HRM 12.4

Motivating middle managers Talent diversity Intelligent interviews

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CONTENTS hrm12.4

COVER STORY 22 Managing talent diversity

Experts say that there are many advantages to employing a diverse workforce. However, meeting the expectations of different groups of talent is no mean feat. Organisations speak to HRM about the challenges of managing a diverse talent pool

IN THIS COVER STORY “HR and management play an important role in sending the right message at the time of hiring. We emphasise that the right person needs to be hired regardless of race, affiliations, gender” Pooja Taneja, HR Director, GroupM EDITOR

TRAFFIC MANAGER

JOURNALISTS

SENIOR GRAPHIC DESIGNER

Evelyn Lim

GRAPHIC DESIGNER

Yogesh Chandiramani

Sumathi V Selvaretnam Shalini Shukla-Pandey Priya de Langen EDITORIAL RESEARCHER

Vivien Shiao Shufen

Fiza Ramli Amos Lee

John Paul Lozano

REGIONAL SALES DIRECTOR

ACCOUNT MANAGERS

SENIOR ACCOUNT MANAGER

GENERAL MANAGER

Natasha Vincent Charlene Lim

Kaveri Ayahsamy

REGIONAL MANAGING EDITOR

George Walmsley

MANAGING DIRECTOR

Richard Curzon

PHOTOGRAPHY BY

Frank Pinckers Photography PRINTED BY

Times Printers Pte Ltd

MICA (P) 158/07/2010 ISSN 0219-6883

Published by: Key Media Pte Ltd 121 Telok Ayer Street #02-01 Singapore 068590 • T: +65 6423-4631 • F: +65 6423-4632 • E: info@keymedia.com.sg

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hrm12.4 CONTENTS

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16

36 FEATURES

12 Leaders Talk HR

36 When Talent Meets Technology

16 The Family Farm

42 Boosting HR Capabilities

Talent attraction and retention are at the top of the agenda at open source solutions provider Red Hat. Helping employees develop and gain new expertise is also critical for productivity and growth, says Dirk Peter van Leeuwen, Vice President and General Manager, Red Hat Asia Pacific Dairy Farm, the biggest retail group in Singapore, is also one of the biggest employers here. With an illustrious history and overseeing several retail chains which are all popular household names with generations of Singaporeans, the group has a unique set of challenges. HRM finds out how HR has maintained a familial environment within the entire group

28 Intelligent Interviews: Finding the Best Hires

Completing a successful interview is arguably the most challenging step in the recruitment and selection process. Many factors can affect an interview, from first impressions to responses to the questions asked. What really makes a good interview and how can HR make the best of it to hire talent?

32 Middle Matters

Middle managers, who supervise the majority of employees, seem to be a forgotten group, sandwiched between senior leaders and general employees. What can organisations do to ensure this powerful segment of the workforce is engaged and motivated at work?

Companies are constantly fine-tuning their HR processes to attract and retain the best employees. Increasingly, technology is providing the framework for best-in-class talent management initiatives. HRM shares some interesting insights on this topic In an ever changing business environment, HR needs to constantly update its skills to perform at its peak. Organisations speak to HRM about the latest programmes that can help HR broaden its expertise and improve business acumen

48 A Culture of Health

Neglecting the health of your employees could lead to increased sick days and a drop in productivity and profits in the long run. Regular health screenings and wellness programmes are essential to ensure that they stay hale, hearty and engaged

52 Rewarding Journeys

It is important for companies to reward and recognise outstanding employees who stand out from the pack. Incentive trips are a good way to spur on employees, as well as make them feel valued about their contributions. HRM speaks to several companies to discuss the benefits

REGULARS 4 Analysis

56 Resources

58 Twenty-four Seven

61 View Point

6 News

56 Restaurant Review

59 Talent Feature

62 Talent Ladder

10 Leaders on Leadership

57 In Person

60 Talent Challenge

63 Executive Appointments

Contact us: Read something you like? Or something you don’t? Perhaps there’s some insight we haven’t considered?

Have your say on HRM’s news, features, and contributions by emailing: info@keymedia.com.sg

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analysis

Pregnant? You’re fired D

iscriminatory practices against pregnant employees are still occuring, according to Ministry of Manpower’s (MOM) latest figures.

In 2011, MOM received 112 pregnancy and maternityrelated complaints compared to 84 in 2010. On average, there have been 97 complaints each year between 2006 and 2010, with the highest number recorded in 2009 (147).

However, a MOM spokesperson says that “not all of these relate to unfair dismissal as they also include retrenchments, contractually-expired cases, clarifications on eligibility for maternity leave benefits, and short payment of maternity benefits.”

In an article published in TODAY, Jeslin Neo wrote to say that she had In 2011, MOM received been “unceremoniously retrenched by her employer” when she was three months pregnant. She found out about her pregnancy during her probation and even though she was reassured by the company that she would be treated pregnancy and maternityfairly, her probation was extended and related complaints was eventually terminated. The company cited staff restructuring as a reason.

This is just one case of many that have been filed.

In a country where the total fertility rate is a constant worry, discriminatory practices against pregnant employees needs to be looked into. Experts say that there are many reasons why some organisations have concerns about pregnant employees. Angeline Teo, MD and Principal Consultant, d’Oz International and PEPWorldwide Asia, says that “employers are concerned mainly with productivity issues, especially SMEs where resources and staff strengths may be lean.”

Corinna Lim, Executive Director of the Association of Women for Action & Research (AWARE), notes that employers struggle when staff go on maternity leave or take time off when they experience difficulties during their pregnancy, and there may be a drop in productivity.

Furthermore, “employers may have to modify an employee’s duties to ensure her safety and ability to carry out tasks when she is pregnant,” she explains.

However, she emphasises that employers should not assume that pregnancy prevents women from doing a

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good job or that childbearing workers are less committed to their jobs.

There is also contention regarding the Employment Act and whether it is sufficient in protecting pregnant employees. Complainants and experts highlight that currently the law protects employees for up to only six months of the pregnancy till the due date, and employers can take advantage of this.

Lim says that there are some loopholes in the Employment Act and pregnancy protection is only applicable after the end of the first trimester. “If an employee gets fired before the end of the first trimester, she may have no recourse against the employer and she will effectively be out of a job for at least 12 months.”

She adds that Singapore needs an anti-discrimination law but in its absence, employees who have been discriminated against can approach MOM or Tripartite Alliance for Fair Employment Practices (TAFEP).

However, a MOM spokesperson says that pregnant employees are protected under the law against unfair dismissals and from being denied their maternity leave benefits. “Employers who dismiss their pregnant employees without sufficient cause within the last six months of pregnancy are required to pay the employee maternity benefits that she would have been entitled to, if not for the dismissal.”

Despite the controversy, there are numerous organisations that have been accommodating towards expectant mothers. Companies such as American Express offer flexible working arrangements to these employees. Other companies are helping this group of employees by training temporary workers or other staff to take over their duties for the short term.

Teo says that companies have sufficient time to allow pregnant employees to coach others to take over their duties. She recalls that in her organisation, she started forward planning when she first learned that one of her employees was pregnant. “I appointed an assistant to provide her with the support for field work and to help with the transition; the employee acted as a coach and transferred her knowledge and skills to her assistant. When she went on maternity leave, the work was done smoothly.”

NEWS ASIA SINGAPORE

Stat boards lead the way in boardroom gender diversity New research reveals that women are better Council (63.6%) and the Singapore Nursing represented in the boardrooms of local statutory Board (70.6%). boards than in the boardrooms of listed In contrast, 11 statutory boards did not have companies in Singapore. As of February 2012, a single woman in their boardrooms, despite an female directors held 19.8% of board positions average board size of 14 directors. These are, on Singapore’s statutory boards, while only namely: the Agency for Science, Technology 6.9% of the corporate directors at Singapore and Research; the Building and Construction Exchange-listed companies were women.

Authority; the Council for Estate Agencies; the Women were also better represented in the Inland Revenue Authority of Singapore; role of chairperson on statutory boards with International Enterprise Singapore; the Maritime 16.9% female Chairs, compared to 2.7% on the and Port Authority of Singapore; the Monetary boards of listed companies.

Authority of Singapore; This research is a new Nanyang Polytechnic; Indian IT industry to hire addition to the Singapore Public Utilities Board; Board Diversity Index, Temasek Polytechnic; and which tracks gender the Urban Redevelopment for FY13 diversity in the boardrooms Authority.

Source: National Association of of Singapore-listed firms.

A large majority of Software and Services Companies The inaugural review statutory boards (83.1%), of gender diversity in the however, had at least one boardrooms of Singapore’s 65 statutory boards female director on their boards. The Singapore found that three organisations had at least half of Nursing Board had the largest number of women their boardrooms made up of female directors: in its boardroom, with 12 out of 17 board National Parks (50%), the Singapore Pharmacy members. The study also found there are

200,000

MALAYSIA

Lack of industrial and language skills plague grads A study conducted by the Federation of Malaysian Manufacturers (FMM) has found that graduates in the country are not adequately trained in industrial skills and have a poor grasp of the English language, leading them to remain unemployed.

Other factors that contribute are low problem-solving skills, job-hopping and a lack of self-confidence, Higher Education Ministry student development and affairs director Prof Dr Mohd Fauzi Ramlan said.

He said graduates should also avoid being over particular about jobs and make improvements on their command of the English language.

“They have themselves to blame if they fail to convince employers of their potential,” he told local newspaper, Bernama.

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directors holding multiple directorships on statutory boards, although no individual director holds more than four statutory board directorships.

“As statutory boards represent the public interest, we were pleased to see the higher percentage of female participation. Boards with a diverse composition by gender, age, skills and experience can draw on the diversity of opinion to derive benefits for society in general”, said BoardAgender co-Chairs Junie Foo and Juanita Woodward.

The research into statutory boards follows the launch of the inaugural Singapore Board Diversity Report in October 2011, where Mdm Halimah Yacob, Minister of State for Community Development, Youth and Sports, said that appointments to statutory boards and government-linked companies would represent a good start in terms of having more women on boards.

SINGAPORE

Job market likely to be cautious in 2012 According to Robert Walters’ Global Salary Survey, many companies will practise “cautious optimism” and take into account global economic uncertainty when making headcount decisions.

Recruitment will still take place but organisations will be prudent in the first half of 2012, and be keen to introduce the right talent to add value to their company.

There is likely to be an influx of engineering, HR, secretarial support, IT, as well as sales & marketing roles for professionals across the FMCG, IT & telecommunications, and industrial sectors.

This is largely due to the continued growth in these areas, which have been less immediately affected by global economic uncertainty compared to the banking & financial services sector.

Technical healthcare has been found to be an area of growth with constant demand for experienced professionals due to its niche nature and limited talent pool.

The salary survey also found that contracting may be an option for employers experiencing challenges in securing approval for additional permanent headcount, as well as for candidates who are open to the prospect of new, exciting projects.

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NEWS ASIA ASIA

Productivity gains tied to BYOD

ASIA

One-third of senior staff hired by executive recruiters

Allowing employees to use the technology Asian companies now hire about one out of devices and applications of their choice every three senior executives using executive produces a happier and more efficient recruiters, estimates CTPartners, an executive workforce, according to new consumer research search firm. CTPartners says that 10 years commissioned by VMware, Inc., a virtualisation ago, almost all the senior executive positions and cloud infrastructure solutions provider. in Asia placed by international search firms The VMware New Way of Work Study, tended to be for foreign multinational conducted across 10 countries in Asia-Pacific corporations. In 10 years’ time, the including Japan, found that those using their proportion of senior talent hires by foreign own devices to complete work tasks saw multinational and Asian companies in the significant boosts in productivity at all levels region is likely to be 50/50. of business. This occurrence is most prevalent “Nowadays, Asian companies, including in Thailand (81% of respondents), India (72% Chinese state-owned enterprises, are less of respondents), China (69% of respondents) inclined to rely on their own networks to and South Korea (68% of respondents). search for their next chief executive, In addition, more than one-third (38%) of regional director or international business respondents believe their “on-the-job” development head for instance, and will turn efficiency was negatively impacted by strict to global executive recruiters so as to extend corporate IT policies and that they were less their search across the world and across productive at solving work and business industries,” said Train Luo, Managing problems. Also, with 71% of respondents on Partner of CTPartners in China. average spending more time working outside of “Asian companies are also increasingly the office, they feel they could achieve more open to hiring western executive talent, success at work when allowed particularly if the Vietnam aims to send to use their own devices and candidates bring web-based applications. highly technical, Andrew Dutton, Senior functional or product workers overseas in 2012 expertise, and have Vice President and General Source: Overseas Labour Manager, VMware Asia Management Department, Vietnam Pacific Japan, said, “the post-PC era has driven INDIA technological advances and removed technological barriers to work productivity.

Enlightened businesses today recognise this and are modernising their IT policies; as a Employer branding is not very prevalent among result, they can build more effective, more Indian employers. The latest TJinsite Research agile and ultimately happier organisations.”

Report shows that only 24% of respondents Respondents in South Korea (96%), have a clear employer branding strategy. More China (94%), Thailand (90%), Hong Kong than 40% claim that they have a strategy, but it (89%), Singapore (88%) and Malaysia could be developed further; and 26% say that (82%) recorded the highest incidence of they do not have one, but are working on it.

Bring-Your-Own-Device (BYOD) to work A lack of vision and clarity is seen as the among the 10 countries. primary challenge in realising employer Dutton said: “To be at the forefront of branding. According to the survey by TJinsite, new IT, organisations need to revaluate IT the research site of TimesJobs.com, this is policies and keep an open mind. As employees strongly felt in the BFSI and the BPO sectors, re-imagine the workplace, technologies such where 75% state this as a problem. Another as virtualisation, cloud computing services and 40% state the lack of senior management security will help companies adapt.” engagement as a challenge, which is again

90,000

already spent a long time living and working in Asia,” he added.

Kathryn Yap, Managing Partner of CTPartners in Singapore says that as the Asian businesses of global firms expand and diversify, their senior management roles can no longer be filled effectively by one-dimensional executives.

“What’s required are executives with profit and loss experience, strategy expertise, and bottom-line skills as well as people management skills,” said Yap. “As a result of the red hot demand for such talent, seasoned professionals with top-level general management expertise are among the most difficult executives to identify and retain in the Asia-Pacific region.”

Over the last decade, CTPartners has also witnessed an over-tenfold increase in the number of candidates from the US and Europe who want to work in Asia. “The economic slowdown in the West has resulted in an interest in moving here, in search of greener pastures,” said Yap.

Employer branding not a priority

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symptomatic of the lack of vision on the organisation’s part.

However, employers do believe that companies with strong employer brands can potentially reduce the cost of employee acquisition, improve employee relations and also help increase employee retention, reported The Economic Times.

“An attractive employer can create for employees an illusion that their choices are limited outside of the organisation, constantly maintaining an image of being the most desirable employer, which gives the right reasons or incentives for their top performers to stay,” said the report.

NEWS INTERNATIONAL US

WORLD

Unhappy grads suing law schools

New York is world’s most competitive city

US law school graduates have taken to suing their schools for exaggerating employment prospects.

According to an online blog in Reuters, graduates from New York Law School, Michigan’s Thomas M. Cooley Law School and other lower-tier schools are demanding refunds as they did not get the legal jobs they were allegedly promised.

It was cited that the schools touted more than 90% employment rates for recent graduates. In the U.S. News & World Report 2012 rankings, 59 of 143 law schools noted a more than 90% employment rate for recent graduates. However, schools are stating that though these figures are accurate, that does not mean that it is a guarantee and lawyers should understand that there is a sluggish job market.

The graduate employment rate figures may include non-legal, part-time, and temporary work.

New York has been ranked as the most competitive city in the world, followed by London in second place, and Singapore in third.

Hong Kong came in joint fourth alongside Paris.

The study conducted by the Economist Intelligence Unit measured 120 global cities’ competitiveness based on their ability to attract capital, business, talent and tourists.

In the category of having the best human capital, Dublin ranked the first (though it ranked on the global list as the 27th). This was based on the size of the city’s working-age population, the quality of education, the entrepreneurial mindset among citizens and the ease in hiring foreign nationals.

