HCM Excellence (APAC & Middle East) - July 2022 by Excellence Publications by HR.com

JULY 2021 • Vol.4 • No. 07 (ISSN 2564-2049)

4 STEPS ORGANIZATIONS MUST TAKE TO BUILD DIVERSE TEAMS - Protima Achaya, India HR Head & Head APAC Talent Acquisition, NetApp

How To Improve Current HR Practices In India - Meena Kumari, Airmeet

The Ant And The Grasshopper: A Contemporary Take

Employer Branding: Building The Right Strategy

Retaining Top Talent Amidst The ‘Great Layoff’

Bosch Global Software Technologies

Newgen Software

iXceed Solutions

- Sathish Kumar C,

- SJ Raj,

- Yogita Tulsiani,

INDEX

HCM Excellence (APAC & Middle East) JULY 2022

No.07

(ISSN 2564-2049)

4 Steps Organizations Must Take To Build Diverse Teams

On the Cover Articles

Vol.04

- Protima Achaya,

India HR Head & Head APAC Talent Acquisition, NetApp

CHRO Corner

10 Exclusive Interview With Krishna Prasad, Senior Director, Human Resources, Skillsoft

32 Creating A Culture Of Inclusivity That Thrives Employment barriers are beginning to break down - Richa Gupta, Chief People Officer, Globalization Partners

18 Top 5 HR Trends To Watch Out For In 2022 In India Technology will have a greater role to play in the future of the workplace - Archana Jog, HR Faculty, Thadomal Shahani Center

23 “Industry Experience Required” Is A Mindset We Need To Get Out Of Experience side or the skillset side, what side are you on? - Ron Thomas, Managing Director, Strategy Focused Group

30 HR For Small Businesses: Tips, Challenges And Strategies HR is a critical aspect for the development of any business ‘employee rage’ situations Rakhi Daga, Senior Human Capital Manager, Talent Acquisition, Loginext

38 A Sustainable Approach For Enriching Organizational Harmony In The Digital Age Boosting impactful cultures at the corporate and subsidiary levels - Murad Salman Mirza, Thought Leader, Organizational Architect, and Author

42 Look Outside The Usual Zip Codes New approaches to finding tech talent - Gary Dempsy, VP, Technology, Consumer & Business Services, IDA Ireland

TOP PICKS

INDEX

How To Improve Current HR Practices In India Best practices to follow - Meena Kumari, Global Head,

HR, Airmee

The Ant And The Grasshopper: A Contemporary Take Exploring human tendencies - Sathish Kumar C, Head, PM CoE, Bosch Global Software Technologies

Employer Branding: Building The Right Strategy 6 elements of a good employer branding strategy - SJ Raj, Senior Vice President, HR and Operations, Newgen Software

Retaining Top Talent Amidst The ‘Great Layoff’ 5 strategies HR leaders must follow - Yogita Tulsiani, MD & Co-Founder,

iXceed Solutions

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Trends That Will Shape Work In 2022 And Beyond A paradigm shift toward digitization was already underway before the Covid-19 pandemic. But the pandemic accelerated the process and businesses that have been reluctant to embrace digital transformation found it difficult to survive. Also, with remote/hybrid work becoming the new normal, it has had a major impact on employee experiences, which eventually led to the Great Resignation. What are the top workforce trends to watch out for in the coming years? What are the new approaches to finding talent? The July issue of HCM Excellence (APAC & Middle East) includes articles that focus on expert strategies and tips for leaders and HR professionals to help them win the war on talent by hiring and retaining a global workforce. NetApp's Protima Achaya in her article, 4 Steps Organizations Must Take To Build Diverse Teams talks about how a diverse and inclusive workforce produces greater results because employees are happier and more at ease in their workplace. In her article, How To Improve Current HR Practices In India, Airmeet's Meena Kumari charts out a few best practices HR teams can adopt to help employees feel safe and acknowledged.

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In an exclusive interview, Krishna Prasad, Senior Director, Human Resources, Skillsoft shares his HR journey, his challenges and learnings, and his take on how workplace culture is evolving, among others. To learn about 6 elements of a good employer branding strategy, check out Employer Branding: Building The Right Strategy, by Newgen Software's SJ Raj Also, check out HR For Small Businesses: Tips, Challenges And Strategies by Loginext’s Rakhi Daga and Retaining Top Talent Amidst The ‘Great Layoff’ by iXceed Solutions' Yogita Tulsiani, among other articles featured in this edition. In brief, this edition of HCM Excellence (APAC & Middle East) is all about strategies to create a future-ready workforce and tips to drive your business forward successfully. We hope you enjoy reading all the informative articles in this edition and get back to us with your valuable feedback! Happy Reading! Write to the Editor at ePubEditors@hr.com

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COVER ARTICLE

4 Steps Organizations Must Take To Build Diverse Teams Developing a varied and cohesive workforce By Protima Achaya, NetApp

ver the last few years, organizations have seen tremendous changes in the way they operate, across business models, digital revolutions, and hiring agendas. To this extent, diversity, equity, and inclusion have become hot topics in today’s boardrooms. More and more businesses are realizing that a diverse and inclusive workforce produces greater results because employees are happier and more at ease in their workplace. According to research, firms with women board members

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outperform those with exclusively male board members financially. When the pandemic struck and organizations adopted a hybrid work model, there was an accelerated push for boarding multicultural teams, which resulted in diverse teams. With this, it became critical for various teams to work together effectively and efficiently.

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4 Steps Organizations Must Take To Build Diverse Teams

According to a recent study, cognitive diversity can boost team creativity by 20%. That said, organizations must also be aware of the challenges within diverse teams. It may vary from cultural misunderstandings and prejudices to communication and integration issues among staff.

handicap, language, sexual orientation, and age are sometimes overlooked as essential characteristics of diversity. It is critical to examine all facets of diversity while developing diversity strategies. Organizations must ensure that they have a clear vision for diversity in the workplace.

It is important for the leaders to be cognizant and aware of these challenges to be able to build stronger, diverse teams. The goal must be to assemble a varied team that values diversity and uses each member’s talents to work effectively. To achieve organizational goals, it is critical to have a plan in place that will assist in the development of a varied and cohesive workforce. Corporates in India Inc. have pledged to follow through on requirements for diversity, equity, and inclusion in a variety of ways, including:

Above all, develop a more inclusive workplace by adopting a zero-tolerance policy for workplace discrimination, and construct a favorable and easily accessible workplace for all underrepresented populations.

4. Putting Mental Health First

Mental health is an important element to address in the workplace, especially among different populations. Interactive and educational seminars, access to experts, mentors, and a platform via which workers may reach out to an expert anonymously benefit both organizations and employees.

1. Organizing Seminars to Raise Awareness

Constant training and creating awareness are among the most important parts of constructing any policy around diversity. It not only targets conscious and unconscious biases but also prejudices against disadvantaged groups, ensuring that everyone has an equal opportunity for progress. For a greater effect, HR executives may play a crucial role in facilitating these talks through creative interventions.

It is encouraging to see India Inc. making significant progress in embracing and nurturing diversity. In the grand scheme of things, creating a truly diverse and inclusive work culture, especially in a nation like India, may be difficult. What is motivating, though, is the governments, organizations and leaders’ ongoing efforts to question the existing status quo. Together, we can not only provide specific benefits to employees but also build support mechanisms that ensure a level playing field by enacting favorable diversity policies.

2. Diversity Initiatives Spearheaded by Leaders

Leaders and their behaviors help set the standard and drive change in any organization. This is especially true when adopting diversity-related policies and initiatives. Leaders who live the talk and lead by example to model inclusive behavior are critical to employee satisfaction and perceptions of equal opportunity. Encourage executives to establish and enhance both personal and company narratives, as well as demonstrate commitment via visible participation and action. Employees would be able to relate to these transition tales.

Protima Achaya is India HR Head & Head APAC Talent Acquisition at NetApp.

