HRM 14.6 From the ground up

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Working across borders Internal talent transfers at Mastercard Innovation: A strategic HR imperative

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ISSUE 14.6

FedEx’s head honcho Khoo Seng Thiam shares his talent journey

PLUS: Dealing with employee depression Seven steps to effective leadership development

S I M 5 0 TH A N N I V E R S A R Y L E A R N I N G S E R I E S www.sim.edu.sg

33RD SIM ANNUAL MANAGEMENT LECTURE AND SENIOR MANAGEMENT SEMINAR

With

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SCOTT D. ANTHONY

when you register by 17th July

Managing Partner of Innosight

Organisations today continually face increasing challenges to sustain and grow their businesses in this fast-paced environment. In this upcoming provocative and practical presentation, Professor Clayton Christensen, together with his protégé, Scott Anthony, will explain the blueprint for Disruptive Innovation and help you identify ways in which you can apply to meet these challenges.

FROM A LEADER’S PERSPECTIVE

Event 1: SENIOR MANAGEMENT SEMINAR (SMS) - 8:30am – 12:00pm

CREATING NEW GROWTH THROUGH DISRUPTIVE INNOVATION Companies tend to innovate faster than their customers' lives change. Most organisations eventually end up producing products or services that are too good, too expensive, and too inconvenient for many customers.

By pursuing only "sustaining innovations" that have historically helped them succeed, companies unwittingly open the door to disruptive innovations by others. As the pioneer in making Disruptive Innovation a manageable, repeatable process, Clayton has helped companies around the world generate disruptive ideas that drive new, sustainable and profitable growth.

KEY TAKEAWAYS • Discover how you can achieve profitable growth for your company through disruptive innovation • Learn key essential practices and actions your company will need to embrace new disruptive innovations • Find out how to get the scope of your business right • Develop disruptive growth strategies from top down WHO SHOULD ATTEND Strictly for Top & Senior Management

FROM AN INDIVIDUAL CONTRIBUTOR’S PERSPECTIVE

INNOVATOR’S DILEMMA EXPANDED Managers and leaders have historically struggled to successfully manage innovation. The dilemma is how to serve your core business while finding new markets and watching out for new entrants in your blind spot.

Clayton and his protégé, Scott, will share how Disruptive Innovation has changed the way managers and CEOs around the world think about innovation, and how you can be a Disruptor in your organisation.

For enquiries, please call 6248 9417 or send an email to exec@sim.edu.sg For Bulk Purchases,

Event 2: ANNUAL MANAGEMENT LECTURE (AML) - 2:00pm – 5:00pm Why do successful and outstanding companies do everything right and yet still lose their market leadership? What decisions can managers take to increase their probability of success?

aml.sim.edu.sg/hrm

please contact Kwa at 6248 5884 or send an email to

KEY TAKEAWAYS • How can I beat powerful competitors?

• How can I connect with customers?

• How integrated should I be?

• How should I set strategy?

• Where should the innovation reside?

• What is the role of CEO? WHO SHOULD ATTEND CEOs, MDs, Directors, Management professionals, entrepreneurs, business owners and anyone who is interested in disruptive innovation strategies.

aml@sim.edu.sg

This Event Is Part Of The

HRM 14.6

Contents 12 From the ground up Renovation work, electrician and ramp agent. Khoo Seng Thiam, Managing Director at FedEx Express, is not your average corporate bigwig.

Contrary to the usually concise paths undertaken by the top executives, Khoo’s journey to the higher echelons is indeed a fascinating story

EDITOR Sumathi V Selvaretnam JOURNALIST Shalini Shukla-Pandey Sham Majid SUB-EDITOR Paul Howell PUBLISHING ADMINISTRATOR Azimah Jasman SENIOR GRAPHIC DESIGNER Amos Lee GRAPHIC DESIGNER John Paul Lozano ACCOUNT MANAGERS Edwin Lim Jolene Ong MANAGING DIRECTOR Kaveri Ayahsamy PHOTOGRAPHY BY David Teng (xcalibrephoto.com) Frank Pinckers (pinckers.com) PRINTED BY Times Printers Pte Ltd PUBLISHED BY

“Do not ask what the company can do for you but what can you do for yourself and what changes you can bring to the company” – KHOO SENG THIAM, MANAGING DIRECTOR, FEDEX EXPRESS, SHARES HIS TOP TIP FOR ASPIRING MANAGERS

HRMAsia Pte Ltd 121 Telok Ayer Street #02-01 Singapore 068590 Tel: +65 6423 4631 Fax: +65 6423-4632 Email: info@hrmasia.com.sg

MICA (P) 206/07/2013 ISSUE 14.6

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HRM 14.6

Contents

16

Check out HRM online:

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20

FEATURES 16 | Talent Beyond Borders Remote working is on the rise as more companies expand internationally. It follows, then, that businesses should be developing engagement programmes to help them manage their geographically dispersed workforces.

How can HR rally team members from different time zones, and cultures towards a common corporate goal?

20 | MasterCard staff: Priceless One of the world’s most recognisable brands, many people think ‘credit card’ when they hear ‘MasterCard’. However, MasterCard reaches far beyond the plastic and is actually the world’s most advanced payments technology company.

HRM finds out how the company encourages its human capital to push the boundaries of innovation and constantly come up with new ideas – priceless experiences for customers

25 | Innovation: A Strategic HR Imperative Too often we think of innovation as the responsibility of a product team or a business unit, writes guest contributor Michael Stanleigh.

Instead, he says innovation should spring from a purpose-built environment and culture

30 | Training subsidies: Are you missing out?

Training is vital to not only sustaining, but advancing an organisation. When the

government supports employers through a variety of avenues, employers can truly focus on developing their own human capital and thus, their business. HRM shares the latest government-funded training courses that you should look out for

34 | Seven Steps for Effective Leadership Development Leadership is the crux of business and organizational success today. Shaun Han, Vice President of ASEAN Applications, says there are seven steps to ensuring a smooth supply chain of effective leadership, now and into the future

38 | Beating the blues Depression and low morale are increasingly terrorising workplaces all over the world. In order to fight the blues, companies are firmly placing employee wellbeing at the top of their priorities

43 | Wellness at work Healthier and happier employees lead to more productive workplaces.

HRM finds out HR can boost overall health and fitness, but also fuse an element of fun and camaraderie at the workplace

52 | The Best Summit Yet A staggering 4,172 people attended the STJobs HR Summit 2014 from April 28-29

38 REGULARS 3 | Analysis 4 | News 11 | Leaders on Leadership 49 | Talent Ladder 51 | In Person 51 | Resources 54 | Talent Challenge 56 | Viewpoint 57 | Twenty-four Seven

CONTACT US: Read something you like? Or something you don’t? Perhaps there’s some insight we haven’t considered? Have your say on HRM’s news, features, and contributions by emailing: info@hrmasia.com.sg 2

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ANALYSIS

Workplace Safety & Health

Integrated WSH approach encouraged In the first three months of this year, Singapore saw 19 workplace fatalities. It seems a combined and concerted effort by HR, employers and the government is required for the country to change mind-sets and improve working conditions

By Shalini Shukla-Pandey With an ageing workforce and increasing life expectancies in Singapore, health issues such as chronic diseases will become more significant, affecting workers and potentially causing an impact on productivity. Organisations must therefore put in place holistic intervention programmes to ensure the safety, health and sustainability of their workforces.

At the third Singapore Workplace Safety and Health (WSH) Conference 2014, Lawrence Waterman, Head – Health and Safety, London Legacy Development Corporation, highlighted the importance of having healthy workers. He was tasked with the safety and health aspects of 70,000 sub-contractors during the construction of the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park in London for the London Olympics. “Wellbeing is an absolutely fundamental beginning of that conversation with the workforce on what needs to be done in partnership between employer and worker in order to improve health generally,” he said. “You will end up with a workforce that is healthy and happy in the workplace and who are much more productive.”

The importance of implementing “Total WSH” was further developed by Chia Kee Seng, Dean of the Saw Swee Hock School of Public Health, at the National University of Singapore. “The way forward is to implement Total WSH,” he said. “The risk management system must not be just about safety risk factors, but management should also look into health factors, and promote the importance of health and wellbeing of workers.”

Indeed, good leadership at all levels is not only vital for economic success, but also for achieving safety and health for all workers. “Leaders shape cultures by first setting expectations, teaching others, stewarding results and most importantly leading by example,” said Jason Duncan, Regional Manufacturing Manager, ExxonMobil Chemical Asia-Pacific.

“For culture to grow and flourish, these (ideals) must be embedded throughout the workforce.” he added.

Changes ahead While Singapore has been able to bring down the overall workplace fatality rate from 4.0 per 100,000 employees per year

in 2005 to 2.1 in 2013, the country’s rate of improvement has slowed, and is now at risk of plateauing, or even slipping back.

In particular, Singapore’s WSH performance in the first three months of this year has been of grave concern. The country saw 19 workplace fatalities, five more than during the same period last year. Twelve out of the 19 lives were lost in the construction sector. The fatality rate in the construction sector has increased from 5.5 in 2011, to 5.9 in 2012, and then to 7.0 last year.

As such, Deputy Prime Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam has announced that the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) is undertaking a review of its regulatory penalties and the legislative framework for WSH infringements. This will ensure that the government is able to send a stronger deterrent message.

“The situation is unacceptable, and we cannot let it continue,” Tharman told the Singapore WSH Conference 2014. “While construction firms face genuine operating challenges, such as worker shortages in some areas and pressure to complete projects on time, the safety and health of workers must be the foremost priority for everyone.”

Therefore, a shift in thinking and approach is needed, especially if Singapore is to achieve its target of fewer than 1.8 fatalities per 100,000 employees by 2018, Tharman added.

One way is to institute workplace safety and health risk management further upstream, meaning developers will be required to ensure their designs are safe to build.

Where previously the Design for Safety (DfS) programme was voluntary, the Government will now mandate it. The regulatory requirements and timeframe for their implementation will be announced by the end of this year.

Equal emphasis also has to be placed on workplace health, Tharman said. A study by the WSH Institute shows work-related ill health cost about $9 billion in 2011.

WSH Council, MOM and the Health Promotion Board have also jointly launched a new Guide to Total WSH. This aims to address the interconnected issues of WSH, together with the wellbeing of employees, by helping employers manage the safety, health and well-being of workers in the workplace.

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NEWS

Asia SINGAPORE

Local workforce increasingly disengaged Workers in Singapore are less committed to their jobs than their Asian counterparts, but are also less likely to resign.

According to the latest findings from the Kelly Global Workforce Index, only 20% of employees in Singapore consider themselves “totally committed” to their jobs, compared with as many as 41% in Indonesia, 28% in Malaysia and 27% in China.

The results show a progressive decline in commitment since 2010, when 38% of employees in Singapore indicated a total commitment to their jobs.

In addition, only 40% of Singapore employees feel valued by their employers. This number has remained stable in recent years, however it is lower than elsewhere in the region. The survey revealed 58% of workers in Indonesia, 52% of Chinese employees, and 46% of staff in Malaysia feel valued by their employers.

Interestingly, this has not translated into higher attrition rates in Singapore. Only a third (30%) are feeling less loyal as a result of this perceived lack of appreciation, and only half (53%) plan to look for a new job this year.

These figures are amongst the lowest in the region, where on average 35% felt less loyal and 64% planned to look for a new job.

The most popular reason for changing jobs was the chance for increased salary and benefits (66%), with Generation Y more focused on this than any other age group (69%). Opportunities for advancement, work-life balance, and management and leadership were also popular reasons across the board.

Commenting on the findings, Mark Hall, Vice President and Country General Manager of Kelly Services Singapore, said: “Engagement levels are low in Singapore compared with other Asian markets and it’s clear that more needs to be done by employers to provide an environment that will help to increase productivity and long-term retention.”

“Our findings show that while salary and benefits are central to an employee’s priorities; advancement, strong leadership and flexibility are (also) important motivators,” he added. “This suggests an ambitious workforce that is looking for mentorship and development opportunities – these considerations will become even more critical as competition for top talent continues.”

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INDIA The majority of HR executives who use video at work today

(56%)

indicated this was their most preferred method of business communication, Source: Polycom global survey

15% – 20%

of unionised companies are on board with flexi-work arrangements, and they are looking to hit 50% by the end of 2015 Source: NTUC

24%

of employers in Singapore regularly employ temporary and contract staff Source: 2014 Hays Salary Guide

Men seek workplace flexibility too A new study has revealed that men too are increasingly opting for workplace flexibility options.

According to a survey by job portal TimesJobs.com, over 62% of male workers in India believe flexibility is an important factor for them in a job.

The research also asked employers how their staff used flexible options, with about 45% of organisations noting that men were largely using these for child and family care.

A further 31% of male staff used flexible working options to study or enhance their skills. Meanwhile, over 80% women use flexi-work options for childcare, with just 20% using them for training.

“Changing socio-cultural dynamics and the increasing trend of nuclear families is seen as the primary reason behind the growing usage of flexibility option by men,” the report said.

Part-time schedules and flexi-time are the most widely offered flexible work arrangements across sectors. Close to 40% of organisations offer these programmes to their employees. A combination of programmes tailored to fit employee’s needs is offered by 16% of organisations.

Experts believe flexibility creates an environment where employers and employees can look at work and personal needs in a balanced approach, which is mutually beneficial.

“Workplace flexibility policy can lead to increased employee morale, increased retention rate, higher commitment levels, reduced absenteeism and increased individual and business output, provided it is effectively implemented and managed,” Xavient India HR Director, Deepika Pillai, said.

SINGAPORE

Banking professionals want more training Half of banking professionals in Singapore expect more training in 2014 than last year.

The Anagram Group Banking Training Survey 2014 found that while a big chunk of organisations’ training budgets (45%) will go to regulatory and compliance training, 72% of banking professionals in Singapore would like to see more leadership and management training, and 57% would like more soft-skills training. However, only 10% of training budgets are currently going to each of these two areas.

Forty-three per cent said the main benefit of additional training was improving employee efficiency; 38% said it helped to develop under-performing staff, while 14% said it improved employee retention.

“Increased regulatory demands are forcing banks to allocate more budgets to regulatory and compliance training. However, most employees are demanding more training on how to manage, lead, and engage with colleagues and customers,” said Mark Stuart, Managing Director, Anagram Group.

“This might be due to new pressures being faced by managers in recent years as a result of relentless growth, larger and more diverse teams, and tighter budgets,” he added.

NEWS

MALAYSIA

ASIA

HR professionals are in high demand in Malaysia as a growing number of international companies establish operations in the country.

According to Hays Malaysia, topping the list of HR skills in demand are strategic HR Business Partners.

“Employers are looking for strategic HR Business Partners with vision who can balance HR programmes with business priorities,” says Lisa Stanhope, regional director of Hays in Malaysia.

“HR Managers that have experience in both handling workforces in different countries and regional and matrix reporting are also in high demand,” she added. “These candidates are required to help transform organisations into employers of choice.

“This kind of change management has also fuelled the need to recruit Organisational Development Managers,” Stanhope said. “Talent Managers are also needed to identify the right talent at the right time for organisations’ succession pipelines.”

The recruiter says an increasing number of multinational companies see Malaysia as an ideal location for manufacturing plants, since the costs involved are relatively low compared to other countries. This too is naturally creating HR jobs.

“In manufacturing, HR Managers who are strong in industrial relations and Malaysia employment law, and have experience in negotiating collective agreements with large workforces are highly sought after,” Stanhope concluded.

Most companies in high-growth markets can significantly increase the impact of their HR practices by focusing on proactive and strategic practices, according to research by consultancy Organisation Solutions.

Currently, 70% of HR practices in these markets are “reactive”, and focus on day-to-day operations only.

The most successful companies have higher internal promotion rates, lower turnover, and greater overall capability. These companies also aggressively woo potential talent, hiring ahead of the curve and creating the talent pool that their business will need within the next one to two years.

“The best performing companies were also better at gearing core leadership training to local market needs and developed their key talent through programmes with real world experience,” says James Eyring, Chief Operating Officer, Organisation Solutions.

HR professionals in demand

Reactive HR practices can’t meet growth challenges

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NEWS

International GERMANY

Women deterred by “male sounding” job positions Academic research has deduced that “male sounding” job postings, utilising words linked with male stereotypes, put off women from applying. Women feel less prone to replying to advertisements that use words like “determined” and “assertive” as they are linked to male characteristics.

This was one of the findings of a research project titled “Selection and Assessment of Leaders in Business and Academia”, in which scientists from the Technische Universität München (TUM) studied how leaders were chosen and assessed.

The researchers showed about 260 test subjects fictional employment advertisements. These included, for example, a place in a training programme for potential management vacancies.

If the ad espoused a significant proportion of traits linked with men, the women found it less enticing and were less likely to apply.

Such traits included words such as “assertive”, “independent”, “aggressive” and “analytical”. Conversely, women found words such as “dedicated”, “responsible”, “conscientious” and “sociable” more alluring.

Meanwhile, male test subjects, the wording of the job ad made no difference to their intention to apply.

“A carefully-formulated job posting is essential to get the best choice of personnel,” said Claudia Peus, Chair of Research and Science Management at TUM, who headed the study.

“In most cases, it doesn’t make sense to simply leave out all of the male-sounding phrases. But without a profile featuring at least balanced wording, organisations are robbing themselves of the chance to attract good female applicants. And that’s because the stereotypes endure almost unchanged in spite of all of the societal transformation we have experienced.”

CANADA

Job hopping without fuss Canadians are job hopping at an alarming pace, a recently-unveiled study by employment search site Workopolis has found.

According to the “Thinkopolis” report, only 30% of Canadians surveyed had stayed in their posts for more than four years, while 51% had remained in their jobs for less than two years.

