People Matters: Skills for the future - July 2019

VOL X / ISSUE 7 / JUly 2019

BIG INTERVIEW Aman Nath

Co-founder and Chairman of the Neemrana Hotels

Special Story

Tackling the continuous learning challenge

Skilling scenario in the age of digital and automation

TAC 2019

Acing new-age talent acquisition and recruitment

Global Skilling

The skilling challenge and how other countries are dealing with it

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Preparing tomorrow’s workforce

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he World Economic Forum predicts that by 2022, no less than 54% of all employees will require significant re- and upskilling. It states that soon we will only be as good as the skills we possess. And on similar lines, the International Labour Organization has stated that today’s skills will not match the jobs of tomorrow and newly acquired skills may quickly become obsolete! We are living in a world where the way we work and the skills that are required are undergoing dramatic transformations on a regular basis. While on one side, we have the looming threat of automation and AI taking over certain jobs, on the other side, there will be jobs that will emerge in the future which will require skills that we do not even know of today.

So, where do we stand when it comes to being prepared for the future of work? What are the skills that will be needed and what are the ones that will hold no relevance in the future? As technology evolves further, the skills shortage will only get more acute.

It is high time for organizations and talent leaders to start looking at the bigger picture, identify and understand the skills that are needed for the future and start preparing the workforce for this big shift. The cover story in this issue attempts to decipher the huge

| JULY 2019

shifts taking place in the skilling space, and answer questions in front of organizations and talent leaders trying to imbibe a culture of continuous learning in their workforce and prepare them for the future.

For the Big Interview this time, we have Aman Nath, Co-founder and Chairman of the Neemrana Hotels chain, the pioneer of the heritage hotels movement in India, who shares how seeing good in his people has helped him nurture a committed and loyal workforce.

We also have an interview with Kevin Kruse, Founder & CEO, LEADx, where he talks about unlocking the secret to helping managers become better leaders.

The rapid pace of changing skills is daunting. Businesses need to track and leverage the ‘rising skills’ in order to transform. A recent report by LinkedIn, “Future of Skills 2019”, highlights how knowing what skills are in demand and how traditional roles are evolving, will help organizations prepare for and navigate the talent crunch. In this issue, you can read a detailed analysis on the key findings of this report. If businesses need to grow and prosper, they need to figure out how to enable their talent to learn at the speed of business. This issue also carries a special story on how leading companies like Accenture, IBM, Ingersoll Rand, Deutsche India and TATA Communications are solving the need of continuous learning.

It is the skills and people that drive world economies towards a better tomorrow. Investing in continuous learning is not something restricted to the agenda of only organizations, it is relevant for nations at the macro level. As the new government takes charge in its second term, we take a look at how, in order to create more jobs, an effective employment ecosystem must be built on firm foundations of skill development to do high-paid, high-skilled jobs of the future. In another story, we take a look at a few policies and programs introduced by countries like Norway, Finland, Hong Kong, Japan, and Switzerland that have been recognized by many reports on human capital for their continuous efforts towards preparing their human capital for the future of work.

As we inch closer to Asia’s largest HR and Work tech conference, People Matters Tech HR 2019, scheduled for the 1st and 2nd of August at The Leela Ambience, Gurugram and amplify our efforts to make it a success, we invite you to be a part of our journey in making HR mission critical to business.

As always, we would be happy to hear your views, comments and suggestions regarding our stories.

Happy Reading!

Esther Martinez Hernandez Editor-in-Chief follow

M > @Ester_Matters F > estermartinez > ester.martinez@peoplematters.in

THE COVER STORY (BEHIND THE SCENE)

Face off.

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Skilling scenario in the age of digital and automation

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contents 42

J U L Y 20 19 volu m e x issue 7

Preparing the next generation for their future, not our past

Andreas Schleicher, Director for Education and Skills, and Special Advisor on Education Policy to the Secretary-General at the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) in Paris

45

Creating women leaders for tomorrow

Mohammad Naciri, Regional Director, Asia and the Pacific, UN Women

cover story

40 Are we ready for the future?

46

It is time to reinvent learning

Peter Cheese, Chief Executive of the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development

48

Demand for human skills side will stay

Indranil Roy, Executive Director in the Human Capital practice at

Deloitte Consulting

By Mastufa Ahmed 50

New skills for the future generations at work Fons Trompenaars, A Dutch-French organizational theorist,

C O N TE N TS

management consultant, and author in the field of cross-cultural communication, who developed the 7 Dimension of Culture model for looking at national culture differences.

54

Reinventing jobs for the future

Toby Fowlston, Managing Director of Robert Walters' offices in

Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia and Philippines 56

Building India as a Talent Hub Abhijit Bhaduri, An advisor on talent management to organizations and a top influencer on social media

58

Self-skilling for managers

Clinton Wingrove, Director, Principal Consultant, and HR Anarchist

at www.ClintonHR.com

Editor-in-Chief

Assistant Manager, Content

Senior Editor

Senior Associates, Content

Esther Martinez Hernandez Yasmin Taj

Associate Editor, Print & Online

Mastufa Ahmed

Manager, Content

Jerry Moses

Drishti Pant Neelanjana Mazumdar

Abid Hasan

Shweta Modgil

Digital Head

Printed and Published by

Marta Martinez Rubi Taj rubi.taj@peoplematters.in +91 (124) 4148102

Manav Seth Vallari Gupte

| JULY 2019

Manager, SUBSCRIPTION

Shinto Kallattu

General Manager, Sales

Features Writers

Saloni Gulati saloni.gulati@peoplematters.in +91 (124) 4148102 Neha Yadav subscribe@peoplematters.in +91 (124) 4148101

Photography

Senior Features Writer

Manager, Sales

Design & Production

Prakash Shahi

Associate Editor

6

Anushree Sharma

Mahesh Kumar on behalf of People Matters Media Pvt. Ltd. Owned by

People Matters Media Pvt. Ltd. Published at

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Note to the readers The views expressed in articles are those of the authors and do not reflect the views of People Matters.

Although all efforts have been made to ensure the accuracy of the content, neither the editors nor the publisher can take responsibility for consequences arising from errors

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Reproduction in any manner without prior permission from the publisher is prohibited.

Printed at Polykam Offset C-138, Phase - I Naraina Industrial Area New Delhi - 110028 Published at 503-505, 5th Floor Millennium Plaza, Tower A Sector 27, Gurgaon-122009

This issue of People matters contains 104 pages including cover

contents 28

the big Interview

Always see the good in people...

The 1440 mantra of time management:

Aman Nath, Co-founder and Chairman of the Neemrana Hotels

Kevin Kruse, NYT Bestseller

By Yasmin Taj & Anushree Sharma

By Vallari Gupte

Kevin Kruse, Founder & CEO, LEADx

18 Ne w s F e a t u r e

Taking a stock of the future of work

TAC 2019

By Dhruv Mukerjee

72

20 Rise of the social

enterprise and the future of work

By Manav Seth

22 The future is all about

skills driving talent

By Anushree Sharma

C O N TE N TS

26 Well-being in the

workplace is pivotal for success: Report

By Manav Seth

32 Ne w - a g e Hi r i n g

From gig to big in real India: Navigating the hiring challenges

By Vallari Gupte 34 F u t u r e of w o r k

Managing the paradox of the alternative workforce

By Anand Shankar, Partner with Deloitte India and leader of the firm’s HR Transformation practice

36 Co n n e c t e d w o r k p l a c es

Leading virtual teams effectively

By Subramanian Kalpathi, Senior Director & leads the KNOLSKAPE Insights Centre 60 T h e r o a d less t r a velle d

Dealing with misdemeanor at work

By Visty Banaji, Founder and CEO of Banner Global Consulting (BGC)

64 S p e c i a l S t o r y

Tackling the continuous learning challenge

By People Matters Editorial 8

| JULY 2019

38

Interview

79 I n t e r vie w

Making HR future-proof, the AIHR way

Erik van Vulpen, AIHR Co-founder

By Shweta Modgil 80 F u t u r e of HR

Acing new-age talent acquisition and recruitment

By Manav Seth

74 Best in Campus Recruitment Infosys Limited

75 Best in Candidate Experience ANZ

76 Best in Diversity and Inclusion PNB Metlife

77 Best in Employer Branding

Cybage Software 78 Best in Recruitment Technology

& Analytics

Bajaj Allianz General Insurance Company Limited

68 HR fu n c t io n When and why do entrepreneurs need to invest in the HR function?

By Gautam Nabar, Deputy General Manager - Human Resources at Raymond Limited

regulars

04 From the Editor’s Desk 10 Letters of the month 12 Quick Reads 98 Knowledge + Networking 100 Blogosphere

Mahindra Vision for HR in 2025

By People Matters Editorial 82 Resilie n c e

Racing with resilience

By Dr. Swatee Sarangi, An industry thought leader and practitioner in strategic workforce and capability development. As Head Capability Development, she drives the robust seven-step leadership pipeline at Larsen & Toubro 84 Glo b a l S k illi n g

The skilling challenge and how other countries are dealing with it

By Drishti Pant

88 P r a c t i c a l I n si g h t s

Data Protection, GDPR and the India Imperative

By Dr. A. K. Chawla, A data privacy, HR and management consulting professional.

He is currently engaged in a large transformational program of TCS to ensure alignment & compliance with GDPR

92 C a se S t u d y

Aditya Birla Group’s 5th Global HR Summit at Singapore

By Anushree Sharma Featured In this issue Aman Nath Erik van Vulpen Indranil Roy Kevin Kruse

Mohammad Naciri Peter Cheese Toby Fowlston

CONTRIBUTORS to this issue Abhijit Bhaduri Anand Shankar Andreas Schleicher Clinton Wingrove Dr. A. K. Chawla Dr. Swatee Sarangi

Fons Trompenaars Gautam Nabar Rituparna Chakraborty Subramanian Kalpathi Visty Banaji

Letters of the month The Future of HR - Tomorrow Begins The cover story on the future of HR made for a stimulating reading. It was fascinating to know the perspectives of leaders and experts on how HR should approach ‘human transformation’ and create a space of its own in the organization. In many ways, the future of HR is already here because the framework we devise today will set the tone for the future of work. However, Clinton Wingrove’s observation that despite being a capable leader in the development of organizational strategy, the perception of HR hasn’t changed as much as it needs to be, is also rather apt. Abhijit Bhadhuri’s idea of a boundaryless talent pool was also really interesting to learn about. Although I was a skeptic myself, after reading Jacob Morgan’s Q&A, I am compelled to agree with the idea that the more significant challenge is not machines replacing humans, but about learning new skills to work alongside machines in time.

- Somyadeep Guha

CEOs want HR to be the change agents Low Peck Kem’s inspiring journey should be a must-read for everyone! Her impressive resume and work in diverse sectors and the fact that she has been leading human capital management and leadership development for an entire country elicits genuine admiration. It is really interesting to learn how different countries are approaching skill building, automation and talent management. I am pleasantly surprised to

know about the multiplicity of comprehensive programs and policies that exist at developing new age skills in Singapore.

I am also really glad that HR has been identified as one of the ‘Industry Transformation Sectors’ to support the Smart Nation project in Singapore as it sets a precedent for other governments to follow suit and leverage the potential of HR in building a future-ready workforce. Thanks to People Matters for introducing us to such a dynamic and visionary leader.

- Vaibhav Kaul

Rapid-Fire with Leena Nair

The rapid-fire with Leena Nair was such a candid look into the mind of one of India’s prominent business leaders.

I really like the new format as it gives bite-sized information quickly. I agree with her that AI will help us become better and that there are certain HR competencies that no machine can replace. Moreover, it is high time for organizations to start changing their perception about HR simply being a support function as opposed to being an equal business partner. Furthermore, her advice on being humble, asking questions to others, embracing failure and creating learning loops is extremely pertinent in today’s world. Looking forward to reading such interesting Q&As with other leading names in the future and also to Leena’s upcoming book!

- Sandhya Barve 10

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JUNE 2019 issue

How much work is too much work?

Traditional workforce management policies that put a premium on overtime have no place in today’s day and age. Despite the advances made by technology in helping us work better, it is disheartening to see employers perpetuating extreme cultures of overwork in their workplaces. The practice of regularly working extended hours is more prevalent in Asian countries, as compared to the Western countries, which have more stringent labor protection laws and employee policies in place. In addition to being an activist-led movement, 996.ICU is a cry of help from a disengaged and exhausted workforce that demands a better work-life balance. The increasing demand for a four-day work week will eventually usher in a new paradigm of work in the West and eventually spread to the rest of the world. Therefore, I agree that currently, India is far from adopting a fourday workweek as even a five-day workweek is yet to become a norm.

- Vikas Nangia

Interact with People Matters

Employees to dictate the future of work Chris McCarthy’s interview explored extremely relevant and insightful issues in today’s skilling and learning landscape. His observations regarding leadership styles, transitions and future of work are earnest and sincere. There is no denying that the future of learning and skill building has to be centered around the learner and sooner or later, HR needs to come on-board with the idea as well. Similarly, employees will increasingly dictate new models of working as well and transform the very nature of work. Organizations like Degreed will be vital to these transformations and will help individuals adopt a lifelong system of learning. Lastly, I am really happy that global leaders are recognizing the talent and skills of the Indian workforce and are willing to bet big on Asia for expansion.

People Matters values your feedback.

Write to us with your suggestions and ideas at editorial@peoplematters.in

The journey of becoming an agile workplace: SIAM Commercial Bank With the concept of ‘agile workplace’ gaining currency and organizations still figuring out how to usher it in, it was extremely informative to read Worawat Suvagondha’s interview and learn about how SIAM Commercial Bank has successfully transformed its workplace and work processes.

I think it was extremely wise to involve the senior management in the initial stage of the transformation as it sets the tone for the entire workforce of the company.

If the CEO of the bank is committed to promoting innovation, customer-centricity and risk-taking, I am sure that employees would feel more responsible and empowered to walk the extra mile. Additionally, I also agree that creating a culture of learning, embracing digital technology and collaboration goes hand-in-hand with becoming future-ready.

- Raghav Gupta

Dr. Pavan Soni’s article on how most corporate learning programs are designed around tools and skills and fail to focus on changing the mindset of the learner will find many takers, including myself, in the corporate world. Theoretical models of learning that aim to simply transfer skills will continue to deliver underwhelming results as there is a lack of options to apply the newly-learned information and skills in such models. As suggested by Dr. Soni, the entire approach needs to change from viewing learning as a one-time classroom intervention to a holistic engagement exercise that takes into account pre- and post-learning activities as well. I really like the fact that he has listed practical and actionable strategies in both these phases to make the design of the learning program more collaborative and effective in nature.

- Keertna Saluja

PeopleStrong @peoplestrong Buzzwords are just opportunities to ignite your mind and to learn new things”, says @Ester_Matters, Co-Founder of @People Matters2 at AltifyHR 2019. In #Post5 of #BuzzWordsInHRTech series, find out her favorite buzzword. #ThrowbackThursday #hrtech youtu.be/noSOYITsT8E Isha Leadership Academy @IshaLeadership @SadhguruJV says, "Human is not a resource." What does the statement imply and what can businesses learn from it? Have a sneak peek into #HumanIsNOTaResource 2019 held at Isha Yoga Center, June 7-9. @PeopleMatters2 Xpheno @Xpheno_ @GoogleIndia has topped the list of the most ideal #employers for India’s business and commerce, engineering and IT, and MBA students, in Universum’s Top 100 #IdealEmployer Rankings writes @drishtipant @PeopleMatters2 #PeopleEffectChange Gautam Ghosh @GautamGhosh And in a couple of months the #HR conference circuit in #India starts. @SHRMindia annual conference, @PeopleMatters2 #techhrin and @NHRDN annual conference coming up

- Sparsh Mishra

Fixing corporate learning programs

Adil Nargolwala @adilnargolwala Great discussion on wellness at the @PeopleMatters2 event...talked about our #Wnssports initiative and how it is making our folks take up spirt to be fit @wnsholdings @mohitwason3 @VilasUllal #fitness #WorkLifeBalance #Corporate #HR #wellness

Building a culture of responsible autonomy To retain equal stakes at the table and solidify its role as an equal business partner, HR will have to deliver valuable and innovative results. These deliverables have been excellently summarized by Shanthi Sundar, as they cover a wide range of roles and responsibilities that HR must undertake to develop responsible employee autonomy. As we gradually shift towards a system wherein employee flexibility and convenience is of paramount importance, we have to create a culture of ownership that is clear in its goals, simple to understand and easily measurable. Thus, HR needs to ensure that autonomy at the workplace is accompanied by ownership and accountability, and a robust system of checks and balances is maintained in the new workplace framework.

- Mayank Dahiya

NASSCOM @nasscom "A multi-stakeholder coalition is our best bet to make India a global hub for digital talent"- Amit Aggarwal, CEO-IT/ITES Sector Skill Council, writes about #Reskilling being the responsibility of the Govt., industry & academia: bit.ly/2WumMBv @PeopleMatters2 @NasscomFS follow

M > @PeopleMatters2

{WRITE TO US NOW BY SCANNING THIS CODE} JULY 2019 |

11

Employer Branding

L&D

45% Indian employees leave organizations because of lack of L&D opportunities According to the LinkedIn study that surveyed 4,136 employees and 844 L&D professionals across Australia, India, Japan, and Singapore, 82 percent Indian professionals feel that the skills needed to succeed are changing rapidly. The report also found that 45 percent Indian employees left organizations because of lack of L&D opportunities.

q u i c k

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Hiring

Manufacturing, engineering and infrastructure sector to add 58,200 new jobs in the first half of FY’20: Report

Composite staffing firm, TeamLease Services has launched its biannual ‘Employment Outlook Report’ for the April-September, 2019-20 HY. According to the report, the Manufacturing, Engineering and Infrastructure sector together will witness a net addition of 58,200 new jobs in the current six months. The study states that these industries will witness a 2% increase in net employment outlook between April-September, 2019-20. As per the findings of the report, Pune with 9,150 new jobs tops the list and Mumbai with 8,940 new jobs stands second in the list of cities with the maximum number of opportunities for this sector. This is closely followed by Bangalore which will witness the addition of 8,015 new jobs in the same period. As per the study, exponential growth is due to the increase in investments and production seen in the sector.

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| JULY 2019

Funding

HCM Deck raises $3.2 million HCM Deck, an employee development platform has received a funding of $3.2 million in a funding round led by mAccelerator, a VC fund of Poland’s mBank.

The HCM Deck platform helps organizations to achieve, automate, and evaluate employee development in three significant areas — communication, feedback and learning. It consists of several modules, including the knowledge base, training courses, performance reviews, and so on.

“Current HR enterprise software still misses a lot in terms of flexibility, scalability, and user experience,” said the startup’s founder and CEO Simon Janicki. “HCM Deck not only solves the pains of modern L&D department while offering a great experience for end-users, but it also helps organizations automate processes, deliver growth and greater productivity.”

Top 10 most attractive employer brands in India for 2019 Amazon India gets chosen as India’s most ‘attractive employer brand’, as per the findings of Randstad Employer Brand Research 2019 (REBR). The company scored high on financial health, utilization of latest technologies and a strong reputation. Other companies like Microsoft India and Sony India, were second and third on the list, respectively. In terms of other work trends, salary and employee benefits continue to be the top drivers for candidates while choosing an employer, followed by work-life balance and job security.

Further, in line with the REBR philosophy, Google India had been inducted into the Hall of Fame category last year, for winning the coveted title for three consecutive years.

According to the report, Amazon, Microsoft, Sony, Mercedes-Benz, IBM, Larsen & Toubro, Nestle, Infosys, Samsung, and Dell are the top ten most attractive employers in India.

Gig Economy

Amazon offers part-time delivery jobs in India E-commerce giant Amazon India, has launched Amazon Flex--a program designed to hire part-time workers to expand its delivery reach across the country. Those who are interested in delivering packages and earning at the same time can sign up with Amazon Flex, create a customized schedule and earn between Rs. 120-140 an hour, according to Amazon.

At present, Amazon Flex is in Mumbai, Bengaluru, and Delhi. Plans are underway for launching it in other cities later on in 2019.

Jobs

Two in five employees may change jobs in 2019: Report

Leadership

Randstad released the findings of its annual Employer Brand Research study in Singapore, which explores the factors that influence and motivate employees and job seekers search for a new career oppor-

Top ten CEOs around the globe

Job.com & JazzHR collaborate to speed up time to hire with AI The rewards-based, job-matching platform, Job.com has announced a new strategic partnership with JazzHR, a recruiting solution for small businesses.

Job.com uses innovative technology to help organizations get the most relevant candidate applications, and it also keeps active job seekers alert about new top opportunities.

In the presence of an increasingly tight labor market, JazzHR customers will now be able to leverage these tools to competitively fill unique or challenging positions.

Together, Job.com and JazzHR aim to streamline the entire sourcing process, allowing small businesses to reach more qualified candidates, faster.

Facebook to employ about 3,000 employees in London by the end of 2019 The social media giant has announced that it will create 500 new tech jobs in London by the end of 2019 and employ more than 3,000 people in the capital by the end of the year across three sites.

Out of the 500 new tech jobs, 100 will be roles in artificial intelligence, with many working on systems to detect and remove malicious content, fake accounts and harmful behavior. “These hundreds of new jobs demonstrate not only our commitment to the UK but also our determination to proactively detect and remove malicious content,” shared Nicola Mendelsohn, Facebook’s Vice President for Europe, Middle East and Africa.

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WorkTech

Hiring

q u i c k

Patrick Gelsinger, the Chief Executive Officer of Silicon Valley software maker VMware Inc., has been ranked as the best CEO in America, according to employment website Glassdoor.

The Indian-origin CEOs—Adobe's Shantanu Narayen and Microsoft's Satya Nadella bagged the fifth and sixth spots in the list gaining an employee approval rating of 98 percent each.

Surprisingly, Mark Zuckerberg CEO of Facebook and Apple’s CEO Tim Cook couldn’t even make it to the top 50 in the list. Zuckerberg and Cook were ranked 55 and 69 respectively. However, Zuckerberg and Cook are the only two CEOs to make the list all seven years Glassdoor has administered the survey.

tunity. Out of 39 percent of respondents who plan to change employers this year, 40 percent cited 'limited career path' as the key reason.

The 2019 Employer Brand Research found that experienced professionals have a more relaxed attitude towards work formalities. Thirty-eight (38) percent of respondents from Generation X (ages 35 to 54) seek companies that can offer them with flexible work arrangements. In contrast, 69 percent of millennials (ages 25 to 34) said that they do not mind working in the office.

One in three millennials (33 percent) would apply for jobs in companies that provide robust training programs to ensure continuous career and skills development.

Forty-two percent of Generation Z candidates looks for interesting jobs that they can feel excited about.

SkillUp

AI tech’s impact on project professionals Artificial Intelligence has penetrated several sectors in a way that has radically transformed the way people will interact with technology in their workplace. According to the 2019 Pulse of the Profession In-Depth Report: AI Innovators: Cracking the Code on Project Performance, about 81 percent of those surveyed said their organization was being majorly impacted by AI technologies, 37 percent said adopting AI remained a top priority for their companies, and project professionals, in particular, said they expected the usage of AI to rise from 23 to 37 percent in the next three years.

The major three AI technologies that are generating waves across various organizations include knowledge-based systems, machine learning, and decision management.

JULY 2019 |

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As HR roles and job descriptions evolve and the workplace transforms completely, leaders shouldembrace change. Here’s what companies need to know to retain top HR professionals and preparecurrent HR teams for the future.

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Use data to predict potential resignations before they impact the business.

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“There’s no such thing as a pure path to the future. We get to create that by decisions we make now” - Philip Otley Founder, Growth Accelerator

14

| JULY 2019

If we don’t welcome and nurture the best talent within our region, then we must not be surprised when those people leave the country for the markets that will.

- Anthony Thompson Regional Managing Director, Michael Page

)8785( 3522) <285 7($06 Help your team smoothen the journey to the future workplace by focusing on the following: • Skills transition rather than job losses • Avoid dramatic team cuts • Allow for flexibility in the workplace

Real Time Compliance Management Avoid non-compliances taking place than a post mortem after the damage is done.

Organizations have to adhere to many compliances under Labour Law , Factories act & similar laws. By implementing Labourworks you not only send advance Email/SMS notice about a possible non-compliance likely to happen & give an opportunity to the contractor to take corrective actions. But if the corrective action is not taken in time then you can simply block the entry of the worker & avoid non-compliances from taking place in a real time mode.

Some of the compliances that can be implemented in real time mode are

Working without a weekly off Maximum work hours exceeded in a week Contractor Labour License expired Labour License Capacity exceeded Medical Check up not done Induction training not completed Work Order expired Work Order Capacity exceeded Female worker entry during night shift Debarred worker entry

There are many more compliances which can be handled in an offline mode as well.

Labourworks™ is an Enterprise Contract Labour Management System which helps you streamline various processes using SPC Methodology™ . SPC Methodology™ are industry best practices in Security , Productivity & Compliances. Organizations have also observed up to 10%* cost reduction on Contractor billing by implementing SPC Methodology™. There are more than 350 installations of Labourworks™.

Please call on us today for a live demonstration...

SAP is a registered trademark of SAP AG

020 25281608 / 9326727467 labourworks@scrum-system.com www.scrum-system.com

newsmaker of the month

Paving the way for inclusive parental leaves How some forward-looking organizations like Zomato are bringing in positive change with their new parental policies that are inclusive and put male employees on the same pedestal as their women employees

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Deepinder Goyal, Founder, Zomato

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“There won’t be even an iota of difference in the parental leave policy for men and women at Zomato going forward.”

While there is no provision on paternity leave in Indian labour law for private sector workers, civil servants (Central Government) however are entitled to paternity leave. But even that is restricted to only 15 days.

Zomato with its new parental policy has hence paved a new path by introducing an inclusive leave policy.

The India-based online food delivery firm is not the only one revolutionizing the way private companies look at parental leaves. There are other brands who have come up with more inclusive policies as well, for instance, Bloomberg LP and Novartis.

Starting from July 2019, Novartis will start a phased out plan for its new global parental leave policy and will offer equal parental leave to all parents--through birth, surrogacy, or adoption, regardless of gender.

Bloomberg's parental policy, on the other hand, came into effect in May this year and grants primary caregivers – male or female – 24 weeks of fully paid parental leave, plus 10 transition days (one day off per week for 10 consecutive weeks) immediately following an employee’s return to work.

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n 3rd June 2019, Deepinder Goyal, Founder, Zomato in a blog announced 26 weeks paid leave for not only their women employees but male employees as well. What’s even more interesting is that this policy also applies to non birthing parents, and in cases of surrogacy, adoption, and same-sex partners.

The new parental policy extends to women across all the 13 countries.

In addition to the leaves, the new parents will also be given an endowment of $1000, per child.

These policy changes will be applicable to even those employees at Zomato (referred to as Zomans) who have had a child within the last 6 months from the day the policy was announced.

“There won’t be even an iota of difference in parental leave policy for men and women at Zomato going forward,” wrote Goyal in his blog.

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Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation appoints new India Country Director The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation appointed M Hari Menon as the Country Director of its India office. Menon will oversee the foundation's priorities in India to improve conditions of family health, sanitation, digital financial inclusion, agriculture, and gender equality.

MullenLowe Lintas Group appoints Group Chief Strategy Officer Subbu, Subramanyeswar’s elevation comes on the back of his successful stint as Chief Strategy Officer of Lowe Lintas. Under his leadership, the planning function at Lowe Lintas has metamorphosed and the resulting end-product has been instrumental in helping clients achieve their objectives.

The Hindu appoints new CEO LV Navaneeth has been appointed as the new Chief Executive Officer of The Hindu. He takes over from CEO and Managing Director, Rajiv C. Lochan. Navaneeth served this organization between 1998 and 2006 in a senior position in advertising and marketing.

Citibank Singapore names its new CEO Citibank Singapore has named Brendan Carney as the CEO of Citibank Singapore, and ASEAN cluster head of its global consumer banking division. Brendan replaces former Citibank Singapore CEO, Han Kwee Juan, who has moved to DBS as group head of strategy and planning.

EdCast appoints Head Partnerships and Alliances for APAC, Middle East and Africa E-learning company EdCast has roped former partner of Grant Thornton, Mayank Pande as Head Partnerships and Alliances, Asia Pacific, Middle East, and Africa to drive the overarching partnership vision forward for EdCast in the region, and be the external voice of partnerships for the business.

Ex-Mercer leader joins Apollo Tyres Former Mercer leader joins Apollo Tyres as Group Head Corporate HR. Ruchika Pal who left Mercer last year in March has now joined Apollo Tyres. In her last role, she was India Practice Leader, Global Mobility and TRS Product and Bangladesh IS Leader.

HCL America appoints Global HR Lead for Digital and Analytics Practice Shaily Rampal who was working with HCL India as Global Lead - Performance & Career COE, Enterprise HR has moved to a global role in HCL America. After working with HCL India for more than thirteen years, she has been elevated as Global HR Lead- Digital & Analytics Practice, HCL America.

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Ujjivan Small Finance Bank names its new MD & CEO Ujjivan Small Finance Bank has appointed Nitin Chugh as its next MD and CEO. The new appointment comes after the end of an extensive search undertaken by the board as a part of the succession planning process as the bank’s current MD and CEO, Samit Ghosh retires on November 30, 2019.

R STAHL appoints new Managing Director Thomas Wittek will be responsible for leading several strategic growth initiatives in India and the APAC region. He will directly report to Dr. Mathias Hallmann, CEO of R. STAHL AG. Thomas Wittek has held several leadership roles for more than 20 years.

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Ravi Rao named CEO GroupM MENA as Filip Jabbour steps down GroupM, WPP’s media investment group, named Ravi Rao as CEO at GroupM MENA (Middle East North Africa). Previously, CEO at Mindshare MENA, Rao has 30 years’ of market experience and 11 years within the GroupM network. He replaces Filip Jabbour.

Vertiv names Hitesh Prajapati as Country Manager for Singapore The provider of critical infrastructure technologies Vertiv has named Hitesh Prajapati as the new country manager for Singapore. Hitesh’s appointment comes at a time when Singapore is witnessing unprecedented growth in data center and colocation industries, fuelled by the rapid pace of digital technology.

Aditya Birla Group’s Head HR Lifestyle Business joins SMG as Head Group HR HR veteran Paras Kaushik has been appointed as Head of Group Human Resources by Samvardhan Motherson Group. In his new role, he would be closely working with Vice-Chairman Laksh Vaaman Sehgal on the Group HR Agenda.

ABP News Network appoints new HR Head ABP News Network has appointed Kavita Dasan as its new HR Head. Prior to ABP, Dasan was working with DHFL as Vice-President, Human Resources. At DHFL, Dasan was responsible for the design, delivery, and execution of core HR programs and practices for workforce base of 10,000 plus spread across the country.

Lupin Pharmaceuticals appoints Global Head for Talent Management Lupin Pharmaceuticals has named ex-Cipla executive Preeti Bose as the global head of talent management and leadership development. Prior to this, Preeti was working in another pharma company Cipla, as the global head of their leadership academy.

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Taking a stock of the future of work Both technological and economic forces are pushing companies to rapidly adapt to newer ways of engaging with their ecosystem. But such shifts come with their own set of changes, and challenges, to modern day workspaces

By Dhruv Mukerjee

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Much of the expected labor shifts have already begun reshaping skill set preferences and talent demands, making many people who don’t possess the right skills, completely obsolete in contributing towards the growth of the company

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key strategy for businesses over the last few decades has been to be able to accurately predict the future and take proactive steps in accordance with incoming changes. This ‘staying ahead of the curve’ as it was, has had a slow process evolution and acceptance within the larger business community. And not without its own reasons. Our understanding of how one economic parameter impacts the other in today's globalized world has far improved and technology today perhaps has a strong claim to be more disruptive today than any time in the past few decades.

Business processes today are rapidly changing, many reactively to keep up with the ebb of time. Traditional parameters of exchange and interaction between the business and its stakeholders have rapidly evolved and the future of work remains no exception to this. While developed economies have already begun facing mass 18

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restructuring in how jobs are accessed, developing countries like India, with their own ever-growing working population stands at the cusp of pivotal changes within its labor markets. Much of such expected labor shifts have already begun reshaping skill set preferences and talent demands, making many people who don’t possess the right skills, completely obsolete in contributing towards the growth of the company.

This has, in turn, spurred the need for reskilling programs, both undertaken by the company or through public means. For companies, it means focusing on learning and training paradigms of not just new recruits but also for those who have been ‘in this line of business’ for decades. And the trend is only projected to rise in the coming years.

