboration that joint effort must not only drive better sales, increased efficiency or more innovation but it must also deliver a premium that is greater than the opportunity cost. Collaboration takes time and money to make it happen. The challenge that Hansen presents us with is: are you getting a return on investment?

All too often in our work, we see collaboration connected to a number of other ‘c’ words: consensus, compromise, council, confusion… In organisations that count ‘collaboration’ as a core value, what we have often seen is a kind of ‘treadmill culture’: loads of effort but little real progress.

Not only are barriers to collaboration hard-wired into vertically or functionally structured organisations, they are also hard-wired into our brains.

THE BRAIN

David Rock’s compelling argument in his book Your 44

HCAMAG.COM

Brain at Work suggests our limbic (or ‘caveman’) brain treats many social threats and rewards with the same intensity as physical threats and rewards. In this state, the capacity to make decisions, solve problems and collaborate with others is generally reduced by a threat response and increased under a reward response. Rock suggests that a threat to any of five elements could trigger this threat response: • Status (relative importance to others) • Certainty (being able to predict the future) • Autonomy (a sense of control over events) • Relatedness (a sense of safety with others – of friend rather than foe) • Fairness (a perception of fair exchanges between people) All elements of this powerful model, SCARF, can be threatened by collaboration. Consider an employee involved in a merger with an organisation producing different products, with a different culture, in different time zones, who must collaborate to ensure a successful integration. Their limbic brain could feel threatened at all five levels. Collaborative leaders are able to reassure the limbic brain and re-engage the more advanced parts of the brain to take charge and get results.

THE ORGANISATION

Organisations themselves are also hard-wired to oppose collaboration. While ‘silo’ thinking is much-derided, the reality is that we all need to work well as individuals, as teams and, yes, within our functional silos. It is the role of a leader, however, to be clear about the higher intent of the organisation and so create the conditions for collaboration across boundaries.

Unaligned individual and team goals, internal

competition and a lack of development in collaborative leadership skills (such as decision-making) are all barriers to successful cross-boundary working. If these and other conditions for successful collaboration are missing, then the individual is always going to struggle to work with others effectively.

THE SOLUTION

Despite the barriers to collaboration above, our research and experience with teams and organisations indicates that there are things that leaders can do to improve the chances of success.

As in any endeavour, leaders need to create the conditions for success: Clarity, Climate and Competence. In this case, these are the conditions in which collaboration can take root, grow and flourish.

Shared purpose and goals. Collaboration at its worst occurs when people bring their own agendas and then focus on their own powers of persuasion to bring the team ‘onside’. Effective leaders approach things differently: before we decide what to do next, what do we want to achieve together and why? In any endeavour, being clear of the ‘what’ and the ‘why’ is essential. When the number of people involved rises above one it is particularly important!

Connections and culture. The first question here is: who do we need to be connected with and how strongly in order for those people to support us when we need it? The other component is recognising that, although we are typically organised into functional and hierarchical structures within organisations, the role of collaboration is frequently to understand how to bridge across those structures to achieve a solution that can’t be achieved

using established systems and processes. Leaders who can not only engage a team but also bridge to other groups will have a head start in enabling effective collaboration.

Collaborative decision-making. We see many teams log-jammed when they try to make important decisions.

The role of a collaborative decision-making process is to harness the best thinking of the members of the collaborating group as efficiently as possible in order to arrive at the best solution and to create a genuine sense of buy-in. So a clear, simple process that’s easily explained is important. Part of this should be to have an agreement upfront (not in the heat of debate) on how differences of opinion are going to be resolved.

Self-mastery. The bad news is that all of the conditions above can be derailed by emotions getting out of control.

The collaborative leader will not let their ego get in the way of adopting another idea if it’s better than theirs. Similarly, if their idea actually is the best, they need to know that’s true, and that it is not just them hanging on to an idea. Leaders, therefore, need the confidence and self-mastery to know which is which. They also need to create a sense of confidence and optimism about the solution and the ability to achieve the final outcome.

Finally, leaders need to be positive enablers of others. Psychologist Shawn Achor calls this the ‘heliotropic effect’ – it makes others want to come and work with you.

