Tomorrow’s HR leaders
HRDMAG.COM.SG ISSUE 3.04
MIXING ART WITH SCIENCE Unit4’s Rachel Chung on HR’s tech industry innovations
BACK TO THE NEGOTIATION TABLE The HR skills you need to develop
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2017 ASIA-PACIFIC HR REPORT Opportunities, challenges and the future of HR
HUNTING A RARE BREED J.P. Morgan’s search for STEM talent
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ISSUE 3.04
CONNECT WITH US
CONTENTS
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UPFRONT 02 Editorial
28
14
04 Statistics
FEATURES
A look at how companies are really using HR technology
RISING STARS
06 News analysis
The HR profession is in safe hands – find out who is shaping the future of the industry in HRD’s annual Rising Stars list
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Are D&I initiatives up to the task? Evidence suggests perhaps they are not
08 Upfront: L&D update
DBS Bank is investing $20m to bolster digital skills – here’s why
10 Upfront: Rewards/benefits
Should your organisation be offering childcare services on-site?
12 Head to head
If you were to return to study, what would help you most in your current HR role?
COVER STORY
MIXING SCIENCE WITH ART
HRD chats to HR leader Rachel Chung about breaking HR stereotypes and the unique challenges facing HR in a rapidly growing global tech company
While the world is ambiguous and uncertain, too many employers are using the same tired approaches to leadership development
FEATURES
BACK TO THE NEGOTIATION TABLE
HRD explores why negotiation skills are critical for HR professionals looking to become strategic influencers
PROFILE 52 Thinking outside the box
JP Morgan is proving that sometimes it helps to look beyond the traditional sources for the brightest talent – especially STEM talent
PEOPLE
18 FEATURES
2017 ASIA-PACIFIC HR REPORT
HRD’s third annual Asia-Pacific HR Report reveals that while change and disruption are the norm, HR remains optimistic for the future
56 Career path
Her strategy of targeting roles or companies to ensure a diverse skill set has served Linda Hamill well
40 FEATURES
TECHNOLOGY FOCUS
From the need for greater digital competencies to how time, attendance and workforce management is handled, technology is redefining how HR operates
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UPFRONT
EDITORIAL www.hrdmag.com.sg
LEADING IN A VUCA WORLD
T
he world’s companies will spend US$50bn a year on developing leadership capabilities. Yet, for all that investment, assessing ROI on any sort of L&D initiative, let alone leadership development, remains hazy at best. Albert Einstein is lauded for saying that the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result. If that is the case, can organisations expect anything different from their investment in the same leadership development initiatives? It might be time to rethink the approach. Phillip Campbell of leadership development company enigmaFIT says what has served us well in the ‘steady state’ past has been a focus on enhancing Crystallised Intelligence. In a nutshell, this is defined as subject-matter expertise. In today’s VUCA (volatile, uncertain, complex, ambiguous) world, however, this is not sufficient. Leadership programs should be aiming to bolster Fluid Intelligence, which is
VUCA is actually a military term that describes being in a battle in conditions you’ve never fought in before defined as the ability to adapt and solve new and novel problems. Campbell adds that VUCA is actually a military term that describes being in a battle in conditions you’ve never fought in before. In short, one can’t rely on past experience, and thinking on the go is de rigueur – this is the very definition of Fluid Intelligence. Neuroscience has progressed in leaps and bounds in the past decade or so. The most effective L&D interventions recognise these developments and now aim to enhance both the Crystallised and Fluid Intelligence of participants. There are other problems when it comes to our investment in future leaders. Stats from CEB indicate that only one in seven high performers actually has high potential. They also suggest that 30% of people on development programs shouldn’t be on them. Can you think of any other area of business in which a 30% investment write-off from day one would be accepted? Again, these are disturbing stats that indicate something is well and truly amiss in our identification of high potentials and how we develop those people. However, these are challenges for another day… Iain Hopkins, editor
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ISSUE 3.04 EDITORIAL
SALES & MARKETING
Editor Iain Hopkins
Marketing & Communications Manager Lisa Narroway
Journalists Hannah Go Paolo Taruc Production Editors Bruce Pitchers Roslyn Meredith
ART & PRODUCTION Designer Marla Morelos Traffic Coordinator Freya Demegilio
Commercial Manager - Asia Gareth Scott Business Development Manager Sarah Haviland
CORPORATE Chief Executive Officer Mike Shipley Chief Operating Officer George Walmsley Managing Director Justin Kennedy Chief Information Officer Colin Chan Human Resources Manager Julia Bookallil
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HR Tec
singapore.hrtechsummit.com
28 March 2018 | Hilton Singapore
RETHINK THE FUTURE OF HR TECHNOLOGY • Building the business case for HR technology investment • Examples of implementation excellence from leading organisations • Strategic decision-making using big data • Driving and leading cultural transformation
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Official publication
SPEAKERS INCLUDE:
Aditi Mahadevan APAC HR Head - Markets and Securities Services Citi
Chan Chong Kong Director – Human Resources PwC
Eugene Lam
Imre Vadasz
Regional HR Director Kimberly-Clark
Regional HR Director, AMEA Sony
Dr Jaclyn Lee
Vandna Ramchandani
Organised by Senior Director – Human Head of Talent, Philanthropy Resources; Head of HR & Engagement for Asia Pacific Technology and Analytics Bloomberg Singapore University of Technology and Design (SUTD)
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UPFRONT
STATISTICS
WORKING THE SYSTEM
POINTING THE WAY TO THE CLOUD HR departments are increasingly migrating their tech systems to the cloud – a PwC survey confirms that roughly three-quarters of HR departments have moved at least one process to the cloud. The areas where companies said they’re most likely to move to cloud-based systems in the near future include talent review and succession, onboarding, HR analytics, and performance management.
The rapid evolution of HR systems and the tech behind them is only likely to accelerate HR SYSTEMS have moved away from the simple transition of paper-based admin processes to a more seamless electronic experience. In the modern world, tech plays an integral role in tackling the core challenges HR professionals face, such as driving employee engagement, keeping costs competitive and maintaining compliance. Increasingly, HR technology is also tackling learning,
76%
of organisations use cloudbased tech solutions; the remainder use on-site solutions
92%
of companies plan to make changes to their current HR tech
recruitment and performance management. A recent survey on HR technology by Ernst & Young revealed that greater numbers of organisations are embracing new technologies, such as cloud-based SaaS systems (76%), self-service portals (75%) and talent management platforms (79%). In the coming years, HR’s march toward tech solutions is only likely to become more pronounced.
50%
of companies expect to increase spending on HR technology in the next 12 months
WHY USE THE CLOUD? Software innovation, quick releases
70%
Depend less on IT
50%
Lower cost of ownership
44%
13%
of organisations still rely on paper-based talent management
Source: HR Technology Survey, Ernst & Young Global Limited Pulse Survey, 2016
NO CLEAR LEADER
SERVE YOURSELF
Organisations surveyed by EY demonstrated no single preference in terms of how their internal technological landscapes are configured.
Three out of four organisations use a portal that caters to both managers and employees, citing the promotion of employee/manager self-service as the chief reason for implementing the portal.
20%
use best functionalities in the market (best-of-breed technology)
25%
use one system for entire organisation (business-wide enterprise technology)
REASON FOR NOT IMPLEMENTING
DO YOU USE A SELF-SERVICE PORTAL?
REASON FOR USING A PORTAL
6%
40% Readiness of the organisation
30%
No, and we have no plans to develop a self-service portal
Promote employee/manager self-service
23% One-stop shop for access to all HR systems
20%
23% Cost reduction
Our primary processes don’t lend themselves to self-service
30% use custom/in-house
25% use one HR system
developed tools
(HR enterprise technology)
Source: HR Technology Survey, Ernst & Young Global Limited Pulse Survey, 2016
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40% Other
17% 19%
No, but we are working to develop a self-service portal
75%
Information sharing/knowledge management
Yes, we have a self-service portal for employees and managers
7% Other
Source: HR Technology Survey, Ernst & Young Global Limited Pulse Survey, 2016
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THE CLOUD: TODAY AND TOMORROW
Recruiting
Organisations using SaaS/cloud today Organisations planning to move to SaaS/cloud
Learning Performance management management
58%
50%
23%
48%
24%
Onboarding
Core HR
40%
39%
31%
Talent Compensation review and succession
37%
26%
35%
Time reporting
Benefits
Payroll
31%
30%
30%
15%
14%
32%
25%
27%
HR analytics
23%
34%
38%
Source: PwC, HR Technology Survey 2017
PRIMARY DELIVERY SYSTEM SET-UP
GROWTH AREAS
For most HR functions, the majority of organisations (an average of 56%) tend to rely on enterprise or best-of-breed technology as their primary delivery systems.
Companies plan to invest the lion’s share of their HR tech budget on performance management systems.
Manual/paper-based
7% 40%
20% 33%
Recruiting/staffing
21% 29%
21% 14%
Career development/ planning
Custom/in-house developed tool
21% 29%
21% 29%
Onboarding/joiner administration
7% 20% 27%
20% 27%
Succession planning and retention
Enterprise technology
7% 20% 27%
20%
Best-of-breed technology
Not applicable
40%
36%
43%
13% 13%
40%
Workforce planning/ analytics
20%
27%
40%
13% 7% 27%
Payroll
7%
Recruiting/staffing
Onboarding/joiner administration
Compensation and benefits 14%
21%
Compensation and Performance management Learning management benefits (goal-setting, assessment) and training
40%
No anticipated investments 12%
20%
33%
27%
20% 13%
10%
7%
Performance management (goal-setting, assessment) 19% 10% Learning management and training
27%
Expat management
5%
7%
Career development/planning
7%
Succession planning and retention
7%
Workforce planning/analytics
Payroll
2% Expat management
2% 4% 6% 8% 10% 12% 14% 16% 18% 20% Source: HR Technology Survey, Ernst & Young Global Limited Pulse Survey, 2016
Source: HR Technology Survey, Ernst & Young Global Limited Pulse Survey, 2016
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UPFRONT
NEWS ANALYSIS
ARE D&I INITIATIVES UP TO THE TASK? Google may have algorithms down pat, but one issue remains harder to solve: gender inequality A FIRESTORM erupted in August after an internal memo from Google engineer James Damore went viral. The widely shared document criticised Google for its pro-diversity programs. Damore wrote: “Distribution of preferences and abilities of men and women differ in part due to biological causes, and these differences may explain why we don’t see equal representation of women in tech and leadership.” He added that women “prefer jobs in social and artistic areas”, while men “may like coding because it requires systemising” and “have a higher drive for status”.
stats show that while the percentage of women at the company (31%) is increasing, men are still over-represented, especially in tech (80%) and leadership (75%) roles. The company also announced that Danielle Brown, the former chief diversity and inclusion officer at Intel, would become Google’s new vice president of diversity. Brown released a memo, saying, “Google has taken a strong stand on this issue by releasing its demographic data and creating a companywide OKR [objectives and key results] on diversity and inclusion. Strong stands elicit
“Changing a culture is hard, and it’s often uncomfortable. But I firmly believe Google is doing the right thing” Danielle Brown, Google Google’s leadership responded by slamming the statement. “Our job is to build great products for users that make a difference in their lives,” said CEO Sundar Pichai. “To suggest a group of our colleagues have traits that make them less biologically suited to that work is offensive and not OK.” In June, Google voluntarily released workforce demographic data as part of its efforts to create a more inclusive culture – a process that senior vice president of corporate development and chief legal officer David Drummond describes as “slow but real”. The
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strong reactions. Changing a culture is hard, and it’s often uncomfortable. But I firmly believe Google is doing the right thing.” Brown added that part of building an open, inclusive environment means fostering a culture in which “those with alternative views, including different political views, feel safe sharing their opinions, [but] that discourse needs to work alongside the principles of equal employment found in our Code of Conduct, policies and anti-discrimination laws.” While many observers disagreed with Damore’s sentiments, others applauded him
for calling out the fact that D&I initiatives can be less than effective. The reaction from Google (Damore was dismissed, which he claimed was for “perpetuating gender stereotypes”) was also criticised; some cited it as the latest example of “politically correct authoritarianism creeping into every level of society”. Lance Hodgson, marketing manager at Mentorloop, who has himself been critical of D&I initiatives in the past, says many people are “disillusioned and frustrated” with them. “The discrepancy between the investment and attention to D&I and the tangible evidence of progress is frustrating,” he says, “mostly for the marginalised groups who are most impacted by the systemic discrimination, but also for many other people inside these organisations who would love to work in a more diverse workplace but continue to see initiatives fail.” Hodgson adds that although the assumption the Google employee made isn’t a correct one, his logic isn’t too far-fetched. “All of this investment, effort and time to little or no avail – there must be something more biological at play, right?” Gender stereotyping is one of the root causes of bias in the tech sector. With male-
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D&I BY THE NUMBERS
96%
of companies have some form of D&I initiative in place
14%
of executives indicate that D&I investment would make a significant positive impact on their company’s performance
9%
of employers listed ‘retaining female talent’ as a HR priority for 2017
16%
said ‘ensuring equitable pay’ was an HR priority in 2017 female stereotypes deeply ingrained in even the most self-aware person, it doesn’t take much for these attitudes to snowball. Hodgson says small unconscious biases skew early representation at tech companies, which then compounds and results in the poor diversity statistics often seen at later-stage companies. He adds that, in his view, few companies intentionally set out to make their workplaces unappealing to women or families. However,
diversity initiatives are aimed at a subset of individuals, or what he describes as “special programs for special people”. While well intentioned, many of these programs exacerbate existing differences by further segregating the people who are different in an attempt to help them, instead of focusing on breaking down the systemic and artificial barriers to integration that created the problems in the first place.
“We need to evolve from providing sporadic and sometimes perfunctory D&I programs to addressing the entire funnel” Lance Hodgson, Mentorloop women – like all humans – use mental shortcuts and contextual cues to make decisions and are often discouraged from applying or interviewing at certain companies or for certain roles, as they feel the very real pressure of feeling like an outsider or ‘fraud’ in a male-dominated ecosystem. Companies might also head down a path that leads to the opposite desired outcome of D&I: exclusivity. Hodgson says too many
“Cross-departmental meetings are conducted to align teams around common goals and communication, and yet diversity programs are created in a vacuum where communication between participants and non-participants is nil – and there is no common goal,” Hodgson says. “As has been proven time and time again, the way to overcome artificial differences – which these are – is to find commonalities and shared pursuits.”
1 in 3
HR professionals say their D&I strategy is aligned to their company’s business goals Source: Mercer, Global Talent Trends Study 2017
While Hodgson concedes that is easier said than done, he suggests creating programs in which interaction is not just encouraged, but becomes a normal everyday practice. This then creates a truly sustainable, beneficial and diverse culture. “Current programs and initiatives do play a role; they serve as interim and helpful bandages while we work toward a more holistic approach,” he says. “As a sector and as a people, we need to evolve from providing sporadic and sometimes perfunctory D&I programs to addressing the entire funnel systematically – from education all the way through to upper management.” As Hodgson points out, countless studies have confirmed the fact that gender diversity – as well as ethnic diversity – results in better organisational outcomes. “There is a strategic fiscal responsibility, as well as a moral obligation, to solve the bottlenecks that inhibit diversity,” he says.
