Human Resources Director 13.09 by Key Media

IFC.indd 1

27/08/2015 6:38:58 AM

EDITORIAL www.hcamag.com SEPTEMBER 2015 EDITORIAL

SALES & MARKETING

Editor Iain Hopkins

Marketing & Communications Manager Lisa Narroway

Journalists Chloe Taylor Miklos Bolza Production Editor Roslyn Meredith

ART & PRODUCTION

Business Development Managers James Francis Steven McDonald Lisa Tyras

CORPORATE

Design Manager Daniel Williams

Chief Executive Officer Mike Shipley

Designer Marla Morelos

Chief Operating Officer George Walmsley

Traffic Coordinator Lou Gonzales

Managing Director Justin Kennedy Chief Information Officer Colin Chan Human Resources Manager Julia Bookallil

EDITORIAL ENQUIRIES iain.hopkins@keymedia.com.au

SUBSCRIPTION ENQUIRIES tel: +61 2 8011 4992 • fax: +61 2 8437 4753 subscriptions@keymedia.com.au

ADVERTISING ENQUIRIES james.francis@keymedia.com.au steven.mcdonald@keymedia.com.au lisa.tyras@keymedia.com.au

Key Media Regional head office, Level 10, 1–9 Chandos St, St Leonards, NSW 2065, Australia tel: +61 2 8437 4700 • fax: +61 2 9439 4599 www.keymedia.com Offices in Sydney, Auckland, Denver, Toronto, Manila

Human Resources Director is part of an international family of B2B publications and websites for the human resources industry HRD MAGAZINE CANADA iain.hopkins@keymedia.com.au T +61 2 8437 4703 HRD SINGAPORE hrdmag.com.sg HC AUSTRALIA ONLINE hcamag.com

On the hunt for data miners “THE NEW JOB that pays $200,000”. That’s what news.com.au screamed from its home page. Of course, on closer inspection (or more accurately, once I’d clicked through), it was revealed exactly what that job was. Supposedly, data scientists – a unique job that combines maths and marketing know-how – are earning $200,000 pay packets. The Institute of Analytics Professionals of Australia (IAPA) Skills and Salary Survey 2014 revealed that data scientists working in social media earned an average of $190,000 a year. IAPA chief executive Jodie Sangster was quoted as saying: “It is somebody who not only understands data but understands business and can make the bridge between using data and driving business outcomes. That’s the unicorn we are looking for at the moment.” While cursing my own mathematical ineptitude, which cancels me out of this job market, it got me thinking about HR. HR professionals might shy away from calling these evidently rare individuals unicorns, but the sentiment is actually spot on – especially, ironically, in the HR space itself. We’ve long heard about how HR has never had the tools – or the inclination – to use analytics and metrics in its decision-making. This may not be the case in 2015, but clearly

HR professionals might shy away from calling these evidently rare individuals unicorns, but the sentiment is actually spot on there is a gap between what HR would like to be doing with this data, and what they can do. Talking to one HR consultant recently, she made the valid point – echoing Sangster’s comment – that now that HR has the tools and can extract the data, it tends to sit in its own bubble; it doesn’t relate to anything else. The HR data does not have any impact or correlation with customer sentiment, turnover or other business performance metrics. This is the chasm that must be closed if HR wants to finally break the shackles of being seen as ‘administrators’. Maybe then we’ll see ‘HR data scientists’ featured in HRD’s annual HR Salary and Jobs Guide. Iain Hopkins, editor

HRM NEW ZEALAND hrmonline.co.nz Copyright is reserved throughout. No part of this publication can be reproduced in whole or part without the express permission of the editor. Contributions are invited, but copies of work should be kept, as HRD Magazine can accept no responsibility for loss

01_Editorial_SUBBED.indd 1

www.hcamag.com

27/08/2015 1:01:24 PM

SEPTEMBER 2015

CONNECT WITH US Got a story, suggestion or just want to find out some more information? HRDirector_au

CONTENTS

+Hcamag HumanResourcesDirector

UPFRONT 01 Editorial

Data scientists may be the most in-demand professionals of 2015 – it’s time HR got on the bandwagon

04 The data

Absenteeism costs Australian businesses big money – but how do we rank on a global scale?

06 News analysis

COVER STORY

While announcing mass redundancies is never easy, there is an ethically sound way to do it – and HR plays a critical role in ensuring the process isn’t ruled solely by the ‘dollars and cents’ and instead has a human face EXCLUSIVE

AUSTRALIAN HR AWARDS Who were the big winners on the industry’s night of nights?

THE SECRET RECIPE FOR HR SUCCESS

With one of the world’s largest contingent workforces, KFC’s chief people officer reveals the critical role L&D plays in engaging employees

2014/15 was a stagnant 12 months for HR jobs. Find out what’s in store for you and your team in 2015/16

Do you believe it’s time to refresh performance reviews? HRD asks three HR professionals for their views

FEATURES 42 Lucky strike: Leading transformation

52 Bye-bye, human resources?

DYING TO STOP WORK 2015 HR SALARY & JOBS GUIDE

56 Head to head

HR professionals already know that without the engagement of the hearts and minds of your people, successful, efficient change is nearly impossible. Jim Kouzes, Barry Posner and Michael Bunting provide tips on how to ‘model the way’

FEATURES

PEOPLE

HR director Gary Taylor has witnessed first-hand the devastating impact an employee’s suicide can have on the workplace. He provides his tips for navigating this most traumatic aspect of an HR professional’s job

Articles about banishing HR from the corporate hierarchy appear regularly – the most famous was 2005’s ‘Why I hate HR’ in Fast Company. Ben Whitter takes a different but no less thoughtprovoking tack. Far from approaching an end, he finds that HR is only just beginning to reach its full potential

HCAMAG.COM CHECK IT OUT ONLINE

www.hcamag.com

02-03_Contents_v2_SUBBED.indd 2

27/08/2015 1:01:44 PM

02-03_Contents_v2_SUBBED.indd 3

27/08/2015 1:01:40 PM

THE DATA

SEPTEMBER 2015

ABSENTEEISM IN THE SPOTLIGHT Australian employees are taking almost 10 sick days per year, costing over $3,230 per employee and a record $33bn in payroll costs and lost productivity. Can HR help to reduce this burden? In the UK, employees take an average of 9.1 days of unscheduled absence from work per year** In Canada, absenteeism has risen from 8 days per worker to 9.1 days Ireland has a rate of 6.4 days per employee In the US, employees take 4.9 days In Asia, the figure is 2.2 days In Australia, the figure is 9.5 days, according to Direct Health Solutions New Zealand employees take 4.5 days^

DIRECT COSTS Over 88 million days are lost to the Australian economy due to absenteeism, at a cost of $33bn pa in sick leave costs and lost productivity* The cost of absenteeism to British businesses is estimated at £32bn pa It is estimated that the direct cost of total paid time off as a percentage of payroll in the US stands at 8.1%

INDIRECT COSTS Studies indicate that, on average, co-workers are 29.5% less productive when covering for an unplanned absence day (15.7% for supervisors) 89% of respondents indicated that unplanned absences added to workload 61% indicated that they increased stress 48% said they hurt morale 40% said they reduced the quality of work

CAUSES OF SHORT-TERM ABSENCES Minor illness

Female 57%

16%

Home responsibilities

26%

17%

Recurring health problems

20%

13% 11%

Personal problems

15% 7%

Back pain Other absences not due to genuine ill-health

1. Monitor employee absence records for patterns. Twenty-five per cent of organisations fail to keep absenteeism statistics; 75% do not have information on the cost of absenteeism to their business. 2. Use the Bradford Factor. This formula measures the number of incidences of absence and the duration of absence to compute an ‘absence score’ for each employee. It also indicates whether the overall absenteeism rate is caused by some employees suffering from long-term ill-health or by a larger number of employees being frequently absent for short periods. 3. Interview employees on their return to work. This can be an effective method of managing short-term absence. The interview could be used as a forum to discuss possible preventative solutions.

CAUSES OF LONG-TERM ABSENCES

Male 61%

11%

Cause

METHODS FOR COMBATING ABSENTEEISM

Male

Cause

Female

12%

Recurring health problems

12%

10%

Accidents outside work

9% 7%

Mental ill-health Back pain

9% 5%

Accidents at work

Personal problems

Sources: Softworks; *2014 DHS Absence Management Survey; **PwC UK; SHRM/Kronos; ^Wellness in the Workplace by Southern Cross Health Society, BusinessNZ and Gallagher Bassett.

www.hcamag.com

04-05_The Data_SUBBED.indd 4

27/08/2015 1:02:30 PM

www.hcamag.com

04-05_The Data_SUBBED.indd 5

27/08/2015 1:02:33 PM

UPFRONT

NEWS ANALYSIS

DOWNSIZING WITH DIGNITY While announcing mass redundancies is never easy, there is an ethically sound way to do it – and HR plays a critical role in ensuring the process isn’t ruled solely by just the ‘dollars and cents’ and instead has a human face. Miklos Bolza reports ON 6 AUGUST, Hutchison Ports terminated 97 workers via email and SMS. This move angered staff, who felt it was cruel and callous, especially due to its sudden nature. Amid growing mainstream and social media interest, protests were held in Sydney and Brisbane, blocking the firm’s container terminals and causing a temporary cessation of operations. With courts now ruling that Hutchison was unable to sack the affected workers without prior consultation, it is clear the company made some serious errors of judgment. Natalie Ashdown, CEO of the Open Door Coaching Group, says what Hutchison did wrong is not all that uncommon when these tough decisions are called for. “They knew that they had to get the message out quickly, that it had to be efficient, saving rumours and picket lines and especially not giving the union a heads-up,” she says. “Throughout these discussions [though] they could have asked better questions, called on other points of view, considered the organisation values, and considered the people as more than just numbers, head count and dollars translated to the bottom line.” Ashdown adds that in the turmoil of downsizing it’s too easy to lose track of the ‘human’ in ‘human resources’. “We need to make tough decisions and we need the logical side of our thinking. At

the same time, we need the other side of the coin that is focused on core values and people,” she says. “We need to encourage our leaders to make good, strong decisions so that when they look back in hindsight, they will stand by and be proud of their actions. We need to encourage our leaders to not be afraid to speak up and ask and answer the hard questions like ‘How will employees feel?’” Ashdown notes that most people have a harder time dealing with the humanity and people side; if they can think of people as numbers and dollars they are OK. “But think about employees crying, and leaders will steer clear because they are no good at it,” she says.

Getting the messaging right Since the word ‘redundancy’ evokes such negative emotions, mentioning it can generate an unwanted media backlash, but in some cases it’s a ‘damned if we do; damned if we don’t’ situation. After Myer’s new CEO, Richard Umbers, announced a new voluntary redundancy

QUESTIONS HR SHOULD BE ASKING: • How can we do this with respect and dignity? • How can we do this so that we put the interests of our workers first? • Rather than texting, what other options do we have? • How would I feel if I got that text message? • What are the alternatives to sacking people? • What message do we need to convey and what’s the best way to do this? • Who do we need to get involved to support people through the process? • What support are the workers going to need? • What else haven’t we thought about? • How can we go through this difficult period and still be proud of the way we treated people?

www.hcamag.com

06-07_NewsAnalysis_SUBBED.indd 6

27/08/2015 1:02:12 PM

reasons behind the redundancies – the fact that Australia Post had suffered a $500m loss in the year prior – may have induced some sympathy. Adding to the positive exposure, the company set aside $190m to cover staff redundancy payments, and was transparent about how it was proceeding with these terminations in the future.

A warmer approach

program for 42 stores around Australia, some reaction was critical, with full-time employees predicting a lack of job ownership by the proposed teams of casual staff, and analysts expecting that Myer stores would be caught in a downward spiral of lower staff numbers and poorer customer service. Critics noted the terminology used lacked humanity, with Umbers saying the retailer needed to “re-engineer” the company’s rosters. Ultimately, Umbers had to provide comment on these matters not only to reassure Myer stockholders but also to ensure the public didn’t lose confidence as well. “What we are creating is the ability for a store manager to create a roster for their staff that responds to the peaks and troughs of demand. This is about a redistribution of the hours – this is actually to improve customer service,” he said. Australia Post also recently announced a voluntary redundancy package, with 1,900 jobs on the line. In this case, however, media reports seemed to be more neutral. The

An example of the right way to handle mass layoffs comes from Target Canada, which was forced to close 133 stores earlier this year, eliminating 17,600 jobs in the process – the biggest downsize in the nation’s history. While this wasn’t an easy decision to make, the company made several very smart choices. Target’s decline was no secret – the company’s profits were down by hundreds of millions in 2014. The company maintained this transparency before and throughout the layoff process. Target’s leaders held off mentioning any upcoming redundancies until they made their official announcement, a move which reduced possible harm from rumour and speculation. They also remained fully accountable and set up a $70m employee trust which ensured all affected staff would get at least 16 weeks of severance pay. Commenting on the reason why Target decided to create the employee trust, Brian Cornell, CEO and chairman of Target Corp, did not sugar-coat the announcement or try to shift the blame: “We do not take lightly the impact that our decision to discontinue operations in Canada will have on Target Canada’s team members who have worked tirelessly to make improvements to the guest experience.”

Best practice to prevent conflict In purely practical terms, regardless of the circumstances, redundancies have to be made in the proper manner so employers don’t put themselves at risk of unfair dismissal claims, and employees receive a payment package that supports them at least temporarily. Athena Koelmeyer, managing director of Workplace Law, says in addition to following their own policies and procedures

TALKING ABOUT REDUNDANCY Behavioural scientist Darren Hill, co-founder of Pragmatic Thinking, gives his advice on how to properly discuss redundancy with your employees.

Don’t try to remove emotion from the conversation. “There will be emotion and you will have to deal with it. Recognise that tears and sadness are OK, but tread carefully with sympathy versus empathy.” Control the tone and volume of your voice. “If it does get heated, voices can be raised. Never be tempted to match the escalation. People do not usually shout for very long if the other party doesn’t reciprocate, as it makes them feel uncomfortable.” Be careful with direct eye contact. “Although we’re taught to look someone in the eye, this is the most personal communication medium, and the person on the receiving end often has no choice but to take the message personally. Share an independent visual medium such as some written notes to help you talk about ‘it’ (the restructure or termination) instead of ‘you’.”