Tara Talbot, vice-president of HR for Workpolis, said that with the jump in job hopping, employees will have to come up with concrete reasons for each departure.

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UK

$87,000 to $2.4 million Is lost to employee fatigue by energy organisations every year

Source: “The Effects of Employee Fatigue and its Management in the Energy Industry” survey

7 out of 10

Irish technology firms increased their turnover by an average of 30% last year Source: Amarach research for AIB

$594

Is expected to be spent on each employee on health and wellness in 2014, an increase of 15% from the 2013 average Source: Consumer Health Mindset survey

“People have to have their story; they need to be cognisant of all these different moves they’re doing,” said Talbot.

“They need to have a story as to why — why it’s a good thing for the company and why it’s a good thing for them and why it makes sense — so that a future employer isn’t worried about a lack of commitment.”

Along with switching jobs, Canadian employees are also jumping careers at an alarming pace, with nearly half (48%) of the poll’s respondents claiming they had switched careers three or more times.

The pattern revealed that Canadians are sourcing for new ways to transfer skillsets to

Workers “fattened” with information It appears that UK’s office employees are getting “obese” from information overload.

According to a new study from Microsoft, Defying Digital Distraction, 55% of UK office workers feel they regularly suffer from information overload. Forty three per cent of them have endured stress as a result, with just over a third (34%) feeling overwhelmed.

The survey also found that 52% workers used their mobile device to check for work emails within 15 minutes of hitting their bed, while 58% turned their attention to work as soon as they got up in the morning.

A sizeable 49% did not think all this connectivity to work was stimulating, while 35% confessed to actively sourcing for online distractions to alter their monotonous working routine.

Espousing this pattern as ‘infobesity’, Dave Coplin, chief envisioning officer at Microsoft UK, said that companies should change the manner in which they see technology and utilise modern technologies and tools to glean information from big data.

“Succumbing to the digital distractions of our lives and failing to harness the transformative power of technology are simply beginners’ mistakes,” Coplin said.

“Here is where we go wrong: we use technology to speed up the old ways of working.”

different sectors, with some even transforming skills from defunct jobs to emerging posts which are high in demand.

The survey found that 37% of departing employees left their posts because of a poor relationship with their direct manager.

A sizeable 29% quit their jobs because they were simply bored, while 20% identified better prospects.

Nevertheless, Talbot warned that employees who simply job hop should make sure they are not only fleeing from a bad predicament.

“Whenever you’re changing jobs, you want to make sure you’re going to something and not just leaving something,” she said.

NEWS

International EUROPE

TURKEY

gunning for the biggest employers, a a creative working climate and a survey of graduating business and firm internship programme. engineering students has revealed.

Just like Google, Microsoft scored According to the Europe’s Most highly among both business and Attractive Employers 2014 Guide, by engineering students. employer branding consultancy “Microsoft highlights the Universum, Google has emerged as importance of employees making a the most enticing employer among difference and really promotes its European business students. corporate social responsibility Meanwhile, German giant initiatives on social media and other Siemens is the most sought-after digital channels,” said Claudia employer for engineering and IT Tattanelli, global director for students.

Universum.

Google also appeared in the top The 2014 rankings were compiled five among European engineering from a poll of over 135,000 and IT students. graduating business, engineering In addition, L’Oreal, which owns and IT students across 12 European beauty brands such as The Body countries, including Germany, Shop, was GMPRS1045 a hit withGMP business France, Italy and UK. 11:13 AM HR Magazine 186x119.5mm pa.pdf 1 the 14/1/13

Turkish women account for only a quarter of the nation’s 27 million-strong workforce, new statistics have revealed.

According to a nationwide report, slightly more than 25% of the working population is female. Far more women have encountered discrimination and unfair treatment than their male colleagues.

The findings were deduced from a survey administered across Turkey by POLLMARK. The report, titled “Insight into the Socioeconomic, Political and Cultural Situation of Women in Turkey,” has resulted in several female campaigners condemning current attitudes in Turkey towards women in the working environment.

A founding member of the Intellectual Perspective Association, Sema Gül, claimed the issue was not only about the state of working women but also about the national values Turkish society expects of women. The report polled over 5,000 women across 13 regions of Turkey.

Which companies attract the best graduates? Gender gap widens across the workforce Fresh European graduates are students, as it is has a reputation for

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HR INSIGHT

C-Suite

Are you an effective leader?

Ketchum polled 6,509 people in 13 countries worldwide on their perceptions of effective leadership, effective communication and the intrinsic link between the two

FALLING BEHIND

42%

BELIEVE BUSINESS LEADERS MEET EXPECTATIONS

Yet only 35% rate them as effective communicators, one-third as having clear values and 29% as showing effective leadership

Would love to hear from you

How low can they go

22%

GLOBALLY FEEL LEADERS DEMONSTRATE EFFECTIVE LEADERSHIP 14-point gap between expectation and delivery and just 17% expecting an improvement during 2014

MEDIOCRE LEADERSHIP COSTS SERIOUS MONEY

74%

View effective communication as very important to great leadership – again the top-ranking attribute

29%

Yet only feel leaders communicate effectively, with a 45-point expectation/delivery gap

Source: Ketchum Leadership Communication Monitor 2014 8

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61%

Boycotted or bought less from a company due to poor leadership

52%

Started buying or purchased more due to strong leadership

HR INSIGHT

KEY ACTIONS, NOT JUST KEY MESSAGES Honesty, transparency and collaboration matter most

VS

FEMALE

MALE

Rise of a more “feminine” model of leadership.

At a global level, female leaders came out ahead on all of the top four most crucial traits of effective leadership Leading by example

Female

Communicating in an open and transparent way

Female

Admitting mistakes

Female

Bringing out the best in others

Female

57% 62% 66% 61%

Male

43%

Male

38%

Male

34%

Male

39%

However, Singaporeans are more inclined to support male leaders Leading by example

Female

37% Male 63%

Admitting mistakes

Female

47% Male 53%

Communicating openly and transparently

Female

45% Male 55%

Handling controversial issues calmly and confidently

Female

25% Male 75%

Bringing out the best in others

Female

42% Male 58%

63% LEAD BY EXAMPLE

 61% ADMITTING MISTAKES

62%

TRANSPARENT COMMUNICATION

58%

BRINGING OUT THE BEST IN OTHERS

LOOK INTO MY EYES Personal presence and engagement crucial across all communications channels

Traditional channels have greatest impact on leadership perceptions — tv interviews (49%); inperson speeches (42%); formal announcements (34%) vs. Facebook (16%) and twitter (9%)

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LEADERS ON LEADERSHIP

Talent Management

Channels of communication As a leader, how do you remain open and accessible to your employees?

Campbell Wilson CEO, Scoot

For a young company like Scoot, which strives to inject some fun, quirkiness and “Scootitude” into travel, openness and accessibility are absolutely fundamental. It is part of Scoot’s DNA and, fortunately, part of mine having grown up in New Zealand’s egalitarian culture.

Since day one we have eschewed titles, insisting that everyone - including me - is known by their first name only. We expect professional behaviour, but are quite comfortable with casual dress – to the extent of holding “international shorts days”, where all staff are expected to wear shorts to work. We encourage poking fun at ourselves – showing embarrassing old pictures, for example, or dressing up as Frankenstein in-flight for Hallowe’en (both of which I have done) – to ensure no-one takes themselves too seriously.

We aim to empower everyone to exhibit our Scootitude when serving guests, designing promotions or creating advertisements.

Physically, we have a fully open-plan office with no partitions or dividers – my desk is in with the rest of my team, and I regularly pick up my laptop and work from any spare desk I can find. I personally brief every single new staff member - pilots, cabin crew and office staff - and attend every cabin crew graduation to join the celebration. We hold regular open-house Q&A sessions for staff, particularly those who work at 39,000 feet, and two parties every year.

An open and accessible leader is not simply one who leaves their office door open. It is the full range of behaviours they exhibit, how they interact, how they have others interacting, and how they shape the corporate culture.

Aaron Kong

Director and Partner, SG Story

Working with a young team, leaders need to understand the transitional challenges from “studying life” to a first job by being open and accessible.

At SG Story, an independent integrated communications agency, we have a young team that possesses great energy, passion and commitment towards building their careers in this industry. Some managers are quick to link these challenges with the newbie’s lack of work experience. However I would point out that this is due to context rather than pedigree.

Many newbies learn quickly that their new environment values behaviours and outcomes that are different than from their time in school.

Leaders can help these new staff make the transition to the working world by creating a company culture that helps them acclimatise better. The two culture points are: firstly, shifting newbies towards welcoming feedback, and secondly, grading the team versus the individual.

Often, in school, students are measured on research paper or semester-long projects.

However the processes by which they produce these items are irrelevant to the teacher, who only looks at the final product. With this behaviour entrenched through years of study, newbies often focus on delivering work that is “perfect” in their minds. Leaders need to set a culture where early, frequent opportunities are available to “check in” with the managers, and that will align with the desired expectation.

Leaders have the responsibility to their organisations and towards their new charges to continue to educate where schools have stopped. When employees are successful, the company won’t be too far behind.

Thorsten Kirschke

President, Asia Pacific, Carlson Rezidor Hotel Group

After four years as President of the Americas at Carlson Rezidor, I have recently assumed the role of President, Asia-Pacific, based in our regional headquarters in Singapore.

Being in the hospitality industry for the past 24 years has given me the opportunity to meet and work with people from Europe, the Middle East, Africa, Americas and Asia.

No matter where I am, I have always made it a point to keep in touch with the people I have come into contact with.

If you are not open and accessible, you are not in the hospitality business. Within Carlson Rezidor, I make sure that I am accessible to our employees through a combination of structured feedback platforms, such as forums, meetings and scheduled hotel visits, and more informal one-on-one conversations with the help of technology, or face to face.

It is all about people. This is especially so in the hospitality business where our job is not just to make our guests happy, but to also make our employees engaged and proud of what they do.

As the world moves at an ever-increasing pace, it becomes even more critical that we build meaningful relationships, in our personal lives and in business. Human to human communications is becoming one of the most critical components of business success.

However, this has to be built on trust and respect. We need to respect people from all walks of life and be credible and sincere in our interactions with others. As leaders, if we do that in a humble and meaningful way, we will make a big difference.

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COVER STORY

Leaders Talk HR Renovation worker, electrician and even ramp agent – Khoo Seng Thiam, Managing Director at FedEx Express, is not your average corporate bigwig. Contrary to the usually concise paths undertaken by top executives, Khoo’s journey to the higher echelons is a fascinating story

By Sham Majid

Q

Tell us about your early days as a ramp agent at FedEx, where you barely spoke any English

Q

What were you aiming to achieve in your career and life back then?

I’m a Malaysian from Malacca, and in the 1970s, there was a big wave of change in the education system back home. Everything was changed to Malay and therefore, over the period of time, the level of English was diluted. At the time, as long as you got through the SPM (GCE “O” Levels), you thought you were going to get a lot of opportunities – until you stepped out of the country. You then realised that that level of English was absolutely inadequate in the business world. In fact, the only time that I could really survive in Singapore was when I spoke Malay to the Malay community and Chinese with the Chinese community.

My first job in Singapore was in Changi International Airport Services (CIAS). I was working as a cargo operator.

Over here while I was a cargo handler, I got to hear about FedEx and got into the FedEx job as a ramp agent. In 1992, I used the tuition assistance that the company provided to pursue some educational qualifications, and this was where I got my advanced diploma and Masters.

I wish I had a crystal ball back then to see where I am today! During school days, we started to do a lot of things, like work in coffee shops, and as a helper to the electrical and construction sectors. Soon after the SPM, I was in Kuala Lumpur and tried to learn the ropes in terms of renovation work, trying to pull wallpaper and ceiling paper, but very soon I realised that coming up and trying to do that business is about seasonal trends. You will be absolutely busy during the second half of the year, and after the New Year, you can sit for six months. If you were to continue doing these kinds of things, how would you

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survive? The thought process was to find for jobs and to start from ground zero.

Q

Who inspires you?

My wife. We came to know each other when we worked in CIAS. When I returned and started doing my night courses, she was my pillar. As she had done her “A” Levels, her command of English was much better than mine and she helped me check for words I did not understand so that I could finish my work faster. Even during the night courses where we have to pay upfront fees, she was the one who supported me with the costs until we got reimbursement from the company.

Dennice Wilson, my former boss, came to Malaysia in 1994 and I was the very first manager she hired in Asia. My English was still not very good then. But one thing great about Dennice is that her way of looking through people is that she does not see the potential of people simply through language skills. I think at that time, she probably saw the potential in me and my thought processes and was willing to invest some time in me.

Q

What were some of the challenges you faced as a manager?

At the end of the day, becoming a manager in a multinational corporation is a great feeling.

Honestly, the truth was that I never saw myself progressing to the place I am today. That “over the moon” feeling was quickly diluted in the sense that I was a rookie manager and I began to understand the complexities of people management. My first three months were not easy at all as I had a group of couriers, and had to regularly meet up with my boss for lunch and give feedback about myself. The self-awareness had to be there and I think I have a very strong self-awareness in terms of recognising my weaknesses.

COVER STORY

From the

ground up FedEx’s head honcho Khoo Seng Thiam shares his talent journey

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COVER STORY

Leaders Talk HR

Q

What made you return to Singapore? Why were you happy to move back to Singapore after your overseas posting in New Zealand and Hong Kong?

As an expatriate, we have to recognise that while the life is good, it is a borrowed life. The last thing you want to do is to create a false perception to the kids, especially when you are overseas. Sometimes you have to think of whether you will be able to afford that if you were on your own? If the affordability is just not there, then you have reset the expectations, especially when you are at a young age. This is why when we first got back, I intentionally stayed in a heartland HDB flat for almost three and a half years, so the kids could assimilate back into the local lifestyle.

Q

The biggest turning point?

There is one critical point that transformed me. I am always fascinated by how I went through my night courses and sat in the train back and forth and looked at people with ties and working during office hours. That triggers you. Secondly, when you begin to see people dressing up well for work, you start thinking of being like that one day. At that point, I had my fiancée and I couldn’t imagine starting a family where I had to continue doing shift work. That was

• I love: Spending time with my family doing outdoor activities such as cycling and in-line skating.

• I dislike: Half-hearted attempts. I believe in putting in 100% and more into everything that I do.

• My inspiration: Our achievement is often the result of the collective work of a team. My desire to see my team being successful drives me to do more.

• My biggest weakness is: Being a perfectionist. I am still hard on myself but I have learnt to be more patient and understanding towards others.

• In five years’ time, I’d like to be: Looking at my kids embark on a new chapter in their lives after their graduation.

• Favourite quote: Good things come to those who believe, better things come to those who are patient and the best thing comes to those who never give up! –Anonymous.

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really a big turning point and that was where pursuing my education was part of a way to move on.

Q

Work-life balance?

My wife used to tell me that I was a much happier person when I was a ramp agent. I think she meant it because of the stress and when things sometimes bother me in my corporate job.

Sometimes, in a call, you can see that I’m stressed or quiet, so those are the things the she has felt. When I was a ramp agent and when she was a flight stewardess, I only had to deal with the day-to-day aspects of the job. When you go home, you can really switch off, but when you are in management, you just cannot switch off. I’m doing a much better job of not bringing home work, especially over the last six or seven years. These days, no one in my team will get emails or phone calls from me during the weekend.

My kids used to snap pictures of me using my Blackberry each year when we go for holidays.

Q

What are some of your key HR challenges?

It is quite a challenging period at the moment. At FedEx, almost 70% of our management come through the ranks. However, the newer generation, particularly the Generation Y staff, are less patient in terms of how they see the growth. They are more ambitious, particularly because of the education system in Singapore. We have a whole suite of e-Learning programmes for people wanting to get into the professional types of positions. As a company we do have an open door policy and the opportunity for people to grow with the Job Change Application policy (as long as you have served at least 12 months in the current job), which has been widely popular.

COVER STORY

Q

Do employees who enter the company receive a career roadmap?

Q

Examples of key training programmes for employees?

It’s not exactly a road map per se, but FedEx has a very strong and fundamental philosophy, called “people service profit”. Our guiding principle is that we always look after the welfare of the people so that in return, they will be able to deliver impeccable service and, therefore, drive up profits. Those profits will then come back to the people. We also have a tuition assistance programme, which we fund for employees who want to pursue their education, up to about US$2,500 a year, without bonding. Even when there is a job vacancy, we advertise the job internally first.

Obviously for every job, there is technical training to give people the basic competency skills.

We also have basic training, especially opened up for those who aspire to greater things such as management. In the past, we had a training programme called “Is Management for Me?” Now we call it “Coach to Grow”. It is essentially about bringing people in and talking to them about what management is all about and what inspires them to want to lead teams. We are also very high on quality and we are a driven organisation. We have a programme called “Quality Driven Management” that contains a lot of e-learning resources. It helps to expand the thought process in terms of how people look at issues differently, and how to differentiate between what is “important” and what is “urgent”.

Q

What is the turnover rate like?

What measures do you have in place to boost retention?

Every job has its own different level of turnover. But the FedEx retention rate is rather high. For example, the average tenure of the manager is 16 years. That is very

high. Personally, I’m celebrating my 20th anniversary this coming June. Our couriers, handlers and customer service officers are those who work in the front line jobs. In the context of Singapore, there are the people that we usually require to be up to secondary level of education. As you can imagine, the pool of secondaryeducated people is declining. So when it is declining and when the job demand in Singapore for that level of qualification is huge, there’s truly a demand and supply issue. One of the things that we have to think about is how creative can we be in resolving that. It is not just a FedEx issue, it’s a country problem. For example, according to the White Paper for 2030, 70% of the local workforce will be in PMET positions and the other 30% will be in the frontline. So how is that possible? But that is a trend, and as a company, how do we move towards embracing this kind of change? That is where we will be concentrating a lot on.

