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PACNET'S HR TRANSFORMATION TALENT ENGAGEMENT AT 3M WHY L&D NEEDS TO BE A BUSINESS PARTNER

ISSUE 14.11

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EDITOR’S NOTE EDITORIAL DIRECTOR Sumathi V Selvaretnam

Dear HRM readers,

ASSISTANT EDITOR Shalini Shukla-Pandey

JOURNALIST Sham Majid

14.11

fter a busy few months, it was time to celebrate! HRM Asia revealed its fresh print and online offerings

at an exclusive party at iFly Sentosa on October 16. Key

DIGITAL JOURNALIST Roshni Kapur

members of the HR community, as well as our valued partners

SUB-EDITOR Paul Howell

magazine, and our spanking new website.

PUBLISHING ADMINISTRATOR Azimah Jasman

evening was a breezy affair where wine and conversation

SENIOR GRAPHIC DESIGNER Amos Lee

taking the time to celebrate with us.

GRAPHIC DESIGNER John Paul Lozano

on to Learning and Development (L&D). This

SALES DIRECTOR Steve Lye

L&D plans are aligned with business goals. We

came together to celebrate the launch of our freshly designed Set against the backdrop of the South China Sea, the flowed freely. We would like to thank all our lovely guests for In November, HRM Magazine turns the spotlight special issue examines why it is critical that your

ACCOUNT MANAGERS Edwin Lim Jolene Ong Ryan Kwa Shamaine Chua

also look at the latest trends in learning, and gather tips from the experts on how to create a successful L&D programme. Continue the conversation online by signing up for MYHRM, and access our

MARKETING MANAGER George Smith

dedicated Learning and Development

MARKETING EXECUTIVE Rafiq Jalil

sign-ups. Visit www.hrmasia.com today and

MANAGING DIRECTOR Kaveri Ayahsamy PHOTOGRAPHY BY Frank Pinckers (pinckers.com) Ted Chen (tedchenphoto.com) PRINTED BY Times Printers Pte Ltd PUBLISHED BY

HRM Asia Pte Ltd 121 Telok Ayer Street #02-01 Singapore 068590 Tel: +65 6423 4631 Fax: +65 6423-4632 Email: info@hrmasia.com.sg

Community. Attractive prizes await for new register for free. This issue of HRM also carries highlights from a joint survey on Talent Sustainability by HRM Asia and the Center for Creative Leadership. Find out how HR professionals in Singapore and the region rate the effectiveness of their talent management systems, and how effective organisations run theirs.

Sumathi V Selvaretnam Editorial Director, HRM Asia

MICA (P) 206/07/2013

ISSN 0219-6883

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@hrmasia.com.sg

ISSUE 14.11

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CONTENTS 14.11 COVER STORY 18 Why L&D needs to

be a business partner The learning and development function is constantly changing, says Sunder Ramachandran, Head – Sales Training, Pfizer India. Recent years have seen it moving closer and closer to a role in overall business strategy

FEATURES 12 Leaders Talk HR: 3M

Attracting the best minds is a key priority for 3M, a global business driven by innovation. Arthur Fong, managing director of 3M Singapore says ensuring that the best talent are constantly engaged and motivated by new challenges is the key to building a strong leadership pipeline.

23 Going gaga over

game-based learning While the term “game-based learning” sounds fun and relaxing, there is a lot to understand about its complexities and intricacies. HRM delves into how game-based learning can work from an HR perspective.

28 The virtual classroom

How can HR create a virtual training strategy that allows it to

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achieve training goals by more effectively complementing on-site instructors and printed learning materials? HRM finds out.

32 Charting your

leadership map at Unilever Leadership is espoused by almost every organisation. But what do these businesses need to actually craft their own credible and thorough leadership development programmes? HRM profiles the leadership armada within FMCG giant Unilever.

36 Pacnet: Transformed HR drives performance

Pacnet has risen from times of uncertainty and leadership upheaval to become the awardwinning, innovative technology service provider that it is today. Chief HR Officer Syed Ali Abbas says the organisation went through massive transformations

23 in almost every area of business, with HR at the forefront.

40 SME Spotlight

Maintaining a strong company culture and the right hygiene factors is key to SME success, says ornamental fish specialist Qian Hu.

43 HRM Asia Summit 2015 HR Summit 2015 has officially launched with hot features and a spectacular, diverse line-up of world-class business and management gurus.

54 Talent Agility is Critical

In this fast-changing world, the winners in business are often the organisations that can change just as quickly. Guest contributor Edward E Lawler says this sort of agility requires a unique type of employee, and a structure that gets the best out of everyone for as long as they are there.

58 Heralding a new era for HRM Asia

We launched our brand new

print and online offerings over an evening to remember on Sentosa island.

60 Creativity matters at Adobe

In todayâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s knowledge-based economy, creativity and innovation become even more critical ingredients for continued business growth. Adobe is a step ahead, incorporating creativity as a key organisational metric, on par with indicators like revenue and brand equity.

64 Corporate Health

Singapore has recently been placed among the top ten pension systems in the world. HRM explores how companies can further restructure compensation packages to include a viable corporate pension plan.

69 HR Young Guns

In our brand new column, HRM examines the future torchbearers for HR in Asia. These university students specialising in HR will share their passion for the function and how they are preparing for their future career.

54 REGULARS 6 News 16 Leaders on Leadership 47 An HRD Speaks 47 Twenty-four Seven 71

In Person

71 Resources 72 Talent Ladder 73 HR Clinic ISSUE 14.11

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NEWS

ASIA

CHINA

MATERNITY LEAVE MAKES STRONG GAINS IN THE LAST DECADE

JOB CERTIFICATE SYSTEM OVERHAULED

The government will overhaul its vocational qualification certificate system – meant to either allow a person access to a In the last 10 years, employees worldwide have witnessed a certain job or assess his aptitude in a particular field – slashing significant increase in maternity benefits, according to an the roughly 1,100 certifications by at least half. analysis of Mercer’s annual Worldwide Benefit According to The Straits Times, the move is and Employment Guidelines. part of efforts to clean up and standardise various Since 2004, several countries have noticeably vocational qualification approvals and to prevent boosted statutory maternity leave, including the governmental bodies from exploiting these of job seekers in Yangon already-generous Norway, which added seven tests for profit. A majority of the tests that were search for jobs online more weeks. Singapore and Vietnam have added cancelled also had low take-up rates. Source: Survey by Work. eight weeks and stand at 16 and 24 weeks of Among the first to be abolished was the com.mm, Myanmar´s leading job platform maternity leave respectively, while China has property agent certification, along with 10 others added one week and now provides 13-weeks of including those for appraisers of mining rights, maternity leave to female employees. tax accountants and one for professionals who wish to engage Hong Kong and the United Arab Emirates, however, have in international business. not changed their maternity leave durations of 10 and nine Some 570 certifications conducted by local governments will weeks respectively. also be abolished. “Each country around the world, and even each region Industry associations will gradually step in to take over the within certain countries, has its own practices and traditions responsibilities of aptitude assessment, Ministry of Human regarding employee benefits,” said Samantha Polovina, the Resources and Social Security official Sun Jianli told local media Mercer Principal responsible for the report. last month. “That makes it especially challenging for multinational employers. Most of them are likely INDIA to have a core set of benefits that are available to all employees, but they also need to tailor benefit programmes In another move to keep civil servants in check, Prime by country to meet Minister Narendra Modi has launched an electronic these specific, local surveillance system to track 100,000 government officials requirements and and monitor whether they are showing up for work on time. expectations.” The public can also keep track of them through a dedicated website – attendance.gov.in The dashboard of the Biometric Attendance System displays a dynamic, real-time chart of how many people are at work. MALAYSIA The web portal also tells the public which civil servants reported for work on any given day, how punctually they arrived, and if they left midway through the day and where. It even provides a graph on each employee’s attendance trends Beginning last month, Malaysia will require e-filing for its to reveal how often each employee tends to take leave. Professional Visit Pass (PVP) applications. PVP holders may According to The Telegraph India, every employee who has work in Malaysia for up to 12 months while remaining on an Aadhaar biometric identity card has to sign into a device foreign payroll, but they must be sponsored by a registered at the entrance to their office, and then undergo an iris and Malaysian company. fingerprint scan. Senior civil servants can do it without The Immigration Department has stopped accepting manual queuing, using devices attached PVP filings. All companies – including Malaysia’s Multimedia to their workstations. Development Corporation (MDeC) companies – seeking to file The process is repeated while PVP applications should register through the ESD portal as leaving. If an employee goes to soon as possible. another government office on an The current wait time for Expatriate Services Division assignment during work hours, (ESD) registration is six to eight weeks, but will likely become his/her arrival and departure are longer. Given the change in filing process and lack of guidance, also marked. employers should expect PVP application processing delays.

50%

IRIS AND FINGERPRINT SCANS FOR CIVIL SERVANTS

CHANGES TO VISITOR PASS PROGRAMME

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ASIA ASIA

PHILIPPINES

POOR COACHING AFFECTING SALES

JOBS SATISFACTION CHECKS COME TOO LATE

A quarter of managers are still not coaching their sales teams, despite believing that coaching is the single most important tool for driving sales performance. According to a global survey by Forum Asia-Pacific and The Sales Management Association, the main obstacles to effective coaching today are: managers being too busy to coach; not knowing how to coach; or not being expected to coach. Those that do coach, often do it badly; with little structure, vision or purpose. The “Measuring Sales Management’s Coaching Impact”, report showed that, on average, sales coaching was given more to under-performers, new starters or those that specifically requested it, revealing that managers tended to coach more when they had to, rather than proactively and as part of their daily management routines. “Sales coaching is the single most impactful strategy that organisations can implement to increase sales effectiveness and ultimately, reach and even exceed targets,” said Cynthia Stuckey, Managing Director, Forum AsiaPacific. “Our study found that high performing firms provided 15-20% more coaching, compared

NEWS

While a resounding majority (85%) of employers think employee job satisfaction is very important to their companies, only two-thirds take the effort to measure it. According to a survey conducted by online jobs portal JobStreet.com, of the companies that checked the job satisfaction of their employees, 74% used exit interviews upon resignation as their main measurement. “This shows that while employers feel that job satisfaction is something very important, their most to other firms and do so across used measurement only occurs upon an employee’s salesperson levels.” resignation. Sixty-three per cent say they hold team The report also revealed meetings and 58% conduct employee surveys,” the that organisations were failing survey report said. managers by not providing the Another indication that employers may be saying basic elements of a successful one thing and doing another is the frequency of their coaching programme. job satisfaction checks, with only 42% of respondents Top tips to improving sales claiming to check their employees’ job satisfaction coaching, by Forum Asia Pacific: “as often as possible”. Some 26% perform job • Coach and train your sales satisfaction checks once a year, 16% check quarterly managers to be better coaches and 13% conduct them semi-annually. • Invest in both “The disconnect between high performers employers and job satisfaction and under can also be seen in the differences achievers to get between what factors employees civil servants reaching retirement the best return on claim influence their level of job age are offered re-employment investment satisfaction and what employers Source: Deputy Prime Minister • Direct coaching think are the top factors,” it said. and Minister in Charge of the toward specific On the employer’s side, 73% Civil Service Teo Chee Hean behaviours, think that salary is the top factor competencies and producing job satisfaction among performance objectives employees. Benefits ranked second and leadership • Establish a coaching culture or management quality only ranked third. and provide structure, While employees still deem salary as a major accountability and support influence in their job satisfaction level, with 74% of respondents stating salary was “very important”, three other factors scored higher: the quality of THAILAND leadership and management, company stability, and benefits and incentives. Dissatisfaction with Thai workers have been advised to take foreign language classes so the quality of leadership that they will be able to work well with their foreign colleagues before was the leading the integration of ASEAN countries next year. According to the National reason for employees’ News Bureau of Thailand, the Ministry of Labour fears Thailand would frustration. By raising lose a competitive advantage to the Philippines where people can speak management leadership fluent English. standards, employers This could also mean fewer management level jobs for Thais. may gain more satisfied The Department of Skill Development will determine a time frame to employees and possibly achieve language fluency for skilled workers. The Office of Vocational succeed in reducing Education Commission will also prepare vocational school students for attrition rates, the the arrival of the ASEAN Economic Community (AEC) next year. research concluded.

9 in 10

WORKERS MUST BOOST THEIR LANGUAGE SKILLS

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What’s missing?

A TALENT MINDSET

Talent Sustainability is an organisation’s ability to continuously, attract, develop, and retain people with the capabilities and commitment needed for current and future organisational success. In this first-of-its kind, joint survey by HRM Asia and Center for Creative Leadership (CCL®), we look at how leaders and employees both play a critical role in building a thriving talent ecosystem.

WHAT DOES HR THINK? How effective is talent management at meeting business needs?

More than half of the survey’s respondents feel their talent management systems are not very effective.

Our talent management practices are Effective or Very Effective at: OUTCOMES

% IN AGREEMENT

Increasing the quality and bench strength of the company’s leadership pipeline

44%

Implementing a performance-based culture

35% EFFECTIVE

58%

Creating high levels of engagement and retention

46%

46% SOMEWHAT EFFECTIVE

Driving improved business results through leadership skills and behaviours

43%

10%

Accelerating change and business growth

47%

Improving business performance overall

51%

6% VERY EFFECTIVE

NOT AT ALL EFFECTIVE

* 3% did not provide a response

THE WEAK LINK Talent Influencers 41% 35% 33% 8

Only

are personally involved and engaged in coaching, mentoring and developing their top talents

remove barriers to the development of talent

identify and develop their own successors

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IN ORGANISATIONS WITH HIGH TALENT SUSTAINABILITY:

FIVE CRITICAL ROLES

Talent Overseers walk the talk

56%

86%

35%

Board of directors identified talent management as a top priority

74%

Board holds leaders accountable to ensure appropriate talent development is occurring

Talent Orchestrators invest time in coaching and mentoring their leaders

36%

83%

The CEO, or most senior executive and top management team invest their time in talent management

Talent Overseers Board of Directors

36%

75%

The CEO, or most senior executive, and top management team serve as a mentor or coach for other leaders

Talent Orchestrators CEO and senior leaders

Talent Influencers Line managers

Talent take initiative for self-development

34%

75%

The talent in my organisation communicate their career interest and goals

Organisations with low talent sustainability

29%

72%

Talent Accelerators HR Leaders

The talent in my organisation show initiative to manage their career

Organisations with high talent sustainability

Talent Employees

Developing a talent mindset among the five critical roles builds talent sustainability.

Source: HRM Asia - Center for Creative Leadership Talent Sustainability Survey 2014 . Some icon graphics are by flaticon.com

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NEWS

INTERNATIONAL GERMANY

BULLYING DESPAIR FOR STAFF Some American workers are being tested to the limit by workplace bullying. A new survey, by consulting firm Executive Confidante, has revealed that employees working under aggressive managers can be frustrated, dispirited and close to departing from their firms. The survey also found that those experiencing workplace bullying were finding their motivation levels sapping under major stress. According to key findings report: • 44% of those polled quit their job because of workplace bullying • Another 42% considered leaving • 75% claimed a loss of motivation due to the stress of the abrasive behaviours by their managers “It is gut-wrenching to hear the stories of people who have experienced workplace bullying,” said Kalli Matsuhashi, owner of Executive Confidante. “Abrasive managers treat those that work for them with disrespect, intimidation, even coercion; but to their managers higher up they show a different side.” The report identified several reasons for the inertia on fighting workplace bullying, based on the narrative responses of those polled. The most frequently seen response was that firms overlooked the issue, either because of a lack of procedure for combating bullying or in an attempt to prevent further conflict. “While many companies have a conduct policy in place, which is a great start, our survey indicates that few are actively implementing it,” says Matsuhashi. The Executive Confidante survey compiled responses from across sectors, company sizes, and management levels.