2 3

to the letter, employers must undertake consultations and attempt to redeploy the affected staff within the guidelines found in the Fair Work Act 2009. “In some cases, the reason for the termination may be absolutely fine, but the procedure leading to the decision to terminate and the delivery of the actual termination message may be flawed,” Koelmeyer says. “This can result in a finding that the dismissal was harsh, unjust or unreasonable.” Delivering news of a redundancy should also be made in person if possible. In select cases, if the employee cannot attend a meeting, a phone call or letter may be deemed acceptable, but only after some real effort has been made to arrange a one-on-one consultation. The Fair Work Act also states that the employer has to provide notice to an employee in writing. This should include the reasons for the redundancy and the final date of employment. A final payslip, a Centrelink Separation Certificate and a Statement of Service should also be supplied.

www.hcamag.com

06-07_NewsAnalysis_SUBBED.indd 7

27/08/2015 1:02:15 PM

EXPERT INSIGHT

WORKPLACE RELATIONS

Brought to you by

Lawyers in the FWC: TO BRIEF, OR NOT TO BRIEF? As an HR professional, would you be prepared to face up to the Fair Work Commission yourself? Lisa Burrell provides her tips for success AUSTRALIA’S WORKPLACE relations tribunal, the Fair Work Commission (FWC), is continuing to tighten restrictions on the presence of lawyers. This may leave HR practitioners in the position of having to run the matters themselves.

Background Under the Fair Work Act, a party to proceedings may not be represented by a lawyer or paid agent unless permitted by the FWC. The tribunal may grant permission to promote efficiency and fairness. Conversely, in-house lawyers and representatives from unions and employer associations, including those that are legally trained, are not subject to the restriction. However, until the decision of the Federal Court in Warrell v Walton, lawyers were rarely denied permission. In Warrell, the Court ordered the re-hearing of a brain-damaged gardener’s case after it found that, in allowing the employers legal representation, the gardener was denied a “fair and just” hearing.

argument that it needed the assistance of a lawyer because of the “high volume of documents and wide range of issues”. The Full Bench determined that “this commonplace occurrence does not constitute legal complexity”. A month later, a Full Bench found that an ASX-listed company had sufficient internal HR resources to proceed without legal representation, despite the fact that the former employee would be represented by a union advocate.

The message for employers Ultimately, the issue of representation needs to be considered well in advance of any formal hearings. If there is a decision to proceed with engaging legal representation, there needs to be a clear understanding of how to selfrepresent in defending an unfair dismissal, or any other dispute, in case legal representation is denied. This is a particularly vexed issue for employers who have previously been reliant on having legal coverage through business insurance.

Recent examples Since the decision in Warrell, the FWC has refused to grant permission for representation by lawyers on numerous occasions, including those being upheld on appeal to the Full Bench. By way of example, the Full Bench of the FWC rejected a “well resourced” company’s

Getting ready to self-represent For those either preparing to self-represent at a formal hearing or needing to prepare in case their legal representative or paid agent is ultimately refused entry, the following are our top tips for success.

Organisation is essential: Prepare copies of relevant cases and documents to hand up; create your own document library and ‘case summary’ that cross references your submissions and documents thoroughly. Understand the setting: Ensure that you are well versed on required etiquette and formalities, from addressing the Commissioner, through to how to advocate your case. Critically review: It is imperative that you understand the strengths and weaknesses of not only the claimant’s case but your own. This will allow you to best guide arguments and cross examination, ‘pulling on the reins’ as needed to highlight evidence that most strongly supports your submissions. Alternatively, you may wish to discuss engaging an employer association to represent your organisation, or utilise any in-house legal counsel to run the case. For more information, contact VECCI at vecci.org.au 1 2 3

Warrell v Walton [2013] FCA 291

King v Patrick Projects Pty Ltd [2015] FWCFB 2679

Asciano Services Pty Ltd v Zak Hadfield [2015] FWCFB 2618

Lisa Burrell is general manager of the Victorian Employers’ Chamber of Commerce and Industry (VECCI). VECCI is Victoria’s most influential employer group, servicing over 15,000 Victorian businesses per annum. An independent, non-government body, VECCI was founded in 1851 by the business community to represent business.

www.hcamag.com

08-09_Legal_SUBBED.indd 8

27/08/2015 1:02:02 PM

www.hcamag.com

08-09_Legal_SUBBED.indd 9

27/08/2015 1:01:58 PM

PROFILE

ROB PHIPPS

THE SECRET RECIPE FOR HR SUCCESS KFC may have made its name with 11 secret herbs and spices, but the key to its HR success is more transparent. With one of the world’s largest contingent workforces, Miklos Bolza talks to the company’s chief people officer for SOPAC about L&D within this challenging environment

SINCE OPENING its first branch in Salt Lake City, Utah, in 1952, KFC has expanded to become one of the most popular fast food franchises in the world. Today, it boasts over 14,000 outlets globally with approximately 600 of these found in Australia. In total, the company employs around 30,000 staff members in Australia, most of whom are young and casual. Additionally, with retention rates of around 45%, many of the organisation’s employees may only see their role there as temporary. Engaging such a workforce has its share of challenges – not least of which is bringing all employees and all branches together under a single banner of corporate culture. Rob Phipps, chief people officer for the South Pacific (SOPAC), has been working in the position for over six years and feels that this complex task can be boiled down to one simple idea: “How do we help them be the best they can be?” While many of KFC’s internal training programs focus on equipping people so they can effectively handle their workplace responsibilities, Phipps says it’s also important to unlock the potential of employees and help them better understand themselves. In fact, the company’s entire L&D framework has been

created to meet this need. “We’re on a significant culture journey around helping people be more constructive more often,” he says.

Through the system Phipps knows the ins-and-outs of KFC intimately – he has been working for Yum! Restaurants, the parent organisation of KFC, for 25 years. Starting in a Pizza Hut call centre

amazing leadership position that helped me significantly in terms of my ability to cut through at an HR level because I had broader business experience before I undertook a HR role”. It is this type of experience that Phipps is keen to see replicated in KFC’s future leaders.

For-the-job training KFC’s L&D initiatives have always had an eye

“What we’d love to do is set our employees up so they can be the best possible version of themselves even if they decide to leave us in the long run” when he was in high school, Phipps moved up the ladder within the organisation, reaching his first management position before he graduated from university. He took up a number of HR field roles in Australia, the UK and South Africa before being appointed chief people officer for SOPAC working at the Restaurant Support Centre, a dedicated training facility and KFC’s head office, in Melbourne. Talking about his first management role at the call centre, Phipps says “it was a pretty

on the future. When building future managers, Phipps says the company ensures they’re equipped “to do the job on the day that they actually do the job”. While this might seem straightforward, Phipps says the traditional professional development/upskilling process doesn’t work like that. In most organisations, individuals are promoted first and are then taught the necessary skills for the role. KFC takes a more strategic approach to workforce planning. In a

www.hcamag.com

10-13_Profile - Copy.indd 10

27/08/2015 12:50:31 PM

PROFILE Name: Rob Phipps Company: Yum! Restaurants Title: Chief people officer SOPAC Years in the industry: 13 Previous roles: - Chief people officer Africa for Yum! Restaurants - HRD for the UK Restaurant Support Centre for KFC - HR development manager Victoria for Yum! Restaurants

www.hcamag.com

10-13_Profile - Copy.indd 11

27/08/2015 12:50:37 PM

PROFILE

ROB PHIPPS pre-emptive move, the organisation will train employees before they have been accepted into any sort of leadership role. This is done through the high visibility of line leaders within the organisation, all of whom have the ability and skills to select future leaders without the need for assessment tools or centres. The company can thus build a large pool of staff who are trained and “waiting in the wings” who can then apply for a higher position in the event that a vacancy occurs. Throughout these training processes, KFC layers on additional self-assessment where employees examine their behaviour and impact on others in order to be the best leaders that they can be.

A wider perspective One of KFC’s most successful programs is its Graduate Leaders Program where successful restaurant general managers with degrees do rotational roles in fields such as finance, HR and operations within the Restaurant Support Centre. “The Graduate Leaders Program is like a mini-master’s program where we’ve partnered with an external training development group,” Phipps says. “We take people within our system and broaden out their thinking.” This is necessary, he elaborates, since most people at those levels have been within the company for their entire career. “What we tend to find is people that come up through our system have had quite limited experience because all they’ve known is KFC.” Through this hands-on, functional training, employees can broaden their experience and gain suitable skills for these higher roles.

More than widgets As the vast majority of KFC’s 30,000 strong workforce consists of casual and part-time employees, the firm has some unique challenges to overcome. Phipps says that the company has some exciting new ways to deal with this transient group of staff. “What we’re doing this year, for the very first time in all my years of experience, is actually acknowledging to the people coming into our organisation that we as KFC have a

purpose and within that purpose, they play an extremely important part.” He summarises the People Promise outlined to each employee: if they want a career with KFC then they can absolutely have one. This promise extends to all staff, even those who view their employment there as only short-term. “What we’d love to do is set our employees up so they can be the best possible version of themselves even if they decide to leave us in the long run,” Phipps adds. With so many employees, there is no reason to pretend that everyone has a chance for a career at KFC, he acknowledges. However, through the firm’s training and development programs, he hopes staff will feel they have actually enhanced their business and life skills rather than simply being widgets within a global organisation. “When they leave one day, they’re actually going to look back and say that was a wonderful experience for me and I’m a much better person as a result of my time with KFC.”

UPSKILLING FOR HRDS Here are Rob Phipps’ top tips for personal development: 1. Never be stagnant. “Form relationships with peers in other organisations and get into network groups. Understand what’s going on in the world of HR and the world of business.” 2. Be a participant as well as a leader. “When heading up a program, make sure to get as much out of it as those you’re leading. Treat yourself as a participant and the others as leaders.” 3. Have a continual learning mindset. “If you see anybody that performs well in a role, whether they are staying there for a long time or they’re going to be the next CEO, they will be wired towards this kind of continual approach to personal improvement.”

Reaching out through stories KFC also utilises technology to connect its vast workforce of casual and part-time employees. Through the Yammer app, staff can read stories of past and current graduates who have worked their way up through the system and get a feel for what a career with KFC is really like. Describing the app as “Facebook for work”, Phipps says that the more people realise the global connections and opportunities that the company can offer them, the greater the chances are for keeping them engaged with the organisation. The app also reinforces the brand and values and allows employees to learn about important news prior to the public. “We want to connect them to the modern era through tools like Yammer so they can feel like they’re part of a lovely organisation within their restaurant and also as though they’re a part of something much bigger as well.” Introduced earlier on in 2015, this new Yammer initiative will take several years to be laid out to all 30,000 of the company’s employees. “What we’re looking towards in the

future is to connect our team members like never before by celebrating stories and reinforcing our brand purpose through Yammer,” Phipps explains.

On top of the KFC world In business terms, these initiatives have helped significantly, with KFC Australia placing in the top two or three of the organisation’s best performing business units worldwide over the past three years. “We are very sure that the work we’re doing around training and our emphasis on culture is having quite a significant impact on the overall performance of the business,” Phipps says proudly. The organisation’s efforts have also been acknowledged on the national stage with Phipps a finalist for the 2014 AHRI Dave Ulrich HR Leader Award. Success doesn’t happen because of any one factor, he explains. “There are always a series of things that actually have to occur to make that work. What we’ve been doing has certainly correlated with significant success over quite a few years.”

www.hcamag.com

10-13_Profile - Copy.indd 12

27/08/2015 12:50:39 PM

www.hcamag.com

10-13_Profile - Copy.indd 13

27/08/2015 12:50:42 PM

ANNUAL REVIEW

HR SALARY AND JOBS GUIDE

MIXED FORTUNES: 2015 HR SALARY & JOBS GUIDE

www.hcamag.com

14-25_Salary&JobReview_SUBBED.indd 14

27/08/2015 1:08:52 PM

One expert says HR hiring is the strongest it has been since before the GFC, but the news is not all positive. Find out what’s in store for you and your team in HRD’s annual Salary and Jobs Guide

FIRST, THE GOOD NEWS. Pockets of the HR job market are heating up – in some instances they are approaching pre-GFC levels in terms of employer demand for candidates.

Generalist roles Ciaran Foley, manager at Frazer Jones, reports that there has been an increase in generalist roles, compared to 2014, although the increase “hasn’t been dramatic”. Indeed, given the lack of activity in this space over the past two or three years, “a spike was to be expected sooner or later”, he says. While demand for HR generalist candidates remains relatively muted, there has been a particular demand for commercially focused HR business partners. “We’re seeing more candidates receive multiple offers, and that’s

something we weren’t seeing 12 months ago,” says Clare Johnson, manager, Michael Page Human Resources. “There’s more confidence in the market and people are actually moving roles.” However, she notes that there are more roles than candidates at HR business partner level, which means those few candidates actively looking for new roles are being snapped up quickly – good news for candidates; not so good news for employers. “Employers are having to move fast and put quite competitive offers on the table.” Unfortunately, the other strong growth area – fixedterm contract roles – will not impact dramatically on full-time generalists. “There’s so much going on in terms of HR projects, which don’t necessarily appeal to people with a generalist HR background. It’s more people

www.hcamag.com

14-25_Salary&JobReview_SUBBED.indd 15

27/08/2015 1:08:56 PM

ANNUAL REVIEW

HR SALARY AND JOBS GUIDE with specialist skills,” says Lisa Morris, senior regional director, SA and NT, at Hays. Such roles are less popular at entry level, but in mid to senior ranks Morris says those with specialist skills are in demand. “It’s usually for quite a designated period of time, where organisations are pulling in some skills they wouldn’t necessarily have in their generalist cohort of HR professionals. It’s usually to take the organisation through a period of change, whatever that change might look like.” Johnson is not surprised by this trend – she notes it’s in line with the demands from employees for more flexible working – but what is surprising is the number of candidates prepared to leave permanent roles to move into “career advancing contract roles”. “It might give them the launch pad to the next point in their careers, or it might be a different specialism or different focus. I’ve had a few situations lately where candidates have grown a little bit stale in one area of the business or in one particular role and they see this as the next step. They are prepared to take more of a risk and are willing to enter into a 12-month contract,” she says. Morris suggests this trend is in line with the emergence of what she calls HR professionals with a “portfolio” background. “They are picking up some contract work; they might be dabbling in individual contracting, or they may be starting to work in a specialist niche area of their own and perhaps starting

DO YOU EXPECT TO GROW YOUR TEAM THIS YEAR?