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3. Ensure that There Is a Wide Range of Diversity

We have a tendency to think of diversity as only gender. Many diversity discussions focus solely on gender or cultural differences. Thought, personality,

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CHRO CORNER

Inspiring the Next Generation of HR Leaders

Where do HR leaders draw inspiration from? What are their worst nightmares? How did they stand the test of the changing times? In this segment, we will trace your journey to the top.

Krishna Prasad (KP) is the Senior Director of HR & Operations, Skillsoft India & APAC. He comes with two decades of diverse professional experience in the human resources function across IT/ITES industries. In his role as the Senior Director, KP is responsible for the entire gamut of human resources including talent acquisition, compensation & benefits, employee experience, training & development, workplace diversity, rewards & recognition, and much more. In an exclusive interview with HR.com, Krishna shares his HR journey, his challenges and learnings, and his take on how workplace culture is evolving, among others.

This is your story - a story that is made of extraordinary accomplishments, methods that helped you overcome adversity, innovative programs that you led, and fundamental changes that you brought in. It's your chance to inspire the next generation of leaders.

Excerpts from the interview:

Exclusive Interview With Krishna Prasad, Senior Director, Human Resources, Skillsoft What has your HR journey been like and what influenced you the most to have a positive impact on your career?

Krishna: My passion has always been around “People”, and I feel obliged that I was able to make a career out of it. By virtue of my Master’s degree in Human Resources, I have always been intrigued by human behavior and psychology. With the learnings and experiences working for different IT & ITeS companies, I was able to contribute to the growth of organizations, but most importantly, created a positive difference in many people’s careers and their future aspirations.

What were your challenges during the early days of your career? What are those today?

Krishna: In the early stages of my career, it was more about learning and implementing. During this period, I struggled with time management, handling concurrent projects, and understanding people dynamics. In today’s fast-paced environment, where results are expected as early as “yesterday”, my challenges are multi-skilling and stakeholder management.

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CHRO Corner

on-the-job learning that makes for more hands-on and active skill development..

How do you see workplace culture evolving over the years?

Krishna: Workplace culture is ever-changing. From being business-driven a decade ago, it has evolved into a people-driven environment. ‘People first, business next’ is the mantra that organizations need to follow. With employee-centricity becoming more important than ever before, we are going to see the focus shift from a time-based business outcome to a result-based business outcome. This will impact everything from how we measure productivity to the way we view employee growth.

Can you share the top three learnings from the challenges you faced?

Krishna: The three principles I have developed through the years are: 1. Change is constant and one should always be prepared — You either “change” or be ready to “get changed” 2. Pulse check – Businesses do not run on their own, they need people, so it is very important to check the pulse of employees periodically and take necessary measures

Post the Covid-19 pandemic, we are already seeing an uptick in workplaces offering flexibility in terms of work hours. This trend will continue to flourish and fixed office hours will become a thing of the past.

3. Being in the game – If one needs to survive in this cut-throat competitive world, one needs to constantly innovate and plan. We may have best of the company and people, but if we are not following the next big wave, we are out of the game.

Similarly, we will be moving from sporadic employee engagement activities to end-to-end employee experience that includes every aspect of an employee’s journey with us. Finally, we will be seeing a departure from classroom training as we embrace

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CHRO Corner employee experience. Encapsulated some of these ahead:

Name: Krishna Prasad

Company: Skillsoft/SumTotal

●● “YOU” are In-charge — Enabling employees with all the learning aids for their success (both professional and personal)

Total number of employees: 3000+

●● One Size “Doesn’t” Fit All – Personalization of benefits based on employee needs

Designation: Senior Director, Human Resources

When did you join: Dec 2014

●● Engagement to Experience – Doing away with standard calendarization of fixed employee events; steered an employee experience committee to enhance the employee experience by customizing the events to suit all types of employees

Total experience in HR: 22 years Hobbies: Books, Cricket, and, of course, Movies What book are you reading currently: ‘Limitless’ by Jim Kwik

Where do you draw inspiration from? What do you have to say to those who are still struggling to find a place in the boardroom?

Krishna: In today’s digital era, inspiration is all around you, all the time. Books, podcasts, audio books, TED talks, and many more. There is no magic formula for success, but basic principles, such as attention to detail, performing thorough homework on task, working on your professional resume and getting the necessary “power skills” to get you through the door.

Where do you draw the line when it comes to work-life balance?

Krishna: In this connected world, a notification (either personal or work) attracts your attention and there is no going back and changing this. However, what matters is the clarity/preferences in your mind so that one does not overshadow the other part.

●● Overall Well-being — Physical and mental well-being is the core of employee matters in this day and age. We have introduced an employee assistance program (EAP) for employees to reach out to counselors in different areas of expertise

What are some major changes you see affecting HR within the next few years?

Krishna: The workplace and its requirements are changing rapidly, and so are an HR leader's responsibilities. I believe that functions like skilling and upskilling, talent retention and development, and digitization will change the HR space in the times to come. Leading the talent strategy, HR leaders will have a seat at the table and make significant contributions to business transformation as employee-centricity takes center stage.

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What fundamental change(s) (in terms of culture) have you brought into your company?

Krishna: There are some key changes that we are enabling within the organization to ensure a smooth

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TOP PICK

How To Improve Current HR Practices In India Best practices to follow By Meena Kumari, Airmeet

mployees may be skeptical about returning to the regular office environment during the pandemic. People’s primary concerns are safety and flexibility, which represent critical changes to improve mental health during the on-site return. Returning to work may thus be a challenging option for employees, particularly if it occurs in an uncertain environment, with a workforce already experiencing a significant increase in mental anxiety and disorders due to the pandemic. There is a genuine risk that millions of individuals may encounter yet another wave of stress and worry as they return to work. This attitude could result from a struggle between the desire to return to everyday life and the fear of contamination. As a result, humans are reluctant to change, even for their good. Therefore, HR professionals and companies together need to grab this opportunity and capitalize on what they have witnessed and learned during the pandemic from remote work and other

non-traditional work scenarios to be successful in the future. The most effective HR professionals assist leaders and employees alike in communicating the desired culture through specific, real examples and behaviors. Realigning the HR policies to create more flexible and inclusive pathways for the world’s most vulnerable is the only way to sustain and help employees grow. Attracting and retaining top talent, building new core capabilities, and improving diversity and inclusion are all examples of initiatives driven or supported by HR professionals. In addition, HR teams can ensure that the organizational plan addresses talent and people issues head-on. However, a dysfunctional culture can derail even the best-laid plans. On the other hand, strong work culture and HR policies support the correct strategic goal, objective, hiring the right candidate, training, and tracking

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performance. Therefore, leaders must consider how their organization’s culture and policies connect with and support its HR and growth strategy. Today, businesses are encouraged to take risks and change. So don’t be hesitant to implement new HR processes and solutions to fulfill your employees’ ever-changing and diverse needs. Meeting those demands could entail providing personalized benefits and working arrangements. In addition, your employees may seek different benefits and work arrangements depending on where they are in life. Therefore, an employee’s future depends on what their current workplace offers and what it has to teach them. Thus, HR teams across businesses must ensure that every individual at the company can understand the purpose that serves them. While the managers and mentors play a significant role, HR ensures that policies set are implemented and followed by working members.

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How To Improve Current HR Practices In India

Listed below are practices HR teams can adopt to help employees feel safe and acknowledged, thus increasing their productivity to augment business growth.

Hiring Right Instead of Hiring in Haste

On the termination or resignation of an employee, there is a vacant place required to be filled up. Still, it never comes as an easy task, especially when the position requires an experienced individual and, at the same time, someone who fits with the company’s culture. However, HR professionals should keep in mind that hiring right is wiser than hiring someone who only increases the work put in him. Therefore, why the candidate is selected and what skills are ideally needed should be well thought out during the recruitment process. In addition, crafting a sturdy job description can help solve the hassle of recruiting someone who does not accurately fulfill the requirement.

On-the-job Training

When employees are given training within the company, it becomes a valuable investment.

In addition, training and learning at the workplace offer the workforce numerous advantages. For example, it improves employee performance, productivity, and turnover, while improving organizational culture. Training also helps the HR personnel identify whether the skills mentioned on the candidate’s resume and interview are accurate. For the existing employees to receive additional training helps sharpen their skills and refurbish their understanding of work.