Q

What is your top tip for aspiring managers?

Do not ask what the company can do for you but what can you do for yourself and what changes you can bring to the company. Focus and excel in what you do, be pro-active in seeking guidance and support through the mentoring programmes available.

FedEx: People first ethos Mature employees form 40% of FedEx’s working population. To show their appreciation and recognition of their skillsets, FedEx launched the Post-Retirement Employment Opportunity programme in 2010. Eligible workers who hit the retirement age are afforded re-employment on unchanged terms. In addition, FedEx also contains the Guaranteed Fair Treatment Procedure that entails a systematic review that deals with employee complains and issues at work. This further epitomises FedEx’s commitment to fair worker treatment and towards forging an inclusive work climate.

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FEATURE

Employee Communication

TALENT BEYOND BORDERS Remote working is on the rise as more companies expand internationally. It follows, then, that businesses should be developing engagement programmes to help them manage their geographically dispersed workforces. How can HR rally team members from different time zones, and cultures towards a common corporate goal?

By Shalini Shukla-Pandey

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Working with a geographically diverse workforce involves both opportunities and challenges. With more than 20,000 staff in 400 offices spanning 81 countries, the head of talent acquisition for the Asia-Pacific region of GroupM, Michael Wright, believes the former to be most true.

“We find that ensuring people approach every market with a high amount of curiosity, so that they learn the specific nuances before acting, is critical,” he says.

“Patience, understanding and active listening skills will also serve you best. Every market has a unique voice which deserves airtime.”

In global businesses, it is important to understand the perspectives and local priorities of each market in depth, says Sunita Cherian, vice president of HR with Wipro.

“This is best achieved through a balanced workforce that reflects the diversity of the markets we are in.”

At LinkedIn, over 800 employees in 10 offices across Asia Pacific collaborate closely across borders and time zones on a daily basis. “Given the nature of our business, we need our teams to be ahead of the game and respond quickly to new innovations, customer needs and macro trends,” says Yasu Sato, APAC Regional Head & Director – HR, LinkedIn. “The benefit of having a geographically diverse workforce means that our business is always on – when team members in one city clock off for the day, team members in another city keeps things going.”

Culture proofing your organisation Understanding “world culture” is a key aspect of managing and working with people from different cultures and backgrounds.

“The world is flatter than ever before and in our network, despite our size, we collaborate at speed regardless of location, or nationality,” says Wright. “Part of

Three primary attributes of an effective remote manager • Establishes clear expectations and goals. Set the goals early, put them in writing, and re-visit them on a periodic basis.

• Knows their employees. Optimises their individual skills and styles; getting the right person for the right job at the right time in the right place.

• Establishes explicit “Big Rules”. These define acceptable etiquette, protocols, expectations of team members, norms, and values. Do not assume everyone will understand how things get done – be explicit.

• The most critical skill in a distributed work environment is the ability to establish trust (which in many ways translates into, or is equivalent to, employee engagement).

Source: The Work Design Collaborative

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NAVIGATE COMPLEXITIES

OUTSHINE

FEATURE

Employee Communication our transition management when we move people in and out of the region is to provide cultural awareness training. We also run a programme called ‘The Regional Leader’ that develops the skills sets needed to managed virtually and across borders.”

Cherian says there are three key elements to building a successful global culture, with diversity being the first.

“The experience and learning that diversity brings far surpasses what may be achieved through classroom training sessions,” she explains. “This not only means having people from different places in the same office, but also having offices in different places.

“People from different cultures coming together in all these places at work and in society build greater understanding and a more inclusive culture,” Cherian adds.

The art of messaging is also important. This includes both setting priorities through formal goals and visibly backing up that effort through actual practice. Some examples are considering different time zones when scheduling meetings, developing working hours and holidays appropriate to each culture, and building inclusive and culturally-sensitive communications across the organisation.

Lastly, building a successful global culture involves having efficient systems in place. “A certification programme on Diversity and Inclusion has enabled greater ease in working without boundaries and building global appreciation and understanding,” says Cherian.

Other successful tools include training and onboarding processes to prepare managers, leaders and new employees to work with diverse teams, policies that

5 basic principles of distributed work programmes 1 The programme is strategic, formal, explicit, and sponsored by senior management.

Reasons for its launch and its outcome are clear.

2 The organisation and its members learn to “go mobile” and work differently over time, redesigning core business processes, employing different technologies, and adjusting the way managers operate and communicate. Work outcomes are specifically measured and rewarded.

3 Training is a central part of the programme and includes both managers of remote workers and remote individual contributors.

4 The effective deployment and use of collaboration technologies, beyond the

basics like email, conference calling, and instant messages, is central to making distributed work ‘work’.

5 Success depends on planning thoughtfully and implementing aggressively.

More than just redesigning facilities and letting people move about the country, distributed work programmes almost always include significant organisational and cultural change, and must be treated as such.

Source: Adapted from The Work Design Collaborative

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respect the culture and regulations in different geographies, and applications that support this.

Developing bonds far and wide While it can be harder to develop strong relationships with people who are not in the same office as you, it is not impossible. “We can focus our managers on doing that,” says Wright. “Our philosophy is to ensure we recognise and reward individual contributions and there are mechanics in place for people to raise any concerns they may have, as well as the stewardship of the HR team who watch out for any anomalies.”

Indeed, fair treatment and equal opportunity are part of the foundations of any good organisation, says Cherian. How well people believe these exist in the organisation often influences decisions to join as well as ongoing levels of engagement.

“In global organisations, ‘visible’ fair play and equal opportunities are important considerations that build sentiment,” she explains. “They need careful attention to be nourished.”

Relationships matter at LinkedIn, says Sato. Outside of “business-as-usual” work setting, LinkedIn invests heavily in relationships between teams. “Every month we organise ‘LinkedIn InDays’ at all our offices globally. These are days that we dedicate, as an office, to do something fun and meaningful together as a team,” says Sato.

Also, once every two weeks, the CEO hosts an ‘All Hands’ meeting for all employees across the world. “During this meeting, he shares with all of us very candidly about the latest developments of our company. A big part of this meeting is about our talent and showcasing their outstanding achievements,” Sato explains.

Keeping everyone engaged It can be difficult enough to manage relationships within an office, but it can be even more demanding when employees are scattered all over the country or world. Looking out for certain signs of trouble between staff members, such as body language changes, is also harder with remote workers.

“Technology both enables virtual working whilst at the same time putting up barriers that don’t exist when you share an office with someone,” says Wright.

“Managers need to ensure regular and consistent communication on a one-to-one basis, whether in person, or through technology.”

HR can also prevent remote team members from feeling isolated by ensuring a high number of connections between the individual and their global ‘ecosystem’: leadership, manager, team, peers and HR managers. This often defines for the employee their importance while operating in a distant location.

“It signifies that their work is important and that they are valued,” Cherian explains. “There’s a direct correlation

between the number of connects and the individual feeling assured, and there’s no real substitute for it. HR teams strive to get the design right and then to enable them.”

Still, staff also need to shout out if they are feeling neglected or isolated, says Wright. “We have virtual teams around the world and find that regular conversations are the best tool to manage this dynamic.”

Geographically dispersed teams and matrix working are modern reality, and sometimes result in disproportionate ‘face-time’ for some members in a team. Being outcomebased is a good foundation in this case.

“Outcome-based working negates the perceived impact of probable bias born out of familiarity,” says Cherian. “The emotion surrounding such bias is usually more intense when there’s a career-related impact – times like performance appraisals, salary revision, promotion cycles, and role changes.”

Along with the usual 360-degree and appraisals systems, GroupM has also implemented a gamified recognition programme which delivers fun ways to offer and receive peer and manager feedback. The programme is aligned with the media agency’s core values, and can be used in real time via a smartphone app.

“Ultimately, a globally diverse workforce is not a ‘necessary factor’ that needs managing, but something of strategic importance in a global world, and may be harnessed to boost innovation, performance and growth,” says Cherian.

Looking out for certain

signs of trouble

between staff members, such as body language changes, is also harder with remote workers

Staying focused With a geographically dispersed team, it’s essential for members to unite around a common purpose: usually, the team’s goals.

Establishing the goal, its relevance, and the significance of the individual’s contribution in achieving it are fundamental to success, and something that leadership and HR should spend quality time on, says Cherian.

“For the team to believe in and strive for results, these should be actively communicated and reinforced often – not just the goal, but progress made, opportunities, support enabled and market trends,” she explains. “With each instance of discussion around these, additional buy-in and energy are generated. So that’s where the focus must be.”

Buy-in is not necessarily achieved by physical proximity or geographical uniformity either. Cherian explains that team members unite around a purpose when it resonates with overall organisational values and company strategy.

“This is really no different to managing people in the same office as you,” says Wright. “You need to set the direction, lay out the plan to get there, what’s expected of your team, how you will help, and what’s in it for them, and then manage them on their journey.

“That’s part of being a manager or leader.”

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HR INSIDER

MasterCard One of the world’s most recognisable brands, many people think ‘credit card’ when they hear ‘MasterCard’. However, MasterCard reaches far beyond the plastic and is actually the world’s most advanced payments technology company. HRM finds out how the company encourages its human capital to push the boundaries of innovation and constantly come up with new ideas – priceless experiences for customers

By Shalini Shukla-Pandey

AT A GLANCE

• Total number of employees at MasterCard: 1,400 (Asia) and 290 (Singapore) • Size of HR team: 18 (Asia), 11 (Singapore) • Key HR focus areas: - Talent development - Employee engagement - Diversity

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HR INSIDER

: f f a t s d r a MasterC

S S E L E C I R P “We are not a financial institution.” Surprisingly for many perhaps, those were the first words Mike McCarthy, Group Head – HR (Asia-Pacific, Middle East and Africa), MasterCard, said when we began talking about the company.

With over 9,000 employees providing services and support in more than 210 countries, MasterCard is the world’s most advanced payments technology company, he clarifies.

“There is a lot of change going on,” says McCarthy.

“We’ve moved from being a very traditional, unchanging, financial services-focused organisation to becoming a more innovative and dynamic, technology organisation that deals with a wide variety of talent and products.”

The company is also expanding into new countries, including Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Myanmar. This has produced lots of opportunities for staff to move into new roles and markets.

Managing rapid growth As the company grows, HR finds that the needs of people across the region are largely similar. “Everyone wants good pay, proper recognition, opportunities to grow to different and bigger roles, and to have satisfaction in their careers,” McCarthy explains.

However, meeting those needs is a different challenge in different jurisdictions. This is because of reasons such as varying cultures and countries having differing levels of skilled talent. For instance, India, Singapore and Malaysia have a large pool of talent. But in developing markets, the pool of skilled talent is often smaller.

Pushing for diversity While MasterCard has staff from a diverse range of nationalities working within the company, McCarthy agrees that more can be done to encourage female staff, especially younger ones, to aspire towards senior positions.

“Throughout this year, we will be holding a couple of events to bring in external women in senior positions as speakers to talk about their experiences,” says Mike McCarthy, Group Head – HR (Asia Pacific, Middle East and Africa), MasterCard. “We hope this will encourage our female staff to see these women as mentors and take control of their own careers.”

When it comes to work-life balance being a push factor for young women to pursue careers in more senior positions, the corporate culture at MasterCard allows for work to fit around an employee’s life.

“For example, Adele Andrews, who works with our HR team on a project basis, has a young baby and leaves early to log on from home at night after putting her child to bed,” McCarthy shares.

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HR INSIDER

MasterCard “We always try to use the people in the markets we operate in,” says McCarthy. “In order to localise operations, we appoint expatriate staff to grow and develop local talent.”

This is because MasterCard believes the workforce should reflect its customer base. Where before, banks were its main customers, staff were mostly ex-bankers. Now however, the company also has contract agreements with large global merchants, airlines and governments, amongst others, so staff are sourced from these industries as well.

“We are really looking for the ‘spark’, over and on top of a shining résumé,” says McCarthy on potential talent for MasterCard. “You can get an idea of qualifications and experience through a résumé but what we’re looking for is the candidates’ character that can add to the human capital mix within the company. This can include traits such as a high degree of enthusiasm or innovation.”

To avoid these employees having a culture shock when they switch industries, the company relies on line managers to ensure proper induction of talent. “People are made to feel welcome through a very open, friendly culture,” says McCarthy.

Engagement of talent It’s no surprise then that MasterCard has a very low turnover rate in Asia. The challenge, however, is still to keep staff engaged. “We can’t have employees who become settled and lose dynamism,” McCarthy explains. “Therefore, we spend a lot of time understanding our staff through engagement surveys and action plans.”

Senior managers go on one-on-one engagement lunches of between 90 minutes and two hours and talk about issues such as what makes each staff member happy.

MasterCard also has official engagement leaders in each country. This individual organises engagement activities and visits for staff. In this way, engagement is not prescribed from a top-down perspective but rather a bottom-up one.

HR is also no longer working from desks but rather, engages with talent on the ground. HR Business partners sit with each individual of the organisation together with their line manager and ask questions such as ‘Who are you?’, ‘Where are you?’ and ‘Where do you want to be?’.

They then compile this information into a one-page profile for each staff member. The profile page is revised annually and includes information such as career history, SWOT analysis, development plans, and the employee’s ambitions.

“While the process is labour intensive and tedious, it’s an extremely effective talent management strategy,” says McCarthy. “In the second year, we begin to hold shorter, higher quality conversations and these one-page profiles become a key point of reference when looking to move talent from one role to another.”

Another successful employee engagement endeavour is Career Development Day. Having been held in Singapore, Sydney, Hong Kong, Mumbai, Malaysia, Delhi and Tokyo to date, Career Development Day is a one-day event with a series of workshops, and other such activities aimed at proactively motivating staff and ensuring they keep

WHO’S WHO IN HR

Mike McCarthy

Group Head – HR (Asia-Pacific, Middle East and Africa), MasterCard

Sandeep Yadav Leader, Global Talent Acquisition, MasterCard

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Appandairajan Krishnakumar

Senior Business Partner – HR, MasterCard

Angeline Wong

Program Manager, Global Talent Acquisition, MasterCard

Jasmine Teo

Patricia Goh

Senior HR Business Partner – Global Products & Solutions (Asia-Pacific, Middle East & Africa), MasterCard

Senior Business Leader, Compensation and Benefits, MasterCard

Rohini Menezes

Sumeda Kaw

Program Manager, Talent Management, MasterCard

Program Manager, Compensation, MasterCard

Aditi MadhokNaarden

Business Leader, Talent Management, MasterCard

Yi Ching Chang

Program Manager, Benefits, MasterCard

HR INSIDER

growing in their jobs, equipping them with skills, and allowing them to take ownership of their careers.

Some of the day’s activities included: • Individual career coaching sessions and a Career Fair on the tools and resources available to help employees learn and grow, • A panel discussion with employees who have made lateral moves in MasterCard talking about their experiences in building cross-functional/crossregional moves • Members of the Talent Acquisition team being made available to answer any questions about making a career move in MasterCard.

“The positive feedback went on for days! HR was so excited!” McCarthy exclaims. “One of the best feel-good things I’ve done. Working in HR and being popular at the same time? Wow!” Career Development Day activities are now also in the pipeline for MasterCard’s India, Japan and Greater China markets.

A culture of innovation “Ideas are the lifeblood of our company,” says Mike McCarthy, Group Head – HR (Asia Pacific, Middle East and Africa), MasterCard.

“We constantly challenge the established ways of doing things to find new ways to help our customers.

This commitment has led to not only the world’s fastest payments process network, but also to the development of some of today’s most innovative products and services—from the ‘tap and go’ convenience of PayPass to systems-wide solutions that help corporations fight fraud and manage their data more effectively.”

MasterCard Labs – Idea incubator

INTERNAL TALENT TRANSFERS “We move a lot of talent around internally within MasterCard, using their one-page profiles as key points of reference when doing so,” says Mike McCarthy, Group Head – HR (Asia-Pacific, Middle East and Africa), MasterCard.

Based on detailed conversations between HR business partners, line managers and staff, an employee’s one-page profile is revised annually and includes information such as career history, SWOT analysis, development plans and the employee’s ambitions.

In the last twelve months alone, MasterCard has filled out the roles for country managers of Hong Kong, Taiwan, New Zealand, Malaysia, Vietnam and Thailand with internal staff. Other roles that have been staffed with internal talent are senior managers in areas such as core products, emerging products, market development, legal and finance.

Currently, about 80% of all roles are filled internally,” says McCarthy. “Ultimately, I want to see all roles filled by talent within MasterCard.”

For example, Group Head – Lead Regional Counsel (AsiaPacific, Middle East and Africa), Piet Grillet, was moved into the role from Belgium, where he had been overseeing legal affairs for 54 countries in Europe for nearly eight years. Now in Singapore, he’s leading a team of in-house lawyers and overseeing legal and regulatory affairs for Asia-Pacific, Middle East and Africa.

“He has legal expertise which is important for the work at hand,” says McCarthy. “ Not only that, he also has a great sense of humour, which helps lighten legal jargons and carry people through difficult legal situations.”

MasterCard Labs is created for the sole purpose of generating new ideas and driving innovation.

As a key part of its regional strategy, MasterCard expanded its regional headquarter activities in Singapore two years ago to manage regional business as well as research and development (R&D) of new payment solutions including emerging payments, chip, contactless, mobile and e-commerce.