31% Yes

58% No 11% Unsure

to work for themselves in some way. It’s requiring that flexible approach in the truest sense.” She adds that a portfolio career is great for those who are prepared to spread themselves and try different things. “There is a definite need for people to be open-minded about what their career might look like down the track, and technology change is ensuring that change is pretty fast,” she says. However, despite this focus on contracting, Morris feels there is still undoubtedly a requirement for organisations to have “firm and stable” permanent HR teams. “There is still a core function that exists in most companies, but the movements of that organisation – growth, expansion and so on – are being complemented in their HR department by contracting and flexible arrangements.”

Specialist roles So, which specialist roles are in demand? In many ways, the hot areas should come as no surprise: they reflect what’s happening in the broader business. “Rem & ben roles are definitely an area more in demand,” says Johnson. “We put that down to the fact that employers realise they need to be more creative in the way they reward their staff.” Likewise, roles in learning and OD are strong across all industries – presumably because employers want to retain talent. Johnson notes that diversity

HOW WOULD YOU RATE THE CURRENT ECONOMY? 60 50

55%

WHAT LEVELS OF EXPERIENCE ARE IN HIGHEST DEMAND?

40 30 25%

16%

10 0

Fair

Good

Very good

No opinion

Very poor

Senior management 5% Specialists 20% Entry level 9% Mid-level 49% Management 17%

Poor

www.hcamag.com

14-25_Salary&JobReview_SUBBED.indd 16

27/08/2015 1:09:00 PM

roles are also gaining some traction. “There are definitely more roles being created in the diversity space – whether it’s a combined OD/diversity manager role or specialist diversity role, we’re seeing quite a bit of uptake in that area.” Change experts are predictably in strong demand. “Project-driven requirements will drive the demand for temporary and contract staff in the 2015–16 year, particularly for skilled candidates who can facilitate cultural change and efficiency programs,” says Morris. Morris notes that L&D roles are also sought after, a key reason being that certain sectors (resources and manufacturing in particular) have been downsizing. “You’ll find that upskilling is one element, particularly

AVERAGE HR SALARY INCREASES OVER NEXT 12 MONTHS 35 30

35% 31%

25 20

22%

15 10

11%

5 0

2% None

1–3%

4–6%

7–10%

11–15%

Source: Robert Walters Guide to Pay & Bonus Expectations for HR Professionals

While most HR professionals are expecting a pay rise, this is mostly up to 10%. About two-thirds have very modest expectations, ranging from 0% to 3%

www.hcamag.com

14-25_Salary&JobReview_SUBBED.indd 17

27/08/2015 1:09:03 PM

ANNUAL REVIEW

HR SALARY AND JOBS GUIDE AUSTRALIAN SALARIES 2016

HOT ROLES

In mid-2014, the decline of the resources sector was having an increasing impact on national salaries. In 2015, Hay Group’s Trevor Warden confirms activity in the resources sector has continued to fall. However, this year the downward trend has also affected other related resources industries – such as oil and gas. “This has meant the impact is even bigger than what we’ve observed last year,” Warden says. “The February 2015 movements are the lowest movements we’ve seen since 2012 (at a peak of 6.4%).” Of course, it’s not just the resources sector that has been affected. Hay Group’s most recently released remuneration movement forecast is at 2.5%, which is the lowest forecast Hay Group has released in recent years; at the same level as it was during the GFC. “Businesses across the board have told us that they’ll be taking measures such as freezing salaries, reducing working hours and potentially considering redundancies. The spot survey that we ran in conjunction with ASMI suggests around 15% of organisations had already implemented salary freezes in 2014, while 15% of companies will be taking similar measures throughout 2015,” Warden says. where the organisation wants to hold on to people but they need new skills for new roles. Where a company is making redundancies or, more dramatically, is exiting a market, it’s also working with individuals on personal development, learning plans and coaching, as they move through the redundancy process.” Foley has witnessed an increase in ER/IR roles, possibly since the sectors experiencing the most activity are construction, manufacturing and engineering, which are typically operational, unionised environments. Talent acquisition roles are also in demand. “In many cases, these tasks were rolled into a ge n e ra l i s t ’s / B P ’s responsibilities. When either of these areas increase in activity it’s normal for more specialists with these skills to be hired,” he says.

increase in HRD and senior roles, although this has been tempered by the fact that the senior market is quite sporadic. “At times the market has seen busy spurts of activity, and at other times it has been quiet. There are still large numbers of applicants for each role at this level,” says Foley. Johnson agrees that there has not been a huge demand for senior talent. “There are a lot of good candidates out there, but not many roles,” she says. She remains optimistic: “We do expect the executive market to improve as we see more economic growth. The simple fact is, strong HR leaders are required to drive the people agenda and therefore deliver business results.” Morris notes that with the surplus of candidates at HRD level, employers are being selective in who they take on. “The more senior you get, the more specific the nature of the position. The candidate really needs the skill sets to match the direction the company

“Given the focus on contract roles, it is not surprising that hourly rates for temp and contract opportunities remain strong”

The senior end What’s happening at HR director level? All recruiters agreed: 2015 has seen a slight

HR business partners – Of all the generalist roles, hiring for HR BP roles is the strongest. Organisations are keen for business partners to add value, grow revenue and manage costs – and those with previous transformation experience are in the most demand. At present, the few candidates actively looking for new roles in this field are being snapped up quickly.

HOT

L&D roles – The trend away from workforce expansion within organisations and towards workforce upskilling has resulted in increased demand for L&D and training professionals. Contract opportunities in L&D and training across the country continue to offer competitive hourly rates.

HOT

Change managers – These professionals are in demand due to a focus on process improvement and analysis in many organisations. Hays believes the increased demand for change managers has been a consistent feature of the HR market over the past 12 months, especially in SA and the ACT where government organisations have focused time and attention on driving greater efficiencies across departments by introducing new ICT systems, outsourcing services, and undergoing restructures.

HOT

IR/ER professionals – These skills will continue to be in demand, especially in Canberra as agencies negotiate and implement new employee agreements.

HOT

Rem & ben professionals – Michael Page suggests these roles are in demand due to employers’ need to be more creative in the way they reward staff.

HOT

Hot industries

HOT

Michael Page has seen the most hiring activity in financial services, building and construction, technology and the public sector.

www.hcamag.com

14-25_Salary&JobReview_SUBBED.indd 18

27/08/2015 1:09:13 PM

SALARY COMPARISONS FOR PERMANENT ROLES Hays ($)

Robert Walters ($)

Michael Page ($)

Frazer Jones ($)

2014 HRD median ($)

2015 HRD median ($)

% change

HR director (large employer)

250,000

295,000

200,000+

250,000+

308,800

248,800

-19.4%

HR manager (large employer)

160,000

176,500

165,000

180,000

166,000

170,300

2.6%

HR business partner

120,000

147,500

132,500

122,500

144,000

130,600

-9.3%

Role

HOT

Senior HR adviser/consultant

85,000

95,500

92,500

107,500

87,300

95,100

8.9%

HR officer/adviser

65,000

76,500

85,000

71,200

75,500

6.0%

HR coordinator/administrator

55,000

65,500

70,000

62,500

64,900

63,100

55,000

57,500

51,800

56,300

L&D head

220,000

200,000

231,900

210,000

HR graduate HOT HOT HOT HOT HOT

HOT HOT

HOT

-2.8% 8.7% -9.4%

L&D manager

140,000

148,000

142,500

175,000

142,300

151,400

L&D specialist/consultant

95,000

96,000

95,000

100,000

106,800

96,500

L&D coordinator

65,000

92,500

72,500

65,800

76,700

16.6%

109,000

110,000

115,000

108,200

111,300

2.9%

Trainer

85,000

70,000

97,500

76,700

84,200

9.8%

Rem & ben head

200,000

235,000

162,500

270,000

266,300

216,900

-18.6%

Rem & ben consultant/specialist

6.7%

L&D instructional designer

6.4% -9.6%

100,000

103,500

117,500

140,000

108,100

115,300

Payroll manager

110,000

118,500

110,000

-7.2%

IR/ER manager

140,000

169,500

185,000

150,000

177,300

161,100

-9.1%

IR/ER specialist/consultant

110,000

102,500

107,500

102,500

106,700

4.1%

Recruitment manager/head of talent

125,000

158,500

157,500

185,000

145,600

156,500

7.5% -5.8%

Recruitment specialist/officer

90,000

101,000

95,000

87,500

99,100

93,400

WHS/OHS head

210,000

180,500

300,000

184,900

230,200

24.5%

WHS/OHS manager/consultant

130,000

100,000

165,000

114,900

131,700

14.6%

WHS/OHS coordinator

90,000

77,500

107,500

86,300

91,700

6.3%

Health & wellbeing manager/officer

110,000

NEW

OD manager

140,000

136,500

185,000

163,300

153,800

OD specialist

110,000

120,000

107,300

115,000

7.2%

Workforce planning analyst

95,000

110,000

103,000

NEW

Change manager

180,000

180,500

200,000

215,800

186,800

-13.4%

Injury/RTW manager

100,000

120,000

112,800

110,000

-2.5%

175,000

160,000

133,300

167,500

HRIS specialist/analyst

85,000

100,000

87,500

99,800

90,800

Diversity manager

150,000

NEW

Diversity consultant

110,000

NEW

Average

135,200

130,340

HRIS manager/consultant

-5.8%

25.7% -9.0%

-3.6%

Hays: Figures are the median from a lower and upper range (eg $160–$170k); all figures are Sydney-based for companies with >1,000 employees; all salaries exclude superannuation. Robert Walters: Figures are for Sydney permanent roles, taken from the median of a lower and upper range; figures are basic salaries inclusive of superannuation, but exclusive of benefits/bonuses unless otherwise specified. Michael Page: Figures are the median from a lower and upper range (eg $160–$170k); salaries indicated are based on annual basic salary, including superannuation at 9.5%, excluding bonus/incentive schemes; figures are for NSW and apply for large organisations only (defined as having a turnover of more than $100m). Frazer Jones: Figures are inclusive of superannuation and exclusive of incentives and other benefits. Figures are for ‘large’ organisations. While we have taken great care, these salary ranges can only be approximate guides, as there are often specific circumstances relating to individual companies. Contact your recruitment agency for additional information.

www.hcamag.com

14-25_Salary&JobReview_SUBBED.indd 19

27/08/2015 1:09:18 PM

ANNUAL REVIEW

HR SALARY AND JOBS GUIDE

AVERAGE HR BONUS AS % OF GROSS SALARY 80 70 60

67%

DO YOU EXPECT YOUR DIRECT EMPLOYEES TO RECEIVE A BONUS?

50 40 30 20 0

Yes 37% No 63%

14%

10 None

7% 1–5%

6–10%

6% 11–15%

8% 16–20%

Source: Robert Walters Guide to Pay & Bonus Expectations for HR Professionals

Most HR professionals are not expecting to receive a bonus next year; however, one quarter expect a bonus of between 1% and 15%. A further 7% are expecting a bonus of 16–20% is going in. A lot of it also comes down to the soft skills and the cultural match. Employers are being very selective about that match.”

Quiet confidence So, a mixed report on HR jobs. Johnson, for one, is positive that the job market is looking up. “It is quite a positive market,” she says. “That’s important to mention, and I’m telling my clients the same thing. Usually we see the second half of each year being stronger than the first half, but this year it’s been a strong first half, which bodes well for the rest of 2015.”

DO YOU EXPECT YOUR DIRECT EMPLOYEES TO RECEIVE A SALARY INCREASE?

81% 19% No Yes

Remuneration The mixed news continues with remuneration. Given the focus on contract roles, it is not surprising that hourly rates for temporary and contract opportunities remain

strong, particularly in areas of high demand such as instructional design, training, change management and industrial relations. However, full-time HR professionals should not expect anything beyond a CPI increase. Indeed, Frazer Jones’ own APAC HR Salary Survey asked about likely salary trends over the coming 12 months. “The bulk of respondents in Australia were predicting a 1–3% increase (55%); the next most popular answer was 4–7% (22%), with 16% of respondents not expecting any increase,” says Foley. Morris echoes this: “I would say a conservative 3–5% increase for HR professionals – nothing dramatic,” she says. Trevor Warden, senior consultant at Hay Group and co-author of Hay Group’s annual Australian Salary Movement Index report, suggests the percentage pay difference between HR roles against the rest of the population varies less than +/-3%. “On paper it may seem that HR role remuneration may have shown greater stability in pay premiums, but I wouldn’t read too much into that statistic without giving careful consideration to the comparator group,” he says. Indeed, even these modest increases are not across the board. In fact, according to Hays, some roles in certain sectors can actually expect a 10–30% salary reduction.

www.hcamag.com

14-25_Salary&JobReview_SUBBED.indd 20

27/08/2015 1:09:22 PM

www.hcamag.com

14-25_Salary&JobReview_SUBBED.indd 21

27/08/2015 1:09:29 PM

ANNUAL REVIEW

HR SALARY AND JOBS GUIDE

EXECUTIVE PAY 2016 David Thodey, Telstra’s former CEO, earned 163 times the average telecommunications worker’s salary in the 2014/15 financial year. According to Telstra’s most recent Annual Report, Thodey was given a total pay package of over $14.5m. This included $2.65m in base salary, $3.4m as a short-term cash bonus, and $7.5m as long-term bonuses. Executive pay is always topical – and often controversial. Are there any major trends shaping executive pay for the rest of 2015 and into 2016? “There’s always a lot of attention given to pay quanta at senior levels, often with continual debate around pay structures and the efficacy of variable reward,” says Hay Group’s Trevor Warden. “However, we haven’t seen any big changes in this respect from our 2014/15 data. It might change in the future with more option plans coming back into executive pay as we enter the new financial year. That’s largely being driven by legislative changes to the way share and option plans are taxed. We’ll have to wait and see how this plays out over 2015/16.”