The report also found that despite budget deficits and ageing infrastructure, US and European cities remain the world’s most competitive. Moreover, the study also highlighted that the recession has not reduced the ability to attract capital, Almost businesses, talent and tourists for US and European cities.

In the category of quality of workforce, Hong Kong, Copenhagen, Paris and Geneva came out the top people have been made five with Tel Aviv scoring the lowest. redundant in the past

2.7 MILLION IRELAND

Special resident visas for investors Ireland will start offering special visas in a bid to interest individuals who invest in the country under a new scheme. The country’s Justice Minister, Mr Alan Shatter stated that the new scheme has great potential and that may lead to businesspeople from China, Brazil or various non-EU countries residing in Ireland.

Potential immigrants have a range of investment options, from a one-time payment of a minimum of €500,000 to a public project benefiting the arts, sports, health or education to investing a minimum of €1m in venture capital funding into an Irish business for a minimum of three years.

There will also be a finder’s fee of around €4,000 for those who are able to source potential investors. Investors will also be allowed to bring family with them on their visas, which will be granted for two years and is renewable thereafter.

four years in the UK Source: CIPD, UK

UK

Workplace absence a serious issue Employee absence is hindering business productivity, especially with four in 10 (40%) people in small companies stating that they are “holding down the fort” due to staff absences.

According to the latest research by UK healthcare provider, Bupa, 62% of small businesses stated that employee absence is negatively impacting the business and is estimated to have cost them 10% of their turnover.

Figures also revealed that with the slow economy and lack of resources, 31% of small business owners said that their business would fail if they took time off.

However, 38% of them admitted that they spend more on stationery than supporting employee health measures.

Tony Wood, sales and marketing director at Bupa commended these business owners’ commitment to run their businesses even while sick. However, he added that they needed to think about how to take care of their health needs as well as their employees since working while sick is not a long-term solution.

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leaders on leadership

Leadership advice What is the best piece of advice that you have received on leadership, and how have you applied it at work?

Thiam Kok Beng

Marketing Director, APAC, Compuware

For me, the best piece of leadership advice that I have read was to “be a humble leader.” In Jim Collins’ book Good to Great, he highlights the almost paradoxical nature of individuals who are not only driven by great will, but who also possess humility. Like Jim, I believe a good leader is a humble leader, and such individuals tend to have wider spheres of influence and can instill higher levels of confidence and loyalty in their teams.

At Compuware, we operate by this belief with these four simple rules: » Look for opportunities to credit others: Always acknowledge the excellent work of your team and give credit when due. » Take responsibility for your team’s actions: Being a leader means being part of a bigger team. Take responsibility if something goes wrong and share the credit when things go right. » Be generous when promoting others: Promotions are integral to the development of talent and ultimately, organisational growth. » Be sincere: Sincerity is often overlooked and undervalued in an organisation.

Be sincere and have confidence in your team’s abilities. An organisation in which employees feel appreciated and respected by their leaders will undoubtedly experience success.

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Dominic Powers

Senior VP & MD, International Operations, Epsilon International

One piece of advice on leadership that has always guided me throughout my years of managing and leading teams across Europe and the Asia Pacific region is the need to have a consistent and decisive style of leadership - be it in good times or bad.

While the decisions that you ultimately make as a leader may be different and influenced by market conditions, uncertainty should never be an excuse to change the way you actually lead.

Core leadership traits like honesty, transparency and trust are also key to building great teams.

However, being consistent with these values is essential in developing long-lasting relationships with employees, which are a must when delivering against your corporate objectives.

During times of change and uncertainty, the job of a leader is much easier if you have always been consistently honest and transparent.

Negative or unpopular news or conversations around change can be easier to accept if team members trust you, and are confident that they have been told the truth.

For me, consistency is key to leadership success.

Philip Yen

Group Head, Emerging Payments, Asia/Pacific, Middle East & Africa, MasterCard Worldwide

As managers, we have been taught and conditioned by our organisation to follow closely to the budgets provided by organisations to run our various programmes and plans. While the budget process helps an organisation to manage resources, it is often the reason why managers end up not acting on what they believe are the right decisions.

One of the best pieces of advice I have received was from Vicky Bindra, President of MasterCard for Asia/ Pacific, Middle East and Africa. “Go execute,” he said. “And the organisation will find the money and people resources to support you, if the opportunity is sound.”

All too often, managers shy away from tackling new challenges because of budget restrictions. I was no different as I was concerned about keeping to the budget instead of taking on new opportunities. However, Vicky advised me not to let these considerations limit me from taking the initiative.

Along the same line, he also advised that we should not let internal allocation of cost limit us from developing new business opportunities. His words have certainly inspired and encouraged me to be aggressive with opportunities that come my way and not allow internal considerations to take centre stage.

leaders talk hr

Top Hat

Talent attraction and retention are at the top of the agenda at open source solutions provider Red Hat. Helping employees develop and gain new expertise is also critical for productivity and growth, says Dirk Peter van Leeuwen, Vice President and General Manager, Red Hat Asia Pacific

By Sumathi V Selvaretnam

W

ith a global workforce of over 4,000 employees, Red Hat prides itself as being the “the biggest small company in the world.” This stems from the underlying belief that its brand and reputation far exceed its size.

However, competing with companies that have many times more resources than it, Red Hat requires a passionate pool of employees who can deliver the goods.

In the IT world, the open source software model thrives on a spirit of collaboration and innovation, and naturally these are some of the core qualities that Red Hat desires from its potential employees.

Red Hat prides itself “We look for a certain type of personality. The people who as being the work at Red Hat bring about an attitude to the work floor that is refreshing, and they are keen on making a difference,” says Dirk Peter van Leeuwen, Vice President and General Manager, Red Hat Asia Pacific. In the spirit of open source, Red Hat employees are also not afraid to share what they personally design, he adds. So employees who fiercely guard their ideas, in the world for example, might not be a good fit for the organisation.

BIGGEST SMALL COMPANY

Getting the right talent

Red Hat pays a lot of attention to its recruitment process to ensure that it hires employees who fit well into the organisation. “One of the biggest challenges is finding good, reliable salespeople who understand the culture and business model of the company. They need to see the challenge in selling something different,” van Leeuwen says.

The company uses a variety of recruitment methods to reach out to potential candidates, such as LinkedIn, professional recruiters, and regular job

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leaders talk hr

Bio brief Dirk-Peter van Leeuwen is Red Hat’s Vice President & General Manager for the Asia Pacific region. He is responsible for expanding Red Hat’s presence and oversees all Sales, Marketing, and Services throughout the region. Van Leeuwen first joined Red Hat in 2004 with the remit of establishing Red Hat’s operations in Belgium, The Netherlands and Luxembourg (Benelux). By 2008, van Leeuwen’s portfolio included the Central and Eastern European (CEE) market operations, and he was promoted to Vice President for CEE, responsible for sales and general management of Red Hat’s business in the region. Under van Leeuwen’s leadership, the Central, Eastern European and Benelux region became Red Hat’s fastest growing territory in 2008 and saw a 15% increase of its customer base. Van Leeuwen has over 20 years’ experience in the IT industry and has a deep understanding of the enterprise software market and the channels in Europe.

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leaders talk hr

advertisements. However, employee referrals are the best way to get quality candidates, he says. Current employees who make a successful recommendation are given an internal referral fee. “The easiest way to get like-minded people is through people who work for Red Hat and their networks.”

Shortlisted candidates undergo a very stringent hiring process that HR refers to as “Right for Red Hat.” Each candidate is interviewed by individual interviewers who each focus on specific areas such as technical job skills or soft skills. The interviewers will then convene and review their assessments of the candidate. “It is a powerful methodology as you are not just focusing on one individual competency but competencies across the board. Are they really right for Red Hat and are they showing the right personal traits?” says van Leeuwen.

Onboarding employees

All new employees joining Red Hat attend a sales boot camp. This intensive week-long programme aims to enlighten employees on the company culture, its business model as well as its main products and technologies. “Our business model is very different from other companies. Traditional software companies sell a licence, granting users access to their intellectual property.

At Red Hat, we sell services like support, updates and legal All employees who complete their protection for using software. Employees need to be aware of new hire training receive a how to position this to a customer,” van Leeuwen explains.

Employees attending the boot camp undergo a daily examination to assess their understanding of the topics covered and the results are reported back to the Chief Executive Officer. “It enables the CEO to see if we are hiring the right people,” he says.

New employees are also given 90-day goals to better understand how they are settling into the organisation. “This is not meant to judge the employee but aims to get feedback from the employee on how the first 90 days went,” van Leeuwen says.

Red Hat also encourages its employees to undergo internal and external certification programmes to boost their skills sets. However, gaining these qualifications is not a walk in the park and often come with fairly rigorous exams. The Red Hat Certified Engineer certification, for example, is open to the public and often 50% of those enrolled do not make the mark, van Leeuwen says.

RED FEDORA

Spurring growth

As a leader in the open source space, Red Hat strongly encourages employees to come up with their own ideas and contribute towards projects. “This allows people to focus on their strengths and make their careers bloom,” van Leeuwen says.

Red Hat does not always set its employees on a clear career path. Instead, the company expects them to take their own initiative. Quarterly and annual reviews enable employees to set their own career paths in collaboration with their managers, says van Leeuwen. “We use a ‘Compass’ system where we look at where the needle is pointing and ask employees if this is where they want to go,” he says. This allows the company to see if the employee’s current role is contributing towards its vision for the future. Training and educational programmes are then provided to prepare the employee for the next level.

Red Hat University is an internal training system that combines online and classroom lessons in areas such as leadership, personal development and product

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leaders talk hr

knowledge. “It is available at any time. It is also a very interactive system with live role-plays where employees can respond or ask questions,” van Leeuwen says.

Employees are given points for completing courses on the system. They must obtain a minimum number of points per year as part of their annual performance review. Under this system, employees attend at least a week’s worth of training each year, says van Leeuwen.

Grooming leaders

Developing leadership fundamentals among employees is another important item on the HR agenda at Red Hat. Taking on this responsibility is the company’s Leadership and Management College, a dedicated department in the US, which also has staff based in Singapore. The college provides a host of training programmes that cover the gamut of leadership challenges, from handling difficult situations to assessing and growing talent in the organisation.

High-potential employees are also sent for an intensive week-long leadership training programme in the US. It includes workshops conducted by professors from US universities. “Leadership development is a very important part of our business. As we are fast-growing, we have to build new leaders for the future,” van Leeuwen says.

According to van Leeuwen, succession planning goes hand in hand with leadership development. “We assess each individual employee and look at the potential they may have as a successor, as well as what risks we face if key leaders leave.” This process is carried out very diligently with fixed deadlines, he adds.

Me-myself-I + I love: Interacting with people from all backgrounds and cultures + I dislike: Beating around the bush, vagueness + My inspiration: People who work their way up by proving their own skills, not just through paper qualifications + Strength: Quickly seeing opportunities and quickly removing obstacles + Weakness: Short attention span + Five years on: I hope that I still enjoy what I am doing. It’s the passion that makes success + Favourite quote: The most important thing that you can be in your life is yourself

Work culture

The open source nature of the industry spills over to the work environment and company culture at Red Hat, where communication channels are kept free and open. “We have email lists where everybody can freely communicate their thoughts and ideas without consequence. There are very lively discussions going on there. It gives people a platform to feel that they are really part of the success of an organisation,” says van Leeuwen.

A typical day for van Leeuwen starts on the plane, as he travels regularly to meet his regional teams and to join customer meetings. “When you get information from the food chain up, it is always information that people believe you want to hear. As one of my past bosses once said: ‘I want to know the good, the bad and the ugly. And I want to hear the ugly first’.” issue 12.4

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The

family farm Dairy Farm Singapore, the country’s largest retail group, oversees several chains which are all popular household names with generations of families in Singapore. With nearly 10,000 employees, it is also one of the biggest employers here. Carol Yong, HR Director, lets HRM in on how HR maintains a familial environment within the entire group

By Shalini Shukla-Pandey

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T

he retail scene in Singapore is vibrant and competitive. However, manpower issues constantly threaten to dampen growth.

“Productivity growth is still not at optimal levels as FMCG businesses are intricately dependent on manpower,” says Carol Yong, HR Director, Dairy Farm Singapore. “Work processes and technology have yet to be fully-leveraged to reduce manpower dependence.”

Despite the on-going local labour and talent crunch especially in the service sector, Dairy Farm Singapore, the country’s largest retail group and one of the biggest employers with nearly 10,000 employees across the different retail chains, has adopted innovative people strategies to remain competitive.

These innovative strategies and the energy, passion and pride in performance that staff have has resulted in the retail group being the first and only retail company in Singapore to clinch the prestigious People Excellence Award. The award is the highest accolade given to any organisation through its people system.

hr insider

At a glance It has also launched management trainee and scholarship programmes from pre-tertiary to tertiary levels.

Golden employees

Talent crunch

By far the biggest challenge that HR at Dairy Farm Singapore faces is recruitment. At any one time, the retail group must deal with a shortage of 800 cashiers and sales service assistants. “Whenever we hire someone, we need to train them in the shortest time possible, and we aim to groom the top performers to become store leaders to cope with the business’ growth and expansion,” says Yong.

“These challenges are made even tougher by the competition for service workers from the two integrated resorts and the near full employment rate in Singapore, and the tightening of the foreign worker quota and increase in foreign worker levies.”

To overcome manpower constraints, a recruitment taskforce is set up specifically to focus on optimising every possible channel to bring in more local staff.

The HR team conducts aggressive recruitment of locals of all ages, including mature workers, women re-joining the workforce and mid-career transitions.

+ Total number of staff: Under Cold Storage, Market Place and Shop N Save supermarkets, Giant hypermarket, Guardian Health & Beauty and 7-Eleven - 9,700 full-time and part-time employees (including franchisees) + Size of HR team: 50 + Key HR focus areas: recruitment, retention, productivity, sustainability

Another substantial part of the retail group’s talent mix is mature workers. Dairy Farm Singapore has had a long history of being an age-friendly organisation and its subsidiaries, including Cold Storage, Guardian Health & Beauty, 7-Eleven and Shop N Save, have been employing mature workers for decades, long before the re-employment law was enforced in Singapore.

“Since the 1990s, we have been officially offering re-employment contracts to all our retirees to re-join us on full-time or part-time yearly renewable contracts. We never really retire our people,” says Yong.

“We call our employees aged 62 years and above, ‘Golden Employees’. They are indeed gold to us, considering their age and that they choose to enjoy ‘retirement’ by working with us. What a privilege to have such valuable employees!”

Dairy Farm Singapore has 1,700 employees aged 50 years and above, making up 22% of the total workforce. Of them, 280 are aged 62 years and above. Yong says the group’s experience with mature workers has been inspiringly positive.

“Not only are they responsible and dedicated, but they are usually punctual at work and hardly fall sick,” she says. “They are not as physically agile or as fast as younger employees but, given their experience and attention to detail, their quality of work and service is often outstanding and exemplary.”

Yong attributes having regular customers to this group of workers as well, saying it is one of the reasons why customers keep shopping with the retail group.

Many Golden Employees have risen from the ranks and continue to shoulder supervisory and managerial responsibilities despite their advanced age. This is invaluable to Dairy Farm Singapore as they continue to impart their knowledge and skills generously to the next generation of employees.

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hr insider

Case Study of a Golden Employee

Oldest & Longest Serving Employee award winner: Tan Kim Hai Tan Kim Hai, 77, has had an impressive 54 years of service with Dairy Farm Singapore. Currently a storekeeper at Cold Storage Takashimaya, he is the Group’s longest-serving employee.

Tan is affectionately known as ‘Uncle’ by all his colleagues at Takashimaya. He has also served in the union branch committee for many years.

Tan first joined Cold Storage in 1957 as a despatch clerk with the first Tan Kim Hai, at Cold Fitzpatrick branch. His sharp sense of hearing helped him catch a supplier storekeeper Storage Takashimaya in the act of taking an item from the store. He had heard a light thud and saw the supplier discarding a store item into the supplier’s box. Also, his punctuality is second to none.

“I like to work at Cold Storage as the working environment is very comfortable, with friendly colleagues. I am also appreciative that my managers take good care of me,” says Tan. “As a union branch committee member, I have learnt a lot. I treat Cold Storage as my family and will continue to do my best to contribute.”

Dairy Farm’s family culture keeps its Golden Employees engaged and motivated at work.