Forces driving these changes During the 1930s, economists came up with a transaction cost theory of firm

growth1. To summarise its understanding of labor policies and expanding company, the theory put forward a simple transactional analysis to take decisions of either retrenchment or expansion. If internal cost—the cost of undertaking a specialized operation within the company— remains lower than external costs, the firm should expand and ensure such a task is performed in-house. On the flipside, if external costs go down, it becomes important for firms to outsource rather than spend more on completing the task in-house. Although a rudimentary explanation of the theory from a time quite different to the one we live in today, it helps to understand the current state of the economic change the business market is undergoing today. And, in turn, how jobs within certain fields are diminishing or evolving because of such changes.

With the increased access to technology and its open and decentralized usage, today, a number of business functions

are beginning to emerge for whom external costs become relatively cheaper than internal costs. Companies, mostly in the form of startups, are slowly but surely chipping away traditional job roles and are providing companies a cheaper and more efficient way of undertaking such roles, usually providing a disruptive techdependent solution. The major uses of automation, machine learning, and robotics today all fall under this role.

Market trends show how many core functions within a modern day company like finance or management, have had key parts automated or outsourced to be handled by a more efficient service provider. This fall in external costs, driven by growing access, and understanding of what technology can do, is projected to rise further in the coming years. With reports2 showing how globally, 64 percent of companies cite labor costs as their main concern, aspects like gig economy are on the rise.

Assessing the current impact

Where is this impact being felt?

Despite an increase in total employment, on an average, 1 in 7 individual workers will be faced with job loss as a direct result of automation3. The changing nature of jobs has been an enduring feature of past waves of technological progress and will ultimately lead to the emergence of newer work types.

These new jobs will require new and different skills. According to the Randstad Workmonitor Q2 2019 report, while a major portion of this rising demand would be for hard STEM skills and basic digital skills, there is also growing evidence for a rise in the demand for soft social skills.

Over 38 percent of businesses surveyed for the WEF Future of Jobs report have expressed that they would extend their workforce to new productivity-enhancing roles, and more than a quarter expect automation to lead to the creation of new roles in their enterprise. For companies, this would mean a greater focus on employee productivity and reskilling. It would also be important to see how effectively can private-public partnerships be fostered and education systems be brought to a level where relevant skills are imparted with a larger focus on quality. It will become important to enable access to life-long learning opportunities to support workers in their careers and to help them transition securely to new jobs.

Other changes within the labor markets are to be in how modern day workforces are deployed. As external transaction costs begin to fall, the rise of the gig economy today has meant that companies have found ways to further reduce their labor investments. It’s been projected that businesses are set to expand their use of contractors doing task-specialized work.

As per the Randstad report, many respondents have highlighted their intention to engage workers in a more flexible manner, utilizing remote staffing beyond physical offices and decentralization of operations.

The number of hours spent by humans on particular tasks is expected to go down in the next five years as machines and programs begin to do much of the heavy lifting when it comes to transactional and often routine-based activities.

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The number of hours spent by humans on particular tasks is expected to go down in the next five years as machines and programs begin to do much of the heavy lifting when it comes to transactional and often routine-based activities

which operate on completely new and often agile work conditions. According to the WEF report on the Future of Jobs, there were “four specific technological advances—ubiquitous high-speed mobile internet; artificial intelligence; widespread adoption of big data analytics; and cloud technology—that are set to dominate the 2018–2022 period as drivers positively affecting business growth”.

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The rise of tech adoption and the consequent evolution of the business ecosystem could result in many companies shorten-

ing their in-house staff and job roles evolving to take on more transformational and creative angles as many traditional roles either become obsolete or end up getting automated. Not just are current age technologies enabling a shift in job roles by significantly bringing down firms operating external costs, but are also redefining such roles in a more direct manner. Today, almost all companies are mandated to have a digital presence. Most also employ digital technologies liberally across both their internal- and external-facing functions to improve their efficacy. Other aspects such as big data analytics and cloud computing are changing how jobs operate and interact with each other.

Tech profiles like cybersecurity and the ability to work with nuanced programs like machine learning and blockchain are slowly growing in importance. Geographical proximity has no longer remained an important consideration and businesses have actively begun changing their talent priorities to attract the people with the most relevant skill sets. Even office workspaces are currently charting their own journey towards catering to companies

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Rise of the social enterprise and the future of work

The 2019 Deloitte Global Human Capital Trends report analyzes the growing clout of socially responsible enterprises and their impact on the future of work

By Manav Seth

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hat does it mean to be future-ready? What are the tangible changes that will take place in the workforce and workplace that HR needs to be ready for? What are the right questions to ask to help us reimagine the future of work?

Finding the answers to these questions is no easy task, but the recently published 2019 Deloitte Global Human Capital Trends report makes an earnest attempt to do so.

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Deloitte’s annual Global Human Capital Trends report has emerged as an authoritative source that highlights the most pertinent contemporary human capital challenges and trends. This year, surveying almost 10,000 respondents from 119 countries, the report has pointed towards the rapid growth in the role of social enterprises, their impact on the future of work and how organizations must reinvent themselves accordingly.

Rise of the social enterprise At the onset, the report announces that today’s conventional human capital challenges, like reinventing the capability to learn, improving productivity, and leadership development are intimately linked to the growing need to reinvent organizations as social enterprises with a human focus.

The report defines a social enterprise as an organization whose “mission combines

revenue growth and profit-making with the need to respect and support its environment and stakeholder network”.

The CEOs who participated in the study cited the “impact on society, including income inequality, diversity and the environment” as the top measure of success in 2019, indicating that they fully realize the urgency with which organizations need to become social enterprises. However, the report notes that although CEOs have recognized the challenge, they are yet to solve it. “That’s because leading a social enterprise is not the equivalent of practicing corporate social responsibility. Nor is it about engaging in social impact programs or defining a purpose or mission statement – though all of these are also important in their own right,” the report states. This tectonic shift in the way we work requires a significant recalibration on a broad scale, which would naturally disrupt the exist-

ing model of work, workers and employers.

This, alongside the Fourth Industrial Revolution and demographic changes, means that organizations need to reinvent themselves urgently. These changes have been broken down into ten human capital trends and how they will shape the future of the workforce, the organization and HR.

Future of the workforce

Eighty-four percent of the participants in the study rated ‘employee experience’ as an important issue, while 28 percent reported it to be urgent. Thus, employers and leaders are aware of the significance of cultivating an engaging employee experience.

However, the concept must now evolve to ‘human experience’ at work, “building on an understanding of worker aspirations to connect work back to the impact it has on not only the organization but the society as a whole.”

Furthermore, the importance of teamwork will continue to rise as teams rapidly replace hierarchies. The chal-

Organizations will look inward, and internal talent mobility will emerge as a prominent solution to the intense talent competition

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Future of the organization

will change the perception of mobility as a “natural, normal progress instead of as a major change in one’s career.” However, the report also says that such mobility opportunities must be made available at levels to work effectively and that “technology should be used to develop streamlined mobility processes for moves between functions, jobs, projects and geographies.”

Lastly, the use of cloud computing in HR technology will help in exploring new platforms, and advancing automation and AI-based tools to complement the core systems, while supporting innovation, raising employee productivity and lowering costs.

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The report suggests that the ‘alternative’ gig economy has now become mainstream and the shrinking talent supply has forced leading organizations to strategically engage with all types of workers. Organizations must be more open and flexible to these new work arrangements and use them strategically. Next, in order to benefit from the increasing use of intelligent technology, organizations will realize that “virtually every job must change, and that the jobs of the future are more digital, more multidisciplinary and more data- and information-driven.” Thus, all jobs will be redesigned to emphasize on the ‘human dimension’ of work and will give rise to ‘superjobs’ - jobs that combine parts of different traditional jobs into integrated roles that leverage the significant productivity and efficiency gains that can arise when people work with technology.

With 80 percent of the survey respondents stating that leadership was an important or very important issue and an equal number saying that ’21st –century leaders’ face unique and new requirements, leadership development is an urgent and perennial priority. Thus, in order to succeed in today’s world, “leaders must take a nuanced approach to pursuing traditional business goals: an approach that takes into account the new context in which such goals must be achieved, and that draws on critical new competencies – including leading through change, embracing ambiguity and uncertainty and understanding digital, cognitive and AI-driven technologies – to get there.”

lenge, however, is that most organizations are yet to refresh leadership, job roles and rewards according to the team-based model of work. “Many leaders do not know how to operate in teams and have not yet adopted the team model of engaging with each other. Deeper in the enterprise, many organizations are still struggling to build programs and incentives that support teaming as well.,” the report reveals.

Thus, organizations need to expedite the process of adapting talent practices to keep up with the team-based model of working. Lastly, there is a clear gap between the rewards that are being offered and the rewards that employees want. Only 11 percent of the respondents agreed that their rewards system was highly aligned with the company goals, and 23 percent

admitted that they did not know what rewards their workers value.

Future of HR As the war for talent intensifies in the face of rising demand and unstable supply, organizations will have to design new strategies to “continuously access talent in varying ways: mobilizing internal resources, finding people in the alternative workforce and strategically leveraging technology to augment sourcing and boost recruiting productivity.” Similarly, on the skilling front, learning will become more integrated with work, more personal and slowly shift to lifelong models. The report further states, “Effective reinvention along these lines requires a culture that supports continuous learning, incentives that motivate people to take advantage of learning opportunities and a focus on helping individuals identify and develop new, needed skills.”

Organizations will look inward, and internal talent mobility will emerge as a prominent solution to the intense talent competition. A new framework that regulates and normalizes internal mobility

These trends represent the need to refresh (update and improve), rewire (create new directions to change the strategic direction) or recode (start over and redesign from scratch) existing workplace practices to ensure “a renewed human focus in a world where profits meet purpose, talent trumps technology and the social enterprise reigns supreme.”

One of the highlights of the report is that it focuses equally on the ‘how,’ in addition to the ‘what’ and the ‘why’, and helps the reader fully grasp the meaning and scope of complex workplace trends. Leaders and professionals from all industries would benefit from taking a closer look at the report and comprehend the sweeping changes that are set to take place in our current workplace. As the report very prudently explains, “Because the paradox of today is that while we live in a world of amazing technology, it is – and always will be – human potential that moves us forward.”

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The future is all about skills driving talent The rapid pace of changing skills is daunting.

Businesses need to track and leverage the ‘rising skills’ in order to transform

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By Anushree Sharma

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y 2030, demand for skilled workers will outstrip supply, resulting in a global talent shortage of more than 85.2 million people.1 A major crisis is looming especially in the APAC region because the region exports more talent than it imports2. A recent report by LinkedIn, “Future of Skills 2019”, highlights the point that the skills needed to succeed are changing rapidly and demand for talent with rising skills is three times that of the rest of the talent base.

LinkedIn undertook a survey across AsiaPacific region and surveyed 4,136 employees and 844 Learning & Development (L&D) professionals in Australia, India, Japan and Singapore on the state of workplace learning and skills requirements.

The report presents insights into how skills are playing a bigger role in shaping the evolution of talent. Knowing what skills are in demand, and how traditional roles are evolving, will help organizations prepare for and navigate the talent crunch.

Let’s dive deeper into the findings of the report:

The surging talent crunch It is no news that the world of work is undergoing a massive talent crunch. At the very outset, the

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report states that talent drives business and skills drive talent. However, the skills that were required yesterday are not relevant for the future and in fact not even relevant today.

Diving deep, comparing the skills demand data for 2017 vs 2016, 17, 18 and 19, skills like software engineering management ranked high in demand in 2016 but came down lower in rank in 2017 whereas skills like AI, Big Data & Cloud Computing (ABC skills) climbed up the ranks. The demand for these ABC skills continues to grow in 2018 & 2019 as well.

So, the short shelf-life and volatility of skills put a lot of pressure on organizations and L&D professionals to ensure the skilled talent pool does not become obsolete. Leveraging an agile talent pool which is both equipped with the latest skills and motivated to keep learning, will be key to navigating the talent crunch and retaining a sustainable competitive advantage.

The rising skills for the year 2019 Rising skills are skills that have experienced exponential growth in the last few years in adoption by professionals. These skills may be nascent now but will potentially see wide-scale adoption in the future.

According to this study, the demand for talent with rising skills is three times more than that of the rest of the talent base. These rising skills are dominated by technology but social media marketing, compliance and human-centered design stand out:

The top ten rising skills identified by LinkedIn Examples of occupations which have these skills

Compliance

Ensuring that a company complies with regulatory and legal requirements

• Chief Data Officer • Compliance Officer • Risk Management Officer

Social Media Marketing

Promoting products and/ or services through social media platforms to achieve business goals

• Digital Marketing Specialist • Marketing Manager • Social Media Marketing Specialist

Continuous Integration

Integrating codes into a shared repository to detect problems continuously

• DevOps Engineer • Full Stack Engineer • Software Engineer

Workflow Automation

Automating manual processes based on pre-defined business rules

• Consultant • Project Manager • Software Engineer

Gesture Recognition Technology

Interpreting human gestures, using a computing device, as an input for applications and devices

• Mobile Engineer • Researcher • Software Engineer

Blockchain

Setting up and managing a distributed and decentralized public ledger

• Blockchain Developer • Chief Technology Officer • Consultant

Artificial Intelligence

Studying and designing intelligent agents to perform human-like tasks

• B usiness Analyst • Data Scientist • Software Engineer

Robotic Process Automation (RPA)

Automating high volume, repeatable business tasks and processes using software with artificial intelligence and machine learning capabilities

• Business Analyst • Consultant • Robotics Engineer

Human-Centered Design

Developing solutions to problems with a deep focus of understanding the human perspective in all steps of the process

• Graphics Designer • Product Designer • User Experience Designer

Frontend Web Development

Converting data to a graphical interface to build websites or web apps

• Frontend Developer • Full Stack Engineer • Web Developer

Rising skills can be used as a signpost for how your industry is transforming or innovating. It can also be a sign of where your competitors are investing. It can be used to forecast where industries are going. Examining what rising skills certain industries are hiring for shows what changes they are anticipating. The other dimension of rising skills is that it can also show how industry is adopting new technology into their traditional offering. For example, retail giants like Amazon and Walmart are automating areas of their business, such as in their warehouses and stock management. With this automation, both retailers have made extensive investment in their staff skills, to offer alternative pathways for workers3.

Additionally, rising skills are signaling the shifts in skill demands of traditional roles, and in turn accelerating demand for entirely new roles. Hence, organizations can leverage the trends in rising skills to shape the future of job roles.

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What do professionals with these skills do?

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Rising Skills

At the very outset, the report states that talent drives business and skills drive talent. However, the skills that were required yesterday are not relevant for the future and in fact not even relevant today Increasing value of soft skills with increased focus on AI & automation The LinkedIn survey found that 89 percent of executives confirmed that it is difficult to find people with soft skills. And it was also found that the rise of AI and automation is not only driving JULY 2019 |

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Country-wise view of the rising skills

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Country

Top three rising skills

India

1. Robotic Process Automation 2. Compliance 3. Continuous Integration

Malaysia

1. Human-Centered Design 2. Social Media Marketing 3. Workflow Automation

Thailand

1. Frontend Web Development 2. Human-Centered Design 3. Gesture Recognition Technology

Vietnam

1. Frontend Web Development 2. Gesture Recognition Technology 3. Blockchain

Indonesia

1. Social Media Marketing 2. Human-Centered Design 3. Gesture Recognition Technology

Australia

1. Continuous Integration 2. Workflow Automation 3. Social Media Marketing

Philippines

1. Social Media Marketing 2. Frontend Web Development 3. Human-Centered Design

Taiwan

1. Artificial Intelligence 2. Frontend Web Development 3. Blockchain

Japan

1. Artificial Intelligence 2. Gesture Recognition Technology 3. Blockchain

Hong Kong

1. Blockchain 2. Compliance 3. Artificial Intelligence

Korea

1. Artificial Intelligence 2. Blockchain 3. Gesture Recognition Technology

China

1. Frontend Web Development 2. Artificial Intelligence 3. Blockchain

Singapore

1. Blockchain 2. Workflow Automation 3. Human-Centered Design

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Rising skills are signaling the shifts in skill demands of traditional roles, and in turn accelerating demand for entirely new roles. Hence, organizations can leverage the trends in rising skills to shape the future of job roles the demand of technical skills like coding, cloud computing, etc., but soft skills are also highly sought after in the field.

The reason for the demand of soft skills in the age of AI and automation can be contributed to: • Unique human talent: 47 percent think that they will be unique human talents in the face of automation.

• Higher level thinking: 44 percent think higher level thinking will remain vital in a tech-dominated world • Adjust & retain in doing your job: 43 percent think they will help you adjust and retrain so you can keep doing your job The study also touches upon the challenges with the current L&D interventions. While the report highlights that both employees and L&D professionals have recognized the imperative role that learning plays in career progression, 60 percent of employees in India feel that time is the most significant barrier they face in pursuing their L&D goals. Cost factor (37 percent) was found to be another challenge faced by employees in pursuing their L&D goals. From an organization’s perspective, engaging learners (46 percent) and adapting learning for younger employees (44 percent) is a challenge.

People Matters Brand Reachout Initiative

Know your people better 16pf®, a personality test, aids you in taking informed hiring decisions, assess culture-person-job fitment, ensure a mutually beneficial promotion process, and also facilitates leadership and competency development and much more

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ver wondered what makes a team “high performing”, a leader “successful”, or a candidate “high potential”? In a world where knowledge is for everyone to gain, made available everywhere, it is the individual traits and characteristics one possesses that makes them stand-out from the other.

Behavior is the best predictor of performance. Be it gauging suitability, potential or development needs, learning what people will do, ahead of time, is bound to bring an added advantage to you. At a time like now, in the middle of fast changing environment and growing competition, it is your workforce battling it out to be numero uno.

High performing teams, promising leaders and exceptional individual contributors are no accident; they are recognized, developed and placed in appropriate roles to be able to perform optimally.

With an upsurge in the relevance of precise hiring decisions, identifying high potential employees, having objectivity in succession planning and ensuring overall development, it is important now more than ever to have data that supports accurate prediction of behaviour.

Various psychometric tests and personality assessments come to be of use to take data driven decisions in matters pertaining

to personnel. Providing data specific to abilities, competencies of sorts, interests, leadership/managerial styles and more these tools help you in knowing the best of your people and allocating them apt roles.

16pf®, one such personality test, aids you in taking informed hiring decisions, assess culture-person-job fitment, ensure a mutually beneficial promotion process, and also facilitates leadership and competency development and much more. The test was developed by world renowned British chemist, statistician and psychologist Dr. Raymond Cattell whose research laid the very foundation for the Big Five Personality Model. With several different types of reports to address your exact need, 16pf® is globally the most used personality test.

NamanHR brings this highly validated tool, 16pf® to India and also helps acquire skills to become a 16pf® Certified Practitioner. Their teams of specialists have elaborate expertise in advising you to make the most out of it.

The tool is owned by PSI, a global solutions provider for the qualification, selection, assessment, development and career management of individuals in the modern workforce. PSI is delivering assessment solutions for over 70 years and delivers over 6.5 million assessments every year.

Various psychometric tests and personality assessments come to be of use to take data driven decisions in matters pertaining to personnel

inquiry@namanhr.com www.namanhr.com

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Well-being in the workplace is pivotal for success: Report A study reiterating the importance of workplace wellbeing suggests promoting healthy and constructive relationships between employees

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By Manav Seth

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t has been clear for some time that traditional workforce management strategies incentivizing results at the cost of personal health and wellness are on their way out.

The changing composition of the workforce has changed employee priorities and put workplace well-being on the map like never before. In a recent report titled ‘Well-being in the workplace,’ The Myers-Briggs Company analyzed this critical concept by exploring the meaning of workplace well-being, discussing the most effective activities to increase it and studying its benefits for both people and organizations. With over 10,000 participants from over 131 countries working across 23 broad occupations, the scope of the study was truly global in nature. Let’s review some of the most significant findings of the research.

Well-being in the workforce The report highlights several interesting trends regarding well-being in the workplace. For

instance, the report notes that well-being improves with age. This is not entirely unprecedented because conventional wisdom says that aspects of human development improve with age and moreover, older employees are more likely to have achieved successes that result in a feeling of happiness and well-being. Similarly, gender plays a role in workplace well-being, as well. Although both men and women employees who participated in the study displayed similar levels of well-being, women reported slightly higher levels of ‘engagement’ and ‘positive emotions,' suggesting that women’s overall well-being is probably linked to positive emotions, level of interest and the enjoyment they get from their work.

In other findings, the report states that the nature of one’s job also influences well-being. While employees in service-related jobs, like, education and training, healthcare practitioner and technical occupations and community or social service occupations usually have the highest well-being; those in practical and physical jobs, like, food preparation and service or production, generally report lower levels of well-being. Surprisingly, the average level of employee well-being is similar all over the world, suggesting that culture might not have a dominant role to play in workplace well-being. Participants of the study from Australia/New Zealand and Latin America reported the highest levels of well-being (7.83 from a maximum of 10); followed by Indian workers (7.72). However, the average score of Asian employees, at 7.38, was the lowest.

Well-being in the workplace: Cause & effect The relationships that employees form in the workplace are the biggest contributor to workplace well-

The relationships that employees form in the workplace are the most significant contributor to workplace wellbeing and received a score of 7.85 (out of 10) 26

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being and received a score of 7.85 (from a maximum of 10) from the participants. Relationships are followed by Meaning (7.69), Accomplishments (7.66), Engagement (7.43), and Positive Emotions (7.19). Similarly, employees who are interested in their work and tasks have a higher level of wellbeing. Participants rated the most effective activities in order of importance as: 1. Focusing on work tasks that interest me 2. Focusing on a work task that makes me feel positive 3. Undertaking work where I learn something new 4. Taking breaks at work when needed 5. Undertaking challenging work that adds to my skills and knowledge

The study dedicates a section to help leaders apply the insights of the report to improve well-being at their workplaces, Dr. Boult also offers actionable advice, “The first thing is for leaders to be aware of the importance and relevance and benefits of having staff experiencing optimal well-being at work. By well-being, we are referring to the psychological well-being of people. An objective and reliable way to get a gauge of the well-being is to invite staff to complete, anonymously, a workplace well-being measure.”

One of the most noteworthy findings of the study is that “positive and supportive relationships at work are important for workplace wellbeing, irrespective of the gender, personality type or geographic region.” The authors of the study recommend creating work environments and cultures that foster healthy social relationships between their employees. This, alongside making an effort to understand what entails well-being for different employees. Dr. Boult says, “To improve well-being it is important to be aware that there is not a one-size fits all approach to supporting wellbeing. A person’s personality type influences the kind of activities they report as helpful for enhancing their well-being. Understanding these differences can help organizations to select a range of well-being activities that work for different types of people.”

Thus, organizations need to create opportunities that help “people undertake work that aligns with their interests, foster positive emotional experiences and afford autonomy to rejuvenate when needed.” Employers and leaders cannot afford to ignore workplace well-being as an integral component of their people strategy and should evaluate the well-being of their staff regularly to design and implement informed strategies. Dr. Boult concludes, “It is not news that the kind of talented people organizations want to attract and retain will be more likely to work with employers who support and invest in their well-being. If an organization ignores the well-being of their staff, it is difficult and probably unrealistic to expect people will perform at their best when they are at work.”

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Workplace well-being: Getting started

Workplace well-being is correlated to higher levels of job satisfaction, higher commitment to the organization, and employees being less likely to have plans to look for a new job

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The research also studied the activities undertaken by employees both outside of work and at work as per the Myer-Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) type group and found that there are a few evident differences between the same. The MBTI classifies the personality of an individual in one of the 16 types, based on dominant personality traits. The study then also listed tips for general well-being and work-well being for each for the 16 personality types.

The impact of employee well-being on the overall organizational success was found to be indisputable. The study found that workplace wellbeing is correlated to higher levels of job satisfaction, higher commitment to the organization, citizenship behaviors, such as, increased discretionary effort to help co-workers and contributing to organizational objectives and employees being less likely to have plans to look for a new job.

Dr. Martin Boult, Senior Director Professional Services & Psychologist, The Myer-Briggs Company, who is the co-author of the report, tells People Matters, “A recent study by the Global Wellness Institute, reported that companies spent over $40 billion in the USA on “wellness” programs in 2016. This suggests that many organizational leaders are already willing to invest in the well-being of their people. However, it is unclear if these companies are spending their dollars on activities or services that actually support the well-being of their staff. Where leaders question the benefits of, or ROI, of supporting workplace well-being policies, it is important to note that companies that support and sponsor employee well-being outperform the stock market 3:1.”

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Always see the good in people...

...says Aman Nath, Co-founder and Chairman of the Neemrana Hotels chain who has notably restored ruins and turned them into heritage hotels with the simple philosophy - “see assets in the waste”. Not just a restorer of vintage fortresses, Nath is an author, historian, art curator and, above all, a visionary who sees beyond the usual in everything. In an exclusive tête-à-tête, Nath shares how seeing good in his people has helped him nurture a committed and loyal workforce. Read on as he shares insights on leadership, talent and work from the 33 years of his career journey

By Yasmin Taj & Anushree Sharma

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man Nath’s passion for restoring age-old ruins started at the young age of 27 when he was passing by the ruins of the Neemrana Fort while co-authoring a book with Francis Wacziarg. From that day in 1977, they have successfully restored some 30 heritage properties, turning many into heritage hotels.

Having spent over 35 years rebuilding, resuscitating and revitalizing India’s heritage, the latest in his passion being the Tijara Fort-Palace en route to Alwar, this has become an innate talent in him.

It wouldn’t be wrong to say that Nath is someone without a past who has infused life into the past!

Born and brought up in New Delhi, Aman Nath's family arrived as refugees from Lahore, now Pakistan, during the partition of India. For him, starting his journey was everything from scratch and starting from a clean state. And today after 68 years, he has pioneered a different kind of heritage hotels’ movement in India.

Restoring old fortresses is not an easy job! It takes huge investments, patience, an unexplainable

Nath viewed ruins (waste) as opportunities which can be transformed (reused) into properties that not only restore our rich Indian heritage, but also drive employment and revenue.

And the same mindset is helping Neemrana Hotels build a workforce of committed and loyal employees 28

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amount of energy, passion and madness to get the work done, finding the people who would help you live this dream, fighting with the authorities, and so much more. But if you ask Nath, the rewards are simply extraordinary! And he has no regrets!

Nath’s simple philosophy behind starting his journey of restorations was - ‘against waste’. He shares a story of why he never buys a box of pins and why he feels it is absolutely necessary to reuse things. He says, “While I was in school, I learnt that there are 19 processes before a pin is made. I feel why do you need to buy a box of pins when you can reuse them?” He further says, “You go to eat icecream, you take one cone and 5 napkins. We have only one mouth, how many times are you going to use and throw the napkin for one ice cream? Waste is rampant, but I see and create consciousness of it all the time.”

Nath viewed these ruins (waste) as opportunities which can be transformed (reused) into properties that not only restore our rich Indian heritage, but also drive employment and revenue. And the same mindset is helping Neemrana Hotels build a workforce of committed and loyal employees.

Here are some excerpts from the exclusive interview with the legend who pioneered the heritage hotels movement in India where he shares what makes him see the good in people and how this is helping him build a collaborative and inclusive work culture.

It is evident that your workforce is highly engaged and works with you like a family. What does talent mean to you? How do you attract talent and keep them motivated and engaged?

People have notions of unequal human beings, but I very deeply and sincerely believe we are all equal. Forget caste, religion and all that, in a company, what is a chairman without a guard, and

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what is a guard without a chairman? The balance between humans is very crucial for the company.

And I personally try to imbibe this balance at our place by respecting everyone. Then one has to be intuitive about the aptitude of each person. Make them do what they enjoy willingly.

Sometime back, an employee who has been working here for three years had left in between to join some other place. However, he came back because he felt a familiar belongingness to this place. Respect, trust and a personal connect with your people is as important as everything else in the business and that is what gets you the best people on board. At Neemrana Hotels, our people break all bounds when they are having fun and when they are working, they are working hard. The respect is in the eyes and not in touching feet. That is how we feel equal. And this is our work culture.

"Everyone has a personal touch with everyone. If we work somewhere else, people don't know us, but Sir remembers us and knows everything about us and everyone else. He also knows about our families and if we are dealing with any issue, he will somehow manage to find out and help us resolve it."

- An employee

The balance between humans is very crucial for the company. And I personally try to imbibe this balance at our place by respecting everyone.

Then one has to be intuitive about the aptitude of each person. Make them do what they enjoy willingly How do you trust people as you tend to hire raw talent? You don't know whether they will perform.

Is it instinctive?

I actually only see the good in people. And it is all about sending and receiving the right vibrations.

Aren't we all raw, illiterate and nothing when we begin and then we can become something? I think all of us are raw and can be made into something special if you look at them with sympathy. There is this discriminative saying for animals which we happily use for humans: “How can you make a donkey into a horse?” But actually, ignorant and untrained, we all begin as donkeys!

I’ll tell you something. I watched a movie where the person in the movie who used to make tyres for his business wanted to shoot an ad film for his

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product. So, he meets a fresher from a film institute and asks him if he had ever shot an ad film on tyres before. The student counter questioned him and said, “Can I ask you a question Sir, if you don’t mind? Had you made tyres before making tyres?”

That’s such a good question. Similarly, it is a stupid question to ask, “Have you cooked before cooking or can you keep this place clean, when you come from a village home with very different standards? Learning, exposure and correct teaching matters. If a person has no knowledge but the willingness to learn, he or she can do anything in the world.

Let’s say if someone comes in for an interview, people look at their resume and ask questions like why have you done this course or why have you scored so little in mathematics? Who is interested in all that? I’m not. I look at it diagonally; I like to look at the person, and understand the personal journey. He may have come for the interview from a far-off city, on a bus and through a lot of struggle.

So, you have to be sympathetic towards that person.

He’s probably wearing his brother's suit because you know the condition of an average Indian. He’s down here; his hair is all wrong, half-educated, half urban, half rural. The idea is not to look at them with these lenses but with total sympathy and see what they can become tomorrow. When I see someone walk in, I see what they can be in one year from now. Many of the boys who joined Neemrana as labour are HODs, managers – and some even are refined enough to decide our aesthetic.

"This feels like a family. I have only worked here; this is my first job and I have worked and learned everything here."

- An employee It is certainly a great deal to hire talent based on what you feel they can become. How about training them for the job? Do you have specific

programs where you train them? Or do you make it natural?

They learn! We have had people come from other countries too – to train our raw staff.

You know, monkeys and dolphins can get trained. However, when we speak about human beings, we are can only be that much better. People have brains, language, imitative skills. They can be trained easily. Normal staff at Neemrana are very skilled, and sometimes – too smart!

I find that the people are smart, attentive, and they learn fast. There were ten chefs in Neemrana and one little boy who used to do the dishes named Babulal. This young boy learned to make chocolate mousse so well that once there was a French delegation that was amazed by the talent he had. And this was a boy from the village and the delegates said that this was the best chocolate mousse they had ever had. That boy was very smart; he could pick up the recipe from any chef and make it.

So, you need to understand how people would want to learn and provide them with the apt resources. The results of the such kind of a learning will astound you, because it is natural and you train people in the way they want to be trained, which in our case is mostly on the job.

Being in the hospitality industry that puts a huge emphasis on the attribute of serving, how do you ensure a culture that is transparent and follows no hierarchy?

We have a great team. But for that, you need to love your work. I really love my work. I actually work 20 hours a day but people get the impression that I don’t work at all. Because if you love it so much it doesn’t look like you’re working. In France, people work 35 hours a week, and I said to the then Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin, “You French are lazy. In India, we work 35 hours a day!”

No. You shouldn’t have regrets. If you didn’t do it, you either didn't have the money or inclination. If you forgot to say ‘I love you’ to somebody, either you didn't have the guts or you didn't deserve the person!

Some valid reason must have been there and today you can’t hold it against yourself or somebody else.

We must take full blame for everything that goes

You need to understand how people would want to learn and provide them with the apt resources. The results of the such kind of a learning will astound you, because it is natural and you train people in the way they want to be trained, which in our case is mostly on the job

People, dreams and the passion to keep doing things differently. New ideas, new solutions to suit our weather, our pocket.

wrong under our leadership but always remember to share the credit. If I say, I did it all, then what were all the dedicated Neemrana family members doing?

No one can say, even with the greatest immodesty and arrogance, that they did it all.

So, you listen to your inner voice? How important is it for people to dream?

Do you have any out-of-the-box dream for tourism for developing India?

So, what keeps you going?

Always. Even for PM Modi, it was a far-fetched dream to become the Prime Minister of India, but he did. The journey is what you make of it. And you have to live in the present; you can't live in the past.

It is better to be totally alive in the present moment and in action. If you have a dream in the night, wake up the next morning, brush your teeth and then go where you have to go routinely, then it's not a powerful dream. A passionate dream is something you dream, wake up to and keep acting with eyes open till it actually becomes real. It pulls you by the magnetism that your actions will give it. People say they can’t believe I have done all this. I have always walked towards the dream, I don’t know at which

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How do you manage 18 hotels? We are sure you have a great team but what about Aman Nath as the leader?

How about regrets in life? Do you have any?