WHEN ARE YOU NEXT LOOKING TO MOVE JOBS?*

Performance-based pay Performance-related pay is one area where Hay Group has not seen an enormous amount of change over the past 12 months. In fact, when comparing incentive target percentages against actual payout, they did not see any difference from previous years. “The payout rate remained around two-thirds of the

“Mid-level and management staff are in the highest demand currently. Confidence levels are driven by economic activity, and most businesses are expecting conditions to improve in the next 12 months”

In the next 3 months 42% In the next 3–6 months 17% In the next 6–9 months 5% In the next 9–12 months 5% In the next 1–2 years 9% I am not currently looking to change jobs 22%

WHY ARE YOU LOOKING TO CHANGE JOBS?* A pay rise/change in salary package 29% Career progression 31% Improved work-life balance 20% Improved stability/job security 20% *Robert Walters Guide to Pay & Bonus

Expectations for HR Professionals

“Where we’re seeing that is in those environments where there have been attractive bonuses and other enticements due to skills shortages. With those skills shortages now less apparent, there’s been a reduction in overall remuneration,” says Morris. “The mining sector in WA in particular was such a hot place to be and there were quite lucrative offers that candidates were very attracted to. Now those offers have come down quite significantly and a lower level of bonuses and incentives has resulted in lower total remuneration.”

target,” says Warden. “It indicates that most organisations have not changed their STI plan (in quantum) over the last 12 months. We believe there is clearly more attention being given to ensuring that performance and reward is differentiated.” Approximately 80% of HR respondents to Frazer Jones’ APAC HR Salary Survey were eligible to receive a bonus. Of those that were eligible, the bulk of

www.hcamag.com

14-25_Salary&JobReview_SUBBED.indd 22

27/08/2015 1:09:33 PM

14-25_Salary&JobReview_SUBBED.indd 23

27/08/2015 1:09:38 PM

ANNUAL REVIEW

HR SALARY AND JOBS GUIDE

TOP TALENT RETENTION METHODS USED FOR HR PROFESSIONALS*

25%

Financial incentives

65%

Strong company culture

59%

Recognition & rewards

55%

Training and mentoring partnerships

61%

Work-life balance initiatives

17%

29%

12%

Global career opportunities

Other

WORK-LIFE BALANCE OPTIONS ALREADY ON OFFER*

11%

Sabbaticals

33%

Increased maternity/ paternity leave

58%

Work from home options

83%

Flexible working hours

30%

Alternate leave options (eg volunteering)

Team-building/ offsite activities

Other

*Respondents could select more than one answer

respondents were rewarded based on a blend of their individual contribution and the overall performance of the company. Johnson notes that in HR roles there is more emphasis being placed on bonuses, and these roles are “definitely becoming more performance driven”. She adds that employees are having to hit every single one of their targets to receive a bonus – and these are typically a mix of individual, team and company goals and targets. “If a company has a really competitive bonus structure, candidates are taking that into consideration before they make a decision. It’s becoming less about the salary and the super and maybe the car allowance; it’s becoming big-picture, the whole package.”

Maximising budgets

“In this kind of climate organisations will need to make sure they use the budget on the right people,” says Warden. “Outside of this, the other big challenge will be the ability to optimise usage of non-financial aspects of work, especially work-life balance and flexibility. Of course, a lot of Australian organisations have been moving in this direction for some time; however, there will be a renewed emphasis on making work as enjoyable and meaningful as possible.” HR will really need to focus on providing appropriate avenues for development, as well as new professional challenges. “Most importantly, HR professionals need to try to understand what motivates individuals and as much as possible be flexible with the overall value proposition, so that individual needs can be better met,” Warden concludes.

Looking to build – or retain – your HR team but feel hampered by tight remuneration budgets? Don’t fret. The most critical step will be around differentiating pay on important criteria, including potential, capability, performance, values, skill scarcity.

All graphs unless indicated otherwise are taken from Michael Page Human Resources’ 2015/16 Australian Salary & Employment Outlook

www.hcamag.com

14-25_Salary&JobReview_SUBBED.indd 24

27/08/2015 1:09:44 PM

14-25_Salary&JobReview_SUBBED.indd 25

27/08/2015 1:09:48 PM

EMPLOYMENT LAW

RACIAL DISCRIMINATION

RACE TO THE BOTTOM

July saw dark undercurrents in Australian culture bubble to the surface, thanks to the furor surrounding footballer Adam Goodes and the racial debate it sparked. Sadly, racism exists everywhere. What legal obligations do employers have to ensure racial discrimination does not occur in the workplace?

IN 2015 it seems a shame to be talking about racism in any context, but none more so than the workplace. Yet Athena Koelmeyer, managing director, Workplace Law, says regrettably there are still issues of racial discrimination arising in Australian workplaces. “Much of this seems to be the result of assumptions about racial characteristics where sweeping generalisations are made about persons of a particular race and then applied to an individual employee,” she says. “For example, an employer might – wrongly – assume that all people from an Asian background are better suited to employment involving mathematical or scientific skills rather than creative work. This incorrect sweeping generalisation about race can result in an unlawful discriminatory outcome where a person is not selected for a creative role because of their Asian background, regardless of their qualifications and experience.” Other examples relate to characteristics pertaining to a person’s race; for example, an accent when speaking, diet, and dress standards.

Employee protection Fortunately, employees are well protected by the law. There are four main pieces of Federal anti-discrimination law (the Sex Discrimination Act, the Disability Discrimination Act, the Age Discrimination Act, and the Racial Discrimination Act), as well as various complementary laws. These include the Fair Work Act, the Australian Human Rights Commission Act, in addition to state/territory

laws. However, employers must be aware of both direct and indirect discrimination. Most discrimination law includes concepts of direct and indirect discrimination, and this is no different for race discrimination. “It’s the more subtle indirect discrimination that sometimes slips under the radar with employers,” says Koelmeyer. “This is action producing a less favourable outcome for persons of a particular race, but as the action is not detected as being ‘racist’ it therefore becomes harder to address.” A good example of this was the past practice of recruitment by police services in which a height restriction was imposed. This height

restriction was indirectly discriminatory because in some races the majority of persons of that race are genetically predisposed to be shorter than people of other races. “Needless to say, we no longer have a blanket height restriction in the police services,” Koelmeyer adds.

The Racial Discrimination Act (RDA) When it was implemented in 1975, there was no doubt that the RDA was intended to change societal attitudes towards matters of race. Koelmeyer says it’s “a genuine shame” we are still trying to achieve the goals of the RDA in 2015. Section 15 of the RDA provides that it is

www.hcamag.com

26-27_WorkplaceLaw_SUBBED.indd 26

27/08/2015 1:08:37 PM

Brought to you by

unlawful for an employer or a person acting or purporting to act on behalf of an employer: (a) to refuse or fail to employ a second person on work of any description which is available and for which that second person is qualified; (b) to refuse or fail to offer or afford a second person the same terms of employment, conditions of work and opportunities for training and promotion as are made available for other persons having the same qualifications and employed in the same circumstances on work of the same description; or (c) to dismiss a second person from his employment, by reason of the race, colour or national or ethnic origin of that second person or of any relative or associate of that second person. For employers, it is important to be aware that the provisions of the RDA are broad in nature and that it is unlike any other kind of antidiscrimination law. Compliance requires a genuine shift in thinking with a view to ensuring that persons of all races and ethnic backgrounds within the workplace are entitled to the same human rights and fundamental freedoms that other persons enjoy. On a micro level, this could be as simple as ensuring that employees from all backgrounds are given the same opportunities for training and promotion.

REMAINING COMPLIANT: TOP TIPS • Ensure recruitment (and advancement) strategies are free from assumptions that could indirectly produce discriminatory outcomes. • Ensure workplace culture is sufficiently flexible to accommodate and support all races and ethnic backgrounds equally. • Be pragmatic – if you are aware as an employer that you employ a group of employees with specific cultural preferences, for example not to drink alcohol – then arrange gatherings where the focus of the gathering is not on drinking. Exemptions and special measures The RDA contains very limited exemptions from the operation of the Act,1 unlike the other anti-discrimination acts, which contain a wide range of permanent exemptions and the

mechanism for a person to apply for a temporary exemption. A “reasonableness” exemption applies to indirect discrimination – when a situation might not be unlawfully discriminatory as it was reasonable in the circumstances. To use a flippant example, if an advertising agency wanted to shoot a campaign using women over 6ft tall, this would doubtless produce a discriminatory result as few women of certain ethnic backgrounds would be able to comply – but it might be “reasonable” given the purpose of the recruitment. There are situations in which an employer might engage in “positive” discrimination – for example, an indigenous legal service might advertise for a lawyer from an indigenous background. Certain “special measures” can also apply in terms of racial discrimination. Special measures are exemptions from the operation of anti-discrimination laws that permit positive actions to assist or protect disadvantaged groups. To cite one example, the High Court first considered s.8 in Gerhardy v Brown.2 The case concerned an alleged inconsistency between South Australian land rights legislation and the RDA. The High Court held that while the SA Act discriminated on the basis of race, it constituted a special measure within the meaning of s.8(1) of the RDA because it was “positive” discrimination. Brennan J of the High Court stated that an s.8(1) “special measure” had five characteristics to be satisfied: • The special measure must confer a benefit on some or all members of a class. • Membership of this class must be based on race, colour, descent, or national or ethnic origin. • The special measure must be for the sole purpose of securing adequate advancement of the beneficiaries in order that they may enjoy and exercise equally with others human rights and fundamental freedoms. • The protection given to the beneficiaries by the special measure must be necessary in order that they may enjoy and exercise equally with others human rights and fundamental freedoms.

POLITICALLY INCORRECT BUT NOT DISCRIMINATORY It is important to be aware that, contrary to popular belief, not everything that might be perceived as politically incorrect is unlawful discrimination. Each piece of federal anti-discrimination legislation has three main limitations: • Firstly, each Act applies in relation to protected attributes only. Accordingly, it is not unlawful to discriminate against a person as a result of a characteristic that is not protected. For example, it would not be unlawful to choose to employ a person who enjoyed dance music over a person who enjoyed heavy metal music. Musical taste is not an attribute protected by anti-discrimination law, and an employer could make a decision as to a preferred candidate on that basis without being in breach of any anti-discrimination law. • Secondly, each Act applies only in relation to certain aspects of public life. Accordingly, unless the act occurs within one of the protected spheres of public life, the act will not be unlawful discrimination. For example, a private act in a private dwelling in the course of a person’s private life will not be unlawful discrimination even if the same act in a protected public sphere would be unlawful. • Thirdly, each Act contains exemptions – that is, specific defences or conditions where the antidiscrimination provisions that might otherwise be applicable under the Act do not apply. The defences and exemptions found in each piece of legislation are all different in operation and application. For example, a decision to not employ a person in a wheelchair, which would be unlawful disability discrimination, may be successfully defended if the employer can demonstrate the person could not perform the inherent requirements of the job. • The special measure must not have achieved its objectives.3 1 See ss 8(1) (special measures); 8(2) (instrument conferring charitable benefits); 9(3) and 15(4) (employment on a ship or aircraft if engaged outside Australia); 12(3) and 15(5) (accommodation and employment in private dwelling house or flat). 2 (1985) 159 CLR 70. 3 (1985) 159 CLR 70, 133.

Workplace Law is a specialist law firm focused on providing advice to employers on all aspects of employment law, industrial relations and work health safety.

www.hcamag.com

26-27_WorkplaceLaw_SUBBED.indd 27

27/08/2015 1:08:42 PM

N A I L A R T S AU

Australiaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s leading HR professionals gathered under one roof on Friday 7 August to celebrate the best and brightest in the industry. A record number of 750 HR industry leaders came together at The Star Sydney for the annual Australian HR Awards, proudly supported by our event partner, AustralianSuper. Building on weeks of anticipation, 19 award winners were announced, following a lengthy evaluation process by an independent panel of judges. The black-tie event, hosted by popular television personality Larry Emdur, applauded the efforts of HR departments across Australia. HRD and AustralianSuper congratulate all of the 2015 winners. See who they are on the following pages

28 28

www.hcamag.com www.hcamag.com

28-39_HRAwards_SUBBED.indd 28

27/08/2015 1:36:16 PM

Event Partner

www.hcamag.com www.hcamag.com

28-39_HRAwards_SUBBED.indd 29

29 29

27/08/2015 1:36:21 PM

AUSTRALIAN HR AWARDS WINNERS 2O15 AUSTRALIAN HR RISING STAR OF THE YEAR

JOSH CASS AECOM

JOSH HAS delivered extensive organisational change initiatives, including leading large-scale cost reduction programs. He has also negotiated large-scale enterprise agreements in unionised environments, which included handling complex case management such as general protections and unfair dismissals. Josh continues to provide ongoing formal mentoring to young professionals and has received an academic grant to study at Copenhagen Business School, Denmark. Josh was full of enthusiasm for the future of HR as a profession: “If you look back a number of years, HR has traditionally been more administrative. This has changed. I think of myself as a business person first, and as we grow as a profession I think HR will only become more engrained as business partners.”

EMPLOYER OF CHOICE (> 1,000)

QBE INSURANCE (AUSTRALIA) LIMITED

AS THE largest Australian-owned insurer, employing more than 3,200 people, QBE Insurance (Australia) Limited strives to create an inclusive and innovative workplace where people can bring their whole selves to work. The company understands that achieving outstanding business results starts with its people, and it aims to continually develop market-leading strategies to attract and retain talent. ‘What you want in a career. Made possible by QBE’ is brought to life across QBE’s three employee value proposition pillars of Opportunity, Culture and Reward.