“They have said that they are touched by the sincerity and consistent warmth, care and concern showered upon them by their bosses and colleagues, especially during times of personal hardships and illness,” says Yong.

“This motivates them to continue working with the company. They are appreciative of the training opportunities and the trust and confidence in them, even in their golden years.”

The retail group recently held a celebration lunch at a prestigious hotel in Singapore to thank 275 Golden Employees and their family members for their contributions.

Over the years, many productivity and age-friendly initiatives have been introduced by various business banners at Dairy Farm Singapore. Some of them include: autoreplenishment (reduces manual replenishment

ordering); radio frequency receiving (reduces manual checking and errors); simplified pointof-sales checkout processes (reduces work load); flexible work arrangements (part-time, split shift, etc); and free health screening.

“Importantly, the company must have a family culture in the workplace with supportive bosses and colleagues,” says Yong. “This is critical so that during challenging times at work or at home, staff are still motivated to persevere, as all things become possible and bearable with strong encouragement and support at the workplace. This principle applies to all generations of workers, young and old.”

Talent development

Dairy Farm Singapore also looks towards providing staff a career roadmap, fast-tracking training and enlarging job scopes to optimise existing staff strength, ensure employees grow with the organisation and achieve sustainable growth and expansion of the company.

To ensure that new recruits are retained especially in the first year, a ‘train before work’ policy was executed with other touch points like having a ‘buddy’ at the workplace, structured On-the-Job-Training (OJT) and first anniversary celebrations.

In the first three years of service, employees are put through a structured development roadmap as per their job scope. This roadmap is further tailored to individual needs based on an annual human resource planning review with their direct supervisor, where they are assessed against core

Who’s who in HR?

Carol Yong

Celestina Lee

Melati Alui

Iming Bahari

Jean Kok

Jocelyn Chan

HR Director

Human Capital Manager (Cold Storage)

Human Capital Manager (Giant & SNS)

Human Capital Manager (Guardian)

Human Capital Manager (7-Eleven)

Human Capital Manager

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hr insider Workplace Health Promotion Engage HMI Consulting as your Consultant & Programme Service Provider

Tapping on diversity Not only is Dairy Farm Singapore a big proponent of employing mature workers (refer to Case Study), the organisation also promotes diversity by employing people with disabilities. Oh Siew May, born in 1971 with cerebral palsy, is one such former employee of the group, joining Cold Storage supermarket in Chancery Court in 1996.

Oh was responsible for stacking and displaying products and also serving customers. Most of the customers were expatriates and she befriended them through her excellent service and jovial mannerisms. Due to her efforts, she was given the best employee award every year and also the excellent service award.

“I felt motivated to work hard as my manager was very kind to me,” says Oh. “I experienced great joy and fun while working there.”

However, an unfortunate accident brought her career at Cold Storage to an end. She slipped a disc while unloading a box of vegetables.

Create a Healthy, Happy, Motivated & Productive Workforce!

competencies. Through this regime, top performers are identified early and put on a fast-tracked programme.

“It is not unusual to find top performers being promoted twice a year and being moved rapidly through the ranks,” says Yong. “To grow their breadth and depth of knowledge and leadership, they are constantly given exposure in group and banner projects, including being sent overseas to help start up a new business.”

On top of the usual promote-from-within opportunities, Dairy Farm Singapore has many leadership activities available to employees. These include the Management Trainee programme, project leader for Dairy Farm Group projects like talent development, supply chain optimisation, and project leader for banner business projects like Cold Storage Kid’s Run and 7-Eleven’s 500th store celebrations.

Talented trainees are also sent on secondment overseas to open new stores and help train the staff there.

As one of Dairy Farm Singapore’s biggest challenges is its ability to develop strong leaders fast enough to keep up with aggressive business growth, there is a need to create a continuous and adequate pipeline of talent and successors to fill all key positions in the short term of one to three years.

Hence, nurturing future leaders has been a key strategic goal since 2002. CEOs from different banners rotate to drive the talent development initiative on a yearly basis. A pool of 25 talents are identified and groomed each year, specifically to prepare them for higher responsibilities at the end of the programme.

They are trained in financial/business analysis, leadership, influencing, and project management skills.

To hone their retail acumen, they are given real business projects and are empowered to execute changes to deliver quantum results.

“Of all the talents trained to date since 2002, we achieved a strong 60% retention rate and an equally strong 33% success rate in placing these talents in higher job appointments,” says Yong.

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Exclusive iPad-only content & videos The latest hrm news & HR jobs delivered instantly Interactive data that you can sort the way you want

Talent Management Special + Managing talent diversity + Intelligent interviews: Finding the best hires + Motivating middle managers + When talent meets technology

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talent management special

Managing

talent diversity 22

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talent management special

Experts say that there are many advantages to employing a diverse workforce. However, meeting the expectations of different groups of talent is no mean feat. Organisations speak to HRM about the challenges of managing a diverse talent pool

By Priya de Langen

F

ast food giant, McDonald’s employs people from all walks of life, aged 18 to 80. Operating in more than 118 countries, the organisation has a diverse workforce, as varied as the millions of customers that it serves around the globe. In the US team alone, women and people of colour make up 73% of McDonald’s total workforce, 43% of all franchise staff and 55% of suppliers. The management behind the golden arches takes diversity seriously, so much so that it even has a Global Chief Diversity Officer (CDO) role. Currently, the organisation is known to be one of the best equal opportunity employers on the globe.

Likewise, an increasing number of organisations understand the benefits of employing a diverse workforce. According to a study conducted by the Bank of America Merrill Lynch last year, 94% of employers (respondents) believe it is critical to retain older employees due to the talent and skills they possess. Also, 98% stated that attracting younger employees is important to broaden the talent and skills of their workforce.

Though organisations in Singapore are interested in talent across the board, they highlight that HR and senior management must lead the way in putting in place practices that would help in promoting and developing a diverse workforce. issue 12.4

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talent management special

“It’s our firm belief that our employees’ diversity, cultures and ideas are essential to this innovation”

Setting the pace

Employers say that HR and management should set the pace and the groundwork to encourage diversity in an organisation.

Technology giant, Qualcomm, embraces diversity in its workforce. “Qualcomm has been innovative and it uses technology to make a difference in people’s lives. It’s our firm belief William Chin, Staffing Director, that our employees’ diversity, cultures and ideas are essential to this Qualcomm Asia Pacific innovation,” states Qualcomm Asia Pacific’s staffing director, William Chin.

Chin says that the senior management and HR of the organisation play an integral role in driving a diverse workforce. “By creating a culture and environment where employees are open to the ideas and perspectives of others who are perhaps not like them is critical to how we operate as a business,” he explains.

Alvin Chan Kit Wan, HR Director, Asia Talent management and Learning & Development, Celestica, says that his organisation ensures that it employs a diverse group of employees. “Celestica’s talent imperative is based solely on merit and potential. Our high potentials are comprised of a good mix of both men and women, from different nationalities, and they come from the Baby Boomers’ generation, Gen X and Gen Y,” he says.

He adds that HR in the organisation plays a big role in promoting diversity. “By and large, mature MNCs like Celestica, which has been practising diversity for a long period of time, it has become the norm rather than the exception.”

Media agency GroupM is another employer that has talent from different groups of people, ranging from senior and mature workers to the younger generation.

Pooja Taneja, HR Director, GroupM, explains that HR and management ensure diversity flows from top down.

How can companies go about implementing workplace in their organisations? Here “HR and management play an important are some tips: role in sending the right message at the time of + Identify your company needs hiring.

We emphasise that the right person + Develop and implement an equal opportunity employment policy – establish a needs to be hired regardless of race, meritorious recruitment practice, change the company’s mission statement to reflect affiliations, gender,” she says. the inclusive policy Moreover, she says that within the + Create a committee that can help implement the policy and allow for a platform for organisation, positions are made available new ideas to be contributed that would add to workplace diversity for people with the right skill, and a fair + Emphasise interesting details and be culturally sensitive when advertising a job performance review process is in place so position to attract a diverse workforce that employees feel that their assessment is + Provide diversity training to all managers and employees an honest one.

Implement workplace diversity

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talent management special

Diverse strategies

Striving for Corporate Excellence

94%

Learning and development are pivotal for organisations to maximise the full potential of their staff and adapt to the changing face of the market and competition. Find out how you can increase the effectiveness of training and learning in your organisation.

of employers (respondents) believe it is critical to retain older employees due to the talent and skills they possess

Sign up now. Push the boundaries of excellence!

Employers say that there is no one-size-fits-all strategy to managing Study conducted by talent in a diverse workforce.

Bank of America Merrill Lynch However, different strategies can be used to attract and engage the different groups. For example, a compensation strategy is used at Skyline Construction, a San Franciscobased builder, where eligible employees can pick their own salaries – within a certain range – choosing between lower salaries and a shot at a larger bonus, and higher salaries and the possibility of a smaller bonus.

Qualcomm has in place an equal opportunity recruitment strategy.

Chin says that the Singapore workforce reflects the general population of society. “Each year, we hire new graduates (ie, Gen Y) and experienced engineers, and we’ve been increasing our hiring of female engineers. We also have employees working in Singapore who are from around the Asia region, the US, as well as Europe.”

Chin adds that Qualcomm uses various ways to engage its employees. “First and foremost, Qualcomm fosters a culture where engaged people bring their unique talents and experiences, all focused towards innovation, execution and partnership.” He says that in order to enable a diverse group of people to work together efficiently, the organisation provides employees with necessary training so they are equipped with skills to work across cultures.

The organisation’s training includes workshops for all employees on diversity and working across cultures. Also, Gen Y and new graduate employees are offered a “Backpack to Briefcase” training programme through discussions such as making transition from school to corporate work life and managing performance expectations. In addition, Qualcomm provides global training on fostering an inclusive workforce.

The organisation not only offers training to all employees to inculcate an inclusive culture, but also has focus groups to help develop certain groups of employees. There is the QWISE (Qualcomm Women In Science and Engineering) that focuses on the professional development of women engineers at Qualcomm.

“Members coordinate mentoring programmes and monthly learning opportunities. We also have employee special interest groups where employees come together on their own,” says Chin.

Non-work related activities can also foster a sense of inclusiveness among different groups of employees. Pooja says that GroupM offers a variety of programmes that allow people of different groups to come together. On a monthly basis, there is the “Eat with the family day” where all employees can leave the office earlier in order to spend time with their families. There is also a “Trolley day” in the office where issue 12.4

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Human Resource and Training Conducting Behaviour Based Interviews 12 - 13 Apr Conducting Effective Training Needs Analysis 9 - 11 May Developing an Effective Training Administrator 18 - 20 Apr or 18 - 20 Jun Developing an Effective Training Instructor 21 - 25 May Measuring the Effectiveness of Training and Development 16 - 17 Apr Measurement of Human Resource Practices 30 - 31 May Successful Career Planning and Development 26 - 27 Apr On-The-Job Training On-The-Job Training Instructor Course 4, 11 & 18 Apr or 7, 14 & 21 Jun On-The-Job Training Manager Course 20 & 27 Apr People Developer Standard (PDS) People Developer Assessor Course 12 – 13 Apr Communication Delivering Powerful and Persuasive Presentations 28 – 29 May Creating a Positive Professional Image 19 – 20 Apr Interpersonal Communication – Connecting Effectively 9 - 10 Apr Effective Business Writing Skills 7 – 8 May Customised Trainings are also available.

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talent management special

Business benefits to a diverse workforce + It helps build a reputation of an equal opportunity employer + The organisation has a wider range of resources and skills to tap into + Enhances the employer brand and attracts talent

“one group of staff will provide snacks and drinks to share with their colleagues, encouraging people to mingle informally,” she says.

She adds that the organisation allows for flexibility in work arrangements for new mothers “as long as the client needs are being managed either through job-sharing with a colleague or by having a flexible work arrangement in terms of location or work hours.”

Handling different talent

Strategies to manage a diverse workforce are all well and good, but juggling the different needs of the various groups of workers is no mean feat as employers say there are challenges to overcome.

Chin says that diversity is ranked high among the organisation’s focus group and in the climate survey. As such, he says the “challenge for Qualcomm is not about what needs to be overcome, but rather about how to continue to improve, do more, and be more effective and innovative in our approach to diversity and inclusion on a global level.”

Pooja explains that although policies can help set the tone for an organisation, developing the right attitude to embrace diversity is critical. She says that there are employees from the “local markets as well as people who come from abroad. It is essential to ensure there is cultural understanding between both groups, as this facilitates the working relationship,” she says. Moreover, she points out that different generations of workers have different expectations, for example, older workers compared to the younger generation.

Pooja says that communication is key and a “clear setting of goals and expectations helps everyone to work in a synergistic way.”

CASE STUDY

Campbell Soup Company Campbell Soup Company is one the largest soup producers in the world.

Operating in more than 100 countries, it employs a workforce that is as diverse as its products. Its diversity efforts include programmes for women, gays, Hispanic and Asian employees.

Employees in Campbell’s Asian Network hosted Chinese government officials at their World Headquarters in summer 2009. Fluent in Mandarin, these employees helped Chinese officials with translation. Other examples include a Diversity Book Club, where employees of different levels, including the CEO meet monthly to discuss a book focused on diversity in the workplace. Cultural sensitivity is also important to the organisation as it opened an on-site mosque in 2008 at its Indonesian plant to accommodate employees’ religious needs.

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talent management special

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talent management special

Intelligent interviews:

Finding the best hires Completing a successful interview is arguably the most challenging step in the recruitment and selection process. Many factors can affect an interview, from first impressions to responses to the questions asked. What really makes a good interview and how can HR make the best of it to hire talent? HRM finds out more

By Shalini Shukla-Pandey

T

he talent recruitment process is relatively straightforward to most HR professionals. First, post a job advertisement, then source for candidates, screen them, interview them, and finally, select and make an offer to the top candidate. While each step is crucial to the success of the entire recruitment and selection process, completing the interview process effectively is probably the most challenging step.

Over the past decade, the hiring process has been evolving, with more organisations turning to social media and other means to source candidates. Interviewing processes have also changed with the pervasiveness of technology. “The biggest challenge for HR managers/recruiters when seeking talent is the ability to identify skilled professionals that will also fit in well with the company’s culture,� says Diana Low, Associate Director of Michael Page International.

Hence, while knowing how to conduct a good interview is important, it is not simply about extracting information from the

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talent management special

Tips for interview success candidate; but also about projecting a professional impression of the company, leading to the right fit between the company and candidate, adds Low. At Google, recruiters not only look for the right talent for the role in question, they also look at what the candidate can contribute past that specific role. “We hire smart generalists who will bring the next big thing to our users,” says Sarah Robb, Head of General & Administrative People Operations, APAC, Google.

Diana Low, Associate Director, Michael Page International, encourages HR to maximise the interview process by getting as much information from the candidate as possible to ensure the right professional joins the organisation. Some methods include: + Read through the applicant’s CV thoroughly, noting down any questions that will help you draw out more information about their personal qualities and professional skills. + Reserve an appropriate space to hold the interview, ensuring it is comfortable and free of distractions. + Once in the interview, give a brief overview of your company and provide an engaging description of the role on offer. + When conducting the interview, listen carefully and probe deeper if required.

Paying attention to the applicant’s personal style, attitude and values will also help you to form a balanced opinion of their suitability. + Conclude the interview by asking the applicant if they have any questions about the role or company. This is a good way to test if they have thought through the position and listened during the interview process.

Maximum results

A good interview requires sufficient research and preparation. “This involves becoming familiar with the candidate’s background and also preparing how you will convey the benefits of working with the company to them,” says Low. During this preparation, HR will compose a range of questions that will allow the candidate to explain and demonstrate their characteristics, knowledge, behaviours and abilities and how that will suit the role and the culture of the organisation.

Asking ‘out of the box’ questions is often a good way to gauge how well the candidate can react to change. “For example, asking a question that is not related to the role will change the formality of the interview environment,” says Low. “The interviewer will be testing the candidate’s social skills, which is important in a business environment where interpersonal skills are required when liaising with colleagues in a variety of circumstances.”

Robb says that a combination of behavioural and hypothetical questions that show how “past behaviour predicts future performance” is essential for a good interview. Also, these questions will bring out problem-solving abilities in the candidates.