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I don’t want our people to feel any form of hierarchy. The hidden hierarchy is always there. Look, if a boss walks in, you will stand up to wish him. But, if you did that all the time, it should make the boss uneasy. So, he would also like the idea that you relax and work normally. And we are at our best when we work like that. If you’re the kind of employer who demands the best behavior when you're there, they will be on their worst behavior when you're gone. I expect consistency. I like transparency in people. So, if an employee has a problem, he should be able to tell me because if he can’t tell me, then who will he tell? Everyone has my cell number, and you know, I sleep in my hotels and never lock my door. Anybody can come at any time, knock on my door and tell me their problems. It’s not as if people only need money, they have all kinds of issues and they should be able to share them with you.

point it was not there, which point it happened, which point I made it happen, or wasn’t it always there?

When we took over the Tijara Fort-Palace, there was nothing but a tree on this hill. It was terribly hot and there wasn’t even a road all the way up to the property. I used to walk uphill and carry my lunch along. People didn’t know why I was doing it but I knew. Today when I’m sitting here with all of you in Kaanch Mahal, eating in air conditioning, I want you to know that I was very happy then, and I’m equally happy now. My pursuit has changed to perfecting Tijara’s details. I don’t see the difference as it’s all karma.

My dream is to make a vocational training institute called APDF. Official as it sounds, this will stand for ‘Aathvin Pass Dasvin Fail’! There is a huge, semi-literate force (who have either passed their 8th class but failed in the 10th) waiting out there in the vast rural countryside of India to become mainstream with the benefits of India’s progress.

For their Bharat to become India! Using a trained manpower advantage will be a quantum leap for our economy and our social re-structuring. The heritage, destinations, mountains, beaches and sunshine are all waiting there and will do the rest. But our Government must recognise this fully and let go of the reins. Tourism will gallop and so will India.

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From gig to

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Navigating the hiring challenges

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Is India embracing the gig economy?

We take a look at what panelists had to share during a panel discussion cohosted by People Matters and Indeed during the People Matters Talent Acquisition Conference 2019 about tackling recruiting challenges in India

By Vallari Gupte

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ig economy as a buzzword is new. But, the concept of working on different “gigs” or projects is age-old.

Construction workers who work intermittently on various projects are one such example. (However, this is not out of their own choice). When you think about white-collar jobs, insurance sellers have been entrepreneurs or freelancers in their own right.

As the workplace is increasingly turning into a global office interconnected with technology, the concept of gig economy has penetrated into the corporate world as well.

During a panel discussion co-hosted by People Matters and Indeed at the People Matters Talent Acquisition Conference 2019, the focus was around the theme of From gig to big in real India: Navigating the hiring challenges.

The discussion revolved around the concept of gig economy, identifying the right talent pool of gig workers and using the right kind of content to tap into the existing pool of gig workers. Employees are increasingly willing to sacrifice the additional benefits that come

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with a permanent job, such as gratuity or health insurance, in exchange for a greater amount of flexibility that allows them a healthy work-life balance, and the opportunity to simultaneously pursue multiple interests. However, there are some gaps and opportunities for both TA leaders and the staffing industry.

During this panel discussion experts like Bharat Jayaprakash, Senior Director- Inside Sales, Indeed India; Vinod Subramanian, Chief Operating Officer, FlexAbility, RPO Initiative of ABC Consultants; Saleel Panse, Head TA (India), Mondelez International; and Satya D. Sinha, CEO, Mancer Consulting Services shared their insights into the gig industry while Ester Martinez, CEO & Editor-in-Chief, People Matters, was the moderator of the discussion.

Gig economy is here to stay with employers such as Uber, Zomato, Swiggy and most recently Amazon joining the companies that are operating successfully with a flexible workforce.

In the US alone, by 2023, 50 percent of the workforce is expected to be working as freelancers.

This shows us that across the board, the way of working has changed. And so must the way of hiring. In India alone, about 7.7 percent of all companies that posted job openings for India offered flexible work options, according to a study conducted by Indeed. Moreover, the sectors that are leading the space of flexible job roles include: media, real estate, legal, hospitality, tech help, management, medicine allied and education.

“The gig workers are a pool of opportunity if we are able to capture it,” said Satya D. Sinha,

businesses with a strong staffing expert who can tackle the needs of the rapidly transforming workforce. Finding the right talent is vital. More important than that is to find the right talent at the right time. And, of course, ensuring that the right talent is placed for the right job role.

“The question remains, who is going to take that first step to invest time, effort, and resources to create the gig worker platform?” said Saleel Panse, Head TA (India), Mondelez International, who has observed that most of the functional aspects of staffing and recruitment are being increasingly outsourced. A platform that connects directly with the target pool of talented giggers is going to be a gamechanger, when it comes to the future of work.

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Identifying the right inbound recruitment channels can go a long way in ensuring that there is a steady pool of talent professionals on whom TA professionals can rely

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CEO, Mancer Consulting Services. He however warned that the gig economy can become a threat if we are not able to tap into this pool.

Apart from the traditional part-time and intermittent workers, a new wave of highly-skilled workers, demanding flexibility have hit the talent markets. These include software developers, data analysts, data scientists, website developers, android app developers etc. who are now looking to not only expand their sources of income but are also seeking out various types of projects that would prove challenging and rewarding at the same time, added Bharat Jayaprakash, Senior Director- Inside Sales, Indeed India.

“You have to ensure that you reach the right set of talented people whom you are looking for,” said Jayaprakash. “Moreover, your company must be visible to these job seekers - only then would they go, read your job description and apply for the job.

Targeted inbound recruitment is the key.”

Identifying the right inbound recruitment channels can go a long way in ensuring that there is a steady pool of talent professionals on whom TA professionals can rely.

Apart from identifying the right channels, it is crucial to get the job description right.

“It starts with the job description. If it is a creative job, ensure that it is creatively written,” Jayaprakash said. “If it is a technical job, ensure that those technical words are in the description.”

Crafting the job description innovatively increases the chances of receiving an application by almost 30 percent, he added quoting a data point from a recent survey from Indeed.

Penetration of gig workers into traditionally structured companies and into newly-created firms is visible across sectors. From banks looking for people who are skilled in product development to startups looking to scale up at a fast pace - everyone has turned their focus towards hiring a contingent workforce.

“It is happening everywhere. We are all creating different platforms where you can find gig workers.

The most successful platforms are those that cater to a diverse talent pool,” shared Sinha. “As staffing firms’ leaders, we should all start creating a vertical for recruiting gig workers.”

A major challenge that staffing firms face when it comes to hiring gig workers for their clients is the volume of hiring that is expected in a short span of time. That’s where tapping into the existing network of previous employees or those who have gone on a break and getting those recruiters to work part-time or on a freelance basis can go a long way, said Vinod Subramanian, COO, FlexAbility - ABC Consultants.

“Trust levels are very low when it comes to interviewing gig workers,” Subramanian said, adding that apart from high-volume hiring, the reliability factor can also prove to be a challenge if not tackled head-on. Ensuring that there are mechanisms such as a test and background checks using technology can help not only staffing agencies to identify the right and reliable talent but also help TA leaders wean out the unwanted applicants.

As the world of talent acquisition dynamically evolves around us, the need of the hour is to equip

In this equation, albeit there are a lot of variables and dependencies on the hiring manager, the line manager and the talent acquisition leader. Staffing companies of today’s digitally disrupted world are seeing a rise in the demand for their expertise. When the demand for new skills is changing at a speed faster than ever before, HR leaders are facing new challenges every day when it comes to identifying the coveted resource who will possess all the skills that are essential for the future of work.

While India Inc. is on the brink of making gig opportunities a mainstream way of working, it is beyond doubt that the staffing industry and TA leaders must also gear up to transform their processes, revamp employer branding messages and establish authentic connections with their target pool of talented workers.

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Anand Shankar

Managing the paradox of the alternative workforce The alternative workforce has gone mainstream. How do organizations optimize and leverage the gig economy to integrate with their business model?

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By understanding what makes alternative workers tick, an organization could also potentially change the way work gets done across the board. Autonomy and flexibility are desirable for anyone, not just those working gigs

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our order from UberEats is delivered by an executive on a bike that has a Swiggy tag, taken out from a bag that says Zomato. Your Ola driver is the same guy who dropped you off the other day when you booked a cab using the Uber app.

Sound familiar? It’s a sign of change. There was once a time when being associated with more than one company was frowned upon or actively discouraged. The advent of the gig economy has changed all that. The alternative workforce has gone mainstream.

In Deloitte’s latest survey on global human capital trends, the evolution of the alternative workforce was at the top of the list. For many years, employers considered contract, freelance and gig employment to be “alternative work”, options to supplement full time jobs. Today, 33 percent of survey respondents use alternative workforce for IT, 25 percent for Operations, 15 percent for Marketing and 15 percent for R&D. By 2020, the number of gig workers in the US is projected to triple to 42 million1. Growth rate of employment in the freelancing labor market has also been faster than the overall employment growth rate in other regions like EU, UK, etc.

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Most organizations are using their alternative workforce transactionally, not strategically In India’s unorganized sector, which constitutes 82 percent of the workforce2, alternative labor has thrived for centuries. Artisans, construction workers, semi-skilled laborers… there has been a plethora of diverse talent in this space. It’s the organized sector which is yet to tap into the full potential of this workforce model. While organizations have been striving to bring this to their home turfs, it has mostly been restricted to transactional jobs which can predictably be outsourced.

The survey results suggest that today organizations need to move from “managing” this workforce while it performs tactical activities, to “leveraging” it to achieve strategic objectives. Aggregators like Uber, Ola and Swiggy have given a masterclass on this, by adopting business models which directly call for entering into a mutually beneficial relationship with gig workers, instead of the arrangement being a temporary solution to full time work.

How do organizations optimize and leverage this workforce trend to integrate with their business model and further their strategic objectives?

To begin with, deploying the alternative workforce in areas outside of the most obvious (for example, IT) has the potential to allow organizations to reap the benefits of on-demand expertise

across functions. Also, as the workforce grows more flexible, so too should talent sourcing. The good news is, HR is getting increasingly involved in the sourcing of alternative workers. More than half of Deloitte’s survey respondents said that their organizations had specific plans to address recruitment strategies for the alternative workforce. What is needed is a sourcing strategy that allows the organization to connect the appropriate talent with the appropriate role, no matter where the talent comes from.

By definition, alternative workforce is a revolving door of talent The very reasons which make gig/part time/freelance work a lucrative alternative for workers - flexibility in duration and a sense of independence - can potentially create hurdles in achieving the objectives of the job. By the time a worker gets accustomed to the way things happen in the organization, the job he was brought in for could be well under way, or even completed. An individual may not be able to reach his full potential on the job, if significant time is spent on adjusting to new ways of working.

How can these frameworks evolve for a new type of talent altogether, for whom conventional wisdom around rewards may not apply?

Engaging alternative workers requires a culture of acceptance and respect for these workers and the skills they bring. To start with, leaders need to design teams that include alternative workers, and expanding the teams’ purview beyond tactical work.

This way, organizations nurture diverse teams built to achieve strategic objectives, while promoting mutual respect and loyalty.

Organizations also need to focus on relationshipbuilding. This doesn’t just help with engagement.

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An alternative worker willingly foregoes the reliability, company perks and associated benefits of a full-time job in favor of the freedom and flexibility that comes with a gig. However, organizations have historically designed reward frameworks to attract and engage talent using the compensation and benefits of full-time jobs.

By learning more about the alternative worker, organizations can reinvent rewards to be more responsive to an individual’s needs and wants.

By understanding what makes alternative workers tick, an organization could also potentially change the way work gets done across the board.

Autonomy and flexibility are desirable for anyone, not just those working gigs. An organization which reinvents “work” and the “workplace” could have a positive impact on the engagement of full time employees as well (for instance, by introducing remote working policies).

Think about your organization. Which of your jobs are “gig-able”? Which are core and cannot be outsourced? Consequently, what are the different employee segments that the organization must cater to, and how do you acquire, engage, reward and retain each segment? If there are gaps in skills or people, how will you bridge the gap? Importantly, how will you equip your organization’s leaders to lead diverse teams?

By themselves, gig workers are just threads without the support of an organizational fabric. To weave them together and to get the best from talent, a solid workforce strategy needs to be in place.

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Acquiring an alternative workforce is one thing; but how do you keep them engaged?

In Deloitte’s latest survey on global human capital trends, the evolution of the alternative workforce was at the top of the list. For many years, employers considered contract, freelance and gig employment to be “alternative work”, options to supplement full time jobs

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How do organizations adopt a “plug-and-play” model, so that benefits of the expertise can be reaped from the get-go, and inordinate time isn’t spent in acclimatizing to the culture?

Organizations can try to circumvent this issue to an extent by opting for value-based hiring, so that qualified workers who are most closely aligned to the organizations’ values are brought in. However, to do this, organizations first need to have clarity on the values and behaviors that are most important to them. Increasingly, they are also taking advantage of a growing portfolio of alternative workforce management tools in the market.

When leveraged the right way, the inclusion of alternative workers has the potential to enhance organizational performance.

About the author

Anand Shankar is a Partner with Deloitte India and leader of the firm’s HR Transformation practice. He is a seasoned strategist who has helped organizations across the globe in navigating business challenges by driving transformational change, building talent excellence, critical capabilities and future leaders. He brings with him over two decades of experience, and has curated some of the leading research studies in the field of HR. JULY 2019 |

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Subramanian Kalpathi

Leading virtual teams effectively Improved connectivity and modern technology allow organizations of all kinds to bring their workforce closer together, thereby allowing for better collaboration between far-flung team members

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jay is a top-performing regional sales manager in rural Kerala, employed by a renowned multinational agriculture company. An old timer with the firm, Ajay leads sales for his region, spread over a 4000 square-kilometre stretch of Palakkad, the largest district of the state. Although he operates from the â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;rice bowl of Keralaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; in Southern India, the way Ajay manages his work and time today is markedly different from what he used to do 15 years ago, when he had joined the firm straight out of college. On a given day, Ajay would have to travel for hundreds of kilometres at a stretch to meet with key customers and channel

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partners. During these rounds, he was usually cut off from his colleagues, his manager and the organization due to poor connectivity and a lack of digital penetration in the hinterlands. It was tough to connect with his customers as well, which meant he would spend a lot of time on the road meeting clients.

Things have improved rapidly over the past decade. While he continues to criss-cross the district to meet with stakeholders, Ajay is also empowered with a handful of digital tools provided by his organization. An internal communications platform allows him to instantly connect with his two direct reports (who operate

While technology may allow teams to come closer together, it is essential that managers create opportunities for virtual team members to connect regularly

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from different parts of the district), his manager (who is based in Chennai), his colleagues (spread all over the country), and other employees across the global organization. A workflow management platform allows him to quickly log orders and get instant approvals from required departments. A farmer connect app allows him to reach out to hundreds of farmers at the press of a button. In effect, he is equipped with cutting-edge digital tools that help him be more effective as an executive.

The reality of virtual teams

In summary, digitalization provides geographically dispersed employees with enhanced produc-

C o nn e c t e d w o r k p l a c e s

We typically associate virtual teams with IT or software companies, wherein interdependent teams of consultants from all over the globe work on different parts of the same problem. However, improved connectivity and modern technology allows organizations of all kinds to bring their workforce closer together, thereby allowing for better collaboration between far-flung team members. As we saw in the instance above, a digitally-savvy organization in the agriculture industry can leverage the latest in technology to help its remote team members be better in sync, thereby enhancing performance.

A Harvard Business Review article points out that in a “survey of 1700 knowledge workers, 79% reported working always or frequently in dispersed teams. Armed with laptops, Wi-Fi, and mobile phones, most professionals can do their jobs from anywhere.”

However, not all virtual teams are successful. The success of virtual teams is dependent on several interconnected factors, and here we encapsulate some essential ingredients for leaders and managers. These elements can potentially make or break the performance of dispersed teams.

• Fostering boundaryless connections: Today, technology can allow us to break through barriers and expand our ‘circles of influence’ as defined by Stephen Covey. We operate in a boundaryless environment wherein like Ajay, we can potentially influence a broad range of internal and external stakeholders. However, it isn’t sufficient that team members are merely aware of the latest technological developments.

Managers leading such teams must proactively champion and encourage the use of such tools to ensure meaningful adoption to its appropriate end.

• Maintaining the human touch: While technology may allow teams to come closer together, it is essential that managers create opportunities for virtual team members to connect regularly. This is critical to create and maintain relationships, and may even require employees to travel and meet with their counterparts in other parts of the world. This is especially important during milestones such as onboarding, kick-offs, interim reviews, celebrations, etc. In addition, the Ivey Business Journal recommends a host of ongoing activities such as virtual birthday parties, virtual coffee breaks etc. interspersed throughout the year.

• Identifying the north star: Managers who help identify and constantly clarify the vision for the organization can get executives to rally around a common cause. All-hands meets and regular online check-ins with team members offer opportunities for managers to help reinforce these aspects of work. Additionally, clear goals, key result areas, and well laid out processes can help remote teams understand how they can contribute to the vision. It is perhaps that much more essential to spell out the roles and associated tasks in greater detail for virtual teams.

Digitalization provides geographically dispersed employees with enhanced productivity tools and the opportunity to foster meaningful connections, both inside and outside the traditional boundaries associated with a firm tivity tools and the opportunity to foster meaningful connections, both inside and outside the traditional boundaries associated with a firm.

Consequently, executives today have more flexibility in the way they manage their work and their lives, and the potential to generate greater impact through their work. However, leaders and managers who proactively champion digital ‘ways of working’ by way of some of the ideas listed above, stand to reap the rewards of a boundaryless world.

About the author

Subramanian Kalpathi is the Senior Director & leads the KNOLSKAPE Insights Centre. He is the author of The Millennials Exploring the world of the largest living generation JULY 2019 |

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The 1440 mantra of time management: Kevin Kruse, NYT Bestseller In t e r v i e w

In a rapid-fire interview with People Matters, Kevin Kruse, Founder & CEO, LEADx, talks about unlocking the secret to helping managers become better leaders

By Vallari Gupte

K

evin Kruse started his first company as a 22-year-old. As any passionate entrepreneur, he was committed to see his company scale the heights of success. A year later, he found himself deep in debt before giving up on his dream.

Now a New York Times bestseller, Kevin is a renowned thought leader and currently the Founder & CEO of LEADx, an online learning platform that provides leadership coaching and training for managers and leaders across the globe.

Understanding what keeps employees emotionally invested in the work, brand and company, is the key to ensuring that each individual in an organization reaches her or his maximum potential and in-turn drives business results. Kevin is on a mission to unlock this potential and ensure that both managers and individual contributors get the required coaching and nudging to achieve their dreams, and bottom-line.

In an exclusive interaction with People Matters, Kevin Kruse, Founder & CEO of LEADx shares some insights about entrepreneurship, work and life.

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Understanding what keeps employees emotionally invested in the work, brand and company, is the key to ensuring that each individual in an organization reaches her or his maximum potential and in-turn drives business results

In your entrepreneurial journey, youâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;ve seen many ups and downs. How did you go about facing those challenges and what kept you going?

In startups, and in life, you just have to realize there will ALWAYS be ups and downs. If you aren't failing on a regular basis you clearly aren't experimenting and innovating hard enough. You need to separate a failed product or a failed business from feeling like a failure as a person. Also, in times when I do start to feel discouraged, I just remember my deeper purpose and keep at it.

What led you to start LEADx?

I had been retired for several years but saw the power AI chatbots were having in the area of mental health. I realized the same approach could be applied to leadership and management training. So I invented "LEADx Coach Amanda", the world's first executive coach robot powered by IBM Watson. Now everyone around the world can get world-class learning and coaching by downloading the app.

Which three words best describe your role?

their behaviors until it's a year later and they have to do the survey again. But now, every manager can get an AI-powered robot coach who will understand their engagement scores and then send the manager hyper-personalized nudges throughout the year, give them an action plan to get better, etc.

One thing that makes you passionate about what you do?

Every day, we get emails from people around the world telling us how the LEADx app has helped them to get promoted to manager, or helped them improve their engagement scores. It feels great to know that what we've created is actually helping people's careers and lives.

Who has been the biggest influence on you?

I'm an entrepreneur because of my father. I'm a writer because of my mother.

What keeps you awake at night?

Thinking of all the people out there who have high potential but don't yet have their own AI-powered leadership coach.

Chief robot designer.

Your mantra to time management and getting things done.

Skills you look for when hiring new talent.

I always look for high IQ, high conscientiousness, and great communication skills.

Three metrics to know how engaged are your employees.

You don't need three metrics, you need one metric. But that usually comes from an average of 3-4 survey questions. A great single question that can be used as a simple metric is whether or not you would refer a good friend to come work in your company.

Two ways to drive higher engagement across departments.

There is a single correct way to drive higher levels of engagement. Measure it with a survey, give the results to each manager, have the manager's team action plan solutions, and hold the managers accountable for improving their results or maintaining high scores. And in terms of ways managers can increase engagement, often it comes down to giving more recognition, helping people to grow in their careers, and having strong trust.

One tech/innovation that will transform the way HR and business leaders approach employee engagement completely.

The reason why engagement scores don't improve is that managers don't follow-up with their action plan items. They forget about changing

There are one thousand four hundred and forty minutes each day. And once a minute is gone, we can never get it back. Time is life, and you need to really invest your time-your life-intentionally

In t e r v i e w

1440! There are one thousand four hundred and forty minutes each day. And once a minute is gone, we can never get it back. Time is life, and you need to really invest your time--your life--intentionally.

If not a co-founder of a management training company, what would you rather be?

Answer: A detective who hunts down serial killers.

One must-read book for CEOs and business leaders

Selfishly I'd say, Great Leaders Have No Rules.

But Radical Candor by Kim Scott is amazing too.

What magazines and books have you read recently? What do you do in your spare time?

I'm a single Dad and startup entrepreneur so there is no spare time. I read when I'm on airplanes, though. I just finished a new book by CEO Bobby Herrera called The Gift of Struggle which is great.

Your next upcoming book or project that you are excited about!

We're getting ready to release a new nudge system so "Coach Amanda" will send you notes based on not just your strengths and weaknesses, but also based on your actual personality.

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STORY C OVER 40

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STORY

With some major shifts taking place and gaining momentum in the skilling space, what are governments, organizations and institutions doing to ensure we have a workforce that has the right skills for the future

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Are we ready for the future?

By Mastufa Ahmed

O

ne of the clear messages from World Economic Forum Davos 2019 this year is that people around the world will need to upskill and re-skill.

And there is wide agreement that we need a massive push to prepare people for new jobs and skills. According to PwCâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s CEO survey, 38% of CEOs globally say theyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;re extremely concerned about the availability of key skills as a threat to business growth. However, the skills and job titles of tomorrow are unknown to us today. Hence, it becomes difficult for organizations to prepare for a future that we can't define.

On the other side, there are apprehensions around robots taking away human jobs. The cover story in this issue will take a look at the broader current skilling scenario in the age of digital and automation. Are we doing enough to prepare people for future skills? Where will the jobs of the future come from? How are organizations tackling skill shortages and mismatches?

How must leadership programs adapt to teach these new skills?

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Preparing the next generation for their future, not our past

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STORY

Andreas Schleicher, Director for Education and Skills, and Special Advisor on Education Policy to the Secretary-General at the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) in Paris shares his views on the current skills scenario in the workplace, the skills shifts that are happening across the workplace globally and the need to build the capacity and motivation for lifelong learning

The imperative of lifelong learning

T

he next generation of young citizens will create jobs, not seek them, and collaborate to advance in an increasingly complex world. That will require curiosity, imagination, empathy, entrepreneurship and resilience, the ability to fail constructively, to learn from mistakes. The most obvious implication of a world that requires constant adaptation and growth

from learners is the need to build the capacity and motivation for lifelong learning. We used to learn to do the work; now learning is the work â&#x20AC;&#x201C; and that will require a post-industrial way of coaching, mentoring, teaching and evaluating that can build passion and capacity for learning.

Early on, learners need to be able to appreciate the value of learning well beyond school, beyond graduation; they need to take responsibility for their learning and bring energy to the process of learning. Lifelong learning does not just require people to constantly learn new things but, and this tends to be far more difficult, to un-learn and re-learn when contexts and paradigms change.

One might be tempted to conclude that lifelong learning means shifting resources from learning during childhood towards learning in adulthood. But OECD data show how learning throughout life is remarkably closely related to learning outcomes at school. Indeed, subsequent learning opportunities tend to reinforce early disparities in learning outcomes.

Individuals who failed at school are unlikely to seek out subsequent learning opportunities, and employers are unlikely to invest in learners with weaker founda-

tion skills. In short, lifelong learning as we currently know it does not mitigate, but rather tends to reinforce, initial differences in education. This just underlines both: how important it is to get the foundations right, and that we need to become much better in designing effective learning opportunities that meet the diverse interests of adults later in life.

There is a lot that governments and societies can do to help learners adapt.

The easiest is telling young people more of the truth about the social and labourmarket relevance of their learning, and to incentivise educational institutions to pay more attention to that too. When education systems help learners choose a field of study that resonates with their passions, in which they can excel, and that allows them to contribute to society, they will put learners on the path to success. But instead, many educational institutions still focus on marketing study fields that are easy and cheap to provide.

More difficult, but at least equally important, is to shift from qualificationsbased certification systems to more knowledge- and skills-based certification systems. That means moving from documenting education pathways towards highlighting what individuals can actually do, regardless of how and where they have acquired their knowledge, skills and character qualities.

The most obvious implication of a world that requires constant adaptation and growth from learners is the need to build the capacity and motivation for lifelong learning 42

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Knowledge and skills, the new global currency

The kinds of things that are easy to teach have become easy to digitise and automate. The future is about pairing the artificial intelligence of computers with the cognitive, social and emotional skills

and values of human beings. It will be our imagination, our awareness and our sense of responsibility that will enable us to harness digitalisation to shape the world for the better.

The conventional approach in education is often to break problems down into manageable bits and pieces and then to teach learners how to solve these bits and pieces. But modern societies create value by synthesising different fields of knowledge, making connections between ideas that previously seemed unrelated. That requires being familiar with and receptive to knowledge in other fields.

Today, learners typically learn individually and at the end of the school year, we certify their individual achievements.

But the more interdependent the world becomes, the more we need great collaborators and orchestrators. Innovation is now rarely the product of individuals working in isolation, but rather an outcome

STORY

Changing the model of learning

The future is about pairing the artificial intelligence of computers with the cognitive, social and emotional skills and values of human beings. It will be our imagination, our awareness and our sense of responsibility that will enable us to harness digitalisation to shape the world for the better

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How a society develops and uses the knowledge and skills of its people is among the chief determinants of its prosperity. The evidence from the Survey of Adult Skills, a product of the OECD Programme for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies (PIAAC) shows that individuals with poor skills are severely limited in their access to better-paying and morerewarding jobs. Digitalisation is now amplifying this pattern; as new industries rise, others will fall. It is the education available to people that provides a buffer to weather these shocks. The only thing that can help people accept that their job may disappear is the confidence that they have the knowledge and skills to find or create a new one.

If there are large sections of the adult population with poor skills, it becomes more difficult to improve productivity and make better use of technology â&#x20AC;&#x201C; and that becomes a barrier to raising living standards. But this is about far more than earnings and employment. The Survey of Adult Skills shows that people with low skills are not just more vulnerable in a changing job market, they are also more likely to feel excluded and see themselves as powerless in political processes. The Survey of Adult Skills also shows that hand-in-hand with poorer skills goes distrust of others and of institutions. While the roots of the relationship between education, identity and trust are complex, these links matter, because trust is the glue of modern societies. Without trust in people, public institutions and well-regulated markets, public support for innovative policies is difficult to mobilise, particularly when short-term sacrifices are involved and long-term benefits are not immediately evident.

For those with the right knowledge and skills, digitalisation and globalisation have been liberating and exciting; but for those who are insufficiently prepared, they can mean vulnerable and insecure work, and a life without prospects. Our economies are shifting towards regional hubs of production, linked together by global chains of information and goods, but concentrated where comparative advantage can be built and renewed. This makes the distribution of knowledge and wealth crucial, and that is intimately tied to the distribution of education opportunities.

of how we mobilise, share and integrate knowledge. More generally, changing skill demands have elevated the role of social and emotional skills. Employers increasingly seek to attract learners who easily adapt and are able to apply and transfer their skills and knowledge to new contexts.

Work-readiness in an interconnected world requires young people to understand the complex dynamics of globalisation, and be open to people from different cultural backgrounds.

The algorithms behind social media are sorting us into groups of like-minded individuals. They create virtual bubbles that amplify our views and leave us insulated from divergent perspectives; they homogenise opinions while polarising our societies. Tomorrowâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s citizens will need to think for themselves and join others, with empathy, in work and citizenship.

They will need to develop a strong sense of right and wrong, a sensitivity to the claims JULY 2019 |

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STORY C OVER

Governments cannot innovate in the classroom, but they can help build and communicate the case for change, and articulate a guiding vision for 21st-century learning that others make on us, and a grasp of the limits on individual and collective action.

At work, at home and in the community, people will need a deep understanding of how others live, in different cultures and traditions, and how others think, whether as scientists or artists. Whatever tasks machines may be taking over from humans at work, the demands on our knowledge and skills to contribute meaningfully to social and civic life will keep rising.

Harnessing the power of technology Technology can enable learners to access specialised materials well beyond textbooks, in multiple formats and in ways that can bridge time and space. Technology can support new ways of teaching that focus on learners as active participants. There are good examples of technology enhancing experiential learning by supporting project- and enquiry-based teaching methods, facilitating hands-on activities and co-operative learning, and delivering formative real-time assessments. There are also interesting examples of technology supporting learning with interactive, nonlinear courseware based on state-of-the-art instructional design, sophisticated software for experimentation and simulation, 44

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social media and educational games. These are precisely the learning tools that are needed to develop 21st-century knowledge and skills. Not least, one teacher can now educate and inspire millions of learners and communicate their ideas to the whole world.

Perhaps the most distinguishing feature of technology is that it not only serves individual learners and educators, but it can build an ecosystem around learning that is predicated on collaboration. Technology can build communities of learners that make learning more social and more fun, recognising that collaborative learning enhances goal orientation, motivation, persistence and the development of effective learning strategies.

Managing change Instruction in the past was subject-based; instruction in the future needs to be more project-based, building experiences that help learners think across the boundaries of subject-matter disciplines. The past was hierarchical; the future is collaborative, recognising both teachers and learners as resources and co-creators.

In the past, different learners were taught in similar ways. Now education

systems need to embrace diversity with differentiated approaches to learning. The goals of the past were standardisation and compliance, with learners educated in age cohorts, following the same standard curriculum, all assessed at the same time. The future is about building instruction from learnersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; passions and capacities, helping learners personalise their learning and assessments in ways that foster engagement and talent. Itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s about encouraging learners to be ingenious.

Education systems need to better recognise that individuals learn differently, and in different ways at different stages of their lives. They need to create new ways of providing education that take learning to the learner and that are most conducive to learnersâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; progress.

Learning is not a place, but an activity.

In the past, educational institutions were technological islands, with technology often limited to supporting existing practices, and learners outpacing education institutions in their adoption and consumption of technology. Now education needs to use the potential of technologies to liberate learning from past conventions and connect learners in new and powerful ways, with sources of knowledge, with innovative applications and with one another.

The challenge is that such system transformation cannot be mandated by government, which leads to surface compliance, nor can it be built solely from the ground up.

Governments cannot innovate in the classroom, but they can help build and communicate the case for change, and articulate a guiding vision for 21st-century learning. Government has a key role as platform and broker, as stimulator and enabler; it can focus resources, set a facilitative policy climate, and use accountability and reporting modifications to encourage new practice.

But education needs to better identify key agents of change, champion them, and find more effective approaches to scaling and disseminating innovations.

That is also about finding better ways to recognise, reward and give exposure to success, to do whatever is possible to make it easier for innovators to take risks and encourage the emergence of new ideas. The past was about public versus private; the future is about public with private.

These challenges look daunting, but many countries are now well on their way towards finding innovative responses to them, not just in isolated, local examples, but systemically.

Creating women leaders for tomorrow the single biggest leap in economic prosperity in any context.

Mohammad Naciri, Regional Director, Asia and the Pacific, UN Women shares his views on the importance for women to seek, and for us (UN, CSOs, corporates, training institutions) to provide opportunities to reskill/upskill the capacity kits to make them suited for the job and entrepreneurial markets

By Mastufa Ahmed

The awareness is growing and many constituencies are recognizing more and more the opportunity cost of women’s economic engagement. Both politicians and corporates are realizing that it is not only the right thing to do but it is also the smart thing to do. UN WOMEN’s engagement with the corporate sector works on promoting the Women Empowerment Principals and provide substantiated evidence not only from the McKinsey simulation but from various organizations like World Bank, FAO, Booz & Co, Forbes amongst others. Engaging more women economically means higher chances for profit and success. At the same time, with governments, we equally substantiate that it is

Skill development is one of the issues that bar women from getting a share

Corporates that won’t integrate the ‘soft skills’ or skills that rely on emotional intelligence will soon be obsolete and out of the market

Skills that women bring to the table once called “soft skills”, are now recognized as profitable and important. But why is the ground reality not changing much and why are CEOs and boards not taking cognizance of this?