AWARD SPONSOR

www.hcamag.com

28-39_HRAwards_SUBBED.indd 30

27/08/2015 1:04:35 PM

Event Partner

, EMPLOYER OF CHOICE (<1,000)

ATLASSIAN

SINCE ITS establishment in 2002, software company Atlassian has grown to 650 employees in Sydney – a number that continues to grow. Atlassian rolled out a ‘rocket fuelled’ onboarding program for 220 new starters, launched a side-by-side diversity program, and continued to deliver family and friend events for all employees to enjoy. Having grown by 40% this year, Atlassian also doubled down on leadership development to give its people managers the skills and capability to build high-performing teams.

AWARD SPONSOR

www.hcamag.com

28-39_HRAwards_SUBBED.indd 31

27/08/2015 1:04:46 PM

AUSTRALIAN HR AWARDS WINNERS 2O15 EMPLOYER OF CHOICE (PUBLIC SECTOR & NFP)

BANKSTOWN CITY COUNCIL

BANKSTOWN CITY Council’s philosophy is one of continuous improvement. The organisation strives to plan for the future, adapt to its environment and learn from experience. The Council’s journey to become an Employer of Choice has been about making the workplace better for its people. An all-encompassing HR strategy includes a vision, values, and reward & recognition and development strategies, as well as a key focus on safety and employee wellbeing. “Why are we an Employer of Choice? I think it’s because we care about safety and wellbeing and make sure everyone is developed and included. It’s as simple as that,” said Matthew Stewart, GM of Bankstown City Council, on the night.

www.hcamag.com

28-39_HRAwards_SUBBED.indd 32

27/08/2015 1:05:00 PM

Event Partner

BEST HR STRATEGIC PLAN

BEST LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT

BEST REWARD & RECOGNITION PROGRAM

WESTPAC GROUP

PROGRAM JOHNSON & JOHNSON FAMILY OF COMPANIES AUSTRALIA

RAPIDLY EVOLVING work practices, space limitations affecting productivity, outdated technology which hampered collaboration, and demands for greater flexibility led Westpac to migrate 10,000 employees to agile environments and behaviours. As the gateway to significant organisational change, the WorkSMART strategy is a culture of working that empowers people to choose when, where and how they work, and a transformation program charged with overhauling Westpac’s corporate environment, tools, systems, policies and culture.

J&J ACCELERATED and tested the potential of identified Emerging Talent within the organisation and facilitated learning focused on key capability needs for Emerging Leaders. Development support methodology included behavioural assessment and observation, 1:1 development coaching, and practical application of new and improved skills on real, business-critical issues. Individual feedback and one-on-one coaching allowed each participant to maximise individual growth, and provided our organisation with meaningful insights to incorporate into the established J&J Talent & Succession process.

AMERICAN EXPRESS’S goal is to create a culture of appreciation, a place where great work is recognised and where employees who embody the company values are celebrated in a meaningful way. The reward and recognition program, Reward Blue, is based on three fundamental pillars: praise employees for their efforts, offer rewards for meaningful results, and celebrate loyalty – a win-win formula. American Express’s senior leaders are strong advocates of employee recognition and consistently support reward and recognition as part of the company’s broader total compensation philosophy.

AWARD SPONSOR

AMERICAN EXPRESS

www.hcamag.com

28-39_HRAwards_SUBBED.indd 33

27/08/2015 1:05:05 PM

AUSTRALIAN HR AWARDS WINNERS 2O15 BEST RECRUITMENT CAMPAIGN

ATLASSIAN

BEST GRADUATE DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM

ATLASSIAN

THE ATLASSIAN culture and values

ATLASSIAN’S Graduate Program has

are key differentiators in a crowded market, and by ‘popping up’ an Atlassian office in each city the company wasn’t just interviewing people, it was showing potential employees just what it means to be an Atlassian employee. Everyone at the events could chat openly with Atlassians from different teams and ask any questions they wanted in order to get a sense of a career with the company. The key was having fun. By organising the events in relaxed, social environments and bringing Atlassian’s decor and games with them, participants were just as likely to see two people having an in-depth discussion as they were to see a group of people playing giant jenga.

a number of components, including attracting Australia’s and New Zealand’s top graduate talent, an onsite precommencement, a unique onboarding program including HackHouse and Bootcamp, along with membership of the Gradlassian Network upon commencement. In 2015, 40 graduates joined Atlassian; a further 77 graduates will commence in 2016. The company’s grads say that while the Atlassian brand played a part in their decision to join the company, the development program was an equally important factor. “The main drawcards of Atlassian for me was their extensive on-boarding process,” one grad said. “This month long ‘bootcamp’ involved a program of tech talks and then the opportunity to hone these new skills working on actual code.”

www.hcamag.com

28-39_HRAwards_SUBBED.indd 34

27/08/2015 1:05:18 PM

Event Partner

BEST CHANGE MANAGEMENT STRATEGY

BEST WORKPLACE DIVERSITY & INCLUSION PROGRAM

FOXTEL

QBE INSURANCE (AUSTRALIA) LIMITED

‘THE NEXT EPISODE’ change program was developed to engage Foxtel staff in five major programs that would drive business growth and customer advocacy and reduce churn (cancelled subscriptions). The People & Culture team designed and rolled out an intensive change and communications schedule to their 5,300 (direct and indirect) employees over 12 months. All change readiness objectives were achieved, demonstrating that staff understood what was changing, what the changes meant to them, and how they contributed to Foxtel’s goals and objectives. Overall staff engagement also increased from 62% to 66%.

QBE INSURANCE (Australia) Limited is committed to creating a workplace and a business model that values and embraces diversity and inclusion in everything the organisation does. This focus has been championed by the executive team and embraced culturally by QBE’s leaders and employees who understand the business case and are invested emotionally in ensuring everyone creates a workplace where each person can bring their whole self to work. In the past year, QBE has moved the diversity dial beyond gender to embrace all areas of inclusion and are starting to see the flow-through to the organisation’s customer value proposition.

AWARD SPONSOR

www.hcamag.com

28-39_HRAwards_SUBBED.indd 35

27/08/2015 1:05:25 PM

AUSTRALIAN HR AWARDS WINNERS 2O15 AUSTRALIAN HR CHAMPION (CEO) OF THE YEAR

AUSTRALIAN HR DIRECTOR OF THE YEAR

LYNNE JORDAN

AMANDA TOWE

LYNNE (pictured left above), is an advocate for robust HR practices to be embedded into organisational culture. She truly values and appreciates the contribution that all employees in the organisation make, and believes consultation and collaboration is critical to making HR strategies a success. “I have an HR team of one, so my people services manager is heavily involved in changing culture, rewarding people and introducing flexibility in the workplace. It’s all-encompassing and they do such a great job,” said Lynne on the night. She also cited innovation as being the key factor in maintaining an engaged and motivated workforce. However, she added that providing a platform for innovation had been merely the first step on Family Planning Victoria’s HR journey. Her top tip? Transparent and open relationships with HR employees are a critical factor in ensuring that HR strategies are delivered.

IN 2014, Amanda was responsible for leading the implementation of a new OneHR operating model at J&J. This was a significant change journey, involving people and team changes, establishing HR’s credibility with the board, and aligning people strategies to multiple business strategies. Amanda has introduced innovative and impactful people investments to drive the J&J strategy. The most significant of these include an Enterprise Talent Strategy, with broadened opportunities for talent pathways within ANZ, building diversity of expertise and strengthening the J&J EVP, and a Diversity Strategy to build an inclusive, credo-led culture that supports J&J’s goal for innovation and growth. On the night, Amanda said she was “overwhelmed” by the honour and that such nights of recognition were important for the HR profession. “I think these awards are great for our external reputation as HR practitioners. They’re also great for our internal reputation as well. We can leverage these accolades within our business to continue to grow the HR function,” she said.

FAMILY PLANNING VICTORIA

AWARD SPONSOR

JOHNSON & JOHNSON FAMILY OF COMPANIES AUSTRALIA

AWARD SPONSOR

www.hcamag.com

28-39_HRAwards_SUBBED.indd 36

27/08/2015 1:05:25 PM

Event Partner

AUSTRALIAN HR MANAGER OF THE YEAR

AUSTRALIAN HR TEAM OF THE YEAR

BIANCA AZZOPARDI

QANTAS

THE SAM PRINCE GROUP

BIANCA (pictured left above) has developed an HR department from the ground up across four businesses, including the implementation of a comprehensive HR strategy specifically targeting the organisational objectives of each business in the Sam Prince Group. HR under Bianca’s stewardship has been responsible for the recruitment of 213 roles in the past 12 months, spanning four different industries. Her colleagues suggest that throughout huge periods of change and significant growth, Bianca has maintained an inclusive, transparent and consistent management style across the group and her own team. Her team has reduced attrition rates across the group through the implementation of revised recruitment and performance management strategies. What’s the key to her success? Bianca is looking for ‘next practice’ not ‘best practice’ to continually be a high-performing HR manager and integral part of the Sam Prince Group.

AWARD SPONSOR

OVER THE past year, Qantas has experienced one of largest turnarounds in Australian corporate history. The HR team played a critical role in this turnaround, supporting the delivery of significant transformation while maintaining employee engagement and increasing customer satisfaction. To deliver this transformation, HR adopted a new approach in which the HR business partners were allocated to assignments based on business priority, individual capability and aspirations. This enabled greater utilisation of the HR team, and a more agile and flexible model. It also allowed for greater diversity of experience and accelerated development, in turn creating a highly capable, engaged and valued HR team. “It’s been a lot of hard work, and it’s a great team effort. I’m very proud of everyone inside the business, but especially the HR team. They’ve been really resilient and I’m so proud,” said James Allan, chief HR officer, Qantas International Freight & Catering, on the night.

AWARD SPONSOR

GLOBAL HR SEARCH & RECRUITMENT

www.hcamag.com

28-39_HRAwards_SUBBED.indd 37

27/08/2015 1:05:26 PM

AUSTRALIAN HR AWARDS WINNERS 2O15 BEST USE OF TECHNOLOGY

MSD (AUSTRALIA) PTY LIMITED

BEST LEARNING & DEVELOPMENT PROGRAM

BEST WORKPLACE FLEXIBILITY PROGRAM

ASSETLINK

SUNCORP GROUP

MSD IMPLEMENTED a cloud-based system covering talent management, succession planning, career paths, learning & development, competency-based skills and knowledge, development plans and objectives setting: a true one-stop shop. This was achieved by formal use of change execution methodology, project management and ‘lean’ business concepts and tools, eg risk mitigation assessments, situation summaries, enrolment packages, sponsorship cascades, stakeholder feedback (‘voice of the customer’) and work streams. HR’s major focus was on preparation, collaboration and inclusion … and then more preparation. The team had learnt from previous large-scale technology implementations that effective sponsorship (primary and local sponsors) and preparation are keys to success.

THE ASSETLINK Academy represents a multichannel approach to L&D, with opportunities for employees to access both formal and informal learning opportunities. Assetlink has developed an in-house suite of e-learning programs covering inductions, WHS, compliance and leadership. This ensures the content is highly relevant and specific, avoiding generic off-the-shelf courses. Learning is aligned to core management and technical competencies leading to nationally recognised qualifications, industry accreditations and targeted professional development.

SUNCORP BELIEVES flexibility is a key enabler for developing a diverse and dispersed workforce. Workplace flexibility is a key point of difference and has been positioned at the heart of the company’s employment proposition. Eighty-four per cent of Suncorp’s workforce is working flexibly and 84% of employees agree they’re achieving work-life balance – that’s 20 percentage points above high-performing norms. New flexible working models include the Work@Home hub. Flexible working types have been worked into a renewed enterprise agreement.

AWARD SPONSOR

www.hcamag.com

28-39_HRAwards_SUBBED.indd 38

27/08/2015 1:05:26 PM

Event Partner

BEST HEALTH & WELLBEING PROGRAM

YOUI

ARE YOUR HR STRATEGIES AWARD-WINNING? WITH ‘HUMAN’ as one of Youi’s core values, it’s no surprise the company has invested heavily in the wellbeing of its employees. Youi has designed a program called YourLife, which caters to all employees and is run by a dedicated YourLife coordinator. This program encompasses all aspects of health and wellbeing, not only influencing people’s work-life balance, but their lifestyle. The program has positively impacted on Youi’s engagement levels (as measured by a daily pulse survey); increased employee retention (turnover rates are lower in regular YourLife attendees); reduced sick leave; and increased performance and productivity.

Involvement in the Australian HR Awards is a tremendously rewarding experience for the individuals and companies that participate, generating valuable recognition for the hard work and achievements of HR departments nationwide. Make sure you get involved next year and it could be your HR team featured on these pages. To receive updates regarding nominations for 2016, sign up to the HC Online newsletter today at www.hcamag.com.

www.hcamag.com

28-39_HRAwards_SUBBED.indd 39

27/08/2015 1:05:38 PM

FEATURES

LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT

HOLDING UP THE MIRROR

In our busy lives – where the next target or KPI is always looming – sometimes we lose track of our personal values. These values act as anchors; without them it’s easy to lose our way. Enter an unexpected leadership development option …

YOU’VE WORKED HARD to get where you are. Every day you believe you do a good job. Other areas of your life are cruising along nicely. So why do you not feel content? Perhaps even more telling – why do you feel that the personal values you started out with in your career no longer align with what you are currently doing at work? It may seem like a question asked at a counselling or self-help session, but it’s actually a critical component of the Self-Leadership Lab at UTS Business School. In the Self-Leadership Lab, developed by Professor Emmanuel Josserand and led by developmental coach Suzanne Salter, executives are asked – perhaps for the first time – to reflect on their values. “A lot of the executives who have completed the Self-Leadership Lab haven’t had to do a deep examination of their lives,” says Prof Josserand, director of the Centre for Management and Organisation Studies (CMOS) at UTS. “Their studies have led them almost effortlessly to successful careers. However, there invariably comes a day when they have to define who they are and what they believe in.” Sometimes – but not always – this tipping point may be career related. After all, some of the biggest failures in corporate history have not been the result of technical failures but ethical ones. Over time, it’s possible for senior executives to lose sight of their own

personal values, and when that happens they become rudderless ships, Prof Josserand adds. “What I find is many people are taken in by their day-to-day operational activities and they forget why they are doing what they are doing and what is key for them. They lose the anchor that connects them to their work and what they’re doing with others in their work.” He says even people who do have the ability to self-reflect might only view their values in isolation. “We help them put it in perspective with their careers and where they are now,” Prof Josserand says. “Strong values are one of the key elements to be able to deliver strong leadership to people around you. Having a mindset where you know why you are there and why you do what you do is a very powerful trait.” HR professionals have likely heard of ‘mindfulness’ – the ability to step back and take time to reflect on actions not yet taken. Prof Josserand concedes that his course borrows some of the same principles of mindfulness. “Usually mindfulness is associated with different techniques like meditation. The common link is self-awareness; being more reflective about ourselves in order to cope with the pressure of what we do in our jobs.”