Employees who are fond of checking their work email at home or answering a call from the manager on weekends, beware. Such actions could be injurious to your health, experts have advised. A study of 57,000 people found that over half of all employees worked outside their stipulated hours – a development exacerbated by the easy access to work via smartphones and computer tablets. The researchers, from the Society for Labour, Industrial and Organisational Psychological Research in Germany, identified that those who worked in the evenings and during weekends of US HR respondents said were more likely they were encountering to suffer insomnia, problems filling open positions headaches, fatigue, because too many of the anxiety and candidates were unqualified stomach problems. Source: Survey by Beyond.com ability to leave their contact Muscular details with a firm and problems and apply later was “extremely” or “very cardiovascular issues were also important”. associated with working outside Only 23% of HR professionals utilise of scheduled hours, the research a shortened version of an application to found. collate candidate information. The scientists, whose work has For the second roadblock, over onebeen published in the journal third of HR professionals (36%) felt they Chronobiology International, have do not re-engage with job candidates urged governments to apply who were not offered a position, usually harsher regulations to prevent because they have moved on to the most work from creeping into people’s current application (69%) or because no personal and home lives. one has time do so (28%). Technological progress has The study is part of a larger report fostered an “always-on” culture titled “How Candidate Experience is which was pressurising people Transforming HR Technology,” which to be always available to work, was conducted in the US by Harris Poll they said. on behalf of CareerBuilder. It included The authors centred their a representative sample of 374 HR findings on two major polls of professionals and 319 job seekers. workers across Europe.

DON’T LET TECH DRIVE YOUR TALENT AWAY What are some crucial technology-related hurdles that can destroy an organisation’s candidate experience and ruin the prospect of snaring the brightest minds? According to a new US-wide CareerBuilder study, the five roadblocks cited include: • Failing to capture interested candidates • Failing to re-engage applicants • Automating responses • Limiting applications to the desktop • Using a complex application process For the first roadblock, 39% of job searchers believed the

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A GOOD REASON NOT TO CHECK WORK EMAILS ON WEEKENDS?

75%

INTERNATIONAL

NEWS

No Leader is an Island

GLOBAL

WHAT IS THE MOST ENTICING OVERSEAS WORK LOCATION? Close to two in every three job searchers worldwide claim they would be prepared to locate overseas to work. According to the Decoding Global Talent: 200,000 Survey Responses on Global Mobility and Employment Preferences report by the Boston Consulting Group (BCG) and The Network, the US is the most enticing foreign work location, as declared by 42% of job seekers in the survey. The next two most attractive destinations were the UK and Canada, as claimed by 37% and 35% of survey respondents respectively. The report cited that while Western Europeans are frequently categorised together, their readiness to move abroad for work differs noticeably among nations. In both Britain and Germany, only 44% claim they would be prepared to work overseas. This is less than half the rate of Dutch people who are ready to move for work, and noticeably below Swiss readiness as well.

Dr Roland B Smith

Vice President and Managing Director, Center for Creative Leadership (APAC)

verything in our world is connected. In this interdependent new reality, what does leadership need to look like to succeed and thrive? Leadership cultures have evolved as our environment becomes more globalised and complex. It is not simply a shift from one-man leaders to group leadership, but more specifically, to “interdependent leadership”. What this means, essentially, is that leadership is no longer defined as the domain of a person or persons, but rather, a process. Interdependent leadership pulls together the collated expertise of various stakeholders to make decisions and effect change. How do you put this into effective practice? Dialogue. Through inquiry and creative conversations, individuals are able to reflect on unquestioned assumptions and difficult topics, find common ground and come up with multiple solutions that allow the best ideas to win. Creating headroom. Organisations need to have the time, space, and behaviours to elevate the entire leadership culture to the next level. This requires creating collective intelligence and slowing down to power up. With room to explore, experiment and practice, people can break out of old patterns and try new behaviors. Boundary spanning. It is the art of seeing, bridging and leveraging horizontal, vertical, demographic, geographic and stakeholder boundaries. Inside-out development. Begin individual development with a focus on their values, beliefs, identity, emotions, intuition, leadership logic and mindset. When these are applied to organisational work, with repeated practice, the door opens to new possibilities for developing more collaborative and vital – interdependent – forms of leadership.

Occupation also heavily impacts mobility. People who are employed in engineering and technical positions are the most likely to ponder a job overseas. Those in more tightly regulated professions, such as social work and medicine, are ranked as the least mobile. Interestingly, in nations possessing high per capita incomes, readiness to work overseas is usually linked to experiential aspects and not economic factors. This personifies Swiss, US, German, and British workers. BCG and The Network surveyed job seekers in 189 nations.

One in four

Canadians feel their jobs could disappear due to the rise of technology

MONEY MIND MATTERS TO STAFF Over half (52%) of firms do not offer any financial education to their staff, a new HR survey has found. Furthermore, two-thirds (67%) of workers in the UK are not provided with any financial education from their organisation. In fact, half (50%) of HR professionals polled said their workers had asked for access to such courses. The research was carried out on behalf of employee benefits adviser

LEADERSHIP INSIGHTS

Source: Randstad Workmonitor study

Secondsight, part of national financial advisers, Foster Denovo. The requirement for financial education seems to be pressing as the overwhelming majority of workers do not have an effective plan to provide for their future. Fewer than 20% had a comprehensive financial structure in place and only 38% had a precise idea of how to manage their money. In addition, the survey highlighted that close to three quarters (73%) of workers said financial education being offered to them made them feel more optimistic about their company, with 23% saying it made them more loyal. Over half (52%) of HR executives believe that the onus should be on the employer to offer financial education to their staff.

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LEADERS TALK HR

Talent engagement Q

You joined 3M in 1993 as an engineer. Could you tell us more about your rise to the top?

Attracting the best minds is a key priority for 3M, a global business driven by innovation. Arthur Fong, Managing Director of 3M Singapore says ensuring that the best talent are constantly engaged and motivated by new challenges is the key to building a strong leadership pipeline

What is the biggest thing that you’ve learnt about people management?

During my 20-year career with 3M, I We need to help people to unleash have held more than 10 different jobs their fullest potential, as opposed in three businesses, three functions to getting ourselves caught in and four geographic areas. correcting people’s blind spots. As I believe in the need to shape a person’s strengths are maximised my own career path by way to the fullest, you will find that their of contributing more in every weaknesses become less relevant. assignment. At the same time, I Sumathi V Selvaretnam sumathi@hrmasia.com.sg believe in leaving a legacy that others How would your employees can build upon. describe you? 3M is a company that provides Energetic, inspiring, and opportunities to employees who are able to contribute and someone that challenges the status quo. shape the future of the company. The opportunity to gain experiences in different businesses, geographic areas and How do you attract and retain the best talent? functions helps to pave the way to move up the corporate The top few talents can make a big difference to the ladder. company’s success. I ensure that our employees I also believe in creating a strong internal network of know that their contributions are being valued and that they sponsors and alliances in every job that I pursue. are the best people we have in the company. This enhances My diverse career in 3M is a good example of how it offers their job satisfaction and helps in retention. exciting and diversified career prospects to build globalised I do this in many different ways, such as rewarding top leaders in the organisation. performers – paying for performance, recognising outstanding employees, and celebrating success frequently and visibly.

What are some of your earliest challenges as you transitioned into a leadership role?

One of the key things I focused on was accepting diversity and harnessing different skill sets and strengths to create a winning team.

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Could you tell us more about a key staff development programme at 3M

The Globalised Leaders initiative allows employees to gain experiences in different functions, businesses

LEADERS TALK HR

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LEADERS TALK HR

Me Myself I I love: Winning against competitors I dislike: Low-energy people My inspiration: Ensuring my team members learn and grow In five years’ time I’d like to be: In a 3M international leadership position. Favourite quote: Simplest plans are difficult to execute

and cross-functional projects and teambuilding events.

and geographies, and enables them to acquire diverse skill sets and experiences. The diversity and scale of 3M’s operations makes it important to promote mutual understanding and collaboration amongst different businesses and functions, and this helps us to successfully energise and integrate across functions and businesses. The initiative also helps us to retain our top talents by keeping them motivated with new challenges, and is a key strategy for us to develop future leaders of the company. Another programme is the Accelerated Leadership Development Growth (ALDG) programme, in which the best talents from Singapore join the cream of the crop from 3M offices around the world at our corporate headquarters. These high-potential talents work together on case studies based on real-life business situations and present their ideas to top leadership. This programme provides worldwide networking and visibility opportunities for high-potential talents. In addition, some great

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You also drive key corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives at 3M. Why is this important? business ideas have been developed through the case studies.

How do you foster innovation at 3M?

Innovation is part of 3M’s DNA. I foster innovation by promoting collaboration as the 3M way of life. By allowing employees to experience different technologies and different businesses, and by allowing them to focus on the customers, they are able to combine different 3M solutions to help solve bigger problems for customers. Collaboration is an expected behaviour at 3M, and it is embedded into the “3M Leadership Behaviours”, against which leaders are assessed. The Globalised Leaders initiative enhances collaboration as it promotes employees’ understanding of different businesses and functions. Other platforms include our Sales, Marketing, Technical and Leadership Forums,

As a corporation, it is our duty to give back to the community. As our employees become more and more socially-conscious, they also want to do their part for charity and they want to work for a company that cares. It is an important part of our work-life integration strategy that employees are able to volunteer their work time to participate in our CSR initiatives. This would make their work life more personally fulfilling. One example is the 3M Step-Up Challenge @ South East, which is a partnership with the South East Community Development Council that is now into its second year. The challenge is a two-month fitnesscum-charity programme that encourages people from all walks of life to give back to the community together. From May to July 2014, schools, corporate entities, grassroots and voluntary welfare organisations

LEADERS TALK HR climb stairs and accumulate steps through their own community events. For every 500 steps climbed, 3M donates a 3M household product to a needy family in the South East district. We aim to accumulate six million steps to benefit 1,200 households with 3M product packs. We have organised 3M Step-Up events at our offices at Woodlands, Tuas, as well as at Yishun Stadium, where more than 400 3M employees, customers and partners have participated. We also have other CSR initiatives, like the 3M Innovation Outreach Programme – where employee ambassadors share their innovation expertise and experiences with educators, SMEs, government agencies and other organisations – and the 3M Science Outreach Programme – where employees bring the exciting world of innovation and science to schoolchildren.

How closely do you work with your HR team? What is their biggest strength and how do you harness this? If Finance is my right hand, HR is my left hand – and I’m a left-hander! HR has a seat on the company’s operating

committee, and plays a key strategic role working with me in business planning and processes. They provide a voice in terms of the deployment of talent, in line with business priorities. HR should have a voice in the company direction and operate just like a business unit. A HR leader needs to be an integral part of the overall business and be in the centre of decision making. HR’s greatest strengths are the ability to see themselves as a business leader, as opposed to a HR specialist, and the way they use their HR competencies to drive business growth.

Your proudest moment?

It was on July 1 2012, when I became the first Singaporean Managing Director of 3M Singapore. The appointment gave me an opportunity to shape the future of 3M in my own country, and make employees in Singapore shine in the global landscape.

BIO BRIEF Arthur Fong is the Managing Director of 3M Singapore. He has more than 20 years of progressive experience managing global, regional and local businesses in a diverse multinational corporation. As the head of 3M’s operations in Singapore, he leads and manages local business operations. Prior to his current role, Fong has held various roles with increasing importance spanning across various functions – technical, sales and management – with responsibilities covering various geographic areas – Singapore, Asia-Pacific, and Global. Among his significant previous positions in 3M, Fong was a Regional Division Manager of the Security Systems Division in Southeast Asia, providing solutions in consumer goods authentication, country border crossing and personnel identification. He also led the Office Markets Division in 3M Singapore as Division Manager, managing leading brand names, such as Scotch and Post-it. Prior to joining 3M in 1993, Fong was a Project Engineer at Dupont Singapore. He was a pioneer member of the Lycra Fiber manufacturing plant, a green field site commissioned in 1994. Fong holds a Bachelor Degree with Honours in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Bristol in the UK.

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LEADERS ON LEADERSHIP

How can leaders ensure their employees are technology-savvy? T

here is a new generation of communications technologies that address the way we work, and it is permeating workplaces worldwide. Bring your own device (BYOD) is fast becoming a trend in many organisations, and it is deeply connecting workers to their workplaces. Cloud-based technologies provide flexible access to data from any location. However, to make maximum use of all the available technologies, it becomes critically important to keep employees trained on all the latest developments. At Ixia, we use a variety of methods to ensure that employees are technologysavvy. There is extensive use of ‘wikis’, where employees from anywhere can post new ideas, experiences, success stories and product information. This in turn can be read by any of the employees around the globe, at any time.

Ixia also uses online training and management systems such as iLearn. These tools allow training materials to be provided to all employees in an online fashion. Employee-specific training plans can be set up based on the areas of focus. Employees can register for classes online and take quizzes at the end of classes. Managers can then track the progress of employee training programmes. Extensive use of webinars is made, with recorded sessions providing information to employees at their convenience. In addition to online and passive training tools, Ixia also conducts onsite training in every part of Asia, twice a year. This is conducted in small groups with trainers coming from the US. The trainers bring the latest products and methodologies and train technical staff to stay ahead of the latest technological trends.

SUNITA KAUR Managing Director, Spotify Asia

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e encourage Spotifiers to always be in tune with the latest technologies as they play a huge role in introducing innovation to the music experience. One of our core philosophies, “think it, build it, ship it, tweak it”, not only reflects our working process, but is a mantra that can be applied to everyday challenges too. This shared belief inspires us as we continue to build for the user and develop products that improve the service along with the user experience. Spotify is a technology company that aims to make peoples’ lives better through music. For the past six years, we have been leading the new music revolution by providing a legal alternative to piracy and enabling fans access to millions of songs across all devices. Working at Spotify is more than just a job, it’s a lifestyle. Our employees are our biggest fans as they

NAVEEN BHAT

Vice President and General Manager, Ixia Asia-Pacific

live and breathe music at the office, at home, and on the go. Our purpose as a company is to “Play Everywhere”, which also describes how we like to work. We want to have fun together so that the journey becomes even more enjoyable. In the spirit of constant innovation and exploration, we organise regular ‘Hack Weeks’ which bring together various teams to work on a new idea, whether it’s an awesome product feature, a process improvement, an ambitious marketing campaign, or anything else that will help improve Spotify. Not only do Spotifiers take out-of-thebox thinking to a whole new level as a result of Hack Week, but the programme also breaks silos between teams and departments, allowing for greater collaboration. This working culture continues to inspire us as we’re looking to grow our footprint across Asia.

