BIG
I N TERVIEW
something different. The last thing I will say is that what makes the new work operating system compelling is that the ROI is materially different. There is a real prize for doing this hard work and doing something different. It's not the usual five to 10% improvement, it is orders of magnitude greater
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Does this change require a significant mindshift, both at the leadership level and employee level? How can this be prioritised with competing financial priorities? We find it's really important that the voice of the employee be in the process because they're the ones closest to the work, but you have to make sure you do two things to get it right. People have to have an incentive to want to help you and contribute. And, you have to ensure that there is the promise of a safe landing, because you're going to redesign the job and the person might say, "Oh, well, now it doesn't look like I can do this work or it's going to take me too long to reskill and it's easier for someone else to do it". So, you have to ensure that there is a promise of a safe landing as well. But, again, this challenges a lot of legacy muscles. Hence this is a process that requires a lot of change management. It's a process | may 2022
We find it's really important that the voice of the employee be in the process because they're the ones closest to the work, but you have to make sure you do two things to get it right that requires people to start with a specific playbook.
What's your message to policy-makers and individuals? This is where there's a real opportunity for them. In the book we talk about not just what this means for companies, but how this could benefit individuals and nations so there are specific implications for regulators, policy makers and unions who are looking to protect the workforce. Firstly, we're talking about seeing the whole person, not just the headline of the job, seeing all of the different ways individuals can contribute to different types of work. Each person has a unique set of skills and attributes. So how do we ensure that there is visibility with drawing clear pathways to the many different ways talent can connect
to work as opposed to when you have a job and a job holder. When you limit work to this one-to-one relationship, you limit the opportunities for growth and advancement. That's why we hear from so many companies, it's easier for people to find work outside than it is inside. That's always going to be true, even if you show them what jobs are available internally because you're limiting them to a job versus if you can say to someone, here is a body of work where you are three months away in terms of skill gaps. This is another opportunity which you might be nine months away from, in terms of closing the skill gaps, and we're going to help you be ready for multiple opportunities. Your growth is not just going to come from doing another job, but we're going to create a lot of opportunities for you to express your skills through projects, assignments and gates, etc, in different parts of the organisation. That's going to then result in you getting paid more, because you have demonstrable skills that we can commercialise and you’re contributing to projects and assignments that make a difference to our business.
What are your views on major challenges that organisations face to adopt the new system and what retards the change? Would