Track Performance

It is often found that the growth of an individual goes unrecognized because there is no proper tracking that is put in place. Therefore, measuring employee performance assists in calibrating those goals by offering insights into where someone is doing well and where individuals may feel challenged, as well as areas where they are not currently a strength. Employees, not managers or companies, should define their own goals based on performance feedback, self-reflection, and business needs. It may seem time-consuming, but it becomes of utmost importance when employees are getting reviewed or

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appraised, and there is no relevant information to assess their performance. Documentation of performance is also necessary for misconduct and violation of office policies. So many companies have spoken of employee-raised legal issues that they have had to face because they did not have the needed information for the employee. Tracking performance also helps with the appraisal of an employee or, in retrospect, if there is unsatisfactory job performance or termination.

Flexibility & Agility at Work: Understand the Psychological Effect on Employees

It’s impossible to narrow down one perfect set of rules for how each employee decides to work. Therefore, introducing new initiatives to build a more agile, adaptable organization is key to a healthy workplace. It is imperative to understand why “No one policy fits All” and ”No rules policy” is where employees can work from anywhere with uncapped vacation time off, no tracking of login and logout timings, or attendance. Instead, folks get encouraged to keep everyone posted about their whereabouts on a general slack channel creating further transparency, honesty, and intention to develop more visibility and ownership and, in turn, avoid micromanaging. In addition, creating avenues to ask better workplace questions, like all hands, town halls, and anonymous bots on slack, help create a more psychologically safe environment for employees.

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How To Improve Current HR Practices In India

Do More Than Over Communicate and Create Workplace Transparency

Communication is the glue and is a powerful weapon against poor performance, interpersonal conflicts, and other issues. Over-communicating and creating more transparency include improved employee retention, higher engagement, and more open communication.

Let Employees Be Heard

A significant factor in companies credited as astute and forward-looking is their dedication to giving everyone a voice. For example, if an employee feels like a liability instead of an asset, it could be detrimental to the company. Employees need to feel that their contribution matters, their work brings a difference in the people around them and

that their skills enable growth for the company. The employees need to be constantly stirred to get more involved, and in doing so, their contribution needs to be noted. This will instill faith within the employees to trust the organization they are working with and further commitment on their behalf.

Furthermore, if internal politics drives the workplace, employees might wear out the fight to remain stable while their colleagues are pulling them down. As a result, employees feel demotivated and might not even show up to work.

Inclusive Workplace

Adapting inclusive HR policies is always a win-win. Working in a hostile work environment affects the productivity of your workforce. Imagine employees getting subjected to harassing or discriminating behavior that interferes with their ability to perform their job. This behavior either produces an intimidating, threatening, or humiliating work atmosphere or jeopardizes a person’s psychological well-being.

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Meena Kumari is the Global Head of HR at Airmeet.

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Top 5 HR Trends To Watch Out For In 2022 In India Technology will have a greater role to play in the future of the workplace By Archana Jog, Thadomal Shahani Center

n the last few years, the human resource management (HRM) industry has transformed in many ways. The outbreak of Covid-19 introduced a flexible work model and led to the development of a holistic approach to employee wellbeing. The adoption of technology and constant upgrades further accelerated the adaptation and creation of new methodologies in HRM and the recruitment process.

to continue, however, it will be backed by a blended workforce. While the economy is recovering, with offices reopening, organizations are creating hybrid work models with employees working both from home and office. Moreover, many also have the flexibility of working from anywhere when working remotely. In 2022, the hybrid work culture will remain relevant. It will ensure that employees get the best while ensuring their physical and mental wellbeing.

The intensifying effects of the pandemic also impacted how HR managers and their teams operated. These professionals were at the forefront to ensure the continuity of businesses and boost employee morale. On the other hand, the forward-moving companies allocated heavy budgets for the development of a strong IT infrastructure.

2. Technology in HR Management and Recruitment

As remote working, online interviewing and hiring became widespread, HR managers and job seekers began to use new-age digital tools. Most businesses increased their use of technology in the HR department with the wider adoption of artificial intelligence (AI). HR managers began using AI to screen candidate resumes, which made the entire recruitment and hiring process more transformative.

In 2022, HR will add value to the transformation witnessed at workplaces as remote working and blended workforce are becoming the new normal. According to Microsoft’s Work Trend Index, 74% of Indian employees desire more flexible remote work options. So, what are the trends worth witnessing in the HR industry?

AI’s role does not end in hiring. It has also automated tasks that were earlier performed manually. Therefore, many organizations will invest in AI so that employees can focus on more meaningful work and increase their productivity.

1. Transformation to a Hybrid Work Culture

During the pandemic, remote work culture was essential for organizations. The trend is expected

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Top 5 HR Trends To Watch Out For In 2022 In India

When the workforce is engaged, it is highly productive. It leads to improved business outcomes and retention rates. In 2022, most organizations will pay more attention to enhancing employee experience to overcome uncertainty and ambiguity in the future.

3. Initiatives for Inclusion and Diversity Post the Covid-19 pandemic, there is a need to develop a sense of belonging and personalization in the workplace, to motivate employees. Inclusion and diversity are essential, but strategies should not be limited to written policies and programs. HR managers must ensure their implementation at the ground level.

5. Reskilling and Upskilling

Competition in the business landscape has increased. There is a greater need for transparency, agility, and resilience in the workplace. Moreover, after Covid-19, the dependency on automation tools has risen. The workforce needs a specialized skill set to adapt to a digitally driven world.

When organizations embrace diversity in the workplace, it is common for them to outperform the competition in the industry. According to research by Harvard Business Review, firms with more women in senior positions are more socially responsible, more profitable, and provide higher-quality customer experiences. In 2022, the space for equality of opportunity will increase, and there will be more openness to tackle micro-aggressions.

As 2022 proceeds, there is a need for two big developments in corporate organizations - reskilling and upskilling. Employees will have to undergo adequate training to learn upgraded technology and become equipped to take on new and different roles. The process is known as reskilling. Upskilling requires achieving new skills to grow in the current role at the organization.

4. Efforts to Improve Employee Experience

An employee goes through various experiences during their employment lifecycle. Job satisfaction is pivotal for a positive employee experience, and keeps people highly motivated for work. A disengaged workforce can result in major losses as there is low productivity, low profitability, and increased absences at work. Therefore, keeping employees motivated and providing a fulfilling experience is imperative.

The Way Forward

Technology has taken over the entire business industry, including the HR industry. A large number of organizations have adopted the hybrid work model at a fast pace, and many workplace trends are evolving fast. It is imperative for HR teams to take cognizance of these changes and lead their organizations in adapting to these trends, in order to achieve the most optimum business outcomes.

Archana Jog is HR Faculty at Thadomal Shahani Center For Management.

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The Ant And The Grasshopper: A Contemporary Take Exploring human tendencies By Sathish Kumar C, Bosch Global Software Technologies

On the other dimension of showcasing the work, the spectrum covers tendencies to hide, remain shy, or introverted on one end to seek and relish the limelight.

However, these lessons also helped me understand people and organizations’ behavior in a holistic way. I present to you a model I developed over this time to manage myself and my stakeholders. I feel it is ripe to discuss this in the context of the “Great Resignation” that we are going through now.

To make the model interesting and easy to remember, I link it up to the earlier Ant and Grasshopper story and represent each quadrant with interesting characters. As you would have easily made out, the “Ants” appear on the bottom-right (a shy/ introvert who does the work proactively) and the “Grasshoppers” appear on the top-left (an extrovert who is either lazy or go to any extent to avoid any work assigned). The model is complete only when we have the other two characters – “Stars” on the top-right and the “Koalas” on the bottom-left. (reference figure is given below).

any of us have read or heard the “Ant and Grasshopper” story from Aesop’s fables during our childhood and developed our value of hard and diligent working. Two and half decades of working in the IT industry gave me several experiences that questioned this value/belief.

Before I jump into the model, I would like to forewarn you that some of you might find this over-simplified. However, I have found a lot of merit in having simple models, for they are easy to understand and imbibe.