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UPFRONT
L&D UPDATE NEWS BRIEFS Feel-good hackathon attracts best minds
Some 60 students from four top Singapore universities participated in J.P. Morgan’s one-day Code for Good challenge, a hackathon that aimed to devise innovative solutions to tricky business challenges. Among many innovative ‘hacks’, the winning team was chosen for its business solution for NGO Daughters of Tomorrow – an app that matches working women who have childcare needs with those who can provide these services. The runner-up provided a tech solution for The Food Bank Singapore’s logistical challenge of delivering food donations in a timely and efficient manner.
Human capital development in Asia remains disparate
There remains a wide gap in the human capital development levels among countries in East Asia, according to the 2017 Global Human Capital Report released by the World Economic Forum. Singapore was first in the region and 11th among 130 countries ranked on how they develop human capital in terms of capacity, deployment, development and know-how. Japan (17th) and South Korea (27th) were cited for the notable educational achievements of their older generations, even as they are held back by persistent gender gaps. Lao PDR, Myanmar and Cambodia ranked 84th, 89th and 92nd, respectively.
Employer support and engagement dips
Singaporean employees are not getting the right opportunities to learn and grow – that’s according to the latest Mercer Employee Engagement Index. Twenty per cent of employees say they are not receiving feedback from their immediate managers to improve themselves and one in three feels that personal career
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goals are difficult to meet in their organisation. Mercer’s findings show that employee engagement in Singapore has declined consistently over the past three years. Only 73% of Singaporeans are satisfied with the companies they work for, compared to 82% of their global counterparts in 2016.
Deal inked for education, industry boost
Indonesia and Singapore, celebrating 50 years of diplomatic ties this year, have signed a memorandum of understanding for cooperation in education and vocational training. The deal will increase the technical competence of workers in mechanical engineering, electricity utilisation installation and industrial automation technique. The link-and-match program between Vocational High Schools (SMK) and industry will ensure the provision of competent workers in accordance with current market needs. The MoU covers training for education faculty, vocational training for industry, industrial apprenticeship, curriculum development, tech development and development of qualification standards.
Learning new skills more important than ever, survey finds
Careers and learning have acquired greater importance over the past year, according to Deloitte’s global survey of 10,400 business leaders. Respondents acknowledged that skill sets become obsolete in just a few years, workers must acquire new skills seven or eight times over the course of their careers, and their superiors have a far bigger role in helping them achieve this. Employers should continually invest in the skills of their employees, the survey found, as they tap schemes like professional conversion programs to reskill workers in technical areas, such as aerospace, electronics and infocomm.
DBS BANK INVESTS $20M TO BOLSTER DIGITAL SKILLS DBS aims to create an agile, innovative and intrapreneurial workforce DBS Bank is pouring in S$20m over five years in a program to skill its 10,000 Singaporebased employees in digital banking and emerging technologies. The bank said this will enable it to thrive in the digital economy and adapt to the future of work. The announcement follows Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong’s announcement of a commitment to achieving a “smart nation” during the August NDO rally. The Monetary Authority of Singapore also highlighted its vision of creating a Smart Financial Centre, where technology is used in the financial industry to increase efficiency, create opportunities, manage risks and improve lives. The DBS program has several components: • Artificial intelligence-powered e-learning, which can be accessed 24/7 • Experiential learning, such as intrapreneur programs and hackathons • Grants and scholarships • Innovative learning spaces “An agile and innovative workforce will also make Singapore’s Smart Nation ambition a reality,” said Lee Yan Hong, group head of human resources at DBS Bank. “Along with this, we are making significant investments to groom a generation of digital bankers, strengthening Singapore’s talent pool.” DBS prepared a specially designed curriculum to explain digital disruption and transformation through blended learning solutions – a combination of bite-sized e-learning modules and classroom sessions. The topics: understanding the digital
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business model; adopting agile methodologies; journey thinking; and how to use technology as business enablers. There is also an opportunity to go on paid sabbaticals, to work on prototypes or start businesses. DBS now has accelerator programs to provide mentorship and funding, helping the intrapreneurs act on their business ideas. For innovative learning spaces, DBS has invested in the development of the 40,000sqft DBS Academy and DBS Asia X, its latest innovation hub. Over 10,000 training sessions are conducted at DBS Academy each year. Employees have access to a wide selection of courses, including scenariobased leadership development programs and digital master classes.
“We are making significant investments to groom a generation of digital bankers” DBS Asia X, meanwhile, is a purpose built innovation facility. This is where DBS employees can come together, design and develop iconic customer journeys and work in close collaboration with start-ups and the broader fintech community. “As the financial sector evolves, the profile of jobs will change and we are committed to helping our people adapt and embrace digital transformation through innovative and immersive continuous learning programs,” said Lee.
Q&A
L&D COMES OF AGE Amanda Moody Director BRITISH COUNCIL PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT CENTRE
Fast fact According to the Journal of Applied Psychology, learning in bite-sized pieces makes the transfer of learning from the classroom to the desk 17% more efficient.
What made you decide that the Bitesize Learning and Development Program is needed alongside the others that you offer? Is this an emerging trend in L&D? The Bitesize program was developed as organisations were coming to us and asking for short workshops for a ‘lunch and learn’. It also helps bring together teams that are spread across the region, as they can be easily delivered over webinar. There is definitely an emerging trend of organisations opting for shorter workshops and even microlearning, which can be as short as one minute. These programs will complement, rather than replace, more traditional learning programs, which research still shows provide the best returns in the long run. You offer a course on mindfulness, as well. What is the value of practising mindfulness in the workplace? People who practise mindfulness on a regular basis are on average healthier, happier and more productive. In the workplace, this means there is a clear business case for teaching staff how to practise mindfulness. Beyond this, leaders can be more ‘present’ in the moment and increase staff engagement as a result, which has a direct link to overall company performance. What is the most significant factor in developing courses or modules that focus on managing emotions and reactions in the workplace? We know there is a proven link between high staff engagement scores and leaders with high levels of emotional intelligence. The question is how to improve EQ that creates sustainable change. One factor is to make sure that it is measureable and that progress can be tracked. There are a range of good tools out there that can score EQ and provide a benchmark to work from. Importantly, after the learning is complete, have an action plan followed by coaching and shorter follow-up workshops. What are the L&D measures that you also provide your staff in order to make them up-to-date and attuned to what their clients need? We are guided by the 70-20-10 model of development. This model suggests that the majority of an individual’s L&D – 70% – comes from challenging assignments, or what the British Council calls ‘stretch deliverables’. Examples of these could include leading a project team, taking on line management duties or delivering a new suite of courses. The 20% refers to developmental relationships. Learning through or with others is the single best way to develop professionally – development days, peer observations, idea-sharing sessions, and masterclasses or mini-workshops, where trainers share their expertise with colleagues. Finally, we have more formal training courses and qualifications – the 10% of the 70-20-10 model. Our trainers are accredited in a range of psychometric tools, from TMS to EQ and DiSC.
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UPFRONT
REWARDS/BENEFITS UPDATE
TIME TO OFFER CHILDCARE? Childcare services do not just benefit employees and their children; they are good for business, too
their employees’ childcare needs, they often lack information on what they can do and how they might benefit,” says Nena Stoiljkovic, IFC vice president of blended finance and partnerships. But one US company has been providing on-site childcare – and reaping its benefits – for over 30 years. Patagonia, a sustainable clothing firm, launched its Great Pacific Child Development Centre in 1983. The centre is run by experienced teachers and child development experts who nurture creative, compassionate kids with an ingrained respect for others and for the environment.
“100% of our working mums have returned from maternity leave” With the number of childcare centres in Singapore increasing by 80% to 470 in the last five years, there has been a growing trend among employers to provide this benefit for their staff in order to improve their performance. With more women re-entering the workforce following childbirth, these organisations are providing a valuable benefit for working parents. Last year, The Straits Times reported in 2015 there were 390 childcare centres at workplaces, which include those in commercial or government buildings, or industrial estates. This was a rise of nearly 50% from 2012. Charlene Han of the Early Childhood
NEWS BRIEFS
Development Agency, speaking at a panel discussion on the topic, cited case studies done by the International Finance Corporation (IFC) on large businesses offering childcare support to their employees. The studies showed that such organisations saw a substantial fall in staff turnover rates and absenteeism. They also saw greater productivity and a higher number of women being promoted to leadership positions. Not all employers may be aware of how to go about providing the services, however, even as they might be keen to do so. “While many companies want to support
Firms support new standards for flexi-work
Hundreds of employers across Singapore have signed up to a new standard drafted to encourage flexible working arrangements. The Tripartite Standard on Flexible Work Arrangements was jointly developed by the Ministry of Manpower, National Trades Union Congress and Singapore National Employers Federation to help employees juggle work, learning, family and other responsibilities. Employers that adopt the new standard must inform employees of the available arrangements, how to request them and of any alternatives. 10
“We just wanted a place where a parent could be at full peace of mind that their children were being well taken care of in a progressive way and they were learning and growing both academically and socially,” says VP of HR Dean Carter. “The biggest benefit – and probably the most obvious – is that 100% of our working mums have returned from maternity leave,” he adds. While the program is clearly a huge win for employees, Carter is quick to admit that Patagonia has seen a whole host of impressive business benefits, too. “I can’t find a single instance in our documented history where a mom went on maternity leave and didn’t come back, which is really a staggering statistic.”
‘Significant misalignment’ on CEO pay
Only 11% of Singapore CEOs receive long-term incentives, highlighting a significant misalignment between executive compensation and performance. A survey by HR consultancy Korn Ferry Hay Group revealed that 31% of Singapore firms did not pay their CEOs bonuses in the 2016 fiscal year, and 21% paid them despite incurring losses. This is in contrast to the practice in US firms, where LT incentives represented 66% of CEOs’ pay. Korn Ferry Hay said that executives must balance both the short-term goals and longterm sustainability of the company.
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Q&A
Daniel Sherrington Regional director APAC OC TANNER
Fast fact OC Tanner was founded in 1927 and today has 8,000+ clients in 150 countries, including 23 Fortune 100 companies.
RECOGNITION FROM THE TOP DOWN Does a good employee recognition program vary from company to company, or industry to industry? Having a recognition program in place doesn’t automatically increase motivation and engagement throughout your company. Our experience tells us that successful programs are not driven by the type of company or industry that the organisation is in. These make a recognition program successful: senior leadership buy-in and support; connection to strategic business outcomes and ROI; focus on a culture of engagement and appreciation instead of reward, per se; and the development of a good program as part of a broader culture enablement plan.
In your company, what do you most recognise? OC Tanner’s ‘Our Great Work’ program is our central recognition program. We recognise behaviours we feel, when applied, contribute to a culture of engagement and happiness. They include innovation, client care, operating excellence, celebrate and influence greatness. We look to focus more on the act of appreciation and subsequent recognition without linking it to a monetary value. No one is going to stay with your organisation because they received a voucher; however, if they feel valued as part of a culture of appreciation, they are much more likely to engage.
Finding a healthy balance
Singapore firms are struggling to balance rising healthcare costs with the need to give competitive benefits to their workers. Companies now lean toward wardtype plans for hospitalisation, flexible health packages and non-coverage of chronic or serious illnesses. Greater personalisation of health benefits is viewed as a competitive advantage; employers are still trying to cover medical insurance of their workers’ dependents and provide international coverage for expatriates.
How do you get a sense of the rewards that are most meaningful to your employees? For traditional rewards, vouchers are very popular in nearly all Asian markets. E-vouchers and store vouchers carry a very high redemption rate and can usually be applied to all generations. Non-monetary awards, such as an extra day off, lunch with a senior manager and also wellness rewards are also highly valued rewards across global markets. We know reward has its place, and for people who go over and above the call of duty to produce great work we provide lunches, public recognition, points that can be redeemed for merchandise and vouchers and time off to spend with family.
How do you craft your criteria for recognising employees and who does this – is it a team, or one person, and do the standards change over time? This is extremely important and one that your CEO and leadership team need to be very involved with. It should be driven from the top and clearly communicated. It should be linked to the key behaviours that define your culture and this could be through your company values or the agreed behaviours you have identified that your employees really can relate to. Most organisations have a Vision and Mission set out by their CEO and leadership team, together with the behaviours they feel their people need to live up to in order to achieve that vision as a collective. This is a great place to start.
Flexibility rules, survey finds
ManpowerGroup Solutions found that flexible arrival and departure times are the most popular (26%) benefits for jobseekers, followed by the ability to work from home or any other place (22%). Different factors drive the growing preference for flexibility: presence of multinational companies or unions; influence of technology firms; workforce composition; congestion and public transportation. “While no employer can accommodate every option, they can provide a range that appeals to a variety of candidates,” said Linda Teo, country manager of ManpowerGroup Singapore.
Retention starts with culture
Not all companies can afford staggering bonuses or perks, but all employers can build a great organisational culture to make workers feel their workplace is the best. “The most important things aren’t big bank breakers,” said Ed Frauenheim, director at Great Places to Work Institute. Take tips, he said, from firms that have actually made it to the Great Place to Work lists: know your employees’ needs; enable workers to learn and grow; foster a culture of trust and openness; empower by using real-time feedback – and always say thanks. www.hrdmag.com.sg
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PEOPLE
HEAD TO HEAD
GOT AN OPINION THAT COUNTS? Email hrd_editor@keymedia.com.au
Hitting the books If you were to return to study, what would help you most in your current HR role?
Philippa (Pip) Penfold Senior HR manager Infosys Consulting
Consider topics and areas of study that interest you and sit at the periphery of your current knowledge base. Look at how you can build an aggregation of complementary skills and knowledge, instead of focusing on a single specialist area. Learning something new in a related topic broadens your perspective and enables you to be flexible with both your career choices and your ability to solve different problems. Consider the utility of your agglomeration of skills, knowledge and experience alongside the direction of your profession. The point of intersection, where desire, interest and opportunity meet, is where to focus learning.
Fiona Crawford
General manager, human resources InfoTrack We are entering a new wave of digital value creation where innovators and data scientists are the future leaders. So I’d look to do an MBA that equipped me with skills for an era when digital platforms and data will be at the heart of every economic, administrative and human activity decision we make. I’d look for a university where there is close alliance and connection between the technology, psychology, science and business schools. I think Imperial College is at the forefront of MBA teaching for the digital era, and it would be such a buzz to study in the heart of London.
Renata Janini Dohmen
Senior vice president, human resources SAP Asia Pacific & Japan Today’s workforce is diverse and it’s clear that companies that cultivate learning and inclusive cultures will reap the benefits of higher employee engagement, greater innovation, and better business results. I’d love to study design and digitisation applied to human relations, as it would help me to deepen my understanding of how people relate to each other and of how technology can play an even more impactful role in the arts and science of HR. And I can do so with the support of My Learning Time, an initiative at SAP that enables employees to take time off to pursue job-related learnings for their own professional development.