It is only a matter of time until they are forced to recognize it. Corporates that won’t integrate the ‘soft skills’ or what I call skills that rely on emotional intelligence will soon be obsolete and out of the market.

What are the biggest challenges regarding women’s empowerment in the APAC region and how are they different from other regions?

It is the region that has the highest number of young people, the highest number of growing economies and the region that leads the digital and IT revolution. Engaging women economically remains to be the biggest challenge and the biggest opportunity.

STORY

According to McKinsey, advancing women’s equality in the countries of Asia Pacific could add $4.5 trillion to their collective annual GDP in 2025. Do you see agreement among stakeholders to bank on the power of parity?

A combination of immediate, medium and long term actions is required. On the immediate term, affirmative action and temporary measures should be taken by introducing quotas for women in the political and economic spheres. On the medium term, we have to work on making sure that the capacity and skill sets of women are in sync to market needs. On the longer term, we have to work on addressing social norm change and communicate for behavioral change. This has to be through formal education, media, folkloric and cultural narratives and finally religious discourses.

There is a gap between formal education and market needs. Hence, the importance for women to seek, and for us (UN, CSOs, corporates, training institutions) to provide opportunities to re-skill/upskill the capacity kits to make them suited for the job and entrepreneurial markets.

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M

ohammad Naciri is the Regional Director of UN Women for Asia and the Pacific. Prior to joining UN Women, Mohammad was the Deputy Country Director of UNDP in Yemen, where he supported the country in the formulation of its Gender Strategy and the Gender Responsive Budgeting process. He has worked in Kuwait, Iraq, Syria, Lebanon and Cambodia, dealing with issues from human trafficking to ethnic cleansing.

Here are the excerpts of the interview with Mohammad.

One of UN Women’s stated goals is to increase female participation in leadership positions. In Asia Pacific, there is only one woman in leadership positions for every four men. How can we improve this and what's your message to women leaders?

in today's workplace including in Asia Pacific? Many economies in the region are witnessing skills shortages? How can women be empowered with new-age skills?

World Economic Forums 2018's report suggests that the rise of new technologies across a range of industries may, in fact, play a role in exacerbating persistent gender gaps. Do you think technologies such as AI will make the gender gap in the workplace harder to close?

The time is not to act. Women have to have equal access to new technologies not only for their sake, but for the sake of a prosperous world. It is our collective duty to make sure this happens.

Are you taking any skill development program for women in Asia Pacific region?

Of course, we have few of them almost in every country in which we operate.

The skill development is a part and parcel of our work with and for women in the region.

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It is time to reinvent learning Peter Cheese, Chief Executive of the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD) shares some insights on how, in a world that is changing fast, the premium on people and organizations will be our ability to adapt and learn

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STORY

By Mastufa Ahmed

P

eter is the CIPD’s Chief Executive.

He writes and speaks widely on the development of HR, the future of work, and the key issues of leadership, culture and organisation, people and skills.

Peter is a Fellow of the CIPD, a Fellow of AHRI (the Australian HR Institute) and the Academy of Social Sciences. He’s also a Companion of the Institute of Leadership and Management, the Chartered Management Institute, and the British Academy of Management. He is a visiting Professor at the University of Lancaster and sits on the Advisory Board for the University of Bath Management School. He holds honorary doctorates from Bath University and Kingston University.

Here are the excerpts of the interview with Peter.

What’s the current skills scenario like and how do you view the skills shifts that are happening across the workplace globally?

It is clear that with the changes happening in the nature of work, organizations and workforces, driven by the rapid developments in technology, AI and robotics is creating increasing challenges in accessing and developing the new skills needed. Most organizations now report increasing difficulty in finding technology, engineering, data science and analytics skills, but there are also many other more traditional skills that often show up as shortages. Construction and trade skills, health and social care workers, and even truck drivers are all examples of sectors where increasing demand is not being met by skills supply.

In most economies around the world, governments have been investing more in 46

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education and in particular encouraging more young people to take on higher education and degrees. Whilst this is raising the educational qualifications and standards across the next generation of workforces, there appear to be growing mismatches with actual job needs and demands. Many jobs may now be classified as requiring a degree when historically they did not, but also the nature of job skills themselves are not always well aligned to the supply of skills across the different areas of education.

Many of these challenges require a much broader understanding of current and future supply and demand of skills.

Industrial strategies that recognize longer term sector growth and provide insight on areas of critical skill demands that can then be matched back in to the education sector and shifts made in education as well as careers advice and guidance. Education also needs to broaden to encourage vocational educational routes, apprenticeships and internships and the many different forms of education and training, and businesses need to understand the value of people who come from through these different routes.

The World Economic Forum predicts that by 2022, no less than 54% of all employees will require significant re-skilling and upskilling. So, how can organizations upskill their workforce at this scale?

There is little doubt that organizations everywhere will have to become better at upskilling and re-skilling their workforces as jobs change faster. Some say that the average half-life of skills may be as little

as 5 years, and particularly for more technology related or technical skills, this will almost certainly be true. We have to reinvent learning, moving from traditional didactic teaching approaches to fully embrace digital learning. Specific jobs skills or knowledge can increasingly be integrated or ‘embedded’ in to the job itself – augmented reality techniques for example that show maintenance engineers how to fix equipment as they carry out the job. Whilst these new ways of learning are effective, for all learning we need to better design our learning from a deeper understanding of how people learn, the different modes or channels through which they learn, and to be able to asses learning outcomes. Disciplines like neuroscience and behavioral science, analytics, as well as the new roles involved in learning design in a digital environment are all important. In a world that is changing fast, the premium on people and organizations will be our ability to adapt and learn.

Learning therefore needs to be seen as a strategic capability for any organisation.

With Millennials set to comprise a significant proportion of the global workforce by 2020, how can organizations chart out a strategy to facilitate skilling and re-skilling for them? Is the strategy going to be different for the rest of the pack?

I’m not sure that learning for Millennials will be different from others, but as the latest generational group to enter the work-

The principles of good learning and the many different ways in which it can be provided apply to all, even where we may have to train some older workers more in how to make best use of digital knowledge and learning

force, they will certainly see more need and opportunity to upskill and re-skill, to take on different jobs and roles and even careers during their working lives – what many have termed as the shift from jobs for life to a life of jobs. As a generation, they have been more exposed to technology from a young age and expect to access knowledge and learning in many different ways, not least online and digitally. But the principles of good learning and the many different ways in which it can be provided apply to all, even where we may have to train some older workers more in how to make best use of digital knowledge and learning.

CEOs report that the availability of key skills is one of the biggest business threats to their organization's growth. What would be implications of skills gaps in terms of business?

The CIPD is working on all these aspects of our changing world of work, the changing workforces we employ, and the changing workplaces and organizations that are emerging. We are researching and promoting understanding of digital and blended learning, helping to understand the new skills and roles within L&D and how we can develop and certify those capabilities. We are working on agendas to define the common or core skills we all need so that we have a more common taxonomy to help people and organizations – skills like teamwork and collaboration, communica-

tion, empathy, critical thinking, learning and resilience. We are also engaging widely with education and government to help influence the wider policy thinking on education for the future and how we can create better links between business and education.

Can you throw some light on the skilling scenario in APAC countries and how are they gearing up to face the greater skilling conundrum?

Across the APAC region, we can see education is receiving a lot of attention and investment. Over recent history, as economies have developed, education alongside healthcare become the key indicators of progress. More young people receive good education and stay in education longer, and that is a vital part of fueling future economic growth and raising living standards and support. South Korea and Singapore are great examples

What is your advice for CHROs and people managers who face challenges to skill and re-skill their employees including cost and other bottlenecks?

The most important thing for CHROs to develop are their strategic workforce plans and strategies. We need to be able to look ahead, to anticipate skills and capability needs which may be rapidly changing as organizations and the nature of jobs change. We then have to be able to think broadly in how and where we recruit skills from, whether we should be targeting different and diverse talent sources differently, whether we need to locate in different towns or cities to access local talent pools, whether we have to source contractor and freelance talent, or whether we should partner or outsource with others who have the skills we need as a core part of their business. Alongside this, we have to be realistic about our own employee value propositions, how attractive we are to the talent we need, what else we need to do to retain and engage people, and how we develop our organizational capabilities in training and learning. It is also important we make the business case for workforce development and learning, with better data and insight on the value it drives, the measurable outcomes and business benefits. Without this, investment in training will continue to be subject to the cost pressures that come and go in every business, and will be seen as a discretionary cost instead of a strategic investment.

JULY 2019 |

STORY

CIPD have been championing better work and working lives with professional standards for HR and people development. How is CIPD gearing up to drive a positive change in the world of work especially in terms of skilling?

Skill gaps can hold organizations back, so we are seeing a growing recognition in business leaders that better understanding of skills and capabilities and changes in the future is an essential part of any business strategy

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From many surveys, most businesses everywhere are experiencing growing challenges in accessing and retaining all the skills they need. Skill gaps can hold organizations back, so we are seeing a growing recognition in business leaders that better understanding of skills and capabilities and changes in the future is an essential part of any business strategy. There are many ways in which organizations can access skills, from traditional full-time employment models to the many different forms of flexible working, contracting and contingent workforces, and freelancers or ‘gig’ workers. We need to consider all these options, as well as opening up our recruitment to diverse groups of all kinds and working to create truly inclusive workplaces where everyone whatever their background can thrive. Strategic workforce planning is therefore a vital capability for HR to develop and to be able to work on with the business.

in how their economies have been amongst the fastest growing over the last 50 years, but built from huge investments in education and upskilling its workforce. But education is only part of the story, and it is equally important that organizations invest in the upskilling of their workforces. In this regard, there is a very wide range of what organizations invest and the extent of their capabilities in L&D across the APAC region. Global multi-nationals, benefitting from size and scale tend to lead everywhere, but local and regional businesses can fall behind because they are not sufficiently focused on learning and development. Not only is this capability important in addressing skills gaps in the workplace, but also in attracting and retaining skilled staff who expect to be invested in and developed. There is still a lot of workforce training that is delivered in a very traditional face-to-face form, and organizations need to accelerate in how they embrace digital and online learning.

We are seeing a lot of interest in the region on building these capabilities, but generally businesses in the region are behind where their competitors are in the West.

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Demand for human skills side will stay Indranil Roy, Executive Director in the Human Capital practice at Deloitte Consulting sheds light on how organizations need to pivot from job-based or levelbased learning architectures to skill communities and ‘chapters’ and how there will be continuous demand for human skills side by side with machine capabilities

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ndranil Roy is an Executive Director in the Human Capital practice at Deloitte Consulting, based in Singapore. He leads the Deloitte-Leadership Practice for Asia Pacific and is the Chief Strategy Officer for the global DeloitteLeadership practice. Indranil is a globally renowned strategic advisor in innovation/ digital, leadership, strategy organization and culture. He has extensive experience in advising clients from ASEAN, Brazil, Japan, China, India, Korea, United Kingdom and United States across a wide range of sectors, including financial services, IT, government, consumer and healthcare.

Here are the excerpts of the interview with Indranil.

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One of the messages from Davos this year is that people around the world will need to upskill and re-skill? And there is wide agreement that we need a massive push to prepare people for new jobs and skills. How do you view the current skilling scenario at a broader level? Are we doing enough to prepare people for those future skills?

According to our research, the technical and functional skills that we are certified by educational institutions (e.g. Marketing, Finance, Management etc.) have seen a sharp drop in the ‘half-life’ (the time it takes for the skills to become irrelevant).

We have gone from a ‘half-life’ of 24 years in the early 90’s to about 4.5 years today. In other words, formal education degrees can no longer guarantee a career of more than 5 years. We have to reskill /upgrade our skills actively (in our everyday routine) to stay relevant at this pace. This problem cannot be addressed by any sector alone.

It has to be a collaborative effort between educational institutions, corporates and their learning functions, individuals making an effort to keep up, and by government providing the right incentives at the right time. What we see today is disparate and disjointed efforts from each of these agents but little evidence of joined-up initiatives across all agents.

Skills and job titles of tomorrow are unknown to us today. How can organizations prepare for a future that we can't define? What’s your advice to CHROs and other people managers?

This statement is partly true. Job titles are difficult to predict but future skill areas are easier to visualize. Organizations need to pivot from job-based or level-based learning architectures to skill communities and ‘chapters’. So, for example, as an organization you can focus your efforts on building a learning community around ‘analytics’, curating and sharing content on a range of different skills like data visualization, data governance, deep learning, etc., rather than focus on the future job titles and hierarchical levels of jobs. Each ‘chapter’ can then have the goal of creating continuous learning mechanisms to keep community members engaged and up to date. Investments can be made in emerging areas quickly; centers of excellence can help accelerate capability pools and external specialists can find a ‘docking point’ in the organization to collaborate and co-create. Organizations often make the mistake of setting up informal learning communities, but not pivoting their formal architecture and investments to give these communities the fuel they need to succeed.

Instead, the formal organization created on

job hierarchies get the real attention and investment, while the informal communities are left to fend for themselves.

Given this Fourth Industrial Revolution, how do you envision the future of work? Can you share some broader dimensions that can improve the future of all workers?

There is a dystopic view shared on media platforms around the coming tsunami of joblessness because of automation. We do not share that view. We believe that there will be significant short term dislocation between the demand and supply of skills but as new jobs are created in the economy at a faster rate, there will be continuous demand for human skills side by side with machine capabilities.

Amazon highlighted this recently – they believe that increased automation will create new jobs for humans as it replaces human activities with machines. The

traditional speed of quarters should be front and center of the CEO agenda. This requires 3 fundamental shifts. First is the new leadership mindset – we use the term ‘Leaders as Founders’ as opposed to traditional ‘manager’ mindset. Second is the organization – designed as a network of cross-functional teams (squads) rather than large monolithic functional silos.

Third, an unleashed workforce empowered to solve problems, access capabilities from inside and outside the organization, work in cross discipline teams, and move from challenge to challenge. These 3 aspects must come together to deliver a future ready organization at scale.

ing in better online marketplaces, creating communities of talent, and modernizing recruitment as an industry will pay off in the medium term.

How do you view the new leadership skills for an uncertain world? With the world becoming more connected and more diverse, do you think businesses will need different types of leadership skills? How must leadership programs adapt to teach these new skills?

Our research suggests that the leadership skills required are not necessarily new, but the leadership orientation is. The challenge is not to re-skill leaders but to re-orient them – as founders. Founders

Being an APAC head of a consultancy firm, how is the skilling scenario in APAC countries different from the rest of the countries? Do you notice a change in terms of skilling initiatives, ways of tackling skill shortages and mismatches?

Deloitte is in the business of advising the world’s most complex companies.

What are your top pieces of advice for CEOs to align their workers in line with changing work dynamics?

We focus on a few basics here. Large companies are bureaucratic machines, often encumbered with legacy ways of working that slow them down from active experimentation and innovation. The North Star for future readiness, according to us, it the ‘clockspeed’ of the business – the time it takes to make changes and effect new outcomes. Designing around a ‘clockspeed’ of weeks as opposed to the

APAC has some specific tailwinds and headwinds when it comes to adjusting to the future of work. The major headwind is the fact that more economic activity in the region tends to be transactional, manufacturing related or process centric. That will mean a higher vulnerability to automation in the future. The tailwind is the growth and aspiration of the consumer class. This will create more jobs in human skill areas like healthcare, services, governance, relationship management, care giving, teaching, coaching etc. – jobs that are better done by humans than machines. Governments and educational institutions need to focus on building some of the ‘soft skills’ or ‘essential human skills’ in the workforce so that they can transition quickly to areas being automated to jobs being created.

This is in addition to creating more skilled manpower in technology and data science, technical areas that will see job growth in the future. Finally, the skill marketplaces in Asia don’t work too well. Job seekers often struggle to find the jobs that need their skills and companies struggle to fulfill demand with the right people. Invest-

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future of work, therefore, lies in creating a new generation of workers who are adept at augmenting their human skills with machine intelligence, learning new ways of adding value in the process. The fundamental human skills of empathy, judgment, relationships, creativity, problem solving, etc. will find greater demand and the machine domains of analysis, repetitive processing, transactions etc. are more likely to go away from human endeavor.

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The challenge is not to re-skill leaders but to re-orient them – as founders. Founders tend to have a very different orientation to risk, speed, autonomy, problem solving, relationships, execution, teams

tend to have a very different orientation to risk, speed, autonomy, problem solving, relationships, execution, teams. They tend to ask different questions of themselves and their teams, set goals in a different way and for different time horizons etc.

Traditional managers build a stack of ‘preconceived truths’ that inform how they lead day to day. Challenging their worldview, immersing them in a startup ecosystem, asking them to take on a ‘founding challenge’, changing the way they view their rewards and risks … are ways to trigger this re-orientation. Teaching, lecturing, or case studies of Google/ Amazon in a class room setting or in a mountain retreat does very little to shift their orientation.

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New skills for the future generations at work This article looks at the new skills and competencies that are needed to do our future jobs more properly than with the skills we learned yesterday

By Fons Trompenaars

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he world is globalizing, digitalizing and sometimes humanizing. What does this mean for the skills we need to develop? Since the interconnectedness of the world is increasing we see an abundance of competencies that need to be updated or completely renewed. We will discuss this from an individual, team and organizational perspective. One thing is for sure: we need to be able to function in worlds of contradictions. And if we do so we need to become more innovative and agile as a process.

The recruitment and selection of professionals and managers is one of the most significant and costly investments an organization can make. Risks can be high, and the cost of a bad hire can have a tremendous impact on time, money and company culture.

A competence and competency-based approach to recruitment and selection of professionals and managers can help your organization make it an effective and successful investment of time, money and expertise. Regardless whether we approach it from the individual, team or organizational perspective, it is very useful to distinguish competencies and competences.

According to Alder Koten (https:// alderkoten.com/what-is-the-differencebetween-competences-and-competencies/), such an approach will help ensure that: • The organization is clear regarding the competencies and skill sets required by the job • The selection processes encourage a good fit between individuals and their jobs • Managers and staff have the required skills and competencies • Individual competence and competencies are matched to the requirements of the position, the fit of the person with the immediate team, the overall cultural fit, and the particular challenge • A good process can also support and sell the decision internally if it is determined that an external candidate is the best choice for the position

What is the difference between Competences and Competencies?

A number of confusions within the area of performance assessment with regard to the use of terminology, and differing interpretations, regarding competence assessment are existing. A significant difference between the US and UK approaches to performance assessment is identified.

A particular aspect of this is its relevance to assessment based on behaviors and attitudes rather than simply on the results of functional analysis concerning a particular job. This has implications for the future direction of performance assessment, particularly with regard to identifying performance.1 A definition of competence is the capability to carry out a defined function effectively. Whilst a definition of competency is the description of the knowledge, skills, experience and attributes necessary to carry out a defined function effectively.

Competence Competency 1. Skill-based Behaviour-based 2. Standard attained Manner of behaviour 3. What is measured How the standard is achieved.

It becomes clear from above table that competence describes what people can do

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while competency focuses on how they do it. In other words, the former means a skill and the standard of performance reached, while the latter refers to the behaviour by which it is achieved.

It implies that there is an interface between the two, i.e. the competent application of a skill is likely to make one act in a competent manner and vice versa. The difference between competence and competency can be better understood by knowing and understanding their components. In short, a competence’s focus in on the what and the competency’s focus is on the how.

Four Corporate Cultures Egalitarian

Task

Person

A gradual shift in attention from competence to competency

Well it is too simplistic to expect a straight journey down a single path. It is becoming clear that any single corporate culture has its strengths and weaknesses. At any given time, most organizations have a single dominant corporate culture that struggles with less dominant orientations. The organization life-cycle follows a series of transitions from one corporate culture to the next where each transition is prompted by a crisis. Each crisis arises when growth outgrows the current culture. Here we find frequently occurring dilemmas that must be reconciled in order to progress from one culture to the next. Each dilemma requires an innovative solution and a truly innovative organization copes successfully with each. And again, the how is more important than the what.

So, the prerequisite for an innovative organization is the reconciliation of a variety or organization cultures in order to face the changing dynamic world in which it operates. Cultures can learn to reconcile differences from values at ever higher levels ~ for example, so that better rules are created from a variety of exceptions that come with growth. But let’s follow the typical life-cycle of cultures.

Because of the new challenges that digitalization, agile working and globalization have posed to us, we see an obvious shift from attention from the ‘what’ to the ‘how’ Creative entrepreneurship Typically, organizations begin by the founders creating both a product (or service) and a market. As the organization grows, it exceeds the capacity of the founder to know everyone personally resulting in a crisis of leadership because management problems cannot be handled through informal processes.

1. From Invention to Intention: growth through direction The solution is to appoint a strong paternalistic manager who can pull the organization together in a kind of family.

Often a trusted relative of the founder is chosen who has to reconcile the original incubator culture with the developing family culture. Dilemmas manifest as team sprit versus individual creativity, and leading participative employees versus respect for authority. But later, people find themselves restricted by the cumbersome and restricted centralized authority. Their dilemma is now between following orders and taking initiative so creating a crisis of autonomy.

2. From intention to invasion: growth through delegation It is difficult for leaders who had been successful at being directive, to relinquish control and delegate and the lower level

managers are not used to making decisions. The need to develop a Task oriented culture (that we caricature as a Guided Missile) becomes evident. But this gives rise to dilemmas of lord, servant or servant leader and tensions from asking how we centralize lessons from decentralized locations and finally social learning versus technological learning. Innovative approaches are again required in which Leaders need to lead by giving service to others. And concerns for people have to be connected with concerns for productivity resulting in a reconciling socio-technical philosophy. In this way, the reconciliation of the family with guided missile cultures means the inventions have gained intention through the directive infusion of long term commitment with the support of loyal people. Furthermore, the intended inventions have obtained focus to the outside world and are ready for invasion.

3. From invasion to implementation: growth through co-ordination Just when we thought all was well, top management senses that it is losing control over a highly diversified operation. So the crisis of control arises. Now we need more formal reporting systems and committees which results in a return to centralization. We caricature this as JULY 2019 |

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So how can HR Directors help guide their organization?

Hierarchical

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Because of the new challenges that digitalization, agile working and globalization have posed to us, we see an obvious shift from attention from the ‘what’ to the ‘how’.

I remember vividly a client that asked us to see whether we could develop an app that measured the values of the participants and the values of the organization and see whether they would match. This value based recruitment approach was inspired by the fact that this organization experienced much more trouble in the how than in the what in making the organization more innovative. And skills are much more easy to assess than the behaviors we need to build a culture we need.

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the rise of the role oriented Eiffel Tower culture. Dilemmas now appear between meeting financial criteria versus developing people, focusing on customers versus internal processes and whether we should meet benchmarks or transcend them.

Standards and benchmarks become obsolete when we realize they are linear onedimensional measures. So it is not simply if people have lived up to the standards, but have the standards lived up to the people! Reconciling internal orientations with customer focus can be achieved by involving customers in improving internal processes!

4. From implementation to inquiring: growth through collaboration Most coordinating systems eventually gain a momentum of their own resulting in a crisis of ‘red-tape’. Now the organization has become too large and complex to be managed through rigid well prescribed systems. Procedures take preference over problem solving. So how do we sustain the innovation spirit of the organization now? We’ve given ‘intention to invention’, invaded the market, and implemented the right processes whilst fighting the crises of leadership, autonomy, control and red tape. New dilemmas involve striving to be right first time or correcting errors quickly, learning explicitly or tacitly, and connecting the authority of sponsors with empowered teams.

5. From inquiring to innovation: growth through external connections By reconciling the dilemmas characteristic of this phase, the infinity loop is finally closed and at the same time to go outside the organization.

The organization may now have exhausted what it can achieve from itself so growth now may depend on the design of extra-organizational solutions ~ such as buying a new small pioneering incubator that brings a fresh input of innovative ideas! This networking and alliance phase

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The challenge for ‘HR’ is not to think itself as human resource management but the management of resourceful humans. We need to reconcile competences with competencies, because we both need the what and the how has more emphasis on the market than internal hierarchical concerns. The locus of innovation now shifts to networks and away from the individual firm.

In perspective In our consulting, we have captured, encoded and trawled through some 45,000 dilemmas with which organizations wrestle.

Linguistic analysis and data mining shows this raw database can be reduced and clustered to a manageable series of frequently recurring dilemmas that embrace the lifecycle stages we have described. It is those organizations that successfully reconcile the dilemmas by developing the competency in making connections between different orientations that survive in the ever-changing world. HR has a key role to facilitate this mindset change.

Ultimately, people are still the unique and scarce entity. But the challenge for ‘HR’ is not to think itself as human resource management but the management of resourceful humans. We need to reconcile competences with competencies, because we both need the what and the how.

And that really would be innovation!

The concepts described here are explored in detail in the recently published ’Riding the Whirlwind ~ Connecting People and Organizations in a Culture of Innovation’ by Fons Trompenaars and Charles Hampden-Turner.

About the author

Fons Trompenaars is a Dutch-French organizational theorist, management consultant, and author in the field of cross-cultural communication, who developed the 7 Dimension of Culture model for looking at national culture differences.

CHALLENGES FOR HR HR should be prepared to help the crisis of leadership with leadership development programmes focusing on the reconciliation of the following crucial dilemmas: 1. Leading participating employees versus respect for authority 2. Team spirit versus individual creativity 3. Effectiveness of teams versus creation of cultural knowledge about these teams.

In the crisis of autonomy, the HR professional is responsible for facilitating the reconciliations between: 1. Lord, servant, or servant leader?

2. How do we centralize lessons reaching us from decentralized locations?

3. Social learning versus technological learning Effective levers to pull at this stage are processes in corporate learning and knowledge management.

And the crisis of control can best be overcome if HR helps to resolve: 1. The role of standards and benchmarks: should we meet or transcend them?

2. Meeting financial criteria versus developing our people 3. Focus on external customers versus focus on internal.

Traditional job evaluation systems, freezing the reality of ever evolving creative jobs, jeopardize innovative cultures.

Programmes related with appraisal systems and customer orientation programmes can be the focal point for exposing these issues. For the crisis of ‘red tape’ the HR role needs to be broadened so that the following dilemmas can be resolved: 1. Authority of sponsor versus empowered teams 2. Lean processes versus client is king 3. Should we strive to be right first time, or make errors and correct them quickly?

4. Do we learn explicitly or tacitly?

The HR role supports the chief inquirer by becoming a consultant to make learning systems possible, job evaluation systems transparent and integrated (not ‘balanced’ scorecard to support this.)

Finally, HR roles become crucial in helping the organization going external and assist with the following dilemmas: 1. Internal versus external innovations 2. Investing in research and development efforts versus cooperating with rival companies 3. Hi-tech versus ‘hi-touch’ in virtual teams 4. Systemic versus modular innovation.

Here the HR professional needs to connect to systems and partners outside the company and learn by connecting to alternative systems.

Reinventing jobs for the future Toby Fowlston, the Managing Director of Robert Walters' offices in Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia and Philippines, delves deep into how the key for economies and societies will be to keep learning, investing in future skills and innovating, and embracing change

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oby Fowlston is the Managing Director of Robert Walters' offices in Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia and Philippines. He has over 17 years of recruitment experience, and is responsible for leading and growing the Southeast Asia recruitment business.

Here are the excerpts of the interview with Toby.

Given this Fourth Industrial Revolution, how do you envision the future of work?

The future of work is as much about changing mindsets, as it is about reinventing jobs. As AI systems, robotics, and cognitive tools grow in sophistication, the people aspect of work is becoming more important. Organizations need to reconsider how they design jobs, organize work,

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and plan for future growth. Those seeking niche or digital skill sets may consider a flexible and diversified workforce that breaks the typical framework of going into office at fixed hours, and encourage an environment of learning. Professionals need to think about how they can continually add value, be ready to embrace change, and adapt to future challenges by seeking opportunities to upskill.

One of the messages from Davos this year is that people around the world will need to upskill and re-skill? And there is wide agreement that we need a massive push to prepare people for new jobs and skills. How do you view the current skilling scenario at a broader level? Are we doing enough to prepare people for those future skills?

Thereâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s no shortage of warnings of what the future has in store for todayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s workforce. However, although jobs will be lost, there will plenty more that will be created. Work will still be there but jobs will change. Who does what and how, could change significantly. Those displaced will need to re-skill and shift to the new jobs, and wages may temporarily stagnate, go backwards and increase (i.e. where technology demands increased skill sets from people). But this is how itâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s always been, and we are currently just undergoing another period of rapid change.

The key for economies and societies will be to keep learning, investing in future

skills and innovating, and embracing change. The rise of technology has been at an unprecedented rate, and the traditional route of education through schools is no longer fast enough to catch up with the demand. Looking at innovative ways of recruitment and retention, such as cultivating a culture of learning and sharing, as well as seeking untapped talent pools or talent from other industries to fill the demand will be the way forward to ensure that people and companies are equipped with the necessary skills to move forward.

As experts predict the skills shortage will only get more acute as technology evolves and the war for talent intensifies, what's the need of the hour?

As organizations accelerate their digital efforts, the impact of the tech talent shortage is causing increasing strain on resources as well as productivity. Our survey conducted in April 2019 by Robert Walters with nearly 400 technology professionals and hiring managers across South East Asia revealed that hiring tech talent is difficult, time consuming, but critical to business success. 68% of respondents who were hiring managers took 3 months or more to fill an open tech position in their team. On a scale of 1 to 10, with 10 being the hardest, tech hiring managers rated the difficulty level of hiring talent on an average score of 7. Business productivity and innovation took a hit as 7 in 10 hiring managers interviewed shared that the

Given how technology has become highly entrenched in our businesses, one of the recommendations made in our technology guidebook, “5 Lessons in Tackling the Tech Talent Shortage” advised businesses to find leaders who understand technology trends to attract and motivate tech talents. Business leaders who believe in the value of technology and understand the current technology landscape with strong stakeholder management skills can set the tone and direction of the company.

shortage of tech talent negatively affected their speed of product development.

Organizations have to figure out how to attract and retain tech talent. Possible solutions include creating innovative recruitment and retention strategies, providing learning and growth opportunities within the organisation, investing more on “potential” than “actual” ability and zooming in on the instrumental role of tech leaders.

With 82% of the ASEAN CEOs concerned about the availability of key skills, according to PwC, how are SEA countries gearing up to bridge the skills gaps?

Understanding what motivates Millennials, as well as how they perceive their employers and their colleagues, is essential to ensuring that organizations can maximize their effectiveness as employees and potential leaders. Millennials have grown up being told they are capable of achieving anything and this confidence means that they crave responsibility early in their careers. They do not shy away from responsibility, and they want to know what needs to be done to earn it. They are also more open to international transfers as part of their career development than any generation that has come before them. They are proficient at using technology and enthusiastic about making it a growing part of their professional lives.

This gives employers an unprecedented opportunity to consider setting clear goals and targets in equipping them with the skillsets they lack. Where appropriate consider progressing people on potential and not always a formulaic set of boxes they have to tick to show they can do the role. If someone is 70% ready to do the job, then that 30% is their personal learning and a big reason for being motivated and wanting to do the job. Clearly this risk needs to be assessed carefully for certain types of roles (i.e. a surgeon!). Employers have traditionally thought “what do we need” and are advised to place as much emphasis and if not more on “what does the employee need”.

With the world becoming more connected and more diverse, do you think businesses will need different types of leadership skills?

With our society becoming more diversified as a result of globalization and technology, businesses will need to find leaders who can keep up with fast-changing competitive demands. They will also need to exercise empathy and humility to deftly maneuver different social settings, bearing in mind that our society is now made of different cultures and races from all over the world.

CEOs and CHROs need to ensure their organizations are investing more in training and upskilling employees and also in allowing for career mobility across the organizations so as to attract and retain talent. Managing the organization’s sense of purpose and to engage the workforce in alignment with business needs is another key area that CHROs will need to prioritize when working with the CEOs. Jobs are rapidly changing and there will be skill gaps, which will require innovative ways to seek untapped talent pools. For example, do companies have relationships with recruiters with overseas networks of overseas nationals, that can return home with some of these much-needed skills? At Robert Walters, we have programs to help overseas talent return home in Southeast Asian countries such as Singapore (Balik Kampung), Indonesia (Pulang Kampung), Vietnam (Come Home Pho Good) and Philippines (Balik Bayan), while in Australia and New Zealand, we try to attract returning antipodeans based in the UK. These have proven to be effective in bridging the skill gap.