The MasterCard Labs in Singapore – only the third such facility in the world – works alongside its counterparts in the US and Ireland to enhance R&D in the region, with responsibility for all work relating to conceptualisation; proof of concept; pilot studies; and ensuring that industry-leading innovative payment solutions are brought to the market faster.

Innovation Express – Fast-tracking creativity

Sponsored by MasterCard Labs, Innovation Express brings together employees from different disciplines and locations for two days of fast and furious product development. The days are long, the competition fierce (but fun), and the results are nothing short of amazing.

Piet Grillet, Group Head – Lead Regional Counsel (Asia-Pacific, Middle East and Africa)

Ari Sarker, division president for South Asia, is another highpotential talent. Extremely impressive as a leader, Sarker joined MasterCard in December 2010 and has successfully spearheaded several innovative card programmes and introduced new payment solutions in the region.

“He has a true ability to inspire talent. For instance, when he first joined as the division president for South Asia, he did Ari Sarker, Division President a fantastic speech for staff in the Mumbai office about where (South Asia) they were than and where to go,” says McCarthy. “Although it was quite a tall order at the time, he managed to inspire people to deliver more than they thought possible.”

Innovation in Action – Latest innovations

• MasterCard Contactless: No easier or faster way to pay • EasySavings: Making rebates easy for merchants and cardholders • MoneySend: The most innovative mobile payment solution available anywhere • Mobile solutions: A host of convenient e-commerce and payment innovations • Google Wallet: Beyond cards and cash All this innovation is not only encouraged but also recognised. “Vicky S. Bindra, President – Asia-Pacific, Middle East and Africa, runs the President’s Award that provides recognition for innovation for staff in this region,” says McCarthy.

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6516 7872 or visit executive-education.nus.edu/hrm

GUEST CONTRIBUTOR

Strategy

INNOVATION A Strategic HR Imperative Too often we think of innovation as the responsibility of a product team or a business unit, writes guest contributor Michael Stanleigh. Instead, he says innovation should spring from a purposebuilt environment and culture Before we can understand how we can help our organisations with their innovation agendas, we need to understand the meaning of innovation.

For many of us, innovation means the introduction of new technology and inventions, such as the internet, cell phones and the like. It is true that innovation led to the development of these new products but innovation is much more than that. Innovation goes beyond technology and requires collaboration from many areas to come together to achieve success. Innovation is a collaborative process; where people in many fields contribute to the implementation of new ideas.

David Neeleman, founder and CEO of JetBlue started the new airline at a time when the marketplace was already flooded. He said; “Innovation is trying to figure out a way to do something better than it’s ever been done before.”

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GUEST CONTRIBUTOR

Strategy “While corporate culture is not necessarily the responsibility of HR, the people who are hired and the training and cultural imperatives placed on the business are done so through HR, so HR can have a big impact on whether or not the organisation is culturally attuned to innovation”

The idea of a lone inventor is a myth. During the life of Thomas Edison he patented 1,093 inventions.

However, he did not work alone to develop these. His team of talented workers assisted him all hours of the day and night. They had the skills to take his ideas through an innovation process in order to bring them from concept to reality. His laboratory at Menlo Park was referred to as an “Invention Factory”.

HR Impact on Innovation Dave Ulrich, professor of business at the University of Michigan, has long argued that HR leaders should assume a more vital, strategic role inside their companies, rather than merely keeping busy with everyday stuff like policies, payroll, and picnics. Ulrich says HR professionals should strive to build and strengthen the unique set of capabilities that give an organisation its competitive advantage. In essence, this means developing a particular mix of resources, processes and values that makes it hard for rivals to match what your organisation does.

IBM completed a survey of global HR leaders in 2011. The results showed an agreement that driving creativity and innovation was the number one business challenge, yet only 50% of these HR executives indicated that they were already doing something about it.

Similarly, while 70% said that HR plays a significant role in fostering innovation at their organisations, 71% said they don’t use any screening tools designed to bring in creative and innovative candidates.

Additionally, 53% don’t tie performance-management systems to driving innovation and 53% don’t even have a formalised suggestion system in place.

According to Susan Meisinger, former President and CEO of the Society for HR Management, “The takeaway for me in all this is we all think these things matter, but most of us are not doing something about it.” Secondly, she adds, “It is difficult; if it were easy, we’d all be doing it.”

There are three things that HR professionals need to do to foster innovation: hire for innovation; create a culture of innovation; and train and reward for innovation.

1

Hire for Innovation

Hiring for innovation requires that we identify people who can “think outside the box”. Let’s not assume that everyone is equally innovative, but instead let’s recruit people for their innovation capabilities.

Are they inquisitive? Are they locked into one viewpoint or willing to consider others? Are they open to new ideas and concepts? These questions have a lot to do with how people are recruited and how their skills are improved to welcome innovation.

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One example of a culture that drives innovation is that of Apple. What makes Apple so unique and competitive is that on top of its great products, it also seems to have a great culture, and it’s this culture that drives innovation, and hence the company’s superior products.

It’s interesting that even though Apple has been around since the 1970’s, it hasn’t developed the rigidity that is so apparent in many long established companies. It has somehow managed to retain a casual working environment and resisted any real push for policies and procedures or dress codes or time sheets.

It continues to create a common desire, energy and enthusiasm to develop great products and to overcome their competition.

Today, Apple has about 35,000 permanent employees, yet continues to retain a culture of innovation through its HR practices. The company hires, rewards and recognises employees for a common desire, energy and enthusiasm to create great products.

2

Create a Culture for Innovation

The ability to help create, protect and build organisational culture is a critical role for HR, and is a major driver for innovation. However, management needs to support, plan for and nurture an innovation culture for innovation to be successful.

Not long ago, I attended a major corporate event for a large global client. All of the media had been invited to attend. The chief executive came on stage and described his well-thought-out, incredibly detailed vision for changing his organisation. He said, “Innovation will be the cornerstone on which we build our future. For too long, we have relied on our great brand, loyal customers, and dedicated employees to carry us through various difficult times. But the world is changing, and our customers and shareholders are counting on us to deliver new products and services.

So from this day forward, I commit to create a culture of innovation.” There was huge applause from the audience and excitement built around the prospect of the new vision.

The next day, a huge plaque was hung in the corporate lobby that boldly proclaimed, “Core Value No. 1: Innovation”. And you could tell that the CEO believed this with all his heart. He had seen the light. The stock price rose. And there was a renewed optimism among all levels of employees. Everyone in the company got a T-shirt, and on it was the statement, “Core Value No. 1; Innovation.” And then something happened – nothing!

Nothing happened – nothing at all!

The CEO was right. He had the key driver correct, but he failed because he didn’t think about how to develop the culture to be more innovative, nor did he implement a process to move ideas from concept to reality. He only

saw innovation as a competitive advantage for his industry without making the investment to learn and develop the infrastructure for innovation. I think most organisations are there right now.

HR and culture The most powerful force in business is culture. While corporate culture is not necessarily the responsibility of HR, the people who are hired and the training and cultural imperatives placed on the business are done so through HR, so HR can have a big impact on whether or not the organisation is culturally attuned to innovation.

There are many barriers to creating a culture of innovation, including lack of leadership support, lack of strategy, poor engagement among staff, and an overall aversion to risk.

Daniel Muzyka, Professor of Entrepreneurship and Dean of the Sauder School of Business at the University of British Columbia adds an additional barrier to innovation: “a constant examination of quarter by quarter results (rather than) longer-term planning.” He says that this short-term focus “creates a culture that is not supportive of innovation”.

It is very difficult for management today to build successful innovation processes in organisations. This is because management is often encumbered with constant short-term, bottom-line oriented pressures as well as a shorter term to accomplish change. The decreasing lifespan of executive teams diminishes the focus on the long-term innovation process and tends to increase the focus on sustaining the status quo and existing product lines. That’s a dangerous move in volatile markets.

To move outside of this realm, organisations will need to re-evaluate how management performance is measured; the extent to which adding new products and services is included, and how much management time is spent on innovation versus day-to-day business.

Performance measures need to give consideration as to whether or not employees are given the time and resources to experiment, generate ideas, explore these and make presentations to management.

For example, Google ensures its culture of innovation remains strong by giving its engineers time to invent.

They spend 20% of their time working on projects they feel passionate about. And their performance reviews consider how they spend this time.

Google has developed a very flat organisational structure to foster innovation.

All employees have easy access to face-time with senior management to present their ideas.

They desire to get new products up quickly as a prototype so that customers can play with them, feel them and provide feedback on them. In this way ISSUE 14.6

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GUEST CONTRIBUTOR

Strategy Google can quickly improve them, re-launch them and make them great. If it waits until it’s perfect before launching, experience has shown the company will lose market share, increase development costs and in some cases, never get to launch a product that the customer actually wants. Striving for perfection before releasing an innovation can be a killer.

As HR professionals, how often do you prototype new and/or improved HR initiatives? How many allow your employees to take calculated risks? What is your organisational culture for innovation? Do you give employees time to innovate? Is it part of their job responsibilities?

3

Train and Reward for Innovation

The right rewards system provides a powerful force for reinforcing commitment, directing employee professional growth, and shaping the corporate culture to be more innovative.

HR departments must look at the reward mechanisms in place and ask if they are doing the right things to develop the employees and culture of the organisation. This should include compensation strategies, performance management tools, and other targeted recognition and reward programmes.

I am always amazed when I see organisations with programmes that recognise how long an employee has been coming in on time, or has been with the organisation for a long period. Yet few organisations reward employees for exceptional contributions.

Performance reviews are also a concern of mine in this area. Few organisations are measuring the right things when it comes to promoting the development of innovative-minded employees. HR managers should take a hard look at how they are trying to develop these critical resources.

For example, BMW’s continued strategic focus on developing customer-friendly innovations is coupled with an approach to innovation management that is unique within the automotive industry. One of its keys is a constant focus on the culture of innovation – making professional innovative processes a key strategic and cultural constituent of every area of the company.

This focus on culture is a guiding principle within BMW. It believes that if a company knows what it stands for and what are its strengths, it can more easily develop and implement a clear strategy. It believes that to be innovative, it is necessary to give up the idea that a company can do everything equally well. On the contrary, it seems more likely that a company that tries to do everything equally well will be unable to make full use of its strengths.

BMW ensures that all departments are focussed on innovation. While some organisations focus only on

manufacturing, BMW also focuses innovation on every department within the organisation including sales and marketing, HR and product development. It also recognises that the results achieved by a company in the past are only of limited importance.

The innovation of a company therefore always depends on future business development.

Just about everyone working for the Bavarian automaker, from the factory floor to the design studios to the marketing department, is encouraged to speak out. Ideas bubble up freely, and there is never a penalty for proposing a new way of doing things, no matter how outlandish.

BMW’s management structure is flat, flexible, entrepreneurial, and very fast. This helps innovations to be developed quickly to improve internal processes and for the marketplace.

As management, you should be asking all employees, “What are you working on? What is the potential, the applications this might have in the future? What are your challenges? How can I help?

How might people use it?” Such questions will engage employees to become actively involved in innovation rather than asking the traditional questions which impose a time constraint.

As HR leaders, helping your organisation to achieve more innovation, to create the culture to support innovative thinking and to hire, train and reward is a major undertaking. It can seem daunting to know where to begin. However, the most important first step is just that – to take that first step. It is a large and exciting change process. Even a small initiative can help to demonstrate the possibilities of a more robust effort.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR Michael Stanleigh is the CEO of Business Improvement Architects.

He works with executives and senior managers around the world to improve organisational performance by helping to define their strategic direction, increase leadership performance, create cultures that drive innovation, and improve project and quality management.

For more information, contact him at mstanleigh@bia.ca

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FEATURE

Corporate Learning

Training subsidies:

Are you missing out?

Training is vital to not only sustaining, but advancing an organisation. When the government supports employers through a variety of avenues, employers can truly focus on developing their own human capital and thus, their business. HRM shares the latest government-funded training courses that you should look out for

By Shalini Shukla-Pandey

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FEATURE

With increased economic volatility, shorter business cycles and technological changes, Continuing Education and Training (CET) remains a key enabler for the workforce to be responsive, relevant and resilient.

To rally Singaporeans to embrace a culture of lifelong learning, the Singapore Workforce Development Agency (WDA) has launched a nationwide campaign. Since 31 March, the lifelong learning campaign has aimed to inspire Singaporeans to cultivate a self-initiated learning mindset, and take personal responsibility for their development and upgrading. It seeks to give individuals a reason to learn, break barriers to learning, and help them kick-start a learning journey.

“CET is a key strategy to keep our workforce agile and resilient. Our lifelong learning campaign aims to build a culture where Singaporeans embrace lifelong learning, and actively pursue their career goals and aspirations through CET,” says Ng Cher Pong, CEO of WDA. “Companies can also contribute to these efforts by encouraging and supporting lifelong learning by their employees. Collectively, WDA aims to build a strong culture of lifelong learning among Singaporeans,” he adds. “Such a culture will enable us to develop a career-resilient workforce – one that is prepared to learn, unlearn and relearn skills and competencies throughout their lives.”

Analysing training needs Due to rapid changes in business environment, HR leaders need to take a proactive approach towards training rather than a reactive one.

“One of the most effective ways is to appoint a professional training institution as a Training Partner which can then work hand-in-hand with HR to develop a Training Needs Analysis plan,” says Samuel Teo, General Manager, Aventis School of Management. “At Aventis, we plan, deliver and evaluate programmes in consultation with our clients so as to ensure a disciplined integration of conceptual knowledge with current business practices.

“The aim is to deliver effective transferable results and ensure that learning and development continues back in the office,” he adds.

A typical workshop covers theoretical, practical and experiential components. A training project coordinator is assigned specifically to partner with the HR Manager to assess the organisation’s training needs, overseeing course development, finding and hiring instructors, scheduling classes, ordering materials, registering participants, and following through with evaluation tools to make sure employees and managers achieve their training objectives.

HR must make sure that they are not just a support function and are proactive in being a driver in delivering business goals. “In terms of learning and development, this means consultation with line managers and senior management to find out what their respective department goals are and what skills they need their staff to have to achieve them,” says Joe Tofield, Training Advisor, British Council Professional Development Centre. “HR should also be aware of the market and have in mind what types of skills staff in the company may need in the coming years.

“HR can then deliver a suite of training courses that match the current and future needs of the organisation.”

A helping hand Through the Skills Development Fund (SDF), employers can enjoy grants to support staff training. The funding rate may differ for various courses (see boxout).

“A common feedback from clients is that usually, a lot of paperwork is involved for SDF claims and this can be challenging for small firms which have very few employees to manage their day-to-day affairs,” says Francis Yeo, General Manager, Next U (ICT unit).

Singapore’s Lifelong Learning Campaign The campaign consists of the following initiatives: • Pop-Up Learning Cafés These cafés are interactive pop-up road shows to showcase the diverse learning methodologies and platforms an individual or company could embark beyond classroom training. These could provide for personal fulfilment of aspirations and better employability through acquired skills and knowledge.

Seventeen bite-sized learning modules have been made available at the cafés from April. Subsequent Learning Cafés will take place in July and September 2014.

• Pledge to Learn Movement Individuals and organisations pledge as many hours as possible to learn something they truly are passionate about. This may range from commitment to personal development such as leadership, people management and communications skills, to fashion design, or for personal interest such as baking, painting, or even pottery. Individuals can pledge at www.learnnow.sg • CET Commemorative Publication The publication will encapsulate the past, present and future of the national Continuing Education and Training (CET) landscape in order to educate the public of the importance of CET to Singapore’s economic progress and its continued relevance to Singapore and its workforce.

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FEATURE

Corporate Learning TOP 5 SDF-APPROVED COURSES FOR JUNE • • • • •

Essential skills for managers Positive Influencing skills Business writing essentials Effective negotiation skills Handling difficult colleagues and customers

Source: British Council Professional Development Centre

The British Council currently offers a range of

31 SDFfunded courses

“However it is relatively easier for firms which have had their first claims approved in the SkillsConnect system as the rest of their applications are easily approved and generated by the system,” he adds.

Under the Next U umbrella of courses, courses that are SDF-funded are usually centred on office IT skills. These courses include Microsoft Office Specialist (MOS) Programmes for 2013 and 2010, MOS: Excel Expert 2013, and the like. “At NTUC Learning hub, we offer a large variety of programmes under various funding schemes,” says Yeo. Through the Singapore Workforce Skills Qualifications (WSQ) for instance, workers are

allowed to do bite-sized training modules at their own pace. Upon completion of each module, they will be awarded a Statement of Attainment (SOA). After obtaining the required number of SOAs, workers will then be awarded the WSQ qualification, which comes with a certificate, full transcript and the WSQ badge.

One of our most popular training courses based on the WSQ framework is the ‘Apply Emotional Competence to Manage Self and Others in a Business Context’ programme,” says Teo. “Ultimately, participants are able accumulate training credits for our training courses which they can use to apply for advanced standing and credits into our suite of Graduate Diploma, and Bachelor and Master degree programmes from top universities across the UK and US,” he adds.

While Tofield encourages companies, especially SMEs, to tap on funding support, he warns that companies should not focus on pricing alone. “In terms of training, there is certainly not a one size fits all approach and sometimes a customised course would be better,” he advises.

Tofield says that the Productivity and Innovation Credit (PIC) can also be used to claim back twothirds of the cost of training. “PIC can be used to

Government funding mechanisms Employer-based funding is available for two types of training: • Certifiable Skills Training – refers to training that leads to national or industry-wide certification.

• Other Training – refers to training that does not lead to national or industry-wide certification.

