Top 10 HR Tips For beating the recession

Top 10 HR Tips For beating the recession

A survey of HR directors and business leaders by recruitment firm The MBS Group has produced what it calls 'Ten tactics for tough times'.

Those involved in the research were all at board or senior management level, within the retail, luxury, and consumer goods sectors. How useful these tactics actually are is open to debate, but they provide a useful barometer of the current thinking taking place in top firms.

Tactics For Tough Times

1. Ride the storm - preparing for difficult times but not currently planning large scale layoffs.

Leaders of consumer, retail, leisure, and luxury industries are wisely shying away from kneejerk staff cuts or talking about culls of more mature staff. This reflects an innovative and creative approach to talent that other sectors would do well to observe.

2. See upside in downturn - the best business leaders see opportunities in turmoil.

Business leaders are focusing on the future, aiming to find new opportunities and disrupt existing markets with innovation, based on consumer insights.

3. Show me the value - rapid response and appropriate price promotion are working for some.

‘Extreme value propositions’ are working well with increasingly cost-conscious consumers. In an effort to grab market share, a race downmarket is developing, to capture consumer spending power with a ‘best-price’ message.

4. Pocket returns in pockets of growth - some sectors are positively booming, such as online, home entertainment and some luxury brands.

Online business continues to defy gravity. The results seem to indicate a ‘digital divide’ between companies who have older business models and those who have successfully incorporated e-commerce and new technology platforms. The latter are now benefiting from this shift in consumer behaviour.

5. Refocus on emerging markets - opportunities in Asia are attracting increased attention and investment whilst Europe and the US flounder.

Many respondents indicated that they are refocusing their businesses on the significant growth opportunities in the Middle East and Asia and, to a lesser extent, Eastern Europe.

6. Keep up with customers - businesses must find a way to match or exceed customers' increasingly agile changes in behaviour.

Customers’ behaviour is changing faster than businesses are able to shift their strategies. Consumer loyalty is not surviving the challenge of great deals and people are defecting to (own) brands that previously they would not have considered.

7. Hang on to talent - attracting the best talent is increasingly vital, but also becoming increasingly difficult.

Business leaders are not planning for the large-scale lay-offs that happened in previous recessions. Instead, they are focusing on whether they have the skills and talent to take them through the downturn. They recognise that it will be increasingly difficult to attract the best new talent into their organisations.

8. Empower your people - business leaders are recognising the value of experience, while also ensuring that their people have the right skills and training in place to survive and prepare for the upturn.

Internally, the focus is on having the right strategies in place to retain the best people, as well as managing under-performers in a tougher way. Incentives are being adapted to reflect these changed priorities.

9. Keep up morale - maintaining workforce morale will be a decisive benefit.

Businesses reported that they are redoubling efforts to demonstrate decisive leadership via more internal communication. For example, several companies are making increasing use of face-to-face communication to increase the CEO’s visibility, to set the right tone and convince employees that their jobs are safe. They recognise the need to avoid the creation of a bunker mentality within their businesses and build employee confidence and trust in their leadership.

10. Engage your staff - keep staff members on your side.

A high proportion of our survey respondents recognised that full employee engagement is needed to be able to shift strategy successfully. A minority of companies cited examples of the impact that this can have.

Ref: http://www.personneltoday.com/cgi-bin/mt/mt-tb.cgi/40472

Audit Tips For Training Programs

Audit Tips For Training Programs

Organizations waste more money on training than on any other area we audit.

To reduce the cost of training without losing its effectiveness consider pre-testing all potential training participants prior the scheduled date of training. The test should measure the skills/knowledge intended as outcomes of the training. If a trainee scores above the level considered acceptable, then the training should be voluntary for them. You will save countless man-hours by reducing the number of participants sitting through training for skills they already have.

Also, measure the success of your training programs by quantifying the outcomes you seek. Most training programs include a post-training evaluation, but these tend to measure things like room accommodations, trainer enthusiasm , and if attendees enjoyed their bran muffin. Instead training program success should be determined by outcomes. For example, successful harassment awareness programs should result in a measurable decline in harassment related incidents, complaints and litigation and/or improved employee attitudes and behaviors determined by employee attitudinal surveys. Supervisory skills training success should be measured by changes that occur following the training, i.e. improved employee morale, increased retention, fewer conflicts, increased productivity or reduced costs. Without measurable results from training, the only things for sure are that the program reduced productivity and increased costs.

Check to ensure that job descriptions include both "essential" and "non-essential" skills. Only include "essential" skills and not all desirable skills. 62% of our sample was non-compliant.

Use the same standards/management practices established for the organization's supervisors when managing the HR department. That means, doing timely, thorough performance appraisals, posting openings, documenting discipline etc. 78% of the HR departments in our sample, did not follow their own policies, procedures and management practices.

Don't just track turn-over. Instead track what percent of all turn-over is among experienced, skilled and high performing staff. Even a low turn-over of say less than 10% can be problematic if a disproportionate number of those leaving are top performers. Increased turn-over can be desirable if the increase is among those with the poorest performance or unacceptable conduct.

Establish quantifiable goals for all training programs. Don't worry so much about whether the instructor was affable or the room temperature comfortable. Instead measure the outcome based on your objective for having the training in the first place. For example, whether your organization's liability and the frequency of formal complaints decrease after harassment/discrimination training. Be prepared to answer the questions, "What is the return on the investment for the training program?"

Allow trainees to "test out" of attending training programs . If they already know the material why make them sit through it? Instead, consider incorporating them into training team for a portion of the program. Remember, only employees who are willing to learn, and need to learn the material will benefit from the training. Those who are unwilling or already doing what is to be trained will not benefit.