LIFELONG LEARNING As last year’s SME Directions survey made clear, the onus for upskilling rests on the employee – only one in four business owners are committed to investment in staff training. The survey also found that more than 40% of respondents had plans to seek out other opportunities in the near to mid-term future, lending new urgency to professional development. L&D took the top spot in XpertHR’s annual survey of hundreds of HR professionals released in mid-2017, while a survey from training.com.au isolated the fact that more than four in 10 workers felt their qualifications and skills to be a barrier between them and the career path to which they aspired. This study isolated the fact that more than half of those with plans to return to study or acquire new skills in the next three years stated a preference for a hybrid approach that blended both online and offline modalities; almost three in ten preferred a solely online delivery.
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UPFRONT
OPINION
GENDER INTELLIGENCE Creating the right culture externally requires getting the gender of your culture right internally, writes Bec Brideson
IT’S NOT good enough that our current MO for resolving the gender problem is D&I support groups attended only by the marginalised. There’s a growing frustration surrounding this concept, as preaching to the converted won’t grow the church. My challenge, therefore, to any HR leader is to simply ask yourself two questions. First, is your culture overtly male or female? If you find yourself answering this question instinctually, great. If you find yourself wondering what that means, chances are a gender intelligence audit may be in order. In either case, keep reading. Now ask yourself: does the gender of your internal culture match the gender of your external audience? If the answer is a big fat ‘no’, then Houston, we have a problem. Somewhere in the decades of forward movement on equality, our confusion around gender discrimination muddied the waters. Equality has been equated with sameness, and we have started to neglect the insight that comes from difference. We’re not making a moral judgment, but gaining insights into how to better meet the needs of all of our stakeholders. To understand our confusion, we must first grasp the heritage of business. Men built our business environment, while women traditionally stayed in the home. Thus, business has been set to the default of a male perspective – internally and organisationally, as well as in delivery to external audiences. Over the last century, society has made great strides: women are out of the home, working their two shifts – in the workplace
and domestically. As a result, women have grown both their economic might and financial influence. Course-correction is needed – not one that disparages or destroys what men have proudly built, but one that includes the contributions, attributes and innovations that women bring to bear: the female lens. Thanks to society’s fostering of better diversity and inclusion, alongside the rise of the new global female economy, for business it is a golden opportunity waiting to be realised and leveraged.
intelligence is the ability to acknowledge that gender differences are powerful. This vision is smart, not discriminatory, and looking through both lenses leads to market growth and unseen opportunities. Being genderinsensitive, however, breeds a culture where an overt gender presides and shuts down the capabilities of the other. Two recent highprofile examples illuminate this causation. Google has been on a dedicated path to bias enlightenment, through the implementation of worldwide D&I training since 2013. The swift handling over erroneous prejudices on female talent has signalled a devotion to creating a gender-equal environment and was supported top-down. While the culture and employees continue to be divided, Google is proving itself to be a brand that is committed to being better. Uber, on the other hand, was the exemplar of a fish rotting from its head – employees were given a message that sexism and harassment would be overlooked in the case of high performers. The recent instalment of a female leadership group brings a new hope. Uber serves as a cautionary tale on the
“True gender intelligence is the ability to acknowledge that gender differences are powerful. This vision is smart, not discriminatory” HR leaders, without question, have a big part to play in leading this charge. Having everyone in your business understand the powerful female economy is more important than ever. EY reports that by 2028, women will be responsible for 75% of household discretionary spending. It is essential to get gender intelligence right. If there are not enough female-lensed people in your business, then you risk missing valuable opportunities for growth. Female-lensed vision shouldn’t be confused with hiring more female staff, or even invoking feminist ideology. The female lens is a second scope for us to see through to improve our stereoscopic vision of the world. True gender
hazards of not creating the right culture internally. Doing so means you will have the culture right externally – not just with women, but with other ignored segments, too. HR is responsible for ensuring the inside of your business matches the values, expectations and behaviours of those it hopes to attract – most likely, a powerful audience holding immeasurable discretionary power. And when it does, the business will be sure to thrive.
Bec Brideson is a pioneer and innovator in marketing to women, and author of Blind Spots: How to Uncover and Attract the Fastest Emerging Economy.
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PEOPLE
HR LEADER
MIXING SCIENCE WITH ART HRD chats to an HR leader about breaking stereotypes and the unique challenges facing HR in a rapidly growing global tech company
“WHAT I like about HR is that it’s art and science,” says Rachel Chung, HR director Asia Pacific at Unit4. “It’s neither art nor science but it’s a good blend of both. You can’t just rely on all the facts and figures because you’re dealing with people. People are the unknown element – so it’s almost a science but not quite.” It’s that philosophy that has guided Chung’s career for the past 30 years. Since starting at Unit4, she’s had plenty of opportunities to get that balance between art and science right. Initially, her role was typical of that at most rapidly growing companies; it started with culture, change management and people strategy as she worked to implement solid foundations. Chung is gradually moving on to providing more innovative HR initiatives for employees, including a fresh approach to employee empowerment and a unique approach to L&D. While Chung concedes that every HR professional must have a “flair” for people and people management, she says she’s “not your typical HR person”. For one thing, she has more hobbies than most people, including Argentine tango dancing, haiku writing, photography and painting, not to mention running, Zumba and mountain bike riding – and she loves fast cars. She tells HRD she likes to break the stereotypical view many have of HR. “I like to think outside the
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box,” she says. “The traditional response from HR when a new idea was presented was, ‘No, you can’t do that.’ It was a bit rigid. I value and respect every individual’s views and experiences. I encourage people to think out of the box. There’s usually something we can do better than what we’ve always done. We will never know if we do not give our ideas and suggestions a chance.” She shares her story with HRD.
the start of HR being involved in playing a key strategic role in M&A activities. Before that, HR was seen only as a support function and was rarely involved in those large-scale changes. Subsequent to that, I worked on the necessary culture and change management and transformation projects at various merged and acquired companies.
HRD: Can you share some background about your career – key roles, for example?
RC: The role is focused on strategic leadership in APAC and also, being a smaller organisation in this region, tactical support. A major focus is on business integration, transformation, culture change management
Rachel Chung: I started as an HR generalist, covering all aspects of HR. After
HRD: Can you outline your role at Unit4?
“Times have changed; today it’s about creating a compelling employee experience with greater user experience and greater personalisation” this I wanted to make sure I dived deep into the various HR functions, so I moved into different dedicated HR functions – for instance, training and development, compensation, industrial relations. Then I moved into a generalist regional role where I gained exposure to M&As. That was just
and people engagement. I need to also consider the most effective way to implement global initiatives in this region, and to instil into our employees our values and culture. We have approximately 140 people in the region across Singapore, Malaysia, Indonesia and Australia. It’s not so much about the size
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PROFILE
of the workforce; it’s the complexities and the work that needs to be done in the region. It’s not just setting up the fundamentals [of HR] but also growing and making sure we are prepared for the future. Before I joined the company, there was just an HR administrator. It became apparent that there was a business need for HR in this region, so my role has since been ensuring our people strategy and people practices keep pace with our growth and plans for the future.
HRD: Tech companies are perceived as being great places to work. Would you agree with that perception? RC: A couple of large tech companies have done a great job with their branding being great places to work. This has definitely
created a market benchmark, particularly during these times where we are facing a tight talent pool. Regardless of whether this is just a perception or not, this is a wake-up call for me as an HR practitioner. Times have changed; today it’s about creating a compelling employee experience with greater user experience and greater personalisation – that is, an experience at work that is comparable to that at home. When done right, it will result in a great, seamless work-life experience that will effectively engage employees and boost their productivity and performance. In Unit4, we give our employees a level of personalisation relating to flexibility that they both expect and resonate with. We have flexi work hours and work from home policies, whereby if employees really need
Name: Rachel Chung Company: Unit4 Asia Pacific Title: HR director, Asia Pacific HR experience: 30 years Qualifications: Bachelor of Commerce (BCom), Human Resources Management, Curtin University Previous roles: »»Director, HR, Abacus International »»HR consultant (employment framework and compensation and benefits), Rolls-Royce »»HR Leader (Northeast Southeast Asia) – all businesses, and HR director (Northeast Southeast Asia), distribution business, Cummins Inc »»Regional HR manager, Kohler Power Systems Asia-Pacific »»Personnel executive, Singapore Turf Club »»HR and training executive, Fuji Xerox Singapore »»Personnel officer, Asian Electronics Technology
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PEOPLE
HR LEADER
to they can make these arrangements with their managers. Coming January, we will be implementing an employee benefits program, where they are fully empowered to pick and choose a benefits package they want according to their needs. All benefits claims will be based on e-claims submissions.
HRD: Are there any other innovative people-related initiatives happening at Unit4? RC: We’ve set up a People Pillar consisting of various volunteers from different departments. They constantly come up with many activities targeting employee engagement, with a focus
Unit4 produces various products, one of which is our HR platform Prosoft, which has won several accolades. So our people are very savvy about HR matters; they know the legislation and market practices. HR can’t bluff its way through. We prefer to leverage the team where possible by offering this level of empowerment; others may say this approach is too transparent. However, our employees propose what they believe is fair. They’ve also realised they don’t have it too badly. I see this as a great example of the partnership we have with our employees, which brings about transparency and greater trust, coupled with empowerment, accountability and ownership.
“Not many companies will take the risk to invest in employees this way. They will ask questions such as, ‘Is this person ready?’ ” on employees’ wellness revolving around mental and physical well-being and healthy living. For example, we introduced office stretch exercises at desks for those who do not like or do not have time to exercise. We also introduced a healthy cooking workshop, where employees learn from great chefs how to cook healthy dishes during lunch hours; this has been the most popular initiative among our employees. We also do monthly beer and board game chillax evenings. We are also big fans of giving back to the community via CSR initiatives, and we organise at least three activities a year. The People Pillar also plays a supporting role in other people-related initiatives. For instance, these employees are instrumental in our annual leave entitlement benefits review across APAC. We shared the market data with them and they came back after several reviews with their proposal, which was adopted for implementation early this year.
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In addition to the above, we will also be focusing on employee development over the coming year. We’ll fast-track any employee who has the potential to grow – so we’ll place them in a new role and help to make them successful. For example, they may not be individuals who have managed teams before, but if this is what they aspire to be we’ll give them the opportunity and fasttrack their development. It’s an approach that involves some risk, but we believe this is one way to inspire them and help them grow with Unit4. Not many companies will take the risk to invest in employees this way. They will ask questions such as, ‘Is this person ready?’ Traditionally, HR would say, ‘Let’s take some time here.’ I feel ‘new HR’ should be more forward-looking in its people strategies and just go for it with the right individual. Millennials don’t have time for you – if they don’t see potential they will move on.
NEW ERA, NEW SKILLS In an age of digital disruption, is the composition of HR teams changing? Do HR teams need data analysts, for example? Rachel Chung responds: “HR uses lots of data, metrics, parameters and dimensions for HR reporting and HR effectiveness. I see that people management needs to become even more strategic and evidence-based to accommodate a more flexible and diverse workforce in the near future. To gain meaningful insights into the workforce, we need to move from tracking to business impact analysis. It would be good to have a dedicated HR analyst within the HR team, or as a shared resource. “We could possibly include someone without an HR background who would likely see a different picture based on facts as they are, without diluting it with other observations or experience. However, in today’s economy, where greater productivity is expected across the entire workforce, HR may need to leverage shared resources or technology instead. We need to always consider the business and how HR can add the most value. Personally, I would like to build my own big data skill set.” HRD: What are the future HR challenges for Unit4? RC: Just like any tech company, the turnover of employees can be quick and cyclical. While a few may move to another company for just a little more money, others move for a more exciting application/solution to work on. This employee movement challenges our employee development plans. We have since stepped up our employees’ development programs with an aim to cross-train every individual so that they can be an expert in any applications/solutions they have within their product practice. We choose to invest in our employees by offering growth opportunities and fasttracking career development possibilities so that all employees can have a fulfilling job and career experience with us.
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FEATURES
SPECIAL REPORT: HR REPORT
2017
ASIA-PACIFIC HR REPORT HRD’s third annual Asia-Pacific HR Report reveals it’s a challenging yet immensely exciting time to be part of the HR profession. Over 3,000 HR professionals have had their say, providing a snapshot of a profession that is being disrupted while simultaneously coming into its own
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HR PROFESSIONALS love to network. It’s enlightening to find out what your peers are doing, and it’s heartening to find out that they face many of the same hurdles. Along similar lines, and in an effort to take the pulse of the key challenges and opportunities confronting the profession, HRD has – for the third year running – gone to its readers for their views. We received feedback from 3,024 respondents in 11 countries, including Singapore, Hong Kong, Malaysia, Australia and New Zealand. Among the positives is the fact that HR is embracing data and analytics, with many recognising this as a key challenge but also an opportunity. The profession is also overwhelmingly optimistic about the future. On the negative side, HR is struggling with almost unrelenting change. That
change and disruption is impacting business operations and how employees undertake work, but also how HR delivers its services to business. An ongoing issue – not dissimilar to last year’s result – is the mixed view on the support HR gets from other executives. Some are satisfied with the support received; others are left floundering with either a lack of support or purposeful barriers to HR success. Some readers believe it’s time to reimagine the profession as a whole – and in so doing reposition it in the business hierarchy. This reader summed up this view: “HR – the term itself, and its history and present persona of rule maker, police and judge (and at times executioner). We should concentrate on creating a new perception of what the role does in driving and enabling business success.” Read on for more insights and suggestions from your peers.
WHERE DO RESPONDENTS WORK?
SURVEY PARTICIPANTS 62% of participants were HR veterans with 10+ years of experience. GENDER HOW LONG HAVE YOU WORKED IN HR?
25%
62%
male
74%
female
Prefer not to say 1%
JOB TITLE
17%
19%
2% Less than 1 year
1–5 years
6–10 years
10+ years
“Some readers believe it’s time to reimagine the profession as a whole – and in so doing reposition it in the business hierarchy”
CHRO
18%
HR director/VP/manager
30%
HR adviser/business partner
33%
Other
20%
The bulk of respondents came from mid- to large-size companies; 14% hailed from the government and not-for-profit sector, 11% from manufacturing, 11% from professional services, 8% from healthcare, and 6% each from construction and education and training. COMPANY SIZE 1–99 employees (20%) 100–499 employees (34%) 500–999 employees (14%) 1,000+ employees (32%)
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FEATURES
SPECIAL REPORT: HR REPORT
2017 CHALLENGES JUDGING BY the number one challenge Change and disruption were recurring themes in this year’s survey, with respondents voting change management as their number one challenge, followed by employee engagement and retention
WHAT ARE THE BIGGEST CHALLENGES FACING THE HR PROFESSION? Respondents were asked to score a list of challenges in terms of importance. Here are the overall results, from 1 (least important challenge) to 5 (most important challenge)
Least important
Most important
Average score 3.98
Managing change
3.96
Employee engagement and retention
3.87
Using data and analytics more effectively
3.78
Demonstrating value as a business partner
3.59
Employee development
3.48
Employee recruitment
3.32
Adapting to new technology
3.06
Dealing with legal changes
3.02
Other (please explain)*
*‘Other’ included managing health and safety, industrial relations, leadership development, and managing diversity and inclusion (including managing millennials)
listed here, HR is feeling the heat when it comes to often relentless change. Feedback from surveyed participants indicates that this heat is being felt from two directions – not only must HR be changing and updating its own processes and ways of working, but it must also ensure the workforce as a whole is moving with the times. This reader summarised the feeling of many: “We’re struggling to sustain a good employee experience in the wake of multiple business strategy and structure changes. The HR team itself also needs to stay agile enough to adjust to a rapidly changing environment.” Another wrote about “the general pace and scale of change” being unprecedented. In addition, HR must deal with internal pressures forcing change – new corporate structures, M&As, downsizing, budget restrictions – but also external pressures, such as legal and government compliance and political and economic uncertainty. While global economic upheavals were cited by many respondents last year as being a source of both uncertainty and possible internal change, this year a recurring theme was ongoing geopolitical unrest. Compliance remains high on the agenda, as this HR director from Sydney wrote: “We’re coping with changes in immigration
HOW IMPORTANT DO YOU THINK THE FOLLOWING TRAITS ARE IN AN HR LEADER?