LEARNING & DEVELOPMENT SPECIAL

WHY L&D NEEDS TO BE A BUSINESS PARTNER GOING GAGA OVER GAME-BASED LEARNING THE VIRTUAL CLASSROOM CHARTING YOUR LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT MAP ISSUE 14.11

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STRATEGY

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STRATEGY

L&D SPECIAL

Why L&D needs to be a

BUSINESS PARTNER The learning and development function is constantly changing, says Sunder Ramachandran, Head of Sales Training for Pfizer India. Recent years have seen it moving closer and closer to a role in overall business strategy

he role of the Learning and changes and what ‘partnering with Development (L&D) function has the business’ really means in 2014 and evolved over the last few years. The beyond. hyper-connectedness and changing Back in 2008-2010, the focus was on needs of the business have placed the informal learning and asynchronous function at a pivotal point within the e-learning programmes delivered organisation. through Learning The learning function Management Systems 2014 and forward will be needs to look at its impact which were then the the time of beyond the lens of just “game changers”. During

leverage and portability

bottom line efficiencies this time, organisations or top line growth transferred their numbers. The impact on facilitator-led programmes people, culture, change to online formats in order and engagement are also to cut costs and emphasise for the L&D function directly linked to efficiency a return on investment and and effectiveness gains for value. The L&D story in this the organisation. phase was about helping organisations The last few years have seen both reduce costs and deliver value at the disruptive technologies and a more speed that the business demanded. demanding customer, and learning 2010-2012 saw the changing professionals need to reflect on these landscape of the various roles in ISSUE 14.11

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The market leader in job distribution, candidate sourcing and big data analytics. More than 60,000 users across 65 countries and 350 clients in Australia and Asia. Connected to more than 20 job boards, aggregators and social networks in Singapore.

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STRATEGY learning teams. For example, the Training Manager evolved from being a manager of teams who designed and deployed content on behalf of their internal clients to that of a supply chain manager of knowledge. L&D teams became internal consultants who partnered with business to identify performance gaps and analyse requirements with much of the design and delivery outsourced to third party vendors. The L&D story in this phase was built around ‘the ability to become a consultative partner’ to the business. 2012-2014 saw social media integration within corporate learning. Massive Open Online Courses (MOOCs) were considered or used for corporate learning and for staff professional development. Gamification of learning journeys and ‘chunking’ of learning to be delivered anytime, anywhere were emerging as key themes. The L&D story in this phase was built around “responding to the cloud and mobile-first ecosystem’ that most enterprises have. 2014 and forward will be the time of leverage and portability for the L&D function. What this means is that we are now in a position to apply a range of various tools to achieve business outcomes. If Learning and Development continues to accept, learn and engage with these tools, we will be in a position where we can make a broader organisational impact.

“The learning function needs to look at its impact beyond the lens of just bottom line efficiencies or top line growth numbers” Sunder Ramachandran, Head – Sales Training, Pfizer India

•

What’s in store moving forward? The demands on the L&D function will be even greater and new dimensions of engagement will further transform the function. Most L&D managers who have kept pace with the changing needs will now be called upon to engage their functions for large enterprise wide programmes, projects and initiatives. Here are some aspects that could gain prominence: • L&D as the Change Management Champion The roles are getting merged between L&D and change management. Given that most organisations are now

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driving towards collaboration and change, the L&D function will be increasingly called upon to champion these efforts. For example, L&D may work with teams such as Internal Communications or Marketing to design awareness campaigns and ‘bite size’ or micro-learning pieces. These may be delivered as and when required through the campaign to communicate the benefits of the change as well as to facilitate employee orientation sessions for change. L&D as the Employee Engagement Champion Most employee engagement surveys identify that learning opportunities are a key driver for engagement within the organisation and the training function is best suited to champion this. Rather than just solving a business problem, L&D will create learning journeys that inspire, engage and reconnect employees with their organisation. Also L&D’s contribution to the overall employee value proposition will become further pronounced. L&D as the Collaboration Champion Most organisations are now embracing enterprise social networks to foster collaboration.

Given that this requires community management and facilitation skills, L&D is best positioned to support the organisation and its people to develop and use these new social tools as well as role model the online behaviour skills. Creating communities of practice, training community managers within the organisation, and curating content in these communities are some of the areas where L&D can meaningfully contribute. • L&D as the Employer Brand Champion The quality of learning that an organisation offers plays a role in how that employer’s brand is perceived. L&D will need to broaden its scope to external agencies to promote and showcase innovative practices in learning through social media, and thereby attract the best talent. The positioning of being a ‘learning organisation’ will offer a distinct advantage to organisations in the highly competitive talent landscape. Given the rapid pace of transformation in business, the L&D function cannot procrastinate anymore. As L&D teams are further reduced in size and costs minimized, there is an opportunity to reconnect with the business. ISSUE 14.11

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Many organisations have opted for the hybrid model; managing some human resource functions in-house using PayDay! Software or PayDay! HRMS while outsourcing payroll and submission of employee’s income information to PayrollServe’s team of experts. This model offers organisations the flexibility to handle their payroll and human resource functions in-house or outsource the functions to PayrollServe at any time without switching software solutions.

By outsourcing most of their payroll and human resource functions to PayrollServe, it gives organisations the peace of mind, knowing that their payroll is in the hands of professionals.

Organisations in this category will use either a LAN-based (PayDay! Software) or a WEBbased software (PayDay! HRMS) to manage their payroll and human resource functions.

Founded in 1985, PayrollServe has earned the distinction of being Singapore’s leading provider of payroll and human resource outsourcing services. Today, PayrollServe handles SGD1 billion payroll dollars and serves customers from Banking, Financial Services, Manufacturing, Professional Services, Retail and other industries.

This gives organisations the highest degree of control over the process. However, this model requires high level of technical knowledge and at least one full-time staff dedicated to payroll. In some cases, some organisations may still outsource its management payroll to a payroll service provider for confidentiality reasons.

www.PayrollServe.com.sg | info@payrollserve.com.sg | +65 6336 0600

GAME-BASED LEARNING

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Going gaga over game-based learning While the term “game-based learning” sounds fun and relaxing, there is a lot to understand about its complexities and intricacies. HRM delves into how game-based learning can work from an HR perspective

f you are one of those who believe that game-based learning is identical to gamification, Akshay Chopra, Southeast Asia Leader, Deloitte Greenhouse, is out to change your mind. “The way we see it, game-based learning requires participants to be playing an actual game,” he says. “Gamification, on the other hand, doesn’t; it just means that the methodology uses some principles found in games (such as points, rewards, progression, competition etc), but is not necessarily a game.” Deloitte Greenhouse is an innovation service that combines analytics, design

thinking, expert facilitation, and a consciously-designed environment to help executive teams achieve breakthroughs. Chopra’s sentiment is echoed by Robert Zepeda, founding CEO of Playbasis, a Bangkok and Singaporebased gamification startup. According to Zepeda, while there are certainly overlaps, most industry veterans draw a distinction between the two fields. He says that with game-based learning, gaming is the method used to deliver instructional or educational content in a fun way, with learning almost being a positive side effect.

Sham Majid sham@hrmasia.com.sg

In order for it to be effective, the game usually has to be fun on its own merit. Gamification, on the other hand, is more akin to motivational and persuasive software design, says Zepeda. “It is designed to amplify a core set of activities or set of content,” he explains. “The point of interacting with a welldesigned gamified app should never be for the game mechanics themselves, but rather, the game mechanics should enhance the experience of the activity or content.” He adds that without the activity or content, there would be nothing to gamify. ISSUE 14.11

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GAME-BASED LEARNING

Ironically, Thorsten Nolte, founder and CEO of digital marketing agency Upfront, says many people in Singapore believe that gamification is linked directly to gaming. “It has virtually nothing to do with gaming,” he told The Singapore Business Review recently.

Getting to grips with game-based learning So now that there’s a clear distinction between game-based learning and gamification, the next question is: what exactly is game-based learning? Chopra says it entails utilising games as more engaging alternatives to traditional methods of learning, collaboration, and problem solving. “Participating in a game stimulates different parts of your brain and different aspects of your personality, which unlocks new ways to approach a problem or learning activity,” he explains. With Deloitte focusing heavily on group settings, Chopra says well-implemented game-based learning is useful as people tend to collaborate better when they have to “win as a team,” rather than when they “discuss as a group”. Zepeda believes that while the majority of games are designed with pure

Virtual learning in classrooms

tudents at Canberra Primary School can now sample the wonders of game-based learning. Boasting the newly revamped 4Di Lab powered by Dell solutions and Playware Studios Asia’s 3DHive technology, this game-based learning platform allows students to gain knowledge in an engaging way. The 4Di Lab consists of: • Projections of virtual worlds on 14 screens • A 360-degree, 42 square metre interactive touch screen that can take up to 45 concurrent users at a time into another world.

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entertainment as the main objective, video games actually present an ideal environment to educate or train people. “Game-based learning is essentially educational materials or training delivered in the context of a game,” says Zepeda. Both Chopra and Zepeda concur that more organisations are increasingly tapping onto game-based learning. Chopra says other contributing factors include better tools and methodologies for game-based learning (both virtual and physical), easier access for players operating in this space, and also the increased representation of Generations X and Y in the workforce. Zepeda cites a number of industries utilising game-based learning in a variety of ways. For example, he says the education industry is eager to understand how it can incorporate games into curricula as a way to engage digital-first Generation Y and Z students. Furthermore, in the corporate world, game-like simulations are proving to be very effective at training employees on how to best perform under various scenarios and circumstances, says Zepeda. He cites BankersLab, a company that specialises in retail bank and credit simulation training, as one that has worked to create training products designed specifically for lenders. It helps to train them on how to react under various macroeconomic and market conditions. In addition, fire and rescue departments, along with various players in the oil and gas industry, are increasingly using game-like simulations to train employees on protocol and disaster preparedness, says Zepeda. “Games provide a safe place to make mistakes, and to therefore learn,” he adds. “Through repetition and progression, we can improve how we recall information or training and how we react to various scenarios. “ However, Chopra says that many companies do not realise how easy it can be to go wrong with game-based learning. For example, he explains that too often, games are constructed without the

audience in mind. After all, what might delight a 21-year old analyst might feel condescending to a seasoned leader. “We also see an overreliance on technology (as opposed to design principles), and sloppy implementations (cheesy avatars and vapid animations),” says Chopra. “If you aren’t going to do game-based learning right, you’re better off not doing it at all – you run the risk of offending, or at best, annoying the audience.”

Through the HR lens While game-based learning can enhance learner engagement, improve intra-team collaboration, and boost inter-team competition, Chopra points out that to deliver real and sustained behaviour change, HR leaders at Deloitte’s client organisations are also required to think differently about learning. He says the HR leader of a major technology firm recently asked Deloitte to help the company’s Business Unit leaders really understand and engage with their internal controls and risk management functions. The leaders did not respond to traditionals teachings on the topic, as they were being taught about a dry subject in a dry manner. Chopra says his team applied the principles of exercise-based and gamebased learning, and used games and simulations to get messages across. “For example, we gave each leader a scenario in which there was a massive controls failure in their business unit, and they had to work backward as detectives to uncover where things broke down, and then find ways to prevent a recurrence,” explains Chopra. “In other words, they were doing a mini audit and risk mitigation exercise, but it felt nothing like that.” He adds that his team placed a heavy emphasis on realism: real management reports, real invoices, emails, and things the participants are used to seeing in real life. The participants immersed themselves into the exercises, and were able to

GAME-BASED LEARNING

understand not just the theory, but also the thought process behind risk management. “That’s what creates real behaviour change, and that’s why HR stands to gain a lot from game-based learning,” says Chopra. Zepeda believes that a company adopting game-based learning would certainly be viewed more favourably by Millennial staff, as this generation already has a strong inclination towards gaming. “New employee onboarding and training can be dramatically improved when done through the lens of a game,” says Zepeda. “Because everything in a game or gamified system is trackable and measurable, compliance will improve and HR managers can more effectively judge performance.” He adds that ongoing employee training can also benefit from these game-like systems. Instead of treating training as a discrete event, Zepeda believes gamebased training should best be delivered in short, daily bursts, similar to popular mobile games. “This would keep engagement level high throughout the year, and it provides a great way for HR to deliver ongoing training and communications to the employee,” he says. “And who knows? You may find employees happily engaging with such apps while at home on the weekends.”

In-house game-based learning Playbasis has built a sophisticated gamification platform in Asia, with

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more than one million end users on the platform. Zepeda says there is robust interest in game-based learning among the enterprises the company connects with across the region. Nevertheless, he says game development costs are typically higher than traditional applications, especially when the higher production value of games is factored in. Hence, many of Playbasis’ customers opt to gamify an existing process or application as a way to generate a demonstrable return-on-investment first. Zepeda adds that as gamification experts and as a former game developer himself, he encourages his team of about one dozen people to play and learn from popular games. “We are all gamers at heart and frequently try to incorporate techniques and mechanics we find from our favourite games,” he says. “We look for elegant ways to infuse pure-play game mechanics into nongaming applications to solve real business challenges.” Over at the Deloitte Greenhouse, Chopra says his team helps C-suite executives engage with innovations and new trends that are changing their world, in scientifically-designed sessions called ‘Labs’. He says utilising traditional learning methods is contradictory to what his team is striving to achieve. “Our golden rule in the Greenhouse is: no presentations, no lectures,” says Chopra. Instead, all learning and engagement happens through innovative “injections ISSUE 14.11

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GAME-BASED LEARNING of content” and exercises designed with human behaviour in mind. “Game-based learning is fundamental to these methods as it helps to not only maximise individual learning, but also group output,” explains Chopra. Deloitte staff (particularly managers and above) are entrusted with a lot of responsibility and their work requires them to deliver value to two companies and to two sets of stakeholders (the client and Deloitte), as well as to manage large and complex projects involving many moving parts. Chopra says the majority of the Greenhouse’s development interventions for managers and above are simulation and/or game-based. “The simulation part makes it real, as they have to solve problems based on real-life project situations and tough conversations,” he explains. “The game-based elements keep the participants engaged and competing with each other in a healthy way to handle delicate situations in the best manner possible, and deliver maximum value to the client through strong leadership.” Deloitte also specialises in groupbased methodologies, with most of ithe Greenhouse’s work being in groups of 10-30 senior leaders. However, Chopra says that in a typical group-based activity, a team may run a high risk of “social loafing” – participants putting in up to 74% less effort than they would individually, because the responsibility is diluted across the group. “A good exercise design strategy, based on principles of human behaviour, will not only minimise ‘social loafing’ but increase the group’s outputs beyond the sum of its participants,” he says. “Well-implemented game-based learning is quite useful in achieving that.”