How does it work? Created by Prof Josserand in 2008 as part of the Executive MBA of the University of Geneva,

www.hcamag.com

40-41_UTS_SUBBED.indd 40

27/08/2015 1:08:24 PM

Brought to you by

the Self-Leadership Lab has more than 1,400 graduates around the world. It is being offered at UTS Business School through Executive Programs. Its unique approach is to blend theory, diagnostics and ‘doing’ in small groups of just four to six people, over a 20-week period that involves six group-coaching sessions. The Self-Leadership Lab is about selfreflection and reflexivity – the capacity to question assumptions about a situation,

latter due to the wider viewpoints and perspectives presented. “The coach does not intervene a lot in the sessions,” he says. “It’s really based on the dynamic between peers.” This ability to reflect then supports the development of creativity and new ideas that provide the required growth vectors for companies today. “If we look at the drive to improve productivity in organisations today, I don’t think we can afford to pay the types

“Many people are taken in by their day-to-day operational activities and they forget why they are doing what they are doing and what is key for them” Prof Emmanuel Josserand others, and most importantly about oneself. Prof Josserand believes the duration of the program is critical. “Leadership development is still generally approached in terms of ‘training’,” he says. “However, traditional classroom training and two-day workshops are not the answer.” Indeed, he believes this is part of the problem with not just short courses but also the myriad of 360-degree feedback sessions, psychometric assessments and behavioural interviews executives have invariably done by the time they reach the more senior ranks: there is little to no follow-through. “Often you have this training for a day or two, you undertake a 360 and get the feedback in a one-hour session, and for a few days afterwards you think about it. And that’s it. It’s done. There is no continuity. That’s why a five-month process is more effective. There are constant breaks throughout that time to reflect, so it reinforces this notion of reflexivity,” Prof Josserand explains. He adds that strong bonds are often formed between participants – so much so that 12 months down the track it’s not unusual to find the groups coming together again in their own time. The groups themselves may consist of people of similar or different backgrounds – Prof Josserand prefers the

of salaries we pay for well-qualified and experienced people to just execute orders,” he says. “The key to fostering creativity, to finding new solutions to old problems, is ensuring that staff across the board develop this reflexivity.”

Self-leadership While introspection does not come naturally to all people, Prof Josserand says by the end of the course participants are fully on board with the concept of reflexivity, and the wider concept of self-leadership. Self-leadership takes the view that to succeed in professional life we need to develop another ability as well: to understand and master our internal environment – our goals, values, thoughts, emotions, beliefs, moods, motivations and habits. As work days get longer and longer and people are connected to work 24/7, it makes sense that business schools are turning into places where students want to learn how to be good at life in general. Self-Leadership Labs are scheduled regularly or can be organised on demand. UTS Business School delivers a broad range of degree programs at undergraduate and postgraduate levels and through its executive development programs. For further information, phone (02) 9514 3504 or email executive.programs@uts.edu.au.

www.hcamag.com

40-41_UTS_SUBBED.indd 41

27/08/2015 1:08:28 PM

HR STRATEGY

CHANGE MANAGEMENT

LUCKY STRIKE: LEADING TRANSFORMATION HR professionals already know that without the engagement of the hearts and minds of your people, successful, efficient change is nearly impossible. The question is what role do leaders play? Jim Kouzes, Barry Posner and Michael Bunting provide tips on how to ‘model the way’ TRUE LEADERS, GREAT LEADERS, have the foresight to keep their people engaged, especially when it comes to the challenge of transformational change. During change, leaders need to get their communications right, put new processes in place, consult with key stakeholders, organise training, etc. However, there is one key element in the change process that is all too often overlooked and undervalued. We call it ‘Modelling the Way’. Are the leaders in the organisation modelling

If you want to guarantee that your change efforts fail or flounder, then just send your people the message that they need to change but you don’t the behaviours needed for the challenge of change to succeed? Are they open to feedback? Do they resist the God complex and admit they are learning too? Are they

totally and unrelentingly honest with themselves when they are unwittingly roadblocking change? Without the engagement of the hearts and minds of your

www.hcamag.com

42-45_ChangeManagement_SUBBED.indd 42

27/08/2015 1:08:02 PM

5 WAYS AN HR EXECUTIVE CAN IMPACT BEHAVIOUR

Form connections: HR executives should help leaders make the connection between their own behaviour and the intended organisational transformation, and implore them to personally model that behaviour in order to send the right messages to the rest of the organisation.

Keep it simple. Transformation practice at a personal level is really challenging, so don’t try to change more than one behaviour at a time.

‘Model the way’. Model your own behaviour change to set the standard. You lose all credibility to challenge and inspire others if you’re not walking the talk.

Show accountability. Run regular review meetings and ask executive team members to cite examples of their new behaviour. Research shows that tracking team members through the tough process keeps them engaged. This is business critical.

Celebrate good behaviour! We all need a lot of encouragement through the gritty process of transformation. As Nobel Prize winner Daniel Kahneman’s research shows, people will do more of what makes them feel good. It’s an enormous achievement just changing one behaviour, and when it’s the right behaviour it will make all the difference.

people, successful, efficient change is nearly impossible. Unfortunately, the moment people see their leaders failing to model the way, a secret resistance begins and the leaders are usually the last to know or understand this resistance.

Setting the example Does modelling the way make a difference? You bet it does. Barry Posner recently analysed more than 950,000 leadership assessments, and

the data revealed that of all five practices in his book The Leadership Challenge, the practice of Modelling the Way – defined as walking the talk and role modelling what you expect of others – accounted for the most variance in a leader’s impact on the engagement and performance of colleagues and direct reports. Additionally, scientific research now recognises that there are mirror neurons in widely dispersed areas of the brain that program our emotions to mimic those of

others. These mirror neurons help followers take cues from their leaders, mimicking their behaviours not only consciously but subconsciously. In other words, as a leader, whether you like it or not your people will be highly likely to mimic your behaviour, and if you are not modelling the behaviour needed for successful change, it’s likely they won’t be either.

The challenge of transformation Transformation is a daunting and painful

www.hcamag.com

42-45_ChangeManagement_SUBBED.indd 43

27/08/2015 1:08:05 PM

HR STRATEGY

CHANGE MANAGEMENT

and to really put rocket fuel into your organisational transformation efforts.

Be curious

Unfortunately, the moment people see their leaders failing to model the way, a secret resistance begins and the leaders are usually the last to know or understand this resistance process. In effect, it is the death of one thing and in its place the birth of something else. This is classically represented by the caterpillar becoming a butterfly. The problem for the caterpillar is that it literally has to die, to go through the messy process in the cocoon, and what comes out, a butterfly, does not eat the same things as a caterpillar, does not see the world from the same viewpoint, and does not even have remotely the same body. That is true transformation. Most people want to become caterpillars with wings. They want the benefit and the beauty of the wings, but they are not prepared for the tough and usually brutal process of transformation. They want the pill, a quick fix, to somehow circumvent the messy

and difficult process of the actual transformation itself. This is all too often true of organisations, but wise leaders know differently. Great leaders know the key is to inspire change through vision, transparency, humanity, authenticity and deep listening, but they also know the process is painful and challenging and their people want and need to see them going through the process with them; in other words, change done with them, not change inflicted on them. If you want to guarantee that your change efforts fail or flounder, then just send your people the message that they need to change but you don’t. Let’s talk about a few simple leadership strategies to keep your people engaged

Swap all defensive, blame-based reasoning for open-ended questions. Be curious, not defensive. Ask others for feedback, but ask it from genuine curiosity. That is not easy to do, especially if you fear difficult or challenging feedback. It’s no accident that the worst-scoring question on our 360 assessment is ‘Asks for feedback on how his/her actions affect people’s performance’. And it isn’t an intellectual challenge. It’s rare to meet a leader who does not intellectually understand that asking for feedback and listening is important. It’s an emotional challenge. It’s about getting past your need for good news on how wonderful you are. If you can develop the emotional stability and strength to keep listening, to keep opening in the face of uncomfortable feedback, then your learning curve will grow more rapidly than you ever imagined. More importantly, you will be modelling the very behaviour you desperately need from your organisation. A mindset of curiosity is the cornerstone of innovation culture, and every organisation needs innovation. Rationalisation, defensiveness, denial and blame are the enemy of progress on every level.

Mindfulness It’s time to understand that your behaviour matters in this very moment. This is where true personal transformation meets the real world. We are often unaware of what we are doing in any given moment. We are so good at operating this way that we can drive to work and not remember the journey, or walk out of a meeting and not remember much of it at all. Behaviour change is next to impossible if you cannot self-observe from a clear, uncluttered mind. If you are not noticing mindfully what is happening in your attitude, your speech, your actions, you are playing Russian roulette with

www.hcamag.com

42-45_ChangeManagement_SUBBED.indd 44

27/08/2015 1:08:08 PM

the engagement of your people. It takes a few small bad behaviours to put people offside. When you lack mindfulness, it’s too easy to be ruled by reactivity, denial and blame. To cultivate mindfulness you need to commit to bringing yourself into the present more and more. It sounds easy, but when you are challenging a lifetime of obsessive, distracted thinking it can be far more challenging than you realise.

Integrity In one example, we coached a CEO who was struggling with implementing change in his organisation. His people just did not follow through on their change commitments. He could not understand it. It turned out the problem was his example: he said yes to nearly everything – to his board, his executive team, to nearly everyone – and that was putting a huge strain on both his time and his people’s time. Inevitably they missed deadlines, performed below standards, and their change efforts just never got off the ground. Turns out his behaviour was linked to a strong need to be liked and approved of. This is all too common in Australian leaders. He could not put clear boundaries in place and say no when he needed to. In effect he was out of integrity, he violated the truth for his favourite addiction – being liked and approved of. Once I taught him some basic mindfulness and took him through the painful process of getting out of the addiction, his leadership changed and his organisation finally got focused. This CEO was a man of integrity, he was committed to values and honesty, but saying yes to things that you quietly know you cannot possibly deliver, even though you want to believe you can, is a violation of integrity too, and in this case it was having a serious impact on his organisation.

200% responsibility Consultants will tell you the world over that

5 POTENTIAL PITFALLS YOU’LL FIND ALONG THE WAY

Moving on to the next ‘cool thing’ too quickly. In an information-addicted culture, this is really tough to avoid. Stay the course with simplicity and accountability.

Not making the links for the new behaviour to the desired organisational outcomes. If people don’t know their ‘why’ for the tough challenge of changing behaviour, they will very quickly give up.

Not preparing leaders for the actual transformation process. Though it may be intellectually easy to understand, it’s unbelievably difficult in terms of adjusting emotionally and shifting self-awareness.

Getting the right support. If you get support from someone who has not done their own transformational work, it is inevitable that you won’t get the results you want. Ideally, you as the HR executive need to model this understanding.

Prepare for casualties. There will inevitably be leaders who do not take on the new behaviours. If the HRD and CEO tolerate this, their entire organisational efforts will fail or be heavily watered down. Stand behind the importance of leadership behaviour. every client wants you to come in and ‘fix things’, but what they rarely realise is that an important aspect of ‘fixing things’ is for leaders to first take responsibility for their own behaviours. In the case of another struggling CEO, we found that he became emotionally abusive when people did not meet his expectations, then angrily took their workload on himself. Ironically, he brought us in to help him develop real accountability and performance in his business. But he wanted us to change his people, change the system, change anything but himself. He just could not see

the links between his behaviour and the organisational outcomes. In fact, like so many leaders, he was not even aware that his behaviour was supporting the exact opposite of what he was trying to achieve. We made an agreement based on the concept of 200% responsibility, meaning he was 100% responsible for changing his self-sabotaging behaviour, while his team was 100% responsible for delivering their outcomes. It was a contract of trust and responsibility, with clear consequences and accountability for change. Five years later his team’s revenue and profit has nearly doubled and he is no longer engaging in his self-sabotaging behaviour.