Type of courses Funding components

Conducted by

Courses targeted at Rank & File

Certifiable

External training providers

80% of course fee capped 50% of course fee capped at $7/hr at $15/hr

In-house instructors

$7/hr

Absentee payroll support

External training providers / in-house instructors

80% of hourly based salary capped at $4.50/hr

Course fee support

External training providers / in-house instructors

$2/hr

Others#

Course fee support

Courses targeted at PMETs*

$15/hr

* Professionals, Managers, Executives and Technicians. # Funding for other training courses conducted by external training providers is capped at 100% of course fees.

The government also provides Enhanced Training Support (ETS) for SMEs to encourage them to send their employees for training. The three-year ETS initiative is available to local employees of companies that are registered or incorporated in Singapore. These employees must be fully sponsored by their employers to attend training.

More than 8,000 courses fall under this scheme. These include certifiable courses and academic CET courses offered by the five Polytechnics and Institutes of Technical Education. The three-year initiative took effect from 1 July, 2012 and is expected to cost the Government about $30.5 million per year, benefitting approximately 8,000 SMEs and 65,000 workers annually.

Source: Singapore Workforce Development Agency (WDA)

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deliver customised solutions to staff at a discounted rate and should be used to maximum effect every year to get the full benefit,” he explains.

Employers of lower-wage staff (those earning up to $1,900 per month and aged at least 35 years) can also benefit from the Workfare Training Support (WTS) scheme when they sponsor these staff for training.

This particular group of employers requires more training in IT, business development and online skills, says Teo. “Some courses that employers send their low-wage employees on, whilst taking advantage of the WTS scheme, include Customer Service, Effective Email Writing, and Presentation Skills programmes.

“Rationally speaking, it should be motivating for employers to send their staffs for WTS-funded training as course subsidies can be up to 95% of programme fees,” says Yeo. “So for instance, a typical full course fee can be about $500 and after 95% funding, it’s about S$50 per student sent for training,” he explains. “On top of that, companies can claim for PIC in the form of a tax deduction or cash pay-out.”

WHAT’S HOT Building EQ

Course: Apply Emotional Competence to Manage Self and Others in a Business Context Key takeaways include: • Understanding how emotions work and recognising hot triggers and impulses; • Maintaining composure, self-confidence and resilience when dealing with challenges and setbacks; • Attaining mindfulness at work by assessing emotional competence with others; and • Creating an emotionally intelligent organisation by focusing on work attitude and motivation.

Source: Aventis School of Management

Learn the ins and outs of Personal Data Protection

Course: An Introduction to the Fundamentals of the Personal Data Protection Act for NonLegal Personnel Key takeaways include: • Learning how to help organisations comply better with the requirements of the new Personal Data Protection Act (PDPA) and its regulations.

Source: Next U

Is Your Organization Ready for the Personal Data Protection Act? An Introduction to the Fundamentals of the Personal Data Protection Act (PDPA) for Non-Legal Personnel Designed for employees involved in data protection matters, this new course will give students a good overview of the PDPA and how it may be applied to the organisations for compliance, such as PDPA key legislative and regulatory requirements and prepare management report for follow-up. The course will be conducted using the PDPA BM WSQ Standard Curriculum and Standard Assessment Plan developed by PDPC. Students will be awarded with a BM WSQ Statement of Attainment (SOA) issued by WDA upon successful course completion and assessment.

Course Programme WDA Funding Support

90%

Enhanced Training Scheme for SMEs*

90% course subsidy capped at $30 per hour. Absentee payroll funding at 80% of basic hourly salary, capped at $7.50 per hour.

50% Funding for non-SMEs* 50% course subsidy capped at $15 per hour. Absentee payroll funding at 80% of basic hourly salary, capped at $4.50 per hour.

Course Duration: 15 Hours (2 Days) Available Course Dates (Starts at 9am) ● 19 - 20 June 2014 ● 14 - 21 June 2014 ● 23 - 24 June 2014 ● 2 - 3 July 2014 ● 21 - 22 July 2014 ● 5 and 12 July 2014 *Subjected to WDA funding terms and conditions.

To register or to find out more information please call 6336-5482 or email: PME@nextu.com.sg or visit http://ict.nextu.com.sg.

Next U Pte Ltd (Subsidiary of NTUC LearningHub Pte Ltd), NTUC Trade Union House, 73 Bras Basah Road, #02-01 Singapore 189556 ISSUE 14.6

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GUEST CONTRIBUTOR

Talent Management

7STEPS FOR

Effective Leadership Development Leadership is the crux of business and organisational success today. Shaun Han, Vice President, Applications, Oracle Corporation ASEAN shares his tips on ensuring a smooth supply chain of effective leadership, now and into the future 34

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GUEST CONTRIBUTOR

A business is a collection of people working for the same cause, and a leader is required to define that cause. Growth of a business will only come through the time and talents of others. To identify, attract, fill, and retain corporate leadership talent, companies need leadership development programmes focused on hiring strategies, employee development, and career and succession planning.

Companies face two major challenges in finding and developing leaders. They need to identify qualified candidates to fill current and future leadership roles, and to develop a comprehensive leadership programme to cultivate the leaders of tomorrow.

In the past, leadership development was focused on only a few individuals in the organisation. Firstgeneration systems to assist with leadership development were hard to use and were not widely adopted. Companies needed a system-enabled way to unify methods of assessing and selecting leaders, executing programmes to develop skills, and measuring the success of these programmes.

Today, technology can be deployed to extend these practices across the enterprise and down into all levels of the workforce. eHR development then becomes an enterprise-wide effort across the management team and not just the job of the HR department. At the same time, by using a common, integrated technology platform, the HR department can easily and effectively track and execute programmes across the organisation.

Major talent management functions all play a part in a comprehensive leadership development programme and can be well supported by a unified talent management technology platform. These functions include recruitment, assessment, performance management, succession planning and career planning.

A successful leadership development programme begins with the alignment of leadership development with company strategy and an understanding of the type of leadership style(s) needed to execute that strategy.

1

Determine the best leadership style for your organisation

There are many theories and techniques for determining the right leadership styles for an organisation. For instance, the leadership style required by a head of corporate security will be vastly different from an art museum director. Company culture will also play a major role in determining leadership style.

One of the main reasons for the high failure rate of new CEOs (with more than half never making it past the four-year mark) is poor organisational fit. Here are two ways to assess leaders’ fit. Firstly, get to know them better. Psychological and behavioral assessments have been statistically linked to current and future ISSUE 14.6

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IN CHAOS

STARS ARE MADE

GUEST CONTRIBUTOR

Talent Management success in leadership roles. Secondly, you must understand the existing culture better. HR must check with the board, employees, vendors, consultants for insight into what makes an effective leader in the company.

Use both sets of information to find alignments or disparities. If there is a glaring cultural conflict, be ready to find a better candidate who possesses the unique skills your organisation requires.

2

Identify current and potential leaders within or outside the company One of the key advantages of developing leaders internally is that they achieve productivity almost

50%

than external candidates

Leaders can be found both internally and externally.

Companies must weigh the cost and timing of developing internal leadership against the cost and availability of hiring from the outside. Research has shown that one of the key advantages of developing leaders internally is that they achieve productivity almost 50% faster than external candidates.

To evaluate potential leaders in the organisation, a leadership programme needs to identify the expected leadership skills and competencies. When leadership positions cannot be filled from within, the company recruitment should use the same measurements to test the existing competencies of potential candidates.

Online pre-assessments and full assessment testing can help ensure that the right candidates are on the short list.

Unqualified candidates are automatically filtered out, not on the basis of their résumés but, rather, on the basis of a self-administered online test or questionnaire.

3

Identify leadership gaps

To fully recognise leadership gaps, companies should determine current and future leadership requirements and compare those with the current leadership team. Then, identify current leaders who may be at risk of leaving and develop succession plans.

Companies should also look at the leadership development pipeline and identify gaps in skills and the time required to fill those gaps

4

Develop succession plans for critical roles

Succession planning avoids disruption and employee trauma when the CEO leaves, whether the departure is anticipated or not. But a succession plan should not be confined to executive roles. As part of the leadership programme, companies should evaluate critical roles throughout the organisation.

For the greatest efficacy, succession planning should be supported by technology systems that provide the ability to:

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• Create backfill strategies that use data captured in the recruiting and performance review processes, coupled with individual career plans • Display multiple talent profiles—from C-level executives to individual contributors—side by side to quickly identify the best fit • Track candidate readiness based on skills, competencies, and performance; promote top candidates based on relative ranking and composite feedback scores

5

Develop career planning goals for potential Leaders

6

Develop a skills roadmap for future leaders

7

Develop retention programmes for current and future leaders

Career planning used to be considered the responsibility of an individual. However, today’s companies that support career planning for their employees gain in retention, engagement, and protection of the leadership pipeline. If companies do not provide employees with career planning and advancement opportunities, their competitors will.

Self-service career planning will help motivate and retain talent, by empowering employees to view a career plan and generate their own within the company Combining employee development with self-service career planning enables employees not only to explore potential career paths but also to monitor and progress through the development activities necessary to attain them. Competencies can then be tied to relevant development activities, thereby incorporating development planning right into the performance review process, which supports career development and succession planning.

Once the high-potential employees have been identified, a skills roadmap should be developed for the future leaders. Because people learn and develop new skills both inside and outside the classroom, a development programme needs to support both traditional and non-traditional learning.

To support less-formal learning, activities such as coaching, rotational assignments, job shadowing, mentor relationships, and project leadership should also be part of an employee’s development plan. At the core, the very definition of learning should reflect today’s non-traditional learning and incorporate social networking tools into the development process.

Linking pay to performance can be a motivator for an

GUEST CONTRIBUTOR

employee, but goal alignment helps potential leaders stay focused on what is important to the company. Recognise excellent performance, and base the upside of bonus potential on the success of both the employee and the company.

Leadership retention is critically important for all organisations, as turnover is expensive and top performers drive optimum business performance.

Another way to retain and motivate future leaders is to involve them in the decision-making process. This teaches them the stated mission, values, and goals of the organisation as well as how they contribute to the success of the business.

A well-designed leadership development programme is the key to identifying, attracting, filling, and retaining corporate leadership.

Talent management practices implemented with robust technology applications can effectively identify and develop—from all levels of the workforce—the leaders who will best drive business performance.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR Shaun Han heads the Application Line of Business Unit at Oracle Corporation for ASEAN. He is responsible for the accelerated revenue growth and customer satisfaction for the Applications License portfolio including ERP, CRM, business intelligence and analytics and specialty applications.

In his previous company, Han ran the Technology Services business unit at Hewlett-Packard, Singapore. He was responsible for the profit and loss of the unit for a broad portfolio of customer services including customer support business, deployment, availability, performance management and security solutions for business critical, multi-technology environments and networking solutions.

Prior to this, Shaun was the lead for the Technology Management Solutions (TMS) for Asia Pacific including Japan. He was responsible for developing the strategy and direction for the TMS business which is focused on revenue, profitability and customer satisfaction. His portfolio includes management, service creation and business planning for Asia Pacific & Japan as part of the APJ Outsourcing Organisation.

Shaun graduated with a Bachelor of Science Degree (Hons) in Building and Estate Management from the National University of Singapore. He also has a Master’s degree in Business Administration from Leicester University, UK.

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FEATURE

Workplace Health

Beating the

blues Depression and low morale are increasingly terrorising workplaces all over the world. In order to fight the blues, companies are firmly placing employee wellbeing at the top of their priorities

By Sham Majid

The hectic nature of Singapore’s workforce has never been in doubt, but a survey unveiled last year has revealed glaring signs that employees here may be tipping over the edge in terms of their wellbeing.

According to the research by JobStreet, more than 125 Singaporeans out of the 250 polled were mentally exhausted, a staggering 55% of those claiming this was due to stress.

Another area of concern for Singaporean employees is morale at the workplace. According to the Singapore Half Yearly Report 2013, 30.9% of employees believed that staff morale in their organisation was low or very low.

In fact, the theme of depressed and low-morale employees is not just confined to Singapore. A recent report by the London School of Economics and Political Science and King’s College London deduced that 30 million people in Europe – and 350 million people worldwide – struggle with depression. (See boxout)

On the lookout According to a report titled, The Elephant in the Boardroom: Getting Mentally Fit for Work, almost nine out of 10 Australians living with depression would prefer to “suffer in silence” than confide in their work colleagues.

The poll, which quizzed more than 4,000 Australians with depression and stress disorders, cited that many were afraid that revealing their issue would impede their career prospects.

In particular, an overwhelming 89% felt that the stigma emanating from the office could be lessened if mental health ailments were given the same treatment and care as physical illnesses.

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FEATURE

The Asian Women’s Welfare Association (AWWA) strongly ascribes to the idea that prevention is better than cure, says Nuryasmin Hannah, its Assistant Director of HR. “Our supervisors are constantly on the lookout for symptoms of depression, low morale or burnout in their subordinates,” says Hannah.

Over at Tan Tock Seng Hospital (TTSH), an in-house peer support programme known as the Staff Support Staff Program (3S) has been structured to allow employees with wellbeing issues to seek help, says Dominic Tung, Manager of HR Wellness at TTSH. The 3S Hotline is manned by a full-time coordinator and supported by a team of dedicated staff volunteers who are trained to assist those facing emotional challenges.

Tung says that besides having the 3S poster displayed on all TTSH departments’ notice boards, information is also printed on pamphlets for distribution.

Identifying the symptoms According to the American Psychiatric Association, depression “is a serious medical illness that negatively affects how you feel, the way you think and how you act.”

Depression has a range of symptoms, but the most frequent constitutes a strong feeling of sadness or a distinct loss of interest in daily activities.

The American Psychiatric Association states that other symptoms of depression include: loss of energy or heightened fatigue, changes in appetite that lead to weight losses or gains, suicidal thoughts or attempts, difficulties in concentrating, and feelings of worthlessness or inappropriate guilt.

In particular, there is a distinct difference between being sad and depressed.

While sadness will decrease with time, depression can occur for months and even years.

Low morale is another aspect that is increasingly plaguing workforces globally. This occurs when staff are demotivated or disengaged from their work, leading to low productivity levels and a lack of interest in work.

Europe’s depression woes Depression in European workplaces is costing companies there approximately £77 billion($US106 billion) a year. According to a new report by the London School of Economics (LSE) and Political Science and King’s College London, the greatest economic loss is via absenteeism and lost productivity.

Among some interesting findings from the report were: • A sizeable 20-55% of workers diagnosed with depression in Europe garner time off work due to the illness.

• University-educated professionals are the least prone to taking time off work when depressed and even if they do, are unwilling to tell their company the reason why.

• Italians are less prone to disclosing a prior diagnosis of depression, as opposed to people in the UK and Turkey.

• Managers in Denmark are more sympathetic and understanding towards depressed workers and less prone to discriminating against them than their European peers.

• Managers in France and Spain are the most prone to recommending that the worker seek help from a healthcare expert for their depression.

“According to the World Health Organisation, depression has become the leading cause of disability worldwide and has significant economic consequences,” said LSE’s Professor Martin Knapp. “Despite a lot of publicity surrounding mental illness, it is worrying to see that there is still a major stigma associated with depression and many employers are not dealing with it adequately.”

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FEATURE

Workplace Health According to the Gallup’s 2013 State Of The Global Workplace report, a significant 76% of Singaporean workers were not engaged at work last year, while only nine per cent of the workforce was fully engaged in their work.

Over in the US, a Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index poll of 237,615 full-time employees (those who work at least 30 hours per week) and 66,010 part-time employees revealed that 10.8% of US full-time workers have received depression diagnoses.

Part time employees were even more prone to be depressed. The poll highlighted that 16.6% of them had been diagnosed with depression.

Hannah says that given the nature of AWWA’s business, its policies, resources and infrastructure are naturally aligned to support the quest for a healthy mental state among employees.

“The caring culture of our organisation has allowed AWWA supervisors to effectively identify early symptoms of depression, low morale and burnout in their subordinates,” says Hannah.

“When identified, affected employees are given access to counselling therapy which are fully or partially afforded, depending on the severity of the affected employee, by AWWA.” Over at TTSH, Tung says a Supervisors’ Toolkit was developed to help supervisors understand and identify signs and symptoms of anxiety, depression and suicide among other conditions.

“The kit also provides information on community resources if staff needs helps outside of the hospital,” adds Tung.

Combating the conditions In order to combat conditions such as depression and low morale among workers, firms are increasingly crafting employee wellbeing strategies.

At Equinix, a company that provides carrier-neutral data centres and internet exchanges, work-life balance

BOSSES THE CHIEF CAUSE OF DEPRESSION? A new Danish study has shed light on the main culprit of employee depression. Rather surprisingly, the amount of workload has no effect on whether employees become depressed. Rather, it stems from the work environment and feelings of unfair treatment by bosses. ”We may have a tendency to associate depression and stress with work pressure and workload; however, our study shows that the workload actually has no effect on workplace depression,” said psychologist Matias Brødsgaard Grynderup of Aarhus University. ”This suggests that the risk of workplace depression cannot be minimised by changing the workload. Other factors are involved, and it is these factors that we should focus on in the future.”

The researchers quizzed 4,500 public workers at Danish schools, hospitals, nurseries and offices. They also conducted phone interviews with the majority of the participants to find out who suffered from clinical depression. The findings were recently published in three articles in the scientific journals Occupational and Environmental Medicine, Psychoneuroendocrinology and The Scandinavian Journal of Work, Environment & Health.

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initiatives are a crucial element of employee wellbeing, says Clement Goh, Managing Director, Equinix South Asia.

For example, its two data centres are equipped with gyms and the company regularly organises various classes including yoga, abdominal fitness training and nutrition classes, says Goh. In addition, Equinix has established a flexible working arrangement (FWA) culture, with staff access to telecommuting, staggered working hours and temporary part-time work.