Google limits its interview process to four separate one-to-one interviews. “This means that our interviewers need to be focused on a hiring attribute we consider important,” says Robb. “For us, these are ‘Role Related Knowledge and Expertise’, ‘General Cognitive Ability’, ‘Leadership’, and ‘Googleyness’.”

‘Googleyness’ refers to the hunger for a challenge, resourcefulness, flexibility, team-orientedness, and humility, amongst others.

3 basic interview questions + Can you do the job? (technical/hard skills) + Do you have a passion for doing the job? + Will we like you doing the job? (the fit) “In the 1990s, the weight of each of the questions was 50-10-40,” says Randy Block, a career transition coach and consultant.

“In 2012, it will be closer to 20-30-50.”

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talent management special

Common pitfalls

One of the biggest hurdles of a successful interview is overcoming personal bias and first impressions. Not only is it important for the candidate to make a great first impression on the interviewer, it is equally important for the employer to make a great first impact on the candidate.

According to a Robert Walters survey, some 45% of jobseekers have withdrawn from a recruitment process because they didn’t like the person or persons conducting the interviews. “It is critical that the people involved in the process are best equipped to represent the organisation in a positive light,” says Robert Walters’ Managing Director – Australia, James Nicholson.

John Ha, President of Reliability Careers, a provider of workforce solutions for the reliability and maintenance industry, says that most managers think they are very good, if not great, interviewers.

“They believe they are very good at getting a ‘read’ on people,” he says.

“The reality is that many a times, interviewers allow first impressions – be it good or bad – to become an overbearing factor in the interview process.”

Wacky interview questions Question What HR really wants to know If you were a tree (or animal) what Do you have the right skills needed for the job? kind of tree (animal) would you be?

What is the last book you read?

Do you read content related to my industry?

How would you explain a database in three sentences to your eightyear-old nephew?

How many gas stations would you say there are in the US? If you won $20m in the lottery, what would you do with the money?

If you were a car, what kind would you be?

What kind of people do you dislike?

Are you creative? Can you summarise a topic?

What makes you angry?

How would you describe yourself in three words?

Tell me about the worst boss you ever had.

How do you handle pressure and stress?

What’s your personality like?

How do you think about solving a large problem?

Are you creative, generous and responsible? Can you plan well? What’s your goals?

What’s your personality like?

What’s your personality like? Are you a discriminatory person?

What’s your work experience like? How do you handle pressure and stress?

Source: Patty Inglish, Employment and Workforce Professional

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Tip For either one, pick something strong and/or intelligent like a tiger or lion.

Talk about newspaper and magazines related to the industry.

Use creativity.

It’s about estimations vs actual calculations and sometimes both.

Use creativity.

Demonstrate your personality.

Be careful with this one. Say that there are no particular people you dislike, although you find some behaviours annoying – not completing work assignments on time, wasting company’s time gossiping, etc…

Be careful about admitting to having episodes of anger.

Use good words like resourceful, quick, dependable, energetic, honest, sincere, determined, goal-oriented, etc…

Do not complain about former bosses. Simply state that some may not have taught you as much as others and point out a few good qualities of a favourite past boss.

talent management special

Also, the ability to interview candidates may not necessarily be a natural instinct. “There are various ways to conduct a successful interview and training can play an important role in ensuring that the HR or recruiting manager is equipped with tools to identify and hire the best-suited employees for the organisation,” says Low. Good interviewing skills come with time, and definitely need to be honed. “Interview training is very important to us. We hire seasoned recruiters who are well-versed in interviewing skills before joining Google,” says Robb. “Once they join Google, we have an orientation programme for them, although recruiters are primarily hired as staffing strategists.”

It is critical that employers examine their recruitment processes to ensure they are streamlined and clearly defined. Poor recruitment processes can see an applicants’ enthusiasm wane before they’ve even started in a new role.

Author and thought-leader, Stephen Covey, gives the example that people generally come to the recruitment process with high hopes, and are willing to put their best foot forward. Then over time, from the employer’s first point of contact, each touch point along the way has an impact on the commitment.

When asked if Google conducts any weird or “The classic example interesting types of interviews or interview is this: the candidate has questions, Sarah Robb, Head of General & a great interview, the job Administrative People Operations, APAC, Google, dismisses them as ‘urban legends’. “I think there sounds great, and they are ‘urban legends’ out there of ‘brain-teasers’ but are assured a decision that’s simply not the case,” says Robb. will be made on “We emphasise to our interviewers that ‘Thursday’. Thursday questions should be focused on how a person comes around, then would do at Google as it relates to that opening Friday, then Monday, and beyond. As I pointed out, we hire smart and the candidate is left generalists who will be able to move into different hanging.” roles at the company.”

Disappointments at the beginning of the relationship can plant seeds of disengagement, and the candidate hasn’t even started the job yet, Covey says.

The Robert Walters research found that 79% of jobseekers were turned off from a job by a long recruitment process. Most of them (77%) believed that the total recruitment process (from applying for the job to receiving a written employment contract) should take less than one month.

“Interviewing is tough. It can be a beast,” says Ha. “Don’t let it become an unnecessary hindrance to your organisation by not giving it the respect it deserves.”

Googley interviews

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talent management special

Middle matters Middle managers, who supervise the majority of employees, seem to be a forgotten group, sandwiched between senior leaders and general employees. What can organisations do to ensure this powerful segment of the workforce is engaged and motivated at work? HRM finds out

By Shalini Shukla-Pandey

I

n an organisation of 50,000 employees, there are 50 to 200 senior executives and approximately 7,000 middle managers overseeing some 43,000 employees. It is no wonder that these middle managers play a crucial role in delivering results, supervising and engaging the bulk of the workforce.

As companies shift their business strategies to remain competitive, mid-level leaders are the ones executing corporate mandates and agendas and making bottom-line decisions about cost, quality, and efficiency for companies every day.

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“Middle management is the most important part of a company’s workforce as they are the ones who actually get the work done,” says Vishal Nagda, Deputy GM – HR, Lodha Group, a real estate developer headquartered in Mumbai.

More often than not, however, middle managers are caught under pressure between delivering strategic objectives set by senior executives and managing line managers, leading to excessive stress and disengagement.

“They live in an ‘in-between’ world where they get criticism from employees for not being attentive to their needs, or investing time in

talent management special

Engagement in 3D helping them perform and grow; and at the same time, face pressure from their leaders to deliver on stretched goals with limited resources in an environment of uncertainty,” says Mira Gajraj Mohan, APAC Regional Practice Director, Talent Management & Organisational Alignment, Towers Watson.

While they can also be first in line when organisations look to reduce their head count, Ben Willmott, Head of Public Policy at the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (CIPD), says it is also important to remember the crucial role these managers play in managing change, translating the objectives of senior managers into actions, and motivating others.

The middle matters

Middle managers play crucial, although unheralded, roles within organisations. They wear several hats, including those of Resource Allocator, Negotiator, Executor, Navigator, Change Driver, Innovator, Global Thinker, and Talent Advocate, says a spokesperson from Development Dimensions International (DDI).

However, there is a disconnect between what mid-level managers are and what they need to be, leading to a stagnation in their roles.

According to DDI, nearly 40% of mid-level leaders around the world feel their jobs are stagnant “sometimes” while 9% feel their jobs are stagnant “often.” (See table below)

Do you feel your job is stagnant?

Sometimes Often Global 40% 9% Malaysia 53% 2% Singapore 33% 7% Thailand 35% 6% Source: Development Dimensions International, Inc. (DDI)

The more stagnant the leaders’ jobs were, the more likely they were to say they would give up their leadership position if they were offered the same compensation or reduced compensation to be an individual contributor.

According to Towers Watson, engagement has three Suitably skilled middle dimensions: managers can play a key + THINK – Cognitive belief in and support for the role in managing change goals and values of the company and organisation + FEEL – Affective sense of belonging, pride, transformation, injecting attachment to the company dynamism into their jobs. + ACT – Behavioural willingness to go the extra As translators, they can mile; intention to stay with the company facilitate two-way communications between leaders and the front line and, as transformers, they can bring change to life.

“Much of this can be lost if change simply involves ‘delayering’ this middle-management tier, rather than refocusing, retraining and drawing on their skills and experiences,” says Willmott.

Delayering involves removing the said level of hierarchy from the organisational structure.

A recent CIPD survey also found that almost half (49%) of middle managers in the UK say they are under excessive pressure either every day or once or twice a week, compared to a survey average of 37%.

They are particularly unhappy with their work-life balance; just 44% agree they are satisfied with their work-life balance, compared to 70% among employees with no managerial responsibilities.

Perhaps not surprisingly given these findings, middle managers are the category of employees that are most likely to be looking for a new job with a different employer, with 29% looking to move organisations compared to a survey average of 21%.

Managers are “under pressure, underinspired, and under-appreciated”, say authors of the book, Manager Redefined, and senior practitioners at Towers Watson, Tom Davenport and Stephen Harding.

Filling the gap

Many companies in Singapore and around the region are dealing with high attrition rates from the middle manager ranks. Gajraj Mohan says this is a scarce talent group and one that has a significant impact on an organisation’s performance.

Engagement has come out as a clear driver in these managers’ desire to continue on their career path. According to DDI, those with higher engagement are less likely to say they would go back to being an individual contributor (regardless of compensation) than their unengaged counterparts. Six per cent of engaged mid-levels issue 12.4

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CASESTUDY:

Symantec Symantec Corporation recognises the importance and the high expectations employees have set on their managers. The maker of Norton Utilities, Anti-Virus and other security software provides managers with workshops and webinars to continually equip them with skills, specifically in these areas: » Crucial Conversations – Learn how to identify problems early, resolve disagreements respectfully, implement ideas with higher commitment and involvement, as well as innovate through dialogues that build momentum and acceptance. » The Savvy Leader – Learn to develop and use personal influence for positive and constructive outcomes, instead of denying or shunning organisational politics. » Managing High Performers – Learn the importance of knowing how to reward, retain and motivate top talents. » Diversity and Inclusion – Learn to cultivate an inclusive and multicultural environment that is both rich in and enriched by diversity, including recognising the potential of every employee holistically.

“We also encourage employees and their managers to set aside personal (one-on-one) time to engage in dialogue, and discuss work and personal development, on an ongoing basis to foster stronger relationships,” says June Cho, Director, Global Talent Acquisition, Symantec Corporation.

“Last, but not least, instilling an open culture at work such as the availability of skip-level meetings and greater HR involvement, play a critical role in the general support system to help our middle managers ease the rising demands of their role.”

United Airlines United Airlines (UA) found that middle managers play critical a role in achieving achieve employee engagement, customer loyalty and business outcomes. However, the prevailing situation in the company did not allow middle managers to focus adequately on being leaders, coaching and driving employee engagement.

The airline then worked to reduce the administrative burden on its middle managers by identifying tasks that could be streamlined and centralised, and developed the ‘Labour Specialist’ role to assist with complex labour hearings and investigations. » UA also redefined the role to focus on employee engagement: » Redefined competencies to align to company’s leadership model » Realigned performance management goal setting process » Developed recruiting and selection strategy and process » Developed high-level career path illustrations to identify different paths available » Reviewed workforce planning and sourcing function and recommended improvements As a result, UA achieved an elimination of redundancies and duplication of effort, clarification of roles including key activities, time allocation, competencies, educational and work experience targets, and enhancement of core HR programmes to support supervisors.

The airline also successfully improved its internal recruiting/promotion ratio, and engagement levels and Supervisor Effectiveness Index. Turnover levels were also decreased.

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feel stagnant “often” compared to 20% of those who reported lower engagement levels.

“Businesses must work towards leveraging the power of employee engagement to bring ROI to their organisations as the business environment evolves,” says Gajraj Mohan.

Middle managers are mostly those aged between 30 and 38 and it is during this period that they explore their strengths and weaknesses, says Vivek Cherian, Head of HR Operations APAC, SunGard. “HR should have clearly defined career paths for middle managers that help explore their capabilities and strengths as they develop their weaker areas,” he says.

For instance, timely performance assessments, job rotations (both lateral and vertical) and overseas assignments should be factored into development plans for these managers. “Also, clearly defined performance goals that include people leadership and behavioural goals are a must as this will drive the required culture through the organisation,” says Cherian.

Coaching and mentoring are simple yet effective tools in enhancing middle managers’ effectiveness at the workplace. Nagda says middle managers need a few experienced members in the team to guide them in difficult situations.

“This can be achieved by having a buddy and a mentor assigned to the middle manager when they join a team,” he says. “They should be given a chance to modify existing processes in a manner that suits the team but does not affect productivity.”

Middle managers should also be periodically engaged in special projects which would expose them to newer skills and be a test of their leadership capabilities. “Organisations must act as a learning ground wherein the managers are continuously updated on best practices in the industry as well as given various tools and techniques for effective leadership,” says Nagda.

Internal growth prospects and training and development opportunities also work towards developing mid-level managers and building their competencies in functional, technical, business and leadership skills related to their roles.

“Many organisations see the gaps in manager performance, and look to managerial skills training as the solution,” says Gajraj Mohan. “From our experience (and that of many organisations), there

talent management special

is little benefit to be gained from managerial skills training when the root cause of the problem is the way the job is structured.”

“Our research shows that when managers are asked what will help them be more effective, they point to ‘less juggling to produce output myself while managing others’ as the single action most likely to help them perform better. In addition, we hear Asian middle managers saying they want more understanding of their organisation’s strategies and priorities,” she adds.

One way of motivating middle managers is by telling them that their talents and skills are being noticed and that the organisation wants them to grow to the next level. Clear distinction between job responsibilities at different levels helps in avoiding confusion and thus encourages engagement in work. Open channels of communication between the hierarchies also enable middle managers to concentrate on issues which are of their concern and priority.

“Middle managers should be given more responsibility, along with the authority, to make independent decisions and senior leaders should act as guides rather than dictate how work needs to be done,” says Nagda. “Middle management is most keen to seek enhancement in their job profile by way of additional responsibilities or crossfunctional exposure.”

Sustainable engagement

According to Towers Watson, companies can bring employee engagement up “to the power of three”.

Companies should take employee engagement to the next level by also paying attention to ‘enablement’ and ‘energy’ to achieve sustainable engagement.

“Sustainable engagement improves business performance and bottom line,” says Gajraj Mohan.

HR can promote sustainable engagement by empowering employees to do their work more efficiently and effectively – this is ‘enablement’.

For instance, Maybank ensures that its staff is enabled with the right tools and work conditions to motivate them to perform.

“To meet employees’ expectations, we nurture a work climate that encourages feedback and fosters idea generation,” says Nora Abdul Manaf, Senior Executive VP & Head, Group Human Capital, Maybank, Malaysia.

“The middle management of today is going to be the senior leadership of tomorrow” Vishal Nagda, Deputy GM – HR, Lodha Group

Maybankers are encouraged to share how the organisation can make it easier for them to perform at their peak. “These include an online ‘Ask Senior Management’ forum, our flagship ‘Ideas Generation’ programme and our ‘Employee Engagement Survey’,” says Nora. “This commitment is necessary, as it affects the quality, efficiency and productivity levels of not only the employee but also the organisation.”

HR should also create a work environment that enhances employees’ physical, social, and emotional wellbeing – this is ‘energy’.

“It is also important that employers don’t ignore the health and wellbeing of their middle managers.

With a fifth of middle managers saying they are under excessive pressure every day, they are particularly at risk of suffering from work-related stress and burnout,” says Willmott.

“We all know that the middle management of today is going to be the senior leadership of tomorrow, says Nagda. “Capability building of these managers should therefore be on the agenda of all organisations that are looking to build a long-term sustainable workforce.”

Top tips Towers Watson has the following recommendations for improving middle managers’ engagement and performance: + Refocusing managers’ rewards away from personal production and towards team production and team member growth and development goals + Reconfiguring managers’ jobs to allow more time to focus on people + Equipping managers better to be more effective at identifying and responding to individual employee differences + Informing them about the employee learning opportunities available (eg, build more and better sources of information into the manager self-service portal, enable them to design projects and assignments to suit individual team members) + Equipping them to be more effective at delivering informal rewards (eg, recognition) + Giving managers more control to encourage innovation in how work gets done in their work groups issue 12.4

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When talent meets

technology Companies are constantly fine-tuning their HR processes to attract and retain the best employees. Increasingly, technology is providing the framework for best-in-class talent management initiatives. HRM shares some interesting insights

By Shalini Shukla-Pandey

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T

oday’s dynamic business environment requires HR to have improved information and analyses to make quicker and better decisions with regards to human capital, especially as the business function gains more influence at board level meetings.