The Ant-Grasshopper Model

This model explores people’s natural tendencies in two dimensions: 1. doing the work, and 2. showcasing the work. In the dimension of doing the work, we see a spectrum of tendencies to reject, avoid, be lazy, etc. to being proactive, seeking and completing the work.

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Fig. The Ant-Grasshopper model

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The Ant And The Grasshopper: A Contemporary Take

The tale becomes interesting when we apply this model to our peers, especially with partial information and with a lot of perception. It causes competition, envy, ignoring and even demeaning the other person’s contribution. We fail to understand that every opportunity to collaborate and cooperate with our peers is a step toward our stardom.

Putting the Model into Action

In the context of leading self, we see that our tendencies vary based on the role that we play in our personal lives. We also see that this is very subjective and personal based on our attitudes, beliefs, and characteristics. We also dynamically switch our characteristics based on the context – in some cases, we choose to behave as a “Koala”, whereas in another context we choose to be a “Star” or an “Ant”.

The best and most complex part is when we apply this model to the managers/leaders above us. We generally look up to these leaders as our role models and try to emulate their behaviors. The primary challenge for us here, as in the earlier scenarios, is to differentiate between the real “Stars” and “Grasshoppers”. This time around, we have even less data about our leaders than the perception unless we are close to them.

One interesting observation I had is that we generally want to be seen as “Ants” irrespective of our position in this grid. It could be associated with the cultural setting, where acknowledging a “Star” is seen as pompous, whereas “Ants” are considered modest and down-to-earth. While leading our team, as front-line or mid-level managers, based on the interaction with our team members, we could map them to these quadrants. It would be relatively easy with direct reports than with indirect ones. The challenge for all the managers would, however, be to identify and differentiate the real “Stars” from “Grasshoppers”.

If we plot people in any organization based on their natural tendencies in these two dimensions, we will get an interesting distribution: ● A few (say, 5-10%) are the “Stars”, who do a lot of work, drive changes in the organization and never shy away from showcasing their work. They also demand recognition of their work and are generally seen/accepted as role models. You could easily recognize them standing out from the rest and are critical for the organization’s growth and risk-taking ability.

The problem arises when we ourselves are “Grasshoppers”, who give preference to our kind in our inner circle over the “Ants”, who are outside. The chances of this occurring are high due to the simple reason that we give higher weightage to perception and relationship over data.

● A majority (up to 70%) of employees fall into the “Ants” category. These are essentially the foundation for an organization’s success and sustenance. These associates are passionate about the organization’s purpose, the value system and are eager to give their everything to make the organization successful. They also look up to the “Stars”, aspire to be one amongst them and work hard toward this. ● The “Grasshoppers” consist of a sizeable chunk (say, 15-20%) across all the levels of the organization, though a majority might fall into the managerial cadre. These associates have excellent communication, presentation, and delegation skills. The excellent stories crafted by them make many perceive them as the “Stars”.

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The Ant And The Grasshopper: A Contemporary Take

much higher burnout rates than the “Stars”. Due to their nature of being silent, they would also end up depressed and stressed out at work causing a further snowballing effect. Some of them would even give up and become “Koalas” (at least temporarily).

● The bitter truth that many do not want to discuss, acknowledge, and deal with is that every organization has a small population of “Koalas”, who generally remain below the radar.

Relevance in Current Context

3. The “Grasshoppers”, who were riding on these “Ants” work, would look for newer “Ants” by being more predatory. Most of them would succeed and continue, whereas a few perish as they run out of luck.

If we observe the “Ants” and their managers’ behavior closely for a reasonable period, we observe the following patterns: ● The “Ants”, who get support from their managers/leaders and modify their behavior to come out of their shyness, would shape up into the “Stars”. This not only enlarges the “Stars” quadrant, but also pushes the existing “Stars” towards excellence.

4. A few of the “Koalas” would wake up due to the fear of being discovered. In a best-case scenario, they might leave (healthy attrition), or in the worst case, they evolve into “Grasshoppers”.

● On the other hand, the fast follower “Ants”, who do not get adequate feedback and support from their managers get frustrated. A few of them revolt while others leave the organization to avoid confrontation with their managers.

5. As a net result, you will see the scale tilting to the top-left quadrant with a swarm of “Grasshopper” population without enough “Ants” to propel the organization’s engine. In no time, the entire organization gets pulled down by this dead weight.

● A third category of “Ants”, those who sulk due to the partiality meted out to them by their managers over the “Grasshoppers”, would either end up as “Koalas” or would become fatally depressed.

Are these the patterns we see during the “Great Resignation”? Is our attrition that of “Ants” or “Stars”? Are we ending up with too many “Grasshoppers” and/or “Koalas”? Are our front-line and mid-level managers favoring “Grasshoppers” over the “Ants”? As Leaders, are we being “Grasshoppers” instead of “Stars”?

In a normal context, when a few “Ants” leave the organization, the impact is minimal due to the system’s capability to self-stabilize. However, in these conducive job market conditions, if the managers do not care for the “Ants”, the resulting attrition can be fatal. Let us take a moment to visualize a possible sequence of events when a significant number of “Ants” leave:

I feel it is high time we seriously investigate and address these questions. Do you see merit in this? What are your views? This article first appeared here.

1. The “Stars”, who work collaboratively with these “Ants”, would be out of their fuel/engine. Some of them will attempt to compensate by pushing themselves doubly hard, to maintain their performance levels, resulting in burnout. Some might even morph to become “Grasshoppers” or leave the organization.

Sathish Kumar C is Head, PM CoE (Project Management Centre of Excellence), at Bosch Global Software Technologies.

2. The “Ants”, who choose to stay back, take the workload of all those who have left and would face

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“Industry Experience Required” Is A Mindset We Need To Get Out Of Experience side or the skillset side, what side are you on? By Ron Thomas, Strategy Focused Group

" ndustry experience required.

Industry experience preferred.”

I recently saw a blog post the other day in Dubai that said, 20 years’ experience for an engineer position, 15 years for another type of engineering job family.

Meanwhile, the other descriptors are innovative mindset, out-of-the-box thinking, etc. When I see these types of requirements listed in a job ad, they cause my eyes to glaze over. How does an innovative approach

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work for someone who has been doing the same job for 15-20 years? Are we hiring from more of the same and hoping that the bubble will wake up and provide a game-changing approach? If that is the approach you should consider a change in mindset.

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“Industry Experience Required” Is A Mindset We Need To Get Out Of

As a hiring manager, you fall either on the Industry Experience side or the Skillset side. However, there is a SMART recruiter out there who will ignore that ridiculous screening requirement and instead look for talented people from other industries.

A Sign that You just Don’t Get the “Talent Thing”

In searching for talent, we all have our own views on how to evaluate. What I may see you may not see, and vice versa. I believe in the concept of leaving no stone unturned in the constant search for talented people. And that may mean that we are not locked into that strict mindset.

However, when we put restrictions on who we are interested in or will only look at someone who is or has been in our industry, we are showing just how we really do not get the talent thing. Every time you allow your company to throw up that talent filter, you are saying that you are not innovative and that you simply do not want new ideas. You can't have it both ways. What data have you used to make the assumption that if you were in a certain industry, you would be successful in this job? Can you prove, beyond a reasonable doubt, that the only people who will be successful in this role are people coming from there?

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However, smart companies today should look for transferable skills and not get too concerned about the industry experience. That is so Recruiting 1.0.

Innovation Comes from a New Mindset

My background was in publishing, media and the entertainment business. My next industry was military aircraft maintenance. My next role was CEO and that transitioned into organizational consulting. All that experience would not qualify me for a current CHRO role. Now, tell me the connection between these industries. In the end, it is still HR through multiple lenses.