Hannah says that AWWA has professional social workers and counsellors who are qualified and able to assist and support affected employees.

Nevertheless, they also acknowledge that physical activities are important facets to keeping employees healthy, both physically and mentally.

“AWWA has a budget provision for our employees to participate in many physical activities and health talks conducted by appointed trainers,” she says.

In order to lead from the front, the AWWA management encourages employees to gather on the last Friday of every month to exercise collectively or just bond among colleagues.

In addition, to further reinforce the notion that AWWA is serious on employee mental wellbeing, Hannah says all employees are treated to an annual retreat in March.

Periodically, their HR department would also send email blasts to all employees reminding them to leave the office while “the sky is blue”.

“It is a reminder for employees to take a break from their hectic work schedule and to learn to ‘smell the roses’, says Hannah.

Over at TTSH, training courses such as the Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) and Critical Incident Stress Management (CISM) seminars are offered to staff and supervisors who want to learn more about helping themselves or others better manage stress related problems, says Tung.

FEATURE

Absentee rate twice as high for depressed workers Research by Yale University research has highlighted that absenteeism because of health problems is twice as high as for workers with additional depressive symptoms. The findings were published in The American Journal of Psychiatry, the monthly scientific journal of the American Psychiatric Association. The research investigators coined decreased productivity during work as “presenteeism” and said this was likely due to employee unwillingness to report an illness or to view depression as a “legitimate reason” for taking sick leave.

“The perceived stigma associated with depressive disorders may thus result in a high proportion of hidden costs to employers that are not readily evident from health or disability claims data,” the report noted.

The longitudinal study of over 6,000 workers at three corporations examined the links between depression, satisfaction with health care and worker productivity.

“Advance courses such as Suicide Prevention and Intervention are also available for staff volunteers who wish to become team leaders or advance their skills and knowledge,” adds Tung.

The slew of measures implemented by TTSH in its efforts to optimise employee wellbeing saw it win the “Health and Wellbeing” category of the 2014 HRM Awards in February.

Conducive work environment an imperative A recent Danish study concluded that work environments and unfair bosses are the chief causes of workplace depression (See boxout).

Contrary to popular belief, the study deduced that large piles of work do not lead to employee depression in themselves.

In addition, a longitudinal study by Yale University deduced that absenteeism for health issues was twice as high for workers with depressive symptoms as opposed to those without depressive symptoms. (See boxout).

Hence, Equinix pays close attention to fostering a conducive working environment for its employees, says Goh. “One example of our flexible initiative includes staff on a temporary part-time work arrangement, allowing them to spend more time with their young children,” he says.

“We focus on the quality of work produced by each employee and ensure set targets are met, rather than keep track of the number of hours an individual clocks at the workplace.”

Goh says that due to the company’s comprehensive work-life balance initiatives, medical leave decreased by 30% in 2013 and Equinix experienced a low turnover rate of three to four per cent for the year.

Furthermore, 30% of the company’s employees have now worked at Equinix for over 10 years.

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FEATURE

Corporate Health

WELLNESS AT WORK Healthier and happier employees lead to more productive workplaces. HRM finds out HR can boost overall health and fitness, but also fuse an element of fun and camaraderie at the workplace

By Sumathi V Selvaretnam

Investing in employee health and wellness is essential for creating a caring and positive workplace culture. Healthier employees also perform better at work, raising efficiencies and boosting the allimportant bottom line.

Employees’ health and wellbeing have a direct impact on productivity and morale at the workplace, says Yong Yih Ming, Deputy General Manager, Raffles Medical.

“Companies’ investments in health and wellbeing of employees is no longer just a company benefit, but studies have shown that understanding what health issues the general workforce have, and complementing that with the appropriate intervention programmes as part of this health and well-being framework, can ISSUE 14.6

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FEATURE

Corporate Health “Employees are an organisation’s greatest assets, it would thus only make sense to keep them healthy” – LENNY YONG, HEAD OF CORPORATE MARKETING, ASIAMEDIC’S CORPORATE WELLNESS CENTRE

increase both tangible and intangible values for companies,” Yong explains.

Lenny Yong, Head of Corporate Marketing for AsiaMedic’s Corporate Wellness Centre concurs.

“Employees are an organisation’s greatest assets,” he says. “It would thus only make sense to keep them healthy. Through regular health screenings, employees are able to take better care of themselves, before any illness turns serious.”

In Singapore, some common health concerns include obesity, high blood pressure, diabetes, and high cholesterol. “The early detection and prevention of illnesses also lowers the organisation’s medical cost and results in higher employee productivity in the long run,” AsiaMedic’s Yong says.

According to the 2013/2014 Staying@Work Survey Report by Towers Watson, over half (58%) of Asian employers believe health and productivity are essential to their organisational health strategy, and almost three-quarters (71%) plan to increase their support of health and productivity programmes over the next two years.

While stress, lack of exercise and poor nutrition are driving health and productivity issues to the fore, more than half of Asian employers still do not have an articulated strategy on this front, the survey found.

This could lead to mixed results in those programmes that have already been rolled out.

Shake your hips to good health Dance-based health and wellness activities are a great way for employees to have fun and keep fit. Bollywood dancing is gaining particular popularity in this realm, especially among corporate organisations seeking a fitness activity that is suitable for employees of all ages and fitness levels.

Located at the arts belt along Waterloo Street, Bolly Dancing Studio is a Bollywood Dance and Zumba Fitness Centre that offers customised classes for corporate groups. “Companies these days have large teams and are always looking for ways to ‘gel’ people. If they can do an

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activity together, the perception is that they will be able to perform well as a team,” says Mihir Wani, the studio’s director.

The dance sessions can take place at the studio or the client’s venue of choice. To begin, participants are split into teams and taught some basic dance moves. They are then given some extra time and props to come up with their own creative choreography. This is followed by some friendly competition where the teams work to outdance each other. “There is some joy associated with dancing and this is why Bollywood dancing and Zumba are picking up,” says Wani.

The friendly pace of the lessons encourages even the most shy employees to come out of their shells and have a good time. “We are here for beginners and for the people with two left feet. Everyone regardless of their age or fitness level should be able to enjoy dance-based fitness. We don’t make them conscious or pin point their mistakes, and instead teach them in a very approachable and stress-free manner,” Wani says.

Worried about getting employee buy-in? Bolly Dancing Studio goes a step further by providing HR with customisable marketing email templates that it can use to spread the word among employees and get them excited about their upcoming session. Those who enrol in the corporate membership programme can also drop by for studio classes at a time that best suits them.

“When you share laughs and have fun with your colleagues, that is a special moment that you can remember and take back,” Wani concludes.

FEATURE

Keeping fit together Long hours and work-related stress can take a toll on the health and wellbeing of employees. According to Lenny Yong, good health stems from daily routines such as what we eat, how often we exercise, and having sufficient rest. “Companies can also contribute by having a conducive work environment that encourages healthy lifestyles, like encouraging employees to take the stairs, and having fewer unhealthy food offerings at pantries. A combination of these individual and corporate level activities could already be a form of encouragement for employees to keep fit,” he says.

Exercise has been repeatedly shown to help individuals deal with stress – a common complaint in the workplace, says Declan Halpin, Head Physiotherapist, Radiance PhysioFit. “It improves energy levels; it improves self-confidence; and it improves self-image. It is easy to see how this is beneficial to the workplace.”

Introducing group exercise to employees has been shown to improve the productivity of employees in randomised interventions in the US, shares Halpin. In one study, a group of employees was given a one hour circuit class three times a week during the work day.

Another group from the same company were given an hour of “free time” to do what they liked – in practice an extended lunch break. “The exercise group showed improved mood over the six weeks, and, crucially for the company, they were more productive in their work – assembling and producing more units than the control group,” Declan says.

Other exercise interventions in companies in Japan, Europe and the US, have shown to significantly reduce the number of sick days taken by employees, and the amount of money spent by companies on illnessrelated expenditures. “To put it simply, employees are healthier, and therefore get sick less,” Declan says.

Some of the services offered by Radiance Phyisofit include corporate gym memberships, group class tickets, team bonding fitness activities as well as wellness retreats that feature elements of fitness, ergonomics, nutrition, and stress management.

Towards healthier workplaces In Singapore, the National Workplace Health Promotion (WHP) assists organisations in starting and sustaining their workplace health programmes.

Organisations can receive grants for such initiatives through the Singapore National Employers Federation.

Not sure where to begin? Organisations can also engage WHP consultants to assist them to plan, implement and evaluate their grant project. Raffles Medical Group for example, helps companies establish a framework that includes a health risk assessment and basic health screening to identify the risk areas of

1 Million Kg Challenge A nation-wide weight management programme designed to address the rising occurrence of obesity, the 1-Million Kg Challenge aims to help Singaporeans collectively lose one million kilograms over three years. Companies can encourage employees to sign up for the challenge at www. millionkg.sg where they will receive useful tips to aid their quest, as well as a chance to win prizes.

a company. These baseline assessments are relevant to employees of all age groups and professional profiles.

After the assessments, various intervention programmes are recommended with the risk factors identified in mind, says Yong Yih Ming of Raffles Medical. “This framework will take on a cyclical programme cycle from there to measure improvements and identify newer risk areas in the workforce,” he says.

Yong shares the example a company in which obesity was identified as the biggest risk factor.

“Over 50% of the participants returned a moderately overweight to morbidly overweight result and the company’s obesity rate was also higher than Singapore’s obesity rate from the National Health Survey,” he says.

After discussions with the company, a WHP consultant from Raffles Medical Group introduced a programme that targeted healthy weight loss and fun at the same time. “This programme also complemented HPB’s ‘1 Million Kg Challenge (see boxout)’ this year to literally add weight to the company’s resolve to manage obesity,” he says.

HR can formalise a WHP structure by identifying influential and passionate champions who can help drive health and wellbeing objectives among employees. “The WHP framework is best driven by ‘champions’ on the ground so that the communications and motivations can be done at a smaller group level to achieve more direct intervention and monitoring,” Yong Yih Ming says.

In addition, WHP Consultants can also work closely with HR to understand the organisation’s needs and help recommend the appropriate structures, training framework, and programmes.

The Raffles Medical Group also offer customised health workshops for organisations to manage their respective risk profiles. These include workshops on weight, cholesterol and diabetes management, Employee Assistance Programmes (EAP) and lifesaving workshops for First Aid, Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) and Automated External Defibrillator (AED) training.

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ADVERTORIAL

UNIT4 CASEY STUD

SSTC achieves

UNIT4 Prosoft HRMS saves SSTC time and costs, while ensuring transparent HR practices

The Need As is still a common industry practice, SSTC had become reliant on Excel spreadsheets for keeping employee records and generating reports. “It was manual, time consuming, prone to error and offered limited functionality,” says Wayne Ho, Chief Operating Officer,SSTC. “We had selected and implemented a comprehensive HR solution to replace our spreadsheets and manual processes, but despite its ability to undertake many of the required tasks automatically, adoption was not smooth and much of our record keeping and data processing remained manual. As a result the system became obsolete very quickly.” SSTC felt strongly that a systems overhaul was required to meet its demands as a growing company and to help it achieve best practice HR processes.

The school selected UNIT4 Prosoft HRMS as the ideal one-stop integrated solution after a thorough requirements and systems review. Their decision was affirmed when various modules of Prosoft HRMS were ranked top against other competitive systems through independent research.

The system’s ability to easily meet business change requirements without requiring expensive consultants to make changes in the system was important to SSTC. Due to the organisation’s expansion, this translated into significant savings related to time, effort and expense. The advanced functionality within Prosoft HRMS ensures its HR policies are met and processes are followed without deviation. What SSTC required above all was more flexibility to manage its employee information, leave, payroll, training and appraisals as well as support the competitive needs of the growing business.

The Benefits The school is already seeing improved productivity and money as a result of reducing unnecessary queries to HR, filling out lesser forms or printing employee materials such as pay slips.

“There are many improvements to our HR processes, but what is really significant is that our employee relations have improved as we are now more transparent with them than we were before. They feel valued and are benefiting from training and smooth appraisal procedures. We are continuously reviewing and updating our HR policies and they are being adopted universally across the company,” says Ho. Prosoft HRMS has made life a lot easier, says Ho. Managers and supervisors can now see personnel data on demand and no

Leave Claim Timesheets Attendance Resource Booking

The Solution

Orgplus Appraisal Strategic

SSTC School for Further Education is a premium mid-sized academic institution in the Private Education industry that has been awarded EduTrust Certification and is known for its quality accredited programmes.

SSTC has grown rapidly in the past three years, as the international education market has grown and evolved, with further growth anticipated in the years ahead.

The school is in constant change – from delivering highly competitive programme offerings to meet the needs of demanding students, to meeting the needs of growing employee numbers, which have increased almost 200% in the last two years. As a Private Education Institution, SSTC strives to meet key industry benchmarks like the Singapore Quality Class for PEOs, now EduTrust, to illustrate its commitment to improving its human resource practices and ensuring continuous improvements.

Payroll Administrative

HR best practice

Personnel

Training Talent Manpower Forms Recruitment

longer have to wait for HR to respond to a query. They can manage and monitor staff movements and ensure appraisals are conducted on time. “Having information readily available to employees and improved visibility related to HR policies and processes, has greatly improved their morale,” he says.

Employees are also able to focus on highervalue tasks, which automatically leads to improved productivity. For the HR department, the benefits are vast, including allowing them more time to focus on the strategic needs of the company rather than answering queries and correcting manual errors. The userfriendly system provides multi-level security, and HR practices that were a headache previously have been simplified.

UNIT4 Asia Pacific Pte Ltd 1 Harbourfront Place, Harbourfront Tower 1, #09-05/06, Singapore 098633 Tel: +65 6333 6133 web: www.unit4apac.com Email: sales.ap@unit4.com ISSUE 14.6

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EMPLOYEE ENGAGEMENT & RETENTION CONGRESS 24 & 25 June 2014 | Marriott Hotel Singapore

According to Deloitte’s Global Human Capital Trends 2014 report, engagement and retention is the second most critical challenge facing employers today. 40% of respondents rated their organisations as “weak” or just “adequate” in key retention capabilities. Today’s reality is one where organisations need to find new ways to monitor, encourage and instil passion and purpose in employees.

The Employee Engagement & Retention Congress 2014 brings together the best HR minds to share new practices and emerging priorities in designing a suite of systems (work, culture, flexibility, total rewards and employer branding) that supports talent experience and organisational success.

Featured Speakers:

Joyita Poddar HR Director - APAC SABRE HOLDINGS

Phan Yoke Fei GROUP HEAD - HR AURIC GROUP

Jayesh Menon Regional HR Director ITRON

Vandna Ramchandani Regional Head of Recruitment, APAC BLOOMBERG LP

Learning Objectives:

Hans Han Head - Compensation & Benefits, APAC HUNTSMAN

Rachael Fitzpatrick HR Director - APJ AKAMAI

Jignesh Ramji APAC HR Business Partner and Team Leader, Financial Products BLOOMBERG LP

Build a proactive retention model that identifies potential problems before they surface Focus on employer branding and a talent experience that challenges traditional engagement models Win on the new battlefield shaped by new global talent networks and social media Customise career development to lock in high potential talent Save with a total rewards programme that caters to a wide range of employee needs and keeps them happy

+PLUS! HRM EXCLUSIVE WORKSHOP How to Use HR Data to Maximise Workforce Retention, Engagement and Productivity?

THINK TANKS Roadblock Alert! Identifying the Causes of Employee Disengagement and Ways to Solve it Examining the Death of Both Employer and Employee Loyalty

Debashish Chatterjee Director - Human Resources BOMBARDIER

INTERACTIVE ROUNDTABLE SESSIONS Engaging and Retaining Entry Level Talent Engaging and Retaining Management Level Talent

www.hrmcongress.com | +65 6423 4631

TALENT LADDER

New Appointments Anu Datta

Vice President of HR, VMware Asia-Pacific and Japan Anu Datta has been appointed as Vice President of HR, VMware Asia-Pacific and Japan.

He was previously Vice President, Global Talent Management and Executive Search at the virtualisation and cloud infrastructure firm’s headquarters in Palo Alto, California in the US. Now based in Singapore, Datta is now responsible for recruiting, developing and retaining high-calibre talent in one of VMware’s fastest-growing markets.

“Our strategy around the softwaredefined data centre, hybrid cloud and

end-user computing (market) is providing a radical way forward for organisations seeking to capitalise on the large-scale shifts taking place in IT today,” said VMware’s General Manager and Senior Vice President for AsiaPacific and Japan Sanjay Mirchandani.

Datta joined VMware in April 2008 and was responsible for building the company’s executive search operation and recruiting key professionals around the world. He has played a number of senior roles during his six years at VMware, including management of

the Research and Development staffing, university relations and employment branding functions.

“Asia-Pacific is one of VMware’s most dynamic and exciting regions, and I am delighted to be part of a team that is moving towards such enormous opportunity and growth,” said Datta.

Datta served in a number of executive recruitment organisations before joining VMware. He holds a Bachelor of Science in Mathematics and Business Studies from the University of Warwick in the UK.

While at Mövenpick, Foo was tasked to review and develop the entire HR function, including Learning and Development, a new Total Rewards System, and Compensation and Benefits.

“The experiences gained in both RWS and Mövenpick were valuable and enriching to my learning journey, partially because both developments were the ‘firsts’ in Singapore - the first Integrated

Resort (IR) and the first Mövenpick Hotel Brand,” said Foo. In his current capacity, Foo is responsible for ABR’s Group HR, Compensation and Benefits, Resourcing and Retention, Talent Management and Succession Planning. His immediate priority is to develop HR strategies to support the Group’s expansion plans and to nurture a performance based corporate environment.