All this isn’t really that difficult is it? Well, as ever in the world of leadership, collaboration is ‘simple but not Rob Metcalfe is a easy’. We can all understand the theory in the time it consultant with global leadership consultancy takes to read a blog article but the practice is likely to LIW3. For further develop leadership muscles that have not been use in a information visit long time. liw3.com

HCAMAG.COM 45

DIVERSITY

indigenous employment

A new generation of opportunities Corporate Australia has recognised its responsibility to play a key role in ensuring that economic growth does not leave Indigenous Australians behind – Stephanie Zillman investigates where HR should take its next step 46

HCAMAG.COM

The matter of improving the indigenous employment outlook has been firmly on the corporate agenda for some time now. However, in the last decade, and especially the past five years, getting more Indigenous talent into the workforce has gone from a ‘nice to have’ concept, to a strategic business necessity.

The shift in corporate attitude is a tangible one. At the time of the Business Council of Australia’s (BCA) 2012 Indigenous Engagement survey, for those companies which are not currently undertaking Indigenous engagement activities, the main barrier to doing so is a lack of resources – namely, time and money. Following

this, it comes down to a lack of expertise in Indigenous engagement activities. Compared to the findings from the same survey in 2011, when the major barrier to engagement was seen to be the lack of alignment with business objectives – corporate Australia has progressed in leaps and bounds.

The last 12 months has seen an increase of 2,000 Indigenous employees enter the workforce, as well as a further 700 Indigenous trainees. Nationally, the 2011 census found the unemployment rate of Indigenous Australians had improved by 2% since 2006, to settle at 16%.

For Danny Lester, CEO of the Aboriginal Employment Strategy (AES), these figures speak volumes and it’s now time for corporate Australia to shift the focus beyond entry-level opportunities. Whilst providing entry-level pathways has been an integral step, the next generation of opportunities needs to allow Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people to have more of a say within business management.

“I think the next phase for us is to get a greater level of representation of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islanders into management positions. And the reason for that focus is to provide greater levels of influence over policy, increased business commitments and overall product and cultural knowledge in relation to business intelligence, especially geared towards human resource management, engagement and recruitment,” Lester says.

Under the auspices of the AES, over 10,000 Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people have moved into careers, and Lester says there is now a solid foundation on which to build a greater sense of integration. In building towards this end, the supply of talent needs to be increased, and the commitment needs to be championed throughout all rungs of an organisation.

“Some companies have great wishy-washy statements but they don’t walk the talk. However, what you need is a combination of great leadership in terms of the intent, but even greater leadership in terms of the execution of the intent,” Lester says. “So not only do you need high-level commitment from the CEO/chairperson, but also from middle managers and the subordinates to actually implement the strategies and ensure that what’s happening isn’t just a bum on a seat – there’s also career development and opportunities to move up the career ladder for individuals who wish to do so.”

Jennifer Westacott, chief executive, BCA, adds that in the cases of the most successful Indigenous employment programs at large companies, the commitment comes from the highest levels of senior management, and is occurring on a permanent basis – this, she says, has been critical to their success.

Perhaps the key element, though, in getting more Indigenous Australians into management roles will involve a mindset shift within the Aboriginal and Torres

Increased leadership training and development programs are needed to enable Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people to individually think they can be managers – DANNY LESTER Strait islander community itself. To this end, HR’s role is manifest. “Increased leadership training and development programs are needed to enable Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people to individually think they can be managers,” Lester says.

The way forwards What works? »» Senior leadership support »» Dedicated resources »» Don’t do too much too soon »» Partnering with Indigenous organisations »» Focus initially on building relationships before setting targets »» A local approach »» Use internal champions »» Engage the commitment of employees as their participation and action are the keys to success »» Learn from others by building networks to share information of what works and what doesn’t »» Aligning engagement activities with the business What can be done differently? »» Be open to doing things differently in the light of experience, or ‘lessons learnt’ »» Engage more with Indigenous staff and community members »» Only use tailored training that is linked to a specific job »» Have a stronger network of ‘workplace heroes’ and engagement with senior management »» Introduce cultural competency training earlier and before Indigenous engagement activities are introduced »» Leverage the ‘goodwill’ that Indigenous opportunities provide »» Better vet the capacity of consultants as many are overstretched »» Measure success differently Source: BCA 2012 One Country, Many Voices report

DIVERSITY

indigenous employment Case study: The NAB experience

T

he AES works with Australia’s biggest corporate names and the National Australia Bank (NAB) is one organisation which has really stepped up its commitment to Indigenous employment pathways.