1 Integrity
2 Emotional intelligence
3 Other*
4 Resilience
5 Business acumen
6 Flexibility
7 Persuasiveness
8 Intelligence
9 Assertiveness
*Other responses included compassion, dealing with ambiguity, empathy and innovation
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Rising to the challenge For the third year running, HR professionals listed integrity as being the most important trait to help them succeed amid these challenges, followed this year by emotional intelligence and resilience – no doubt to cope with unrelenting change. Business acumen was deemed critical in order for HR to build competence and thus
bolster its standing in the business. One respondent suggested “the ability to think strategically rather than in a transactional manner” was a key component of improving business acumen. However, more often than not it was still the softer traits – compassion, curiosity, humility – that were cited most often. The human in human resources clearly remains firmly in place.
WHERE IS HR SPENDING ITS TIME? Respondents were asked how much they were personally involved in a number of areas. Each area was rated from 1 to 5 (1 being rarely involved and 5 being highly involved). Heavily involved
Average score
Rarely involved
laws and the future impact of new pay equity legislation. It can be difficult to stay on top of the changes, which often occur with little to no notice.” Many, however, suggested that HR’s place was firmly at the heart of driving change in organisations, something that doesn’t always happen. One HR business partner from Singapore suggested that organisations “must involve HR during the planning phase of any change – as opposed to when things go wrong”. The second biggest challenge cited – employee engagement and retention – is a perennial on this list. However, number three – using data and analytics more effectively – is a newcomer. Not surprisingly, some are grappling with how and when to use data insights. Others are feeling somewhat swamped by the data available to them. This HR business partner from Auckland wrote: “It’s not about using data and analytics, but about getting the right and most meaningful data.” Some are clearly more advanced in their knowledge and utilisation of data, with an increasing number not stopping with just HR data but cross-referencing and cross-checking with data from other departments. This HR director from the insurance sector in Hong Kong wrote: “As improved insights become available, there is an increasing crossover between business data (eg KPIs, financials, sales data, loyalty, etc) and traditional HR data (payroll, labour costs, employee demographics, etc). This means broadening the commercial skillset and understanding required from HR professionals in order to leverage this intersection.” Still others are no longer looking at data just to spot what’s already gone but are looking at future trends. “We’re looking at our data to spot trends and are finding that predictive analysis is required more frequently if HR is to make more informed decisions,” wrote one HR manager from Singapore.
4.20
Staff development and training
4.16
Recruiting the best talent
3.75
Identifying risks, regulating and ensuring compliance
3.68
Reducing costs
3.62
Enhancing employee productivity
2.41
Expanding to new markets
2.25
Helping the sales and marketing departments to acquire, serve or retain clients
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FEATURES
SPECIAL REPORT: HR REPORT
SKILLS, KNOWLEDGE AND PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT Communication and influencing skills, followed by leadership capability, are viewed as the top skills required by HR – but skills in big data and analytics and technology are less sought after HR PROFESSIONALS were asked which skills and knowledge were likely to help them the most over the next 12 months. Communication skills came out on top, with one reader citing “managing up and influencing” as being particularly critical. Others cited technical skills and competencies as being important. One
HR manager from Singapore wrote: “Understanding the inter-relationship and implications of the various legal, financial and compliance functions – eg cross-country movement of employees, tax and immigration visa implications – is increasingly critical.” Another wrote: “Diligence in keeping up to date with changes in legislation, and new research in areas affecting HR.” Of note this year were the increased calls for greater industry-wide regulation or certifications – something the Australian Human Resources Institute is looking to address. One reader commented: “HR needs to be more regulated like other professions to weed out people who call themselves ‘HR professional’ but do not have the experience or skills to be one.”
Surprisingly, despite identifying the use of data and analytics as a key challenge, HR professions placed this low on their list of desired skills to learn. Also lagging was technology, which placed seventh. Yet in 2017 it’s difficult to avoid technology, and its influence is definitely being felt in HR. One HR director in Sydney wrote: “Being tech savvy – HR needs to understand how to use technology to drive productivity, enhance the employee/ customer experience and leverage integration with other business platforms, eg social media, CRM, financial systems, etc.” How are HR professionals developing these skills? Formal courses, seminars and conferences remain the most popular L&D option by some margin, cited by 77% of
WHAT SKILLS AND KNOWLEDGE DO YOU THINK WILL BE MOST CRITICAL TO YOUR PERSONAL SUCCESS OVER THE NEXT YEAR? Respondents were asked to rank a list of 10 skills/competencies in terms of importance. Here are the overall results, from 1 (most important) to 10 (least important)
1 Communication and influencing skills
2 Leadership capability
3 Relationship building and networking
4 Emotional intelligence
5 Business acumen
6 Coaching and mentoring skills
7 Technology
8 Big data and analytics
9 Employment law
10 Financial management
*Other responses received included cultural intelligence, time management and project management
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respondents. On-the-job and other informal learning options are second, with 51% of votes, and coaching/mentoring third, with 44%. It’s also apparent that HR professionals learn on the job in international roles. A significant 41% of surveyed professionals have worked in an overseas role – and the most commonly cited destination from all participants in Asia-Pacific was the UK. Far from being career HR professionals with limited exposure to other departments, many of those surveyed had spent time in other functional areas apart from HR. Marketing was the most commonly cited area, followed by operations and then sales.
Next-gen learning HRD’s readers were also asked what programs or initiatives were in place to develop the next generation of HR professionals. While a disconcerting number of readers specified nothing, the most popular option was coaching/mentoring programs and exposure to projects/initiatives and job shadowing – in other words, on-the-job learning trumped everything else. One reader commented: “Working in our industry is like drinking from a fire hose – it’s a constant fast pace! I find this environment creates the best opportunities for on-the-job learning, followed by reflection and coaching.” Others have very sophisticated formal and informal L&D initiatives in place for the HR team. One business partner commented: “Our company has an HR leadership development program, that I am part of. At a high level, the program recruits masters students into a 2–3 year rotational program where they move jobs every 8–12 months depending on business needs. This accelerator program sets out to build a very extensive breadth of knowledge in the various aspects of HR, while also giving exposure to various parts of our
WHAT PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT ARE YOU UNDERTAKING? Attending seminars or conferences
77%
Coaching or mentoring
44%
E-learning courses
36%
MBA or master’s degree
8%
On-the-job/informal learning (job rotations, special projects, etc)
51%
Short courses
36%
HAVE YOU EVER WORKED IN AN OVERSEAS ROLE?
Yes 41% No 59%
organisation both domestically and worldwide.” Another wrote: “My HR team has 45 employees located in Sydney, Manila, Shanghai and Bangalore. Each member of the team has a real development plan. These are individual and built to suit each member of the team. There is no generic program. Some of the team are completing masters, others are doing specific external programs. Some just need on-the-job experience.” Of particular interest was the increased mention of the integration of neuroscience as part of L&D. “We’re looking at neuroscience/
HAVE YOU WORKED IN OTHER FUNCTIONAL AREAS APART FROM HR?
Yes 60% No 40%
psychology related programs to tap into human development as machines/technology take over,” wrote one HR business partner. For others, it’s a give-and-take relationship, so not only do the participants benefit but so too does the broader HR team: “My team attends a broad range of external courses according to their interests and development goals, eg in ER/IR and coaching, etc. They are then responsible for delivering related training internally, and/or knowledge sharing with their HR colleagues back at work, so we all benefit from each learning experience.”
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FEATURES
SPECIAL REPORT: HR REPORT
HR SUPPORT Overall, HR professionals are happy with the support they receive from their CEOs and executive teams – but this could always be improved
DO YOU FEEL THAT SENIOR MANAGEMENT SUPPORTS YOU IN YOUR HR INITIATIVES?
Yes, senior management is always supportive 24% Yes, most of the time but there is room for improvement 63% No, senior management is not supportive 13%
ALTHOUGH THE positive sentiment has inched up from 2016, there’s room for improvement when it comes to HR feeling supported by their senior executive peers, with 63% feeling supported only most of the time and 13% feeling they are not supported at all. Of the latter, this comment summed up the sentiment: “Senior management has the wrong thoughts of what the HRBP does. To them the role = Discipline Action Taker.” Another wrote: “Constantly fighting to get the budget for staff development. My foreignowned company wants to bring people from overseas rather than develop local talent. They’re not wanting to spend money on our
people to look after them (from an OHS perspective) either.” Some appear to be stuck in a bygone era, such is the backwards way in which HR is viewed. This business partner noted: “Unfortunately, I work in an organisation where senior management does not understand the benefit of strategically aligning HR policies and practices to business requirements, to strategic planning, to achieving the vision and the impact the policies and practices have on the organisation’s culture.” In contrast, among those who feel supported 100% of the time, this comment is telling: “The HR team is seen as an integral part of the team, given options to be initiative and self-driven while remaining involved and informed on the business’ strategic objective.”
CEO SUPPORT: WHAT’S DESIRED VS WHAT’S DELIVERED Not surprisingly, HR professionals would like their CEO to devote more time to HR-related matters, with a significant 66% suggesting that 11–50% of the CEO’s time should be spent in this area (in reality it’s more like 47% spending that amount of time on HR matters). Indeed, in reality, 46% of CEOs spend less than 10% of their time on HR-related matters, but given the scope of CEO responsibilities this is perhaps understandable. Readers highlighted just how critical CEO support is to the success of people-related issues. One HR director from Singapore stated: “Our Asia-Pacific CEO is the #1 supporter of HR initiatives. The support of our CEO is critical in making HR change.” Another wrote: “My CEO is a breath of fresh air in people development for internal succession, client focus and people’s career progression.” And this: “People issues are the first items on every executive meeting agenda and my CEO and the GMs all sit on the talent panel and actively support HR initiatives.”
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WHAT’S DESIRED: How much time do you think the CEO of an organisation should spend on HR-related issues?
WHAT’S DELIVERED: In your organisation, how much time does your CEO actually spend on HR-related issues?
Less than 10% of time
More than 50% of time
More than 50% of time
7%
16%
19%
46% 47% 66% 11–50% of time
11–50% of time
Less than 10% of time
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HR SERVICE DELIVERY HR departments are notorious for restructuring – and there’s no sign of that easing in the next 12 months “WE’RE SUFFERING from change fatigue in the HR team. We’ve undergone a constant process of restructuring the team seemingly for the past three years running, and now we’re almost back to the structure we started with – the Ulrich model!” Those were the exasperated words of one HR director, but they are not alone, with approximately five in 10 respondents saying their team had undergone a change in the past 12–24 months. What are these teams restructuring to? Very few cited consultative or agile team models. The majority (64%) had already shifted to what would be classified as the traditional Ulrich model, which is characterised by HR business partners, specialists and centres of excellence. Last year’s HRD survey indicated that 55% of HR teams were structured in this way, indicating that this structure continues to be the most popular. Most respondents cited the efficiency and flat hierarchy provided by the Ulrich model as being pluses. However, some readers voiced concerns about this model. One HR leader from Brisbane wrote: “HR moved to a business partner model outside of consultation with business units. It is not being reviewed for continual improvement, it is not working and some HR staff feel they cannot bring this matter to be rectified because it was a leadership direction. It was a costly restructure program.” Others were more positive. This HR business partner in the manufacturing industry said: “We changed from a silo model (one silo per function) to a partner
and centre of excellence model. It’s working fine so far, despite some confusion from staff over who does what.” Other teams are having structure changes forced upon them, as two readers noted. One commented: “The entire organisation has undergone a restructure as a result of a merger. The HR team structure is regularly
reviewed and roles adapted as necessary to ensure the team is relevant to the business, is clearly adding value and is also growing and developing.” And another said: “We’re seeing a movement of resources away from transactional roles towards centres of expertise as we implement integrated HR technology.”
HAS YOUR HR TEAM UNDERGONE A RESTRUCTURE IN THE PAST 12–24 MONTHS?
Yes 48% No 52%
IS YOUR TEAM STRUCTURED USING THE TRADITIONAL ULRICH MODEL?
Yes 64% No 36%
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FEATURES
SPECIAL REPORT: HR REPORT
THE FUTURE HR professionals are overwhelmingly positive about the future, but they do have several critical priorities to work on over the next 12 months
DESPITE THE challenges and ongoing disruption, the vast majority of respondents are optimistic about the future of the profession. These four reader comments sum up the sentiment:
IN GENERAL, ARE YOU OPTIMISTIC OR PESSIMISTIC ABOUT THE FUTURE OF HR AS A PROFESSION?
“With AI and machine learning making such a huge impact in our workplace and in the business world in general, the HR profession will be faced with different kinds of challenges and disruption. This will make the profession more challenging and interesting.” “The HR hat is becoming more and more diversified, there are many avenues an HR professional can move into, or stay generalist if they like. No day is ever the same and most leaders recognise the value of the role.” “I believe a shift is occurring, albeit more slowly in some organisations than others. As long as HR gets a seat at the executive table – and makes a strong contribution once there, I believe the future is bright.”
Optimistic 92% Pessimistic 8%
”There is still so much that HR professionals can offer an organisation and the skills/abilities are there but many organisations have not tapped into these yet.”
AND THE WINNER IS… For a chance to win a bottle of Dom Pérignon champagne, respondents were asked what knowledge, trait or skill they believed would be most crucial to help HR professionals navigate today’s massive disruptions in the workplace. And the winner is… “Tenacity, bravery and inspiration. Steering a boat through unknown waters requires keeping the course, being brave in the face of the unknown and inspiring others to see that we are on the way. I think HR is THE core discipline that companies and countries need today to truly become or remain sustainable economies.” As the survey is anonymous, we are unable to publish the name of the respondent; however, the HRD team would like to thank all of our survey participants for their comments. Following is a small sample of what readers had to say on the critical skills, traits and knowledge of the future.
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AMBIGUITY WILL BE THE NEW NORM... “Tolerance of ambiguity: as the pace of change accelerates, HR professionals will be required to manage uncertainties around new ways of working, changing organisational and individual priorities, rapidly developing technologies and the shifting social landscape. A set rule book no longer applies, only those who have the capacity to adapt and effectively respond to the unknown will flourish.”