Hiring and retaining good people remains key. Companies need to consider what the modern workforce wants, and the areas in which companies can support the growth of their key staff by providing additional learning and training opportunities. Overseas opportunities will remain key for many people so working in a multinational company will be more sought after, and companies should pro-actively raise awareness of these opportunities to employees and potential talent.

Lastly, whilst technology can enable and improve lives, relying too much on it can result in the loss of interpersonal interaction, as people spend more time “tapping” on their devices. Finding that balance to build meaningful and real human relationships among the employees is a key part of ensuring growth, development, success and just as importantly, fun and laughter, in many companies across industries.

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With millennials set to comprise a significant proportion of the global workforce by 2020, how can organizations chart out a strategy to facilitate skilling and re-skilling for them?

Ongoing digitalization that propels business transformation will continue to pervade and generate demand for professionals with the necessary digital skillsets

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Ongoing digitalization that propels business transformation will continue to pervade and generate demand for professionals with the necessary digital skillsets.

It will take time to acquire this knowledge purely through schools. Professionals who wish to acquire these skillsets will need to combine upgrading opportunities with on-the-job training as a more balanced approach.

The countries are aware of the urgency and are reviewing and improving their education systems respectively. For example, Singapore has the Masterplan 4 to prepare local candidates for the current and future job markets. The plan targets the development of 21st century competencies. Malaysia is also undertaking a wideranging review of the entire educational system. This review includes the creation of Technical and Vocational Education and Training (TVET) task force to review how Malaysia trains its youngsters to participate in and capitalize on the opportunities of the Fourth Industrial Revolution (4IR).

What are your top pieces of advice for CEOs and CHROs to align its workers in line with changing work dynamics?

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Building India as a Talent Hub A well-crafted skill development strategy could put India on to the path of being the global marketplace for talent. That may mean rethinking education not just from infrastructure and technology but from the teacher, students and employers’ perspectives

By Abhijit Bhaduri

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Technology in the workplace What kind of a job could you get if you are a fun, creative person who can tell stories?

There may be great job for that skill set combo.

Every industry is getting impacted by new business models, disruptive technologies and entrepreneurs that are unafraid of taking bold risks. Hyper-connectivity makes it possible to work anywhere and that has huge implications for the competitiveness of the talent pool. Co-working spaces become fertile grounds for diverse

perspectives. Artificial Intelligence is changing everything from how Amazon stores boxes in its warehouses to changing healthcare and the role of the physician.

Every role is made up of tasks. Technology simply allows us to disaggregate each task and assign it to machines that can do it faster and efficiently or to human beings who can do it cheaper.

Very soon, we will see that some jobs have disappeared. Emails have changed the postal systems of countries. They deliver more packages for the eCommerce companies than snail mail. Automation may require an estimated 375 million workers to reskill for new jobs by 2030.

New jobs are being created that have never existed before. Being a standup comedian is a thing now. As is the role of a ‘Tweeter-in-Chief ’ that Twitter it looking for to run its Twitter account. The position requires a “fun, creative person with story-telling skills”.

At one level, we have high unemployment, but the employers do not find the right talent for several jobs. In the next decade, large organizations employing large numbers of people will co-exist with a booming set of gig workers and entrepreneurs. India’s talent strategy must have the vision to do this.

Education, skill, re-skill and upskill – at scale Several new jobs will come up that have not existed before. That means rethinking our approach to education. The market for education is 8x the size of the software market. Talent Development is globally a $400 billion market. It is no longer enough to think about skilling the workforce, but to redefine the problem as building skills, re-skilling and upskilling the country. The skills needed to be an entrepreneur are very different from what it takes to succeed as a gig worker. The gig worker needs skills that are different from what employees need. Those who seek to pursue opportunities globally will need additional skills and qualifications. The jobs increasingly need skills of collaboration, communication, creative problem solving and coding.

1. Fix education – identify few teachers who can inspire There are great global benchmarks that we can draw upon. Singapore is a great case in point. In Singapore, school teachers get 100 hours of training a year to keep up to date with the latest techniques. Better to have big classes taught by excellent teachers than smaller ones taught by mediocre ones, is the model. “Master teachers”, train other teachers. Investing in education research helps to improve the outcomes.

Content from successful educational startups like Byju’s and Khan Academy, if used by teachers who are continuously upskilled can prove to be gamechangers for building curiosity and love for learning.

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3. Self-learners are not the norm While many people have signed up for online courses, the completion rates remain abysmally low. Access to content is not the reason why people are not continuously learning. Online learning works as a powerful way for people to build vocational skills and several others. Online learning is less effective for soft skills required at middle to senior levels in the organization. It is not enough to build learners. If one intends to build these skills at scale, one has to build teaching ability in every student.

4. Build self-awareness Self-awareness can be the greatest input that enables people to make informed choices about their career. It helps them to make choices based on their motivations, preferences and values. Knowing their preference for working solo or riskappetite or the negotiation skills, etc. can be valuable inputs in deciding whether one is best suited to be a gig worker or an entrepreneur or be an employee. There are many jobs where it is not possible to have previous experience. If you are applying for a job as a drone technician, it may not have been a job that existed before. How would one train for such a job? Learning ability matters disproportionately more in such matters. The desire to learn continuously is a lead indicator of how easy or difficult it will be to adapt to new technology or roles.

1. Help the individual make informed choices regarding their education, skills, continuous re-skilling and upskilling.

2. Create an educational system (based on research insights) that leverages technology to bring engaging content that

The current government has got a mandate like no one has ever before. It is a chance of a lifetime to leverage Indiaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s demographic advantage and turn it to demographic dividend. In a world driven by skills that are in perpetual beta, staying current is a necessary condition.

Preparing a billion plus learners to learn, get skilled/reskilled and upskilled may be the kind of opportunity no country will ever have.

STORY

2. Build a national database of skills Having a rich database of skills could help build India as a talent hub. All educational qualifications need to be renewed annually. The skill base creates the possibility of using technology to match people to jobs in each profession or city. That could help employers and entrepreneurs decide where they have to look for someone with a certain skill. Supporting that with gamified assessment technology on the mobile makes it possible to take the performance anxiety that exams generate.

teachers can be trained in every year.

3. Encourage mastery and expertise â&#x20AC;&#x201C; not degrees. Each degree must have validity for 3 years. After that the person has to take annual certification tests.

4. Celebrate exceptional teachers. Make it an aspirational career choice.

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Talent Development is globally a $400 billion market. It is no longer enough to think about skilling the workforce, but to redefine the problem as building skills, reskilling and up-skilling the country

About the author

Abhijit Bhaduri is a talent management advisor to leaders who want to keep their organizations competitive. With more than 850,000 followers on social media, he is one of the most widely read HR professionals from India.

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Self-skilling for managers We now live in an ever more rapidly changing world. Without conscious effort to develop, we all stagnate. Here are a few ways through which managers can up-skill themselves

By Clinton Wingrove

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STORY

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t is now clear that, “The key differentiator of sustainably successful organisations is the calibre of their management and leadership”. Managers, are the engine of our organisations. Managers turn visions, missions, values, and strategies into practical plans and then, through their teams, turn those plans into reality. That requires a very large set of core skills. Weakness in any one of those will reduce a manager’s ability to succeed.

In HR, we must take action to ensure excellence in management.

We now live in an ever more rapidly changing world. Without conscious effort to develop, we all stagnate. We lose opportunities to do interesting and challenging work; we lose relationships; we miss out on promotions; … the list is endless. So, what, given the constant pressure to achieve more for less, what can we say to our managers? Here is an open letter that I suggest you can send (and, perhaps even apply to yourself): “Dear Manager or potential Manager, I propose five things (5 Ws) for you to consider, five pieces of advice that will enable you to become good. They are: 1. WHY – Understand (truly feel) why Self Development matters 50% of jobs that exist now will be gone by around 2025, replaced by a similar number about which we currently know nothing.

Gone are the days when loyalty and who you knew alone secured your next move. Gone are the days when your age and experience secured your career. Gone are the days when what you knew secured your career – YouTube, Ted.com and other platforms have commoditised knowledge.

What matters now is the combination of (a) your ability to make valuable con-

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What matters now is the combination of (a) your ability to make valuable contributions through your team, and (b) who knows you have that ability tributions through your team, and (b) who knows you have that ability.

The only person who can develop you is you. So, take time to seriously consider all of the costs to you of not developing and all of the benefits of doing so. Until you truly believe in self-development – you believe it to be both important and urgent you will never invest in it.

2. WHAT – Make sure you know WHAT good and great really look like You cannot develop generally; you can only develop specifically. So, you need to identify the specific skills and knowledge you need, and to focus on acquiring or honing them.

There is a comprehensive set of behaviors or skills that managers need to have in good measure. These skills are clustered into four dimensions which are: • Management – all the skills associated with optimising the use of resources to deliver the vision; making things happen … mainly through others.

• Personal Effectiveness – all the skills associated with optimising personal contributions and impact.

•

•

usiness Acumen – all the skills associB ated with operating in a complex and changing environment, including any job-specific or technical skills that the role demands.

Leadership – leadership is not a role. It is all the skills associated with creating a vision of the future, bringing it alive, and securing the commitment and resources to deliver it.

The profile forms a checklist for success, enabling you to self-assess and to plan specific development activities. (If you are in another profession, locate a suitable checklist for that!) Acquire and hone the comprehensive set of skills as your foundation. You can then use those skills in unique combinations, or develop mastery in a few, to become a truly great manager or leader.

3. The next “W” is, “Have a WAY of managing your development” You develop every single day but, “Is your development creating a better version of you?” or, “Is it reinforcing your current habits and setting you in your ways?” In order to be sure, you need to discipline

yourself to REFLECT, PLAN and then ACT - frequently, not annually!

So, you must keep asking yourself, “How could I use upcoming tasks and experiences to further my own development

You cannot develop generally; you can only develop specifically. So, you need to identify the specific skills and knowledge you need, and to focus on acquiring or honing them

4. WITH - ensure you have on-going support; people and things that are going to work WITH you to make development happen.

Some of these may be technology such as Calendar Reminders, ToDoLists, Collaboration tools, etc … and others may be people. You need to include four types to create: 4.1 Triggers to do the things you don’t currently like to do, don’t want to do, find difficult, or delay doing; 4.2 Waypoints of Checkpoints to help you to track and measure progress; 4.3 Detailed feedback to tell you if what you are doing is working or not, and how well you are progressing; 4.4 Reinforcement and rewards to encourage you to repeat things that worked.

And, lastly, the fifth “W” - you need to have the WILL to make this all happen.

5. Get your head straight – “I WILL take control of my own development” There are three things to consider here: 5.1 Positivity “Most of us are limited more by our negative self-beliefs than we are by our talent.” That is so true. If you don’t believe in you, why should anyone else?

5.2 Perspiration You are the engine room – it’s hot, sweaty and noisy. It’s part of the job – be prepared for it.

5.3 Perseverance Most of us hate being made to do things we don’t want to do but are then often pleased we were made to! Afterall, it is handling the challenges, not displaying the skills that we already have, that produces development.

Apply those five Ws and you will become a happier, less stressed, and more effective manager; a GOOD manager, perhaps even a GREAT manager.

- Your friend in HR.

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3.2. Only then can you PLAN, the second step in the WAY Your plan needs two key components, both kept up-to-date: • The goal – what development success will look like. This should be extremely clear i.e., it should define an observable outcome – a demonstration of new behaviour or knowledge, to a given standard, by a certain date.

• The actions you’ll take to achieve it.

This is where most of us stumble, often looking for the big solutions or training programmes. But the good news is that we rarely need those because: • 70% of our capability is acquired on the job, doing meaningful work and learning from it; • A further 20% is acquired through interactions with others e.g., being coached, engaging in work together, or observing them; • That leaves only 10% being learned from formal activity, much of which is reading or research anyway.

3.3. So, the 3rd part of the WAY to develop is ACT You may argue that you have a learning management system that houses many development videos and materials, and there is YouTube, Ted.com and other platforms. Excellent – you have resources!

But, we all know that access does not lead to behavior change. If it did, on the whole, we would all be fit and healthy … since we generally have the freedom to eat healthily, and to take exercise!

Similarly, most of us genuinely intend to engage in development but rarely do it.

That may be because we allow urgency to drive what we do, rather than importance, or we simply procrastinate.

That process, REFLECT, PLAN, ACT will enable you to apply a systematic approach to your own development. But, you have to set yourself up for success.

So, the fourth idea is - WITH:

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3.1 The first step of the WAY is REFLECT Reflect means, “think deeply about”.

Here are some of the things you need to think deeply about.

First, think about the future demands on your skills, e.g.: • What are the challenges you are going to face?

• What are your aspirations?

• What knowledge and skills will it take to address those? Your comprehensive skills checklist will help.

Then, think about where you are now and how you got here e.g.: • What are your relative strengths (to meet the challenges or realise your aspirations) and are you making best use of them?

• How did you master the skills you already have?

• What are your relative limitations that could hold you back, and what are you doing about them?

• And, lastly, reflect on the resources you have and can commit to your development, especially people: • Who are the 3 to 5 people who will have most impact on your career in the next few years. Are you already building relationships with them?

• Who are the 3 to 5 people who can most help you to develop? How are you going to get them to do so?

and career?” Then, plan it meticulously.

With a bit of practice, planning is the relatively easy bit. It is carrying out the plan that becomes the challenge.

“The best day to start our development has passed. But, today is our next best option.” So, we have to DO IT, to ACT.

About the author

Clinton Wingrove is Director of www.WantToBeGreatManager.com, Director, Principal Consultant, and HR Anarchist at www.ClintonHR.com JULY 2019 |

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Visty Banaji

Dealing with misdemeanor at work A company is known by the way it punishes. Here is how you can spare the rod and save your people

I The road less travelled

ntelligence alone is not nearly enough when it comes to acting wisely."1 I was reminded of these words from 'Crime and Punishment' when I was recently asked to review a case of termination. A highly intelligent management team had ratified the decision to dismiss an employee for what seemed an open and shut case of transgressing the organization’s values.

While I am not at liberty to reveal the details of the case, it turned out that proceeding with the termination would not just have been of questionable fairness, it would have been at variance with the sparkling and well-deserved image of being open and humane that the organization had spent years creating. That such very smart and honest people could not anticipate the consequences of an over-hasty exit prompted me to talk to several HR professionals and line managers on the subject.

One of them, who had seen me in action for a large part of my career, observed that, for all my reputation as a no-nonsense disciplinarian, I had, on more than one occasion, avoided awarding severe

punishments (like dismissals). I thought I owed it to her and to other HR colleagues to explain what were the circumstances when I thought it wiser to step back from the harshest penalties. My reasoning on the subject may well be at variance with some formal principles of jurisprudence but since it has helped me think through many such cases that have come up during the decades I have practiced as an HR professional, I feel it could also be useful to the readers of this column.

Obviously, I will not be dealing with all types of terminations. For instance, handshakes – regardless of their metallic composition – triggered by poor individual performance (hopefully after sufficient opportunities for improvement were given) will be out of the remit of this column. So also, will 'downsizings' or group redundancies (presumably only undertaken as a last resort2). Rather, my focus will be on code of conduct transgressions and other infringements of the company’s rule book that are considered serious enough to merit capital sentencing i.e. terminations. There can, of course, be misconduct that is so egregious that even a dismissal is not sufficient and the person needs to be pursued in courts and elsewhere but clearly such individuals are far beyond the mitigating circumstances we are dealing with here.

Measures of mitigation What first requires checking is whether the person infringed an existing and stated rule of which s/ he was aware. The fundamental legal principle "Nulla poena sine lege" (Translation: No punishment without a law) applies equally to employee misdemeanours and their disciplinary conse-

What first requires checking is whether the person infringed an existing and stated rule of which s/he was aware 60

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quences, thus precluding some vague standard of behaviour in the imagination of the CEO or CHRO from being the basis of an employee being found culpable. Fairness also demands "Nulla poena sine lege praevia": the law or rule should have been previously existing and was not concocted just to nail an individual.

Even when there are serious transgressions, we need to examine the circumstances and triggers around the events to determine the varying degrees of guilt and the consequential stringency of the punishments they entail. Which mitigating arguments should we admit and which should we dismiss out of hand? The answer is simple to conceptualize though its application demands a degree of mature judgement that is difficult to acquire without years of application. There are, in my opinion, three considerations that can help us assess the guilt-worthiness of an act in the corporate context. These are: • • •

the Intentionality, the Interest and the Impact

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associated with the action. While my explanation of each of these necessarily veers to the extremes, obviously there are gradations at every point of the continuum in between.

Perhaps the most obvious mitigator of guilt is whether the action was consciously intended by the perpetrator. We do not blame someone as much for a slip that has proven costly for the company as we do if the person committed it deliberately.

Frequently, however, even if the initial act of commission or omission was a genuine mistake, the effort to cover it up is an intended deception that brings higher culpability than the original error. Also, oversights should not be judged to be on par with intended acts simply because the agent had proclivities (that led to the action) but did nothing to check them. I, for one, find it difficult to hold Oedipus morally blameworthy for invading the personal space of his father and getting overaffectionate with his mother (both unknowingly) simply because he was temperamentally choleric as well as arrogant and hadn’t curbed those tendencies over the years.

Slightly more counterintuitive is the idea that a person should be held less culpable if the action was committed disinterestedly, for altruistic reasons or for a worthwhile cause, than if it was done for personal aggrandizement or nepotistic gains. Would we not think worse of Jean Valjean if, instead of breaking a baker’s window to steal bread for feeding his widowed sister and her seven starving children3, he had broken a jeweler’s window because that was his way of supporting his own lavish lifestyle? Of course, the disinterest, and hence exculpability, would have been even higher had there been greater degrees of separation between him and the beneficiaries. But the Valjean case illustrates another aspect of interest which has a vital bearing on our evaluation of the guilt associated with an act. It arises from the direness of the need the action serves. In the

Fairness also demands "Nulla poena sine lege praevia": the law or rule should have been previously existing and was not concocted just to nail an individual illustrative instance, we would be less inclined to excuse Jean Valjean if his theft were of toys for his affluent sister’s children. By the same token, the transgression an employee commits out of fear, for saving her or his skin, is less condemnable than the same action taken for personal enrichment or competitive malice. It is for this reason that cases of proven sexual harassment or major fraud are generally beyond the pale as far as mitigation is concerned.

Perhaps the most controversial suggestion, at least to good deontological moral philosophers if not to good practicing HR managers, is to moderate the evaluation of guilt depending on the consequences the action has caused. My arguments about Intentionality and Interest in the previous two paragraphs are in consonance with the Kantian view that the motivation behind an act matters hugely. Where we part ways is in my belief that motivation is not all that matters – the results from the action should also have a bearing on our judgement. Fortunately, I am not alone in challenging the Königsberg clock and will take the support of the philosopher Thomas Nagel to JULY 2019 |

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buttress my side of the argument: "If someone has had too much to drink and his car swerves onto the sidewalk, he can count himself morally lucky if there are no pedestrians in its path. If there were, he would be to blame for their deaths, and would probably be prosecuted for manslaughter. But if he hurts no one, although his recklessness is exactly the same, he is guilty of a far less serious legal offence and will certainly reproach himself and be reproached by others far less severely." Most CHROs intuitively turn Nelsonic eyes to infringements by their senior colleagues and the CEO when the consequences are non-existent or negligible and I have little problem with that. Where I pick a quarrel with them is when they turn into deontological demons and throw the rule book and the kitchen sink at more junior employees in similar circumstances. As Publilius Syrus wrote two millennia ago, "The greater a man is in power above others, the more he ought to excel them in virtue."

These three mitigators have a multiplicative relationship in determining whether an individual is to be exonerated or dealt with more leniently. For instance, however great the cost to the company, if the employee made a genuine mistake, the severity of the offence would stand greatly reduced in my book.

Even when there are serious transgressions, we need to examine the circumstances and triggers around the events to determine the varying degrees of guilt and the consequential stringency of the punishments they entail Better than his crown What if the measures of mitigation listed above do not fully exonerate the culprit? Is s/he doomed to dismissal? Possibly, but not yet definitely. After the courts of the land have established someone’s guilt, many countries around the world (including India) permit the President or similar Head of State to pardon the person. Which is why perhaps the most moving plea for clemency ever penned says this about mercy: ‘T is mightiest in the mightiest; it becomes The throned monarch better than his crown: ...mercy is above this sceptred sway; It is enthronèd in the hearts of kings, It is an attribute to God himself; And earthly power doth then show likest God’s When mercy seasons justice.6 The power to pardon is one all CEOs should guard jealously and use judiciously. I will not presume to advise them on the considerations they

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should apply but I will point out that forgiveness doesn’t necessarily diminish a leader.7 Frequently, by the time a case reaches a CEO’s desk, it is framed as an accusation by a senior manager against a far more junior employee. At such times the CEO could do worse than recall the words of that gifted leader of men, Napoleon Buonaparte: "I am here to do justice to all, and the weaker party is especially entitled to my protection".8 Several progressive organizations have gone beyond having a well-established process for making internal appeals to having an independent external ombudsperson. This ensures a degree of objectivity, particularly when the employees charged are at the CXO level or if the CEO has been responsible for taking the initial punitive decision for any other reason.

Ombudspersons (and CEOs for that matter) do not have some blinding insight about justice that is denied to HR practitioners – though they do usually have much more experience in dealing with punitive action and its consequences. They are, therefore, likely to apply factors of mitigation or condemnation similar to the ones we considered in the previous section. What should distinguish their application of mind is the possibility of triggering clemency at a lower threshold of the mitigating factor provided they can intuit a spark of genuine remorse coupled with the possibility of rehabilitation. It goes without saying that declining to award maximal punishment does not mean the perpetrator is let off scot free – just that the severity of the punishment is reduced.

Judging like Jeffries George Jeffreys is remembered today as 'the Hanging Judge', for his severity and bias. We shan’t enter the debate on whether he deserved that characterization or not9, but clearly it is a reputation some corporate CEOs do not mind acquiring. Assuming there are not some basic psychopathic tendencies at work (recent research shows "a weak positive correlation for psychopathic tendencies and leadership emergence, a weak negative association for psychopathic tendencies and leadership effectiveness, and a moderate negative correlation for psychopathic tendencies and transformational leadership"10) their logic presumably rests on some version of Niccolò Machiavelli’s advice that "It is better to be feared than loved, if you cannot be both". There are at least two important reasons CHROs should stand up for reasoned reviews of culpability and proportionate punishments even when pressured in the direction of summary sentencing by a baying boss or business partner.

Organizations where severe punishments are the inevitable consequence of transgressions, develop climates of fear11 and political manipulation.

Neither of these is conducive to innovation and openness that are the avowed cultural pillars most corporations espouse.12 Moreover, making the punishment a virtually programmed consequence of the act reduces the role of human agency13 in the judgement and dehumanizes the image of the

Several progressive organizations have gone beyond having a wellestablished process for making internal appeals to having an independent external ombudsperson. This ensures a degree of objectivity

When fairness demands firmness If any readers have been led to believe this to be an argument against all severe punishment in the corporate setting, I must hasten to disabuse them.

Strong as the arguments are against punishments within society as a whole14, I believe it would be Utopian in the extreme to wish them away. Matters are no different in the corporate world and I have pointed out in one of my earlier columns what can go wrong when certain types of organizations are culturally averse to meting out terminations.15 In another column I have stressed why a discreet parting of ways is not a harsh enough penalty when the transgression is extreme and the punishment needs to be exemplary.16 There are also many occasions where retaining someone whose record is besmirched is not doing any favours to that person.

A totally fresh start in another setting is a far better break for that individual too. What I have attempted to do here is provide some don’ts and dos before awarding severe punishments. Let me summarize.

Punishments should not be awarded heedlessly or mechanically, in blind pursuit of "Fiat justitia, pereat mundus" (Translation: Let justice be done, though the world perish). Much of this column has been devoted to the kind of mitigating factors that should give us pause in our pursuit of punishment.

And when we do go ahead, we must visualize the impact the punishment will have on the individual as well as on the others in the organization.

The road less travelled

company and its management in the eyes of all employees – present and prospective.

Generally, organizations that do not mitigate punishments based on criteria of the kind we have been reviewing tend to use the upper scale of available penalties for each offence. This leads quite naturally to huge amounts of effort and subterfuge being expended by employees on covering up even minor lapses. Not only does this preclude others learning from the misstep, it prompts even worse transgressions being committed in the process of hiding the first one. As Confucius pointed out, it is cover-ups that convert mistakes into crimes.

The cultural consequences of such incentives for dishonesty are obvious.

Rightly or wrongly, many employees see HR taking a ghoulish relish in dispensing punishments.

It is an image (hopefully unjustified) that we should aim to shed. To continue Portia’s plea: "In the course of justice, none of us should see salvation"5. As HR professionals, we claim our dealings with people both require and reward us with a higher empathetic sensitivity than other managers. But this empathy can’t only display itself while celebrating successes. It should also transmit to us some part of the anguish and grief we cause to fellow employees when we award them punishments – however justified they may be.

Each punishment is also an opportunity for introspection. What policies, leadership and culture, which we as HR leaders had a hand in creating or continuing, contributed to the misdemeanor – if ever so indirectly? Coming even closer home, can we really put our hands to our hearts and claim that, if all our own undiscovered errors and missteps were brought to light, we would be less deserving of punishment than the person we are 'sentencing'?

If not, let us think again before signing off on that order to cast stones at the sinner.17

About the author

Visty Banaji is the Founder and CEO of Banner Global Consulting (BGC) JULY 2019 |

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In this special story, read about how leading companies like Accenture, IBM, Ingersoll Rand, Deutsche India and TATA Communications are solving the need of continuous learning

By People Matters Editorial

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Tackling the continuous learning challenge

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The modern learner is constrained for time. With options like work from home, and working out of remote locations, disbursed workers are more common in teams. Learners today need to have access to personalized courses, modes of learning and a strong alignment with their current work or aspirational goal.

From a company’s standpoint, having access to the right content – amidst the variety of service providers is a challenge. And catering to a wide variety of learning preferences is another challenge. Creating the right environment and enabling a learning culture is another key challenge that companies need to navigate.

“A major obstacle which L&D professionals face is developing ownership and accountability for learners as many lack the sense of connectedness and personal investment in the learning process,” said Shirin Salis, Vice-President-HR at Ingersoll Rand.

From a one-size-fits-all approach to focus on ‘engagement and fun’ With the goal of personalizing learning for the role and for the individual, companies are taking various steps to ensure that they provide all the tools required to support their employees.

From offering on-demand content, connected classrooms, podcasts, articles, virtual classrooms, social learning tools, 24x7 interfaces, there are a number of tools that employees now have at their disposal.

“When employees can access a varied set of learning tools at their fingertips these days, the problem we need to solve for is how do we provide individualized, relevant and engaging content in real time,” asked Madhavi Lal, HR Head at Deutsche Bank AG, India.

So how are companies tackling the challenge?

At IBM, the company is leveraging advanced technology systems. IBM Watson’s cognitive capabilities help make smarter recommendations, improving search results, providing ever better learning suggestions to employees.

At Tata Communications, the company’s portal enabled by algorithms helps employees search skills they want to learn and need. Managers and leaders can assign certain skills and related programs for their teams to pursue.

Apart from sophisticated algorithms, companies are also making learning engaging and fun.

Shirin said, “Making training sessions fun and creative can ease the overall learning process.

With fun sessions, we have seen employees begin

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The challenge

If businesses need to grow and prosper, they need to figure out how to enable their talent to learn at the speed of business

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f there’s one term that is often repeated in the context of technology, it is disruption.

Businesses across the world have had to deal with continuous digital disruption.

They’ve had to re-jig their business models, reskill their workforce, and find ways to innovatively engage with their customers. This shift has meant that companies have access to data and insights like never before. All of which is fueled by an array of new technologies at work including: IoT, Software Defined Networks, Artificial Intelligence, Analytics, Cloud enablement, and Mobile based interfaces.

This shift is creating a new marketplace for talent. It is also radically transforming all jobs – right from human resources, finance, business development to even leadership. It is estimated that every 12- 18 months, Software engineers need to upgrade themselves. Research by Deloitte has shown that jobs in marketing, sales, manufacturing, law, accounting and finance have similar demands.

86 percent of respondents who participated in Deloitte’s 2019 Global Human Capital Trends survey said that they must reinvent their ability to learn.

If businesses need to grow and prosper, they need to figure out how to enable their talent to learn at the speed of business.

To understand the strategic shifts that companies are making to tackle the learning challenge, and to identify key trends, People Matters spoke to business leaders in five companies – Accenture, Ingersoll Rand, TATA Communications, IBM and Deutsche Bank India. In this special story, we take a look at key insights that they had to share.

Aadesh Goyal CHRO, Tata Communications

“Employee feedback and business focus have been the key driving factors to build a successful continuous learning culture” JULY 2019 |

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Madhavi Lall HR Head, Deutsche Bank AG, India

“We encourage a dynamic dialogue between managers and employees-matching employee aspirations and development areas to organization goals and skill requirements”

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to form their learning mindset even before the learning session starts. Creative learning is not just good for encouraging productivity and new solutions but is also highly effective in high-level learnings.”

Continuous learning needs continuous feedback Dynamic learning needs can only be identified when there is regular input. Companies are designing processes and technology to ensure that their learning courses is in alignment with the business needs.

Speaking about the approach at Deutsche Bank, Madhavi shared, “We follow an integrated approach for managing performance and development, based on regular, meaningful two-way conversations, which encompasses the development, career pathing and future recommendations along with other performance parameters like contributions and capabilities. We encourage a dynamic dialogue between managers and employees-match-

Srikanth NR Managing Director, Lead - HR, Accenture Advanced Technology Centers in India

“Employees need to continuously invest in learning to stay relevant and organizations should enable this through a content-rich ecosystem” 66

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ing employee aspirations and development areas to organization goals and skill requirements.”

“To ensure that there is a continuous quest to learn, trainings and development initiatives are aligned with business strategy and the L&D team engages with business leaders and function heads through the year to align learning solutions,” said Aadesh Goyal, CHRO, Tata communications.

To understand the learning requirements at an individual and team level, the L&D team at Tata Communications follows a two-step process - Development Inputs from Coaching Conversations and Customized Business Requests (CBRs) – Functional trainings identified by employees and/or their managers that demand customized learning.

Apart from coaching, and feedback from various stakeholders, companies also track metrics that are relevant to the business. At Ingersoll, the company follows a three level assessment which includes the improvement in skill and behaviors and impact on KRAs. At Accenture, the alignment with the business is assessed through the career levels. Just as the company curated several learning paths across career levels spanning various dimensions of skills and roles, at every stage, it measures their proficiency levels and coaches them to move to higher levels. Above all, it has also linked performance rewards, work experiences, and recognition for those who achieve higher proficiency levels.

Don’t stop at learning alone, develop processes for praxis “Learning a new skill can be time-consuming, sometimes from many months up to years, and considerable energy goes into it. It would thus be a challenge to make learning stick with the learner who is deeply engraved with old habits,” said Shirin.

Companies are ensuring that the learning programs are supplemented with projects, mentorship and on-the-job assignments.

“To succeed, organizations need to offer compelling new experiences, establish new focus, build new expertise and devise new ways of working.

Business leaders face a stark choice: Either digitally reinvent their enterprises, or watch their businesses decay”

“Skills are transforming at the same speed as technologies. The need of the hour is to maintain the pace by constantly reskilling,” said Chaitanya N Sreenivas (Chinni), Vice President and HR Head for IBM India and South Asia states. At IBM, the company also worked towards aligning the learning mandate to create a more inclusive talent workforce.

Rebooting and refreshing the learning strategy is necessary to respond to market needs and technology shifts. Leading companies assess their approach to learning periodically.

“To keep ourselves relevant in this changing world, we review and reboot our learning and development strategies annually as it gives us enough time to analyze and understand employee engagement and learning patterns and make relevant changes accordingly. It also provides us enough time to collect employee feedback and make a more informed decision about refreshing our learning strategies,” added Shirin.

The role of L&D All of the shifts in process and strategy are changing the role of the L&D function itself, not only is the function going to become more consultative, data-driven and strategic to the business, it is becoming dynamic and experience focused.

Companies are already experimenting with job roles such as Product Managers to help build the key learning products with a focus on improving features, assessing what’s working and what’s adding value. Crafting a learning culture that is engaging, fun, and receptive to feedback will be instrumental in emotional investment in learning, which in turn, enables building a strong learning habit.

Shirin Salis Vice-President-HR at Ingersoll Rand

“Continuous learning is about finding and gaining opportunities which are embedded in work and which are seamlessly integrated into day to day work of employees. It is realtime and also justin-time supporting the performance of employees as they go about their work”

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s t o r y

Chaitanya N Sreenivas (Chinni) Vice President and HR Head for IBM India and South Asia

Re-boot and refresh your strategy as a continuous process

s p e c i a l

From talent platforms that help employees implement skills, to volunteering in new projects, leading companies are identifying ways to support their employees. At Tata Communications, the company instituted Action learning projects that enable employees to practice skills they learn at a workshop or in online courses. Apart from that, they also created a ‘project marketplace’ - which is a type of freelance skill network within the company.