The Analytics factor Amidst the technical notions of gamebased learning, analytics appears to be at the epicenter, says Wilds Ross, Lead Partner, Southeast Asia, Deloitte Analytics. “Analytics and game-based learning come together beautifully to solve the

last-mile problem: building a culture of fact-based decision making,” explains Ross. For example, he says that analyticsbased data visualisations are far more engaging than static content on slides or reports, and these allow users to interact with the data by changing variables and see outcomes change in real time. He cites a case study whereby Deloitte Analytics developed a geospatial solution to help retailers visually locate and “place” new stores, given the distribution of their target customer population on a map. “We often turn it into a Zombie apocalypse scenario game, where teams compete to locate ‘treatment centres’ on the map to maximise coverage of zombie populations,” says Ross. Deloitte Analytics then tells

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participants what this solution was really designed for, and asks them to reflect on how hard this exercise would have been if done on spreadsheets. “There’s a lot of room to be creative when you bring together analytics, visualisation, and game-based learning,” he adds. Zepeda says the best game developers will incorporate analytics early into the development cycle of the game. “It’s critical that you can quantify exactly how people are interacting with your product,” he says. “Analytics help you verify your assumptions as to what will be engaging for the user, and you can use these behavioural analytics to optimise the player experience and find the perfect balance between something boringly easy and frustratingly difficult.”

“If you aren’t going to do game-based learning right, you’re better off not doing it at all – you run the risk of offending, or at best, annoying the audience” Akshay Chopra, Southeast Asia Leader, Deloitte Greenhouse

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MOBILE LEARNING

THE

VIRTUAL CLASSROOM

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MOBILE LEARNING

How can HR create a virtual training strategy that allows it to achieve training goals by more effectively complementing on-site instructors and printed learning materials? HRM finds out

y 2015, the total number of mobile subscriptions globally will exceed the world population, according to the latest Ericsson Mobility Report. Mobile subscriptions have grown by seven per cent year-on-year, with 120 million net additions in the first quarter of this year alone. Mobile broadband subscriptions also continue to grow, and are expected to reach 7.6 billion by the end of 2019, representing more than 80% of total mobile subscriptions. In two years’ time the number of smartphone subscriptions will exceed those for basic phones, and by 2019, the number of smartphone subscriptions is expected to reach 5.6 billion. Increasing sales of mobile devices, rapid growth in the mobile share of web traffic, and growing adoption of mobile devices in the workplace have led to the evolution of what some commentators are calling a “Mobile World”. The proliferation of technology has no doubt made a substantial impact on both work and play. When work is no longer confined to an office desk, or between the hours of 9.00am and 6.00pm, surely learning experiences should be similarly unconfined. “As the number of mobile device users owning a smartphone is rapidly increasing across Asia-Pacific, more learners are making use of their devices in and outside classrooms to source new knowledge,” says Thomas Menkhoff, professor of organisational behaviour and HR at the Lee Kong Chian School of Business, Singapore Management University. “To truly support lifelong learning, mobile technologies must be unobtrusive, needs-based, easy-to-use

and portable so that users can learn wherever they are,” he adds.

The rise of m-learning While e-learning is a common mainstay of learning and development programmes in organisations, mobilelearning, or m-learning, is slowly but surely taking off. HR is in a unique position to develop meaningful virtual learning strategies with the help of both trends to ensure learning continues both in and outside of the classroom, leading to a better skilled and ultimately more productive workforce. Businesses in Asia have taken pole position in rolling out virtual learning innovations. According to a recent survey by Ambient Insight, Asia is the world leader in the m-learning market, accounting for nearly half of the world’s mobile learning revenues – revenues which are expected to reach a staggering US$6.8 billion per year by 2017.

L&D SPECIAL

Shalini Shukla-Pandey shalini@hrmasia.com.sg

According to Towards Maturity’s Infocus Report, “Mobile Learning at Work”, 62% of organisations are already using mobile devices to access learning content that supports formal learning. More than half are using mobile devices as an alternative mode of delivery to PC-based learning content. The Hong Kong Institute of HR Management’s (HKIHRM’s) Training Needs Survey 2013 found that 32.4% of participating companies reflected that they would increase their e-training budgets this year. Among the e-learning initiatives offered, around 25% are categorised as m-learning. Just two years back, the same survey found that a whopping 98.4% of companies did not have a budget for m-learning. “Thus, it’s obvious that ‘mobile learning’ is getting more attention among the corporates in Asia, including Hong Kong,” says Morris Cheung, HR Director, MTR Corporation.

Drivers for going mobile Organisations are using mobile learning to support both their formal and informal learning programmes:

62% are using mobile devices to access learning content in support of formal learning 54% are using mobile devices to support communication and collaboration 53% are using mobile devices as an alternative mode of delivery to PC-based learning content 43% are using mobile devices to support application of learning back into the workplace 37% are using mobile devices to access performance support 27% are using mobile devices for sharing of user-generated content Employee engagement, providing performance support at the point of need, and providing a means of faster application of learning back in the workplace are often key objectives. Source: Towards Maturity’s In-focus Report, “Mobile Learning at Work”

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MOBILE LEARNING With the exploding popularity of mobile devices, there’s an increasing trend of creating Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) environments in the workplace. “We see m-learning as an extension from e-learning as they contain different features,” says Cheung. “Compared to e-learning, m-learning technology allows greater flexibility for learners to tailor their learning portfolio and greater accessibility to learn on the go. “M-learning material is generally reduced into small, bite-sized portions for easier access and is presented in a less formal manner,” he adds. “M-learning enriches the virtual learning platform by serving a specific learning purpose.” Still, many organisations are finding the benefits of m-learning difficult to achieve. According to the Towards Maturity report, barriers include lack of security access, lack of senior management confidence, difficulties and costs of integrating mobile technology into existing IT infrastructure, and a lack of skills and knowledge among learning and development teams. However, these barriers need not be insurmountable.

Getting started To fully leverage on virtual learning

and maximise training effectiveness, Cheung says it is important to first select the right target group. “This includes the mobile workforce which has a higher need for m-learning, the young generation which is more open to new gadgets, and self-driven talent who enjoy and are strongly motivated by self-learning,” he explains. Next, HR should select appropriate learning topics, such as those which appeal to a larger number of employees (the corporate vision, mission and values for example) and those that focus on role-specific skills (such as customer service skills for frontline staff). Lastly, the right means must be selected. “While cost is a consideration, creating a mobile version of training resources or converting a web-based site to a mobile one will involve a relatively lower investment,” says Cheung. “Apps could be a useful addition to m-learning tools, but they may be more expensive and require a regular maintenance fee.” “While there is some hype about m-learning, research suggests that it is indeed a new mega trend which will continue to change the nature of learning and learning delivery in Asia,” says Menkhoff.

The case for m-learning Mobile learning (m-learning) helps facilitate the distribution of pre-reading material, online assessment tests, and topical knowledge-based learning on subjects of interest, says Kulwant Bardh, Leadership Practice Leader – Singapore, Aon Hewitt. “At Aon Hewitt, our Global Assessment Talent Engine can be easily configured so our clients can now enable online assessments such as our personality tool, ADEPT-15, through mobile devices.” “This way, prospective candidates applying for a job with our clients can easily do the 30-minute test while on the go, and our clients can view the results immediately upon the candidate hitting the submit button.” “This is conducted totally un-proctored and the benefit of mobile access means candidates have total flexibility of using their mobile device anytime while on the go, while commuting or sitting relaxed in a coffee place,” he adds. M-learning is also a rapid way of bringing a class cohort or any group and team together, without anyone having to be physically present. The team can engage in real-time chats and virtual discussions through mobile devices to share learning outcomes, remind each other of pre-reading material and homework, and work together and exchange information easily. “For workshop settings, you no longer need to distribute physical summary evaluation forms,” Bardh explains. “Just point them to QR codes on the screen and they can submit feedback evaluation through their mobile devices on the spot or do it while commuting home.”

L&D SPECIAL

CASE STUDY

MTR Corporation To continuously inspire, engage and develop staff competencies and capabilities, MTR Corporation launched both electronic and mobile learning (e-learning and m-learning) in a “blended learning approach” to reinforce and supplement training interventions. “E-learning and m-learning allow employees to learn in flexible and convenient ways – ‘just enough, just in time, just for me’,” says HR Director, Morris Cheung. “It cultivates an environment for continuous learning and accommodates different learning styles.” However, staff engagement can still be a challenge, as different generations respond to virtual training differently. “The younger generation of staff are more digitally connected for instance, and have unique mind-sets and expectations, while the older generation may not be so tech-savvy, making it difficult to design virtual learning strategies that all staff can get used to,” Cheung explains. MTR’s blended learning approach includes a wide range of training interventions: seminars; field coaching; benchmarking visits; as well as electronic resources. Mobile resources such as material accessible through smartphones and a mobile learning portal – containing short video clips covering management topics like leadership, people management and personal effectiveness – have also been introduced. “To allow more convenient access for our staff to obtain mobile training resources, we have developed a mobile learning platform – ‘M-Learning Hub’. This centralises our existing mobile resources in one place, converting them into mobile-friendly versions and adding more new features,” says Cheng. For frontline customer service personnel in particular, a dedicated mobile application was established to provide news updates, service tips and success stories to frontline staff. Some interactive app features like polling, story sharing and a ‘like’ function were also built in to engage staff and create more fun when using the app. “By giving a holistic view of all mobile resources available for our staff, we can further promote the m-learning atmosphere, encourage better utilisation of resources and reinforce continuous learning activities,” Cheung adds.

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L&D SPECIAL

CASE STUDY

Charting your

LEADERSHIP MAP at Unilever

Leadership is espoused by almost every organisation. But what do these businesses need to actually craft their own credible and thorough leadership development programmes? HRM profiles the leadership armada within FMCG giant Unilever

ry asking John Nolan, Senior Vice President, HR – Global Markets, Unilever, how his company – comprising of more than 174,000 employees globally – formulates its leadership development programmes and he quickly cuts you short. “Even before that question, I think it starts with what your purpose is and what you’re trying to achieve,” he says. “What type of company are you trying to be, and therefore, what type of leadership does that require?” Nolan explains that it is imperative to start the developmental construction of any leadership programmes or any peopledevelopment programmes through the lens of “what is it that you’re trying to do?” 32 ISSUE 14.11

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For Unilever, a conglomerate in fastmoving consumer goods (FMCG) boasting of more than 400 health and wellbeing brands, this is “to do well and to do good”. “We want to do well as a business but also do good for the societies and the communities that we operate within,” says Nolan. “It’s not a corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiative; that’s who we are, and we are a purpose-driven and values-led organisation.”

Leadership development from scratch There is no doubt that leadership remains a pressing issue among organisations around the world. In the Global Human Capital Trends

Sham Majid sham@hrmasia.com.sg

2014-Southeast Asia Report by Deloitte, 74% and 76% of global and Southeast Asian survey respondents respectively acknowledged that leadership was of chief importance in their firms. In fact, below half (38%) of the respondents in Southeast Asia believed they were high in readiness in terms of the leadership roles within their organisations, implying a 38-percentage-point gap between importance and readiness, similar to the global gap of 34 percentage points. According to Nolan, companies are trying to develop leaders who can fulfil the firm’s purpose and values, operate in what is a highly complex, volatile and ambiguous

CASE STUDY world, and allow their organisation to take advantage of the opportunities that will exist in this world of tomorrow – a world that is shaped towards the developing and emerging markets of Asia. “The start point of your leadership should be where do you think you’re going to be and I think it’s one of the most important things about leadership,” says Nolan. He explains that for him, one of the most important things about leadership is having a point of view about the future. “So you try and develop people who are able to bring all of those things together and help you lead the business forward in a way that you like it to develop,” elaborates Nolan.

The birth of leadership in Unilever Nolan takes pride in the fact that Unilever, a company that has been around the blocks since the 1870s, actually laid the pillars of its leadership development structure with the opening of its first leadership development centre in London in 1954. He says the organisation was one of the first companies in the world to build a bricks and mortar management training centre, called Four Acres. “You can only imagine – it was a few years after the end of the Second World War and it was slightly ahead of its time.” According to Nolan, in the old model of leadership, companies may have had 20 or 30 years to prepare people for leadership roles. Now however, he says the tide has changed and with the world moving at a much faster pace than before, leadership can emerge at any age. “One of the things that keeps us awake at night is how do we develop leaders fast enough for the challenges of the future, and to keep pace with the growth of the business,” explains Nolan. “So, starting with that sort of problem, we then started to think about what could be the potential solution.”

Revving up the leadership pipeline One of the solutions is a leadership programme called Excelerator.

L&D SPECIAL

This programme is designed to take Globally, Unilever recruits around 800 people identified as having potential to management trainees each year from progress further in the organisation to universities all around the world. leadership positions that will accelerate Each year, the company runs a global their development. competition whereby students from all The year-long leadership programme over the world compete to take part in consists of residential teaching and formal what’s known as the Unilever Future academic learning, on the job training, Leaders League. projects, coaching and mentoring, and “This is about tapping into the leaders feedback, and is all put together in a menu of tomorrow who are currently on campus of activity which, over a year, today,” elaborates Nolan. accelerates the participant’s Students compete against each Globally, Unilever recruits around readiness to take on a leadership other in a simulated business

800

position at the next level. case and the winners progress “Business is moving through to a final where they get management fast and opportunities are to do a real-world case study. trainees each year from universities all developing around us, and around the world there’s a shortage of talent and Four Acres in Singapore leadership,” says Nolan. While London is regarded as the “So what we have to try and do is to original Four Acres facility, Singapore is identify the people we think have got now looked upon as Unilever’s second that potential to be accelerated and try leadership hub, following its official to give them formal development and opening in June last year. Paul Polman, leadership programmes which allow the company’s CEO, said: “Four Acres them to fulfil that potential.” Singapore will support Unilever’s efforts to Pointedly, Nolan reveals that the develop tomorrow’s business leaders.” Excelerator programme, which was launched Nolan also reveals that Four Acres in five years ago, actually originated in China. Singapore allows Unilever to double its Whereas previously, the old model of leadership training capacity. He says its leadership development programme was location in Singapore was chosen for a that things would be developed in the US number of reasons. and Europe before then being rolled out Firstly, Unilever has a significant into Asia, Nolan says the company is now presence in Singapore and it is the seeing this model in reverse. headquarters of its global markets While this particular programme was operation. developed under the Unilever China Secondly, Nolan explains that initiative to address a specific problem Singapore sits at the nexus between of how to develop Chinese leaders faster, the developing and the developed it was under the auspices of the global worlds, and has great communication team that the pilot programme was capabilities, infrastructure and transport. rolled out in every market around the However, he believes the most world, including in the US and in Europe. important reason is that the Singapore “So we’ve almost reverse-engineered Government has a very far-sighted view a leadership programme back to the of the need to develop human capital. developed world that was actually “The Government is looking to bring developed in China. I think that is together like-minded parties who are how the world is actually going to go,” interested in the development of human explains Nolan. capital,” says Nolan. As Nolan frequently reiterates “My own view is that we all have the notion of a dearth of talent and a responsibility to contribute to the leadership, it should come as no surprise development of human capital and we that Unilever pays heavy attention to the shouldn’t just leave it to schools or to recruitment of university talents. universities or to governments. I think ISSUE 14.11

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CASE STUDY corporates have got to play their part as well.” In fact, the facility is used for all levels of learning and development at Unilever, from graduates all the way to the board and in between. Leadership meetings are held there, along with academic programmes and the consortium programmes that Unilever runs with other companies. Nolan says one of the great things of having Four Acres in Singapore is that it allows Unilever to tap into the infrastructure here. He cites the three major universities (National University of Singapore, Nanyang Technological University and Singapore Management University), other academic institutions that sit in Singapore, such as INSEAD and ESSEC, and a number of professional service firms. Nolan stresses the Four Acres facility in Singapore is not a centre just for the Eastern part of the world. “We have one global leadership development curriculum and it just happens to be delivered in two locations,” says Nolan. He adds that possessing two leadership facilities in London and Singapore allows leaders globally to get a feel of the respective business challenges and experiences being faced in different parts of the world. “We can expose them to some leadership thinking that’s maybe slightly different than the leadership thinking they perhaps get exposed to in their parts of the world,” adds Nolan. “So it brings it all together and there’s a wonderful reason to locate Four Acres in Singapore.”