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“Industry Experience Required” Is A Mindset We Need To Get Out Of

Recently, I came across an old article at MAD [MediaPost Agency Daily], titled Agencies Need to Tap a Broader Talent Pool that was written by Will Campbell, CEO of Quantasy. His article spoke about the “seismic shift” the agency world has gone through. He went on to describe how successful firms are rethinking their approach to talent by “reimagining their positions.” Using their non-conventional staffing model, Quantasy went outside of the industry and hired successful people who had NO previous ad agency experience — an award-winning music executive, a web entrepreneur, a screenwriter, and even a blogger, to work on their many projects.

strategic roles within. That may still be the case for some that are holding on, but the new big thing is to look past industry experience for digital professionals wherever they may be. As a matter of fact, I often tell my former publishing colleagues to change the narrative of their personal brand from “publishing experience” and instead express a varied background with digital leading the charge and publishing coming up in the rear.

This article is a must-read if you are locked into looking down the same rabbit hole.

In our role of being innovative HR practitioners, this same concept can be applied to us in our own development. Are we only reading HR bloggers and HR websites? If so, you are caught up in a loop like the old vinyl records that keep skipping and repeating the same songs repeatedly.

Changing the Narrative of Your Personal Brand

Going Beyond Our Own Sphere

Talent is scarce today and it will continue getting scarcer. Just opening your talent requirements to various skill sets, and not just specific industry experience, expands an organization’s talent capabilities.

In a lot of cases, hiring managers are the hard-liners when it comes to this outdated concept. They feel that the only ones that can do their business are someone who has already been in their business. I worked for a lot of years in publishing, where editors had

Stretch your development by reading about other professions. I found this article in Quantasy because I’m a big fan of marketing and advertising periodicals, their blogs, etc. My reading list also includes articles from Psychology Today, CFO. com, CEO.com, CMO.com and Advertising Age, to name a few. I want to stay abreast of all the thinking within the organization, not just in my own profession. I want to know what all the others are doing to deal with disruption in their respective professions.

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Our thinking must go beyond our own sphere. We can not allow our organization to get stuck in the one-industry corral. If we want to be the captain of our organization’s human capital, we need to move beyond a locked-in mindset. We can not afford to focus just on our own industry, whether it is hiring or our own self-development. Read about it from a different vantage point and you just may learn something and gain some new ideas. Hire from a different vantage point and the sunrise of innovation just may come up over your horizon.

Ron Thomas is the Managing Director of Strategy Focused Group, an international consulting firm based in Dubai and Singapore. Ron has been most recently named in leadersHum Power List of the Top 200 Biggest Voices in Leadership list to watch for in 2022. His podcast, “The CEO Series”, is named one among the ‘Top 9 HR Podcasts You Need To Follow In 2022’. He is a visiting executive faculty member at the Global Human Resources Leadership Institute at Howard University School of Business in Washington, DC.

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Employer Branding: Building The Right Strategy 6 elements of a good employer branding strategy By SJ Raj, Newgen Software

ccording to the World Economic Forum, 25% of an organization’s market value is directly attributed to its brand reputation. The reputation of an employer’s brand can affect everything from business revenue to customer loyalty and employee retention. This indicates the importance of maintaining a reputable employer brand as part of the organizational strategy to recruit better candidates, decrease marketing costs, reduce hiring, and increase productivity. Therefore, for organizations that still question the importance of investing in employer branding, here is why and how to get started!

What Is Employer Branding and Why You Must Invest in it?

In simple words, employer branding is about managing and influencing an organization’s reputation as an employer among customers, employees, job

candidates, and stakeholders. Glassdoor predicts that nearly 95% of candidates mention employer branding as an important factor in their decision to apply for a job. In fact, positive employer brands can gain twice the applications, quickly fill skill gaps, and eventually become the talent magnet in the market. The better you are at managing your brand perception, the more likely you are able to attract top candidates and retain current ones.

Steps to Develop the Right Employer Branding Strategy

An effective employer branding strategy can make a big difference in the decision of an ideal candidate to join the organization. Whether an organization is large or small, it is important to set a strong strategy in place and adjust it accordingly.

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Let us take a look at the six important steps to get started in developing the right employer branding strategy:

1. Conduct an Employer Brand Audit

An employer brand audit should be the first step in developing an employer brand strategy. This audit is aimed to understand what the organization does well and what needs to improve. An audit can be done through surveys, social media channels, or external employer review sites like Glassdoor.

2. Define the Employer Value Proposition

An employer’s value proposition should be defined based on the list of values and benefits offered by the organization. Since it is the heart of the employer brand, the message should convey what makes the organization unique. The main task is to not just play to your strengths but also maintain honesty and integrity.

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Employer Branding: Building The Right Strategy

6. Review your onboarding process

The employee onboarding process is the first stage that a new hire has to go through, and a bad impression at this point can have a negative impact. It is important for the organization to get employees excited and engaged about their roles from the very start. This means providing them with the necessary instructions, orientations, and tools required for them to thrive in their new roles.

Key Takeaways

3. Create Employee Engagement

To develop the image of a trusted employer, look no further than the organization’s very own workforce. The employees are the ones who shape the company’s culture, achieve objectives, live the values, and manifest the vision. You may ask your current employees to update their profiles and share any fun outings or giveaways on their social media accounts. This can be a powerful way for employees to share the company’s culture amongst their own networks.

4. Offer learning opportunities

One of the top reasons employees quit is that they get bored and seek a new challenge. This can be a quick fix for

organizations. Providing learning and development opportunities to employees demonstrates the organization’s importance on continuous learning and equally challenges the employees. It also showcases that the company truly values the employees, leading to higher retention rates.

An organization that has sustained good employer branding can decrease the employee turnover rate by 28% and even slash the costs in half! So if you are still pondering whether or not to invest in employer branding, it is time to get into action and start strategizing your brand reputation.

5. Use Different Marketing Channels

When an organization implements a strategy to improve or develop employer branding, it must communicate the message through more than one channel. A company can showcase its story via photos, videos, blogs, and other creative forms to ensure that they are reaching the largest audience present on different platforms.

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Dr. S. J. Raj is the Senior Vice President of HR and Operations at Newgen Software.

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HR For Small Businesses: Tips, Challenges And Strategies HR is a critical aspect for the development of any business By Rakhi Daga, Loginext ●● Maintaining a healthy working environment: Ensuring policies in line with global trends, and listening to feedback ensures maintaining a healthy working environment

Essential HR Tips for Small Businesses

1. Know and understand employment-related laws: As an HR leader, it is important to be well-versed with local laws and regulations that cover hiring, retaining, and terminating employees. It is also beneficial to familiarize yourself with rules around compensation, benefits and safety in the workplace.

eople make a company. Whether starting up, raising funds, scaling a company, or having a balanced workplace, people are central to its success. And this makes human resources (HR) a critical aspect of building a business. Several parameters support the importance of good HR for small businesses. Here are a few:

2. Get the onboarding process right: In order to ensure maximum productivity, it is crucial that you get new employees up to speed and productive as fast as possible. This can happen only when a seamless onboarding process is in place. 3. Manage payroll correctly: Mismanaging payroll is a fast track to losing your employees’ trust. Every paycheque must be correct. Paying them on time is critical, too. Set a strict payment schedule and stick to it.

●● Quality hires: Organizations that invest in a strong candidate experience increase their quality of hires. ●● Attract and retain top talent: Employees would stay longer at an organization that listens to and addresses their concerns.

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HR For Small Businesses: Tips, Challenges And Strategies

evaluations, employee data, sensitive information, and company policies are responsibilities of HR.

4. Focus on performance management: Provide your employees a clear path toward success by developing personal and company goals they can attain over their careers.

HR Strategies for Startups

1. The first strategy should be to compile an outline of company goals, policies, procedures, rules, and an overall picture of your startup.

5. Create a comprehensive benefits package: Benefits packages are not one-size-fits-all. The more you know and understand your employees, the better you can meet their needs. Generous packages include competitive (and affordable) health insurance plans and other necessities like paid time off and retirement saving programs.

2. There should be a proper strategy for understanding what is expected from you, and to what extent. 3. A proper strategy that defines company values and culture so that HR can look for new hires.