Technology such as business analytics packages and talent management software helps HR to do just that by providing the insight companies need to capitalise on their talent.

“We believe global companies will continue to invest more money in better talent management technologies as the HR community explores ways to improve and align their processes with business strategies,” says Corinna Cheang, Director Talent Management, DFS. One common misconception organisations have of talent management software is that they are buying a ‘solution’ when they were really buying a ‘tool’. “You can’t buy a ‘solution’ to your analytical needs,” says Jeff Chasney, Executive VP of Strategic Planning and CIO with CKE Restaurants Inc., which operates the Carl’s Jr., Hardee’s, and other restaurant brands. “You must enlist well-educated and well-trained specialists to perform the analyses and deliver meaningful results.”

Talent technology uptake

More companies are investing in web-based software to track the progress of workers from the time they apply to the company to the time they leave. Web-based software as a service (SaaS) HR solutions have made a wide range of HR tools easily accessible and affordable to almost all companies.

“Previously, the set-up and maintenance costs of enterprise-level HR systems meant they were unaffordable to all but the biggest businesses,” says Ben Thompson, CEO, Power2Motivate Asia Pacific. “Very few options were available for smaller businesses.”

Currently, there are web-based HR tools available to help manage every aspect of the HR lifecycle and because they are SaaS-based tools, Thompson says they are affordable and easy to implement.

“Power2Motivate was launched five years ago with the intention of giving every business on the planet the ability to implement an employee recognition and reward programme,” says Thompson.

Clients range in size from a Fortune 500 company with over 160,000 employees to a small

law firm with just 20 employees.

“Whereas most of the interest five years ago was from North American businesses, we now have programmes launching all over Asia, India, Japan, Australia and the rest of the world,” explains Thompson.

Matt Allanson, director of Hiring Boss, also says there’s no question about the popularity of web-based talent management software. “Most of the big MNCs already use these tools to attract, interact and retain candidates,” he says. “We are seeing more and more SMEs and even government departments testing the space.”

Taleo’s robust analytics provides the intelligence that businesses need to gain insights into their people, including tracking their progress from recruiting/on-boarding through to goals and performance management, and learning and development needs. This includes succession planning and off-boarding.

David Wilkins, VP – Research, Marketing, Taleo, says that the tremendous global increase in full-suite buying patterns isn’t obvious in the current mix of technologies and is only revealed when he starts talking to clients and prospects about long-term strategy. Data supporting this include

CASE STUDY

DFS

DFS’ future business successes require a focus on attracting, developing and retaining the best talent in our industry, says Corinna Cheang, Director - Talent Management, DFS. “To establish a strong foundation for our organisation, investment in talent technology assets is essential,” she adds.

In 2011, DFS enabled a web-based tool known as TalentMap or Success Factors to facilitate the performance management processes. DFS managers and employees map their success with TalentMap by: (1) Sharing career-related details and experiences about themselves (My Profile Module); (2) Establishing goals and objectives for the New Year (Objective Setting Module); (3) Accessing developmental resources along the way (Individual Development Plan Module); and (4) Assessing results at the end of the journey (Performance Appraisal Module).

“TalentMap also helps connect employees across DFS functions and geographies, by providing easy access to organisation charts and employee information,” says Cheang.

DFS has a few programmes in the pipeline. For instance, the leading travel retailer will be launching a new Taleo eRecruitment system. “This invariably provides an opportunity for us to improve the efficiency of our recruitment process by managing the total time taken to hire a talent and quality of hire through improved and standardised recruitment processes globally,” says Cheang.

“In a wider context, this helps market DFS as an employer brand and attract a diverse talent pool which mirrors our customer diversity.”

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talent management special

the following chart by Jim Holincheck, a leading talent management and HR analyst at Gartner: At first glance, the conclusion might be that customers are not adopting full suites, but rather pieces of a suite. “But that’s not quite right,” says Wilkins.

“Based on our conversations with buyers and clients, the most common approach is to move towards a full suite incrementally: buy a single solution or at most a couple of solutions from a vendor in year one, but with an aspiration and a vision to add another in 18 months, and another in 24 months.”

Talent Management Suite Adoption Two Modules

86.1 55.6

Three Modules Four Modules

21.3

Full TMS

3.7 0

10

20

30

40

50

60

70

80

90

100

Source: Gartner (May 2011)

Organisations are rightly staging their buys to ensure that they absorb each solution independently.

Research done by Bersin & Associates also supports this. According to the US firm, many global companies are willing to sacrifice depth in an individual solution in order to buy an integrated suite.

“Thirty-four per cent of all buyers are now willing to sacrifice functional features in any given module for the benefits of an integrated set of applications,” says Josh Bersin, CEO and President of Bersin & Associates. “And more and more companies are now realising that talent management software is not really here to automate, but rather to deliver insights and make decision-making easier.”

The Tech-vantage

The core benefits that HR systems provide – especially talent management systems – are transparency, accessibility and consistency of HR information. “In terms of transparency and accessibility, an HR system takes HR records out of a filing system and makes them easily accessible for the right people at the right time in a format that makes sense to them,” says Thompson.

“A system that does not rely on any one individual means that HR functions can be performed consistently regardless of who is performing them,” he adds.

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A good example of how this works is with a reward and recognition system. Without a system to run a recognition programme, it is almost impossible to track who is receiving recognition for their work, how much is being spent, which managers recognise their employees well and which managers need more training.

Also, the peer recognition capabilities, reward modules (or the ability to plug them in), and options for ‘spot bonuses’ and the like within most talent management software now provide great capabilities to reward and recognise contributions in a way that really motivates and improves long-term performance when used in conjunction with good compensation solutions, says Wilkins.

While a talent management suite can’t force company leaders to stay focused on a core strategy or set of objectives, it can drive alignment of this strategy or objectives deep into the organisation, improving their visibility and awareness. This helps employees more meaningfully connect their contributions to the larger whole, says Wilkins. “This in turn makes them feel more valued and validates the work they are doing, while also creating a predictable environment.”

“This predictability, coupled with a clear sense of purpose, can go a long way to ensuring motivation and satisfaction in their work,” he adds.

Good talent management systems also include recruiting and on-boarding, as well as integration with sourcing and assessment tools that enable companies to not just find a ‘fit’ for skills and competencies but for culture, attitude, and behaviours.

“On-boarding tools help quickly integrate new hires through social connections, fostering of peer relationships, and links to the Learning Management System (LMS) for core training (to overcome fear, uncertainty, and doubt) – all of which help to reduce quick-quits and rapidly integrate new hires into the mix,” says Wilkins.

Investment in talent management software can have significant impact on situations where employees have a “lack of opportunities to grow and develop”. “At CKE, a US-based fast food chain, turnover rates went down 42% after the introduction of an LMS,” says Wilkins.

More advanced companies which have strong talent intelligence programmes can utilise talent mobility to give people new challenges and even more opportunities to grow and develop. This can be particularly helpful when vertical mobility in the form of promotions aren’t forthcoming – by

talent management special

Self-directed talent management providing new challenges and new development opportunities, the company effectively tells the employee that they are still investing in their growth even though it’s not ‘up’ yet. “For many high potentials, just having the opportunity to expand their skill set is often as valuable as greater compensation in the short term,” says Wilkins.

Also, if the programme manager leaves, the programme almost always fails. Once a good system is implemented, all this information is available in real time. “The system gives the HR team the ability to directly influence how employees are being recognised, how to maximise engagement and how to manage budgets,” says Thompson.

Going mobile

Mobile platforms for these HR analytics tools are set to become more prevalent in 2012 with Android and iPhone OS. Hay_consulting2.pdf

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3/19/12

2:27 PM

According to research by Dan Pink (author of the book, Drive), autonomy and self-direction are key aspects of motivation and satisfaction among knowledge workers. Having effective talent management software in place helps to inculcate autonomy amongst staff and motivate them to be self-directed about their progress within the company.

“If you hire the right people and get them quickly connected into the team, you need to micromanage new hires less,” says David Wilkins, VP – Research, Marketing, Taleo. “Instead, you rely on your team to help on-board them (which gives them more autonomy and validation).”

Clear goals and objectives that cascade down and an easy way to check on goal progress enable employees to achieve their objectives.

“Monthly or bi-weekly check-in conversations aren’t about assigning tasks and micro-managing work, they are about removing roadblocks and enabling employees to achieve their objectives (after all, if you’ve hired well then failure to achieve objectives is probably not a people thing, but a systems thing),” says Wilkins.

As for which parts of the talent management suite are developed into mobile applications, Wilkins says executive dashboards would be first since executives tend to be most mobile in terms of platform support.

Applications related to administration and quick-hit information retrieval will be developed next for managers. “Lastly, there will be applications for employees – not because employees matter any less,

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but because to do mobile applications right, companies should be rethinking key assumptions about the interactions themselves,” he says.

How can mobile talent management applications take advantage of GPS data, microphones, cameras, bi-directional video, accelerometers, gyroscopes, and other technology one may ask. “Some are obvious, some less so,” says Wilkins. “But in all cases, the real issue is that phones and tablets are now actually more capable than PCs and afford more interaction and ‘sensing’ capabilities.”

“So simply porting talent management features to mobile platforms is a missed opportunity. The real question is what can be done differently around talent management now that this stuff is on a mobile platform,” he adds.

Still, most HR experts say mobile systems in talent management will play a part for corporate HR, albeit not on the same level as that for the external staffing industry. “We’re looking into some really cool features for iPads and tablets but I can’t see too many HR practitioners wanting to do performance reviews or head count forecasting on a phone for long periods of time,” says Allanson.

Wilkins agrees, saying neither companies nor vendors will do this fully in 2012. “This is going to be a multi-year effort, both in terms of organisational readiness and vendor capabilities,” he says. “So while clear winners are emerging in terms of mobile platforms, we won’t see a deep move to mobile talent management for some time.”

Choosing the right fit

It pays to pick and choose your HR products. HR

Impact of talent solutions According to Taleo, dysfunctional turnover is most highly correlated to “poor relationship with a manager or peers (though managers have the biggest influence)”, “lack of opportunities to grow and develop”, “uncertainty – either in career-related issues (advancement, goal planning, etc) or company stability”, “compensation (when it’s below industry averages or perceived to be unfair)”, and among knowledge workers “degree of autonomy and self-direction (more micro-management equals more turnover).”

“If you consider this list, you quickly see that talent solutions directly impact all of these root causes,” says David Wilkins, VP – Research, Marketing, Taleo. “While a talent management system can't turn bad managers into good ones on its own, it does provide mechanisms through which managers can be consistently trained (the LMS), and through which manager patterns can be detected (calibration of performance reviews, attrition rates, 360 feedback, hiring and promotion history, and various reports, analytics), enabling the organisation to see both good and bad patterns of behaviour.”

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should refrain from buying everything from one supplier just because they offer end-to-end solutions.

“Let’s say you get your handyman to paint your house, fix your roof, do your plumbing and pave your driveway. I’m sure he’ll do an OK job. But wouldn’t you do better finding a painter, roofer, plumber and a paver?” asks Allanson. “Software tends to be the same. Buy the best you can of HR function and get them speaking to each other. It’s easier than you think.”

According to Power2Motivate, a good talent management system should provide HR with support and training now and for the long term.

Systems with a solid history and backing are preferable, says Thompson. Also, these systems should be scalable and have multi-language and multi-country support, regularly updated with new features to support changing business needs. A good HR system provider should be able to give you a strong list of existing clients who are willing to speak to you directly about their experience with the system. “Take this opportunity to learn from end users about their experiences,” says Thompson.

While different HR products can specifically serve different business needs, buyers can’t be thinking in silos anymore as it’s obvious that there is massive synergy and value from having all of the pieces on a single solution. “For instance, think about how powerful it would be if all employee data from pre-candidate phase to current senior position were all tracked and available in one unified profile,” says Wilkins.

With a unified profile, HR can search job history, promotion history, learning and development activities, performance review feedback, compensation history, competencies, peer feedback, etc.

This data also yields a host of intersections and overlays, all hugely strategic and valuable information that only comes from a unified suite: Which managers are talent incubators, feeding the company with strong talent? Which development or learning plans are having the most impact? How many people in the company have ‘xx’ skills or competencies and where are they based? What are their comparative and relative compensation costs?

“Vendors that have this vision are few; vendors that have this vision and a solution to back it up are rarer still,” says Wilkins. “But I think as companies face increasingly global challenges, the days of an individual best of breed talent management solution are behind us, and the days of best of breed suites are ahead.”

corporate learning

Boosting

HR capabilities

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corporate learning

In an ever changing business environment, HR needs to constantly update its skills to perform at its peak. Organisations speak to HRM about the latest programmes that can help HR broaden its expertise and improve business acumen

By Priya de Langen

I

n the study, The Top Best Practices for the High-Impact HR Organization, it was revealed that some of the biggest challenges for an HR function are: driving internal mobility and career development; delivering workforce metrics and analytics; and enabling a strong self-learning culture.

Experts say that HR in Singapore has a challenging role, and learning and development programmes will help better their skills.

Peggy Lee, Head, SIM Professional Development, says that the shortage of manpower in specific competencies, especially in service- and labour-intensive industries, “has placed an increasing demand on HR practitioners to be creative in the way they carry out their tasks.”

She says that, as a result, HR needs the skill-sets to manage various functions, such as redesigning jobs, and learn new ways of managing traditional HR functions such as hiring, training and out-placing employees. “Hence, there is demand from HR professionals in areas such as competency-based interview skills, creative writing for recruitment, talent retention and management, succession planning, mentoring and coaching skills, as well as communication and facilitation skills for performance management.”

Issues to address

Employers say that although there are various learning and development programmes for HR professionals to help them develop their skills set, there are still some issues that need to be addressed.

Pauline Chua, General Manager, Human/ HR needs the Organisation Resource & Development, Fuji Xerox Singapore, says that while there is talk about HR being a strategic business partner, “a lot of the HR to manage various functions programmes emphasise HR knowledge but not the business management aspects such as marketing, finance, and planning.” She adds that HR sometimes lacks knowledge of business management and believes that HR needs this understanding in order to connect with the business.

Chua adds that in order for HR to contribute to the growth of the business and its talent and the challenges that come with it, “HR leaders need to demonstrate commercial acumen together with a deep knowledge of the culture and performance of their own organisation.”

Lee affirms this highlighting that in order for HR to be a strategic business partner, skills such as creative thinking and strategic planning, as well as the ability to integrate HR strategy and manpower plans with the organisation’s overall mission and strategic thrusts are critical. Ultimately, “HR leaders have to be transformational in their role,” she concludes.

SKILL-SETS

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corporate learning

Top 10 concerns for HR

HR trains skills

Employers say that they conduct training for their HR in-house as well as with external vendors depending on different development needs. Chua of Fuji Xerox Singapore says that the organisation strives to build an engaged and competent workforce where education and training of their employees is fundamental for them to perform their functions effectively as well as develop new skills and competencies.

As a result, the company offers training for the various functional disciplines and partners with consulting firms to train its leaders and HR employees on best practice in human resource management and leadership development. HR employees and line managers have attended practical workshops on Employment Law and The Grievance Handling Process in order to have a common understanding and approach in addressing ground issues correctly and effectively.

“We feel that it is important for all HR employees and line managers to be aligned in dealing with ground issues. Our employees are our ‘customers’ and we are here to provide a proactive service,” explains Chua.

In order to understand the needs of its employees, Fuji Xerox Singapore conducts an annual Training Needs Analysis, where supervisors discuss and prioritise the learning needs of their staff and match it against the business priorities and objectives for the year. She adds that there are no mandatory number of hours for learning and development for HR needs HR employees as long as the training is relevant and addresses the learning needs of the individual that is aligned to the business.

Under function-specific training, there are different types of learning programmes for HR in the organisation. Chua points out the recruitment in order to connect with the business department, as an example, attends selected courses covering topics on psychometric profiling, competency based interview skills training for better assessment and selection of candidates and how to use social media to expand their network and reach to suitable candidates who might not be actively looking for a career change.