DESIGN THINKING WILL TAKE CENTRE STAGE… “HR professionals will need to add design thinking to their skill set. This includes empathising with the people within the organisation and understanding what is truly important to them. Rather than bringing best practice to the table, HR should start with a beginner’s mindset to approach challenges with fresh eyes and be open to all possibilities. HR need to deeply engage with stakeholders (internal and external) to develop prototype solutions that are tested and iterated with end users until they are ready to be launched in the organisation. Through this process, HR will continue to adapt to and even drive disruption.”
HR ANALYTICS WILL MEAN BETTER DECISION-MAKING… “HR professionals need to be able to articulate quality analytics and measurable data in order to change behaviour. There is no use just measuring turnover, for example, without a strategy around how to effect change.” “Having access to HR analytics and being able to communicate this data in a meaningful way to leaders. This data can demonstrate areas of the business that are doing well or could be improved and then being able to assist leaders to put strategies to address these issues.”
NOTHING WILL TOP BUSINESS ACUMEN… “HR professionals need to not just have commercial acumen but to be immersed in the business, including operations, client feedback, financial results, marketing initiatives, business development and innovation in order to know where the business is focusing and how the HR team can support them. For example, if the company is looking at robotics as a new innovation, how can the HR team start ensuring that there are people in the business with the specialist skills to be programmers/handlers?” “Commercial acumen is crucial as are strong relationships and communication skills. Being able to negotiate confidently and always try to operation from a business enablement perspective to ensure HR as a function are a key part of growth and scale opportunities.” “Understand your business, primarily focusing 12–18 months ahead, so that you can thoroughly project implications for the workforce and can proactively develop current talent or build an external pipeline so that you can drive the change rather than react.”
EMOTIONAL INTELLIGENCE WILL SET HR APART… “Emotional intelligence is key to understanding people and the way that they behave in the workplace. This skill will improve the way you act and communicate with internal and external stakeholders and is something that cannot be taught on the job. More training in this area for HR professionals will have a huge impact on performance, retention and job satisfaction long term.” “I believe having emotional intelligence and personal resilience is the key skill for HR professionals navigating disruptions. HR professionals can sometimes get the blame for disruptions, and also be the key personnel responsible for fixing issues. This can be incredibly draining, and it can be very difficult for HR personnel to be resilient in these circumstances.”
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FEATURES
SPECIAL REPORT
The HR profession is in safe hands – find out who is shaping the future of the industry in HRD’s annual Rising Stars list HRD ’S first Rising Stars list in 2016 was met with such a positive response from the HR industry that a follow-up was inevitable – and this year the response has been just as enthusiastic. HRD received over 50 nominees. Those selected hail from a wide range of industries, from rapidly growing tech start-ups to multinational giants, and each has worked on impressive projects and can demonstrate quantitative and qualitative results from initiatives they have played a key role in creating and driving. From revamping graduate recruitment programs to assisting in M&As and launching innovative L&D initiatives, the people profiled on the following pages have already added to the standing of HR as a profession, despite each having under 10 years’ experience in the field. Research suggests many younger workers have no desire to work in management or leadership roles – however, those on this list have the ambition, knowledge and skills to excel either as individual contributors or future leaders. It’s up to the HR leaders of today to recognise their talent and provide suitable roadmaps to the future. Read on to see who made the grade this year.
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RISING STARS INDEX NAME
COMPANY
PAGE
Au, Geenia
Aecom
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Cai, Nigel
Royal Bank of Scotland
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Chen, Yoke
Dow Chemical Pacific
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Cooper, Ivana
Insight
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He, Echo
Damco China
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Kokkinos, Tammy
Pentana Solutions
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Lai, Marcos
Wharf Hotels Management
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Low, Evelyn
Zimmer
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Renwick, Shaun
Procter & Gamble
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Retnaningtyas, Arika
Damco Indonesia
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Rosendorff, Sonya
Mastercard
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Tan, Jacqueline
Mandarin Oriental Singapore
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Wong, Erin
Hewlett Packard Enterprise
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GEENIA AU
NIGEL CAI
Senior talent acquisition specialist, graduate recruitment, Greater China
HR operations manager, capital resolution APAC
AECOM
Royal Bank of Scotland
Despite having been with engineering giant AECOM for only 10 months, Geenia Au has already achieved many critical milestones in terms of enhancing the company’s recruitment strategy. She is largely responsible for the campus recruitment strategy for Greater China, having introduced a new recruitment framework to the PRC regional leaders, and is now working on the plan proper. She also revamped the use of WeChat for recruitment, ensuring its alignment with the PRC branding and communication team. Au was also responsible for revamping the interview scheduling process for the HK campus program. The process was brought completely online, which resulted in 400 interviews scheduled within one month without resorting to the traditional phone-call route, and less than 8% of candidates requiring follow-ups. In February 2017, over 200 candidates were surveyed about the recruitment process, and the campus team got an average score of nine out of 10 in terms of professionalism, efficiency and consideration with regard to managing candidate expectations.
Nigel Cai joined RBS in 2013 just after graduating. One of his notable accomplishments was with the HR projects team, which handled the company’s restructuring plans. As part of the support process, Cai redesigned and improved the offboarding process to enhance efficiency and reduce operational risks. He led a cross-functional working group with three other senior business representatives from finance, corporate services and IT departments, to monitor and manage risks related to staff exits across APAC. The success of the project was highlighted during a global call for all HR colleagues across the bank. As the country representative for the global HR simplification program, Cai led a team to deliver annual savings of S$33,000 and 1,320 man hours through various local HR process improvements. Given his performance and track record, he managed to secure a six-month secondment to the HR business partner team as an HR consultant and was later promoted to assistant manager.
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FEATURES
SPECIAL REPORT YOKE CHEN HR manager Dow Chemical Pacific
In the past 18 months, Yoke Chen has taken on two key roles – as HR manager for Singapore operations and business partner for the Asia-Pacific supply chain, and has demonstrated impressive ownership of both roles. Under Chen’s leadership, the Dow Singapore HR team has achieved greater levels of collaboration and creativity. He leads many of the engagement activities that have been developed by HR, and these have all led to significant improvement in the engagement scores for Dow Singapore. As business partner for the Asia-Pacific supply chain, Chen engages the supply chain leaders to better understand their strategies while ensuring priority and alignment of internal talent development. He has also actively reviewed the organisational structure and has made proposals to cover the needs and gaps in the business as it evolves and grows. Chen has demonstrated extensive knowledge in HR, particularly in reward, talent management and technological know-how, which has made him an invaluable resource for the Asia-Pacific team.
ECHO HE Area HR business partner Damco China
IVANA COOPER HR business partner, APAC Insight
As HR business partner for tech innovation company Insight’s APAC operations – which consists of 350 team members across Australia, New Zealand, Hong Kong, Singapore and China – Ivana Cooper’s most notable accomplishment of late has been facilitating the integration of 100 team members into the company. In September 2016, Insight acquired a Perth-based company, which then required transitioning of 100 employees and careful merging of the two companies’ policies, practices and HRIS platforms. The complex project had to be completed within 12 weeks, as the acquisition timetable required all employees to be onboarded by 1 January 2017. Cooper made this possible by efficiently producing acquisition documents, including letters of offer for all teammates, terms and conditions documents, a full orientation guide and a policy manual. In addition, she continued with her existing responsibilities, which include managing the APAC reward and recognition program and launching SuccessFactors HRIS across the region.
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In the past two years, Echo He has experienced successes in terms of career progression. She is currently on track to transition from being mainly an administrative coordinator of a local functional integrated training program to becoming a key driver of a broader local initiative that involves training needs analysis, curriculum design, execution and follow-on assessment. As area business partner, He expends great effort in optimising the program in accordance with the overall strategy, and is always fine-tuning various aspects of the program in order to accommodate the interests of the younger generation of workers in terms of learning methods, such as e-learning, use of mobile apps and self-learning groups, etc. Thus far, nearly 500 participants from various functions have participated in this program across two phases, and this initiative has proven to be effective in developing and stretching the talent pool for Danco China.
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JACQUELINE TAN HR executive Mandarin Oriental Singapore
Jacqueline Tan joined Mandarin Oriental, Singapore (MOSIN) in 2013 as hotel operations executive, and it was in this role that her people skills were recognised by guests and colleagues alike. Determined to advance her talent in this area, Tan then left to pursue business management, majoring
in HR management, for two years. Following this milestone, she rejoined MOSIN as an HR executive and was assigned to handle employee relations, welfare, and the company’s sustainability programs. To help employees comply with the new HR technology for e-services, Tan initiated classroom training for all users, and is currently leading the e-claims process in order to go fully paperless. On the matter of workplace health, she serves as the
chairman of the colleagues’ restaurant committee, TASTE, leading a group to come up with innovative approaches and options for healthy eating, and has also spearheaded a number of activities to improve mental wellness of employees. Currently, Tan is handing over her role to embark on bigger responsibilities as HR business partner – another clear demonstration of the making of an HR Rising Star.
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FEATURES
SPECIAL REPORT TAMMY KOKKINOS General manager, HR Pentana Solutions
Tammy Kokkinos has been instrumental in the creation of automotive technology provider Pentana’s global HR department. During her time with the company, Pentana has expanded to 12 countries, from Australia and New Zealand to Southeast Asia and China, Europe and the US. Her ability to manage all matters HR has been the reason why the business has been able to get the cultural part of the expansion right. In line with the company’s expansion, Kokkinos launched a series of initiatives, beginning with a new vision and mission initiative, induction programs, internal communication platforms, cultural initiatives, clubs and health programs, and key event celebrations, which are all global. She has also been involved in all aspects of Pentana’s transformation, and continues to juggle all her responsibilities with professionalism. Kokkinos’ achievements and vision have made her a prime candidate for future executive leadership.
EVELYN LOW Associate manager, OD, SME Zimmer
MARCOS LAI Associate director, learning and development Wharf Hotels Management
Marcos Lai has been in the industry for just over five years, and now leads the L&D strategy for the company’s 16 hotels. Lai joined Wharf Hotels in August 2016 as group L&D manager, and since then has created an extensive range of programs and measures to build the skills and knowledge capabilities of associates across the hotels. One of Lai’s most noteworthy accomplishments was supporting the rollout of the leadership culture at Wharf Hotels through the Red Ring Leadership Philosophy. He single-handedly designed two programs using the values of the philosophy, ‘LIVE BOLD, STAY SHARP’. The BOLD recovery system is a three-step approach to coaching associates on handling guest complaints effectively; the program involved activities, case studies and role plays to help associates strengthen their boldness in achieving service recovery and guest satisfaction. Meanwhile, the SHARP improvement program involves a system following the lean, six-sigma approach, and coaches associates to improve productivity and reduce costs on their projects.
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Evelyn Low joined medical device manufacturer Zimmer Biomet in April 2017, and leads the organisation development (OD) initiatives for the Malaysia and Singapore markets – the latter of which is particularly critical as it serves as the regional headquarters with a group of key employees. Within a short period of time, she has made quite an impact on the company’s talent management and OD success through the various initiatives implemented, such as sales certification programs for the sales employees, leadership development programs for middle managers, and a reinvigorated orientation/induction program for new team members. Over the last seven months, she has delivered on approximately 600 man-hours of classroom training on a wide range of programs, ranging from sales effectiveness to leadership essentials. Low also supported her manager in developing the long-term strategy for the OD initiatives, to ensure that the company is able to sustain its talent acquisition agenda.
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SHAUN RENWICK HR leader, P&G Beijing Innovation Center and R&D China Procter & Gamble
For nine years, Shaun Renwick has worked in different market operations within P&G, spanning Australia, Singapore and China. He currently serves as site HR leader for P&G Beijing Innovation Center, composed of around 600 employees and 400 contractors.
Faced with the immense growth in the need for world-class R&D, Renwick has been responsible for retaining and developing top technical talent within P&G, as well as building a strong talent pipeline following the company’s ‘Develop From Within’ philosophy. To achieve this, Renwick implemented a new strategic talent management system, which includes personalised accelerator experiences, and led a revamp of L&D initiatives to enhance learner experience.
Together with his team, they implemented design thinking workshops to develop unique employee value propositions for different employee segments. Renwick also identified the R&D capabilities needed to win Chinese and global consumers. This led to a significant redesign of the R&D career system, which required negotiation and partnership with labour unions, employee councils and local government units.
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FEATURES
SPECIAL REPORT
SONYA ROSENDORFF HR manager, global talent acquisition Mastercard
Against volatile industry sector conditions, Sonya Rosendorff has successfully managed various challenges and delivered outstanding work in her role as HR manager, global talent acquisition for Mastercard’s Asia-Pacific operations. She has introduced a number of progressive HR initiatives, including hiring new digital talent for Mastercard Singapore. To enhance the recruitment process, Rosendorff developed a robust behaviour-based interview process for determining the most suitable candidates for newly created digital roles. She also implemented the first social media recruitment campaign on Twitter for Mastercard, and developed internal employee branding for referrals.
ARIKA RETNANINGTYAS HRBP and business transformation manager Damco Indonesia
Over the past year, Arika Retnaningtyas has launched a number of major HR events and initiatives, on top of developing a new mission, vision and strategy for logistics company Damco Indonesia and Philippines. The initiatives include a people talent review for non-managerial positions and a junior leadership development program for internal high-potential candidates in Indonesia, as well as a fresh graduate trainee program that has been run in Indonesia and was recently replicated in the Philippines. As project manager, Retnaningtyas was responsible for ensuring proper orientation and engagement of employees, as well as continuous communication with function leaders to initiate key local projects in support of the new strategy, and to regularly solicit feedback from employees while keeping relevant stakeholders informed of the progress made. In light of these accomplishments, Retnaningtyas was recommended to be the interim HRBP manager for Damco Thailand and, since July 2017, for Damco Philippines.
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ERIN WONG HR lead, Southeast Asia and Korea Hewlett Packard Enterprise
One of Erin Wong’s key contributions at HPE was overseeing the regional country processes project, during which she led a team of four recruiters to dissect, detail and document the recruitment processes specific to each country. From there, she created a proper set of procedures for managing handovers in the case of staff moving on from HPE. This paved the way for her to take on the lead role for Southeast Asia and Korea. Looking more broadly, Wong recently developed a proposal to change the way HPE recruits; her plan is currently being evaluated by other global and regional leaders. She is always on the lookout for better solutions and initiatives to improve employee experience. Two examples have been facilitating the partnership of HPE with an innovative start-up transportation provider to help employees commute to work at the lowest possible cost, and launching a book club to help promote self-development among colleagues.
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SECTOR FOCUS
LEARNING & DEVELOPMENT
BACK TO THE NEGOTIATION TABLE Whether it’s for budget allocations, during IR consultations or simply the to-and-fro debates among internal departments, every HR professional must know how to negotiate. Is it time to upskill?
Langley adds that it’s in HR’s best interest to upskill in this area. Without a skilled and consistent approach, even day-to-day negotiation challenges can hold HR back, not to mention the challenges facing HR when they need to negotiate with highly trained sales and procurement teams. “If HR lack the same level of negotiation skill, how can they possibly counter the highly persuasive sales director or the procurement director who is simply not buying HR’s proposal?” Langley asks. “How can they help functional leaders spot if negotiations carried out by their teams are systemically flawed, incompetent, or crippled by a culture that doesn’t have a constructive negotiating mindset?”