Reach success with introspection Having the resilience to look at yourself, time and again, and not shy away from asking yourself and others how your own behaviour is supporting or blocking change, is a skill that great leaders embody. When you can learn to cope with the emotional discomfort that comes with transformation, you’re more able to cultivate personal growth and by extension the growth of your people. Challenge is a great teacher, and a potent motivator, but changing or improving your leadership behaviour is the epitome of personal progression. Never stop looking at your shortcomings and finding ways to overcome them. Never stop acknowledging your strengths too; it gives you the resilience and fuel to keep looking at the tough stuff. Do that and your people will always respect and admire your leadership, and above all they will be engaged – the research proves it. Jim Kouzes and Barry Posner are co-authors of the award-winning and bestselling book, The Leadership Challenge. Michael Bunting is a co-author of Extraordinary Leadership in Australia and New Zealand: The Five Practices That Create Great Workplaces, from which portions of this article are excerpted. Michael is also the founder of leadership development consultancy WorkSmart Australia (worksmart.net.au).

www.hcamag.com

42-45_ChangeManagement_SUBBED.indd 45

27/08/2015 1:08:10 PM

ENGAGEMENT

BENEFITS

THE ERA OF BESPOKE ENGAGEMENT With four – and soon to be five – generations in the workplace, it stands to reason that a one-size-fits-all approach to engagement is not going to cut it. Welcome to the age of the bespoke or segmented approach to engagement IT’S WELL KNOWN that an effective benefits program, as part of a holistic engagement strategy, can significantly reduce staff turnover. To cite just one research example,* organisations with effective employee benefit plans had a 12% employee turnover rate, compared to the general market at 15%. Both voluntary and involuntary turnover was lower in these organisations. There were also generally more hours being worked, particularly by senior management: 43% typically worked more than 50 hours a week, compared to 25% across the market as a whole. The report suggested that a major challenge for employers today is related to the demographic reality of having four generations in the workplace. It noted: “Today’s workforce holds the attitudes, values, and goals of four generations, which presents a massive challenge for employers to engage and retain workers to achieve business success. Offering stock standard competitive employee benefits will become a thing of the past and we are seeing this happen already.” One thing is clear: benefits tailored to your organisation’s demographics can only bolster engagement and productivity. This is something that Reward Gateway’s Kylie Green is passionate about. She notes that while traditionally there has been an

www.hcamag.com

46-47_RewardGateway_SUBBED.indd 46

27/08/2015 1:07:41 PM

Brought to you by

expectation that ‘one size fits all’ when it comes to engagement, savvy employers today recognise that a tailored approach is far more effective. “Obviously employees come from different age groups,” says Green. “They are based in different locations and they work in different divisions and different industries. They all have very different requirements. Until now it’s been quite difficult to segment an organisation’s communication efforts and also what they offer in terms of benefits and rewards. Today we can do that.”

Segmented communication Technology is the key. Reward Gateway’s SmartHub® platform provides employers with a bespoke engagement model, covering benefits, rewards, communication and engagement. “Many HR managers currently have platforms and tools for these four areas sitting in multiple places. They likely have limited visibility,” says Green. “SmartHub® offers one single platform for all of your employee benefits, rewards and HR information.” Taking ‘communication’ as a starting point, there are countless examples of where tailored messaging can be utilised. Green cites McDonald’s. To engage its predominantly young workforce, Reward Gateway ensures social media is used extensively. In contrast, PepsiCo has a slightly older workforce – including offsite workers – so live presentations have been proven to be successful in engaging workers. Having a choice is the key. “SmartHub® can segment the messages depending on the demographic,” says Green. “For example, the Sales team might log in and see messaging

WHY ACCESSIBILITY IS KEY User experience statistics from Reward Gateway’s current client base – 1,100 programs and over 2.5 million employees – demonstrate how critical the mobile experience is. Some 47% of visits to SmartHub® came from mobiles or tablets in the morning, from 6am to 9am. Then from 9am to 6pm, 68% of visits took place on a desktop. From 6pm to 9pm, 55% of users were back on a mobile or tablet.

around where they are tracking with their quarterly targets; however, new starters might log in and see a welcome video from the CEO.” SmartHub®, which was designed ‘mobile first’ – in other words it was designed with mobile usage as a top priority rather than an afterthought – allows employees to log in on the go, including during their work commute. While this might seem odd – who would want to check the company newsletter or intranet on their way to or from work? – Reward Gateway’s research indicates that if there’s a ‘what’s in it for me’ factor, people will log in. The ‘what’s in it for me’, in this instance, is the ability to use the Reward Gateway benefits suite to pick up

Green cites Suncorp as an example. The financial services and insurance giant has implemented a tailored online thank-you card, using SmartHub®, which is directly tied into the company’s values. Suncorp’s 15,000 employees have sent out 89,000 thank-you cards over the past year – an average of six cards per employee. “They’ve found their employees have loved that they can recognise their peers for a job well done,” Green says. Importantly, just like employees can now access benefits and company information on the go, recognition is now also mobile. “They can be on the bus on the way home

“Until now it’s been quite difficult to segment an organisation’s communication efforts and also what they offer in terms of benefits and rewards. Today we can do that” Kylie Green groceries or fuel discounts on the way home, While they’re online, smart employers will provide updates about the business. “It allows HR or business messages to be pushed out while employees are picking up benefits for their own use,” Green says. “Many clients use it to show the latest company videos, or they might have live Twitter feeds. Importantly, they can keep it updated in real time.” From there, it’s about providing a choice of benefits and rewards. While it can be risky to generalise about generations, Green suggests that younger workers might be more interested in lifestyle benefits; older workers might be more interested in increasing their family’s disposable income by taking advantage of benefits around groceries or petrol.

The power of a thank-you Regardless of the demographics or the communication channels used, the one element that Green says remains consistent is how gratefully a simple act of thanks for a job well done is received.

and realise the colleague who sat next to them at work has done an amazing job that day to responding to a customer query, and actually send them a thank-you card. That person can receive it on their way home. It’s real-time recognition.” Like all technology, user experience is key – not just for employees but managers too. SmartHub® allows managers to use a simple drag and drop function to update fields: videos, pictures, written information. “You certainly don’t need to be a programmer to use this at all – it uses very intuitive drag and drop functionality,” says Green. “We provide clients with a lot of services to build the perfect hub, but it’s so simple they quickly realise they can actually provide information on the latest changes or updates in their business themselves.” *Mercer’s 2014 Australian Benefits Review

Reward Gateway provides employee engagement technology to the world’s leading companies. The products power employee communications, recognition and benefits through a single employer-branded hub called SmartHub®.

www.hcamag.com

46-47_RewardGateway_SUBBED.indd 47

27/08/2015 1:07:49 PM

TECHNOLOGY

PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT

RIP PERFORMANCE APPRAISALS? While there’s no doubt performance management methodologies and processes need to be refreshed – and in some cases jettisoned – what’s going to replace them, and is the technology up to the task? IN SEPTEMBER, multinational management consulting firm Accenture will join a growing club of organisations that have ditched performance reviews and reimagined how performance is managed. “Imagine, for a company of 330,000 people, changing the performance management process – it’s huge,” Pierre Nanterme, CEO of Accenture, told the Washington Post. “We’re going to get rid of probably 90% of what we did in the past.” The company is ditching its performance appraisals as they failed to achieve their primary purpose: to promote better staff performance. Instead, the firm will switch to a more fluid system in which employees receive regular feedback from their superiors. Accenture sees annual appraisals as an excessive use of time, money and effort; the organisation wants to evaluate employees based on their individual roles and performance. “All this terminology of rankings – forcing rankings along some distribution curve or whatever – we’re done with that,” Nanterme said.

DEAD AND BURIED? NOT QUITE A recent PwC study conducted in Australia showed that 81% of companies had performance management systems which were only “somewhat effective” at achieving their goals. However, PwC steered clear of suggesting that organisations scrap performance ratings altogether. Indeed, the study gave a mixed review. It found that a move such as Accenture’s could result in: • reduced employee disengagement as employees feel more in control of their careers and performance • Fewer negative feelings from respondents about being judged • Greater benefits, especially in high-performing talent populations • Increased bias, with managers creating their own rules • An unofficial, unregulated employee ranking system Accenture aims to hit a middle ground by regularly supporting its employees and ensuring they perform better without having to evaluate them after they have contributed. Will it work? Only time will tell.

“We’re going to evaluate you in your role, not vis-à-vis someone else who might work in Washington, who might work in Bangalore. It’s irrelevant. It should be about you.”

A change is overdue Clearly it’s time for a change. But a change to what? “Performance management methodologies, processes and their supporting tools definitely need modernising,” says Nick Southcombe, general manager of Frontier Software. “They need to be less about just going through the process and shift to being more humanistic. It’s good to see some leading organisations recently announce major changes to their approach to performance management, including in some cases completely eliminating them.” Southcombe concedes, however, that there is still a place for performance management. Employees require clear objectives and most do appreciate honest and regular feedback on how they are tracking towards those objectives. The key is to take the angst out of this by making it less process

www.hcamag.com

48-49_Frontier_SUBBED.indd 48

27/08/2015 1:06:49 PM

Brought to you by

oriented and more communication based, Southcombe suggests. To do this requires appropriate methodology and appropriately trained managers. “Too often managers have not been trained in how to prepare for and have the performance discussion,” Southcombe says. “It is also essential that employees are fully briefed about their part in performance management.” In some cases performance is selfevident. For example, you either achieve your sales target, your billable hours target, or you don’t. In these situations ratings add no real value. However, given employees do appreciate honest feedback on their performance, Southcombe suggests it’s difficult to see a manager not using some form of rating for most employees. “How else will employees know? Ambiguity is not helpful and ambiguity could lead to issues in the future,” he says.

Alternatives Are there any viable alternatives to ratingsbased performance appraisals? While selfassessment by employees might be one option, Southcombe suggests that, in fact, manager performance ratings might be less prescriptive than many of the oververbose ratings systems used in businesses today. For example, the only two possible ratings could be ‘on track’ and ‘not on track’. “It’s hard to see that management won’t rate employees behind the scenes or with shadow systems, or even just in their heads – which is not healthy,” he says. “Management does tend to want to identify the ‘keepers’, the rising stars, and those who need development. If this is reality, then it’s best supported by an honest, modern and well-understood performance management methodology.” Regular, continuous, transparent. These are the words thrown around by workers – especially younger workers – in relation to performance management. “Certainly younger workers are used to a world of regular, rich communication,” says

Southcombe. “This is actually conducive to good performance management practices. Performance reviews shouldn’t be single events scheduled just once or twice a year. Managers should engage in frequent performance-related conversations with staff. This way performance concerns can be addressed as they happen and, if not more importantly, praise can be delivered in real time whilst it is still current.” Has the technology that might facilitate

is a lack of follow-up of identified actions arising from reviews. For example, identified training needs are often not actioned, and stated career aspirations are not communicated and nurtured. Often it’s only the workers’ overall performance rating that is shared with other systems, and perhaps only manually, for remuneration review purposes. An advantage of an integrated HRIS with a performance management module is that it

“It is hard to see that management won’t rate employees behind the scenes or with shadow systems, or even just in their heads – which is not healthy” Nick Southcombe this real-time, continuous feedback kept pace? What do performance tools look like in 2015 and beyond? “Performance management software tools will be enhanced to become more social media-like to support this type of communication and frequency,” Southcombe says. “A regular conversation, be it monthly or even weekly, can be recorded in the system along with any relevant notes from both the manager and worker – much like posting to Twitter or Facebook.” It’s also not a big leap for performance management software tools to enable 360-degree appraisals; in fact, many already do. A true 360 includes feedback from not just managers, staff and peers, but also from people outside the organisation. “Software tools, particularly those that have the familiarity of social media and are hosted in the cloud, will make this much easier,” Southcombe says.

Siloed technology A major failure of performance processes is their isolation from just about every other system and process in the organisation. There

is very easy to share identified actions arising from reviews with other modules. By directly feeding into integrated modules such as L&D, succession planning and remuneration planning, an organisation is better positioned to ensure the identified actions are assessed and implemented. “It’s this sort of follow-up that gives value to the business of performance management,” Southcombe says. Overlay this data captured in an integrated HRIS with a good reporting tool, and a whole new world of analytics becomes available to the HR strategist and management. In addition, it is much easier with a performance management software system that has a strong reporting function to ensure management and staff are conducting performance reviews according to organisational policies and timeframes. This should provide an incentive for more honest performance management relationships between managers and their staff, and thus a more effective workforce. That alone should score a 10/10. Frontier Software was founded in Melbourne in 1983 and is a global leader in payroll, HR and talent management solutions.

www.hcamag.com

48-49_Frontier_SUBBED.indd 49

27/08/2015 1:06:52 PM

EMPLOYEE SUPPORT

PSYCHOLOGICAL WELLBEING

DYING TO STOP WORK

AS MORE AND MORE countries around the world have to deal with the unfortunate phenomenon of assisted suicide, some proactive HR professionals are considering how this might impact on the workplace. But, before we consider this highly controversial subtopic, let’s first examine the state of ‘regular’ unassisted suicide among working people, in order to appreciate the context. Globally, estimates of the incidence of suicide are just short of a million people per annum. While the actual numbers are relatively small, suicide is considered the leading cause of violent death in many countries. Evidence shows that the rates of suicide are affected directly by economic downturns, with over 10,000 suicides in Europe and North America being directly attributed to the GFC of 2007. In the US, almost exactly 100 people of employable age commit suicide daily, although less than two suicides per day actually occur at the workplace. However, when they do, HR will be dealing with the aftermath for some while. Consider that: in the first three months of last year, 10

employees of French telecom company Orange killed themselves, causing international outrage Foxconn witnessed 18 suicide acts in 2010, and 150 workers threatened mass suicide in support of wage and working condition demands. Foxconn actually installed suicide nets in front of their buildings to arrest the trend “The reasons for suicide are complex, no matter where they take place,” says Christine Moutier, CMO of the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention. “Usually, many factors are at play.” In South Africa, the SA Federation for Mental Health confirms that the country has the eighth highest suicide rate in the world. For its size, it is concerning to know that 230 people attempt suicide daily, of whom 23 are successful – virtually one every hour. In Australia, figures have reached a 10-year peak, according to the ABS, with seven successful suicide attempts daily; almost 10 times that figure are unsuccessful but they were desperate enough to try.

What can HR do? HR professionals generally agree that their job is not diagnosis but the putting in place of a preventive strategy which should: promote awareness, particularly among colleagues There are several telltale symptoms of depression and suicidal behaviour that can be detected by an untrained co-worker who has been made aware of what to look out for; for instance, a person talking repeatedly about death, or exhibiting withdrawal behaviour and/or rage. While employers do not want to foster a ‘whisper culture’, an awareness campaign can form a practical component of a ‘we care’ philosophy. provide resources for suicidal employees These allow them to share their situation

www.hcamag.com

50-51_PsychologicalWellbeing_SUBBED.indd 50

27/08/2015 2:55:05 PM

what a suicide at work (and the way you respond) says about your company culture Research shows that suicides at work are more common within the following demographics: Men are 15 times more likely than women to commit suicide at work. Employees in the 65–74 age group are the most likely to take their life at work. Certain job categories are far more at risk. Employees whose jobs require that they carry guns are 3.5 times more likely to kill themselves at work, of which 84% will use their work-issued firearm.