L&D SPECIAL

Leadership by education

“There’s a full curriculum –we call it ‘from cradle to grave’,” he says. “Every With Unilever partnering with the crème few years, there’s a leadership programme de la crème of educational institutions, and there’s a way you can improve yourself including Harvard and INSEAD, it is and get exposed to some new thinking.” pertinently clear that the company places primary importance on bringing in the Leadership pointers best academic thinking. While Nolan says Unilever does “Whether it’s from Harvard, from not profess to have the answer for SMU or from INSEAD, we bring in that leadership, he is happy to share several academic thinking and that academic aspects of leadership the organisation perspective as a core component of our has garnered from experience. leadership programmes,” he says. Firstly, he says a company needs A key leadership programme for the most senior people in Unilever is to have some very clear objectives of the Unilever Leadership Development what it is trying to achieve from the Programme (ULDP). leadership development The next iteration, called programme, and it must Unilever was rated as the Unilever 2020, is about be things it can critically providing a framework where evaluate. Unilever leaders can think Secondly, once a firm about moving from what is has identified what the employer on campus in 29 countries around the their individual purpose as a core components of its world in 2013 leader, to how they can bring leadership programmes that purpose into some kind should epitomise, working of impact on the business and with quality external faculty impact on the community. will provide the company with important “For example, they work on PII perspective and know-how. (Purpose Into Impact) exercises and they Thirdly, it is important to also engage have academic inputs and structured with people from different disciplines, thinking, but they also have projects different backgrounds and diverse cultural and they take their projects out into the mixes and to include them in programmes. business,” explains Nolan. Fourthly, Nolan adds that allowing “These are the ways we bring together people the time to reflect on themselves the purpose of the company with the and to get some personal feedback on purpose of the individual within an what their strengths are and where there academic framework.” are opportunities is also vital. In fact, Nolan adds there is a plethora The fifth aspect he says, is that, of leadership programmes all the way wherever possible, there should be some through from the day an employee output, or some activity that’s linked joins the company till the day he or she directly with business objectives. becomes the most senior staff member. “There should be some action learning projects when people go back into the workforce after they have been on a leadership programme, and this is something they then have to do on a continuous basis,” Nolan explains. “I think for me, those programmes tend be more successful than what I would call ‘one-shot’ episodic programmes.” “So the best programmes are integrated into the business and they Unilever’s Four Acres facility in Singapore have some continuity around them.”

number one

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HR INSIDER

PACNET:

Transformed HR drives performance

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HR INSIDER

Pacnet has risen from times of uncertainty and leadership upheaval to become the award-winning, innovative technology service provider that it is today. Chief HR Officer Syed Ali Abbas says the organisation went through massive transformations in almost every area of business, with HR at the forefront. He shares their journey from a traditional HR function towards a more strategic, best-practices driven role within the company

Shalini Shukla-Pandey shalini@hrmasia.com.sg

alking into Pacnet’s new facility in Singapore, a beautiful office which also houses a state-of-the-art Customer Operations Centre and arguably the best data centre in Singapore today, it is difficult to imagine that just two years ago the company was going through difficult times. Those challenges led to significant change in the top leadership and a decision to exit from the consumer sector – then a core part of the business – in favour of a focus on higher-value data centre and managed services. Pacnet’s exit from one business unit and entry into another caused a shakeup within the entire organisation, from junior staff to top leadership. Many people left and many more needed to be hired to facilitate the change and grow the future of the company. “As the business transformed, HR had to do the same to keep up,” says

Syed Ali Abbas, Chief HR Officer, Pacnet. He was brought in by the new CEO at the start of the transformation period to drive the change. “The HR function at Pacnet had solid foundations in 2012 – a good team and a range of useful practices,” says Abbas. “However, it was still a little traditional and needed to change in line with where the business was going.” “The specific mandate I was given was to place increased HR focus in areas like talent management, alignment with the business, and supporting organisational change,” he adds.

First step – quick wins Upon joining Pacnet, Abbas set about going for specific quick wins for both the business and the employees. “On the business side, we focused on supporting the rollout of a new Sales Incentive Plan and putting in place a high-level framework for talent

AT A GLANCE Total number of employees at Pacnet: 165 (Singapore) & 835 (ASEAN) Size of HR team: 6 (Singapore) and 22 (Global) Key HR focus areas: Business Performance, Customer Experience, Innovation, High Performance Culture

assessment by the CEO team,” Abbas explains. On the employee front, the first three months saw the rollout of new HR policies to help assure staff that the organisational changes were positive and impacted them in ways they could appreciate. The first priority was to develop a formal recognition plan. While the company had a recognition plan in place from before, it needed to be reorganised and made more accessible to all levels of employees. The new recognition plan allowed the CEO and top management to directly provide recognition to staff. Line managers and supervisors were also able to reward their direct reports more easily. A key addition was the peer-to-peer component of the recognition plan. This meant that even colleagues from different departments could nominate one another to be recognised for a job well done. Where initially, Pacnet was giving out between 25 or so awards per quarter in the form of a letter and bonus, the number soon doubled. Staff were also recognised in front of the whole company on top of receiving the commendation and financial incentive. “We began showcasing all winners through the company intranet and CEO calls to drum up support for staff who had gone above and beyond their scope

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HR INSIDER HR for HR While HR set about driving organisational change within Pacnet, the function also needed to reinvent itself. Syed Ali Abbas, Chief HR Officer, Pacnet, championed a push to drive a higher level of productivity, project management and service in HR areas visible to both employees and managers. “Work was done in the background to fine-tune the overall HR plan, assess the effectiveness and efficiency of the HR function, and identify improvement opportunities,” Abbas explains. “I made sure we applied good business and HR principles to our own function as well.” To energise the HR team, Abbas ensured all team members across the world came up with career plans for themselves within the first two months of his tenure. This helped HR to clarify what areas staff were interested in and assign projects aligned with those interests. “This was a win-win situation for both HR and the company,” says Abbas. “HR staff are working on projects that truly interest them, thereby allowing them to develop their own passions while the business benefits from the fact that focus areas are driven faster and more effectively by an HR team which is motivated and enthusiastic to carry them through.” of work and demonstrated core values in their actions,” says Abbas. “We were giving out over 50 awards by the third quarter of 2013,” he adds. “The numbers doubled.” By mid-2014, HR rolled out an online points-based platform to recognise staff who were aligned with core values. This allowed the recognition mechanism to become truly peer-topeer, says Abbas. While there are still some oneoff cash bonuses in use, the vast majority of employees are now recognised through points which they can exchange for a host of

benefits, including movie tickets, spa treatments and even trips overseas. Rewards are also tailored to suit the needs of staff in different countries across the world. “The results were phenomenal. Where we were averaging about 50 awards in the third quarter of last year, we hit more than 300 awards within the first quarter of implementing the online platform,” Abbas notes. Employee engagement levels soared too. Where companies mostly tend to reward sales employees with tangible rewards, Pacnet also successfully recognised non-sales staff with its

rewards policy. Besides recognising staff, a retention plan for key talent and a new exit survey to understand the drivers of employee attrition were also rolled out in the first half of 2013. The telecom industry has an attrition rate of about 15 to 20%, and Pacnet historically had a high attrition rate of more than 25%. “We rolled out a simple online global survey to find out why employees were leaving,” Abbas explains. “Once we got feedback from there, we started to prioritise HR policies and actions based on our findings.” Through these initiatives, the attrition rate at Pacnet went down from 25% at the beginning of 2012 to 21% by the end of 2013, and looks set to fall well below 20% by the end of this year.

Building upon foundations Once initial plans were kick-started, Abbas got deeper into foundationbuilding for the HR function by creating best practice initiatives in areas such as employee engagement surveys, policy and governance, compensation and benefits, and HR metrics and reporting. “One particular success from that period has been our use of employee

WHO’S WHO IN HR SYED ALI ABBAS Chief HR Officer, Pacnet

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LOUISA GREGORY HR Director – South Asia and Global Talent Management

HRMASIA.COM

KATHERINE LEE HR Manager – Singapore

THOMAS WEE HR Specialist – Singapore

PAULIND TAN

Payroll Specialist – South Asia

CINDY TEO Group HR Administrator

HR INSIDER surveys that focus on just a few areas to get feedback every few months, as opposed to the big annual employee engagement surveys a lot of companies use,” Abbas highlights. “This has enabled us to get faster access to employee feedback and get enough details to drive meaningful changes based on that,” he explains. An example of how HR used regular feedback to drive change was through the first survey conducted in 2013. That survey was centred on culture and Pacnet as an employer. Feedback collected led to two major initiatives – the first being the development of the company’s new Core Values which were rolled out at the turn of this year. The second was the introduction of a Career Management initiative to provide employees with guidance and tools to develop their careers at Pacnet. One of the key metrics Pacnet also began using was an Employer Net Promoter score. This enables Pacnet HR to measure employee satisfaction with the company, in the same way as customer service departments measure customer satisfaction. Being one of the first telecom companies to use this data-based approach has also given the company a strategic advantage in retaining talent within the industry, Abbas says. Along with driving transformation, HR continued its normal day-to-day operations, keeping up its efforts to bring in more leadership talent for the business, fine-tune the function’s overall approach, and roll out items such as a new relocation policy to enable staff to take advantage of mobility opportunities when they arose. “This brought us close to the end of 2013,” says Abbas. “The company was recovering well from the changes of 2012 so the leadership team decided that 2014 would be when we really pushed to drive higher performance in the business.”

Changing gears These major strategy changes have meant that within two years, Pacnet jumped from being a traditional telecom bandwidth company to one that thrives on providing innovative cloud computing and managed services. That high performance culture became the backbone of Pacnet’s HR plan to sustain the company’s journey on the road towards

lead in this space to roll out social tools such as Lync and Yammer. These better facilitate collaboration amongst staff and support a Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) policy across the company, Abbas says. “Because we’re a mid-sized company, it was not possible to roll out all these changes in a single year,” says Abbas. “We’ve been working on them in a quarterly manner.”

Q1 2014

• New vision and company strategy introduced • Implementation of leadership programme that included 360-degree feedback, executive coaching and group workshops on personal leadership styles

Q2 2014

• More “pay for performance” differentiation in annual bonus payments • Leadership development programme continued

Q3 2014

• Career management programme and new compensation and benefits policies rolled out • Interview forms, collateral and workshops initiated • Started a new peer-to-peer recognition programme that empowers all employees to recognise the right core values in behaviours of their colleagues

Q4 2014

• In the process of reviewing KPIs, resourcing and organisation structure for 2015 • Implementing SuccessFactors HR Management System (HRMS) and Talent Management suite to replace legacy systems by year-end • Preparing employee and manager training to be rolled out in 2015

innovation. This consisted of a list of 10 carefully selected initiatives that were reviewed and agreed upon by the entire C-Level team. One such initiative has been to improve leadership skills and behaviours. “We implemented leadership development programmes in the first half of this year to ensure leaders not only manage and lead better, but also get help to improve themselves as individuals and perform better,” Abbas explains. To achieve more clarity on how employees’ roles and objectives connect to the big picture, HR helped the senior management team refresh and re-launch the company’s vision and strategy, making it more focused and easier to understand. A high performance organisation also requires a more collaborative environment. The IT team took the

Looking ahead, the results have pointed to a successful business and HR transformation thus far. On the business front, profitability, productivity and innovation have all improved significantly. Pacnet has also seen significant success in new business areas such as data centres and software defined networking. On the HR front, Pacnet made good measurable progress in terms of hiring, recognising and retaining talent. HR also revamped compensation and benefits policies and engagement practices, and is now looking to do a massive upgrade of its systems by the end of 2014. “We have moved from a traditional HR function to a more mature and innovative one, emphasising the use of feedback, technology and HR metrics to drive performance,” Abbas concludes.

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SME SPOTLIGHT

QIAN HU

We are in this together A

homegrown enterprise, Qian Hu distributes over 1,000 species and varieties of fish to some 80 countries globally. Its Fish divisions contributed 31% of Singapore’s total ornamental fish export in 2011. Attracting the right people with a passion for the fish trade is one of the key HR challenges faced by Qian Hu. According to Raymond Yip, Senior Manager of Group HR, good candidates need not necessarily be those with high educational qualifications. Rather, the emphasis is on individuals who are able to be hands on and work hard, he says. Operating in an SME environment 40 ISSUE 14.11

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Maintaining a strong company culture and the right hygiene factors is key to SME success, says ornamental fish specialist Qian Hu

poses several limitations and business challenges, as compared to a bigger and more developed organisation, says Yip. For example, the company runs a tight ship when it comes to its labour pool, and employees are expected to be adept at multi-tasking. Succession planning is another challenge. “We are constantly on the

lookout for potential candidates to join us and to be internally developed for future leadership positions,” Yip says.

Make your limitations work for you “On the financial front, we do not have deep pockets to do many activities like the bigger boys,” says Yip. Working with limited resources, requires SMEs like Qian Hu to be more creative, resourceful and targeted with their people management practices. Its farm operators, or “Fish Engineers”, often come up with work improvement ideas by recycling existing tools and parts. “Our staff suggestion

SME SPOTLIGHT scheme and workflow tracking system reward them accordingly,” says Yip. The organisation’s culture and work environment, as well as consistency in practices and values, also play a key role in driving retention. Teamwork and communication are very important, says Yip. “We have good managers who practice teamwork across all levels. Such a family-centric culture and spirit of working together for a common cause take time to build. All must sing the same song, if not, there is no symphony,” he says. Qian Hu recently introduced an SMS broadcasting system to keep employees in the loop about the latest news and upcoming events. On the positive side, a thin management structure allows issues to be resolved expeditiously and decisions can be made over a cup of coffee, without heavy paperwork, Yips says. The appetite for risk is also larger. Employee Opinions Surveys (EOSs) help Qian Hu gauge staff satisfaction levels over a given period. However, Yip cautions that these are only useful if proper action is taken on the issues raised. “If not, it is just an academic exercise or a showcase that gathers dust,” Yip says. According to Yip, it is essential to share the results of such surveys, drive

Maintaining transparency Since its listing in 2000, ornamental fish specialist Qian Hu (which means “Thousand Lakes” in Chinese), has been recognised for its best practices in corporate transparency and governance. Its awards include the Securities Investors Association of Singapore’s Most Transparent Company Award. It has also received various accolades by the organisers of the Singapore Corporate Awards including Best Managed Board, Chief Financial Officer of the Year, Best Investor Relations and Best Annual Report. In 2012, the Group won top honours amongst SMEs at the Singapore Sustainability Awards organised by the Singapore Business Federation.