James Foo

Head, Group HR, ABR Holdings James Foo joined ABR Holdings in January 2014 and has been appointed as Head, Group Human HR. Foo has 13 years of extensive experience as a HR Generalist. Prior to joining ABR, he was the Director of HR with Mövenpick Heritage Hotel Sentosa. He has also held positions with other key players in the hospitality industry including Resorts World Sentosa (RWS), Parkroyal, Capitaland and Raffles International Hotels & Resorts.

Srikanth Karra

Director of HR, India and South Asia, Bharti Airtel Bharti Airtel has announced the appointment of Srikanth Karra as Director of HR for its India and South Asia operations.

Karra will be responsible for bringing in business focused and innovative HR systems and processes, institutionalising global benchmarks, delivering strategies and providing overall leadership to the HR function.

He will work closely with the board to develop and execute various HR initiatives with a focus

on simplicity, strong business relevance and impact.

“We are delighted to have Srikanth on board. I am confident that his rich experience will help create a significant impact on our people strategy and processes as we enter an exciting phase of growth led by the growth of new services like data and mobile commerce,” said Vittal.

With a career spanning over 27 years, Karra has held several leadership positions across business

sectors including Head of HR for Hewlett Packard India, Global Head of HR for Syntel Inc, and Head of HR for GECIS – India.

He also led an entrepreneurial venture that provided HR solutions focusing on Leadership Development, HR Analytics and Talent Assessment.

Karra holds a Masters in Personnel Management and Industrial Relations, and a Bachelor of General Law from Mumbai University.

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GOES DIGITAL! It’s Free. Download the new HRM Magazine App for your iPad, just search “hrm asia” in iTunes® Store

Exclusive iPad-only content & videos The latest hrm news & HR jobs delivered instantly Interactive data that you can sort the way you want

IN PERSON

HR talent Haley Hopkins Executive Director, Human Resources APAC, PPD

How many years HR experience?

I have worked as a business partner for the past 20 years in two industry sectors: 12 years in Telecommunications (UK and US) and for the past eight years in Clinical Research in Asia-Pacific.

Why HR? I was lucky enough at the age of 19 to go and work in the HR department of one of the UK’s biggest teaching hospitals and it was there that I decided I would then specialise in HR when I returned to university. Throughout the past 20 years I have never been tempted to specialise in one particular area of HR but to instead really enjoy the generalist role, as I can see how impactful I can be working alongside the senior business leaders and how impactful HR initiatives can be in supporting business growth, improving productivity, and increasing efficiencies.

Why PPD? I get to work with really smart people who are passionate about what they are doing and that inspires me to work as hard as they do to ensure we deliver to

our clients. In my role, I am ultimately responsible for 14 countries within the region and I have HR teams based in five countries who support all HRG activities.

Biggest achievement?

In a region which traditionally sees a high turnover of staff, I have managed to keep a very stable HR team and have watched them grow and develop over the past eight years into very competent HR business partners. The feedback that they get from our senior leaders is always very complimentary.

After hours?

Travelling, tasting the huge variety of cuisines, and visiting exhibitions and theatre productions. I still enjoy sitting outside when we eat – it still makes me think I am on holiday even though I get to do it a lot now that I am living here in Singapore!

Family?

My very supportive husband, Mike, and two children, Olivia, 15, and Oscar, 12.

RESOURCES

Book reviews

Building talent intelligently Eager to understand how to tap onto good talent intelligence and secure the right employees for the right positions? The book Talent Intelligence: What You Need to Know to Know to Identify and Measure Talent could provide the answer.

Sound talent intelligence – a solid understanding of the skills of people – is a critical element of employee relations that companies have to undertake in the modern business world. However, many firms are falling short of the exceptionally high standards required.

This book analyses the importance of talent measurement and how firms generate and utilise their talent intelligence.

The authors, Nik Kinley and Shlomo Ben-Hur, are two experts in this emerging field. They tap on a

plethora of research to explain how companies can go about effectively implementing their own talent intelligence strategy.

A structured approach is a key theme, with chapters emphasising aspects such as rethinking talent measurement, the eight processes for gathering data, and choosing the best methods and tools.

In particular, the illustrative examples provide a clear and concise way for readers to effectively understand how to overcome the obstacles that hinder talent intelligence.

The book further provides an ordered approach to what companies need to do to plan, develop and execute talent intelligence strategies before utilising those measurement results.

Talent Intelligence: What You Need to Know to Know to Identify and Measure Talent is an imperative read for leaders and firms hungry to take full advantage of their talent, and use it effectively to leverage on the skills available internally.

Title: Talent Intelligence: What You Need to Know to Know to Identify and Measure Talent Author: Nik Kinley & Shlomo Ben-Hur Publisher: Jossey-Bass Price: US$24.75 ISSUE 14.6

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FEATURE

STJobs HR Summit 2014

THE BEST SUMMIT YET A staggering 4,172 people attended the STJobs HR Summit 2014 from April 28-29 HR guru Dave Ulrich addresses the audience

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This year’s Summit was also the busiest and best ever, with delegates, sponsors and exhibitors all heaping praises on Asia’s biggest HR event.

The 2014 edition also broke new ground with the introduction of the all-new and exclusive C-Suite Stream. The crème de la crème of management experts and HR gurus addressed the challenges faced by chief decision makers in an exclusive VIP setting.

The C-Suite stream featured a plethora of presentations by the who’s who of HR experts: Dave Ulrich - international management guru and thought leader, Vineet Nayar - acclaimed author of Employees

FEATURE

A crowd favourite, Dr John Gray, author of bestselling book “Men are from Mars, Women are from Venus ”

First, Customers Second and vice-chairman of HCL Technologies, and the CEOs of leading global conglomerates such as Walmart Asia, Google, and Coca Cola.

Professor Ulrich and Dr John Gray, Relationship Expert and International Speaker, were cast into the spotlight and treated like celebrities as they were mobbed by adoring HR professionals hoping to engage in conversations with the pair.

The C-Suite stream was also treated to an excellent dose of entertainment and laughter, with Anita Kapoor, International Television Host and Travel Presenter displaying her celebrated humour and poise.

The other four streams: Stategy, Retention, Talent, and HRM, also saw a wide range of speakers and featured never-before seen presentations and case studies from local and overseas businesses. The lineups included exclusive content from Unilever, SingTel, IBM, Goldman Sachs, the Ministry of Manpower, JUMBO Group of Restaurants, Microsoft and Lux Island Resorts Maldives.

In another first for the STJobs HR Summit, the Free Expo featured Question and Answer sessions by speakers such as Professor Ulrich, Jonathan Yabut, winner of The Apprentice Asia, and Steven Bradbury, Olympic Speed Skating Gold Medallist.

Even a famous football club was in attendance at the STJobs HR Summit 2014. Manchester United, regarded as one of the world’s biggest football outfits, sent its Head of Strategy and Partner Operations, Asia-Pacific, to talk about HR the “Man United” way.

Attendees also thronged the book signing sessions, with renowned international authors and speakers such as Brenda Bence, Vineet Nayar, Debra Fine, Ross Reck, Lesley Everett, Ian Cook, Sam Silverstein, Julie Winkle Giulioni and Dr Gray.

In addition, the newly renovated venue, Suntec Singapore Convention & Exhibition Centre, also drew plaudits from attendees, with the layout and space allowing all streams to align and feed off the Expo.

Attendees were also treated to an epic dessert safari adventure during the event. This featured a whopping 27 varieties of desserts spread across 12 different dessert stations. The stations featured a wide assortment of local, traditional and international treats for guests to enjoy.

Overall, the STJobs HR Summit 2014 was nothing short of a glorious success. HRM Asia looks forward to presenting a bigger and even better event next year.

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TALENT CHALLENGE

HR Analytics

Smarter decision-making Can you give one example of how workforce analytics has helped you make a better HR decision?

Andy Teng HR Director, Asia-Pacific, Flowserve

Flowserve has more than 35 sites in the Asia-Pacific region. We have a small and consolidated HR team distributed across major locations, and they are part of our shared services strategy to provide support to all these sites.

We are able to keep our HR team lean and effective via effective implementation of several HR information systems initiatives. One of these is our newly launched HR Business Intelligence tool, or HR Biz BI for short.

The Flowserve HR Biz BI tool provides up to date information on HR metrics such as headcount requisitions status, open position, time to fill, employee turnover, performance management, as well as the compensation ratio of all our employees.

This information helps us monitor our HR performance in real time. This allows us to address key pressure points in a timely fashion so as to ensure that HR’s support to the business is timely, efficient and effective.

We are now able to monitor our time to fill in real time via our dash board rather than just having each of our HR managers logging into a dedicated headcount requisition system.

We get real time information the minute a career opportunity gets posted on our job site. We see the total number of applicants and can also monitor each stage of the candidate application process, whether they are being screened, interviewed, qualified or having reached an offer stage.

We are able to capture such information and use it historically, not just for manpower planning but to also to determine and forecast future hiring for selected positions.

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Joseph Chu

Director of HR, Holiday Inn Singapore Atrium

At Holiday Inn Singapore Atrium (HISA), we focus on the employee turnover rate and the employee engagement survey. We believe that there is a correlation between the two.

Our employee turnover rate is below three percent per month and the industry average is usually between four to six percent. These two areas allow us to engage and motivate our employees even further.

Low employee turnover rate equates to high employee retention and these two aspects work together. Twice a year in HISA, we conduct two employee engagement surveys, usually around April and November.

We take the average of the two scores and analyse this data to find ways to constantly motivate our employees into improving their productivity levels.

When we get the scores, we analyse them according to our three key priorities. We also actively engage with employees by conducting focus group sessions after the results are out. We then compile a report based on the results from the survey.

The engagement level with employees is done on a departmental or sectional level.

We meet staff to talk about ways to further improve their productivity levels and garner feedback from them on what we can do better.

These engagement sessions are part of our key performance objectives and it’s important because, as HR professionals, we have to help support the hotel in terms of its key businesses. From a HR point of view, this entails employing the best people and adopting the best practices for our workforce.

Anand Wong

Senior HR Manager, Southeast Asia, Sigma-Aldrich

One of my favourite workforce analytics is recruitment metrics. Many small and medium sized employers and, to a certain extent, some bigger organisations, are focusing on getting their positions filled most of the time.

I recall the experience of joining my previous organisation whereby recruitment was primarily supported through the placement of search firms. Though in a given year, our recruitment volume was relatively low – between 15 and 20 positions with both new roles and replacements combined – more than 75% of these roles were filled by various search firms.

Prior to taking any further action, we decided to initiate a chapter on recruitment capability review in Singapore, where we undertook a due diligence process on gathering historical data such as recruitment expenditure for each role, time taken to fill open positions, and the source of hires and attrition rates in comparison between 2012 and 2013.

The data indicated we did not have a strong in-house resourcing capability, not to mention an escalating cost per hire.

We built a business case for change and put in place a recruitment strategy to address these key challenges. In the end, with local management support, we were able to introduce several new initiatives to strengthen our capability in areas such as online job portal, usage of social networking (LinkedIn), employee referrals, as well as the practice of behavioural interviews and new hire onboarding process.

VIEW POINT

Santa Fe

Shireen Kwan, GMS Santa Fe Relocation Services Singapore Email: shireen.kwan@santaferelo.com

Are you suffering from administrative overload?

Day-to-day tasks are preventing global mobility professionals from acting strategically, shares Shireen Kwan of Santa Fe Relocation Services Singapore Forty percent of Global Mobility professionals believe they should be spending their efforts on strategic workforce planning; yet only one in ten (11%) are currently managing to do so.

The Global Mobility Survey 2014 – the world’s largest study of Global Mobility professionals with 1,269 respondents from around the world – reveals that instead, professionals’ time is taken-up by tasks relating to immigration compliance (49%), tax compliance (45%) and conducting general administration (42%).

According to 92% of respondents, measuring Return on Investment

(ROI) is an important part of managing a successful global mobility programme. Surprisingly however, the survey identified that managing ROI is being neglected as mobility teams struggle to get to grips with both defining costs and measuring success: At an assignment level, the costs of assignment are often ‘blurry’ at best.

One third of Global Mobility functions (32%) are unable to calculate the total costs of assignments. Some even appear to have given-up trying in the first place – one in ten (11%) don’t estimate the costs of assignments before they take place.

Global Mobility Survey Report 2014

And if costs are ‘blurry’, measuring long-term success of assignments is virtually opaque. Fewer than half (47%) of Global Mobility programmes are linked to talent management, and post-assignment employee retention rates are un-known for over one third of Mobility functions (34%). Perhaps this goes some way to explaining why one third (32%) of the Global Mobility professionals we interviewed aren’t even trying to measure the success of assignments.

So despite the need to be more strategic, Global Mobility professionals appear to be held back by a sea of tactical tasks and administration. Now is the time for Global Mobility to take control, define ways of working efficiently and become more proactive!

Key industry experts are urging Global Mobility to take a more forward looking role in their organisations. With most businesses anticipating a higher rate of growth in assignment activity than ever before, the alternative is that we see Global Mobility departments trailing the business.

The 2014 Global Mobility Report – including a main focus section, commentary from an expert panel of highly respected Global Mobility commentators, and full-detailed results.

It is commissioned by the Santa Fe Group, and conducted by independent research company Circle Research.

Visit www.globalmobilitysurvey.com for more information.

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TWENTY-FOUR SEVEN

HR at Work 7.00am I feel energised by the coffee I grab on my way into the office. I check and respond to my emails. Some of my team is in Canada, so I make a few calls to our Toronto office to discuss potential employee testimonials for CGG’s website.

8.30am I go around the office to say hi to a few staff members, I catch up on some news and staff coming back from leave.

Caroline Tavares Australia HR Manager and Vice President, Global HR Business Partner, CGG

9.00am We have our short regular meeting and discuss outstanding items and current topics that need addressing.

9.30am Meet with our Australia Country Manager to discuss the training calendar for the coming quarter, the new office location, and salary reviews for 2014.

11.00am Work on a workplace gender equality report for the Australian Government. While writing, I receive a few phone calls and visits from various managers and staff. The old adage that a manager does

not have more than seven to nine minutes in a row of thinking time is very real as far as I am concerned.

12.30pm Time for a short lunch before dashing to a meeting with the Immigration Outreach Officer from the Chamber of Commerce and Industry.

3.15pm Attend the monthly HSE Management Committee meeting. Winter is around the corner for our region and CGG decides to subsidise the Flu Vaccine campaign.

4.30pm Phone call with Singapore. Our Communication department is on board and happy to design some posters for us for the 2014 Flu Vaccine Campaign.

Return a phone call from the Fair Work Commission in Australia and discuss CGG’s involvement in a national survey on Remuneration Equity.

5.45pm A few last things to do: Consolidate headcount numbers for CGG Corporate HR, look at my agenda for tomorrow, pack up, and get ready to go home.

{ WE KNOW RECRUITMENT Regional HR Business Partner

Human Resources Manager

Senior Manager, Benefits

› Open and diverse culture › Attractive salary package

› Industry leader in a niche oil & gas related market › Consistent growth momentum

› Swiss-based company › Dynamic work environment

Our client is a reputable firm in the finance industry and a leader in their sector. In this role, you are expected to develop and implement HR strategies in areas of organisational design, workforce planning as well as compensation and benefits.

Key to success will be the ability to work in a fast paced environment and engage with the business stakeholders across different continents. The successful applicant should be from a reputable University with at least 10 years of experience in HR business partnering. Must possess strong business acumen and excellent team management skills.

A global leader in the oil & gas industry is seeking a Singapore based HR Manager to lead the HR function, support the regional senior leadership team and deliver the daily HR operations. Reporting to the HR VP Asia, you will lead a team of 3 HR executives to support 200 employees. You will also playing a pivotal role in supporting business growth in a fun and lively working environment. Ideally, you are a Degree qualified, with at least 8 years of post-graduate experience. HR development and Union experience is appreciated, preferably in the oil & gas or Industrial business.

Our client is an MNC and prominent player in the medical devices sector. Reporting to the HR Director, APAC, you will provide leadership and administration of welfare, employees’ well-being and benefit plans. You will be the key focal point to lead annual reviews as well as develop benefits plans that are both equitable and competitive to encourage employee retention. Key to your success will be your ability to engage employees and working closely with union. Ideally, you should be Degree qualified and have a minimum of 8 years experience in benefits and employee welfare programmes.

Please contact Eugene Wong (Reg no: R1331128) quoting ref: H2249890 or visit our website.

Please contact Ashley Wei (Reg no: R1434529) quoting ref: H2247830 or visit our website.

Please contact Sean Tong (Reg no: R1110029) quoting ref: H2250710 or visit our website.

To apply for any of the above positions, please go to www.michaelpage.com.sg and search for the reference number, or contact the relevant consultant on +65 6533 2777 for a confidential discussion.

Human Resources

Get Connected. Stay Ahead.

Specialists in human resources recruitment www.michaelpage.com.sg

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#14896 Licence No.: 98C5473 Business Registration No: 199804751N

MICHAEL PAGE

HRMASIA.COM 57

Regional HR Business Partner

Head of Human Resources, Singapore

Regional Manager, HR Payroll and Operations

› Luxury consumer brand name › Asia Pacific remit

› Financial services industry › Strategic HR business partnering and leadership role

› International brand name › Operational and leadership role

An international brand name, our client has an established presence in Asia Pacific and in a niche market. It now seeks a dynamic and consummate HR Business Partner to be part of their regional team based in Singapore.

A respectable and growing organisation, our client has an immediate need for a consummate HR Professional to lead its people agenda and the administration function for its Singapore operation.