6. Safety and wellness: Create safety and wellness programs for every employee.

4. A strategy that implies an effective administration process leads to cost-cutting and saving.

HR Challenges for Startups

1. A startup or SME is all about low-scale investments or budget constraints, so the first and foremost challenge HR faces is “Sourcing the right talent/talent acquisition that meets the organization’s needs”.

5. Strategy of availing HR software for startups, where you can track and organize the company’s growth.

2. The challenge does not end at sourcing. The next challenge begins while explaining the company policies to a candidate, and establishing clear communication channels.

6. A detailed strategy of recruitment, development, and onboarding procedure. 7. A proper strategy of maintaining employee details, job responsibilities and duties, growth chart, health and safety measures, positive work environment, etc.

3. HR has to deal with the pressure of building a positive work environment within or outside the organization.

8. Strategy of an ideal team that includes hard workers, risk takers, leaders and motivators.

4. The HR routine that includes employee health and well-being for company growth and development could be a significant challenge for startups.

9. There should be a proper strategy for reward and recognition to meet the desired goal.

5. There could be a lack of interest and funds by management, which may create a challenging task for better performance.

10. There should be a performance termination strategy that is respectful and easy-going for employees.

6. Selection, recruitment, and training & development can be a tedious task for small organizations due to the lack of required skill sets.

Rakhi Daga is Senior Human Capital Manager, Talent Acquisition, at Loginext.

7. Building a work culture through HR policies requires constant contribution and dedication. Sometimes, HR has to go beyond its limits.

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8. Another challenge could be ‘record-keeping’, where hundreds of resumes, business records, performance

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Creating A Culture Of Inclusivity That Thrives Employment barriers are beginning to break down By Richa Gupta, Globalization Partners

o flourish in 2022 and beyond, companies must place diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) at the center of everything they do – from decision-making to board composition. It is more important than ever for companies to work towards making sure they have diverse representation throughout the entire organization, from the CEO to managers to entry-level team members to attract and retain top talent and achieve their business goals. Employee empathy and productivity flourish in an inclusive setting, where different cultural understandings and ideas for business breakthroughs can thrive. However, without actionable and widespread efforts, many companies will see their DEI efforts fall short. However, what are some of the primary drivers for achieving success? In my experience, it is actively implementing inclusivity at work (and making sure those values are reflected at the leadership level). Then, the remaining employee base will be able to follow suit and culture will emerge, where inclusivity is a

core value of the organization, for which they work.

The State of Inclusion at Work

A recent study from Heidrick & Struggles shows that 82% of the world’s largest organizations have focused on culture as a priority in the past three years, and “increasing employee engagement” and “improving diversity and inclusion” are two of the top three goals behind this focus. Culture Amp’s 2022 Workplace DEI Report found that even though 60% of companies do not currently have any DEI specialist roles, 40% said they are investing in building out the specialized expertise needed to build successful equity and inclusion programs. These roles also tend to be new, according to the research, with 80% of DEI roles being hired in the last 18 months. This indicates that most companies are still at the beginning of their change journeys and additional progress is yet to come.

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Surely, this momentum is encouraging. It shows us that employment barriers are beginning to break down. It proves that companies are committed to making an actionable change when it comes to hiring talent that is representative of the world we live in today: diverse, full of differences in opinions, backgrounds, beliefs, knowledge and experiences. All of these differences have long been understood to contribute to above-average returns and increased business performance, which will undoubtedly bring major benefits to our global economy in the years to come.

Practical Ways to Promote Inclusion Beyond greater business performance, workplace inclusivity is an iron-clad value proposition for today’s businesses. With the global race for talent as a backdrop, taking ownership of inclusive principles will determine winning and losing companies. To attract and retain top talent, businesses must focus on creating a culture that benefits everyone, anywhere.

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Creating A Culture Of Inclusivity That Thrives

Companies can take practical steps to create a global, scalable platform that drives a sense of belonging and inclusion for every single employee – regardless of their gender, ethnicity, cultural experience, location or job function.

Create and Promote a DEI Policy

Etching DEI policies in stone is one of the primary ways companies can leapfrog other businesses in their inclusion efforts, setting themselves apart from the competition. A DEI policy can serve as one holistic

approach to hiring, empowering and retaining a diverse workforce and should be woven into the larger strategic plan of an organization. For a global workforce, specifically, having a clearly-defined DEI policy in place is critical to display one’s true intentions and stance on a variety of global diversity issues, such as tolerance of racial, gender and cultural biases. SHRM details the steps to create a DEI plan, which includes four main phases: benchmarking data collection and analysis; strategy design to match business objectives; implementation of the initiative;

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and evaluation and continuing audit of the plan.

Implement a Strategic Inclusion Plan

In a 2020 study by industry analyst and thought leader Josh Bersin, 75% of companies surveyed do not include DEI in leadership development or overall learning and development. Roughly 80% of companies with DEI initiatives are just going through the motions and not holding themselves accountable, according to the report.

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Creating A Culture Of Inclusivity That Thrives

It helps to analyze the high-performing companies that have seemingly “done things right” by living out their DEI values for decades and not just focusing on checking the proverbial boxes. According to the same report from Josh Bersin, the highest performing companies included Accenture, ADP, AstraZeneca, IBM, Johnson & Johnson and Target. Through analyzing the inclusion strategies at these companies, the researchers found that “listening, hearing and acting” are critical, as companies that do so are 12x more likely to engage and retain

employees; 8.4x more likely to inspire a sense of belonging; and 8.5x are more likely to satisfy and retain customers.

Take a Regular Pulse of Employee Sentiment

Giving employees the opportunity to provide regular feedback is a crucial step in making sure a company’s DEI initiatives are having the desired impact. Internal employee surveys provide a window into what is working and what needs to be addressed. This helps make employees part of the process and provides invaluable

internal data for creating action plans and next steps. This data can help craft both immediately implementable plans and inform next-generation programs like creating internship programs that focus on diversity. Companies that focus on creating an inclusive working environment for their employees that is reflective of the diverse world we live in, can help ensure all of their team members feel valued and heard and as a result, will be the ones that find the most success.

Richa Gupta is the Chief People Officer at Globalization Partners. Gupta brings over 20 years of robust technology human resources experience, with a focus on managing HR for global, complex organizations that are undergoing transformations and defining industries. Previously, Richa held senior leadership roles at GE, PayPal and, most recently, as Chief People Officer at health tech platform Castlight Health.

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Retaining Top Talent Amidst The ‘Great Layoff’ 5 strategies HR leaders must follow By Yogita Tulsiani, iXceed Solutions

he present HR pioneers face an uncommon work market where leaves of absence, layoffs, and record turnover have become normal. As indicated by a worldwide organizational firm - firms across the globe are furloughing staff at a rate multiple times more noteworthy than layoffs. Simultaneously, across the world organizations like Tesla, Meta and Netflix, alongside new businesses like Vedantu, Cars24 and Mfine, have declared mass cutbacks. Be that, as it may, one association’s lack of a decent representative

can quickly turn into the increase of another. In the midst of this flood of ‘great layoffs’, HR pioneers need a triumphant talent acquisition (TA) procedure to catch this ability and yield long-haul business results. An organized TA procedure can raise enlistment endeavors across the association. It can likewise reinforce ability pipelines, help distinguish, draw in, waitlist and connect top-quality ability while diminishing both opportunity to enlist and expense per recruit.

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July 2022

The right HR system can help obtain a precautionary assessment of the most recent enrolment advancements, cycles and assets that drive change.

1. Build a Great EVP

In this flood of extraordinary cutbacks, organizations have not separated between highperforming and non-performing abilities. Subsequently, the ongoing deficiency of ability is currently being overwhelmed by a convergence of ability from various enterprises. Episodes like these present a chance for TA groups to make an exceptionally convincing employee value proposition (EVP) to draw in these specialists. An EVP offers competitors the right harmony between encounters, benefits, organizational values and learning experiences when they join another job. A fruitful offer incorporates a positive hierarchical culture, unmistakable and theoretical prizes, solid initiative, and development and improvement.