Learning from the mistakes of others Ornamental Fish specialist Qian Hu established the “Creating Value from Mistakes” programme five years ago to promote a culture of innovation and learning at the workplace. The main premise of the programme is to encourage employees to share their mistakes so that others can learn from them and not repeat them. The Group’s Executive Chairman and Managing Director Kenny Yap first got the ball rolling by sharing an account of the mistakes that he made when entering the Chinese market. Learning points are distributed through internal newsletters and other staff communication. Since its inception, the programme has helped minimise work errors, and increase overall productivity and motivation. “Yes, it is a difficult thing to implement, but this helped to build the tolerance of mistakes, risk taking and learning,” says Raymond Yip, Senior Manager, Group HR, Qian Hu.

them with a dedicated task force, and lock in accountability and reporting. The proposed solutions should then be reviewed and shared with staff. “Leverage the EOS as a tool to enhance the culture you want. Use it as a means to motivate and celebrate its plus and minuses, as it is a culmination of what you done over the whole year. For HR practitioners, take this as the report card of your contribution and the whole organisation’s performance,” Yip says. SMEs also need to be flexible, says Yip. “We need to sort out the needs of our staff and see where we can be more accommodating. We have to be creative and nimble and not blindly follow regulations,” he says.

Developing careers Employees who see a career path with their organisation are more likely to stay for the long haul. Recognising this, Qian Hu takes a focused approach towards staff development. Career progression opportunities,

as well as salary structures, are made transparent to employees. This is shared in the employee handbook given out to every staff member on their first day of work during the orientation. Managers also conduct a training needs analysis with employees and develop a total training plan for the year. Qian Hu was awarded a Certified On-the-Job Training Centre status by the Institute for Technical Education. Technical training is conducted in-house by the organisation’s own technical specialists. They ensure that the staff’s quarantine knowledge and skills stay up to date. “We also have job competency charts so that employees see where they each stand in individual skill level,” Yip says. Employees are encouraged to acquire new skills beyond their current specialisations and challenged further through internal job assignments, says Yip. “Some of our next-generation managers are already managing business units in Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou and Thailand.”

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Also find out about our other programmes and workshops at www.ial.edu.sg/upgrading.

HR SUMMIT LAUNCH

HR Summit 2015 has officially launched with hot features and a spectacular, diverse line-up of world-class business and management gurus Re-Energising HR Featuring a stellar and exciting lineup of varied speakers, HR Summit 2015 brings new dynamism to HR with a stimulating mix of renowned global experts and esteemed people management leaders making exclusive presentations across today’s most important HR issues, challenges, and opportunities. HR Summit promises to be THE HR event of 2015. International management livewires include: Jack Canfield – America’s Number-One Success Coach, Peak Performance Strategist and CoFounder of Chicken Soup for the Soul and Ram Charan – Business Guru and Global Advisor to CEOs. This ground-breaking edition will also feature first-time exclusive presentations and winning case studies from local and international corporate giants such as: FedEx Express, RedBalloon, Kimberly-Clark International, SMRT Corporation, Yahoo, Standard Chartered Bank, Zalora, Qualcomm, AirAsia, Citi Singapore, and many more.

A Bigger, Bolder C-Suite Stream The success of last year’s new offering – an exclusive C-Suite stream where top management experts and HR gurus addressed major challenges faced by decision makers – has spawned an even more inspired line-up this year, exploring controversial and never-

before-discussed issues. It features exclusive workshop specials and highly anticipated interactive programmes with Jack Canfield and Ram Charan – plus prime analytical case studies from expert strategists such as Hazel Jackson and Lenora Billings-Harris.

Still the Best ROI HR Summit 2015 reaffirms its dedication to satisfy the needs of every HR and people management professional, whilst delivering greatest possible value and ROI. With five streams and cost options, delegates will yet again be able to choose and customise their own conference experience and enjoy the best networking opportunity of the year. For the first time ever, the event goes “next-generation” with a dedicated HR Summit App and Live Polling. Delegates of HR Summit 2015 can anticipate a multi-purpose event App which will

give attendees easy access to speaker notes, event programmes, and general event information, and will even allow delegates to diarise their chosen sessions to keep them on schedule. With Live Polling – another brand new feature – delegates get to respond automatically to speaker questions via online polls using their mobile phones. Speaking about the launch, HRM Asia’s Events Director Emma Dean said: “We’re fresh off the overwhelmingly positive response for HR Summit 2014 and we’re excited to surpass your expectations even further this year – with our most diverse line-up of speakers yet!”

For full details of all the streams, speakers, topics and price points, please visit www.hrsummit.com.sg

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Jack Canfield

Achal Agarwal

America’s #1 Success Coach, Peak Performance Strategist & Co-Founder of Chicken Soup for the Soul

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SingEx futureproofs its HR A fast-growing, Singapore-based group of companies specialising in MICE venues, trade exhibitions and conferences, SingEx Holdings is now fully prepared for future HR challenges, thanks to UNIT4 Prosoft HRMS. Background SingEx Holdings consists of a group of subsidiary companies, which specialises in providing a comprehensive range of integrated and customised solutions for venue management and consultancy, as well as organising trade exhibitions and conferences. Wholly owned by Temasek Holdings, one of the largest investment holding companies in Singapore, SingEx offers a wealth of experience in the Meetings, Incentives, Conventions and Exhibitions (MICE) industry, particularly within the Asian region.

The situation In 2011, SingEx embarked on a plan to radically grow its business. As the group’s staff strength doubled with the execution of the business strategy, the group structure was also becoming more complex with SingEx’s aspirations to grow regionally. It was becoming clear that its legacy system was unable to handle the group’s expansion and was coming under intense strain. A solution that could cater to this aggressive expansion into multiple business entities and geographies was needed.

The needs and the solution SingEx chose Prosoft HRMS 46 ISSUE 14.11

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“We are very happy to use the Prosoft HRMS system, as it solves the challenges we face today and keeps us ready for the demands on our team that we anticipate in the future” Michael Lim, Director (HR & IT) of SingEx Holdings Pte Ltd

as it required a more robust, fully featured and efficient cloud solution to support its growing business needs. Prior to this, the legacy system was slow and inefficient, and typically tied up staff doing payroll for three to four days. It also could not perform the queries needed for adequate reporting, with staff having to manually export the data to spreadsheets and do manipulation in order to produce analytical reports.

The benefits SingEx’s new cloud-based Prosoft HRMS solution is already bringing major improvements for the HR team. • The team now works in a single, completely integrated

•

solution with automated processes, so they no longer have to export and import the data manually between separate systems. As a result, payroll is done instantly. Prosoft HRMS is simpler and more efficient, enabling users to work on multiple entities with a single login. The ability to handle payroll for multiple countries means that the team will be ready and able to support the group’s plans to grow regionally in the near future. Forms are extremely easy to customise and, as all employees are already in the system, approval processes are reliable and fast. More time is saved by having the latest Ministry of

Manpower surveys retrievable at the click of a button. • Prosoft’s reporting tool is flexible and configurable with easy field selection so the user can quickly customise reports to their needs and for auditing purposes. • Auditing reports are readily available on the system for checking.

UNIT4 Asia Pacific Pte Ltd For more information: Tel: +65 6333 6133 Web: www.unit4apac.com Email: sales.ap@unit4.com

AHRDSPEAKS

Workforce planning in the mobile age W

orkforce planning is a key and integral part of HR management, as it ensures that HR has access to sufficient skilled talent to meet organisational and business needs. However, the workforce planning process is dynamic, especially in the high-tech industry, and specifically in the wireless telecommunications industry in which I work. While there is insatiable demand for highly-skilled technical talent, competition is moving at cut-throat pace, with Western companies facing closure due to marketplace pressures, and Asian-

based companies flourishing with increasing technical expertise and skilled talent. This shift has several implications for HR: Culture: The challenge of inculcating culture is the biggest implication. Western-based companies doing business in Asia will need to double-down on training for cross-culture integration. Management: Over the next few years, it is highly possible that Western companies will be recruiting talent with management-level skills that are grounded on Asian-based practices.

Retention: As Asian-indigenous companies mature and aspire to be global brands, they are snapping up talent with Western company experience. The demise of Western industry players is creating a talent chasm for these companies as the shift towards an Asian-based talent pool is becoming more pronounced than ever. New talent acquisition strategies and different workforce planning tactics are needed to continue to meet ongoing talent demands in the age of mobile.

William Chin Staffing Director, Qualcomm

SEVEN 7.00AM When I’m not travelling, I get up by 7:15am and greet my two cats. After playing with them for a while, I have my breakfast and prepare my lunch pack before taking the bus to work.

8.30AM

Dirk-Jan Rijks Vice President of Global HR Development, Service and Attitude, and Global Marketing, Accor Luxury and Upscale Brands

I have my regular coffee and I plan my day. The first thing I usually do is browse through my emails and see if any birthday notifications pop up. When they do, I send birthday emails or Whatsapp messages.

9.30AM When my team members come in, I sit down with three of them individually. I then work in such a way where I finish up stuff that I do not look forward to first. I just deal

with it, be it a nasty phone call or a difficult email, so the rest of the day is “clean”.

11.00AM I have my apple break around 11.00am.

1.00PM I have lunch around this time and it’s a homemade lunch. I normally lunch at my desk but it’s not a good thing for work-life balance so I don’t like to promote it!

2.00PM I do administrative work and deal with emails.

3.00PM When it’s 3pm, Paris wakes up and our head office is in Paris. I catch up with my other team

member there and I’ve also got one direct report sitting in the Paris office. I speak to him because he’s working on a few projects for me.

4.00PM I have my tomato cherry break which is a small pack of tomato cherries. It’s healthier to have smaller meals throughout the day than one big heavy lunch!

4.30PM It varies on the day but we have regular conference calls with different locations all over.

7.00PM I try to leave by 7:00pm and when I get home, I either go for a run or I go for my hockey training. ISSUE 14.11

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SPONSORED FEATURE

GEN Y

Managing

Gen in the

Workplace A Survey of Finance Professionals in Malaysia

The ASIAN INSTITUTE OF FINANCE, in collaboration with Ashridge Business School UK, presents one of the most comprehensive surveys of Gen Y professionals in the financial services industry in Malaysia

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GEN Y

he ASIAN INSTITUTE OF FINANCE collaborated with Ashridge Business School UK, recently to conduct a study on Generation Y (Gen Y) in the workplace. The study presents one of the most comprehensive surveys of Gen Y professionals in the financial services industry in Malaysia. The study collected survey responses from 606 Gen Y professionals and 616 managers across the industry â&#x20AC;&#x201C; from banking, Islamic finance, insurance to capital markets. The research focuses on what young

finance professionals expect from work, their attitudes and motivation, as well as their relationship with their managers. It also looked at how well managers understand Gen Y professionals who report to them. Born between 1981 and 2001, Gen Ys are arriving on corporate doorsteps with a host of life experience as a direct result of early exposure to the internet, digital technologies and social media. They thrive on challenging work; enjoy collaborations; are independent; and

SPONSORED FEATURE

have high expectations of themselves, their managers and the organisations they work for. Raised by parents who were very active in their upbringing, this generation is particularly independent-minded with high levels of confidence. The study discovered that a majority of Gen Y finance professionals (78%) said that work had not lived up to their expectations and about 15% were dissatisfied with their managers at work. This may be because they

Figure 1: What Gen Y Professionals and Managers Seek in a Work Environment Challenging/ Interesting work

Career advancement

Gen Y

28%

Gen Y

18%

Manager

15%

Manager

23%

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

Independence at work

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

Social atmosphere

Gen Y

26%

Gen Y

18%

Manager

18%

Manager

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

Teamwork

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

Work-life balance

Gen Y

24%

Gen Y

11%

Manager

21%

Manager

27%

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

Organisation with strong ethics and integrity

High salary

Gen Y

22%

Gen Y

Manager

20%

Manager

14%

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

Note: The figures relate to the percentage of Gen Y professionals /managers placing factors in their top three. ISSUE 14.11

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GEN Y

SPONSORED FEATURE

Figure 2: Important Qualities of a Manager 34% 32%

Sets clear objectives

26% 22% 32%

Motivates Gen Ys

33% 20% 24%

Provides regular feedback about performance

36% 32%

Supports career progression

30% 30% 29% 16%

Has professional expertise

22% 29% 29%

Communicates well

23% 22% 26%

Respects/values Gen Ys

Key

28%

Important to Gen Ys

What managers think Gen Ys want

Important to manager

Note: The figures relate to the percentage of Gen Y professionals /managers placing factors in their top three

have high initial career expectations and a desire to rise quickly to the top (about 44% of young professionals believed it reasonable for them to be in a management role within three years of starting work). Despite being discontented with their working life, young professionals are engaged at work. However, this is not translated into their long-term commitment at work as nearly half are likely to leave their current job within two years. 50 ISSUE 14.11

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Findings also point to a significant disconnect between managers and Gen Y professionals across multiple issues. Gen Y professionals view working life far differently from their managers, who are mostly from Generation X. So, how can organisations and managers better engage with Gen Y? Studies have shown that organisations are able to better engage with Gen Y employees by addressing their expectations. Hence, the key to effectively manage Gen Y lies on

how well managers know and understand their needs.

Summary Findings Mismatch in Work Expectations Gen Ys have considerably different expectations of their employment experience as compared to their predecessors. The top three priorities in the workplace for Gen Y professionals are: doing challenging and interesting work (28%), independence at work

GEN Y

SPONSORED FEATURE

The key to effectively manage Gen Y lies on how well managers know and understand their needs and expectations at the workplace

(26%) and teamwork (24%). Managers, on the other hand, see good work-life balance and career advancement as the most important workplace attributes. The desire that these young professionals have for stimulating and challenging work rather than a ‘job-for-life’ affects the way financial institutions build their talent pipeline. Interestingly, ethics was ranked very low by Gen Y. Only 4% of Gen Y professionals considered ethical organisations as an important element when seeking employment. Another interesting finding is that social connectedness is not a deal-breaker but a preferred work environment for many Gen Y professionals as only 19% ranked this as one of their top three most important elements in a work environment. However, money still

matters to them. When asked if they could improve one thing about work, remuneration was ranked as the most important consideration. Out of Sync – Managers Don’t Seem to Understand Gen Y’s Values and Needs at Work Gen Y is a social and inclusive generation that has been taught to collaborate and work with teams. As such, these young

professionals are team-focused and place great importance on independence at work (ranked 2nd) and teamwork (ranked 3rd). However, their managers don’t think that they view either as important. Managers think Gen Ys rate these elements at 13th and 18th most important, respectively. But when it comes to ‘challenging and interesting work’, both are on the same page. Dubbed ‘digital natives’ and a ‘connected generation’, Gen Ys place importance on staying connected with the rest of the world via social networks – within and beyond organisational boundaries. But managers don’t view social connections as important to young professionals (6th most important for Gen Ys, while managers think Gen Ys rate it 21st).