“At Ingersoll Rand, the company works towards aligning continuous learning to find and gain opportunities which are embedded in work and which are seamlessly integrated into day to day work of employees. It is real-time and also just-intime supporting the performance of employees as they go about their work,” said Shirin.

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Gautam Nabar

When and why do entrepreneurs need to invest in the Human Resource function?

Investing in HR is not just adding people in a function or buying the latest HRIS, it’s a shift in mind-set of the leadership. How the function shifts, is influenced by vision of the entrepreneur, growth of the business and its commitment to people

HR

func t i o n

When the entrepreneur decides to scale up his organization, it’s time to establish processes and systems. These systems enable the leadership to take people related decisions

P

ranesh, Mr. Shah, his father and I, were in a meeting when he put this question to me. “Why do we need to invest in HR? We already have three HR staff, what more do we need?”

Mr. Shah had started his chemical manufacturing business 30 years ago and had grown it to a 400 cr company. He had done this with 1 person to manage payroll and administrative issues, so his bewilderment at “invest more in HR” was understandable.

At that point, Pranesh explained how a good HR function is critical. He had obviously been exposed to the ‘professional way’ of work at his internship and wanted to replicate a similar approach in his business.

Pranesh had ambitious plans for the business, he wanted to double the revenues in 5 years, explore international markets, set up more manufacturing sites and diversify into other areas. He wanted to look for strategic tie ups internationally.

He was clear that they would need to change a few things. “We cannot grow at that rate by doing

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the same things we did for the last 30 years” he would say to me.

“I want you to help us build this organization for the future, to make this organization sustainable and growth oriented,” he said.

“But he is an HR person, what will he do?” Mr. Shah interjected.

It is true, whenever the question of growth presents itself, entrepreneurs plan to increase sales, make deals, appoint sales personnel, increase manufacturing base, cut costs. They are perfectly legit ways and deliver the required results.

But Pranesh mentioned the word “sustainable”.

That changes the game. When growth gets a sustainability vector, it brings numerous dimensions that can be addressed only by an organization building mindset. It differentiates the ones who only want to grow business in terms of revenues and profitability alone and the ones who want to build an organization. It’s what separates the boys from men!

Why is investment in HR such a big deal?

Investment in HR is a commitment to investing in people. It is a big deal because, • Unlike a lot of other investments, this one takes time to provide returns.

• The returns may not always be in monetary terms, they are more in kind (talent and processes) and sensory (culture).

• It requires entrepreneurs with ‘a vision’ to invest early on in their people.

• It also requires a change in the way people are seen in the organization.

Investing in HR is not just adding people in a function or buying the latest HRIS, it’s a shift in mindset of the leadership. A shift in the way the leader envisions the future of the company and how people are at the core of this strategy.

When does an entrepreneur begin to invest in HR? When to invest in HR is a chicken and egg question. It is really upon the entrepreneur. A few pointers I can offer:

Scale

Decision making & accountability They take away the burden of decision making from the person and system enable it. They render transparency around decision making and the outcomes, for management and employees. They play a huge role in empowering the employees.

“If I know the outcome of my decision, then I can be held accountable for the result” Pranesh was telling me how promotions and salary increases in the company were decided by his father and he found it difficult to understand why certain decisions were made with regard to certain people.

He was keen to shift the scenario to where he and his father only decide on 5% exceptions and the others are decided by a Reward Policy / Process that would apply for 95% of the people.

Measurability Processes and systems render measurement of outcomes.

One of the questions that I asked Pranesh was about his employee cost/revenue ratio. At first he did not understand why I was asking. I urged him

HR

People in a business are a resource, a living breathing resource. This resource, needs to be planned in a manner that aligns with the goals of the organization

func t i o n

Systems and processes are required to manage scale. There are successful million dollar businesses that are run by a team of 4 people. They do not require HR processes or systems.

The purpose of a process is to manage scale, simple.

When the entrepreneur decides to scale up his organization, it’s time to establish processes and systems. These systems enable the leadership to take people related decisions.

All systems that we have heard about right from the administrative, time and attendance to the more strategic, leadership development and performance management functions enable people related decisions in organization.

Processes allow us to manage resources (which are limited) to suit the demands put on them.

For eg: How will you now distribute your salary increase budget among people in the organization when hiking salaries is going to prove expensive?

This decision will hinge on the kind of talent development processes the company develops over time.

Apart from managing scale, what else do HR processes and systems deliver?

Change of philosophy A focus on developing people and taking quality people decisions reflects the mindset of the entrepreneur. It says that he / she is keen on building an organization, identifying the right people to work with and that they value the people who work with them. It is a shift from running a business where people are treated as “hands” to valuing them as integral to the success of the organization.

Strategy People in a business are a resource, a living breathing resource. This resource, needs to be planned in a manner that aligns with the goals of the organization.

Pranesh wanted to explore international markets, he would require International Business Development skills that were not present in the company.

When those skills would be required is dictated by the strategy. Where can he find those skills will be determined by whether he can develop someone from his current employees or whether he would need to hire.

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to get the numbers only to reveal that his current ratio was 13.5 percent.

When this ratio increases, the business model becomes unsustainable (especially manufacturing). Rising employment cost/revenue ratio is an indication that the costs are increasing at a faster pace than revenues.

This is just one of the examples of what can be measured. Other HR metrics offer a view into the organization and the issues that may arise. Measurability also allows us to benchmark ourselves. It aids to understand how competitive we are.

Culture While culture is established at the very inception of the business, the HR function brings it to the awareness of the organization. The spirit in which policies and processes are designed, the manner in which people decisions are taken and importantly, how people are treated.

Stage 2. (Personnel Administration) There were two manufacturing sites and about 150 workmen. Support needed to manage compliance and liaise with unions. Apart from that the staff had grown to 30 people including a few geographically spread in the sales function.

There was one dedicated person to manage all administrative support to employees and workmen who was also in-charge of administrative arrangements. The administration function’s primary responsibility was to maintain order and records (leaves, personnel files, memos).

HR

func t i o n

Culture is instrumental in shaping the ‘way of being’ of the organization. It also shapes the manner in which the organization advances.

A lot of critical decisions on hiring talent and developing and retaining people would be made basis the culture of the organization Culture is instrumental in shaping the ‘way of being’ of the organization. It also shapes the manner in which the organization advances. A lot of critical decisions on hiring talent and developing and retaining people would be made basis the culture of the organization.

Culture is a key determinant on what kind of people the organization attracts.

How does an entrepreneur build the HR function? What comes first and what can he do later?

I would like to put this in context of Pranesh’s organization and how their HR function has grown. Let’s look at it stage wise.

Stage 1. (No personnel Management) The business was set up with a single small manufacturing unit. There were a total of 50 workmen and 4 staff including Mr. Shah. The only administrative activity was to pay salary at the end of the month in cash and keep records of 70

the same. Arrange for cleaning of premises etc.

Issues around compliance were all taken care by the accounts manager. Most workers were casual labour and wages were paid on a weekly basis.

Operating Belief: Need get things started and with few costs. Multi task across functions and aim to provide basics.

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Operating Belief: Provide basic support to people. Manage day to day issues around grievances etc.

Stage 3. (Basic Personnel Management) With 4 sites and 300 people there are 3 people in the HR function but are located at respective manufacturing sites. 2 of the personnel are engaged in managing demand and supply of labour at the plants, managing issues with the union and taking care of compliances and liaising with local authorities.

The resource at the corporate office consolidates leave records and provides input for payroll.

Some form of appraisal process has been initiated on paper forms. These forms are collected and the ratings are used to pay out annual increases. The resource also recruits for vacancies that are put up by managers or HODs. Operating Belief: Due to a certain scale, dedicated experienced staff needs to run the processes.

Growing complexity warrants some investment in skilled personnel mgmt.

Stage 5. (Strategic Human Resources) HR is no longer a support function. It is integrated into the business strategy. HR drives business decisions through people, analytics and data. The focus of the function shifts from running processes alone to focusing on culture, leadership development, values.

The focus is not about delivering performance today but sustaining performance and growth tomorrow. HR focuses on sustainability initiatives, drives awareness about community impact, works with leadership to pave the way for the future with a focus on values and vision.

The purpose of the business acquires a larger form other than to make money.

Operating Belief: The function is the keeper of the culture and extends the organization values to the community that it serves.

Pranesh’s organization is at Stage 3 and with all that he has said, it seems they want to move to Stage 4.

func t i o n

This is a conscious move towards a more structured HR function. It is an acknowledgement that HR requires specialised skills and expertise. There is differentiation between administration and HR and Industrial Relations as distinct skills.

It is at this stage that the business recognises the growing complexity and scale that needs to be managed. There is a need to understand talent requirements, skills from a strategic perspective.

Investments are made to develop skills for the future, fresh talent is acquired. There is a consciousness about being recognised as an employer of choice. Processes are designed that support talent acquisition, engagement and development.

The organization does not aim to fill current vacancies only, but invests in acquiring future managerial and leadership talent.

Salary increases are no more an annual affair but are integrated into the Performance Management System. There is a shift from “compensation and benefits” to “total rewards” herein talent is positioned basis their skills and performance and skill requirement in business.

Employee experience becomes a vital metric.

Operating Belief: The organization, as it prepares for the future, needs to attract and retain good people and be viewed as an employer of choice. HR facilitates performance and identifies potential through robust processes and systems.

HR

Stage 4. (Effective HR Management & Development)

Every system will take its own time to adapt to new ways of doing things but the thrust comes from entrepreneurs who are ready to take on the future with courage under their wings and an eye on the future

How long will that take?

It is best not to think about this in a linear manner (only in terms of time). How the function shifts, is influenced by, vision of the entrepreneur, growth of the business and its commitment to people.

But for the organization that wants to grow and in a manner that is self-sustaining, the Human Resources function will play a critical role.

Every system will take its own time to adapt to new ways of doing things but the thrust comes from entrepreneurs who are ready to take on the future with courage under their wings and an eye on the future.

About the author

Gautam Nabar is the Deputy General Manager - Human Resources at Raymond Limited

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Acing new-age

talent acquisition

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The People Matters Talent Acquisition Awards 2019 recognized the best practices in talent acquisition and recruitment at the People Matters Talent Acquisition Conference 2019. The winners have proven that integrating innovation and creativity in the hiring and recruitment process is critical to attract and retain the best talent. Here’s a look at the organizations that took home the top awards

By Manav Seth

O

The following are the winners of the People Matters Talent Acquisition Awards 2019: 1. Best in Campus Recruitment Infosys 2. Best in Candidate Experience ANZ 3. Best in Diversity and Inclusion PNB MetLife India Insurance Co. 4. Best in Employer Branding Cybage Software 5. Best in Recruitment Technology and Analytics Bajaj Allianz General Insurance

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People Matters congratulates all the winners! The awards have shown the spotlight on the importance of adopting new-age talent acquisition and recruitment practices to win the talent war. We thank all the applicants and winners who took the time to be a part of this insightful process. A special note of thanks to all the jury members who went out of their way to oversee the complete application and awards process.

Watch this space for updates on the People Matters Talent Acquisition Awards 2020 and other People Matters conferences, awards, events and discussions.

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rganizations and leaders around the world are betting on quality talent to help them ride through the digital wave. Today, attracting and retaining the best talent is indispensable for the success of an organization and is an essential ingredient to be future-ready. In the past few years, several organizations have gone back to the drawing board and overhauled their hiring and employee policies to meet today’s business and workforce demands. These new-age talent acquisition and recruitment policies are usually comprehensive in their scope, effectively utilize the latest technology and strive to make the hiring process more inclusive, fair and objective.

The People Matters Talent Acquisition Awards aim to recognize organizations that have innovative practices and achieved excellence in talent acquisition. Particularly, the Talent Acquisition Awards felicitate organizations that have designed an engaging candidate experience; developed a strong employer brand; used technology and analytics effectively; promoted diversity and inclusion in their hiring policies; and undertaken successful campus recruitment drives. These categories reflect the changing face of talent acquisition and hiring, thus, helping identify the best practices in the domain.

The People Matters Talent Acquisition Awards 2019 received over 240 applications in total and after a two-month long screening process, resulted in 15 finalists making it to the last round. The applications were vetted by a diverse and experienced jury panel, which consisted of staffing experts, CHROs and CEOs from varied industries. Three shortlisted applicants from each of the five award categories gave a final presentation to the jury on 29th May 2019 at the People Matters Talent Acquisition Conference 2019 in Mumbai. The winners in all the five award categories were selected by the jury unanimously and announced on the same at the end of the conference. The People Matters Talent Acquisition Conference 2019 brought together industry leaders, experts and managers to participate in stimulating sessions and discussions in the domain of innovative, new-age talent acquisition trends.

Talent Acquisition Awards 2019 Jury Members • RajeshwarTripathi, Chief People Officer, Mahindra & Mahindra • GajendraChandel, Former President HR, Tata Motors • Sudeep Ralhan, Head HR, Walmart Labs • Rohit Thakur, Head HR, Accenture • Sanjeev Somasundaram, APAC-Head Programs Staffing, Google • Sanjay Behl, CEO, Raymond Limited • Abhishek Sen, CHRO, MyntraJabong • Amit Prakash, CHRO, Marico India • Manisha J Agarwal, CHRO, Puma India

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Infosys Limited

Best in

Campus Recruitment ition Awar Acquis ds 2 ent 019 Tal

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ith an increasing demand for top talent that is skilled in new-age digital skills, particularly in the IT industry, employers are combating the challenge of shrinking talent pools. To ensure that Infosys had access to a steady flow of quality talent, Infosys set its sight on reinventing the entire supply chain.

The objectives were vastly different in the USA, where it had to start from scratch, and in India, where it had to augment the knowledge levels of candidates, enhance candidate experience further and deploy innovative campus hiring practices.

Sweeping changes were made to the existing campus recruitment policies and processes in the organization to emerge as a leader in campus recruitment. Here’s a look at the organization’s campus recruitment practices in USA and India.

The objective The end-goal was to build local talent pools in the USA and position Infosys as an employer of choice locally. In a market with low unemployment rates, increasing skill gap and inflating salaries, the organization focused on hiring and growing local talent within the organization by creating a dynamic and sustainable campus recruitment program, building the necessary training and development infrastructure and targeted hiring 2,000 campus recruits in the financial years FY 18 and 19.

On the other hand, since Infosys is already an established name in campus recruitment drives in India, the goal was to attract the best talent, sustain a continuous flow of fresh talent, faster deployment to projects and digitization of the complete hiring process.

The intervention To lay a strong foundation of the program in the USA, details regarding the compensation, benefits, engagement, background check and other hiring processes were finalized keeping in mind the best prac74

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Championing campus recruitment in India and USA: Infosys Limited Over the last two years, Infosys has set up an active campus recruitment program in the USA from scratch and completely digitized its campus recruitment drives in India tices in the industry. Job postings were promoted in more than 400 schools, and an extensive effort was put towards cultivating strong partnerships with universities and community colleges. Student engagement was a critical component of the program and several events, both internal and external, were organized towards the same end.

The company’s landing page for recruitment, social media content, printed promotional material were also aligned with the new goals of the program to ensure an allround engagement. A campus ambassador program was also run to leverage existing student networks in the colleges.

The innovative practices followed by Infosys in both India and the US have generated impressive results The organization was acutely aware that campus recruitment programs could not go on as usual in India and required significant restructuring to deliver on the intended objectives. The first step was to envision a completely digital recruitment process, followed by a conscious effort to enhance the just-in-time hiring ecosystem. To digitize the entire process, in addition to adopting a paperless approach and consciously focusing on elevating the candidate experience, a mobile interview app was launched to ensure a smooth transition from the previous system. Furthermore, Infosys went several steps ahead, touching the very root of the supply chain by launching InfyTQ, an online training, engagement and certification platform, to enlarge and enable the vast talent pool available in the country but seldom get opportunities to appear for recruiting drives of employers. InfyTQ provided with

the talent pool an anytime, anywhere access to curated training content presented in a learn-by-doing mode of enablement. With an app and a desktop version, students get an opportunity to enable themselves and take advantage of a free but top quality learning and certification platform from a leader. In addition, the MyInfy App was also launched to engage young campus recruits, giving them a sneak-peek into the company’s working and culture and also apprise them of the latest developments in Infosys.

In addition to building an attractive internship program for students, niche roles of ‘Power Programmer’, ‘Systems Engineer Specialist’, ‘Analyst’, and other domainspecific roles were also created.

The impact The innovative practices followed by Infosys in both India and the US have generated impressive results. In the USA, 2,276 fresh local employees have been hired in the two years for five roles – exceeding the target, excellent relations have been developed with reputable STEM colleges near Infosys hubs and partnerships with Trinity College have been established to hire all graduate from all streams to the organization. Sixty-two percent of the graduates hired have their major in Computers or Engineering, and a balanced mix has been maintained between hireto-train (63 percent) and train-to-hire (37 percent) recruits. On the back of the success the program has achieved, the target for FY 20 has been set at 2,500.

In India as well, the changes made to attract top talent consistently have delivered exceptional results. More than 3,500 students have been offered an internship in their final semester to ensure a faster development in projects, more than 3,00,000 students have registered with the InfyTQ platform, the entire campus recruitment process has been digitized and nearly 50 percent gender diversity has been achieved.

ANZ

Best in

Candidate Experience Award ition Awar Acquis ds 2 ent 019 Tal

A

Despite being effective, the previous TA program at ANZ required high manual effort and was lengthy, which necessitated an overhaul. New systems and processes were needed to focus on the candidate needs, enhanced candidate engagement and improve the efficiency of the entire hiring process. It was clear that digital technology and human-centered design thinking had to play a crucial role in creating a new recruitment program.

The intervention In 2018, the organization adopted a ‘New Way of Working (NWOW)’ and redesigned the talent acquisition and onboarding processes as a part of the same. Firstly, the ‘Recruitment’ function was renamed the ‘Joiners and Movers’ and a new recruitment program, with a focus on enhancing the experience at all three candidates stages – assessment, interview and

onboarding – was rolled out. The new program used digital technology and a human-centered design thinking approach to automate the candidate journey. This transformation can be broken down into the following stages: • Revamping the application and engagement process: The ‘Opportunities’ page on the company website and the role mandates were redesigned, and a gender-neutral software system was implemented.

• Digitizing test, assessments and interviews: AI-powered video inter-

The new recruitment program has helped ANZ provide a seamless, pleasant and comfortable experience to their candidates views and personality assessment tests were conducted to determine the success ratio at work for each candidate; structured in-person interviews followed these tests. The last 10 minutes of the interview are dedicated to providing the candidate with constructive feedback.

• Robust feedback mechanism: Candidates can give immediate feedback after each round using QR codes, and the voice of customer survey has been implemented based on the net promoter score (NPS) to track feedback and improve engagement.

• Simpler onboarding solutions: Introduction of e-offer letters, e-offer acceptance and digital signatures to simplify the onboarding process. Plus, pre-joining candidate engagement to ensure readiness from day one.

However, hiring managers had to be trained to shift from a process-driven recruitment process to a meaningful and engaging recruitment experience. Similarly, the transition from pen and paper-based assessment tests to digital and remote tests required a user-friendly interface, strong security measures and feature-rich tools.

Thus, a feedback mechanism using the NPS methodology collects feedback from the candidate to continually improve the process.

The impact The new recruitment program has helped ANZ provide a seamless, pleasant and comfortable experience to their candidates.

Today, ANZ has 100 percent digital, remote and proctored assessments that can be taken from any device with a camera and a microphone. The following are some of the other notable achievements of the new recruitment program:

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The objective

ANZ overhauled its recruitment program using digital technology and design thinking to make it experience-driven

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NZ, one of the largest banks in the world, has a workforce of over 7,000 employees in India. However, up until last year, the recruitment process at the organization had largely been unchanged in almost a decade, and there was a significant under-investment in recruitment technology. Hiring managers usually focused on the process more than the candidate experience or engagement, and the weak feedback mechanisms prevented closer analysis of the hiring activity data.

In 2018, the organization embarked upon a ‘New Way of Working (NWOW)’ model and redesigned the recruitment program to attract, challenge, reward and help grow curious minds. This consisted of overarching changes in the recruitment process and the integration of digital tools and technologies at each step in the program. Let’s analyze how ANZ used intelligent technology and design thinking to optimize the recruitment process.

Attract, challenge & reward curious minds: ANZ’s new recruitment program

• Time taken during the interview processes has reduced by over 45 percent • 70 percent of the interviewed candidates have provided feedback • Over 83 percent of the candidates have rated the interview process as excellent • 91 percent of the candidates received feedback during their in-person interview • The entire onboarding is paperless, and all candidates now receive provisioning on their day of joining The new process has helped new hires familiarize themselves with the organization’s culture, vision and purpose, and given them a sense of belonging, early on. Candidate feedback and testimonies have been positive and encouraging and helped improve the program by making it simple, speedy and convenient. As for the future, there are plans to gamify some aspects of the process and collect richer insights that aid the improvement of the quality of hire.

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PNB Metlife

Best in

Diversity and Inclusion Award ition Awar Acquis ds 2 ent 019 Tal

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NB Metlife is one of the top 10 private life insurance company in India with over 10,000 employees working in a pan-India multi-channel distribution network. The organization has been championing D&I policies for the last five years and has increased its gender diversity from 22 percent to 35 percent in the same period. The next logical step was then to create a culture of diversity and inclusion with clear targets at various levels, particularly the middle and senior levels. This endeavor to institutionalize inclusion and embed it into the company culture required a proactive approach to improve the number of women leaders across all levels. Here’s how PNBMetlife managed to achieve it.

The objective Although PNB Metlife had initiated several D&I policies back in 2014, the focus of the same, until recently, had been improving gender diversity ratio within the organization. As a result, while women employees were hired at the entry level in higher numbers, the overall gender ratio in the company couldn’t be maintained since they were leaving the company in relatively short periods. Most women employees were exiting to explore other opportunities or to take a break for personal reasons. Consequently, the number of women employees progressing to become supervisors or leaders was low, and this resulted in a lack of role models for younger women employees as well.

Clearly, the real and meaningful benefit of having a diverse workforce was not being realized to its fullest extent possible and the scope of the existing D&I policies had to expand.

The intervention Intending to increase the number of women leaders in the organization, PNB

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Meaningful diversity & inclusion: PNB Metlife rehiring former women employees PNB Metlife’s program to rehire former women employees and those on sabbatical improved gender representation in supervisory and leadership roles to record levels Metlife designed a program to rehire the female alumni of the company proactively.

Some features of the program are as follows: • All former women employees who had a good performance during their tenure were considered for the program, and a constant line of communication was maintained with them • They were told that PNB Metlife would be happy to welcome them back whenever they decide to look for opportunities to return to the workforce or outside their current organization

The goal is to increase the representation of women across middle and senior levels and to double middle-level representation by 2021 • The organization participated in JobForHer events to attract women who were on sabbaticals from other organizations as well • There was a conscious effort to bring in women at supervisory roles • The referral program was altered to make it more rewarding to refer female candidates • The organization’s recruitment partners were also offered differential payouts to refer and onboard women talent at appropriate positions The main challenge encountered while implementing the program was in terms of mindset change. Despite the existence of a robust rehire program, it was essential to build awareness and sensitize the leadership about the need to have a specific

program for women and why a proactive approach was necessary. Additionally, the vast geographical spread of the company resulted in communication challenges and made it to difficult to effectively disperse the message uniformly.

The impact As a direct result of the program, 118 women employees rejoined the organization in 2017, and 130 women employees joined back in 2018. Currently, 14 percent of supervisory leaders are women – the highest ever. However, that’s not nearly all.

The women employees who join back are incredibly motivated and loyal to the company, thus, having an incremental business delivery impact. The organization has also received top quartile scores in the Glint MyVoice Survey, and there has also been a sharp reduction in the number of harassment cases over the same period.

In an encouraging development, the company leaders themselves demanded that a minimum of at least one female candidate be shortlisted for any open position being resourced. Several external institutions and organizations have also recognized the program.

In probably the most significant indicator of success, the program has increased the level of trust and confidence displayed by their female employees regarding their employer. As this positive information spread through their personal networks, more former women employees have expressed their interest in joining back, thus, making the program self-sustaining.

What’s next? The goal is to increase the representation of women across middle and senior levels and to double middlelevel representation by 2021. Furthermore, institutionalizing ‘flexibility’ at the core of all work processes – work timings, work from home, leaves, etc. is also on the agenda.

Cybage Software

Best in Employer Branding Award

ition Awar Acquis ds 2 ent 019 Tal

C

With the emergence of new technologies, the present recruitment scenario in the tech industry has become extremely competitive.

Campus placements and lateral recruitment drives usually result in a high number of offers being extended, which leads to inconsistencies in the hiring process, when compared to the candidates’ qualification. To ensure parity and diversity in the recruitment process, it was necessary to assess candidates from different colleges, organizations and geographical locations and weigh their performance on valuation and retention.

In addition to redesigning the hiring process and assessing potential candidates using predictive workforce management solutions, Cybage also had to develop a strong employer brand to be placed at the front of the hiring chain during campus recruitment and attract the best talent.

Thus, a complete overhaul of the existing workforce management practices was needed in order to develop a transparent, unbiased, merit-driven ecosystem in the organization and create a compelling employer brand.

The intervention With the task cut out, Cybage set out to eliminate subjective decision-making in their workforce management and hiring

process and replace it with data-based decision-making. The following initiatives were taken to the same effect: • WE @ Cybage: Wellness and Engagement were identified as the top priorities to ensure workplace happiness and help employees find meaningful experiences in their work • DecisionMinesTM: A proprietary product, DecisionMinesTM, is a top digital decision-making platform that leverages machine learning and predictive analytics from data. DM was also used in workforce management to make the organization a fairer and ‘great’ place to work • GrafitiTM: An employee rewards and recognition platform to help make a data-based decision on the type and frequency of employee rewards

The changing people & recruitment policies at Cybage have helped diverse, talented and deserving candidates in being hired & promoted in the organization These initiatives also required a simultaneous development of robust execution policies and strategies. Firstly, a comprehensive set of policies were defined, which were interpreted as a win-win situation for both the organization and the employees. This helped develop some innovative practices to promote employee work-life balance. Next, investments were made in internal IT systems, like MIS, HRMS, Payroll, PMS and other application to generate and analyze extensive data sets to help the organization make better decisions. While it did take time and train-

ing to create a culture of appreciation and familiarize the workforce with the features of the platforms, there is continuous monitoring and upgrading of both the products to identify and solve any challenges.

Currently, 25 different data decision points across the HR function generate a large amount of data that is analyzed daily.

The impact The changing people and recruitment policies at Cybage have helped diverse, talented and deserving candidates in being hired and promoted in the organization.

• T here is a 32 percent representation of women in the organization – the highest in the industry • Cybage Software is amongst the top recommended companies on Glassdoor with an approval rating of 84 per cent and a 96 percent approval rating for the CEO • The attrition rate has displayed a consistent downward trend • Twenty-five percent of the organization’s former employees return owing to the organic reputation of being one of the best places to work

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The objective

Cybage Software has cultivated a strong employer brand by redesigning its people and recruitment policies to effectively use insights from data

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ybage Software is a technology consulting organization specializing in product engineering services.

With functions across ten countries and a highly skilled talent pool of more than 6,000 employees, the organization has a rapidly growing workforce. Thus, in order to attract the best talent, it was imperative to cultivate a formidable employer brand to conduct successful campus hiring drives and lateral hiring drives. Here’s how Cybage created a strong employer brand while ensuring that the right candidate was employed at the right compensation.

Reinventing talent recruitment: Cybage Software

What’s more, new practices have also curbed workplace politics and conflict and fostered healthy workplace values and culture. Arun Nathani, CEO and Managing Director, Cybage Software, says that the new people-first approach in the workforce management and recruitment process has positively impacted the overall business environment by making it more efficient and successful. The new people policies have been recognized and awarded by several external agencies and organizations.

Thus, by effectively using the data collected from multiple points, Cybage Software has been able to continually improve its employee policies regarding hiring, training, reskilling and up-skilling programs and engagement activities by gathering and scrutinizing the employee response.

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Bajaj Allianz General Insurance Company Limited

Best in

Recruitment Technology & Analytics Award ition Awar Acquis ds 2 ent 019 Tal

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ajaj Allianz General Insurance Company Limited, a joint venture between Bajaj Finserv Limited and Allianz SE, has a workforce of more than 10,000 employees and is rapidly expanding in tier II and III cities. However, there were several obstacles in rapidly recruiting high numbers of employees that were critical in helping the organization meet its business targets. Let’s take a closer look at how Bajaj Allianz solved multiple talent acquisition challenges with a single intelligent product.

The objective The talent challenges at Bajaj Allianz were multi-faceted in nature. In addition to a high cost per hire and excess dependency on vendors, an increasing requirement in tier II and III cities made it difficult to interview each candidate face to face.

Furthermore, the lack of an application tracking system (ATS) meant that no repository of interested candidates was being maintained and each candidate had a different experience in getting timely feedback on selection or rejection and the status of their application. There was also no mechanism to capture the employee experience in the first year of their tenure to help the organisation foster a more relevant and engaging experience. Thus, the objective was to ensure bulk quality hiring in niche segments while helping recruiters objectively evaluate and assess more CVs in lesser time.

The intervention Keeping in mind the importance of maintaining the human touch in the recruitment process while integrating artificial intelligence, machine learning and robotics in it, Bajaj Allianz inducted its first virtual employee, EVE, which introduced and represented Tal.port, a portal that integrated six industry-first concepts in a single product. The following are the features of the same: 78

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Going for a six: Bajaj Allianz’s Tal.port Bajaj Allianz launched Tal.port to introduce six industry-first concepts in a single product and optimise its recruitment process

The objective was to ensure bulk quality hiring in niche segments while helping recruiters objectively evaluate and assess more CVs in lesser time • R obotic video interview: Providing candidates the flexibility to attend an interview from anywhere • Questionnaires evaluating technical and functional capability of candidate • A simple three-click application process which is facilitated by resume parsing technology • In-built job recommendation engine: Key skills from the resume are matched with key skills required for the job and a role that is more relevant to the candidate is recommended • Gamified employee referral: Employees are rewarded redeemable points for referring candidates on the portal • Automated internal job movement: This facilitates the “My Job My Choice” mantra by being the one stop shop for all the vacancies in the organization wherein employees can also apply However, the portal did face its fair share of implementation challenges. For instance, since the recruitment process was managed offline over the years, it was challenging to drive behavioral challenges in employees and candidates. Thus, referrals and internal movement was mandatorily driven through Tal.port to increase its usage and adoption. Similarly, communicating the changes to the recruitment process to more than 1,000 virtual and physical locations of the organization required comprehensive education through posters, emails and the company’s learning app to

educate employees regarding the features of the portal.

The impact Since the portal reduced the time, effort and cost of identifying and hiring the most suitable candidate, enabled the talent acquisition team to undertake data-based scientific hiring, and provided a detailed behavioural profile highlighting the score of a candidate on soft skills critical for each role, it received adequate support and adoption from the team. Similarly, the platform offered job seekers a transparent, non-judgmental, non-threatening and non-invasive means to finding the right opportunity in the organization. The implementation of Tal.port saw the following results: • The number of applicants received per post doubled • There was a double-digit growth in overall hiring and reduction in talent cost • Employee referrals saw massive surge with twice as many referrals being made • Talent from the remotest regions in tier III and IV cities was identified • The portal streamlined the internal job movement process The time spend on talent acquisition per candidate has dropped and the company saw the productivity of its talent acquisition team rise by 27 percent (based on the number of hires per year).

The portal has enhanced the candidate experience, digitised the recruitment process to make it paperless and ensured a standardised hiring process that is free from biases.

That’s not all. EVE has helped facilitate employee sentiment analysis for new employees, thus helping Bajaj Allianz stay in-tune with the employee pulse and drive engagement accordingly. Next, the Tal.port will integrate moment-based touch points with the candidate to keep a constant tab on the sentiment of the new employees.

Making HR futureproof, the AIHR way In an exclusive interaction with People Matters, AIHR co-founder Erik van Vulpen shares his thoughts on how exactly AIHR wants to secure the future of HR through learning

By Shweta Modgil ics. They asked questions like - what is it, how I can use it, what's the business case for analytics, and which tools do I need for it. During these interviews, we discovered this enormous knowledge gap and decided to start writing about it. That led to our first website - and later the e-learning platform!

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ounded in 2016, by Erik van Vulpen and Nando Steenhuis, Netherlands based Academy to Innovate HR (AIHR) has been successfully offering worldclass, online education programs for HR professionals for the past three years with one mission – to make HR future-proof. The company wants to enable HR professionals who are committed to life-long learning to expand their skill set with relevant and in-demand skills by offering worldclass, online education programs available anywhere, anytime. Today, it boasts of more than 2500 ‘students’ from over 65 different countries. In an exclusive interaction with People Matters, co-founder Erik van Vulpen shares his thoughts on how exactly AIHR wants to secure the future of HR through learning

What was the tipping point for starting AIHR?