Since launching its Reconciliation Action Plan in 2008, the bank’s long-term commitment has grown in strength. Abbey White, NAB’s Indigenous employment manager, says the bank is not shy of its commitment to recruit the best and brightest Aboriginal young minds.

“We understand that in order to do that, we need to create multiple entry points, and that’s how we’ve designed our programs.”

It hasn’t been all smooth sailing though, and White says one hurdle which needed to be overcome was the issue of getting Indigenous university graduates to apply for their grad program in a fiercely competitive market. The issue, she says, was the bank realised they were ‘waiting at the gate’ for graduates with their nice shiny degree. “But what we really needed to be doing was engaging them in their first, second, third, fourth years – and that’s how the internship program came about.”

NAB now has its bases firmly covered. From a school-based traineeship program for high school students, through to its full-time traineeship program, internship for university students, and graduate program – no one is simply being ‘met at the gate’.

White says that the purpose of so many entry points is that they focus on those people who may not be starting out with the skillsets or capabilities to enter mainstream employment. As a result, NAB’s approach directly targets the new frontier of Indigenous employment outcomes – namely, getting more Indigenous Australians into the top jobs.

In order to ensure NAB’s Reconciliation Action Plan (RAP) is adhered to, the organisation sources consultants both internally and externally to hold them to account across its three RAP verticals, those being: • employment • cultural awareness • financial inclusion There are many people who ensure their commitments are upheld, and chief among them is an independent advisory group comprised of Indigenous and non-Indigenous leaders who are responsible for ensuring NAB delivers on its promises. However, White says a key component of the approach has been to engrain the commitment to Indigenous employment programs in the very fabric of its organisational culture.

As the bank says on its RAP homepage: “Our employees are directly engaged and it is becoming part of the way we do things at NAB.” While the program is relatively young (its fifth RAP will be released in March), White says the bank is seeing important and positive employment outcomes compared to its humble beginnings.

“Those years were really important. We made mistakes, figured out what we should and shouldn’t be doing, and that’s now coloured what we want to achieve in the long term,” White says. “We’re starting to see some our trainees from 2009 coming into management roles – and it’s really exciting because I think it’s indicative of more of what we’re going to see. As a result of these programs we’re ensuring we have a talent pipeline and have people who started in those entry-level positions moving up into management positions within NAB.” Left to right: Amber-Lee Higginson, Lavington branch, current second year school-based trainee; Abbey White, NAB Indigenous employment manager; Ashlea Gibbs, Geelong branch, moved from school-based trainee to permanent job in 2011

48

HCAMAG.COM

PROFILE KIMBERLY ELLIOT

HR at AstraZeneca

NO

looking BACK

This month’s profiled HR professional tells Iain Hopkins about lifechanging moments, adopting global HR initiatives and bringing corporate values to life Life presents a few pivotal ‘sliding doors’ moments, where a ‘what if’ opportunity presents itself that can change a person’s direction, or set them off on a path they hadn’t previously considered. Just such a moment occurred for Kimberly Elliot when she was a young schoolgirl. She knew, even at that age, that she wanted to pursue a profession that involved working with people. To that end, her initial enrolment at university was related to social work. However, a chance school assignment involving a visit to a corporate office changed her professional direction.

“I had a small interaction with the HR department,” she says. “I thought, this is quite interesting – a corporate environment, a beautiful view over the harbour, all the really important things! And it involves working with people. So that day I paid a late fee and changed my university enrolment to HR. That’s how impactful that moment was. To be fair, it was good luck rather than good management but I haven’t looked back since.”

Henceforth, Elliot pursued a Bachelor of Commerce with a sub-major in HR, and later returned to her studies to complete a Master of Commerce in IR, “to round off the legal side of it,” she says.

Her first role was as an HR administrator in French bank, Banque Nationale de Paris. From there she moved into the P&O organisation in the early 1990s, which Elliot says was “an amazing time to be part of that business” with the management of a diverse workplace of 25,000 and numerous acquisitions taking place. Elliot entered

50

HCAMAG.COM

the pharma sector in the early 2000s and joined AstraZeneca five years ago.