Figure 3: Gen Ys’ Ideal Boss

60% Coach/Mentor

23% Friend

9% Examiner/Auditor

4% Director/ Allocator of work

3% Peer

Figure 4: Current Relationship Viewed by Managers

39% Friend

33% Coach/Mentor

11% Peer

8% Director/ Allocator of work

6% Examiner/Auditor

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SPONSORED FEATURE

GEN Y

When it comes to important management behaviour, managers think that it is important for them to provide regular feedback on performance (36%) and motivate Gen Y professionals (33%). But these two factors are way down the list of Gen Ys’ needs at work, rating them at 7th and 8th out of 14 items. Young finance professionals seek managers who: set clear objectives (34%), supports their career progression (32%), communicates well (29%) and has professional expertise (29%). Although managers recognise some of these needs, they don’t rate them highly as qualities of a good manager. However, both Gen Y professionals and managers agreed that it is important for managers to support career progression – Gen Ys placed this 2nd and managers rated it 3rd. Different Lenses – Gen Ys and Managers View Their Relationships Differently There is a lack of understanding between Gen Ys and managers when it comes to work relationships. According to Gen Ys, an ideal boss is a manager who fulfils the role of a coach or mentor. As a generation that is used to receiving hands-on guidance from parents and teachers, they see a leader as someone from whom they can learn and help them succeed. This implies that coaching and mentoring are important competencies for managers to demonstrate. While a majority of Gen Ys (60%) would like their managers to play the role of a coach, only 33% of managers see their relationship this way. Meanwhile, 23% of young professionals said they wanted their managers to be a friend, but a majority of managers (39%) believe that they are fulfilling this role. Job-Hopping Behaviour – A Global Phenomenon The research found evidence of high levels of engagement at work amongst young finance professionals. About 63% said they were willing to go above and beyond their duty at work, 70% are proud to work for their employer, 68% would recommend 52 ISSUE 14.11

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Myth Buster - debunking the myths about Gen Y MYTH 1

Gen Y is “all about the money” Reality – Facts –

Gen Y puts organisational culture before monetary benefits when looking for a job. AIF research shows that the 3 most important workplace attributes to Gen Y professionals are challenging and interesting work, independence at work and teamwork.

MYTH 2

Gen Y is not looking for leadership Reality – Gen Y actually yearns for leadership and mentoring Facts – AIF research indicates that Gen Y’s ideal boss is someone who fulfils the role of a coach and mentor. They see a leader as someone who can help guide and develop their careers.

MYTH 3

Gen Y is disloyal Reality – Facts –

They are loyal but it’s a different kind of loyalty - not the old fashioned, long term and climb the ladder kind of loyalty. Gen Ys are simply more mobile. AIF survey results suggest that Gen Y’s employment relationship is short term and transactional. They are more interested in exploring different career paths rather than locking into one for the rest of their working experience. This creates a perceived lack of loyalty. MYTH 4

Gen Y lacks commitment Reality – Facts –

They have as much commitment as previous generations. But they want meaningful work and want to use their talent and abilities to succeed. AIF survey finds evidence of high levels of engagement at work. About 63% of Gen Y professionals said they were willing to go above and beyond their duty at work and 64% are personally motivated to help their organisation succeed.

GEN Y

SPONSORED FEATURE

Gen Y professionals are comfortable with change and are willing to job-hop in order to gain experiences that resonate with their work desires â&#x20AC;&#x201C; challenging work, independence at work, teamwork, salary, career advancement and social connections. To them, mobility is the key to effective career development. I am proud to work for my employer

70% % of Gen Ys agreeing to the statement

their employer as a good place to work and 64% are personally motivated to help their organisation succeed. But this high level of engagement was not translated into longterm commitment. An overwhelming 41% of young finance professionals say they only expect to be with their current employer for two years. Similar findings were reported in the UK, US, Middle East and India1. This fits with other research findings that Gen Y professionals are comfortable with change and are willing to job-hop in order to gain experiences that resonate with their work desires â&#x20AC;&#x201C; challenging work, independence at work, teamwork, salary, career advancement and social connections. To them, mobility is the key to effective career development. The findings provide several plausible insights. Firstly, the current retention strategies may be construed as not effective â&#x20AC;&#x201C; which may imply that organisations need to revisit or revise their current approach to talent management. Secondly, in order for retention strategies to be effective, emphasis should be placed on the mobility aspirations of Gen Ys. 1

I would recommend my employer

68%

I am motivated to help my organisation succeed

64%

Greatest Gap in Career Progression Gen Y professionals are said to be highly confident, ambitious and motivated individuals. Hence, they expect rapid career progression. The study found that 41% of Gen Y professionals surveyed believed they are ready for a management role within two years whilst 22% said within six months of starting work. Not only is this generation at ease about moving between jobs, they also want to move quickly in terms of career progression. However, their managers believed that these young professionals have unrealistically high expectations in terms of career advancement due to a false sense of entitlement and an overinflated sense of their skills and abilities. Only 2% of managers agreed that Gen Ys are ready for a position in management within six months of working whilst a majority of them (60%) believed that young professionals will have to wait for another five years before assuming a management role. This has huge implications on retention strategies. Gen Y professionals are clear and confident about their career

Culture Shock. Generation Y and their managers around the world. Ashridge Business School. November 2012

I am willing to go the extra mile at work

63%

progression and if organisations do not focus on developing leadership correctly, they will move to other organisations that are willing to provide them with bigger roles and responsibilities. Conclusion While the survey reports that Gen Y finance professionals are engaged at work and are satisfied with their current jobs, findings also suggest that they are concerned about career progression. Gen Y finance professionals want to be coached and not managed. Hence, the traditional command-and-control approach to management is no longer effective in retaining them. Organisations need to engage, enrich and empower them at work as well as provide them with a clear career plan that they can expect to grow in.

Want to get involved? We plan to collect data across the whole of ASEAN. Let us know if you want us to survey your organisation. Visit us at www.AIF.org or email at enquiry@ aif.org.my for further information on this research initiative.

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GUEST CONTRIBUTOR

TALENT AGILITY In this fast-changing world, the winners in business are often the organisations that can change just as quickly. Guest contributor Edward E Lawler says this sort of agility requires a unique type of employee, and a structure that gets the best out of everyone for as long as they are there

gility has become critical to the survival of most organisations. There is a clear consensus among business researchers and executives that organisations must be able to change rapidly and effectively, in order to survive. As the world becomes more complex, more interdependent, and more demanding of sustainable organisational performance, the extent to which they need to change is likely to increase even further. Although there is great agreement that organisations have to get better at changing, there is much less agreement on what organisations need to do in order to become more agile. In our recent book, The Agility Factor, Chris Worley, Tom Williams, and I provide an answer. We argue that organisations need to change their approach to talent management. Like many others, we point out that the career model of employment does not fit with the need for organisation agility, nor with the expectations of many 20-35 year olds, 54 ISSUE 14.11

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for that matter. It simply creates too many obstacles to rapid organisational change. Organisations need to be able to quickly add new technical skills and levels of performance. This requires a workforce that is willing and able to do new things in new locations – with different technologies and with different organisation and job designs. Organisations need a new approach to talent management that creates a workforce that supports changes in what individuals do, where they do it, when they do it, and how they do it. One extreme approach to achieving this is to depend heavily on contract or cloudsourced labour. oDesk and other firms that match individuals to firms on a web-based contract basis are an example of one type of talent management that makes organisations highly flexible in terms of their workforce. The oDesk approach undoubtedly fits some of the work that rapidly changing firms do. However, it falls short of being a general talent management model that fits most

organisations. It simply does not create enough organisational continuity nor does it take into account the ongoing relationship that many organisations need with their customers, suppliers, communities, and governments in the places in which they operate. What is needed is a talent management approach that attracts, retains, and motivates highly talented individuals for as long as they are needed by an organisation. It also needs to minimise the transaction costs and disruption that is produced by changing the members of a workforce. It is an approach that is being used by a number of Silicon Valley firms in the US, including Netflix, Google, and LinkedIn. LinkedIn calls it “the alliance model” and talks about individuals taking “tours of duty”. In our book, we call it the “travel light approach.” On its website, Netflix outlines its approach, whose key characteristic is “guaranteeing” employment to individuals for as long as they have the skills that they need to perform

GUEST CONTRIBUTOR

It is important

at a high level. Netflix states that, when either of these two conditions no longer exist, individuals will be terminated. Where there is no guarantee of employment, there is also no commitment to developing employees. It is up to each individual to be sure that they have the skills that the organisation needs. Netflix promises to help employees figure out what skills are needed, but it does not guarantee that they will turn out to be the ones that the organisation needs. Development and career management decisions are left up to the individuals. All the organisation offers is the best information available on what is happening to the business. It is important to emphasise that employees are not told that they are temporary or contract workers, on the contrary, they are employees but they are told not to expect a long-term permanent relationship with the organisation. It is one thing to specify what this new relationship is like, it is quite another

to look for individuals who have either changed jobs relatively frequently or changed their skills and competencies frequently

to create an organisation in which it leads to effective organisational performance. The danger with this can be that individuals will spend most of their time only looking out for their self-interest and making little or no commitment to the organisation and its performance. This clearly is a danger; and in order to prevent it from becoming a reality organisations need to attract and retain talented individuals who accept the deal and perform well while they are employed. With that in mind, letâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s turn to some key management practices that will make this happen.

Staffing Creating an effective talent management system for a travel light organisation must begin with the recruiting, selection, and onboarding process. It needs to be based on an accurate employer brand. There is no substitute for utilising recruiting practices that accurately reflect what individuals will encounter

once they become fulltime employees. Thus, the information that is provided to recruits should emphasise that employment is very much dependent on the skills that individuals have, the organisations need for those skills, and their performance. This is a key theme in the information that all job applicants see when they apply for a job at Netflix. It is important to look for individuals who have either changed jobs relatively frequently or changed their skills and competencies frequently. They are much more likely to be able to adapt to the changes that will be required as the organisation changes, or to look for another job when the organisation no longer needs the skills they have. Past behaviour is the best predictor of future behaviour.

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GUEST CONTRIBUTOR need to reflect what the organisation is focused on, with respect to gaining a competitive advantage. In the case of agile organisations, the focus is on performance, skill development, and change. The obvious implication for the reward system is that it ought to focus on the skills individuals have and on their performance, not on jobs they have. A traditional pay approach that focuses on jobs and paying individuals based on what their job is worth is inappropriate for an organisation that wants to be agile. It motivates individuals to protect and grow their jobs, rather than to develop their skills and do what is needed for them to fit the changes occurring. In most cases, performance rewards need to be relatively short-term and focused on individuals rather than groups. In some situations, group or team rewards are appropriate but they are less likely to be appropriate in a situation where rapid change is occurring. The reason for this is straight forward. In traditional organisations, there is likely to be a longer relationship between individuals and organisations. Individuals, particularly if they are rewarded for organisational performance, may be committed to helping the organisation perform well, even if they are not rewarded individually for their performance. In the case of the more transitory relationship that exists in a travel light organisation, individuals need to be motivated by relatively immediate and clear rewards for how they are performing. In the absence of rewards for their performance, individuals may have little motivation to perform their job well and instead of doing it, they are likely to focus on looking for their next job. In addition to being based on performance and for retention purposes, pay rates need to be high because job security is not being offered. Performance management, a frequently criticised practice in traditional organisations, needs to be prominent in agile organisations. An effective performance management system is fundamental to making the talent management systems of an agile 56 ISSUE 14.11

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organisation effective. The travel light approach must have valid performance and skill information about everyone. Without it, the organisation cannot make good decisions about who should be retained.

Leadership Leadership is a critical element in any organisation but it is more important in an agile organisation than in traditional ones. Agile organisations need frequent updating of their strategy and direction, and individuals need to understand the changes that are taking place and the implications for where, what, how, and when they should be performing. Part of this can be communicated to individuals through work design changes, reward systems, and performance reviews. Some of it is best communicated by articulate leaders who explain why the changes are necessary, what they involve, what their implications are for individuals, and how they should be implemented. Traditional “do-what-I-tell-you” type leadership simply will not work in an organisation where individuals are not motivated to work towards the organisation’s success because their future does not depend on it.

Work Design Travel light talent management systems

are particularly popular in technology businesses. One of the characteristics of technology organisations is the complex nature of the work they do and the need for talented individuals. This type of work often has an intrinsic motivation character. People work hard and effectively because of the satisfaction they get from meeting challenges and producing significant products. Not everyone can have a highly challenging job, but it is important for organisations to pay attention to the structure of the work that all individuals do in order to see that each role is as motivating as possible. This means work that gives feedback, challenges the skills and abilities that people have, and has tangible outcomes.

Conclusion Agile organisations need talent management models that emphasise talent agility. In order to be effective, they have to do more than frequently churn their workforces so that they have the right skills. They need to be designed and structured to operate with low labour change transaction costs, assurances that individuals are performing well, and motivating job designs. Those organisations that can create talent agility are likely to be highly effective in today’s rapidly changing world.

About the author Edward E. Lawler III is Distinguished Professor of Business and Director of the Center for Effective Organizations in the Marshall School of Business at the University of Southern California. He has consulted with over one hundred organizations on employee involvement, organizational change, and compensation and has been honored as a top contributor to the fields of organizational development, organizational behavior, corporate governance, and human resource management. The author of over 360 articles and 46 books, his articles have appeared in leading academic journals as well as Fortune, Harvard Business Review and leading newspapers including USA Today and the Financial Times. His most recent books include Management Reset: Organizing for Sustainable Effectiveness (2011), Effective Human Resource Management: A Global Analysis (2012), and The Agility Factor (2014).

CHECK OUT

THE ALL NEW

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With innovative new features: • • • • •

Live Polls HRM Weekly Bulletin HRM Insights Cross-industry training courses Dedicated events page

Now LIVE! MyHRM Communities

Asia’s largest forum for people management professionals, MyHRM is where HR executives and decision makers gather according to HR specialisation to discuss pertinent and hotbutton issues while exploring solutions to major challenges. Choose between six diverse communities: • Compensation & Benefits • C-Suite • HR Generalists • Learning & Development • Talent Acquisition • Talent Management

SPECIAL LAUNCH GIVEAWAY! As part of our launch this month, we’re giving away a luxurious staycation package at The Ritz-Carlton Millenia Singapore Simply sign up for your MyHRM account to qualify!