Learning does not end in the classroom, as HR employees are also sent to different HR events such as the HR Summit. “Attending such events gives them good exposure to what’s happening in the HR sector,” she adds.

Also, external service providers are also offering their services to train HR in their different development needs. SIM Professional

In a global survey, The Top Best Practices for the High-Impact HR Organization, the study revealed a list of challenges as a HR function. The list below shows the top 10: + Measuring HR programmes in financial terms + Delivering workforce metrics and analytics + Driving internal mobility and career development + Enabling a strong self-learning culture + Motivating a high-performance culture + Identifying and developing future leaders + Promoting a highly engaged workforce + Encouraging innovation and collaboration + Allocating compensation fairly to high performers + Promoting health and wellness

KNOWLEDGE OF BUSINESS MANAGEMENT

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corporate learning

Development offers a range of HR learning and development courses, from general programmes to function-specific courses. The ‘Identifying Learning & Talent Development Needs’ course is targeted at the training of managers and learning professionals who need to analyse learning and development needs within their organisations and make recommendations on possible actions.

SIM has added other courses to its suite of programmes that include Interviewing Skills and Buzz Your Employees – Using Social Media to Build Passionate Brand Ambassadors! The Interviewing Skills course will teach HR professionals skills in key interviewing techniques, while Buzz Your Employees addresses one of the more talked-about issues – using social media to engage, collaborate and unite employees in order to build an emotionally-bonded company.

“HR leaders need to demonstrate commercial acumen together with a deep knowledge of the culture and performance of their own organisation” Pauline Chua, General Manager, Human/Organisation Resource & Development, Fuji Xerox Singapore

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10th Anniversary Special

9 & 10 May 2012 • Marina Bay Sands • Singapore Discover Qian Hu’s ‘Fishy’ HR ideology with Kenny Yap ‘The Fish’, Chairman & Group CEO

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corporate health

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corporate health

A

culture of health Neglecting the health of your employees could lead to increased sick days and a drop in productivity and profits in the long run. Regular health screenings and wellness programmes are essential to ensure that they stay hale, hearty and engaged

By Sumathi V Selvaretnam

M

ost companies understand that healthy employees contribute to workplace productivity yet financial investments in this area often lag behind other workplace initiatives like training and development or recruitment efforts.

However, neglecting the health of your workforce can be detrimental for an organisation in the long run. A recent Gallup survey found that most Americans have at least one chronic health condition, costing US businesses 450 million additional lost work days each year, and monetary losses of US$153bn.

According to the report, the high percentages of full-time US workers who have less than ideal health are a significant drain on productivity for US businesses. “However, employees and employers have the opportunity to potentially increase productivity if they address the

health issues that are currently plaguing the workplace,� the report said.

In Singapore, the Health Promotion Board (HPB) is urging at least 80% of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) to have a Workplace Health Promotion (WHP) programme by 2015. It will be conducting visits to SMEs, drawing up their company profiles and developing checklists before working with each organisation to roll out a relevant WHP programme.

Cost concerns often hamper employers from implementing a comprehensive health programme at the workplace. To help alleviate this burden, the HPB is increasing the current WHP Grant quantum from $12,000 to $15,000 from April 2012, to provide additional funding support for companies to implement targeted intervention programmes (eg, weight management, chronic disease management, smoking cessation) for their at-risk employees. issue 12.4

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corporate health

CFOs agree that employee health affects bottom line The Integrated Benefits Institute conducted a survey to find out how much emphasis chief financial officers (CFOs) placed on workforce health as a business investment when faced with economic distractions. Here are some key findings: + More than 90% of CFOs surveyed believe that improving health is at least a moderately important contributor to workforce productivity + More than two-thirds of CFOs surveyed agreed that health is a cultural or financial priority in their organisations, while 75% agreed that providing comprehensive healthcare coverage is an important part of their company’s financial strategy + Six in 10 CFOs said that poor workforce health significantly affects financial performance through increased healthcare costs, while four in 10 cite a significant impact through increased medical leave

This additional funding can also be used to finance comprehensive mental health programmes for employees, as the mental well-being of Singaporeans is also a national health priority.

The business case for good health

Employee health programmes come at a cost, but they offer a host of long-term benefits that far outweigh the initial investment.

According to Lam Pin Woon, President and Executive Director of Healthway Medical Corporation, incomplete physical and mental wellbeing prohibits employees from performing to their best capabilities. “Investing in wellness programmes improves morale as well as productivity of employees.”

Paying attention to employee health also helps a company to gain recognition as a caring employer and gives it a competitive edge in employment and retention, says Chin Wei Jia, General Manager, Health Management International (HMI) Group.

Conducting health screenings for employees is essential as they offer baseline data towards targeted WHP interventions on risk groups and also serve as a meaningful tool to achieve desired outcomes, Chin says.

Health screenings today are no longer sombre, clinical affairs. HMI, for example, offers health screening holidays where employees can get their health checks done at medical facilities across the Causeway, followed by breakfast and a shopping trip. Addressing the needs of a discerning

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clientele, Healthway Medical recently opened a new screening centre at TripleOne Somerset that offers a more relaxed and tranquil ambience.

Spending up on extras like vaccinations to protect against diseases such as Influenza can also help to lower the rate of illness among employees, thus improving productivity, says Lam. “Of the Healthway employees who took the Influenza vaccine, some experienced a reduction in their medical leave due to them not contracting the disease.”

Workplace ergonomics

Good employee health extends beyond medical checkups and interventions. As employees spend a large amount of their day at the office, it is important to ensure that their physical environment is both comfortable and conducive for work.

In Singapore, about 65% of Singaporeans are out in the workforce, where they spend about 75% of their wake time at the workplace, says Chin. “Workplace ergonomics is important for reducing contributing stressors and fatigue, preventing cumulative trauma disorders/ occupational injuries, as well as enabling employees to work safer and more efficiently.”

But before making a bulk order for ergonomic Herman Miller chairs, companies should get a better understanding of their needs and requirements. Healthcare service providers such as HMI can do an assessment of your workplace and offer suggestions on how to make it more ergonomic for your employees. HMI also conducts talks and workshops on this topic tailored for different industries and job types.

Protecting your mobile workforce

Many global multinational corporations have set up their regional headquarters in Singapore and this is fuelling demand for employee benefits coverage, especially among mobile employees.

Mobile employees are generally highly skilled and well paid and they demand tailor-made benefits packages that match their expertise, status

corporate health

and family situation, says Cedric Luah, Head, Corporate Clients, Swiss Life Singapore. “A good benefits package can be a differentiating factor in attracting and retaining such employees.”

The needs of mobile employees slightly differ from that of the local workforce. The main difference is that they work in an environment which is not their home country. “The remote location in which they work, coupled with additional risks they may face, increase the challenges involved in setting up and managing their benefit provisions,” Luah says.

Swiss Life for example, offers a modular solution for employers to provide benefits for

Most Americans have at least one chronic health condition, costing US businesses

employees that may be on short- or long-term overseas assignments. Called Swiss Life Select, it offers death, additional lost work days each disability, critical illness, year, and monetary losses of international health and US$153 billion assistance coverage as well as Source: Gallup survey individual modules that can be customised according to the company’s needs.

“When employees are motivated and feeling financially secure, they are able to concentrate on their work and perform better,” Luah concludes.

450 MILLION

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mice feature

Rewarding

journeys It is important for companies to reward and recognise outstanding employees who stand out from the pack. Incentive trips are a good way to spur on employees, as well as make them feel valued about their contributions.

HRM speaks to several companies to discuss the benefits

By Vivien Shiao Shufen

Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II in Milan, Italy

E

very leader knows that employees need a goal that they can aspire towards. Incentive trips are an excellent way of rewarding employees who have outperformed their peers and achieved the goals that have been set for them.

They are most often used as an enticement in departments that have measurable targets, such as sales. Greg James, General Manager of HRG Singapore, also notes that there is a new trend for companies to invite distributors and wholesalers for incentive trips.

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“It is considered a reward for their support and to promote long-term relationships,” explains James.

Incentive trips differ from other forms of reward because it is experiential – the anticipation of the experience changes employee behaviour in a way that other rewards cannot. A cash reward is usually added to an employee’s bank account and then forgotten about, but an incentive trip will lead to participants talking about it for years to come, as it is something experienced.

mice feature

The incentive for incentive travel

There are many advantages for using incentive trips as a means to reward employees. For one, employees will be more motivated to achieve their goals, boosting both morale and productivity. Employees will also get a sense of fulfillment when they manage to attain their goal and attend such trips.

An intangible benefit, however, is that such trips create camaraderie and team bonding among these top performers, instilling a sense of company loyalty.

“Good talent is hard to find these days, so retention of valuable staff is even more important,” says Mona Foo, Head of Sales – Singapore, Royal Caribbean Cruises.

“Incentive trips are one way to show staff that they are being appreciated, by awarding them with a well-deserved vacation treat. This also acts as a team bonding exercise,” she notes.

Alicia Seah, Senior Vice President of Marketing and PR, CTC Travel, echoes her sentiment.

“It is a way to motivate staff to perform better and, most importantly, acknowledge the contribution and, in turn, retain outstanding staff members with overseas trips,” explains Seah.

She also adds that it can be a form of taxation write-off.

“Rather than spending more on taxes, it is preferable to spend the money on staff,” she says.

“These workers will then continuously strive to perform well in order to be sent on such trips.”

Within the region

Companies need not look too far for suitable destinations for incentive travel. Asia offers a diversity of locations that would appeal to even the most fussy of travellers. From magnificent China to the sunny beaches of Thailand, companies can take advantage of cheap airfares and excellent tourist facilities across the region for their incentive trips.

Temple of Heaven in China

“We recently organised an incentive trip to Beijing for an insurance company,” says Seah.

“They were in the capital city of China for five days and got to visit famous sites like the Forbidden City and The Great Wall of China.”

Aside from touring the landmarks of Beijing, the group was able to experience aspects of Chinese culture through activities such as a Tai Chi (a type of Chinese martial art) class taught by a local expert, as well as feasting like emperors – literally – with a sumptuous Imperial Chinese Dinner spread.

Some notable aspects of the trip included the skiing trip in Qiaobo, as well as a 40-minute boat cruise to the Summer Palace.

For home furnishings Incentive trips differ from other forms company Hunter Douglas, of reward because it is their incentive travel programme called ‘Windows to the World’ (WTTW) is in its fifth year running and takes their elite Gallery dealers from each Asian country to various luxury destinations.

“The recent 2012 WTTW programme brought qualifying Gallery dealers on an unforgettable journey to Taipei,” says Kelvin Lye, Retail Manager of Hunter Douglas Singapore.

“It was a five-day trip that provided sumptuous food, lavish accommodation in W Hotel Taipei, well-known tourist attractions in Taipei, and a hot springs experience in Beitou,” he explains.

Lye adds that the next travel destination for 2012 is to Melbourne, Australia, and dealers who have attended this year’s programme have already set their sights on it.

EXPERIENTIAL

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mice feature

“Incentive trips are one way to show staff that they are being appreciated, by awarding them with a well-deserved vacation treat.

This also acts as a team bonding exercise” Mona Foo, Head of Sales – Singapore, Royal Caribbean Cruises

Out of Asia

Despite the uncertain economic climate, there are still companies that plan incentive trips for employees to more far-off destinations in an attempt to bring something fresh to the table.

In 2011, HRG organised an incentive trip for employees of an insurance firm to Istanbul, Turkey. Its aim was to reward its top 200 AsiaPacific employees by giving them an opportunity to immerse themselves in Turkish culture.

“Highlights of the itinerary included a welcome dinner at a famed restaurant as well as a gala dinner to present top sales representatives with awards,” says James. ” He added that they engaged local experts to make the trip a memorable one that gave employees a taste of authentic Turkey.

Culturally-rich Italy is another unique MICE destination. “CTC Travel recently executed a reward trip for employees to a fashion academy in Rome,” says Seah. “Participants not only got to view the most famous attractions in the city such as

the Colosseum and St. Peter’s Basilica, they also had the opportunity to explore the city through teambuilding games that were specially organised for them.”

The incentive trip to Rome went a step further, by organising a visit to the Academy of Costume and Fashion to attend presentations of professors who showcased their designs, as well as to attend a fashion show of the students’ final works.

“These employees were given the opportunity to learn from their counterparts in Italy, and that was an invaluable experience that cannot be replicated in Singapore,” says Seah.

Unconventional travel

Some companies prefer to have more unconventional travel methods, and they choose to travel by cruise instead of by aircraft.

Companies which hold their incentive trips on board the cruise ships of the Royal Caribbean Cruises will be able to kick back and relax as there is an onboard group coordinator to take care of the group.

“It’s essentially an all-inclusive holiday which includes accommodation, all meals, onboard live performances and entertainment, private group events and a variety of facilities,” explains Foo. “It’s also value for money, hassle-free and has something onboard for everyone,” she adds.

Travelling to success

Hunter Douglas' "Windows to the World" in Taiwan

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As the labour market continues to tighten, rewarding and recognising employees becomes even more important than before in order for companies to retain talent.

Such trips encourage staff retention as top performers feel valued by the company, and it gives them a sense of pride over their work.

With so many benefits for both employees and employers to choose from, incentive travel is still one of the best forms of reward and recognition for outstanding staff that motivates them to deliver excellent work.

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55

resources

People Follow You:

The real secret to what matters most in leadership

M

ost working adults would have experienced a bad boss at some point in their careers but many do not realise that poor leadership leads to a very high cost for organisations. Employees tend to slow down their productivity in retaliation and top talent will leave as “no incentive or benefits package can undo the damage”, writes author Jeb Blount.

In the book People Follow You, Blount gets to the heart of the matter by delivering a simple and actionable formula for building strong relationships with employees and gaining their buy-in. He highlights the need for effective leaders who are masters at inspiring their people to take action. In his own words, people do not follow companies, paychecks, incentives, stock options, fear, power, or fancy slogans – people follow their LEADERS. Blount notes that ultimately, people follow leaders that they like, trust and believe in, leading to higher

productivity and long-term development. Managers are not paid for what they do, but rather for the performance of their people. In his book, Blount explains how by putting their people first, leaders will position themselves and their company for success.

The book offers five easily understood and implemented levers that critically influence employee performance. The first would be to motivate and position their employees to perform at the highest level, the second would be to retain top talent by building trust and loyalty and third would be to create an environment where people grow, develop and thrive. Fourthly, the book shows readers how to communicate effectively so that they are heard and lastly, it provides tips on ways to increase productivity and take the team to a new level of success.

The book is a must read for all bosses as Blount shares his valuable insights on how to motivate and become a better manager.

At a Glance People Follow You: The Real Secret To What Matters Most in Leadership Authors: Jeb Blount Published by: John Wiley & Sons Retail Price: $33.12

restaurant review

Lunch on

cloud nine P

erched on the 70th floor of the Swissôtel The Stamford, French fine dining establishment Jaan offers sweeping views of the Singapore cityscape. Yet diners will quickly realise that the focus is on the food, and Chef Julien Royer’s artisanal creations captivate from the very first course.

The Hand-dived Scallop and Avocado “millefeuille” was a beautiful entrée that seamlessly meshed unexpected flavours.

This was followed by a deceptively simple sounding 55’ Smoked Organic Egg. Cooked gently at 64 degree Celsius for 55 minutes, the egg was accompanied with slivers of crunchy Iberico ham and porcini nougat crumbs.

Moving on to mains, the Confit Arctic Char was a standout. The fish

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was delicately cooked to perfection and melted in your mouth. It was served with cauliflower couscous and sweet crayfish. Just before dessert, the maître d’ will tempt you with a glorious cut of brie and truffles.

Dessert at Jaan is a chocolate lover’s dream. Called Choconuts 2012, it is a delicious concoction of Tanariva mousse, peanuts and macadamia nut ice cream. If

there is possibly room for more, be sure to check out the petits fours. The citrus lolly with popping candy is sure to put a smile on your face.

Jaan seats a maximum of 50 guests, making it an ideal venue for a memorable and intimate staff lunch. A three-course set lunch costs $52 while a five-course one is priced at $82. Companies can also hire harpists, pianists or other performers for some light entertainment. + Jaan Level 70, Equinox Complex, Swissôtel The Stamford, Singapore 178882 + Tel: (65) 6837 3322

in person

Elaine

Tay

HR Manager, Samwoh Corporation Pte Ltd Years in HR? 11 years.