HR CHANGES

If change is the new black, Elliot has had her hands full since joining the British-Swedish multinational.

AstraZeneca is the world’s fifth-largest pharmaceutical company measured by 2009 prescription drug sales (after Pfizer, Novartis, Sanofi, and GlaxoSmithKline) and has operations in over 100 countries. It has a portfolio of products for major disease areas including cancer, cardiovascular, gastrointestinal, infection, neuroscience, respiratory and inflammation.

As acting director of HRM, Elliot has taken part in the transformation of the HR function from a decentralised model towards a ‘centres of excellence’ model. She explains: “When I first joined HR here it was a very decentralised function. We had a large HR team and we were developing quite sophisticated local HR solutions. In the last two years the organisation has completely reshaped the HR strategy and we’ve moved towards implementing a completely global solution. I’ve been the HRD for two years and my primary responsibility during that time has been to lead the implementation of this global transition, and also to lead the transition in terms of how we now interact with the business in this new structure.”

Key to this transition is the establishment of a core technology platform, which will operate globally, and the partnership with two global outsourced partners to

IN HER OWN WORDS...

Thilo Pulch, www.pulchphotography.com

What are the biggest HR challenges facing your organisation in 2013 – and how are you planning to overcome these?

“The challenge for the HR function in 2013 is ensuring we support the business through major change whilst at the same time getting our own backyard in order. Like any organisation it’s supporting the business through major change. We’re going to have a lot of challenges around what our product portfolio looks like, and we’ve got a new global CEO, appointed in October 2012, so we’re waiting to see if he brings any new strategic direction to the organisation.

And given that for our sector the primary payer is the government, there are challenges around the desire to get the budget back into surplus.”

Personal file: Kimberly Elliot

Family: Married to a policeman, which always poses some interesting challenges. We have two girls – the oldest is 13 so we’re just entering the joys of having a teenager in the house.

Favourite sports: I’m a netball mum, so I spend my weekends on the side of a netball court.

Favourite movie or TV: Shawshank Redemption.

Best advice ever received: It was said to me so eloquently, but it was something along the lines of ‘don’t listen to people just with the intent to answer them’.

Self-described: Busy, busy, busy – like all working mums it’s that balance of how do I be a good wife and mother and good HR director and fill all the roles I need to fill effectively.

Hobbies: A bit of fitness, going to the gym regularly and being a good role model for my children around health and fitness.

First job and/or worst job: First job was at KFC. Worst job – one school holiday I worked on an assembly line for a company packing bacon. Never got that smell out of my clothes!

If not in HR: I bumped into a former colleague recently who has come out of HR and is working in schools, helping kids make choices about electives and educating them about the skills they might need when looking for part-time jobs. I thought that was an incredibly rewarding and enriching way to apply the skills we use in corporate life.

52

HCAMAG.COM

provide query, telephone and email support to employees and managers. This tech platform is also aligned with an internal restructure of the HR function to create regional and global centres of excellence.

Elliot says the outsourcing solution is primarily about having strategic value-add business partners on the ground in each of the countries the company operates in, and “taking the global and making it local”. She adds: “It’s about creating what we refer to as core, common and consistent processes for our managers to operate against.”

In Australia the company has gone live with the first wave of the project, outsourcing the payroll function. The service centre is also functioning. However, Elliot concedes, “it’s been a rockier journey than we had anticipated.” She says one of her priorities for 2013 is to “get our backyard in order” and improving the quality of service delivery with AstraZeneca’s partners.

LOCAL VS GLOBAL

Elliot will also continue to challenge the traditional perception of ‘local vs global’ HR initiatives being confrontational and negative. In fact, she has welcomed having a service delivery model that is core, common and consistent around the world – unless legally bound to deviate locally.

“It’s challenged our way of thinking as we’ve gone through this journey over the last two years,” she says. “It makes a lot of sense as we become a global organisation, with more matrix reporting lines, and as we’re building a far stronger presence in our regional office in Shanghai.

We’ve also got managers now with reporting lines into various parts of the globe, so being able to have a global set of HR practices and policies makes it so much easier for every employee and manager around the globe.”