The tipping point was that we saw a tremendous interest in HR analytics. After doing 50 interviews with HR managers in large corporate companies, we noticed that they were very interested in People Analyt-

The simple answer is: we teach them! At our AIHR Academy, HR professionals can learn the skills they need to be relevant in the 21st century. These skills are very different from the skills that we needed in the previous century. I heard a recent talk

by Jennifer Jordan, a professor in leadership at IMD. She was talking about the trait of successful digital leaders. “She found in her research that leaders who had the right digital competencies far outperformed non-digital leaders. We want to bring these competencies to HR!” We do this through online courses, consisting of video lessons, reading material, and assignments.

How has the traction been for AIHR since its founding?

For us, traction has been above expectations. We’ve already had over 2,500,000 total visitors on our AIHR Analytics blog and our AIHR Digital platform, which is both mind-boggling and humbling. Shortly after founding, now three years ago, our users kept asking us for more information and courses on the topics we were writing about, so we decided to venture into online courses. This is now our core activity and we’ve already had over 2000 students on our AIHR Academy.

What differentiates AIHR from competitors that offer similar solutions?

When we started the AIHR Academy, we focused solely on People Analytics. This

What are your future plans as far as product and expansion are concerned?

The next step for us is digital HR. With the Digital HR Certificate program, we’ve made a big step towards our goal there. At the same time, we recently launched an HR Analytics for HR Business. The next step for us is to continue course production in the digital and general HR space, in which we will continue to push for a product depth and product quality that is currently unavailable in the HR e-learning space.

In t e r v i e w

How exactly does AIHR help HR professionals expand their skill set with more contemporary, digital skills so that they can keep up with the latest technologies?

made us unique as no one was offering in-depth courses on the different functions of a People Analytics department. Our first course was aimed at the HR Analytics Leader, the second course was aimed at the HR Data Analyst, and so we continued our courses. With the recent acquisition of Digital HR Tech, we’ve ventured beyond people analytics into the digital HR domain. This opens up a whole range of new courses, including our recently launched Digital HR Certificate program.

How much venture funding have you raised and from whom?

Until now, we have been entirely selffunded. I co-founded this business with my business partner Nando Steenhuis and so far, we’ve grown organically. We strongly believe that a good product and healthy revenue is the best way to build a viable and sustainable business.

How does AIHR aim to make HR futureproof by offering world-class, online education programs available anywhere, anytime? What are some of the trends you foresee in this space?

Our mission is indeed to make HR future-proof by offering world-class, online education programs available anywhere, anytime. We will continue to share excellent content on our blogs and create topquality courses. “When we talk about trends, I think the need for learning will only increase.” A recent report pointed out that 50% of working professionals need to be upskilled in digital skills. I think this number is even higher when it comes to HR professionals. This is what we will continue to focus on and help organizations with.

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Mahindra's Vision for HR in 2025 Chief People Office of Tech Mahindra, Harshvendra Soin showcased the company’s re-imaginings of the HR function both in the present day and the year 2025

By People Matters Editorial

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ecently, Chief People Office of Tech Mahindra, Harshvendra Soin took the HR Leadership team on a trip to the future.

During his presentation, Harsh showcased the company’s re-imaginings of the HR function both in the present day and the year 2025. In this innovative, engaging talk, Harsh called upon the voice of “buddy” Jarvis to illustrate what HR would look like in the coming decades. He also outlined some of the impactful decisions the company has already made this year.

“A lot has changed,” Harsh explained, as futuristic images of cityscapes, cobots and rocket launches played across the screen.

The opening montage had a startling premise: “HR,” in 2025, “ceases to exist.”

But things weren’t entirely what they seemed. Humorously reminiscing about “the good old days of 2018 and 2019,” Harshvendra guided the team through Tech Mahindra’s successes - both real and predicted - and expanded on factors such as workforce transitions, life after retirement, workplace wellness, skilling and reskilling,

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ecosystems and performance reviews. If Harsh’s presentation is any indication, the future seems very bright indeed.

So what does HR look like in 2025?

Killed traditional HR to build the people function To begin with, Harshvendra looked ‘back’ to a present-day accomplishment. In 2019, Tech Mahindra “broke the silos and brought in an agile people structure.” This meant they were able to build organizational HR around experiences. This 2019 action has evidently been instrumental in making 2025 a success. As Harsh went on to say, “no longer were we talking about a sub-function in HR. We were talking about experiences.” This proved to be a wellplanned workplace disruption, allowing contributions from any employee who had ideas they wanted to share.

Also this year, Tech Mahindra began to simplify workflows and atomize jobs.

“I remember that day, way back in 2019,” Harsh recalled, “Everything we did was so tactical, so labor-intensive. We decided we

would use more technology to make it more human-centered.”

By atomizing work and replacing “nonvalue added” jobs with AI, work in 2025 now looked more contextualized, more teamoriented, fluid rather than predetermined: non-routine, with an increased emphasis on creating meaning and value. Through this, Harsh stated, “We improved our productivity by 60% and cut costs by 40%.”

Stayed ahead of the curve Their next major advancement, Harsh explained, was to “stay ahead of the curve.”

As Harsh stated, “five years ago, in 2019, we trained people after the technology already came in.” In 2019, Tech Mahindra decided instead to track new possibilities in “emerging technologies” and prepare accordingly. Rather than waiting for these technologies - blockchains, AI, Cobots, etc - to appear, in 2025 Tech Mahindra began training employees before these new skills needed to be implemented. “Therefore, the Mahindra group remains more competitive than any other group,” Harsh said.

“We also built an agile organization structure,” Harsh went on, “where people

By atomizing work and replacing “nonvalue added” jobs with AI, work for Tech Mahindra in 2025 now looked more contextualized, more teamoriented, fluid rather than predetermined: non-routine, with an increased emphasis on creating meaning and value

could move across functions and teams seamlessly.” By doing away with “humongous” teams of people, Tech Mahindra was able to transition single employees from one project to another based on their particular skill-sets. This drove down C&B costs and further heightened the company's ability to be hyper-competitive.

Rather than relying on a Program Manager, Tech Mahindra continued to use algorithms and atoms to calculate the required resources for each project.

“Therefore,” Harsh explained, “we never go wrong and we stay hyper, hyper-competitive.”

If that weren’t enough, Tech Mahindra also pushed for more self-driven careers and learning. “Like a Coke machine has many different drinks to mix, people can now choose their learning and get hyperskilled.” As a result of this, 95% of Tech Mahindra’s talent requirements were met internally.

Hyperpersonalization (N=1)

Intentionally diverse By 2025, Tech Mahindra has built an intentionally diverse workforce of Cobots and Humans. This is “what made us very, very different,” Harsh explained, working with AI rather than in competition with tech.

Where does this ‘intentional’ diversity of thought come from? Of course, Tech

HR

Another crucial step in Tech Mahindra’s future success was their spotting emerging roles and working to make sense of them.

Not only that but, as Harsh explained, “we linked those roles to future-ready talent

Tech Mahindra in 2025 has the highest value per associate. “In 2019 we were always discussing metrics such as ‘revenue per employee,” Harsh stated said, “[but] now we don’t measure only the revenue per employee, but the value per employee.”

This re-emphasized Tech Mahindra’s drive to create meaningful work, representing a groundbreaking development in HR functions.

Mahindra takes into account the usual determining factors of age, gender, race and ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation, disability, education level, and socioeconomic status. However, less common factors included were personalities and life experiences. “We didn’t want a particular uniformity in our workforce,” Harsh explained. Including these factors allowed them to create a truly personalized and diverse workforce both in 2019 and 2025.

o f

Created future-focused leadership

and people who were force multipliers.”

After that, Tech Mahindra collaborated with academia and start-ups to create a new ecosystem that could identify the best ways to combine new technologies with new roles. But what would be the competencies the company followed in 2025? As Jarvis explained, the competencies of 'today’s' leaders included: • Entrepreneurial Mindset • Digital Prowess • Customer Centricity • Leveraging Human Capital • Play to Win • Fostering Collaboration

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As in 2019, the Mahindra Group of 2025 focused on creating a personalized experience for every employee. In the future, Harsh explained, every associate’s experience would be considered in terms of “career, compensation, rewards, etc.”

Using the term “n=1,” the company reiterated that every single employee of the Mahindra group was “unique.” As Harsh went on to say, “that is so important as people and policies go hand-in-hand.”

In 2025, performance reviews were also transformed. Rejecting the inefficient, ineffective and “boring” tradition of onceyearly reviews, Tech Mahindra introduced real-time performance check-ins instead.

Combined with personalized coaching, this innovation had proved to make a “massive difference.” This also allowed the Mahindra group to circle back on “making work meaningful for an alternative workforce.”

Focusing on the oft-neglected but essential gig workers and part-time employees, Tech Mahindra used a blockchain to enable instant payments. Even in 2019, this had proved successful and “ultimately brought costs down”. Even more crucially, these changes meant Tech Mahindra had the “highest retention and maximum engagement rates” of any company. It was clear to see these innovations had long-running positive impacts on employee satisfaction as well as growth and productivity.

Another crucial step in Tech Mahindra’s future success was their spotting emerging roles and working to make sense of them

The final say In Harsh’s closing thoughts, he outlined the “bedrock” of all these projections, and emphasized how innovation doesn’t mean compromising on your values: “Our culture remained to drive positive change, celebrate each moment and empower all to rise. We follow this diligently in 2025 as we did in 2019.”

While Harsh’s presentation kept one eye firmly on the future, these thrilling, hypothetical innovations have begun to seem like not-so-distant realities. There’s little doubt Tech Mahindra have plenty planned for the coming years. Harsh’s predictions also gave an indication of the huge strides the company has already made as they launch K2, humanoid employee number 1, built internally by the Tech Mahindra HR Labs, is it the future or the present we are talking about?

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Dr. Swatee Sarangi

Racing with resilience Resilience is all about adapting to adversity and bouncing back with personal mastery when setbacks strike. In fact, the tenacity to bounce back faster, smarter and better is what sets people and organizations apart. Here is how the B.O.U.N.C.E framework can play an integral part in building resilience in leaders and teams

“Rock bottom became the solid foundation on which I rebuilt my life” R e s i l i e nc e

- J.K. Rowling

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oday’s world of flux leaves us with no time to moan and little reason to groan. It only provides us with the opportunity to turn over and move on. As a child when there was a difficulty coming my way, my dad would say, “Be strong and you will get over this”. I understood, it was not about not encountering difficult times but it was about my perspective towards them that would make them easy. It was about not being limited by challenges, but about emerging more competent and confident to face setbacks in life. Resilience is all about adapting to adversity and bouncing back with personal mastery when setbacks strike.

In fact, the tenacity to bounce back faster, smarter and better is what sets people and organizations apart. Being resilient keeps cynicism, anxiety, burnout, disengagement and alienation at bay. It is a competency tempered with passion, purpose and posi-

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tive power that helps to succeed during and beyond adversity.

Resilience in leaders

The litmus test of resilience in leaders is during trials and tribulations when they get opportunities to lead from the front.

They earn respect as they brave frailties and vulnerabilities and emerge strong.

They convert every trying moment into a learning one. While coaching team members, they make candid disclosures and share lessons from their failure and rebound stories.

Resilience in organizations Resilience also manifests in organizational journeys towards thriving and flourishing beyond the tests of time. It helps build muscle and immunity to anticipate, take risks and respond. Organizations rebuild themselves by innovating, reinventing and even proactively changing their business

strategies. For example, when Apple’s business was going through a rough patch, they introduced a whole new range of products in their portfolio which were brutally simple, strikingly beautiful and provided an amazing experience to their users. Even Microsoft hit the 1 trillion US Dollar mark during Satya Nadella’s tenure when they focused on nurturing a culture of growth and resilience, a culture where people stretched to explore possibilities and strived for accelerating customer centricity in profound ways. Resilience unifies people towards a strong shared purpose, instilling in them the ability to deal with business fluctuations, volatilities and downturns easy.

Building resilience I propose a framework of B.O.U.N.C.E for building resilience in leaders and teams.

This can be used to nurture a culture of resilience in organizations.

Balance Resilience scores in harmony and balance.

Balancing different aspects of life like career, family, fitness, health, finances, community makes life more fulfilling and rewarding. Recovery from trauma and stress becomes easy with a sense of equanimity. Recharging batteries helps people have goals for all roles. It makes them more centered to gain perspective on what is right and wise in life. Fundamental rules of making lifestyle changes provides a

stable foundation for dealing with ebbs and flows of life. Drawing boundaries in relationships immensely helps in coping with demands both reasonable and unreasonable that come along the way. Championing holistic development, work -life integration and employee wellbeing can augment resilience.

Uplift The worst of times can be overcome with best of moods. Visualization and vision of success can raise hope and belief in teams to overcome business volatilities.

Compelling and cascading organizational visions helps people down the last mile find purpose and meaning in life, work

Nimble Empowered teams are more adept at quick decision making and overcoming new and complex challenges with ease. Flexibility forges them to explore alternative choices.

Nimble leaders make people willful to collaborate and skillful to learn. A future ready mindset serves as the best preparation for dealing with unpredictable and uncertain times. A culture of continuous learning through diverse blended learning interventions, shadowing, coaching, mentoring, action learning projects, lattice career paths, role rotations and cross func-

“Rock bottom became the solid foundation in which I rebuilt my life” - J.K. Rowling

tional teams help in developing people to thrive.

Control As leaders put team members in the pilot seat, they experience heightened selfawareness, strong sense of identity and immense significance at work. They pride in taking charge and display rare accountability of their lives, jobs and organizations. Bottom up communication and voice mechanisms can help employees feel engaged. As authentic leaders show openness and empathy, they instill confidence in teams to emerge from the shadows and take risks. Positive self-efficacy helps build will power in teams to do and way power to decide which course of action to choose to deal with intense and unreasonable demands.

Endurance The core of resilience lies in mental, emotional and psychological tenacity to deal with stressful situations. Endurance in leaders provides them inner strength to remain dedicated and not quit during tough times. It manifests in discipline and tranquility not to get distracted and strive till the end. Organizations can give cognizance to both efforts and outcomes in performance management systems to hone endurance. When leaders stand tall and walk the talk in difficult times, they demonstrate lessons in resilience.

Building a resilient culture using the B.O.U.N.C.E framework will be a journey. It’s about nurturing the ability to constructively and positively deal with times before, during and after the fall. It’s a reserve which will help teams and organizations manage breaks and bends. Stories of thriving, flourishing and growth can be built on the foundation of resilience. Resilient organizations will be able to pace, race and ace using both inside -out and outside in perspectives effectively. Nurturing resilience will create and supports vitality in teams. Resilient leaders can play role of positive energizers and be instrumental in enhancing connection and collaboration quotients too. Resilience will augment a start-up ability in organizations to start, stop and continue with ease when dealing with setbacks.

R e s i l i e nc e

Optimism A positive outlook towards life and events helps in viewing silver lining in dark clouds. Focusing on the positive produces a heliotropic effect, which makes circumstances appear less intimidating and worrisome. It propels life giving than life restraining forces. Leaders can enable their team members to move from victim to victor’s mindset by harnessing on positive self-efficacy. When they operate from victor’s mindset seeking growth, improvements and transformations with positivity results. Use of caring, congratulating, connecting messages by leaders can help create a positive impact on teams. Organizational cultures that focus on positive contagion through knowledge sharing and celebrating together during good times, turbo charge people with positive resolute to overcome bad times.

and organizations. When leaders focus on getting lot more through strengths than little more by targeting weaknesses of people they enhance morale and motivation of their team members. Impetus on social orientation and employee volunteering also facilitate in building emotional maturity. They make leaders and teams humble and grounded enabling them to repair moods and look at the future with renewed energy. A culture of appreciation, gratitude and recognition works wonders to uplift people and instill courage.

About the author

Dr. Swatee Sarangi is an industry thought leader and practitioner in strategic workforce and capability development; combined with an unparalleled background in academia. As Head Capability Development, she drives the robust seven-step leadership pipeline at Larsen & Toubro.

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S k i l l i ng G l o b a l

The skilling challenge and how other countries are dealing with it

Countries like Norway, Finland, Hong Kong, Japan, and Switzerland have been recognized by many reports on human capital for their continuous efforts towards preparing their human capital for the future of work. Letâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s take a closer look at a few policies and programs introduced by some of these countries

By Drishti Pant

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While Human Capital Index focuses on aspects like healthcare and primary education as well, the IMD World Talent Ranking considers success in different talent-related areas such as education, training, apprenticeships, language skills, quality of life, remuneration & tax rates

Norway

The country realized the need to be able to handle the ongoing restructuring the economy is undergoing without increasing the inequalities between those who live here. They identified that it requires further investment incompetence, to ensure that more of them get into work and that their businesses attract the skills they need.

Despite Norway leading the human capital indexes, as per the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), Norway has been unsuccessful in making effective use of the population's skills and competencies.

OECD suggests that many who are excluded from employment have low skill levels, or they are unable to make use of the skills they have because there is no demand for them in the labor market. This is a serious problem.

That’s how began Skills Norway - Directorate for Lifelong Learning, which belongs to the Norwegian Ministry of Education and Research.

• Skills Norway works in areas such as adult education in basic skills, Norwegian and socio-

•

cultural orientation, vocational training, careers advice and matching skills with the needs of the labor market and businesses.

Skills Norway is responsible for the course curricula as well as the content of the Norwegian language tests and social studies tests. It also spearheads work to ensure that employers correctly understand the skills levels involved with the Norwegian language test, in order to avoid exclusion of applicants due to unnecessarily high language requirements. However, the responsibility for organizing the tests is devolved to the local authorities.

S k i l l i ng

apprenticeships, language skills, quality of life, remuneration and tax rates.

Although different countries topped these respective indexes, there are a few countries that seem to appear in at least the top 20 to 50 of each of these lists.

Countries like Norway, Finland, Hong Kong, Japan, and Switzerland have been working towards preparing their human capital for the future of work by investing in different skilling initiatives and have been able to solve the skilling challenge to quite an extent. And though they still have their own challenges to deal with, there are a few lessons we can learn from them.

Let’s take a closer look at a few policies and programs introduced by some of these respective countries:

G l o b a l

t is the skills and people that drive world economies towards a better tomorrow. Investing in continuous learning is not something restricted to the agenda of only organizations, it is relevant for nations at the macro level.

Investing in learning and development of economy’s talent is so critical that the World Bank also lists it as one of the key priorities and runs a dedicated project named Human Capital Project for countries across the globe. Last year, the World Bank Group revealed the Human Capital Index in which the top 5 countries were Singapore, South Korea, Japan, Hong Kong, and Finland.

Back in 2017, the World Economic Forum also came out with the Global Human Capital Index and ranked 130 countries on how well they are developing their human capital. As per this index by WEF, Norway was ranked the best-performing country in the world when it comes to the training and education of its population. Further, Finland was in 2nd place, Switzerland in 3rd place, and Denmark and Sweden in 5th and 8th place respectively.

Further, if we look at the IMD World Talent Ranking 2018, Western Europe is the leading hub for the world’s talent, outperforming other regions in attracting, developing and retaining highly skilled employees.

While Human Capital Index focuses on aspects like healthcare and primary education as well, the IMD World Talent Ranking considers success in different talent-related areas such as education, training,

National Skills Strategy In the spring of 2017, the National Skills Strategy was approved. Apparently, the government initiated work on this strategy in order to strengthen collaboration between different sectors in formulating the skills policy. The strategy is a binding agreement between the government, both sides of the industry, the voluntary sector and the Sami Parliament. The strategy sets the goals and approaches for work on the skills policy from 2017 to 2021. It has three main focus areas: • • •

Good choices for individuals and for society On-the-job learning and putting skills to good use Strengthening the skills of adults with weak affiliation with the world of employment.

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Hong Kong

Finland

From partnering with e-learning platforms to introducing programs for adult education, Hong Kong’s government has been continuously investing in skilling their people and preparing them for skills of the future.

Finland is often found taking a top spot on the Development pillar (efforts to educate, skill and upskill the student body and the working age population) due to the quality of its primary schools and overall education system.

But as Finland continues to meet the increased need for better matching between skills supply and demand, it works on anticipating the future skills for various industries and has been designing policies to bridge the skills gap and produce more employable workforce.

Collaborating with Udemy to train people in tech skills

G l o b a l

S k i l l i ng

To particularly help SMEs upgrade to new technologies in artificial intelligence, robotics, and the Internet of Things, the Hong Kong Productivity Council (HKPC) (established in 1967) partnered with Udemy to help them gain knowledge of these areas.

To upskill their SME workforce, HKPC’s Academy provides a training program that blends an online and offline curriculum. While HKPC charges fees for the training program, the Government subsidizes two-thirds of the cost for SME employees via the Reindustrialisation and Technology Training Programme (RTTP).

As Hong Kong's population continues to age, it becomes ever more important to foster a more inclusive understanding of what continuing education entails, and the government realizes that Education for all Recently, Chief Secretary Matthew Cheung said in a launch of one of the training initiatives, “We place very high importance on youth development, particularly promoting upward social mobility of the younger generation in Hong Kong and creating more so-called shared value in the process, and also provide more opportunities for our young generation, not only employment, but education and so on.”

Besides focusing on education for children and the youth, the government also encourages the adults to continue learning and upskilling themselves. As Hong Kong's population continues to age, it becomes ever more important to foster a more inclusive understanding of what continuing education entails, and the government realizes that.

Hence it has several programs and policies focused on adult education - from Self-financing Local Programs, Non-local Higher & Professional Courses, Financial Assistance Scheme for Designated Evening Adult Education Courses (FAEAEC) to vocational training.

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National Forum for Skills Anticipation The National Forum for Skills Anticipation was formed as a joint expert body in educational anticipation for the Ministry of Education and Culture and the Finnish National Agency for Education (EDUFI).

The system consists of a steering group, anticipation groups and a network of experts with the task to promote the interaction of education and training with working life in cooperation with the Ministry and EDUFI. The anticipation plan is divided over the four-year period 2017 to 2020 and the anticipation groups are divided as per industries or sectors: • Natural resources, food production and the environment • Business and administration • Education, culture and communications • Transport and logistics • Hospitality services • Built environment • Social, health and welfare services • Technology industry and services • Process industry and production Each of these anticipation groups appoint members and decide on the composition and includes representatives from employers, employees, entrepreneurs to research and educational administration.

In the first half of the period, the focus of these groups is on projecting the competencies, skills, educational and training needs of all sectors, i.e. on the basic anticipation process (June 2017 - February 2019). Then from March 2019 - December 2020, the other anticipation projects have been scheduled for the period.

The basic anticipation process The groups come together to identify megatrends, drivers, signals, and predict or prototype scenarios and analyse total employment and the industrial structure. After having a rough framework and a shared frame of reference are formed for the scenarios specific to anticipation groups, the phenomena are then applied in more detail separately for each anticipation group.

The members recognize concrete activities such as production processes, digitalisation, customer processes, marketing, distribution channels, sales and their development challenges in relation to the scenarios.

Interestingly, the sub sectors examined by the anticipation groups can have links to several other industries that may be dealt with by a totally different anticipation group. These can be further used to form production networks. The idea is that no industry can function in isolation, but must work in cooperation with other industries.

In the end, the estimated demand for new workforce is considered, which in practice means the educational needs of young people.

In light of the results of these rigorous discussions and extensive research, the current educational systems and skill initiatives are relooked at redesigned as per the changing needs.

Japan

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Education for foreign students: Japan provides assistance in human resources development mainly through technical cooperation to accept foreign students, improve the capabilities and functions of higher educational institutions, develop the capacities of administrators, develop and enhance of vocational skills, improve occupational safety and health, and strengthen industrial competitiveness. Moreover, for personnel training, Information and Communication Technology (ICT) is often used to provide high-quality assistance at a lower cost.

Sustainable Education: The Project for Extension Inland Aquaculture, a unique program supported by the Japanese government in Benin, does not simply disseminate aquaculture techniques to the local community, but also nurtures core fish farmers who can teach aquaculture techniques to others. In the first 4.5 years, 20 core fish farmers were trained and about 3,000 ordinary fish farmers participated in training courses.

Switzerland The country is known for its high quality education system, including staff training, as well as a strong rate of vocational training.

In the Human Capital Index by World Economic Forum, it also ranked first overall on the Know-how pillar, with a very high share of skill-intensive employment and economic complexity.

Swiss skilling success lies in the fact that apprentices are immersed in theoretical instruction and practical application from the day they begin their apprenticeships Swiss Vocational Education and Training Swiss skilling success lies in the fact that apprentices are immersed in theoretical instruction and practical application from the day they begin their apprenticeships.

VET is the predominant form of high school education in Switzerland. About 65 percent of Swiss youth are in a VET program. Most VET courses are offered through the company-based dual-track system, so-called because there are two places of learning -a vocational school for general education and a host company for the practical training.

Companies employ trainees on the basis of an apprenticeship contract and cover part of their training costs. The trainee receives a monthly salary of between $500 to $1000 depending on profession and training year.

By working with the companies right after completing education or sometimes while still pursuing education, youths are able to build competencies and skills that are in demand in the job market.

These vocational training programs helps in creating a more job-ready workforce and enables job-seekers find well-paying jobs.

Switzerland’s low youth unemployment rate, further testifies to the value of apprenticeship programs to creating employable workforce.

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S k i l l i ng

Skills to share

G l o b a l

It is no news that Japan’s economic and social development has been spurred by human resources, not natural resources, so it all the more understands the value of investing in the next generation and preparing for the skills of the future. Hence, skilling forms a key pillar for the country. The government works closely with world organizations such as the United Nations and is also part of international groups with nations from all over the world. The government also has made several partnerships with other countries to work together on training and development of talents in respective countries.

Imparting digital skills from the start: The government has recently taken the decision to make coding a compulsory subject in the nation’s elementary schools from 2020, creating new basic skills for the nation’s workforce.

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Dr. A. K. Chawla

Data Protection, GDPR and the India Imperative: Opportunities and Challenges

In a new ecosystem where data is the new oil and currency, India has a great opportunity to be a key player by early enactment of a data protection law

P r a c t i c a l In s i g h t s

The essential ingredients for a ‘state of the art’ law are already in place and there is a lot to learn/ adopt from GDPR, which has been in force for more than a year now

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n a world that is anxious about data leaks, breaches, and alleged data manipulation, data protection has been at the center stage for the past year or two. The media landscape has been inundated with stories on topics such as data protection/privacy, General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), data breaches, delayed disclosures of past data breaches by companies, and so on.

As India builds its data protection regime, the focus of the narrative is on ensuring the security of citizens’ data, data protection, and localization.

On the domestic front, in a unanimous verdict over a year ago, a nine-judge bench of the Supreme Court declared privacy a fundamental right that is intrinsic to life and liberty and thus comes under Article 21 of the Indian constitution. Following that came the recent judgment on the Aadhaar case wherein, while upholding its constitutionality, the SC struck down1 Section 57

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of the Aadhaar Act 2016 that allowed the use of Aadhaar data by private entities. The Reserve Bank of India has also mandated storing Indian users’ payment data only in India by October 15, 20182 and did not extend the deadline even on the request of some big names like Google3. The noise about data localization is getting louder by the day with a big player like WhatsApp confirming setting up data servers in India for their payments operations while some others want the issue to be reexamined. The narrative around localization may be due to legal safeguards from local laws, carrying out investigations against data breaches, and enhanced law enforcement; but only localization cannot ensure data protection.

As India builds its data protection regime, the focus of the narrative is on ensuring security of citizens’ data, data protection, and localization.

Based on Justice B N Srikrishna committee’s report on data protection, a draft data protection bill was submitted in July 2018. The bill borrows quite a lot from GDPR, and makes interesting recommendations on how organizations should collect, process, and store citizens’ data; but leaves significant gaps on giving full liberty to the government to process data, data subjects being left to deal with the implications of a data breach after withdrawal of consent, thereby completely diluting their rights.

Notwithstanding when a data protection law comes into force in India, an informed conversa-

tion on the issues involved is very much needed.

The various stakeholders in the data ecosystem are: 1. Data Subject (whose data it is) 2. Data Controller (an entity which determines purpose & means of data processing), 3. Data Processor (an entity which processes data on behalf of the Data Controller), 4. Authority (which will define and enforce the rules of the data game), privacy focused activists, government, media, and intermediaries who sometimes act as agents to gather data from the data subject.

The plight of data subjects in India

Data Controllers and Data Processors This set comprises players with different profiles, presence, and business operations.

1. Many India-based companies in the ITES sector serve global customers with offices across the globe. Those with a significant presence in the European Union, such as TCS4 and some others, were early birds on

Companies that comply with privacy laws will command a premium over their competitors as privacy compliance capability will be a significant competitive advantage

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P r a c t i c a l In s i g h t s

In the maze of data management, more often than not, the data subject is on the losing side as their data can be grossly misused. While foreign companies make headlines for being held publicly accountable when a data breach takes place, Indian companies in sectors such as telecom, banking and finance, retail, hospitality, and many others, indulge in data misuse with impunity.

Data subject related issues have many dimensions: 1. There are more than 700 million mobile users in India. Many of them gave their Aadhaar details to service providers due to incessant pushing by companies that mislabeled it a mandatory requirement. The recent SC ruling has quashed it once for all. However, the important questions to be asked are: how will the data subjects get their Aadhaar data deleted from telecom companies’ records?

Are there audit and surveillance mechanisms available to verify deletions?

2. Adopting DND (Do Not Disturb) as a solution to pesky calls and messages was a non-starter due to flawed logic and poor enforcement wherewithal. Whether you are on DND or not, there are unwanted calls and messages in dozens every day. ne.

3. Even while there was no mandate to link Aadhaar, many financial sector companies (banks, non-banking finance companies, insurers, card providers etc.) pressurized consumers to link the same and a large number of users complied.

4. Many fintech companies have been rather indiscreet in using consumer data. Storing card data in spite of unchecking the box, snooping on customers visiting websites— all this puts the users at serious risk of their personal data being used for unknown/ unstated purposes.

5. There is also the issue of consumer data collected by one company being indiscriminately used by other group companies without the consent of the data subject. A similar situation arises after mergers and acquisitions where existing users are never asked about exchange of their data between the companies involved.

6. Companies in many sectors use agents for getting subscription to their product and

services. While the data is strictly meant for the Data Controller, it often finds its way into unscrupulous hands of Data Brokers, is sold for a pittance and gets enriched with granular details, which makes the scenario scarier.

7. A majority of mobile users click the ‘I Agree’ button without knowledge of its implications, such as the use of data for purposes other than stated ones, sharing with third parties, analytics, collation of data from multiple sources including social media platforms, and profiling.

8. In case of misuse of data by the company holding it or an intermediary, the redressal process is non-existent. The entire grievance redressal structure is designed to frustrate the complainants to such an extent that they give up. Needless to say, the odds are stacked heavily against the data subject.

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privacy and compliance with GDPR. They have comprehensive systems and processes in place to enable data subjects to exercise their rights, deal with data breaches, handle notice and consent, maintain records of processing activities, privacy risk management, cross border data transfers through contracts having standard contractual clauses as required by GDPR, data minimization, privacy by design etc.

They have appointed Data Protection Officers (DPOs) as per GDPR requirements.

2. Quite in contrast, companies with local operations in telecom, banking and the financial sector, media, retail, and other sectors, have been taking data subjects for granted—and with impunity—be it (mis)use of Aadhaar data, unauthorized linking of accounts, or data transfer/leakage to other agencies.

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Data is not only the new oil but also a currency in the global economy, which puts it at risk of theft and misuse Technology and data as a doubleedged sword

Data Protection Authority and Regulators 1. Data Protection Authority (DPA) is a key stakeholder in the data privacy regime. Wherever it exists, it is tasked with multiple activities such as educating stakeholders, defining the rules of the game, building a privacy eco-system, investigating privacy related incidents, arbitrating cases, deciding on penalties, and so on. While there is a proposal to have a DPA in India, the Indian situation has to be considered while creating such an organization and defining its authority.

2. Reserve Bank (central banks in general) is a key player wherever financial information is involved. RBI has mandated that all companies, which have any financial business such as payments banks, must localize data to India by setting up servers within the country.

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3. The government is an extremely important stakeholder in the privacy landscape. While the SC ruling has restricted the government’s authority on processing personal data, defining what is a reasonable requirement against what is excessive, is sine qua non for ensuring privacy as a fundamental right.

4. Other stakeholders include privacy activists and pressure groups, industry bodies focusing on privacy as a subject or representing industries. Depending upon what they stand for and whom they represent, their role cannot be ignored. For example, Data Security Council of India (a NASSCOM outfit), has done a commendable job of bringing data privacy to the centre stage. Hopefully, in the coming few months, we will see more buzz and action around data privacy in India.