Why HR? I enjoy working with people. Being a HR practitioner, it allows me to work with people of different background and skills.

Why Samwoh?

The company’s management team has great foresight and ambition. Most importantly, it is one that values its employees. I have had the opportunity to grow with the company and have helped to set up its HR policies and practices. It is interesting and challenging as I am constantly faced with new issues and demands on the job.

Biggest achievement?

To me, the biggest achievement is to have built a cohesive and responsible team of HR personnel that work together and support each other to provide the best HR services to the company.

Family?

I am thankful to my family for their patience and support as I am always busy at work. We will have an overseas vacation together at least once a year.

What happens after hours?

I normally spend time with my family watching TV programmes and the news. On weekends, I will go for morning walks with them.

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57

twenty-four seven healthy food, we will walk to get a Subway sandwich at Courts.

1.15pm Back to work and I read through

Iming Bahari

my new incoming emails.

2.00pm I will go down to meet the

Human Capital Manager, Guardian Health & Beauty, Dairy Farm Singapore

8.00am I buy a cup of coffee from Kou Fo, the only food court at Giant Tampines, to start my day!

on new initiatives and requests from Senior Management that need follow-up. We also discuss our upcoming recruitment plans.

8.30am After having my necessary

11.00am I meet up with my L&D team

morning caffeine boost, I will check my schedules for the day, read emails and follow up on outstanding matters with regards to HR and L&D.

on training matters where they will share their upcoming training programmes for our team members.

10.00am It is time for a short meeting with my HR team. I will update the team hay_PS2.pdf

1

3/16/12

12.30pm Lunch normally happens with my fellow colleagues at the food court.

Sometimes when we feel like having

Directors and discuss various HR and Training matters that require my immediate attention.

3.00pm This is the time that I will look through the documents that require my approval such as payment to vendors, medical claims and payroll.

4.30pm Project time! It is usually quieter during this part of the day and I will take this time to follow up on the projects that I am handling and prepare reports.

6.30pm If there aren’t any urgent matters to attend to, it’s time to go to meet up with my girlfriends for our weekly kickboxing class!

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talent feature

Recognising the effort!

Thinking of ways to boost retention and productivity? A simple and effective employee recognition programme could just be the solution recognition programme is maintaining the element of surprise, so try a little variety.

You probably know your employees quite well, so you should have a good idea of what each one will appreciate.

Are they the type who prefers to be recognised officially or personally; formally or informally; publicly or privately? Would they like a gift, a note, or just some simple verbal praise? Also, take into account what they did to deserve your recognition. Someone who just completed a rigorous two-month project should be rewarded more substantially than an employee who stayed late for one evening. No matter what you do, make sure you take the time to customise your reward.

Lynne

ng

Regional Director, Adecco South East Asia

R

esearch from the US shows that 79% of employees who leave their job do so because they feel they are not receiving enough recognition – that’s nearly 8 out of 10! Another startling statistic is that 90% of employees say that feeling appreciated actually motivates them to do an even better job. Businesses in Singapore could dramatically reduce turnover and increase productivity if they simply acknowledged their employees’ contributions. In fact, it can be simple to implement an effective, cost-conscious employee recognition programme, regardless of the size of your organisation. Here are a few tips:

Just say “thanks”

When it comes to keeping your best people satisfied, a sincere word of thanks from the right person at the right time

can often mean much more than a formal award. When did you last hear the ‘thanks’ word from your manager?

Hopefully it was today. So take some time out of your busy day to seek out the person responsible and personally thank them. Here are a few simple ways for you to just say “thanks”: » Call employees into your office just to thank them. Don’t discuss anything else. » Ask your boss to call and thank the employee. » Send hand-written thank you notes to your employees’ homes.

One reward doesn’t fit all.

Every employee is unique. A standard form of recognition for every achievement does not do much to inspire your employees to continue doing their best.

Part of what makes a successful

Sometimes, it can be about the money.

They don’t call it “the almighty dollar” for nothing. Money is still a powerful way to keep your employees motivated.

And while you can’t run around handing out S$50 notes to anyone who puts in a little extra effort, it is important to make sure that your employees are being compensated fairly – both in comparison to their co-workers and by industry standards.

However, fair pay is only a small part of a good employee recognition programme. What is most important is creating a dynamic and enjoyable culture that your best people want to be a part of for the future! + For more information about Adecco see www.adecco.com.sg or www.facebook.com/AdeccoSingapore issue 12.4

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The value of HR

What are the best areas for HR to add value in an organisation?

Considering the global competition for talent, HR plays a critical role to ensure alignment of manpower needs to meet future capability requirements in an Pravina Jit organisation.

The Immigration & Checkpoints Authority (ICA) has a wellDirector of integrated and robust system that enables the organisation to calibrate the resources Manpower, Immigration & needed, identify talent gaps and put in place the appropriate HR plans for Checkpoints recruitment, learning, career development and performance management. HR also Authority regularly monitors the organisation’s business performance to assess the operational effectiveness of the overall resources that have been allocated.

HR also plays an important role in developing strategies and plans to cultivate the innovation capabilities of employees to achieve manpower and workforce success. In the ICA, one of our key HR strategic outcomes is to build a learning, knowledge sharing and innovative culture to ignite the creativity sparks in our officers and also support our network of selfgenerating innovation platforms. Hence, innovation is embedded in our key HR focus areas as an underlying force that drives our HR strategies and plans. This will propel the ICA to deliver innovative solutions to meet operational and customer requirements.

I believe that when we as HR professionals begin with an end in mind, we will be able to emerge as a full strategic contributor and add great value to the organisation.

HR adds value by understanding our employees and the type of environment Director, HR, Changi General that enables them to perform their best. Like it or not, HR’s key role is about Hospital supporting and equipping our employees to fulfil the strategic vision of the organisation. In CGH, our HR philosophy is “Grow Talent, Enable People” and we achieve this through building and strengthening the three core areas: » Learn: Life-long learning culture that encourages innovation, enthusiasm, feedback, interactions and continuous improvement. » Grow: Clear career advancement pathways with structured programmes in place to support career progression, succession planning as well as lateral movements. » Play: Closely-knit, well-balanced working culture with excellent employee wellness programmes that encompass the physical, social and emotional well-being of employees.

Lilian Chew

Gaurav Hirey

In today’s modern world, our working environments are becoming increasingly digital and flexible. Therefore, this causes the line to blur between work and HR Director, Asia personal life. Flexible working arrangements are becoming the norm in the Pacific, GroupM workforce and with employees having more expectations on their companies, it is needless to say that the age of customisation is here to stay.

In such environments, engaging people and building their trust are critical areas that organisations need to focus on for them to succeed – this is where HR can play a very crucial role and add immense value.

Some ways that HR can contribute include advising senior business leaders, focusing on decision-making support, optimal workforce planning, leadership development and executive coaching. These are some of the areas where HR initiatives can make a significant impact.

As such, HR needs to strive to create an environment that supports and promotes creativity and innovation and where employees feel that they are recognised and rewarded for their contributions to the organisation.

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Healthway Medical Group

Comparing hospital bill sizes Do public hospitals always charge lower fees than private ones? For selected procedures, bill sizes at public and private hospitals are comparable. Hence, patients are encouraged to enjoy reduced waiting times at private hospitals

I

n 2003, in a move to improve bill size transparency, Singapore’s Ministry of Health (MOH) encouraged all hospitals to publish their bill size data. This initiative started with the top 28 medical conditions/procedures and was extended to cover 70 medical conditions/procedures in January 2011.1 The aim of bill transparency is to put downward pressure on hospital charges through competition. Indeed, a previous study reported that there was an immediate downward trend in hospital charges for some of the conditions listed.

As it was not mandatory for private hospitals to submit bill size data, initially only Mount Alvernia Hospital participated.

By January 2011, all private hospitals joined in but with different degrees of comprehensiveness. The hospital bill size data was updated monthly and published on the Ministry of Health website.2 The availability of this data may help individuals make informed decisions about the choice of health services providers, particularly for patients who might be willing to make the trade-off between marginally higher charges but reduced waiting time at private hospitals.

While it may be expected that charges at public hospitals will be lower than in private hospitals, this is not a given. A previous study has found at least one instance in 2003 where a public hospital was charging higher than private hospitals for a laser surgery to correct short-sightedness.3 Public hospital bill size was significantly smaller than private hospital bill size in seven of 12 medical conditions/procedures evaluated. Interestingly, there are five procedures for which the median bill size in

Dr Wee

hwee lin Assistant Professor, Department of Pharmacy: Faculty of Science: National University of Singapore public and private hospitals were not significantly different. They are Heart angiography day surgery, hemorrhoid day surgery, glaucoma day surgery (single eye, single procedure), diabetic eye disease (laser treatment) day surgery and colonoscopy day surgery. These five procedures are all day surgery procedures, thus a likely inference is that the charges at private hospitals for day surgery procedures are increasingly competitive with those of public hospitals.

By highlighting these procedures where the cost of care was found to be comparable in public and private hospitals, some patients may choose a private health services provider for shorter queues while alleviating congestion in public hospitals.

In conclusion, we attempt to help patients digest published bill size data and identified five procedures where the bill sizes were comparable in both public and private hospitals. This information may be useful to patients who wish to choose between public and private health services. However, a few study caveats must be applied and the analyses need to

be updated if there were significant changes in the trend of hospital bill size and other developments in the healthcare systems of Singapore and its neighbors.

This research study is supported by Healthway Medical Group Pte Ltd. In return for the author’s time, Healthway Medical Group Pte Ltd made a contribution to the NUS Pharmacy Bursary Fund. + Dr Wee Hwee Lin + Tel: (65) 6516 5530 + Email: phawhl@nus.edu.sg Khaw BW. “Who provides better deal?”

Available at http://mohsingapore.blogspot. com/2011/01/who-provides-better-deal_03.html.

Accessed on 10 June 2011.

2 Ministry of Health Singapore. “Hospital bill size”.

Available at http://www.moh.gov.sg/mohcorp/ billsize.aspx. Accessed on 10 June 2011.

3 Lim Meng Kin. “Transparency of hospital bills (2)”. Health Policy Monitor, May 2005. Available at http://www.hpm.org/survey/sg/a5/3.

Accessed on 10 June 2011.

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talent ladder

Tan Kwang Cheak

Assistant Executive Director, Singapore National Employers Federation

Sheela Gopal

HR Manager, SEA and Taiwan, Pall Filtration

Liang Kin HR Director, UGL Services Premas Operations

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Tan Kwang Cheak has recently been appointed as the Assistant Executive Director and Director of Development for the Singapore National Employers Federation (SNEF).

Prior to joining SNEF, Tan was the Senior Director for Operations, Business Planning and HR at McDonald’s Singapore. His work experience spans over 13 years in both the public and private sectors, of which six years were spent in key HR leadership roles. Tan’s previous appointments were in the Ministry of Education, Ministry of Defence, Ministry of Manpower and JTC Corporation.

“In my current role in SNEF, I hope to be able to help drive the organisation forward and strengthen our employers’ voice and advance their interest within the tripartite environment in Singapore. I am also looking forward to working closely with our employers to strengthen progressive employment practices, promulgate latest HR practices and enhance their productivity and competitiveness for the future.”

Sheela has taken up her new role at Pall Filtration as HR Manager for Southeast Asia and Taiwan. Before this, she was working as an organisational development (OD) manager in Melbourne, Australia. As an OD manager, she played the role of a strategic business partner to nine countries including Australia, Spain, Russia, UK, USA, Middle East, China, Hong Kong and Singapore.

Sheela has about 17 years of working experience in HR mainly as a generalist, and her core strength lies in employee relations, learning and development, and recruitment and selection.

As Pall Filtration is a highly dynamic and fast paced organisation, Sheela is constantly challenged with daily operational issues where time is of essence. Nevertheless, she is looking forward to this exciting new phase of her career and hopes to become a better HR leader.

Liang Kin is the new HR Director for UGL Services Premas Operations.

Prior to this, she was working at LG Electronics Asia and Hewlett-Packard.

With more than 27 years of HR experience, Liang has worked in diverse industries such as information technology, FMCG, consumer electronics and now real estate & property management. She specialises in business partnering, as well as organisation capability building and managing transformation.

Liang is involved in various regional HR integration planning workstreams due to a major merger and acquisition. Her organisation is globalising their HR processes, systems and policies as well as transforming the HR structure and delivery model.

“I love the challenges of working closely with my team members and business leaders to find new ways of creating value for our employees and customers. I hope that our HR team will become a leading model of HR partnership and delivery excellence in the region.”

executive appointments

frazerjones.com

HR Roles Frazer Jones exclusively focuses on the global HR market and our specialist teams recruit across the full HR spectrum for local, regional and global positions, across all levels and industries. Established in 1996 in the UK, Frazer Jones is a market leader in almost all of the geographic locations we operate in. With offices in Singapore, Hong Kong, Dubai, London, Sydney and Melbourne and a proven track record in Europe as well as demonstrable capability recruiting in the Americas, Frazer Jones assists clients and candidates across the globe.

Regional C&B Leader

Singapore or Hong Kong

This role will provide proactive consulting for the APAC regional C&B program, including interacting with external consultants to assess regional trends and country-specific practices. Your major duties include the analysis, design, approval process, communication and active involvement in the annual reward process, benefit budgets, compensation competitive analysis, changes in policy and regional communications. Knowledge of regional C&B programs and how it relates to HR and business unit areas will be critical. Ref: FN83216.

Competitive salary package

Head of HR, Asia Pacific

Singapore

Supporting a dynamic group of employees and partners regionally, the successful applicant will manage the delivery of professional HR activities that contribute to the growth in capability of the team.

Working closely with the partners, you will provide consultative business support on talent management, staff engagement and culture, workforce planning and learning and development activities.

Experience gained in a multi-faceted partnership group within a professional services environment is essential. Ref: TH83220.

Attractive total package

To discuss HR roles across Asia, please contact Theresa Hall on +65 6420 0515 or Fiona Nesbitt on +65 6420 0520.

Alternatively, email theresahall@frazerjones.com or fionanesbitt@frazerjones.com Visit frazerjones.com for all of our latest HR roles. EA licence number: 10C4100.

THE SR GROUP . BREWER MORRIS . CARTER MURRAY . FRAZER JONES . PARKER WELLS . SR SEARCH . TAYLOR ROOT LONDON . DUBAI . HONG KONG . SINGAPORE . SYDNEY . MELBOURNE

Searching for HR professionals?

Look no further than HRM Singapore

Number 1 Media for Reaching HR Audited at 14,531 copies per month - HRM Singapore’s HR job listings reach more HR professionals each month than any other media. And with our competitive pricing you can increase the number of quality responses - whilst saving money!

Please contact us on (65) 6423 4631 for full details

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executive appointments

www.achievegroup.asia Singapore | Malaysia | Hong Kong

Established in 1990, the Achieve Group is a multi award-winning organisation and HR outsourcing partner-of-choice for local conglomerates and multinational corporations within the Asia Pacific region. It specialises in Talent Acquisition comprising General Recruitment, Technology Recruitment, Foreign Recruitment and Executive Search Divisions, as well as HR Consulting.

EA Licence No.: 05C3451

1. Human Resource Business Partner

2. Manpower Planning Manager

5 days/West/Tuas area (transport provided) Good and stable working environment Minimal OT, worklife balance

Healthcare Group 5 days/Bonua Vista (Near to MRT) Attractive Bonus

Our Client, an established US MNC located in Tuas area, is seeking for suitable candidates to join them as Human Resource Business Partner.

Our client, an established healthcare group, providing excellent clinical care, research and education. One of the leading players in the healthcare industry.