Elliot says one of the things she’s worked hard to avoid is the temptation to say ‘we’re different and we need tweaking’. “The challenge for my role as a leader is to help the business go on that transition; to go from having complete autonomy around how we set local policies, to holding the discipline of compliance with a global set of policies.”

VALUES AND LEADERSHIP CAPABILITIES

Not surprisingly, given the areas in which the company operates in (medical treatments for life-threatening illnesses), the company has positioned its values front and centre. ‘Respect for the individual’ is just one of those values – and AstraZeneca has worked hard to ensure it’s more than just empty words in a corporate guidebook.

Elliot says there’s been a concerted effort over the last 12 months to shift the values towards leadership capabilities.

The benefit of this is, of course, the values become intrinsically aligned to leadership capabilities, which are in

turn measured and assessed as part of performance reviews. Leadership capabilities are also used for identifying development requirements, and also for identifying succession and talent candidates.

While ‘respect for the individual’ may be filed away in many organisations under the umbrella of ‘diversity’, Elliot says in practice at AstraZeneca it is positioned in behavioural terms around what to expect as an employee of the company, and what’s expected of that employee in return, in relation to interactions with peers, colleagues, clients and stakeholders.

“An example of how that plays out is the work we’ve done in recent years around flexible work and getting the dialogue happening between a manager and employee. It’s important that people recognise flexibility means completely different things to different people. For me it’s about being able to pick my children up from school, to be able to leave meetings at a time that allows me to do that without judgment. For others it might be about being committed to coaching a football team in the evenings, or having elder care responsibilities. It’s ensuring there’s respect for each of those situations that individuals have.”

PERKS & BENEFITS

Like any other sector, talent in the pharma sector is tight, despite recent downsizing presenting more candidates to market. To stand out from the pack, AstraZeneca has introduced several innovative perks and benefits. One that sets the company apart from its competitors is ‘You Days’. Even better than the traditional rostered day off, You Days are up to an additional 12 days of paid leave per year, for the employee use however they wish. “We hear some great stories around how people choose to use them, whether it’s taking a long weekend away after a big project, or a keen golfer getting onto special courses they can’t get

PROFILE KIMBERLY ELLIOT

HR at AstraZeneca onto on the weekends. In my case I had an opportunity to participate in my children’s schooling activities which I’d never done before during my time with other employers.

It’s not a benefit a competitor can easily replicate – there’s a cost involved in providing 12 extra days of leave to every employee, so we’ve held fast that this is something we want to retain,” Elliot says.

Another key focus area has been paid parental leave.

Twelve weeks of paid parental leave can be taken at any time following the 12 months after childbirth. Elliot says this is particularly attractive to fathers. A childcare return to work bonus of up to $5,000 is also offered when the employee returns to work following parental leave.

The Sydney office also has a partnership with a local childcare centre which gives employees preferential access to that centre.

‘CHARLIE-WORTHY BEHAVIOUR’

Most professionals would hope to leave their workplace in a better state in which they found it – and some are lucky to make a lasting impact. Such is the case with Elliot, who lists her ‘proudest work achievement’ as a comprehensive reward & recognition program she worked on when she first joined AstraZeneca. The

realisation that the company needed to take stock of its recognition programs was apparent when Elliot realised there was high volume recognition occurring in the sales organisation but nowhere near the visibility and consistency outside of that department.

“I ran a project to set up an online R&R program that gave us some more compliance benefits – from an FBT perspective we could start to track and record where we were getting greater spend for recognition. It was also the first time we’d had the opportunity for employees to provide peer-to-peer recognition.”

The icing on the cake was a branding campaign, centred on a character named Charlie. “We wanted to create a way where it didn’t just happen in a system, and was all hidden,” Elliot says. “I’m proud to say Charlie has now become quite embedded in our organisation. So we talk about behaviour that is ‘Charlie-worthy behaviour’.

If a manager decides they want to reward someone for a behaviour, they allocate points and we refer to them as ‘Charlie points’. I feel like I’ve had an opportunity to be part of a project that has left a legacy in the business and has changed the way we recognise our employees.”