A well established and respectable organisation, our client seeks a highly experienced HR Payroll and Operations Manager to play a key role in their regional team.

Reporting to Regional HR Leader, you will partner closely with Business Heads to ensure HR goals are aligned with the business plan for the assigned region. You are responsible for the development and application of fair and consistent selection systems, policies and programs in the area of recruitment, HR planning, compensation & benefits, HR development, performance management, employee and labour relations.

Dual reporting to Regional HR Director and Country Manager, you provide advice and assistance on a range of HR matters including recruitment, compensation & benefits, employee relations and employment law, training and development. As a strategic HR advisor, you will work closely with Country Manager and the leadership team in developing HR strategies to drive and manage change in the business.

Degree qualified, you have significant experience as HR generalist and minimum 4 years HR business partnering experience with MNCs known for HR best practices.

Demonstrated competence in end‑to‑end recruitment process including vendor management is mandatory. The ideal candidate will have high adaptability, is hands‑on and possess excellent interpersonal, communications and influencing skills and ability to work in a diverse culture environment.

You are degree‑qualified in Business Administration or HR with at least 8 years relevant experience in senior strategic HR roles.

You have demonstrated ability in stakeholder management and dealing with ambiguity in a highly matrix and demanding work environment. Preference will be given to those with merger & acquisition HR related and broad change management experience. You are a leader with coaching and mentoring skill, are hands‑on and possess excellent interpersonal and communication skills.

Ideally, you are degree qualified with at least 10 years of payroll management and processing experience within large MNCs regionally. You are also experienced operating in a HR shared service model and matrix reporting structure, and have broad knowledge of HR labour laws, processes and SOX requirements.

A hands‑on leader, you display excellent interpersonal and influencing skills, and are able to communicate effectively with all levels of employees. Demonstrated team management experience and ability to work in a fast‑paced, demanding and changing environment are essential.

Reference number: MH/JD45395

Reference number: MH/JD42250

Reference number: MH/JD45447

You will provide leadership to your team in ensuring quality service delivery of HR operations and payroll functions regionally. You are jointly responsible for service line portfolio, policies and processes, and continuously seek opportunities to improve service quality and stream processes. You will manage regional data quality, internal and external stakeholder management and act as regional point of contact for global projects, strategic and tactical initiatives, lead, communicate and implement changes.

Your Human Resources recruitment specialists To apply, please go to talent2.com and search for respective reference number.

For a confidential discussion, you can contact Maureen Ho in our Singapore Office on +65 6511 8555  linkedin.com/company/talent2

Talent2 Singapore Pte Ltd. Company Reg. No. 200511940M EA Licence No. 11C4535

HR Manager

Senior Payroll Manager

Established Global Multinational Company Team Lead Role

Senior Manager Career Progression Opportunities

Our client is one of the world’s leading independent storage partners for oils, chemicals, gases and dry bulk. They own and operate 75 terminals in 23 countries with a total storage capacity of more than 23 million cubic meters. They are looking for a HR Manager to lead a team as a strategic business partner. This role will cover full spectrum of HR services and EHS function and you will be a point of contact for HR related matters. Your role will be both tactical and strategic requiring you to be hands on whilst at the same time act as a strong business partner working closely with the business. You will be responsible for the full spectrum of HR functions which includes operations management, learning and development, talent development, payroll operations, handle EHS programs, HR policies and procedures. To be successful in this position, you should possess a Degree with 10 years of full spectrum HR experience. Good communication skills with proven leadership qualities will make you a suitable candidate for the position.

Our client is an established facility and catering service provider. They are hiring a Senior Manager to manage their payroll services. This role reports to the HR Director and covers a large headcount of blue and white collar employees. It is a Singapore based role and you will be responsible for managing the payroll team. You will run staff payroll, maintain payroll information, check discrepancies, compile and prepare reports, update the management with information and maintain employee records in the system. Thereafter, you will be expected to manage other HR functions and initiatives. To be successful in this role, you will possess a degree in a relevant discipline with 7 years of payroll experience. You should be experienced in managing a team. Candidate with proven expertise in internal HRIS system and good people management skills is likely to be successful in this role. You must possess detailed knowledge of salary structure, benefits administration, worker compensation and the Singapore employment law.

If you meet the above criteria, please email your detailed CV in word format to priya_prakash@kellyservices.com.sg

To submit your application, please email your resume in word format to priya_prakash@kellyservices.com.sg

EA Personnel Registration No. R135491

EA Personnel Registration No. R135491

Kelly Services, Inc. is a leader in providing workforce solutions. For more than 35 illustrious years, Kelly has been partnering Singapore’s leading companies to deliver the best talent in the market. Today, Kelly Singapore operates from over 10 strategic locations island-wide. Complementing our general staffing capability, Kelly also offers great expertise in the sourcing of specialised professionals across technical disciplines such as Engineering, Technology and Science, as well as functional specialities for Finance, HR, Sales & Marketing, Procurement and Banking.

kellyservices.com.sg

Kelly Services (Singapore) Pte Ltd | EA License No. 01C4394 | RCB No. 200007268E

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Your career in HR starts here.

Payroll Manager (1 year contract)

Full scope of payroll leadership for a global technology services MNC You will lead a small team to provide the full scope of payroll administration to the APAC countries, and be responsible for accurate and timely processing of monthly payroll, ensuring payroll cycles and deadlines at multiple locations are adhered to by all parties involved in the payroll cycle.

Partnering closely with HR, Tax, Legal, 3rd party payroll vendors regarding compensation matters, tax matters, pay practices, policy implementation, severance, transfers, you will also analyse, identify and highlight tax and/or legal considerations for staff transfers and international assignments.

With qualifications in HR/Accountancy/Finance and 5 to 7 years of similar work experience in handling payroll functions of a medium to large-sized organisation, we are ideally seeking for candidates with exposure to SAP HR & Finance FICO system.

Contact us at +65 6632 0044 / hrmg@capitagrp.com for a confidential discussion.

HR & Admin Manager

Lead in HR for a renowned construction and engineering MNC Working closely with the Line Managers for recruitment and HR matters, you will handle a full spectrum of HR duties including employee relocation, training program development, performance appraisal, policy drafting, compensation and benefits as well as provide timely advice to the management on all HR matters.

You possess a degree in HRM with 4-6 years relevant experience in a HR generalist role, preferably in a multi-cultural working environment. Thorough knowledge of the Singapore Employment law and a good understanding of Tax practices is a must, along with a high level of maturity and confidence as well as the ability to relate well with people across all levels and cultures.

Contact us at +65 6603 3378 / hrmg@capitagrp.com for a confidential discussion.

Senior Manager, Human Resources

Succeed as a senior HR leader with one of Asia's major private healthcare providers Responsible for the full spectrum of Human Resources Management function, you will lead and coach a team of HR team members in delivering and administering HR services. You will work in close partnership with internal customers in developing and implementing HR strategies and practices and be accountable for the compliance of HR policies, procedures and documentation with the statutory regulations and internal policies.

A HR degree from a recognised university, with at least 8 years of work experience in Human Resource Management of which 2 years at a managerial level is essential to be considered for this role. You are well-versed in all aspects of recruitment, preferably within the healthcare / medical sector. You are competent in handling industrial relations issues and have strong knowledge of local labour law and related statutory regulations.

Contact us at +65 6632 0057 / hrmg@capitagrp.com for a confidential discussion.

BUSINESS SUPPORT | OUTSOURCING | TECHNOLOGY | ENGINEERING | BANKING

Professional. Personalised. Passionate.

THE HALLMARK OF OUR TALENT SOLUTIONS

CAPITA PTE LTD

EA Licence No. 08C2893 An ISO 9001:2008 certified company

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AVP/VP Talent Acquisition

Senior HR Business Partner

Regional Learning & Development Manager

Major Global Bank

Technology Consulting Firm

Global Services Company

Private Banking Focus

Excellent Working Environment

Regional Coverage

Excellent Career Progression

High Visibility Role

High Visibility

A major bank with strong and growing presence in the region is seeking an experience recruiter for Singapore. This new headcount will be supporting the private banking arm.

The company is in the technology consulting industry, with global projects run out of the Singapore office, where the Senior Management sits. As a Senior HR Manager and individual contributor, you will report directly to CEO.

As a specialist, you will work closely with the team to develop strategy, policies and procedures, and set direction for recruitment function within Singapore. You will provide integrated solution to hiring and manage the process, drive one bank consistency and efficiencies. This will include managing preferred vendors in driving the service levels, define and deliver resourcing and selection strategy. You will reengineer recruitment processes and implement changes if necessary.

You will perform the full spectrum of HR function including performance management, recruitment, salary, compensation and benefits administration, with emphasis of the role on regional compensation and benefits, including develop and implement the sales incentive plan. You will handle manpower resourcing for the company including the staffing function and the fulfilment of manpower demand and perform the scheduling of manpower in meeting project demands. This role will provide expert advice to staff, line managers and HR Business Partners on all matters concerning compensation structures, benefits, benchmarking and rewards.

Regard as one of the top employer of choice, this global support services company operates in Europe, the Americas, Africa, Asia Pacific and the UK. There is now an exciting opportunity to join as Regional L&D manager covering 12 countries across Asia. This role reports into Regional L&D Director in Singapore.

Degree qualified, you will have a strong recruitment experience ideally gained in a large MNC environment. Experience within private banking recruitment is a must. You will be strategic, proactive, mature and commercial in your approach.

To apply, please submit your resume to Priscilla Chen at pc@kerryconsulting.com, quoting the job title and reference number PC7027\HRM, or call (65) 63338530 for more details.

You will design and implement frontline management capability development initiatives for the sales and service manager populations across Asia. This will includes leading the Performance Management process and formulate initiatives to build and sustain a performance-driven culture. You will facilitate the Employee Engagement Survey across Asia, and coordinate the follow-through of Employee Engagement Action Plans and develop e-learning strategies to facilitate knowledge transfer from online learning into workplace application.

Degree qualified with minimum 10 years of relevant working experience. You have strong experience in regional compensation and benefits capacity with international mobility.

With excellent written, verbal communication, presentation and negotiation skills, you are independent and proactive.

Bachelor’s Degree in HR, Organisational Psychology or a related field of study with a minimum 5 years of experience in an L&D/OD/ HR role, of which preferably 2 years are in a managerial capacity. Bilingual facilitation abilities and experience in service industry L&D preferred.

Willingness to travel up to 30% of the time.

To apply, please submit your resume to Priscilla Chen at pc@kerryconsulting.com, quoting the job title and reference number PC7043\HRM, or call (65) 63338530 for more details.

To apply, please submit your resume to Priscilla Chen at pc@kerryconsulting.com, quoting the job title and reference number PC7047\HRM, or call (65) 63338530 for more details.

Financial Services I Commerce I Engineering I Human Resources I Legal I Sales & Marketing I Technology 60

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Business Registration No: 200307397W I Licence No: 03C4828

Returning the Human to Resourcing

6 Best Headhunting awards in Asiamoney Headhunters Poll for Asia since 2009

HR Manager (with L&D focus) Oil & Gas Industry

Regional Training Advisory Chemical Industry

HR Executive Asset Management Industry

Newly Created Role With L&D Focus

Global Chemicals Organisation

Prominent Global Asset Management Firm

Excellent Career Opportunity

Regional Scope

Excellent Career Progression Opportunities

High Visibility to Senior Management

Excellent Career Prospects

Competitive Remuneration

This is a European MNC, in a high growth stage with excellent opportunities in the region. Due to continuing business needs, there is now an opportunity for a dedicated and high performing HR professional to join them in this exciting role.

This global organisation is one of the world's most recognized and respected chemicals organisation. Due to continued growth, there is now an exciting opportunity for a dynamic individual to be part of its training and development team, based in Singapore.

This is a leading international asset management firm. It is seeking a dynamic HR Executive to support its growing business in the region.

Reporting to VP HR Asia Pacific, you will work closely with the management team and implement best practices for their Singapore office. This is a generalist role encompassing issues pertaining to resourcing, talent management, compensation and benefits, learning and development, employee relations as well as other ad-hoc issues. In particular, you will partner with the business regarding competency development and recommend development curriculum for key job roles.

You are HR qualified and have worked a minimum of 5 years in a progressive multinational (Oil & Gas industry preferred).

You possess great communication skills both verbal and written. You are comfortable with presentation in front of management team. You are hands on, yet have the capacity to think at a very broad level. You are a strong team player and have a strong ‘can-do’ mindset.

To apply, please submit your resume to Finian Toh at ft@kerryconsulting.com, quoting the job title and reference number FT6999\HRM, or call (65) 63338530 for more details.

You will be responsible for designing and organizing a range of programmes in organizational development. You will play a proactive role to work closely with the business units to identify staff learning and development needs, and developing strategic initiatives for continuous improvement.

We are looking for individuals with strong training background. You possess strong experience in innovation and L&D including standup delivery. You have good people skills and the ability to connect well with people from all levels. You have a keen interest in curriculum design and programme. You must also possess strong analytical and interpersonal skills and organizational ability.

To apply, please submit your resume to Finian Toh at finian@kerryconsulting.com, quoting the job title and reference number FT6052\HRM, or call (65) 63338530 for more details.

Reporting to the HR Director, you will work closely with HR Business partners in providing operational support to the HR team. You will provide advice and guidance on a range of HR issues ensuring they are in compliance with local laws, regulations and practices.

Operational aspects would include working with recruitment partners, coordinating interview processes with candidates and hiring managers, processing Employment Pass/Dependent Pass applications, etc. You are also required to assist with training, payroll and benefits administration.

Degree qualified, you have at least 4 years of relevant experience working in a global bank or asset management firm. You are a self-starter and has great attention to detail. You possess good communication skills and will thrive in a fast paced environment.

To apply, please submit your resume to Finian Toh at finian@kerryconsulting.com, quoting the job title and reference number FT6987\HRM, or call (65) 63338530 for more details.

Business Registration No: 200307397W I Licence No: 03C4828

Multi-award winning recruitment firm with specialist practices in: Banking, Finance - Commerce, Engineering, Human Resources, Legal, Sales & Marketing, and Technology.

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Human resources professionals speak to tHe experts regional Hr manager roll out regional programs & projects

Hr Business partner key Hr lead to spearhead initiatives in apac

A new and unique opportunity exists within a global brand and market leader, for a Senior HR professional to look after a number of operational aspects and projects within the HR function. Reporting to the Asia Pacific HR Vice President, this newly created role will focus on Singapore and South East Asia, focusing on KPI reporting, dealing with HR policies, guidelines and frameworks, and managing HR projects and programs throughout the region.

A renowned IT firm with regional presence in APAC needs a Regional HR Business Partner to support its expanding businesses.

Reporting to the HR Director, you will plan, implement and monitor HR initiatives and solutions in alignment with business goals and objectives, as well as oversee all aspects of HR generalist work. With more than six years of relevant HR business partnering experience, you will be independent and people oriented to provide insight and solutions to department heads on a professional level.

senior Hr Business partner advise & translate strategic Hr objectives A global brand and Employer of Choice, this multinational organisation within the FMCG/consumer industry has an exciting role for a Senior HR Business Partner. This is an outstanding opportunity to join the HR leadership team in a key position, working closely with the business, translating their strategic objectives into specific HR programs. You will have relevant qualifications with at least ten years of HR experience, preferably in a large MNC and within a consumer manufacturing environment.

compensation & Benefits consultant implement best practice for mnc clients This international HR consultancy is a growing business that needs an experienced HR professional with a passion for compensation and benefits. You must bring with you at least three years relevant experience using the data and methodologies of the major HR consultancies. Prior involvement in job evaluations and grading exercises is an advantage. In return you will gain exposure to HR projects for MNC and SME clients across a broad range of industries.

please contact ash russell, mamta shukla, chris lui or tamara sigerhall at hr.singapore@hays.com.sg or +65 6303 0721.

hays.com.sg

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PayrollServe ®

Globally Connected

A Stone Forest Company

International

PAYDAY! HRMS

*

SSAyEpe 1II6) (T Certified

PayDay! HR Management Solution (HRMS) is a web-based application designed to allow you to update employees' details and manage payroll, leave and expense claims from anywhere, anytime.

The standard Human Resource Management modules are: • Payroll Module • Leave Module • Expense Claims Module • Human Resource Information System (HRIS) Module • Employee Self-Service (ESS) Module

Reports

Payroll

The payroll, leave and claims management modules can each be adopted as a stand-alone system or partially/fully integrated with the other modules.

Cost Centre

Benefits

ESS

Leave

HRMS

Expense Claims

Import Export

HRIS

Seamless Integration Alerts

Scalable Access Anytime, Anywhere Employee Self-Service (ESS)

* An SSAE 16 Certified status conferred on a service organisation is a testimony that the service provider has adequate controls and safeguards in place to host and process the data of its clients.

Learn More

www.PayrollServe.com.sg Or call us at +65 6336 0600

HELPING YOU GROW A STRONG PEOPLE TREE WITH OUR INTEGRATED HUMAN CAPITAL CONSULTING SERVICES

LEADERSHIP &

TRANSFORMATION

CONSULTING

Formerly Steve Morris Associates

Leadership & Organisational Development

Talent Management

Compensation & Benefits

Leadership Profiling & Development Tools Executive & Team Coaching Culture Transformation Programme Design Workplace Engagement Vision-Mission-Values Development Mentoring Skills Group Facilitation Motivational Workshops Strategic Planning & Corporate Retreats

Strategic Succession Planning Talent Management Framework Competency Framework Performance Appraisal System Selection & Recruitment System Career Structure & Pathways Strategic Manpower Planning On Boarding Framework Training & Development + Skills Matrix Human Capital Audit

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