Assisted suicide: Key questions

HR professionals generally agree that their job is not diagnosis but the putting in place of a preventive strategy with trained counsellors, even if only by phone. Most employee assistance programs (EAPs) have a hotline, if not resources for face-to-face counselling. They can not only ‘talk down’ a suicidal individual but provide helpful coping tools. facilitate referral to professionals If an EAP is not affordable, HR staff can facilitate appropriate access to professionals, and advise on health insurance funding options for treatment. Confidentiality is paramount, but can be assured. The help of organised labour can be an important step in gaining credibility for this strategy.

HR should also have a plan in place to deal with the devastating impact of a suicide at the workplace itself. I have personally had to handle two such incidents, and no one really prepares you for: the reactions of colleagues who know the individual personally the disruption and trauma of having forensic teams on site the protocol for touching/covering/moving a body which is in sight of many people the press wanting to release the name of the individual before you have notified the next of kin

Now, once you have addressed all of the above issues, you can turn your attention to the growing phenomenon of assisted suicide (legal or illegal) as this trend is increasing globally. Some of the questions affecting HR practitioners might include: Will your company’s death benefit pay out to an employee in the event of an assisted suicide? If not, will you seek to change it? If a staff member were to ‘go public’ with their intentions regarding assisted suicide, would you as an employer engage the person with a view to changing their decision, or work with them towards having their wishes carried out? Will you lobby your health insurance provider to provide a benefit in the insurance plan for the cost of the procedure? Who says that the job of an HR practitioner is simply transactional?

Gary Taylor is an HR director who has worked for Australian, South African and British multinationals on two continents, including the Middle East. He is registered as a Master HR Practitioner with the South African Board for People Practice, and served as vice president of the Institute of People Management.

www.hcamag.com

50-51_PsychologicalWellbeing_SUBBED.indd 51

27/08/2015 1:07:31 PM

OPINION

FUTURE HR

BYE-BYE, HUMAN RESOURCES? Articles about banishing HR from the corporate hierarchy appear regularly – the most famous was 2005’s ‘Why I hate HR’ in Fast Company. Ben Whitter takes a different but no less thought-provoking tack. Far from approaching an end, he finds that HR is only just beginning to reach its full potential THE NEVER-ENDING DEBATE about the future of HR took another major twist as Airbnb, a company that has revolutionised the ‘shared accommodation’ travel space and is valued at $25.5bn, recently announced that they are redefining their HR function in terms of what it is and what it does. The company appointed Mark Levy as their new global head of employee experience to oversee and connect everything to do with their ‘workplace as an experience’ vision, which is central to their culture and customer-centric approach. You know better than I that this debate is not new within HR. It seems like one epic battle between those on one side and those on another, while the observers in the middle are simply waiting for a seminal moment or announcement on who won so they can quickly go about implementing the next model once they have attended the relevant conference or workshop. Others, though, don’t wait. They get on with creating a brand of HR suited to and built within their business and context. It then makes a huge difference to business performance. This split is also reflected across the business world. In some organisations HR has been elevated to the top table – to the

CEO’s number two in some cases. In other instances, companies are busy downgrading HR to an administrative function, with organisational development in its own right taking the strategic spot or being fused with HR in some fashion. The range of titles, services and functions vary, but it is all chipping away at the same challenge. The desire then, presented by Ram Charan in his proposal on splitting HR, and the subsequent response by Josh Bersin (see box, p.54), indicate what’s been playing out in the profession for way too long – although they both present good and valid points within their respective articles. In People Before Strategy: A New Role for the CHRO, Ram Charan returned with Dominic Barton, global managing director of McKinsey & Co., and Dennis Carey of Korn/Ferry International, to present a view that sets out to re-evaluate the chief HR officer role. There continues to be fierce resistance to established models of HR, which does add some weight to the argument that HR needs a rebrand and a renewed focus.

Dissent from within Quite frankly, the debate has tended to be a

HR AT AIRBNB

Airbnb’s San Francisco office

The essence of the ‘workplace as an experience’ is where all the elements of work – the physical, the emotional, the intellectual, the virtual, and the aspirational – are carefully orchestrated to inspire employees. Levy’s scope of responsibilities reflects this expanded vision. He is responsible for not only typical HR functions such as recruiting, talent management and development, HR operations and total rewards, but also a range of new areas which create the ‘workplace as an experience’ vision. This expanded scope of responsibilities includes such functions as facilities, food, global citizenship, and the talents of a group of individuals called ‘ground control’, who focus on bringing the Airbnb culture to life through workplace environments, internal communications, as well as employee events, celebration, and recognition.

www.hcamag.com

52-55_Opinion_SUBBED.indd 52

27/08/2015 1:07:04 PM

from the top to create the best employee experience possible, which is a big advantage – as people like Laszlo Bock (VP, people operations, Google), Libby Sartain (former VP, people, Yahoo/Southwest Airlines) and others like Airbnb’s Mark Levy can vouch for.

The new era starts now I’m an optimist, but I’m certainly not alone in thinking HR and organisations are on the verge of a major moment in their history together. In fact, it’s happening already. As a timely example, Mark Levy’s new role of chief employee experience officer at Airbnb combines traditional HR functions of recruiting and talent development with marketing, real estate, facilities, social responsibility, and communications. That’s quite a platform, but that’s not the HR success story here. What is clear is that this move quite visibly positions the employee experience as critical to the business, not HR (see chart below). This is absolutely right, in my view, and gives practitioners the confidence and belief to know that HR is no longer a support function within the business, because the employee experience, to a large extent, is the business. I can see the repercussions now in how we

The range of titles, services and functions vary, but it is all chipping away at the same challenge circular argument going round and around. What’s more interesting is the extent to which it has and continues to be driven from within the profession, which has only made the very real gripes about HR stronger. Does this suggest an identity crisis within HR? Perhaps. But perhaps the field is also getting restless as our many practitioners and colleagues know they are ready to play more instrumental roles within organisations.

The best HR leaders I know have been labelled maverick at one time or another because they’ve built something that went against the norm, they’ve challenged the status quo, and they’ve seen beyond the perceived limitations of their function and therefore extended well beyond it. They bring meaning to the workplace, and it runs through everything that affects people. The other thing they do is obtain a clear mandate

THE WORKPLACE AS AN EXPERIENCE Physical Food/workspace environments Aspirational Transparency

Virtual Collaborative technologies

Creating optimal employee experiences

Emotional Global citizenship & purposeful work

Intellectual Recruiting/talent development Source: 2015 Future Workspace, LLC

www.hcamag.com

52-55_Opinion_SUBBED.indd 53

27/08/2015 1:07:08 PM

OPINION

FUTURE HR

THE ONGOING DEBATE: CHARAN VS BERSIN Ram Charan’s proposal Eliminate the position of CHRO and split HR into two strands. The first would be called HR-A (for administration) and would primarily manage compensation and benefits. It would report to the CFO. The other, HR-LO (for leadership and organisation), would focus on improving the people capabilities of the business and would report to the CEO. HR-LO would be led by high potentials from operations or finance whose business expertise and people skills give them a strong chance of attaining the top two layers of the organisation. Charan wrote: “It’s time to say good-bye to the Department of Human Resources. Well, not the useful tasks it performs. But the department per se must go. “I talk with CEOs across the globe who are disappointed in their HR people. They would like to be able to use their chief human resource officers (CHROs) the way they use their CFOs – as sounding boards and trusted partners – and rely on their skills in linking people and numbers to diagnose weaknesses and strengths in the organisation, find the right fit between employees and jobs, and advise on the talent implications of the company’s strategy.” Josh Bersin’s response Bersin conceded it was time to redesign HR and the role HR plays. He suggested that not only was the name out of date, but the traditional model as well. As a starting point, he proposed more ‘High-Impact’ HR professionals and fewer Generalists. Bersin wrote: “First, we have to define ‘HR’ as a ‘talent’ function. While HR departments have to worry about regulations, labour relations, global payroll, and many other administrative areas, the real business value lies in HR’s talent management role. Our research found that only 7% of HR’s real value comes from its role as an internal people operations team: more than five times its value comes from its role in supporting, developing, and identifying leaders. “This means that we need far fewer ‘HR Generalists’ and far more ‘HR Specialists’. The world of High-Impact HR is filled with deep specialists, people who understand assessment, coaching, recruiting, data analysis, I/O psychology, training, and technology. High-impact HR professionals today are consultants first, HR professionals second. Yes they know a lot about HR practices and disciplines, but they operate as business consultants. They can sit down with a line manager and listen to his or her challenges, recommend thoughtful solutions, and then roll up their sleeves and make things happen. And they can do it in innovative ways.”

develop, grow, and accredit HR people within our profession. It is the employee experience that is the clear winner, and as an HR guy I like what this says about the future workplace once other sectors start catching up – and they will catch up. There is no question that the transition from ‘HR thinking’ to ‘employee experience thinking’ will be a challenge for companies to

get to grips with as many other organisations are joining the race to refocus their HR efforts on the employee experience. Instead of asking why this is happening, I think the bigger question is why it is taking so long for employers to act on the basic truth that it is employees who deliver the value to customers and keep them coming back for more. But not every company sees it that way,

and not every company has a CEO like Brian Chesky (Airbnb), Larry Page (Google), Jeff Weiner (LinkedIn), or Mark Parker (Nike) – all of whom are currently enjoying throughthe-roof 2015 approval ratings alongside top employer rankings on the likes of Glassdoor, largely delivered by their people-centric approaches and wholehearted support of creating leading, forward-thinking and progressive workplaces. That ‘people thing’, they take it very seriously, because in this economy they both want and have to. It is critical to their success. How easy would it be for you to follow Airbnb and co in creating a function dedicated to the employee experience that brings together multiple functions (or silos if they are starting to hinder collective progress), which all play a major organisational role, and gets them all aligned and driving your business forward? If you’re at the top of the pile, easy, right? If you’re lower in the HR pecking order or a middle manager, it’s potentially not so easy as you’ll need to work your ideas up and across the chain, a process that could take a short or long period of time, depending on your particular circumstances. Focusing on the employee experience appears to be common sense, but as many out there will tell you, it isn’t commonly applied, and if it is, there are always inevitable challenges within the status quo. Is it easy to refocus HR on the whole employee experience? Maybe; maybe not. But for the HR profession and organisations in general, the journey is going to be well worth it. Ben Whitter leads the organisation and people development function at the University of Nottingham Ningbo China (UNNC), which was the first Sino-foreign university to open its doors in China. In the top 1% of universities worldwide, UNNC is an award-winning university with a truly global perspective. This article first appeared on Ben’s LinkedIn page.

www.hcamag.com

52-55_Opinion_SUBBED.indd 54

27/08/2015 1:45:20 PM

www.hcamag.com

52-55_Opinion_SUBBED.indd 55

27/08/2015 1:07:15 PM

PEOPLE

HEAD TO HEAD

GOT AN OPINION THAT COUNTS? Email hrd_editor@keymedia.com.au

Do you believe it’s time to refresh performance reviews?

Alex Diab General manager, HR NSW Business Chamber It is time to refresh performance reviews. We’ve focused on the intention and purpose of performance reviews, which resulted in significant changes. We have dramatically simplified the process. This included moving away from weightings and complex calculations to form ratings. To remove the ‘fear’ factor, HR coaches people leaders in providing and receiving ongoing, real-time informal and formal feedback. It is important to continue performance reviews because: • Not all managers are at the same level when it comes to providing and documenting ongoing feedback. These offer the opportunity to have discussions within a consistent framework. • They provide employees and managers with documented goals and focus, which employees desire and appreciate. • They reduce risk by ensuring documented discussions about performance and conduct in a structured manner.

Cindy Grass Head of talent & strategy, ANZ Millward Brown The questions you should be asking your business are: “How can we improve the business impact of our investments in people?” and “What value are you obtaining from your performance reviews?” If the answers are: “We are overcommitting financial resources to our performance management system” and “They are of no value at all”, then it’s time to assess why. At Millward Brown, we have a wealth of opportunities to discuss performance. There are monthly conversations around daily performance and general wellbeing; mid-year reviews to ensure objectives are on track; end-of-year reviews to summarise the ‘what’ (objectives) and the ‘how’ (behaviours); as well as a specific career conversation in the first quarter of every year. Whilst we are still using a system to capture all this information, our people still want to receive written feedback, redirect objectives, and allow managers and peers to acknowledge their achievements.

Siobhan Gallacher Human resources director Accenture Australia Various performance appraisal techniques can be used to assess individual contribution. Whatever approach is utilised, it must achieve an organisation’s objective with respect to performance. At Accenture, part of our goal is to be more fluid in our approach to assessing performance, and to treat performance as an ongoing activity. As a result, we shifted our annual performance process to real-time, forward-looking conversations about setting priorities, developing strengths and creating rewarding career opportunities for our people. Ultimately, organisations need to reflect upon what they hope to achieve through their performance cycle – will these performance evaluations allow their people to grow and learn, and motivate and engage the next generation of leaders? Simply put, performance-related activities need to be relevant and meaningful to the individual in question, to better support their career development.

PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT A survey by the Society for Human Resource Management found that only 3% of employers had fully eliminated performance reviews. Yet despite 72% of respondents saying their firms conducted annual performance appraisals, only 2% of HR professionals believed their company deserved an A rating with regard to how well they managed performance.

www.hcamag.com

56_HeadtoHead_SUBBED.indd 56

27/08/2015 1:05:38 PM

IBC.indd 57

27/08/2015 6:38:18 AM

OBC.indd 1

27/08/2015 6:39:34 AM