Another reason to upskill… AS HR continues to build its influence in the C-suite, so too is the profession upskilling a key element of what constitutes influence: the ability to negotiate. Negotiation skills are unique and highly specialised – and to date, they have not generally been considered a key part of HR’s skills arsenal. This may have held the profession back.
CEO of Scotwork Asia, an organisation that provides negotiation skills development and consultancy in this space. Fortunately, this is slowly changing. HR professionals have an ever-increasing opportunity to support sustainable value creation, due to their pivotal role in linking the value chain. As Langley notes,
“If HR lack the same level of negotiation skill, how can they possibly counter the highly persuasive sales director or the procurement director who is simply not buying HR’s proposal?” Warren G Langley, Scotwork “Great strategy is too often derailed by teams lacking the skills to implement the strategy effectively, or by a culture trapped in ‘the old way we used to do things around here’ – preventing change and a lasting transformation,” says Warren G Langley,
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negotiation skill will support them in making strategy happen across all the teams they influence, as well as giving them greater confidence in dealing with the bread-andbutter conflicts they face every hour of every day right across the value chain.
Of course, when most HR professionals hear the word negotiation usually it’s associated with industrial relations and union negotiations. These are tough negotiations that require well-honed skills with a visibly consistent even-handed approach. Langley says such negotiations require sensitivity, emotional intelligence, and effective preparation to ensure clarity and consistency – which is difficult to achieve if the HR team lacks the appropriate process, level of skill and confidence to carry them out in a professional way. “Scotwork are often called in when such meetings are not going well, and while it’s never too late to learn effective negotiation process and skill, often by the time the organisation realises, unhelpful precedents have been set, unnecessary concessions given away, and trust may have been lost,” he says. While this area undoubtedly benefits from a highly skilled and confident HR team, Langley suggests HR can play a greater role in highlighting the impact of poor negotiation skill right across the value chain. In doing so, HR can be seen as more than the team
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Brought to you by
SCOTWORK TOOLS
Home screen of Scotwork Tools app
Preparation tool
Tools app resource: e-books
Tools app resource: negotiation videos
Scotwork introduced an industry leading approach to preparation – the Tools app allows managers to align preparation across their teams, functions and geographies via direct web-based input. It also serves as a teaching/embedding resource. It offers stimulus in testing objectives, creating wish lists and concession list items. It also encourages customer intimacy and helps to develop a learning organisation by having a learning/feedback archive.
settling IR issues, but rather as true guardians of the business-critical core competences.
Getting the basics right Like most skills and disciplines, having the right foundational skills will aide in negotiation success. Langley says the same basic process and skills used in the relatively straightforward transactional negotiations are just as important in more complex strategic negotiations, but if we get the basics wrong in the big ticket negotiations, the risks and costs are obviously much higher and the consequences more long term. For this reason, Scotwork programs build from level 1) the fundamentals of negotiation,
through level 2) advancing negotiation, and on to level 3) strategic/coaching negotiations. “Most senior managers who are already negotiating in their role, join at level 2, but often ask to skip this level as they want to join what they see as the senior strategic class and therefore more suited to them. “Via a gentle consultative process in which we explore their understanding of core concepts, and their grasp of the core competencies and cultural norms or preferred approach to negotiation or conflict resolution, we confirm that they need to learn a robust process and effective skills first – before rushing to get all strategic,” Langley says. It’s worth noting that senior managers
rarely negotiate internally, where they have the power to impose their will, and externally they should be using their skilled and empowered teams to do it for them. They also typically avoid stepping into the day-today transactional negotiations. It’s therefore not surprising that when they enter strategic negotiations, they often lack the practice and confidence to be effective. This can result in a reluctance to negotiate, or what Langley refers to as “soft negotiations”, where the tendency is to demonstrate their power by giving away hard-earned value for less than their fair share in return. The negotiation mindset needs to come from the top down, with senior managers rewarding collaborative, constructive and creative negotiations. Just as important is negotiating up the hierarchy, which requires additional skills that Scotwork teaches as a module in their program. “It often requires careful positioning to generate interest, an ability to create momentum and commitment among key stakeholders and the skills to repackage tradeable variables,” Langley says. “Our new module on Persuasive Negotiation has been developed in collaboration with Professor Hal Weitzman at the University of Chicago Booth School of Business to enable managers to deal with such challenges.” Scotwork’s programs have the flexibility for groups to select modules that are the most relevant for them and these can range from topics as diverse as overcoming deadlock, creating value, cultural consideration, and setting the guiding principles to enable strategic negotiations, etc.
A helping hand Scotwork offers transformation programs led by specialist consultants/coaches who are time-served negotiators and advanced subject matter experts.
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SECTOR FOCUS
LEARNING & DEVELOPMENT Brought to you by
TEAM CAPABILITY SURVEY RESULTS Scotwork’s 2017 Negotiating Capability Survey of employees at individual negotiator level (in sales, procurement, HR and marketing) across 82 world-leading organisations provided the following insights: • 19% believe their negotiations strengthen their business relationships • 22% believe their negotiations create long-term value for their business • 42% say they want to avoid deadlock and will do whatever they can to avoid it • 0nly 24% have thought about what they want to ask the other side before the negotiation • 33% believe they create goodwill by making concessions
SCOTWORK Scotwork transforms the way you do business – giving your people negotiation training that helps them hold their own and cut the right deal. Our unique methodology has made businesses more successful in over 38 countries, in 24 languages by providing people negotiation tools and skills to be more assertive, profitable, successful and creating lasting transformation. We are realdeal negotiators. Wherever you are in the world, whatever you do, you can be too.
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Scotwork’s programs differ from oneoff training sessions in that they have three critical elements: a before, a middle, and an after component. “We believe this is necessary if the organisation is serious about the transformation and intent on sustainable development,” Langley says. Before starting, a stakeholder analysis and an online capability survey is completed by participants. The five-page report this generates benchmarks the understanding of core concepts, core competences and cultural norms before the transformation begins. The Scotwork e-learning module can be
managers “what to say and do at the negotiating table”, rather than filling their heads with the largely unhelpful theory, which might be intellectually interesting but not so easy to apply. The final stage is all about “keeping the process and skills alive” and Langley is proud that this is where Scotwork has invested a great deal of time, effort and money over the last five years – building an industry-leading free-of-charge suite of embedding services for its alumni. All alumni now have access to the Scotwork course app, micro learning library, ebook and whitepapers, plus a 24/7
“The magic lies in the area of ‘coached debrief ’. This is Scotwork’s real edge as the pioneers of this field for over 40 years” Warren G Langley, Scotwork used to fast-track the process, but Langley says the fun really starts in the middle section, when participants spend 80% of their time in live negotiations, which are carefully analysed via constructive debriefs with a Scotwork negotiation skills coach. Groups emerge from three days of transformation with a robust process, common language, common approach to advanced negotiation and the practical skills (and increased confidence) to carry out highly effective negotiations. “The magic lies in the area of ‘coached debrief ’,” Langley says. “This is Scotwork’s real edge as the pioneers of this field for over 40 years, coupled with a simple and highly practical approach to implementable process and skills.” Langley believes the difference Scotwork makes stems from its ability to teach
consultant helpline, and Scotwork’s new advanced preparation tool. This tool allows real-time preparation collaboration between team members online, with the option to invite managers and other mentors to remotely offer feedback to the preparation. The tool houses simple inbuilt functionality to support value creation and manage concessions, and ultimately builds an archive of all previous negotiations.
Close the gap Langley has one final message for HR and business leaders. “Close the skill gap,” he urges. “It’s costing business billions every year in poor deals, unresolved conflicts, lost contracts and staff churn. And no tricks, ploys, or hot tips are going to repair the leaks across the value chain when teams can’t negotiate effectively.”
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TECHNOLOGY SPECIAL REPORT
WORKFORCE MANAGEMENT
TIME, ATTENDANCE AND SMOOTHER WORKFORCE MANAGEMENT Your workforce management technology is crucial to boosting productivity and enhancing customer care, so Deane Hornsby asks why so many organisations suffer with outmoded solutions increase workforce productivity, business profitability and the quality of customer care provided. A dilemma many businesses face is how to manage employees’ time and attendance to ensure accuracy, reduce payroll errors common to manual processes, and free up time to innovate. By empowering employees with the right tools, the dilemma becomes about how best to turn technology into an advantage to improve business outcomes and sustain competitive advantage.
What is Kronos frequently asked about by businesses?
TODAY’S BUSINESS leaders are challenged to do more with less, while balancing costs and customer care. Achieving key business imperatives of driving operational efficiencies and agility, while continuously improving employee engagement and the customer experience,
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is further complicated by having to build, lead and manage an increasingly mobile and multigenerational workforce. Employees comprise a business’s most valuable asset and largest expense – typically 70% of total expenses. Improving workforce management is vital to help businesses
Common issues we are asked about are the managing of increasingly complex awards and enterprise agreements and the removal of manual processes for capturing, approving and processing working time. From a productivity perspective, questions are often raised about how to reduce the time managers spend on administrative tasks in order to increase their time spent focused on innovation and customers. Scheduling employees to meet customer demands is becoming a time-consuming and complicated process. A growing team can also mean an increase in time spent dealing with administrative tasks: planning staff rosters, answering staff work queries, dealing with sickness, managing overtime, handling holiday requests, and signing off timesheets.
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Managers want to be more focused on delivering great products and services, instead of being weighed down with manual workforce management processes. We are increasingly asked about improving visibility – giving managers the ability to know who is present and on what jobs they are working, and to make adjustments on the fly based on demand. Employees may no longer be working in the same physical location; they could be working remotely. The need to improve visibility of business and utilise analytics to improve outcomes is increasing. Most questions are around improving productivity, reducing compliance risks, improving employee engagement and attracting the right talent to deliver an exceptional customer experience.
What workforce management problems or issues are businesses facing? Most often, outdated systems are putting businesses at risk. For example, paying staff accurately and on time is fundamental to all businesses – get it wrong and you risk damaging the business’s reputation and losing the respect of the employee. Running old systems puts the business at risk in terms of software and hardware failure, as well as compliance and credibility. From an HR perspective, as a business grows, more people are hired. Manual systems make it harder to manage core HR tasks: recruitment, onboarding, compensation, performance reviews, skills and certification. In addition, having employment-related data often held in multiple files and locations makes it hard to process, raising the risk of failing compliance audits. Manual systems are also causing errors in payroll and making it hard for employees and managers to gain access to core workforcerelated information such as holiday balances, flexi-time accruals, timecards, planned work schedules and overtime worked. This results in line managers and
HR/payroll departments answering queries – which could be avoided – and spending less time engaging with employees and driving innovation to improve the customer’s experience.
What should businesses be thinking about to address the issues? Given an ageing population, an increasing millennial workforce and scarce resources, the next workforce revolution will be a race for
smartphones have, in terms of mobility of application usage. A barrier to overcome here is the complexity and cost of data collection, analysis and usage. It’s the data that has value. The value of data lies in a business’s ability to utilise it as actionable insights, which is key. While we can talk futures such as wearable, what’s important is for businesses to take advantage of the workforce management technologies available today, such as mobility and analytics, and to leverage the
Running old systems puts the business at risk in terms of software and hardware failure, as well as compliance and credibility talent. Businesses that adapt to this change first will win. Our advice to business and HR leaders is to rethink their entire workforce management strategy in order to create and manage tomorrow’s workforce today.
FROM THE FRONT LINE “To instil innovative thinking businesses need to develop an innovative culture. HR leaders have a role to play in nurturing an open and relaxed environment to ensure creativity and risk-taking is encouraged. Hiring individuals with varying backgrounds will build a diverse workforce, bringing different perspectives and concepts to the table. Once the right people are in place and empowered to speak up, processes need to be implemented to ensure ideas are followed through to execution. In many ways an HR leader’s role is to remove cultural barriers to innovation, and continue to create and maintain an innovative ‘culture of care’.” Belinda Newman, senior HR manager, Kronos ANZ What might the future hold? More than half of Australians are using wearable devices, and wearables are already starting to play a role in risk management and injury prevention. While uptake in business is slow, it is likely to accelerate, just like
convenience and savings afforded via cloudbased application and services to improve outcomes.
How can Kronos solutions help? Kronos is a global leader in workforce management and human capital management cloud solutions. Guided by decades of experience and innovation, we offer the industry’s most powerful suite of tools and services to manage and engage an entire workforce, from pre-hire to retire. And because workforce needs are constantly changing, Kronos solutions are designed to meet the challenges that our customers face every day, regardless of their industry or where they do business. We offer two solution suites based on complexity and company size. Workforce Ready® is a cloud, multi-tenant human capital management suite. Workforce Central® provides deep functionality, is optimised for vertical industries, and can be scaled globally and deployed in the cloud. Deane Hornsby is the marketing director at Kronos International. Great businesses are powered by great people. Kronos workforce management solutions are purpose-built for your industry and employees. Explore www.kronos.com.au.
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VENDOR PROFILE
LUMESSE
LEADING THE FIELD Lumesse continues to impress the industry with its comprehensive talent management, talent acquisition and learning management solutions IN 2017, there are few more exciting pockets of technology than the HR sector – and in a competitive field, Lumesse stands apart. Lumesse is able to provide over 2,400 enterprises worldwide with a comprehensive talent and learning management suite, which allows them to identify, support and develop high potentials – all from the one system. In addition, a talent acquisition platform supports HR and managers to find the right candidates. Armin Sommerhuber, head of business unit talent management, APAC at Lumesse, says the advent of social media, mobile technology, and machine learning has revolutionised how companies manage and recruit the right talent – and tech providers such as Lumesse have moved with the times. “The Lumesse talent management and talent acquisition platforms are focused on leveraging the advancement in technology to help HR managers and recruiters manage high potentials, as well as source and select candidates efficiently,” he tells HRD. “We see our customers as partners,” Sommerhuber adds, when asked about what sets his company apart from the competition. “We don’t want to sell a product, but a solution that supports our valuable customers in their daily tasks. Their success is our success.” Here, HRD chats with Sommerhuber – a 10-year veteran of the company – about the Lumesse story.
HRD: Does Lumesse offer an all-encompassing talent suite or best-ofbreed solutions? Armin Sommerhuber: Both. Our talent and learning management suite, ETWeb Empower, is very
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comprehensive and consists of different bundles – or modules – to manage and measure KPIs, skills and competencies, to manage and review employees’ salaries and to manage career and learning paths for employees. With the ETWeb Empower learning platform, companies can offer their employees a customised learning platform for classroom training and e-learning. With TalentLink, our talent acquisition solution, and CourseBuilder, our solution to create e-learning, Lumesse offers two best-ofbreed solutions.