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Retaining Top Talent Amidst The ‘Great Layoff’

2. Make Your Employer Brand Stand Out

At a time when organizations are braving the ‘great resignation’ and descending to the ‘great layoffs’, an employer’s brand can influence the decision of employees to stay or join the organization. An employer brand embodies the values, culture and workplace environment an organization has to offer. Amidst the proliferation of online review platforms and social media channels, employer branding becomes as much vulnerable as it is important. By controlling the narrative surrounding your company through internal and external assessment, thought leadership, proactive advertising, etc., an organization can create a unique and strong employer brand that attracts and retains talent.

3. Identify the Best Sources of Talent

To compete in this ever-changing global economy, HR leaders need to identify and explore alternative and more creative forms of talent sourcing. Instead of relying on inbound applications, organizations should try to explore online talent marketplaces that are democratizing recruitment. Skilled TA teams should also look for passive and new-on-the-market jobseekers through an extensive search on talent networks, social media, community events, etc. Deploying a data-driven sourcing, selection and hiring strategy can help TA teams streamline the recruitment process and identify the most trusted sources of talent.

Consequently, this will save hiring efforts every subsequent time the organization needs to hire.

4. Raid the Rejects of Your Competitors

Desperate times call for desperate measures and the job market will not be more critical than the wave of ‘great resignation’ and ‘great layoffs’. As companies dismiss employees in droves, the remaining firms still in pursuit of talent should not hesitate from hiring the great talent of their competitors. Organizations like Uber and Facebook have often resorted to poaching talent from their competitors and while some organizations may draw the line at talent poaching, raiding the rejects of one’s competitors is within reasonable bounds. By hiring the laid-off talent of one’s competitors, organizations not only offer these employees a life jacket, but also become better and more insulated.

5. Develop Data-driven and Tech-enabled Solutions Despite immense popularity, data analytics and HR tech solutions are still widely underutilized across talent acquisition teams. By leveraging the latest technologies, such as data analytics, artificial intelligence, automation, etc., HR teams stand to gain better awareness of their applicants, improve recruitment process and measure the performance of their TA teams. If organizations cannot afford to deploy technologies

HCM Excellence (APAC & Middle East) presented by HR.com

July 2022

themselves, they can partner with organizations that have access to specialized HR tools and technologies that assist in talent acquisition and retention. This will dramatically bring down the time lost on unmatched candidates as well as reduce employee turnover.

Wrapping Up

Each association has an extraordinary meaning for ability securing, and their ability to obtain technique contrasts too. However, the need of great importance today for associations to overcome the unpredictable and problematic powers, from the ‘Incomparable Renunciation’ to the ‘Incomparable Cutbacks’, is an ability securing technique that assists them with obtaining, drawing in and selecting the best up-and-comers. Staying up to date with the most recent patterns, best practices and valuable open doors will assist HR pioneers with directing their TA groups through any entanglement.

Yogita Tulsiani is MD & Co-Founder of iXceed Solutions.

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A Sustainable Approach For Enriching Organizational Harmony In The Digital Age Boosting impactful cultures at the corporate and subsidiary levels By Murad Salman Mirza, Thought Leader, Organizational Architect, Author

for unprepared organizations during precarious times, e.g., Covid-19 pandemic, economic downturn, market evolution, ecosystem transformation, etc.

he conventional approach to ‘collating’ culture within various corporate entities as ‘organizational culture’ is inherently flawed since it tends to assume that there is a ‘binding’ foundation that ‘coalesces’ various differential elements under one roof. The key consideration in the respective context is to draw a distinction between workplace culture (sum total of all kinds of interactions among the workforce) and core values (foundational elements of organizational ethics). There is an overlap between the two aspects, however, culture is much more than the effective and affirmative embrace of the guiding principles of ‘goodness’. Additionally, the prevalent ‘one-size-fits-all’ approach frequently fails to establish organizational harmony within its various constituent elements and an undercurrent of indignation often rages beneath the facade of professionalism. Consequently, the ‘blowback’ from ‘simmering resentment’ for being ‘routinely marginalized’ can become a huge challenge

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July 2022

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A Sustainable Approach For Enriching Organizational Harmony In The Digital Age

An appreciation of the dynamic nature of cultural interactions between the corporate office and the various subsidiaries can be gained from the following depiction:

The aforementioned cultural interactions are driven by a host of relevant factors, e.g., induction of new talent, performance segmentation of existing talent, succession tussles between senior managers for C-level positions, national/ international mobility of employees to new locations, changes in leadership at the corporate office, reformulation of workforce/management at existing subsidiaries, operational expansion in new markets/territories/regions, coexistence of a multigenerational workforce, refinement of prevalent policies/procedures/practices, experimentation with new tools/techniques for workforce management, competition/rivalries between the leaders of the various subsidiaries for performance ratings, networking between employees of certain backgrounds/affiliations, posturing for increased investment/resource allocation by the various subsidiaries with the corporate office, personal agendas of powerbrokers within the management hierarchy, active grapevines unique to the corporate office and the various subsidiaries, national employment policies (e.g., Emiratization, Saudization, Qatarization, etc.),

There are 11 key types of cultural interactions taking place in the above example, i.e.: Within the Corporate Office ●● Within the Subsidiary No. 1 ●● Within the Subsidiary No. 2 ●● Within the Subsidiary No. 3 ●● Between the Corporate Office and all its 3 Subsidiaries ●● Between the Corporate Office and the Subsidiary No. 1 ●● Between the Corporate Office and the Subsidiary No. 2 ●● Between the Corporate Office and the Subsidiary No. 3 ●● Between the Subsidiary No. 1 and the Subsidiary No. 2 ●● Between the Subsidiary No. 2 and the Subsidiary No. 3 ●● Between the Subsidiary No. 1 and the Subsidiary No. 3

HCM Excellence (APAC & Middle East) presented by HR.com

July 2022

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A Sustainable Approach For Enriching Organizational Harmony In The Digital Age

●● Tussles between competing functional groups – jostling for benefits/resources by specific interest groups at the corporate level

corporate engagement in merger & acquisition activities, increased emphasis on meaningful diversity & inclusion initiatives, influence of powerful unions, change in workplace dynamics due to incorporation of AI-driven technology, etc.

●● Oversight by relevant regulators – walking the ‘tightrope’ of regulatory control at the ‘corporate’ level

Consequently, the prudent approach in the aforementioned context is to proactively appreciate/ accommodate/assimilate such contingencies since organizations are generally a complex mix of identities/interests/affiliations/attitudes that vary across multiple divides, e.g., geographic, racial, generational, nationalities, genders, professions, etc. One of the ways this can be accomplished is by inculcating appropriate measures that espouse the uniqueness of cultures at their corporate office and the various subsidiaries in a sagacious manner by upholding not only the core values, but also nurturing the richness that abounds within the expanse of their business operations. Some of the common and specific factors that can be used to formulate conducive cultures at the corporate and subsidiary levels are given below:

●● Relationships with peers, team members and supervisors – sustaining the beneficial/ supporting networks within the ‘corporate’ environment ●● Thriving under fickle senior management – negotiating the pitfalls of supervisory challenges ●● DIBE practices that suit top leadership imperatives – sustainably strengthening the core competencies at the ‘corporate’ level

Examples of Factors Influencing Subsidiary Culture

●● Inculcation of core values – binding principles for the organization ●● Behavior of regional leadership – driving initiatives through attitude-driven traits

Examples of Factors Influencing Head Office Culture

●● Local customs and traditions – leveraging indigenous characteristics

●● Inculcation of core values – binding principles for the organization

●● Implementation of subsidiary policies/ procedures/practices – application of a ‘localized’ management system

●● Trendsetting by top leadership – aligning the strategic direction of meaningful initiatives ●● Aspiration-oriented engagement initiatives that are primarily driven by embraced values observed in top/senior management – embodying/exemplifying the desired behaviors for the workforce

●● Proliferation of local influencers, e.g., expats with connections at the head office, senior employees, trade and professional unions, cultural icons, religious clerics, community leaders, activist watchdogs, etc. - leveraging the ‘local’ power structure

●● Norms and traditions ingrained in corporate folklore – sustaining the unique identity

●● Grapevine within the local workforce - navigating the labyrinth of ‘subsidiary’ politics

●● Implementation of corporate policies/ procedures/practices – manifestation and reinforcement of strategic imperatives

●● Tussles between competing functional groups – jostling for benefits/resources by specific interest groups at the ‘subsidiary’ level

●● Influence of corporate power brokers – leveraging the ‘corporate’ power structure

●● Oversight by relevant regulators – walking the ‘tightrope’ of regulatory control at the ‘subsidiary’ level

●● Grapevine within the power corridors – navigating the labyrinth of ‘corporate’ politics

HCM Excellence (APAC & Middle East) presented by HR.com

July 2022

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A Sustainable Approach For Enriching Organizational Harmony In The Digital Age

nonperforming/underperforming assets to interested parties with a clearly defined cultural component to facilitate ease in assimilation within the corporate setup of the new owners.