Responsibilities

Responsibilities

• The position is based in Singapore and requires an assertive and personable individual who is proactive in communications and able to develop effective relationships at all levels within the company • Reporting to the Human Resources Manager, you will support day-to-day HR operations in the areas of talent management, organizational development, employee relations and team-building, HRMS for the region • You will also assist in implementing HR strategy and global HR initiatives, as well as craft and propose HR/process improvement solutions, HR policies and practices to support business strategy and direction in the region • You will be required to work closely and provide HR advisory services to department managers in line with Corporate HR policies and local labor legal requirements

• Responsible for building a strong culture in the hospital, where staff are engaged and motivated to give their best in the group • Responsible for Manpower Planning and Budgeting • Analyse HR data and present to the management • Be involved in key HR functions/projects such as manpower planning, policy & process, performance management, etc • Working in close partnership with management, line departments, business units and staff to achieve the short-term and long-term goals and objectives of the organisation

Requirements • Bachelor’s Degree in Human Resources with 5 to 8 years of relevant working experience in a sales and marketing environment • Strong operational and strategic HR management skills • Excellent interpersonal, verbal and written communication skills • Must be able to handle confidential and sensitive information with integrity • Able to multi-task and solve problems with limited supervision in a fast paced environment • Strong knowledge of HR systems and processes • Able to travel within the region (only when necessary)

Requirements • Possess a Degree with at least 4 to 6 years of Manpower Planning experience from healthcare or huge corporations • Effective interpersonal skill & impeccable communications skill (writing skill is a key) • Highly analytical and organizational skills • Good with figures • Ability to meet tight deadlines & has experience to lead projects Interested candidate please submit your updated resume in MS Word format to: Position 1: blessing8@achievegroup.asia Position 2: blessing10@achievegroup.asia We regret only shortlisted candidate will be notified.

All applications will be treated with the strictest confidence.

141 Market Street #13-00 International Factors Building Singapore 048944 T +65 6323 0050 F +65 6323 3006

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Global Network.

www.michaelpage.com.sg

Local Expertise.

With 161 offices in 33 countries, we have the resources and expertise to help you take the next step in your HR career.

Key Driver for HR Strategies Direct reporting to HR Director

Regional L&D Role Visible Portfolio

Our client is a global leader in the financial services industry, headquartered in the UK with a strong, established presence in Asia.

They are seeking a Human Resource Business Partner to join their Singapore team. This position will contribute to strategic discussions and develop HR plans for the business on HR advisory, high level recruitment, organisational development consulting, performance management and various HR project management. You will support the senior management team to enhance customer service for a positive effect on business profitability. Please contact Cherry Wu quoting ref: H1191620

Our client has been nominated as one of the “Top 100 Employers� numerous times and have an excellent culture of promoting from within. Reporting to the Regional L&D Director, this is a multi-faceted role that includes setting up the University infrastructure, tracking data metrics and managing the MyLearning system, knowledge management in trainer resources, as well as managing budgets for conferences and training events. You will be diploma/degree qualified and have at least 8 years of experience. Sound interpersonal and communication skills are preferred. Please contact Ling Quek quoting ref: H1203320

Regional Compensation & Benefits Manager

Regional Recruitment Manager

Fortune 200 Company Team Lead Responsibilities Our clients breadth of market dominance includes sectors such as technology, consumer and pharmaceutical. Due to team movement and anticipated global initiatives, there is now an opportunity for a professional to join the team and provide reward subject matter expertise to the APAC region. The role will lead in reward activities and project management for key rewards program including the design, implementation and communication of policies. The ideal candidate should have a minimum of 6 years progressive experience with a demonstrated ability to design and integrate large scale reward programs. Please contact Audrey Neo quoting ref: H1199240

#12747

Learning Specialist

Dynamic Global Electronics Leader Attractive Remuneration Our client is a market leader in the electronics sector with over 30,000 employees in the Asia Pacific region. With a strong focus on growth in Asia, there is a need for an experienced Recruitment Leader to lead business expansion in the region. Your key task will be to establish and standardise talent attraction processes, employer branding and build talent pipeline while working with senior business leaders. You will provide expert subject matter and be confident in recommending the best talent sourcing strategy for the organisation.

Please contact Peiwen Teo quoting ref: H1192100

Licence No: 98C5473 Business Registration No: 199804751N

Human Resource Business Partner

To apply for any of the above positions, please go to www.michaelpage.com.sg/apply quoting the reference number, or contact the relevant consultant on +65 6533 2777 for further details.

Specialists in HR Recruitment

161 offices in 33 countries | www.michaelpage.com.sg

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executive appointments

Returning the Human to Resourcing

HR Director

Talent Management Manager

Head of HR – Malaysia

Global Portfolio

Major Financial Body

Global Financial Institution

Highly Visible Role

Dynamic Team

High Growth Phase

Salary circa S$250k – S$300k + bonus

Singapore Role

Highly Challenging Role

Our client is a global leader with significant international operations. Due to exciting growth plans, there is a need for an energetic and dynamic HR professional to join them.

Our client manages financial investment in

Reporting to the Global Head of HR and President of the Business Unit, you will ensure that HR policies, practices and resources are in alignment with overall business and corporate objectives. You will lead and implement key LT/ST HR initiatives that impact overall compensation, succession planning and recruitment strategies. As there are several M&A activities in the pipeline, you will also be heavily involved in HR due diligence and integration.

You will lead, develop and execute talent

This premier financial institution serves its global network of clients with sophisticated services and operates in a dynamic, entrepreneurial and culturally diverse environment. It is recruiting a dynamic professional for the position of Head of HR – Malaysia.

Ideally you are degree qualified and have deep experience in HR, including team management.

You possess strong working knowledge of HR practices as well as have a broad overview of certain specialist functions. You are excellent in managing client relationships at senior levels and have the ability to articulate and implement these initiatives on the ground. Prior experience in M&A is critical for this role.

employee engagement and development.

you are strategic, proactive and a team player.

Degree qualified, with significant years of HR experience gained in a major MNC or financial institution, you are highly credible, a self-starter, highly tenacious and proactive in driving results and organizational change.

You will thrive in a fast-paced environment and are able to operate at both strategic and tactical levels.

To apply, please submit your resume to Cecelia Koh at ck@kerryconsulting.com, quoting the job title and reference number CK3909\HRM, or call (65) 6333 8530 for more details.

To apply, please submit your resume to Adnan Atan at aa@kerryconsulting.com, quoting the job title and reference number AA3994\HRM, or call (65) 6333 8530 for more details.

To apply, please submit your resume to Adnan Atan at aa@kerryconsulting.com, quoting the job title and reference number AA3779\HRM, or call (65) 6333 8530 for more details.

various asset classes and promotes employee-friendly practices and policies.

management practices so as to attract, develop, retain and deploy talent to meet the organization’s goals. You will partner with senior management and line managers as well as other HR colleagues to drive successful talent review strategies, talent identification, succession plans and monitor the development of critical talent. As part of a team, you will also be involved in projects relating to

Degree qualified, you will have relevant years of experience gained in a major MNC. With strong interpersonal and communication skills, you are able to relate with staff at all levels.

With strong influencing and negotiation skills,

banking | finance | human resources

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This is a highly critical hire in support of the company’s growing operations in Malaysia.

As part of the senior management team and the key decision-maker for human capital, you will drive people agenda and contribute to the alignment of the business and employee objectives through utilizing appropriate HR interventions and change management tools.

executive appointments HRM Awards 2009 Sponsor of the Best HR Manager of the Year Award Asiamoney Headhunters Poll 2009 Best Headhunting Firm - Middle/Back-Office category No. 2 in Asia

HR Business Partner

Learning Program Director

Organizational Development/ Talent Management Specialist

FMCG

Progressive Global Bank

Leading Global MNC

Exciting Opportunity

Program & Instructional Design Preferred

Exciting Initiatives

Salary circa S$130k-S$150k base + bonus

Consumer Banking

Salary circa S$150k-S$250k + variable bonus

Our client is an established FMCG company, renowned for its innovative and superior range of products. Due to a change in the strategic direction of the HR function, they are now seeking a high quality HR Business Partner to join them in this exciting role.

Our client is a progressive global bank with diverse businesses and global network of clients. It is recruiting a dynamic and high caliber Learning Program Director.

Our client is an extremely established global MNC. There is now an opportunity for an OD/Talent Management specialist to join them in this newly created position.

You are HR qualified and have worked a minimum of 10 years in a progressive multinational, preferably in a services environment. You are strategic in mindset and operationally hands on. A strong team player, you are approachable and possess strong interpersonal and communication skills.

To apply, please submit your resume to Cecelia Koh at ck@kerryconsulting.com, quoting the job title and reference number CK3960\HRM, or call (65) 6333 8530 for more details.

Degree qualified, you will have relevant years of experience in learning gained in a progressive bank or MNC. With strong learning consulting and business engagement skills to identify and analyse requirements, you will have advanced facilitation skills to deliver at Train-the-Trainer program level. Instructional design background would be highly desirable.

To apply, please submit your resume to Adnan Atan at aa@kerryconsulting.com, quoting the job title and reference number AA3437\HRM, or call (65) 6333 8530 for more details.

Reporting to the Global Head of OD, you will be responsible for the development and implementation of the Talent Management Framework and strategies to address key leadership and organizational development needs for the region as a whole. You will continually drive high performance to ensure the firm’s competitive advantage through the development of their leadership values/competencies, with an emphasis on assessment, development, deployment and retention of talent.

Ideally, you are degree qualified preferably with specializations in OD/talent development/ employee engagement. You are highly collaborative and work well with global/regional/ in-country senior management (in and out of HR). You are hands on and structured in approach. Dynamic and committed, you work well in a highly diversified and global culture.

To apply, please submit your resume to Cecelia Koh at ck@kerryconsulting.com, quoting the job title and reference number CK3911\HRM, or call (65) 6333 8530 for more details.

Licence No: C690801Z

Reporting to the APAC HRD, you are a strategic partner to the business in conceptualizing and executing the overall business strategy of driving organizational and individual performance. This is a generalist business partnering role encompassing the entire employee life cycle, i.e. recruitment, talent management, compensation, and learning and development. On an ad hoc basis, you can also be expected to liaise extensively with the European HQ in leading strategic initiatives for the APAC region.

Reporting to the Head of Learning for Consumer Banking, you will design and develop learning solutions to enable the Consumer Banking business to achieve its strategic intent, including defining business aligned learning agendas, curricula design and development, faculty identification, learning roadmaps and certification.

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Human resources professionals speak to tHe experts Hr Business partner – sales & marketing strategic advisory role

senior compensation consultant manage compensation projects across a range of clients

This global media organisation, based in Singapore, is looking for an influential Human Resources Business Partner to support their sales function. You will provide full spectrum of HR function by giving expert advice, guidance and coaching to help the business achieve full capacity, capability and the commitment of employees. With a minimum of five years HR experience, ideally as a Business Partner within a MNC, you will be accustomed to performing in a fast paced environment and demonstrate strong stakeholder management and interpersonal skills.

This HR consultancy is seeking a senior compensation specialist to manage some of the most respected companies’ compensation solutions. Your area of expertise lies in total rewards and executive compensation solutions encompassing the development, implementation and communication of total compensation projects. This involves job and salary structure evaluation, incentive bonus plans, share based compensation plans and employee benefits studies. Ideally you will have between 10-12 years experience as a compensation specialist.

Hr Development manager educate the workforce

senior Hr Business partner Drive the organisational and people agenda

This exciting newly created opportunity is for a HR Development Manager with a well known electronics MNC located near the town area. You will be working in a team of 20, providing HRD support to various divisions.

This position will require you to plan the development of staff in global locations including outside Asia and to build/drive HRD systems for global core persons. You will be required to plan and promote functional/ management training according to business needs and liaise with the training team to provide a customised training and development plan for new joiners and for the purpose of career development.

A Senior HR Business Partner is required for this well known, global MNC that is growing rapidly and in need of strategic HR direction.

This is an exciting time to join this organisation as the region has a rapidly growing business and HR team with a remit for change. This is a great opportunity for a strong HR professional to become the lead for the Singapore business and a part of the regional team. You will be responsible for the effective execution of all people processes and a key contributor in developing, managing, implementing and administering HR strategies and programs and ensuring excellence in delivery.

please contact ash russell, mamta shukla, thomas Girling or Vargin Yeke at hr.singapore@hays.com.sg or +65 6303 0721.

hays.com.sg

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Charterhouse HRM Mar12 v6_A 15/3/12 8:36 AM Page 1

executive appointments

Great people are at the heart of every successful business. It is this belief to invest in our team at Charterhouse that makes it possible for us to provide our clients with professional, specialised and tailored executive search services and the best possible talent for each company.

People are our business

Our client list spans across multi-national companies and global enterprises with a vested interest in people and talent development. These companies are currently searching for HR professionals to develop a rewarding professional career for and to value add to the following professional and executive roles.

Global Head of HR

Recruitment Manager / Specialist

This company is a global MNC with a strong Asia focus looking for a proactive, strong leader with exceptional in luencing skills to be based in Singapore.

A global, luxury brand is looking for a dynamic Recruitment Manager to head its regional recruiting plans and strategies.

Responsibilities:

• anticipate and meet the HR needs of business leaders, and country heads around the world • ensure compliance of HR practices and programs in relation to regional local statutory requirements • drive a high performance culture through the performance review process, ensuring that managers understand the objective and purpose of their roles • drive employee engagement initiatives including communication, team meetings, feedback sessions, recognition programs etc Requirements:

• degree in HR management or relevant discipline • minimum 10 to 15 years’ HR experience with several years at a regional or global level • strong HR technical skills – you will have developed your career within the HR function rising through the ranks • dynamic personality with solid stakeholder management skills • ready drive change throughout the organisation in a dynamic and fast‐paced environment • ability to work under pressure and adaptable to different working conditions and environment

Learning & Development Manager / Section Manager

A global leader in advance technology is looking for a dynamic Learning & Development Manager to head its strategic plans and strategies.

Responsibilities:

• ascertain training needs, formulate plans and recommend effective training and change strategies • manage learning and development function towards quality, productivity and cost ef iciency • lead plant‐wide cross‐functional strategies and activities within budget through liaison with external consultants, organisation/corporate and regional plants Requirements:

• degree quali ied with at least 4 to 6 years' strategic L&D design and delivery experience in a fast‐paced manufacturing/engineering industry • resourceful, initiative, analytical and creative • excellent interpersonal , communication , in luential and leadership skills

Responsibilities:

• develop and maintain strong working relationships with business leaders to identify recruitment needs and workforce planning strategies through understanding of job responsibilities and business requirements • develop and maintain a network of contacts and leverage online recruiting resources as well as in‐house database to identify and source quali ied talents • manage the selection, offer, negotiation, closing and administrative components involved in the full lifecycle of recruiting • participate in the development of on‐going creative and cost‐effective sourcing strategies and develop an effective pipeline of key talent potentially available for immediate hire as succession planning needs dictate • stay informed of trends and innovative recruiting techniques in order to be competitive in state‐of‐the‐art recruiting practices Requirements:

• degree quali ied with at least 3 to 5 years' external/internal recruiting experience in a fast‐paced retail/FMCG industry • ability to recruit for a broad/deep range of positions on a national and regional level, with strong initiative and judgement skills • good project management skills, with excellent interpersonal and communication skills (verbal and written)

Employee Relations Manager / Section Manager

A global leader in advance Technology is looking for an experienced Employee Relations Manager to enhance relationships and morale within the company.

Responsibilities:

• work with HR and problem solving teams to ensure that the HR principles and division needs are addressed and met • monitor and assist all employee status changes (transfers, promotions and terminations), disciplinary actions and turnover analyses • provide employee counseling, handle grievances and advice on HR issues • assist in interpreting and implementing HR policies, procedures and programs in terms of ER, compensation & bene its, employment, and learning & development • enhance employee relations and welfare programs through communication and change management Requirements:

• degree quali ied with at least 4 to 6 years' employee and labour relation experience in a fast‐paced manufacturing industry • excellent interpersonal and communication skills with the ability to develop and maintain effective working relationships at all levels • irm, decisive and in luential with strong leadership skills

To apply, please email your CV to hr@charterhouse.com.sg or call Perry Barrow or Shereen Foo at +65 6435 5610.

For more information on your career and recruitment needs, please visit www.charterhouse.com.sg.

Charterhouse believes in investing in people. If you want to join a company that provides more than a job but a rewarding career, call Gary Lai at +65 6435 5601 or email garyl@charterhouse.com.sg.

Investment in People

www.charterhouse.com.sg Company Licence Number: 06C3997

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Investment in People

Asia • Middle East • Australasia