HRD: What sort of solutions are clients typically looking for and why might they turn to Lumesse? AS: Our clients are often looking for a talent management suite, such as ETWeb Empower. However, the most used bundles/modules are HR core, performance management, skill and competency management and learning management. The demand for learning management solutions is continually increasing. The trend is moving toward blended learning courses – a combination of instructor-led training and e-learning courses. Many companies want to link performance management and learning closely together – which makes a lot of sense. The development activities should support performance management to help employees achieve their goals. This also increases the motivation and productivity of employees. Many prospects contact us because Lumesse was recommended as a talent and learning management provider or as a talent acquisition provider. We also organise many events around the world to which we invite the HR community, and we participate in major HR fairs and conferences as well.
HRD: Why else is Lumesse different? AS: We started a few years ago with the implementation of ETWeb Empower, our talent and learning management solution. It has been implemented from scratch. We didn’t acquire other software solutions to integrate them in ETWeb Empower, as many software companies do, but implemented a clean and single code line software. ETWeb Empower is a people-centric solution instead of a processoriented solution. In this solution people/ employees are in the focus. It is very easy to use and one can work with it without having days of training or reading training materials or books. One of the highlights is that we have implemented a two-layer technology: a customer layer and a Lumesse layer. This allows customers to easily upgrade to a higher version and not lose any configurations. We upgrade only the Lumesse layer and there is no additional effort required by the customers. In ETWeb Empower, one is able to recognise team members or peers or to endorse them for a skill, similar to social network platforms. The expectations from Generation Y (millennials) regarding software systems/HR solutions are different than those of previous generations. Considering that by 2020, around 50% of the population worldwide will consist of this generation, enterprises need to have a strategy on how to motivate them to use an HR system, and this is exactly one of the focuses that we have with ETWeb Empower: motivating people to use an HR system because they like it, and not because they are forced to use it. For further information visit http://www.lumesse.com/
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SPONSORED CONTENT
The 2 school of thoughts:
Among managers who implement changes and researchers who study them, opposing arguments have been put forward over the right way to discover strategies and implementing changes (i.e. linking strategic thinking to strategic acting). In one corner stand advocates of a clear-cut system of command and control (i.e. the top-down implementation approach). In the opposite corner are those who support what's termed a bottom-up/ emergent approach: where change goals and activities must be deployed with special attention to the employees who are the actual implementers of the strategies/ changes.
An increasingly unpredictable & complex world: A 2011 Sunday New York Times' article 'For a moment, all the swans seemed black' illustrated how technology advancement, globalization and increasing transparency of information have upended the market, making it more unpredictable than ever. This brings to the fore, the importance of determining how effective is the traditional top-down prescriptive approach in meeting today's business needs when implementing strategies and managing changes.
Potential merits and limitations Top-down prescriptive approach: Here, plans made at the top level are put into action through the successive layers of the organization. Generally, it provides an overview of things with greater clarity; it helps to unite business objectives and set targets against which performances can be evaluated. It also increases control of business operations and helps to organize complex information and activities. However, it is criticized that in practice, deliberate plans form only 10 to 30 percent of realized strategies due to unforeseen changes. Some believe that a prescribed strategy prevents the firm from responding flexibly as it falls short of the "organization learning" element and can seriously limit a firm's true transformational changes. Other critics further suggested that this approach may be less sustainable due to lack of employee engagement and ownership, making it harder to embrace new mindsets and impacting on collaboration.
How the above challenges might be overcome through a more bottom-up approach:
TheEmergent or bottom-up approach has a very different starting point and logic. Emergent change happens when management does not execute on a plan but instead the company evolves its behavior in response to changes in the market place. It is regarded that the emergent approach is a 'learning by doing' process where emergent learning supports emergent strategic changes. The "learn-and-do by everyone¡ approach often fosters greater employee creativity and engagement, and reduces change resistance as employees see themselves as contributors to the firm's strategy. This approach is also more exploratory, dynamic and allows greater organizational flexibility. However, some critics argued the bottom-up approach may also enable local managers to engage personal goals (political issues) that can hinder intended strategic change and changes effected in a piecemeal / fragmented manner might also be limited in its company-wide effectiveness and scalability. Therefore, an over-reliance on the emergent approach could result in underperformance.
Are the 2 reconcilable? Creating the platform for change:- Deliberately Emergent Change Strategy -The "Hypothesis-Driven Innovation"... In practice, these two approaches could complement and reinforce each other. A "Hypothesis-driven innovation• approach could be used to develop a platform where top-down initiatives can also be combined with more bottom-up participation and collaboration from lower-level staff. Here, instead of a detailed prescriptive change plan, the top executives would provide a deliberate guidance on the overarching strategic change vision and high-level direction (i.e. setting a fixed perimeter of ambiguity necessary to ensure adherence to core strategic vision). However, to address complexity (i.e. rapid changes at the market place), this deliberate change strategy is viewed as tentative hypotheses about the future that is to be regularly validated in the marketplace. The business units then function as innovation sandboxes to test market responses and act as a source of emergent change strategies. This relationship is illustrated in the model below:
Blending top-down directive and bottom-up emergent: "Hypothesis-Driven Innovation" approach
Change } Strategies adjusted/refined
Conclusion: > Firms need to be more flexible and agile in today's increasingly complex and unpredictable business environment. > Top executives can only steer changes but it is how the people below interprets and reacts that will impact the change result. > No one approach on its own is sufficient and the most viable change strategies today is probably an integrated one with customized elements of both the prescriptive and emergent characteristics that suit the unique context of a firm. > With today's environment demanding greater collaboration and innovation, and talents seeking a more flexible and purposedriven work environment, instead of creating change programmes, firms should look at creating sustainable platforms for change. 44 www.hrdmag.com.sg
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ByElaine Tan, Group Director of Marketing atEASB
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FEATURES
LEADER PROFILE
A MILESTONE WORTH CELEBRATING As Mercuri Urval celebrates its half century, HRD chats with the chairman of the group board about its rich history and even brighter future
IT’S RARE that a company reaches the milestone of 50 years in business, but that’s exactly what Swedish executive search firm Mercuri Urval has been celebrating throughout 2017. What makes the anniversary particularly unusual is that Mercuri Urval operates in the ever-changing, highly competitive HR services industry. Established in 1967, the firm has grown organically from one office in Stockholm to having offices around the world, all of which provide global reach and insight on behalf of the firm’s clients in Europe, Asia-Pacific, the Americas and Africa.
Leading a global company Guiding the company since 2016 has been Roger Hagafors, chairman of the Mercuri Urval Group board. Having been with the company since 1983 – originally as a consultant and team leader, later holding managing director and group positions and now as chairman – Hagafors has witnessed significant changes to both the HR profession and the company he works for. When asked what has kept him with the company for such a long time, Hagafors doesn’t hesitate in his response: “I don’t think I’m unique in saying this but it’s a combination of personal development in terms of what you learn from dealing
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with so many clients, and a desire to serve those clients in the best possible way. This is the inherent appeal for all consultants, and especially the consultants working at Mercuri Urval. We are exposed to so many businesses – you learn something new every day. If you have that interest and passion it’s very easy to see Mercuri Urval as an appealing place to work.” Indeed, this desire to serve clients in the
What changes has Hagafors witnessed? “Clients themselves have increased the focus on having the right people in their organisations,” he tells HRD. “I’d also say that the people working in our client organisations have developed their skills and their professionalism significantly over the years. Today’s HR leaders are well educated, very professional and very experienced.”
“We are exposed to so many businesses – you learn something new every day. If you have that interest and passion it’s very easy to see Mercuri Urval as an appealing place to work” most effective ways is core to the business. The company’s motto is ‘It’s all about people’ – specifically it’s a focus on clients selecting and then developing the right individuals for the specific tasks in their organisation. It helps that Mercuri Urval has based its own development and growth on strong values, organic growth and client focus. This foundation has helped the company keep pace with changes to the HR profession.
Mercuri Urval’s clients have also become increasingly focused on the importance of individuals and teams for business results. “We’ve seen that our clients have increased their expertise and insight in matters related to that and thus require top quality from suppliers of such services,” Hagafors says. “We have continuously developed our service offerings, methods and tools to match the increasing needs of our clients.”
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the ability to offer shareholding partnerships to selected employees who show a long-term commitment to Mercuri Urval. Hagafors says his biggest challenge as a leader navigating through this change has been ensuring high transparency and continuous, clear and consistent communication with all employees. “We’ve tried to ensure employees understand what the onwards journey will involve, and that those people leading the company know the direction the journey is heading in,” he says. “That has meant providing transparency around why decisions are made, as well as clear ongoing two-way communication.”
Local knowledge; global know-how
“We have continuously developed our service offerings, methods and tools to match the increasing needs of our clients” A time of change In June 2016, Mercuri Urval’s owner and founder, who had made the company almost a life mission, decided to retire. To ensure that Mercuri Urval continued as a strong, independent and sustainable global company, he opted to donate the company to a foundation. “Our founder considered this to be an important step he would take with the
company,” Hagafors says. “He wanted Mercuri Urval to continue with its own character and ensure it would continue as an independent company. The foundation will ensure this happens.” While the transfer of ownership has required extensive work behind the scenes, for clients the transition has been seamless. For employees, a significant change has been
He adds that it’s been particularly important for Mercuri Urval to act as one company; traditionally the firm has operated with multiple subsidiaries and many country-based operations. “We’ve worked to empower team leaders all over the world,” Hagafors says. “They must be empowered to make necessary decisions and undertake necessary initiatives. They are our eyes and ears in the local markets.” This approach also suits Mercuri Urval’s global clients. “They operate on a global scale, with a presence in many markets,” Hagafors says. “Our local team leaders and consultants are the ones dealing directly with our clients in these overseas markets, so we need them to be extremely knowledgeable about local conditions, but also be aware of what’s happening in terms of global trends.” As a new year rapidly approaches, Hagafors says Mercuri Urval will be looking to leverage its global position – especially the combined knowledge the firm holds. “We’re working to ensure all that up-to-date knowledge we have is usable and applicable. We want to enhance our standing as a knowledge company,” he says. “That way we can serve our clients with the best expertise and high levels of engagement, regardless of their geographical location or spread.”
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VENDOR PROFILE
MERCURI URVAL
THE CLIENT COMES FIRST From talent acquisition to leadership development, Mercuri Urval is utilising its global footprint and deep expertise to help clients improve results through people Q: Can you outline the key services Mercuri Urval offers to clients? A: Mercuri Urval was founded more than 50 years ago as an advisory firm to answer a simple but important question that leaders face: “How can we make sure we have the right people in place to deliver the best possible results?” We were pioneers in the field of leadership and management diagnostics, and our unrivalled methods make a massive difference in the development and growth of our clients’ organisations. With tailored talent and leadership advisory solutions, we are helping our clients to find answers to five highly relevant questions: What people capabilities do you need to be successful? What capabilities do you have? What capabilities can you develop? What capabilities can you attract? How can you best deploy these capabilities? We make an effort to understand our clients’ markets, their strategy, their organisation, and can subsequently derive the best solutions to help their people achieve the best outcomes. There is one more very important thing that determines our success, and that’s our employees. Each of our 70 teams worldwide will make sure we deliver results and exceed our clients’ expectations.
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Today we are a leading company in the fields of executive search, professional recruitment and talent and leadership advisory.
Q: What unique challenges is Mercuri Urval seeing in the leadership development market? A: The understanding of what makes leadership successful has massively changed over the years. The answers to the question what makes successful leaders can be as diverse as the situations that leaders are facing in any given industry, organisation, location or market. Hence there is no such thing as a ‘unique challenge’. Certainly, macro phenomena such as global talent mobility, shift of growth regions, new organisational models (think agile organisations, matrix organisations, overlapping reporting lines, no boss cultures and leading without authority), dispersed responsibilities and accelerated change cycles and, of course, the ongoing shortage of talents, are influencing the challenges leaders are facing anywhere in the world. But, at the end, it all comes down to the fact that leadership is supposed to create sustainable results. And once that isn’t the case or leaders feel their results are at risk, that’s when they turn to us.
Q: How much does Mercuri Urval’s global reach assist on the talent
recruitment side? A: It does assist a great deal. We take pride in our ability to operate globally as one company. Sourcing talents, leaders, very niche profiles and/or very specific people capabilities all across the world is sometimes the only and best option for our clients. We have an impressive track record when it comes to working in international teams, bringing diverse expertise together – culturally, sector and industry related, function related, specific languages – and finding the right talent anywhere on the planet. Having said this, our clients can always rely on one central point of contact that holds everything together and makes global collaboration a very smooth process.
Q: What’s next on the agenda for the company – are there any new service offerings that might be launched soon? A: Here in Singapore, we are acknowledging that the country is one of the more preferred birthplaces for start-ups. Completely new breeds of companies are emerging, and it requires specific support on the growth journey. We have therefore put our heads together and thought about how we can help these young enterprises and often young founders. With our half a century of expertise working with well-established multinational companies and leaders, we have positioned ourselves to provide valuable insights on what needs to be done to be successful. We have therefore developed the Mercuri Urval Founders Academy, with the support of additional partners, that provides specialist advise and education around product development, commercialisation, capital raising, legal and media competence, while we focus on getting the overarching competencies right: leadership and talent acquisition. November was the Academy’s soft launch, which was very well received by founders, and we are excited to roll out the program very soon before the year ends. For further information on Mercuri Urval’s suite of HR solutions visit www.mercuriurval.com
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FEATURES
LEARNING & DEVELOPMENT
STEPPING UP TO THE PLATE HR jobs will not be spared from digital disruption and it’s time for HR professionals to get serious about staying relevant and upping their own skills. The IHRP Certification Framework provides the way forward
The IHRP Certification Framework The IHRP Certification Framework aims to enhance the competencies of and create professional developmental pathways for HR professionals. HR professionals of the future will need expertise in a wide range of areas, focused not only on developing human capital but on contributing to business success. The three
areas of competency in the Certification Framework are designed to prepare HR professionals in these areas. As illustrated in Fig. 1, the three areas of competency are: 1. HR foundational competencies: these competencies underpin and serve as core enablers supporting HR functional activities. They include: analytics and insights; relationships and communication; technology and operational excellence; labour policies and legislation. 2. HR functional competencies: these competencies are required for HR professionals to successfully deliver their functional role, which
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FIG. 1 THE IHRP COMPETENCY FRAMEWORK
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to facilitate sharing and learning, creating platforms for ease of acquisition of the relevant skills, and encouraging continued learning and growth in the sector.
e of pr old Uph
THOSE WITH a long career history in HR – or even those who are newer to the HR workforce but have a keen appreciation for how their profession has evolved over time – would acknowledge that it has transformed out of almost all recognition over the past 30 years. In today’s increasingly complex and cost competitive environment, HR is expected to own business and people outcomes the same way a functional senior leader is held accountable for their respective KPIs in contribution to the business growth. Is it any wonder that the skills of HR professionals have also had to adapt and evolve? However, HR professionals and employers in Singapore – and indeed in most locations around the world – have to this point had an ad-hoc approach to acquiring and assessing relevant skills. This is about to change with the National HR Certification. Taking the lead is the Institute for Human Resource Professionals (IHRP), the HR professional body set up by the tripartite partners: the Ministry of Manpower (MOM); the National Trades Union Congress (NTUC); and Singapore National Employers Federation (SNEF). IHRP is the only HR professional body in Singapore authorised to implement the National HR Certification, which is known as the IHRP Certification. The IHRP is also playing a critical role in creating awareness, identifying relevant future-ready skills, aggregating demand for development, building a community of HR professionals
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cover activities undertaken across the people management life cycle. These competencies include the ability to plan, attract, develop and engage talent, and to separate from that talent at the end of the employment relationship. 3. HR mindsets and behaviours: these competencies reflect the way HR professionals think and behave as they approach their HR work, deal with people and manage work-related situations. They include: displaying business and financial acumen; demonstrating change leadership; adopting a future orientation; upholding professional conduct.
