- In Short
A Market-Driven Approach to Retaining Talent: Article 1
According to Peter Cappelli, “traditional strategies for employee retention are unsuited to a
world where talent runs free.” Cappelli argues the old goal of HR management – to minimize
overall employee turnover – must be replaced with the new one: to influence who leaves and
when
Methods:
Compensation:(The golden handcuff): Many companies try to lure new talent by offering
lucrative compensation packages. Top executives may be paid signing bonuses in staggered
intervals or may be compensated in stock options. It is important to note that such
compensation schemes can be applied to lower level employees as well. E.g Burger king where a
hefty joining bonus is paid only after an employee completes 3 months which is long time in a
fast food chain.
Cons: While the compensation does help in determining who leaves and when, companies need
better retention mechanisms for talented employees. It can easily be matched by competitors.
Job Design: Certain aspects of a job can be frustrating to employees and as a result, can
influence the rate of voluntary departures. Through job design, companies can make jobs more
satisfying. It is important to identify the tasks that contribute to dissatisfaction and if possible, to
reassign those tasks to the jobs that can be more easily replaced. Eg UPS found that drivers
opted out because of the monotony of the job of loading trucks everyday.
Try and remove monotony from the job and try to make a role not easily replaceable.
Job Customization: companies can tailor them to the needs of individuals. Part-time
arrangements, flexible working schedules or tuition reimbursements are examples of customized
retention mechanisms
Social ties: By encouraging social interaction among their employees, employers may
significantly reduce turnover among workers whose skills are in high demand. Often times,
workers find it difficult to leave the company, as that means leaving their social network
behind. Increase loyalty towards colleagues if not towards the organization.
Con: Employees may get adversely affected if his/her peer faces a problem (termination or
suspension etc) and may also think to switch making it difficult for organizations to
restructure.
Location: Carefully choosing the sites for various groups of employees, companies can
influence turnover rates. If a company is in search of jobs that require long-term
commitment.
Con: If company is looking for a varied skill set and pool of people, location might not
always be compromised on.
Cooperating with Competitors: shifting their sights to workers who are not in high demand
but who can do the job, organizations may be able to shelter themselves from market
forces. E.g given by Ma’am, Look out for those who are not actively searching jobs on
LInkedIN but are open to offers. This set would not be in the radar of recruiters and can
prove to be an asset.
e.g Microboard Processing gave jobs to drug adicts and people with criminal records. They
gave amazing outputs as they wanted to prove themselves otherwise.
End of article 1
Doing Layoffs Right: Article 3
Tips for saving jobs during layoffs:
1. Know your value and communicate It. "If you're flying under the radar, you're going to be
the first to be eliminated.“ Compile a weekly status report that outlines the project or
projects you're working on, your progress on those projects and your key performance
indicators, and sending that report to your boss each week. Keep your boss and your team
informed about your work before it’s too late.
2. Be a team player: Getting along with others—in the boardroom or elsewhere—is critical
when downsizing is on the table. Not mixing up with team often gives an impression that
you are uninterested in the organization.
3. Keep your ear to the ground: Staying attuned to what's going on inside your company,
including gossip, can help you anticipate changes.
4. Adapt to change quickly: Develop an attitude that nothing is going to stay the same and that
your organization and your job will always be in flux, that will help you cope.
5. Get out and lead: Executives are expected to set the vision and reassure people of the path
the company is on. Show decisiveness, strength and integrity. Show that you're combating
the rumor mill
Steps for effective layoff:
1) Identify those whom you would like to retain and visualize how the organization would look 2
years down the line with them. 2) Give assignment and notices to others who do not fit to
prove themselves in that period. 3) Offer job assistance to help them find new job 4) Higher
Authorities must convey the news. 5) Coaching from management, fun sessions, open
discussions to help them deal with discouragement and increase morale. 6) Always have vision
of the organization after process of layoff and if the decision will help achieve organization goal.
Leading Change
Why Transformation Efforts Fail: Article 3
Error 1: Not Establishing a Great
Enough Sense of Urgency
Error 2: Not Creating a Powerful
Enough Guiding Coalition
Error 3: Lacking a Vision
Error 4: Undercommunicating the Vision by
a Factor of Ten
Error 5: Not Removing Obstacles
to the New Vision
Error 6: Not Systematically Planning for, and
Creating, Short-Term Wins
Error 7: Declaring Victory Too Soon
Error 8: Not Anchoring Changes
in the Corporation’s Culture
ERRORS SOLUTIONS
Measuring the Benefits of Employee Engagement: Article 4
5 Dimensions:
Employee satisfaction is the positive reaction employees have to their overall job circumstances,
including their supervisors, pay and coworkers. More committed to their work and have less
absenteeism, which positively influences the quality of the goods they produce and services
they deliver. Satisfied employees also connect with the organization’s values and goals and
perceive themselves to be a part of the organization.
Employee identification refers to the emotional state in which employees identify as part of the
organization. They relate with success or failure of the company’s brand. Emphasis on brand
distinctiveness, competition, charismatic leadership, individual mentorships and a strong culture
with its own distinctive rituals and symbols.
Employee commitment is much higher for the engaged employees. Do more than what’s in
their job descriptions. It develops over time and is an outcome of shared experiences.
Employee loyalty to an organization creates a positive attitude about the organization, resulting
in improved work and customer satisfaction.
Employee performance improves for engaged employees. Training, orientation and branding
activities provide the underpinnings of stronger employee engagement. They can assist
employees in achieving a better work/life balance and empower them to make decisions that
benefit the company and its customers.
Sample Scorecard:
End of article 4
Reinventing Performance
Management: Article 5
Situation/Task: ‘STAR’ Method
It helps to narrow things down a little bit.
“Great job last month!” So the first thing to
establish when giving STAR feedback is a precise
Situation your employee faced or a Task they
were given: “We were about to miss our
monthly sales goal” The more specific it is, the
more personal your feedback will be.
Action:
Next, what exactly did your employee do? This
could be positive or negative. This is key to
reinforcing ideal behaviours or best practices
with your team, so if the same Situation/Task
occurs again, nobody has to improvise and they
know exactly what to do.
Result:
Finally, what was the direct result of that
Action? How did it directly remedy the Situation
or complete the Task? Aim for something more
precise.
” Note: I’ve researched and added this as I
remember mam talking about this. This isn’t a
part of article “
Case Theme: Performance Management (3 cases)
Case Theme: Total Reward system
Inline with Harikrishna Exports case:
Case Theme: Managing Layoffs
Theme from Mam’s article