More industry profiles at:

hcamag.com

HCAMAG.COM 53

SIGN OFF

the lighter side written by Stephanie Zillman

Tall tales: Dead grandmother exhumed for police investigation

HOW TO KEEP INTERVIEWEES ON THEIR TOES

Career advice site Glassdoor scoured tens of thousands of interview questions that job candidates shared with them last year to compile a list of the 25 strangest.

Beyond providing an amusing read, such questions may be genuinely useful. Given the preparedness of the modern job candidate, it’s likely that they are ready for most of the standard questions on your list. Asking them something unexpected may provide a useful insight.

With that in mind, here are eight of the best, along with who asked them: • How many cows are in Canada? (Google) • A penguin walks through that door right now wearing a sombrero. What does he say and why is he here? (Clark Construction Group) • What do you think about when you are alone in your car? (Gallup) • If we came to your house for dinner, what would you prepare for us?

(Trader Joe’s) • My wife and I are going on vacation, where would you recommend?

(PricewaterhouseCoopers) • What’s your favourite song? Perform it for us now. (LivingSocial) • If you had turned your cellphone to silent, and it rang really loudly despite it being on silent, what would you tell me? (Kimberly-Clark) • On a scale from one to 10, rate me as an interviewer. (Kraft Foods)

EMPLOYEE OUTSOURCES HIS OWN JOB TO CHINA

Ever wished that you could pay someone else to do your job? One US worker thought he had come up with the perfect plan. He was the top performing software developer on his team and never had to do a day’s work. Paying his Chinese counterpart a fraction of his six-figure salary, ‘Bob’ could spend his work days surfing the net.

The former developer’s perfect plan came undone when routine checks by the US critical infrastructure company Verizon noticed anomalous activity on one of its client’s virtual private network (VPN) logs. In simple terms, the VPN log showed that the developer was logging in from Shenyang, China, despite the fact that he was sitting in front of his computer in the American office day in, day out.

The fraudulent developer reportedly spent a typical work day browsing Reddit (approximately two hours), shopping on eBay (approximately one hour), and updating his Facebook and LinkedIn accounts (around two-and-a-half hours).

What’s more, the company also uncovered his favourite past-time of all: watching cat videos on YouTube.

Despite this abysmal lack of productivity, Bob had apparently received excellent performance reviews in the past few years, but thanks to the work of his Chinese counterpart.

One almost feels sorry for him for being fired.

It’s easy to be suspicious when a worker calls in sick, but sometimes it seems they’re being too honest.

Careerbuilder.com has released their annual survey about office sick leave, showing 30% of workers have called in sick when not actually ill.

But what are the best excuses employers have heard? Well, it seems some workers can be brutally honest, to their own detriment, about why they’re not coming into work.

Here are HC’s favourites: Employee’s sobriety tool wouldn’t allow the car to start Employee forgot he had been hired for the job Employee said her dog was having a nervous breakdown Employee’s dead grandmother was being exhumed for a police investigation Employee’s toe was stuck in a faucet Employee said a bird bit her Employee was upset after watching The Hunger Games

BEAM INTO WORK: THE FUTURE IS HERE

It’s the stuff of science fiction, yet in Silicon Valley this is just another day at the office.

‘Beaming’ into work is made possible by a robotic mobile video-conferencing machine, which drives around offices and workshops giving a ‘physical presence’ for remote-working employees.

The machine is a 5-foot tall device complete with a large video screen, speakers and microphone, making employees feel as though their colleague is actually there.

Engineer Dallas Goecker from Suitable Technologies in Silicon Valley is one worker who utilises the ‘Beam’ on a daily basis. “This gives you that casual interaction that you’re used to at work,” Goecker told AP, speaking on a Beam. “I’m sitting in my desk area with everybody else.

I’m part of their conversations and their socialising.”

Suitable Technologies, which makes the Beam, is now one of more than a dozen companies that sell the so-called telepresence robots. These remote-controlled machines are equipped with video cameras, speakers, microphones and wheels that allow users to see, hear, talk and even ‘walk’ in faraway locations.

However, before panic ensues, these robotic stand-ins are still a long way from going mainstream.

Just a very small number of organisations use them, as the machines are expensive, tricky to navigate and can even get stuck if they venture into areas with poor internet connectivity.

Employee got sick from reading too much Employee was suffering from a broken heart

HCAMAG.COM 55