A holistic developmental journey The IHRP Certification also offers three stages that encompass a holistic developmental journey:
Stage 1: Experience assessment HR professionals select their certification level and complete an online submission to demonstrate their HR experience and competencies. They will need to submit information of their education, training and HR experience. If successful, they will be invited to participate in the on-site assessment.
Stage 2: On-site assessment HR professionals will be assessed on their ability to apply the body of competencies. They will go through scenario-based questions on a computer to demonstrate the skills, mindsets and behaviours that are crucial to an effective and successful HR function.
Stage 3: Continuing professional development Upon certification, HR professionals are encouraged to embark on their continuing professional development (CPD) journey. Their CPD hours, together with employer testimonial confirming their current role in HR and a declaration of compliance to the IHRP Code of Professional Conduct will be required for recertification at the end of three years.
Widespread support Singapore is currently at a critical inflection point: the economy is growing and unemployment is low, but an ageing workforce and declining
3 STAGES OF A HOLISTIC DEVELOPMENTAL JOURNEY
Stage 1
Stage 2
Stage 3
Experience assessment
On-site assessment
Continual professional development
workforce numbers are placing unique pressure on employers. Re-energising the workforce and preparing them for the future is critical. For this reason, the government is pushing future skills in a major way, with HR being one of the 23 key focus sectors. The IHRP Certification has gained support from highly experienced HR professionals. For example, Carmen Wee is a seasoned and passionate business leader providing human capital insight and counsel to business executives. Currently, she is the global vice president, human resources, for the software business at Schneider Electric. Wee tells HRD that, due to the pace of business and the unique challenges facing people in global roles – including cultural, ethical and business considerations – keeping skills sharp is critical. “The global role requires a different set of soft competencies like energy, leadership, authenticity, collaboration and superior communication skills, which frankly takes years to build and hone. But it is possible if one is humble to learn, calibrate and take feedback,” she says. Wee encourages all HR professionals, especially those just starting on their HR careers, to step up to the plate and upskill themselves. “It is extremely important that HR professionals take responsibility for their own learning and development. Don’t just rely on the company to spoon-feed you. There needs to be the hunger to learn continuously and never take the attitude that one has arrived,” she says. Wee is keeping abreast of new topics like neuroscience, robotics, AI, digitisation, “and
most of my reading diet is not related to HR”, she says. In July 2017, Wee was awarded one of three pioneer Master HR Professional certifications from the IHRP. “I am delighted to endorse the IHRP Certification for HR professionals in Singapore,” Wee tells HRD. “It marks an important and critical milestone for the future of the industry. As a recently certified professional, I had the opportunity to selfreflect on my journey over the past two decades in my career. The process enabled me to think deeply and passionately on why I continue to be in this high-impact role and to play a small part in helping the profession going forward. Everyone in my team is joining this exciting journey.”
Meeting the needs of a new era In order for Singapore to continue to prosper for the next 50 years, it won’t just be about innovative technology or products – it will be the combined efforts of harnessing the potential and talent of Singapore’s diverse workforce. HR will play a critical role in doing this – but the profession needs to be both business and tech savvy. “We in HR will need to step up and play a role to accelerate this transformation,” Wee says. “Being certified proves in one way that we are eligible to provide sound advice to the enterprise on how to do this. What else can be more exciting than shaping Singapore for the future?” For further information on the IHRP Certification visit http://ihrp.sg/certification/ certification-framework
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INSIDE HR
J.P. MORGAN
THINKING OUTSIDE THE BOX With every employer today needing to tap into tech skills, J.P. Morgan is proving that sometimes it helps to look beyond the traditional sources for the brightest talent
SOMETIMES APPEARANCES can be deceiving. The general public may consider J.P. Morgan to be a financial services firm – which it certainly is – but with over 40,000 technologists globally it could also be classified as a technology firm. With technology transforming banking and financial services, along with every other sector, just about every company today needs to have workers with relevant IT skills. In 2017, everything and anything tech is a focus for J.P. Morgan. “We have to compete with the Googles and other tech firms,” says Supriya Doshi, who until September was J.P. Morgan’s head of HR for Singapore. “It means we need to get creative not just with our recruitment but also how we engage employees throughout their tenure with the company.” Indeed, J.P. Morgan is looking beyond conventional recruitment solutions in its hunt for talent, not just for traditional banking roles but also for operations and technology roles.
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Tapping into the next generation As part of a global initiative, the company kicked off its annual campus recruitment campaign in March with pop-up cafes at leading universities. In Asia-Pacific, for example, the cafes appeared at universities in Australia, Hong Kong and Singapore. The campaign aims to attract under
Doshi says last year’s Singapore event saw over 1,000 students take part, of which 650 showed a keen interest in J.P. Morgan and registered for upcoming events and program information. The Central Forum at the National University of Singapore (NUS) campus at Kent Ridge Park (pictured) was transformed
“We’re not afraid of the fintech firms as disruptors; instead we’re looking to work with them, to partner with them” Supriya Doshi, J.P. Morgan graduates from multiple disciplines to careers with J.P. Morgan, in addition to educating them about the company before they have the chance to opt out of pursuing certain career paths due to misconceptions about being unsuitable or not having the right skills and background.
into an al fresco-style cafe where, over a period of four hours, students were able to network with former NUS graduates who had since embarked on successful careers at J.P. Morgan. The pop-ups provide a relaxed and informal setting for students to engage with the bank’s
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Following J.P. Morgan’s Careers Pop-up events in the spring, 600 students attended the annual careers lounge on a number of Singapore campuses. These were designed to help students navigate the different lines of business at the bank and network with employees in an informal environment
in HR and we made her a full-time offer in HR,” Doshi explains. “So it’s all about reaching out to populations that might not be obvious candidates to apply for roles at J.P. Morgan.” There are certain traits the firm is on the lookout for. Students must be eager to learn, have an interest in financial services, have wellrounded experience inside and outside of the classroom, and have demonstrated the ability to master new skills via a strong academic performance. From there, J.P. Morgan’s training and mentorship programs will help build future professionals. “Each of our programs has unique training and mentoring tailored to help our interns and analysts to be successful in that area of the business, and also provides the foundation for them to be successful throughout their career,” says Doshi.
Tech hubs
employees over coffee and snacks in order to learn more about the company. “This is a great opportunity for students to get to know J.P. Morgan, our people and our culture in a casual setting,” says Doshi. “By bringing in analysts and associates who were once in their shoes, the students are able to get tangible career advice and more insights on a career in the financial services industry.” Doshi adds that the initiative has extra resonance in Singapore, which has always been a competitive market for talent, not least at graduate level. “We welcome students from all disciplines and majors, not just business or finance,” she says. “An inclusive and diverse workforce makes smart business sense. Bringing together employees with different backgrounds, experiences and perspectives enables us to produce more innovative ideas and better solutions for our clients.” Doshi talks about a summer intern in 2016 who was a physics major. “She had an interest
J.P. Morgan has several strategic technology hubs scattered throughout the world, and one of these is in Singapore. The technology hubs bring together different technology focus areas – such as cloud, robotics and blockchain – in one location. Each tech hub harnesses innovation and thought leadership, and also provides L&D options to the wider J.P. Morgan employee base. “Our technology population globally is fairly significant and has grown in the last few years, despite challenges in financial services,” says Doshi. “I think we’re becoming a magnet for that talent – that’s part of the reason why we’re on campus doing innovative things. We’re trying to position ourselves so people know they’re coming into a firm that is investing in tech and investing in cloud, robotics – the future. We’re not afraid of the fintech firms as disruptors; instead we’re looking to work with them, to partner with them.” Doshi says the tech focus, as well as the campus recruitment initiatives, can be a tonic for existing employees who have weathered uncertain economic conditions for some time. The financial services sector in particular has witnessed a tough couple of years.
A J.P. MORGAN ‘LIFER’
Supriya Doshi proudly describes herself as “a J.P. Morgan lifer”. She started as a summer intern in 1999 and then converted to a full-time analyst’s role following graduation from university in the US. She then went through J.P Morgan’s corporate analyst development program, rotating through multiple functions in the corporate business. After a number of rotations Doshi was placed in the investment bank technology group. During those four years she was involved in HR-related activity – recruiting on campus, diversity events, mentoring – and it piqued her interest. Ultimately, in 2004 she transitioned into HR and worked in L&D and as a business partner. She moved to Singapore as head of HR two years ago and has recently taken up a senior role at J.P. Morgan in New York. “My first HR job was actually doing technology training,” she says. “This is the advice I give a lot of people. If you have a competency in something – for me at that time I knew technology systems – and you want to get somewhere else, find that anchor and then try to get to where you need to go.”
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INSIDE HR
J.P. MORGAN
“When you see that growth is still happening in the junior talent ranks, you don’t get as nervous about joining a new firm.”
A focus on innovation Technology tends to go hand in hand with innovation, and J.P. Morgan is taking steps to ensure the creative ideas of employees are not neglected. The company recently held its global innovation week, involving different innovation-themed events around the world. In Singapore, for example, J.P Morgan invited guests from New York and Hong Kong, as well as fintech experts and specialists involved in cloud and robotics technology, to take part in panel discussions and webcasts. In addition, its employees tackled real business challenges by holding a hackathon.
the firm in general, is ensuring it’s attracting the right mix of diverse talent into the company. “We definitely make an effort to make sure when we’re recruiting that we’re hiring the best and most qualified candidates but also keeping in mind the elements of diversity,” she says. “In Singapore, we want to hire local talent and we want to ensure we’re hiring women into tech.” It’s significant that J.P Morgan was deemed a ‘Top Performer’ in the Diversity & Inclusion category of HRD Asia’s Employer of Choice Awards in 2016, as this is a priority for the company. As just one example of progress in this area, each year regional diversity councils run internal leadership development programs specifically aimed at diverse talent. These diversity councils are supported by business resource groups comprising over
“At J.P. Morgan we have global themes and global messages – and diversity is certainly one of those themes” Supriya Doshi, J.P. Morgan “I was a judge for the Singapore hackathon,” says Doshi. “We had a ton of great ideas. It’s been a while since I was fully involved in technology, but I was able to follow what was happening and listen in. They were literally building prototypes and demonstrating them. Many of these will be implemented and go into production.” One great example was an idea for a virtual assistant, and while most of the innovations are intended for internal use, some result in enhancing the client customer experience. In September, J.P. Morgan took the hackathon concept to the next level by hosting the ‘Code for Good’ challenge – a companywide recruitment event in which undergrads competed in a day-long hackathon, coding to solve challenges for non-profit organisations.
Future priorities A key focus for Doshi and her team, as well as
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20,000 J.P. Morgan employees. For example, the Women’s Interactive Network (WIN) holds conferences and invites guest speakers to the company. WIN provides access to the tools that enable the successful development, advancement and retention of women at all levels of the business. New hires are also introduced to J.P. Morgan’s approach to D&I during their induction. “It’s something we’re passionate about, and you’re hearing about it not just in the recruitment process but from day one and then all throughout your career here,” says Doshi. “At J.P. Morgan we have global themes and global messages – and diversity is certainly one of those themes.” On a more personal note, in September Doshi announced her return to New York to take up in a senior role at J.P Morgan, no doubt keen to build the next chapter of a career that has already had a taste of global success.
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A Careers Pop-up event hosted by J.P. Morgan
TECH INVESTMENT IN NUMBERS
US$9.5bn
In 2016, J.P. Morgan spent more than US$9.5bn in technology company-wide, of which approximately US$3bn was dedicated to new initiatives.
US$600m
Approximately US$600m was spent on emerging fintech solutions, which included building and improving digital and mobile services and partnering with fintech companies.
32%
Attracting, retaining and developing top talent is a priority for J.P. Morgan, which casts its net far and wide to find the best and the brightest. In 2016, 32% of senior hires in technology globally came from non-financial services companies. Employee training programs cover new skill sets, such as cloud and agile development.
J.P. Morgan invited 40 female undergraduates from STEM faculties across Singapore to its Singapore Corporate Centre. The Winning Women in Technology event offers the students a first-hand look at work in the tech field
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PEOPLE
CAREER PATH
THIRST FOR KNOWLEDGE Her strategy of targeting roles or companies to ensure a diverse skill set has served Linda Hamill well
Linda is the first in her family to attend university, and her ideas about her course of study are indistinct until one specific lecture. “It was impressed on me that education would give me independence. I wanted to study something involving people and business – I didn’t know there was this thing called HR. My first HR class I sat there and thought, ‘This is it; this is what I want to do!’”
1990
2000
BREAKS INTO TECH A desire to be in an innovative field during tech’s emergent days draws Linda to Tower Technology when she hears about a position through a friend.
“This was when IT was really taking off; I was trying to move into tech, but it was a hard field to get into. I think I fluked the interview because we both played tennis! It was a massive life change; I knew it was the right industry.” 2006
STEPS BACK; STRIDES FORWARD
A role that starts as a step back in the immediate aftermath of having a baby changes shape rapidly. “Three and a half months into my new job, my boss told me she was pregnant and asked would I like to take on her position during her maternity leave – these things follow me around! That was my first director role, and it was so exciting. It was a smooth transition, and a great experience.”
2015
FINDS A HOME
FINDS HR
1993
GETS A GROUNDING Her first professional role in HR comes against the backdrop of retail, as an HR coordinator for supermarket giant Franklins; in retrospect, Linda thinks this was an ideal beginning. “Retail is a good training ground. I look back and realise I had a lot of responsibility. I presented to the board when I was 25. It was very exciting. My whole life revolved around Franklins – I even met my husband there!”
2003
BROADENS HORIZONS Joining McAfee marked the first time Linda had grappled with an APAC role; learning became her focus. “I hadn’t even travelled much in my personal life, and there I was negotiating packages in all these different currencies! I had to learn really fast; we called it being ‘consciously incompetent’. I’m naturally curious; I tend to ask a lot of questions. I like to get to the core of a person and I have a natural curiosity around different cultures.”
2010
MOVES INTERNATIONALLY Linda has another chance at the opportunity to relocate to Singapore. She was offered – and had to bitterly decline – a similar opportunity years before. “My girlfriend rang me saying she’d seen an ad that sounded like the role I had already – in Singapore. It was my second chance. I cherish those years; I learnt a lot. There’s only so much you can learn within Australia; you have to look to the rest of the world. It was pivotal to my career.”
When she is approached by VMware, Linda feels she has found a natural match. She is currently HR leader APJ at the company. “I felt the people and company really aligned with my values; I had an intuition that it was the right place to be and I was right. It’s a very caring organisation. My second day they put me through a course to mentor high school students; [making a difference in the community] is embedded in how VMware works. It makes you feel proud.”
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