●● Relationships with peers, team members and supervisors – sustaining the beneficial/ supporting networks within the ‘subsidiary’ environment ●● Growth and development under the guidance of mentors – astute utilization of counseling/ grooming resources

The health of any culture that takes root with the aforementioned aspects can be boosted by timely and honest management reviews to replenish its ability to withstand the corrosive aspects of insular thinking and imprudent experimentation that is generally buoyed by ephemeral executive fads or legacy proclivities. Will you take up the challenge?

●● DIBE practices that conform to regional imperatives – sustainably strengthening the core competencies at the ‘subsidiary’ level ●● Inspiration-oriented engagement initiatives that are primarily driven by innate values inculcated during formative years – propounding the distinctiveness of motivational traits

Murad Salman Mirza is an innovative thinker and an astute practitioner of areas within and associated with the fields of organizational development, talent management and business transformation. He is globally ranked in 9 areas (HR, Leadership, Culture, Management, Agility, Innovation, Future of Work, Change Management, Customer Experience) by the world’s first open platform for Thought Leaders based in the USA that uses artificial intelligence (AI) for ranking to preclude human bias. He has worked in various geographical regions across the world.

One of the imperatives necessitating the development of distinct corporate and subsidiary cultural identities is the diminishing lifecycles of prominent organizations in the Digital Age. The respective trend had been observed even before the onslaught of the Covid-19 pandemic and is likely to maintain its trajectory and, in some cases, become steeper, in the foreseeable future with the added challenges of trying to sustainably survive the impact of the Coronavirus predicament. Consequently, strengthening the uniqueness of specific cultures at the corporate and subsidiary levels can help in increasing the bandwidth of strategic measures, e.g., ranging from charting the path for strengthening employment relationships with a diverse and multigenerational workforce to selling

HCM Excellence (APAC & Middle East) presented by HR.com

July 2022

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Look Outside The Usual Zip Codes New approaches to finding tech talent By Gary Dempsy, IDA Ireland

he hiring arena for tech talent in the United States today is a brutal seller’s market that companies and recruiters are repeatedly calling the worst in history. From coast to coast, jobs are plentiful. The US Job Openings and Labor Turnover (JOLTS) statistics, reported that on the last business day of March 2022, the number of job openings was 11.5 million, the highest level since December 2000.

A recent survey of chief executives by researchers at the Conference Board revealed that worker shortages are the biggest threat to businesses in 2022. Meanwhile, the U.S. Department of Labor revealed that the necessary increases in wages and benefits to retain or hire workers haven’t been this high in 20 years. The so-called ‘great resignation’, in which millions of workers are leaving or switching jobs has steamrolled into another year and is a major reason for rising wages. But companies can not afford to magnify salaries indefinitely because this increases operating costs beyond just wages, since replacing one employee can

require between one-half to twice the amount of a worker’s salary Ashutosh Saxena, site lead and head of European engineering at Shippo, a San Francisco-headquartered e-commerce shipping platform, said his key strategy is to “search outside the usual zip codes” to find competent workers, focusing on more affordable overseas talent with the right skills to do the job. Before this, Saxena learned this lesson during his previous position at Deem, a corporate travel service

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July 2022

provider. After being acquired by the parent company, Enterprise Holdings in 2019, Deem was in growth mode and sought a third development center beyond the existing ones in San Francisco and Bangalore, India. “We wanted to modernize our tech stack and build an application that would be more robust and more reactive to adding features to make the product easier, quicker, and faster. We wanted a fresh perspective so decided to set up a team outside the U.S.,” he recalled.

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Look Outside The Usual Zip Codes

While techies in Central and Eastern Europe can represent untapped resources for U.S. firms, many companies are broadening their search to other geographies including Ireland to find the knowledge workers that are fundamental to their business. “Right now, there are too many candidates looking for jobs, too many job openings, and too much intensity,” noted Saxena. “There is a lot of movement of candidates between companies and that opens up new jobs. Candidates have too many options to choose from and candidates are also taking their time to find the best employer. At Deem, we were looking at options,” he said, which included a possible new location domestically or potential

sites in Canada, Singapore, Eastern Europe, Ireland or the United Kingdom. According to Saxena, finding software engineers, in particular, “is trickier than ever” but the company had other top requirements on its list beyond a promising talent pool, such as “English speaking, being centrally located, offering favorable immigration policies and appealing employment laws.” It ended up that Ireland fits well for our needs.” According to Saxena, “Ireland sat between our offices in San Francisco and Bangalore. We also heard Dublin being called the Silicon Valley of Europe. When we traveled to Ireland, we were not disappointed. We met with companies and universities and

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July 2022

the energy and enthusiasm we saw in smaller as well as bigger companies were compelling. This gave us the confidence to set up our office. We hired our first 30 people within six months in 2019,” he said. “Besides its other advantages, Ireland attracts talent from across Europe and we were also able to tap into the abundant supply of professionals who were already working in Irish tech firms.” In addition, it was cheaper to hire what he calls “rock-star engineers” in Ireland, who were more cost-effective than domestic tech talent. “I was pleasantly happy with the initial hires. They really set the tone and were passionate developers,” he said.

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Look Outside The Usual Zip Codes

France and the Netherlands. Wherever American companies decide to find their European talent, they will still have access to the world’s largest single market of 550 million people.

After his successful Deem experience, Saxena did a repeat a few years later for Shippo, which wanted to amplify its international presence to Europe from its San Francisco and Austin locations in the United States. A young company, Shippo chose Ireland for its new European R&D center, with plans to create 120 highly-skilled jobs there in the next three years. Said Saxena: “Having done this not too long ago for Deem, I already knew the benefits of Ireland. Not only is its talent pool growing but it offers the EU’s highest level of STEM graduates per capita.” As a company whose goal, according to Saxena, is to simplify shipping for e-commerce merchants, Ireland’s position as the EU’s only English-speaking member was critical for Shippo. But the company is hardly alone; 63 U.S. companies -- 59 from the West Coast

-- chose to open operations in Ireland in 2021, which is a rate of one every six days. The large existing contingent of American companies -- some 893 - that already have Irish operations helps ease concerns for newcomers. For example, firms like Microsoft, Intel, Apple, and Oracle have been in Ireland for 20 years or more while those with a decade or more in Ireland include Google, Facebook/Meta, Amazon, eBay and Salesforce. Ireland has the largest share of employment in high-tech manufacturing and knowledge-intensive service sectors in the EU, so its wages are not the lowest in Europe. However, to hiring managers like Saxena, “the caliber of workers is right up there with our other offices.” According to an April report by Eurostat, Irish labor costs, tenth place in the EU, are below countries, such as Germany, Belgium, Luxembourg,

HCM Excellence (APAC & Middle East) presented by HR.com

July 2022

Since both his current and former employers are companies that started up in the United States, Saxena has observed the domestic tech hiring upheaval firsthand. “Every time we need to bring in new developers, it’s getting so hard to hire people in America that we are now opening up some of those roles in Ireland instead,” he said. “At Shippo, our team there has come into its own, making decisions and not depending on getting everything from the U.S. teams. That’s a good thing because it empowers employees and has a positive impact on the corporate culture.”

Gary Dempsy is Vice President Technology, Consumer & Business Services at IDA Ireland

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