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While technology has helped automate taking consent, issuing privacy notices, and tracking data subject requests, will consent forms and privacy notices be made simple enough for data subjects from various sections of society to grasp and make an informed choice?

Data is not only the new oil but also a currency in the global economy, which puts it at risk of theft and misuse. At the same time, the possibilities of using data for human benefit are immense. The real challenge is to strike a balance between individual privacy and the extent to which technologies such as machine learning, artificial intelligence, automation, big data and analytics can be applied.

Culture and maturity of countries and regions Many countries/regions in the developed world have long experience with data privacy. The EU had the 1995 Data Protection Directive, which guided discourse and decisions before GDPR became a law. Compared to that, data protection in India is at a rather nascent stage. The way EU residents value their ‘right to be forgotten’ is rooted in their long experience and the assumption that people should get a second chance and should the need arise, their past data must be erased.

The Way Forward S. No.

Proposed Actions

Responsibility/Monitoring

1

Aadhaar data collected by private organizations

Erase all Aadhaar data of customers/non-customers

Data Controller/DPA. Surprise audits and inputs from UIDAI

2

Aadhaar logs and linkages

Delete all such existing logs and linkages

Data Controller, UIDAI/Sector regulator such as DOT, MOF, RBI. Audits and inputs from UIDAI

3

Data transfer amongst group companies

Data controllers to inform data subjects about data shared with others & commit timeline for deletion/ obtaining informed consent

Data Controller/Sector regulator

4

Data usage beyond purpose

Severe and escalating penalties for each instance of violating purpose limitation

Sector regulator/SC

5

Pesky calls and messages

Introduce opt-in DD (do disturb) feature so that by default all users are in ‘do not disturb’ mode

Data Controller/DPA

6

Collection agents misusing/ leaking data

Use technology to eliminate data with agents. For example, a connected tab directly transfers customers’ data to controller

Data Controller/DPA

7

Complexity of consent, notice etc.

Data set being well known today, standardize the content for consent and notice and make simple multilingual versions available

Data Controller/DPA

8

Redressal mechanism

Set up an interim redressal channel until bill becomes a law

Sector regulator/DPO

9

Data localization including demarcation in existing integrated data centres

For all financial transactions, as per RBI mandate, servers have to be set up in India. For ease of data centre operations, blueprint of demarcation to be published

Sector regulator/SC

10

Data localization including demarcation in existing integrated data centres

For all financial transactions, as per RBI mandate, servers have to be set up in India. For ease of data centre operations, blueprint of demarcation to be published

Sector regulator/SC

11

Defining ‘reasonable’ requirement of the government

Publish clarification with reasons as a position paper for public comments

Government/SC

12

Data subject education

Create privacy forums to disseminate information to public at large

DPA. Controllers to earmark fund for the same.

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Data privacy as an overhead

Market privacy assurance capability as a competitive advantage

Organizations at large

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Issue

The Business and Financial Imperatives It is given that compliance to global privacy laws will increase the cost of doing business. An estimate5 indicates that the top Fortune 500 global corporations may spend in excess of USD7 billion to comply with GDPR, and many risks may still remain unaddressed due to lack of understanding or inadequate explanation of the law. A contrarian view is that this impact will be short term and companies that comply with privacy laws will command a premium over their competitors as compliance will be a competitive advantage.

The way forward to handle some of the issues raised above is tabulated in the above table.

About the author

Dr. A. K. Chawla, an alumnus of IIM Ahmedabad, is a Data Privacy, HR and Management Consulting professional with more than four decades of experience. He is currently engaged in a large transformational program of TCS to ensure alignment and compliance with GDPR. He is also the author of the best-seller fiction: 'Pandavas The Tech Warriors'.

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Aditya Birla Groupâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s 5th Global HR Summit at Singapore A Case Study on Creating an Immersive Learning Experience

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By Anushree Sharma

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The case study highlights how a global conglomerate planned an off-site for its 360 HR and Business Leaders that resulted in a case for agility & productivity

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...From early morning until late into the night, we talked through key challenges and opportunities we were facing. After three days of brainstorming, multiple discussions, fun-activities, and team-building exercises, we emerged with a list of challenges and meaningful priorities for an upcoming quarter...

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We are living in the world of ‘Disrupt or get disrupted’.

The era driven by advancing technologies, ever-changing customer needs, preferences and uncertain markets has brought a lot of disruption to the ways in which the businesses function. Our traditional linear approaches to business no longer seem to work.

A lingering question engulfs the business leaders - How can firms prepare to disrupt first before they get disrupted?

The solution lies in being ‘Agile & Productive’ simultaneously and this is a key focus area for ABG’s businesses across the world. The Aditya Birla Group felt the need to define and redefine its solutions to many HR issues and practices and current ways-of-working to stay abreast with the rapidly changing world of work which is being dramatically reshaped by the moment.

ABG HR Summit: The inception The HR Summit of the Aditya Birla Group is an institutionalized forum held once every two years.

The purpose of the Summit is to engage with the larger HR Community across varied businesses of the Group through knowledge sharing, collaborative problem solving and recognition of HR Excellence at a team and individual level. The Summit brings together HR leaders from diverse business and cultural contexts across varied nationalities and geographies. Each Summit focuses on a contemporary business theme which anchors the entire design and content of the Summit.

The high point of the Summit is the engagement with the Chairman, Mr KM Birla, who invests his time in stating his expectations from HR leaders and accords recognition through HR Excellence Awards. In addition, select business leaders and line leaders also actively participate in the Summit. To bring in an outside-in view, the Summit also invites senior business leaders and HR leaders from cutting-edge organizations outside the Aditya Birla Group. Each Summit also culminates in post Summit actions and commitments. For example, in the last Summit held in Bangkok, the Chairman gave five key challenges. These challenges were addressed by various task forces who put together an action plan; implementation of which is in progress.

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Agility & Productivity: The two engines of ABG’s success

Agile learning: Immersive & Experiential

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he above scenario describes any regular corporate retreat that companies host to take a step away from their day-to-day work, build team spirit, and devise future strategies.

Unfortunately, most of these off-sites turn out to be ineffective, or worse. The challenges, priorities and action points are left back at the destination and lost somewhere in the drafts.

However, what if we tell you that off-sites can serve a greater purpose — so much more than team building games and activities? Samik Basu, CHRO – Hindalco and also the Convener of the 5th ABG Global HR Summit shares, “At our Summit in Singapore this year, around 360 of us went through a series of experiential learning interventions where we learnt from the outside world, shared amongst ourselves and together developed prototypes for solutions to some of the most pressing HR issues facing us in different parts of the Aditya Birla Group. By using ‘Agile’ methodology in a ‘Hackathon’, we were able to engage and pick the brains of all participants in working through these issues and coming up with prototypes of bold and new solutions. Post the Summit, we are now working to take forward a host of these prototypes and apply them to our businesses and people.”

In this case study, we highlight how the Aditya Birla Group (ABG), a $45 Billion conglomerate with a presence in 34 countries, anchored by an extraordinary force of 120,000 employees, hosted an off-site at the city of the future – Singapore, which offered an immersive learning experience to its HR Business Partners that proved instrumental in building agile and effective talent strategies.

In short, making HR more agile.

However, the challenge was, Driving agility beyond paper and board.

The Aditya Birla Gsroup wanted to drive agility in its HR function with around 360 of its HR and business leaders from across the world by asking them to ‘Seize Tomorrow, Today’. The challenge was making all these leaders respond rapidly to business changes and dynamic customer needs, through and immediately after the learning sessions.

“At our Summit in Singapore this year, around 360 of us went through a series of experiential learning interventions where we learnt from the outside world, shared amongst ourselves and together developed prototypes for solutions to some of the most pressing HR issues facing us in different parts of the Aditya Birla Group” Samik Basu

CHRO, Hindalco and also the Convener of the 5th ABG Global HR Summit JULY 2019 |

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"In everything we do, keep focusing on tomorrow. HR has to think radically different if it wants to move to the future."

Dr. Santrupt Misra

Director, Global HR & CEO, Carbon Black Business at Aditya Birla Group

The 2019 Summit: Design

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Key inputs to design the Summit were chosen from business focus areas defined by the Chairman of the Group, key focus areas for HR for the Group as articulated in HR Strategy 2017-2020 and recently concluded HR Survey feedback from internal customers.

Chandrashekhar Chavan, CHRO, Aditya Birla Fashion & Retail Ltd. shares, “Given our tangible and intangible investments in our business and people, business productivity and particularly white collar productivity has emerged as a key focus area for HR. We also felt that we needed to be more agile in our thoughts, action and re-engineer our mindset, approach, actions and systems/processes to do so.”

The summit design team which included Samik Basu, CHRO, Hindalco as the Convener and Chandrashekhar Chavan, CHRO, Aditya Birla Fashion & Retail Ltd. as the Co-Convener formed a team and a project plan was put together which was reviewed for progress in the weekly reviews. After evaluation of several options, key partners such as People Matters, Korn Ferry, and Wanderers were roped in.

The team while designing the Summit chose several design principles. The key question that was addressed to design the Summit was: What would make most sense to the participants in the Summit? The idea was to design a Summit that brings in freshness in its content and delivery.

Rather than an overdose of speakers at the Summit, the team selected a mix of activities- from immersion visits to thought leadership sessions

“Given our tangible and intangible investments in our business and people, business productivity and particularly white collar productivity has emerged as a key focus area for HR. We also felt that we needed to be more agile in our thoughts, action and re-engineer our mindset, approach, actions and systems/processes to do so” Chandrashekhar Chavan

CHRO, Aditya Birla Fashion & Retail Ltd. 94

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by internal, external and leading consultants, solving real and key problems through Hackathon, and exposure to the HR start-up world. To make it more engaging, ABG recognized outstanding work in HR through the HR Excellence Awards.

The 2019 Summit: Delivery The Aditya Birla Group partnered with People Matters, a niche media organization in the arena of people and work, and Korn Ferry, a global management consulting firm to offer an immersive and experiential learning to its HR fraternity.

The theme of the program was - Progility!

Through the twin themes of Productivity and Agility aka “Progility”, ABG wanted to leverage multiple elements running across all its diverse businesses, and wanted its existing practices to be viewed through myriad lenses. As a concept, through the ‘Progility’ journey, they wanted participants to learn from a combination of experiences and engaging talks. The objective was to get the ABG HR fraternity to closely review the prevalent approaches to Productivity of HR processes/ teams and of business, along with understanding ‘Agile’, Agile HR Practices and Organizational Agility with different perspective and business contexts.

The overall learning program was divided into three phases: Phase 1. Reflect: On the first day of the Summit, Dr. Santrupt Misra, CEO Carbon Black, Director Chemicals Business and Director Group HR, of the Aditya Birla Group, kickstarted the event by addressing the entire ABG HR fraternity wherein he shared his thoughts on the evolving business context, how HR needs to step up to stay in tune with the times and the plans for the Summit.

The conference was designed in a manner wherein participants would learn and practice new ways of working in the ever-evolving HR function, understand the ‘Future of Work’, become equipped to apply the latest techniques and methodologies to solve real-life problems, build actual live scalable business prototypes, share HR & Business problems across ABG’s global landscape and align the HR community on the must-win areas and allocate resources as per priority.

The conference enabled ABG’s HR team to listen to some of the most powerful leaders of today’s time from academia, public service and corporate; and provided diverse perspectives and approaches as practiced by the best in the world. This was followed up with showcasing 19 ingenious HR start-ups from Singapore, South East Asia and India, with the aim of introducing the participants to contemporary cutting-edge HR solutions and nimble working.

This was an eye-opening experience for most of the participants who witnessed how application of technology and artificial intelligence was molding the HR marketplace to solve people problems and to enable organizations in providing a much richer employee experience.

Some learnings that they discussed include: Design thinking increases innovation at the workplace

Design Thinking formed the foundation of the overall ABG HR Summit which led to an extraordinary experience as well as real results. You have to deeply understand your users and employees in order to simplify your organization and HR systems today.

Prototyping

Most strategy meetings, business planning meetings, engagement action planning meetings, etc. yield little or no results. Action plans stay written on flipcharts and usually don’t lead to any action.

Discussions on strategies get derailed easily without seeing the light of day. The rapid prototyping process accelerates discussions and outcomes, and creates 10x results very quickly.

Stress on the problem & not on the solution

Albert Einstein once said, “If I had an hour to solve a problem I'd spend 55 minutes thinking about the problem and five minutes thinking about its solutions.” The quality of the solution you generate is in direct proportion to your ability to identify the root cause of the problem you hope to solve. The ABG HR Summit allowed the HR community to spend a considerable time to identify deliberate and reflect on their problems and later they came up with the solutions. With that in mind, the key to productivity is to invest time in defining the problem as opposed to jumping right into dreaming up solutions to it.

The goalpost has moved

The goalpost for HR has moved – today we are tasked with making our organizations Attractive,

Trust & partner with key stakeholders internally, as well as externally with the ecosystem of your partners and well-wishers

ABG HR Summit was inclusive not only globally but also in reaching out to key business units to involve them in the experience. ABG created a global and cross-functional event by partnering with People Matters, Korn Ferry, HR Start-ups, consulting firms like Deloitte and BCG for exclusive sessions. The collaboration and synergy between each partner and participants empowered the HR team at ABG to let go of process thinking, engaging an extended global HR community & putting the user (employee) at the centre.

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Embedding ‘agile’ within a behemoth like ABG is an ambitious objective requiring equally ambitious means of getting there.

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Phase 2. Learn: Have you ever experienced the “Forgetting Curve?”

The phenomenon was hypothesized by a German psychologist, Hermann Ebbinghaus. The Forgetting Curve explains, how within one hour, people will have forgotten an average of 50 percent of the information presented. Within 24 hours, they would have forgotten an average of 70 percent of new information, and within a month, 90 percent of it.

So, does it mean that no matter how much you invest in training, all the learning content will just vanish in your learners’ brain?

ABG had the same challenge - making learning impactful and lasting!

The Summit had two interactive sessions of Best Practices Expo which provided an enriching learning opportunity for all participants. One consisted of Best Practices in HR by internal ABG businesses and the other having 19 external organizations and start-ups from South East Asia and India, showcasing the latest trends in HR including AI-supported staffing, game-based learning, IOT, interactive PMS, data analytics and HRMS. One of the participants said, “To a budding HR professional, the Expos were like semesters of learning packed in 20-odd stalls and to a seasoned HR practitioner, it was a potent array of impressive HR work, so much to learn and pick up from, with years of design and implementation experience available at one place!”

The Group through its partnership with People Matters arranged for Study Tours which provided an outside-in immersive learning opportunity to

Inclusive, Delightful, Simple and Future Ready, and the only way we can respond quickly is activating Agile within their HR leaders and teams

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“Getting exposed outside of the walls of your own organization is critical to be able to think differently about the business problems you are trying to solve.

Leaders are often constrained by their own limited experiences and find it difficult to venture into new ways of thinking.

People Matters Study Tours aims to add more “dots”, more “experiences” and learning so that leaders can look at the same talent challenges and bring new ways of solving them” Ester Martinez

CEO & Editor-in Chief, People Matters

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participants through efficient learning levers to optimize retention. The program was based on two premises: • Immersive: A learning which is “learning through reflection on doing” • Exposure to global practices: Learn and reflect from global and diverse organizations on how they are approaching various facets of talent dimensions.

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The team at People Matters arranged this immersive experience which was focused on giving structured experiential learning opportunities to delegates by visiting some of the most progressive organizations and academic institutions across Singapore to experience best practices and latest research and delve deeper into deliberations focusing on finding solutions to various talent challenges.

The agenda of study tour was curated with the thought of breaking the group of 360 into smaller groups. Each of these groups were diverse in nature to ensure team bonding across geographies, businesses and levels.

Ester Martinez, CEO & Editor-in Chief, People Matters shares, “Getting exposed outside of the walls of your own organization is critical to be able to think differently about the business problems you are trying to solve. Leaders are often constrained by their own limited experiences and find it difficult to venture into new ways of thinking. People Matters Study Tours aims to add more “dots”, more “experiences” and learning so that leaders can look at the same talent challenges and bring new ways of solving them.”

The participants from ABG got the opportunity to visit organizations like Facebook, GE, Unilever, Boeing, OCBC Bank, DuPont, National University of Singapore, Singapore Management University and learn how these organizations were approaching various dimensions of talent management like- Hiring, Performance Management, Learning & Development, Entrepreneurship & Intrapreneurship, Engagement, and Diversity & Inclusion.

Phase 3. Refocus: The summit concluded with a ‘Hackathon’ which was a five-step iterative prototyping process.

Embedding ‘agile’ within a behemoth like ABG is an ambitious objective requiring equally ambitious means of getting there. With this end in mind, ABG partnered with Korn Ferry India to build agility within the HR community by designing and facilitating one of the world’s largest HR Hackathons under one roof.

Nishith Mohanty, Client Partner, Korn Ferry India, shares, “When we first heard the theme of the Summit was Agility & Productivity, our response was that in order to understand Agile, you need to experience it. Instead of teaching and discussing, we decided to use the collective wisdom of 360 of ABG’s best talent to ‘hack’ the biggest challenges ABG is facing today.”

The two underlying principles of the Hackathon were that participants were challenged to solve ‘wicked’ problems that ABG faces today in a time-constrained process, and create real prototypes of ideas which solve these challenges from a user’s perspective. The former required the teams to roll up their sleeves and get straight to design thinking and rapid prototyping, as well as stepping out of their ‘expertise’ shoes and actually walking in the shoes of their employees.

Not only did it demonstrate a new way of thinking and problem solving to the group, it did so in a way that was fun, engaging and meaningful for the participants 96

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The five bold challenges given to them were:

Attractive

How might we attract the people we need at ABG?

delightful

How might we make our employee experience delightful?

The 5th edition of the ABG Global HR Summit was conceived as an immersion into the Art of Possible.

Samik shares, “The success of the entire initiative bears significance from the fact that it enabled participants to experience the power of ‘Agility’ to drive organizational and HR Velocity, Productivity and Impact. The offsite also helped the participants

future ready

How might we drive future readiness at ABG?

to build creative confidence amongst the HR fraternity to ‘hack’ the most critical problems for business using Agile principles.”

Using a design thinking approach, a global and diverse conglomerate like ABG with around 1,20,000 employees was able to unlearn, re-learn and act to real life HR problems. The HR retreat was a great learning experience for the Business & Leaders.

While debriefing the learnings from this experience, the conference conveners Samik Basu, Chandrashekhar Chavan and design lead Gurucharan Singh Gandhi, Head HR, Lifestyle Brands, Aditya Birla Fashion and Retail, felt that the bold bet they took with this design worked like a charm. Not only did it demonstrate a new way of thinking and problem solving to the group, it did so in a way that was fun, engaging and meaningful for the participants.

Reflecting on the success of the Summit, Shekhar shares, “It was delightful and heartening to receive an overwhelmingly positive response to the Summit design, experience and takeaways. It vindicated the commitment to this HR Summit by all of us at the Aditya Birla Group. Two highlights of Immersive Learning through on-site visits and agile thinking and actions through the hackathon and design thinking principles really stood out for all of us. We are now focused on carrying the work forward beyond the Summit and make this a part of our everyday life.”

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Immersion into the Art of Possible

inclusive

How might we drive inclusion for everyone?

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Nishith adds, “We spend all our time discussing solutions, but how many times do we even understand what we’re solving for? We therefore forced participants to spend the first two days to focus only on articulating the problems to solve, and the ‘hack’ there was to deeply understand their ‘users’ first.

The team identified 60 ‘personas’ of users across these challenges, and they spent time empathizing with them. Further, the startup immersion organized on day 1 of the Summit provided perhaps the best inspiration for participants to learn empathy and design thinking from.”

The process enabled the participants to create 60 working solutions which advanced ABG’s priorities – this, in turn, demonstrated to the participants the power of Agile. “When was the last time you created 60 solutions that your users love, solutions that actually work, and all this with just 6 hours of work? Now that’s what I call 10x,” adds Nishith.

simple

How might we make HR simple for our users?

Participant testimonials “It was a cultural melting pot where we could learn so many things from the sessions, colleagues and by visiting outstanding organizations in Singapore.

With a new mindset, I learnt new processes, methods and ideas to support people development and business success.”

HR Shashikant, CHRO, Novelis, USA “The ABG HR Summit was an experience where I understood the mission for HR in the Group and the commitment with which the core objectives are being pursued. The highlight of the event was the hackathon which, in a structured and methodical way, identified key objectives of our employees and brainstormed engaging ideas to resolve the conflicts. I thoroughly enjoyed

the event and am looking forward to the hackathon outcomes and implementation in the Group.”

Sooraj Bhat, CEO, Fast Fashion, ABFRL “It was fantastic to meet my colleagues from all over the world and to do networking, even making new friends! It was an outstanding experience to work on internal customer focused projects and to discover the power of our multinational and diverse HR team. I appreciate this experience and it was very beneficial for me.”

Andrea Tiedemann, HR Director, Europe, Africa and Middle East, Birla Carbon “Bi-annual HR Summit of ABG is a forum for the ABG HR team to celebrate the ongo-

ing transformation and many accomplishments as well as looking to the future to chart out even more ambitious vision and goals. This year's HR Summit held in Singapore was no exception as it was replete with new learnings, insights and skills in the area of Productivity and Agility, creating a transformation map of future of HR in ABG.” Parag Paranjpe, CHRO, Pulp & Fibre Business “Holistic and thought provoking journey (not an event). Learning stimuli were aptly distributed from talks, ideas, experiential understanding and networking.”

Sneha Gopalan, Manager - Sales HRBP, Learning & OE, Innerwear Business, ABFRL JULY 2019 |

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Past month's events Candidate Fit - Strategies for Effective Talent Acquisition

Coaching: A Learning & Development tool to create high performance cultures

The Artful Manager: Handling difficult conversations People Matters and enPara-

Knowledge + Networking

People Matters and

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MeritTrac 27th June 2019 Online There are a number of reasons why a candidate leaves, including lack of clarity, misaligned expectations and lack of culture fit. It is absolutely critical that recruits assess the candidate holistically and bridge these gaps in hiring. The good news is that emerging technologies are now making it possible for recruiters to go beyond assessing just job-related skills. They can now also help assess behavioral traits and also map whether the said candidate would fit the job role. For example, is a candidate introverted or extroverted?

And therefore which specific job role could he or she be aligned to? Sales or Coding? The possibilities are endless.

Anita S Guha, Talent Advisor - Chief Information Office, IBM India anc Vinod Viswanathan, Head - Corporate Business, MeritTrac, in this webcast emphasized on the importance of holistic ‘candidate’ assessment as a critical first step in hiring. Both of them shared the latest technologies being utilized for assessing candidates and employees. Guha from her own experience shared how assessments helped the HR team of her company take better decisions throughout the employee life cycle. Viswanathan shared more stories of some progressive organizations making the most of technology based assessments.

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People Matters and XEd 25th June 2019 Online In this webinar, Jonathan Passmore, a globally recognized coach shared insights from his practice and research. The session helped L&D professionals think through their own approach towards coaching and reflect how far have they been able to help their organizations move towards high performance. In an interactive learning session, he shared with the audience how they can find the right coaches for the organization and create a coaching culture within the organization. He also discussed the contribution coaching can make to the bottom line.

Employability in the new age - How to stay relevant!

People Matters and Oracle 13th June 2019 Online Research has shown that the cost to replace a highly skilled employee can be 200 percent of their annual salary. From startups to established brands, everyone is struggling to find the right person for the right job. However, with a host of talented intelligent technologies, recruiting has become less time consuming and more effective. While the market is full of newer technologies, HR professionals are yet to learn how to leverage the power of their social channels, take immense care of the candidate experience and navigate a complex compliance landscape. In this webcast, Shaakun Khanna, Head of Human Capital Management Applications, APAC, Oracle Corporation and Sunil Somarajan, CHRO, Reliance Capital discussed how companies can reinvent themselves to stay relevant in the ever evolving job market. They shared how the new age employment is different from the past and talked about the emerging employment models.

digm 19th June 2019 Online Difficult conversations are an inevitable part of management.

Be it conversations regarding appraisals or an upward feedback. To help leaders better prepare for this kind of discussion, People Matters and enParadigm hosted this online learning session. In an hour long session, John Cherian, Executive Director & Co-Founder, Enparadigm, taught the leaders how they can find the right words in the moment and manage to exchange difficult information, smoothly. He showed how behavioral training can shape the art of handling difficult conversations at work and enhance the managerial impact. The key is to learn how to handle such conversations in a way that produces “a better outcome: less pain for you and less pain for the person you’re talking to”.

New age learning format for millennials People Matters and Disperz 12th June 2019 Online The common learning related challenges businesses face today are resistance towards learning, acquiring radically different capabilities and scanning the horizon for growth opportunities. In this webcast by People Matters and Disprz, the new-age learning formats around the four aspects of learning Aspiration, Engagement, Performance, and ROI were shared. Shweta Kumar, CEO, OD Alternatives and Kuljit Chadha, Co-Founder & COO, Disprz discussed the expectations of modern workforce and shared with the audience the various new-age learning formats that drive engagement, experience and performance. They even suggested a few ways and shared some best practices on how organizations can promote a culture of self-learning and motivate the workforce to take charge of their learning.

Upcoming events People Matters TechHR India 2019 Conference & Exhibition There will also be an exhibition area, with 150 exhibitors selected to present leading HR products and services to help make business impact. This track will host live Q&As, People Matters Treasure Hunt, and book signing of top authors in Leadership, HR Transformation, and Technology. And, at the end of the Day 1 of the main conference, there will be the TechHR Night Fest, which would include networking, fun and a pub crawl in the heart of the iconic millennium city of Gurugram, Cyberhub. The TechHR Night Fest will have a stand-up comedy show as well.

This year, the main conference is supplemented by exclusive Study Tours, Masterclasses and Workshops. Pre-conference Study Tours is a unique concept of study tours wherein participants of the Global Executive Immersion Program will get to visit some fast growing organizations in India to deep dive into their best practices and get an opportunity to build a unique outside-in perspective. Then the Post-conference Certification Workshops after the two-day main conference will include highly effective and certified half-day workshops on topics such as, "Designing performance management that works", "Leading in the age of AI and automation", "Business impact with people analytics".

People Matters and DDI 2nd August 2019 The Leela Ambience, Gurgaon People Matters Are You in the List in association with DDI is an initiative to identify future emerging HR Leaders. In its 8th year, it will involve an intense qualifying application process, a series of assessments and face off with the panel. It is a platform for HR practitioners to showcase their potential and get recognized as the 'Emerging Future HR Leaders'. While the final winners will be announced in August, the application process has already begun.

The jury this year includes business and HR leaders like Sameer Soman, Managing Director, Thoughtworks; Ankur Warikoo, Co-Founder and CEO, Nearbuy. com; Vishpala Reddy, Regional HR Director - Asia Pacific, Uber and, Rajkamal Vempati, Head HR, Axis Bank. The winners will be announced during TechHR India on the 2nd of August, 2019.

Knowledge + Networking

People Matters 1st and 2nd August 2019 The Leela Ambience, Gurgaon Since 2014, People Matters TechHR has been driving the evolution of talent transformation and HR technology in Asia. After hosting over 3000 leaders in 2018, in 2019, People Matters TechHR will bring together thought leaders, HR practitioners, HR technology product leaders, startups and investors to build a vibrant community that will redefine the future of work and raise the bar for productivity, innovation, and growth.

The propelling discussions on technology, talent, and transformation led at the conference will be about disrupting the future of disruption and reframing perspectives. These conversations will invoke creativity, inspire and guide leaders to design the best of tomorrow, today. Day 1 of the conference will cover "productivity and performance" while Day 2 will be on "innovation and growth". The conference will focus on equipping leaders with practical insights on nurturing a future-ready digital workforce, technologies needed to accelerate effectiveness in learning, recruitment, performance and talent management, and emerging applications like AI, Robotics, block-chain in the context of work. David Green, Founder & CEO, Zandel; Leena Nair, Chief HR Officer, Unilever; Piyush Pandey, Chief Creative Officer Worldwide and Executive Chairman India, Ogilvy; James Taylor, Author & Keynote Speaker, Business Creativity, Innovation and Artificial Intelligence; and Ricardo Viana Vargas, Executive Director, Brightline Initiative, among others, are some of the speakers to look forward to at the conference.

People Matters Are You in the List 2019

https://india.techhrconference.com

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Blogosphere

>> Rituparna Chakraborty

Investment guru Jim Rogers once said, “Indians would rather like jobs and a better economy than all these laws, regulations and bureaucracy”. As the incumbent government takes charge, this statement couldn’t be truer

Job creation and skilling:

b l o g o s p h e r e

New government priorities for inclusive growth

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T

here is a dire need for structural reforms in the education system, employment and labour ecosystem. Driving sustained and rapid employment growth, particularly in the manufacturing and services sectors, will curb rising unemployment.

If all goes according to plan, with India’s demographic dividend and massive talent pool India, the estimated 7.5 million new entrants to the labour force can be provided gainful employment. It is not ambitious to aim for record employment growth unless those jobs also deliver real wage growth. The main agenda of the government should be to overhaul archaic processes and policies and act as an employment enabler. The speed of decision making and execution will be the key to good governance.

In spite of the ‘Make in India’ initiative, manufacturing sector's share in the GDP is at 18 per cent against the target of 25 per cent, failing to provide the necessary job creation impetus. To create more jobs, an effective employment ecosystem must be built on firm foundations of skill development to do high-paid, high-skilled jobs of the future, a robust infrastructure, and a non-discriminatory business environment without any regulatory cholesterol for the private sector.

While there was focus on labor reforms in the previous tenure – simplification and consolidation of all central labor laws into four broad codes, and digitization in the functioning of EPFO and ESIC etc., slowed down due to various reasons. The ruling government should now initiate a clear roadmap and policy direction to further reduce it to a single labour code, make EPFO & ESIC more present-day

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By improving productivity and women participation in the labor force, we can – raise living standards, channel inclusive growth and create an employment economy fit for the future and employer friendly and formalize and implement the earlier decision allowing employees to choose NPS and health insurance as an option in lieu of PF and ESI. It should also renew its commitment to increase transparency and remove red tape and corruption by declaring a hard deadline for implementing India Stack - Paperless, Presenceless and Cashless. Extending PMRPY for 3 more years as it encourages wider enrolment of workers and benefits all stakeholders - entrepreneurs as well as workers will be a step in the right direc-

tion. Similarly, the new government should also continue tax targeting of formal employment by service enterprises by extending 80JJAA for another 3 years.

Apprenticeship provides a larger, productive, ready to deploy talent pool: creating the necessary human capital for businesses, and helping them to invest in the future of our nation. The government should scale up Apprenticeship subsidy to encourage more adoption. The government should consider forming a National Apprenticeship Corporation by merging RDAT (Regional Directorate of Skill Development and Entrepreneurship) and BOAT (Board of Apprenticeship Training) that will function as a unified entity to be able to enrol 10 million Apprentices from the current 1 million and help them find employment by setting up National Matching Platform. In addition, an exclusive job portal for apprentices, and massifying higher education should be created.

The short point is, none of these initiatives on their own can provide concrete results for mass employment generation.

That is exactly what decentralized governance will do. In doing so, the benefits of the reforms will reach the grassroots. Another focus of the economic programme should be employment generation for the underprivileged and the deprived factions of society. Finally, by improving productivity and women participation in the labor force, we can – raise living standards, channel inclusive growth and create an employment economy fit for the future.

About the author

Rituparna Chakraborty is President, Indian Staffing Federation, Co-founder and EVP of TeamLease Services

REFERENCES

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The Nature of the Firm (1937) by Ronald Coase The Future of Jobs Report 2018- WEF The Future of Jobs Report 2018- WEF

50 New skills for the future generations at work 1. David R. Moore (Manchester Centre For Civil and Construction Engineering, UMIST, Manchester, UK.), Competence, competency and competencies: performance assessment in organizations

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Korn Ferry. “The Future of Work.” 2018.

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60 Dealing with misdemeanor at work

1. Fyodor Dostoyevsky, Crime and Punishment, Penguin Classics, 2003.

2. Visty Banaji, People are not beans, People Matters, 13th July 2016, (https://www. peoplematters.in/article/right-sizingworkforce/people-are-not-beans-13660).

3. Victor Hugo, Les Misérables, Penguin Classics, 1982.

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RNI Details: Vol. X, Issue No. 7, R.N.I. No. HARENG/2010/33504. Price Per Copy: Rs. 150/Printed and Published by Mahesh Kumar on behalf of People Matters Media Pvt. Ltd. Published at 503-505, 5th Floor, Millennium Plaza, Tower A, Sector 27, Gurgaon. Printed at Polykam Offset, C-138, Phase - I, Naraina Industrial Area, New Delhi - 110028. Editor: Esther Martinez Hernandez

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