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HRM ASIA RELAUNCH PARTY

Heralding a new era HRM Asia launched its brand new print and online offerings over an evening to remember on Sentosa island

fter many months in the making, HRM Asia revealed its brand new image in style on October 16. Guests enjoyed endless views of the South China Sea from a special rooftop venue at iFly Singapore, while also taking in a first glimpse of HRM Asia’s freshest offerings. The intimate party at iFly Sentosa featured a who’s-who of C-level HR and people management professionals from organisations including Google, DBS, BreadTalk, Pacnet and Zalora. Also in attendance were top-tier service providers and vendors including British Council, the Center for Creative Leadership, Far East Organisation, Hays Recruitment and Santa Fe. Guests were treated to a lavish fusion spread of Asian and Western cuisine as they mingled and connected with the

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FOR HRM ASIA

crème de la creme of Singapore’s HR profession. Executive General Manager Kaveri Ayahsamy kick-started the celebrations by welcoming valued guests and providing an overview of how HRM Asia had grown and evolved over the years before moving on to the main highlight of the night – a grand unveiling of the all new HRM Magazine and HRM Asia website. Kaveri first showcased the upgraded HRM Magazine publication. New features include an all-new HR Clinic, bite-sized thought leadership columns, SME Spotlight, HR Young Guns and Q&A style interviews with top C-Suite executives. The new magazine however, was simply the curtain-raiser for the main event of the night: the hotly-

anticipated revealing of the all-new HRM Asia website. HRM Asia had envisioned an all-in-one HR portal where every people management professional could update themselves daily with exclusive content. This exciting new website comes with live polls, exclusive digital content, cross-industry training courses and much more. Readers can also receive customised content and even engage in thought-provoking dialogues with others in their specialisation, a feature of HRM Asia’s biggest discussion and networking platform yet - MyHRM Communities. The event was not complete without a hard-hitting look into trends growing within the HR Community. HRM Asia’s Editorial Director

HRM ASIA RELAUNCH PARTY

“The new website goes simply beyond visual layouts and has a very good and structured way of presenting information,” said Abbas. In particular, he lavished praise on the “MyHRM” portal where HR professionals can hold discussions with each other in their respective HR communities. “That has the potential to be a very good platform where HR professionals can interact, and it can be a forum for them to exchange ideas and practices.” HRM Asia had envisioned an “It’s really important to be constructively raising issues on the new forum instead of HR portal where every people management professional simply logging on and not could update themselves daily Sumathi V Selvaretnam contributing anything.” with exclusive content presented highlights Joe Tofield, Training Advisor, from the HRM AsiaBritish Council, said he Center for Creative Leadership Talent appreciated the opportunity to mingle Sustainability Survey 2014. with HR professionals in a cosy setting. A White Paper detailing these findings “It’s not every day that we get to will be published soon. speak and interact with HR people, so Another major crowd-pleaser was the opportunity to do so at HRM Asia’s the lucky draw segment, which saw Re-launch Party was great,” said Tofield. attendees vying for prizes including an “I also find that the new website is iPad Air, sponsored by British Council, easier to navigate.” Champagne Lompard sponsored by For some, HRM Asia’s Re-launch Party Santa Fe, holiday packages sponsored was also a chance to catch up with their by Klapsons The River Residences peers from the HR industry. Bangkok, and luxurious spa packages “The party was well organised and sponsored by Chinois Spa. I interacted with many new and old As the crowd mingled over friends from the HR community,” said champagne and an assortment of Foo Chek Wee, HR Director, Zalora. desserts after dinner, a spectacular Foo was also impressed by the fireworks display came to life across website’s new Communities page. the night sky to enliven what was “I specifically like the website’s ability already an eventful evening of fun in creating communities of practice and festivity. where targeted information are dished Syed Ali Abbas, Chief HR Officer, out to relevant parties,” he added. Pacnet, said the new HRM Asia UNIT4 Marketing Manager Iris website “was a significant upgrade”. Leong was especially drawn to the HR

all-in-one

Young Guns feature, HRM Magazine’s new column dedicated to university students aspiring to a career in HR. “I find that the HR students section is a good collaboration as it contains contributions from the next pool of aspiring HR professionals,” said Leong. HRM Asia would once again like to thank everyone who made the time and effort to celebrate our milestone journey with us!

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HIGH

IMPACT HR

CREATIVITY MATTERS at Adobe

In today’s knowledge-based economy, creativity and innovation have become even more critical ingredients for continued business growth. Adobe is a step ahead, incorporating creativity as a key organisational metric, on par with indicators like revenue and brand equity.

Shalini Shukla-Pandey shalini@hrmasia.com.sg

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HRMASIA.COM

oes creativity truly matter? According to Adobe research, it can have a dramatic impact on business results. In fact, companies embracing creativity outperform peers in revenue, market share, and competitive leadership, the company says. According to the Adobe Creative Dividend study, what makes a company succeed — the ability to foster innovation; develop

exceptional talent and leadership; and a high degree of brand recognition — are influenced by its creative perspectives, practices, and culture. Fifty-eight per cent of survey respondents that said their firms’ creativity had helped 2013 revenues exceeding those of the previous year by 10% or more. In contrast, only 20% of less creative companies enjoyed similar growth.

Unsurprisingly, creative companies also win recognition as better places to work, and at the same time, a positive employee work environment is a fertile breeding ground for creativity. Nearly 70% of creative firms reported winning awards and national recognition as employers. Just 27% of less creative companies achieved similar accolades. But despite these perceived benefits of creativity, 61% of companies do not see their companies as ‘creative’ organisations. Only 11% said their practices were perfectly aligned with firms readily recognised as creative. The majority (51%) said they were neutral or not aligned with creative firms, and 10% felt their practices were, in fact, the opposite of what creative companies do. “For years, business leaders have focused on things like employee productivity, process efficiency and workforce planning as key success drivers for their companies. But over the past few years, the mindset has shifted,” says David Wadhwani, Senior Vice President – Digital Media, Adobe. “Leading companies recognise the importance of another key success driver – the need to infuse creativity into all aspects of the business environment – from strategy and culture, to innovation and customer engagement.” In today’s knowledge economy, companies that encourage a creative culture enable their employees to reach the highest part of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs – self-actualisation, says Jaleel Abdul, Senior Director, HR – Asia, Adobe. “This breeds huge satisfaction, as employees are able to create an impact through their work, be it to the business, to society or towards their own development,” Jaleel explains. By providing employees with adequate channels and resources to develop creative thinking, organisations are able to create a culture of knowledge sharing, and continual learning. “This allows employees to maintain a focus on finding solutions and solving problems, which leads to employee development and self-actualisation,” he adds.

Fostering a creative culture at work

organisation has huge trust and confidence in its employees. “We avoid a culture of micro-managing and let our employees take charge of their day-to-day work, while not having to compromise on building upon their creative ideas,” says Jaleel. “At the same time, we have a culture that refuses to scrap any ideas brought up by employees, understanding that an idea which may not seem relevant today can, with a little tweaking, be a revolutionary breakthrough in the future,” he adds. Such an approach builds up employee confidence and ultimately leads to the continuous flow of inspiration within a company. Employees are encouraged to share their ideas with different community groups, colleagues and the senior management team, and are also given the opportunity to build upon their idea and take it to fruition. However, having the mindset is only one part of solving the problem. The other lies in implementing it, something Adobe has created various channels and outlets to achieve. From the first day an employee joins the company, he or she has various opportunities to be creative, from Hackathons and Hackfests, to KickBox and CodeJams. Employees are also given the chance to participate in forums where they can meet the best minds in the industry and share learnings.

Adobe KickBox Adobe KickBox is an initiative that empowers employees to explore, evaluate and evolve their own ideas. It also puts the ability to fund early exploration of each idea directly in the employee’s hands with a pre-paid innovation credit card. Without even needing to have an idea first, employees arrange with their manager to free up a portion of their time for their personal innovation project, usually about 20%, over a period of up to a few months. There is no further management involvement or executive review until after the innovator has fleshed out an idea and generated engagement data from prospective customers. Around 350 employees in Adobe have attended the Adobe KickBox workshop, which has inspired them to innovate. So far, Adobe KickBox has generated more new ideas from more employees, faster, and at lower cost than previous innovation efforts. Adobe KickBox has earned strong enthusiasm and commitment from employees, who consistently give the programme Net Promoter Scores of over 90%.

Hackathon@Adobe and Hackfests Every six months Adobe runs a ‘Hackathon’ competition – in which employees from various technology teams participate to build prototypes of their innovative ideas. The winning ideas are funded end-to-end by the Adobe Leadership Team. Employees can also participate in a Code Jam (a variant of the Hackathon, where the employees work in teams, under a mentor) conducted by Adobe. The winning team created a workflow in which a consumer could purchase Adobe software using a smart phone. By simply scanning the barcode, the consumer could not only get details about the products, but could also enrol for a subscription and remotely install Adobe products to all their other devices through their smart phone itself. Apart from the recognition and the handsome rewards this team received, members were given the opportunity to present their idea at the Global Tech Summit, at Adobe Headquarters in San Jose. Not only is Adobe now using the workflow created, it has also filed a patent for the process.

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HIGH

IMPACT HR For example, in a recent workshop, every participant was provided with a voucher worth US$1,000 to work on developing and fine-tuning their creative ideas. “It’s critical that creativity is an organisational mindset or value to be lived out and not just a call to action that is hung on office walls,” says Jaleel. These practices have had a positive impact on revenue and profits at Adobe. For example, the company has been able to file over 300 patents in the last year. Adobe is also spearheading the thrust of creativity onto mobile devices by introducing revolutionary new features in its Adobe Creative Cloud offering. These allow creatives to now work on their content from anywhere and at any time. “We believe that creativity is a crucial formula for success at Adobe and will prove to be a cornerstone for our growth in the long run,” says Jaleel.

Innovation as a Personal Development Goal Many Adobe employees undertake “innovation” as one of their declared stretch goals. The Adobe Patent Recognition Programme gives employees the opportunity to be recognised on a national level for their innovative ideas and technical contributions to Adobe and society. Innovators who receive a patent are recognised both formally and informally. Each patent recipient receives a customised plaque. They are also recognised at team meetings, business unit meetings, and company meetings. The innovator also has their plaque displayed on the Adobe Jaleel Abdul patent wall that resides in Adobe Head Office’s main lobby, for all Senior Director, HR – employees and visitors to interact with and view. The Innovator can also Asia, Adobe have an ‘Innovator’ logo on their business card, Adobe’s “shout out” to them for their contribution. Many of these patents have been and are being used by Adobe. One such success story is “Adobe LeanPrint”, for which the development team has filed seven patents. LeanPrint enables people to “print without guilt”. The technology intelligently optimises the layout of a document being printed such that it consumes the minimum amount of ink and paper, without impacting the readability of the printout. “The team has also filed multiple patents around 3D Printing, currently one of the most talked about up-and-coming technologies,” Jaleel Abdul, Senior Director, HR – Asia, Adobe, adds.

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FEATURE

CORPORATE HEALTH

Rethinking

PENSION PLANS Singapore has recently been placed among the top ten pension systems in the world. HRM explores how companies can further restructure compensation packages to include a viable corporate pension plan Shalini Shukla-Pandey shalini@hrmasia.com.sg

etirement is becoming a big concern for employees of all ages, especially in countries with ageing populations – like Singapore. The country is unique in that it mandates employers to make significant contributions to the Central Provident Fund (CPF) accounts of their Singaporean employees, says Neil Narale, ASEAN Business Leader, Mercer Retirement Consulting. “In most countries, the contributions to a social security scheme are not as high,” he explains. “In addition, there are no further incentives provided to employers for setting up a corporate retirement scheme. “Therefore, most corporations either pay a cash equivalent amount representing a retirement allowance, or simply do nothing.” 64 ISSUE 14.11

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CORPORATE HEALTH

FEATURE

Retiring in Singapore

provided to employees around The primary retirement vehicle for pensions and retirement planning will most Singaporeans, CPF has recently become increasingly important as a been rated by the Mercer Melbourne differentiation for employers going Pension Index as the best in Asia. forward,” Narale cautions. “While we applaud CPF Singapore’s Prime for its sustainability, the Minister, Lee Hsien adequacy factor remains Loong has announced a concern,” says Narale. upcoming changes “The lack of taxto the CPF. These of those who turned 55 last year had approved group include the Silver CPF balances above the Minimum Sum that were not withdrawn, corporate retirement Support Scheme and suggesting a potentially large pool plans and retirement more flexibility in of funds that might be invested with savings for nondrawing down lump private pension plans residents continues to sums in retirement. Source: Manpower Minister Tan Chuan-Jin in Parliament in July 2014 isolate Singapore from “Once these changes other high-graded are implemented, we countries on the global expect an increase scale,” he explains. in Singapore’s grade in the future,” The lack of cover for the one-third Narale said. of employees who are foreign workers is a further concern, something that Setting up corporate pension plans means the dependence on personal Companies in Singapore are constrained savings becomes extremely important. by the regulation surrounding corporate “Therefore, the right guidance pension plans, but they can demonstrate

20%

How can Singapore’s retirement savings system improve? The Mercer Melbourne Pension Index identifies possible areas of retirement savings reform for each country with a view to ensuring more adequate retirement benefits, increased sustainability, and greater trust in each pension system. Suggested measures to improve Singapore’s system include: • Raising the minimum level of support available to the poorest, aged members of society • Reducing barriers to establishing tax-approved group corporate retirement plans • Opening CPF to non-residents (who comprise more than one-third of the labour force) • Increasing the labour force participation rate amongst older workers Neil Narale, ASEAN Business Leader, Mercer Retirement Consulting says: “Employers continue to be interested in implementing company-sponsored programmes such as Section 5 plans, Supplemental Retirement Schemes, and customised schemes for both Singaporeans and non-residents, but barriers still remain in getting these implemented. “Policies that can help implement employer programmes will further increase Singapore’s grade,” he adds. Challenges common to many countries include the need to: • Increase retirement age to reflect increasing life expectancy • Promote higher labour force participation at older ages • Encourage higher levels of private saving • Increase coverage of the private pension system with an element of compulsion or automatic enrolment • Reduce the leakage from the system prior to retirement • Improve the governance of private pension plans and transparency

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CORPORATE HEALTH concern for employee well-being by arrangements,” Narale explains. educating their employees about the The third option is to utilise the real costs of retirement and the options existing SRS, which is a personal available to them, Narale says. retirement account that employees “A lot of forward-looking employers can open with any of three authorised have begun to do this,” he points banks. This is a personal plan that out. “In addition, employers can look anyone can invest in on a tax-deferred more actively at the Supplementary basis, be they locals or foreigners. Retirement Scheme (SRS) option and “Employers can make contributions divert some on behalf of of employees’ employees compensation to to their SRS According to the Mercer Melbourne Pension these accounts.” accounts,” says Index, Denmark continued to hold onto the top Narale suggests Narale. “Some position in 2014, with an overall score of 82.4. three ways that progressive Denmark’s well-funded pension system corporations employers today with its good coverage, high level of assets can support are beginning and contributions, provision of adequate retirement to put aside benefits, and a private pension system with savings. a matching developed regulations were the primary The first is amount in their reasons behind its top spot. a traditional employees’ SRS approach, which is accounts to offer to offer a Section-5 parity of benefits plan. “These plans are tax-deferred and for their Singaporean and foreign allow savings to be made on this basis workforce.” over and above CPF,” says Narale. Mercer has worked with several “They are, however, expensive to companies that have implemented implement and administer, and require employee retirement and savings that all employees receive the same plan education road maps. “These companies formula,” he adds. “It is not surprising are proactively engaging with different that less than 0.5% of employers employee demographic populations actually offer such a scheme.” around the issue of retirement income Companies can also set up an offshore adequacy,” Narale explains. “They (or non-tax deferred) scheme. These engaged us to roll-out a series of these schemes are usually used for expatriates education sessions.” who are highly mobile. There are no tax advantages with these plans. However, a company has full latitude to design them the way it wants to. “In Singapore, these are not very common as often they are set up offshore, where most companies prefer traditional tax-deferred local

“Subsequently, financial providers were brought in to offer supplementary savings options to the employees and although they did not have corporate pension plans, the employees felt they had that level of support from their employers,” he adds.

FEATURE

CASE STUDY

IMC Pan Asia Alliance Group One company with a private pension working alongside the CPF is diversified multinational IMC Pan Asia Alliance Group. Its base is in Singapore and its businesses include shipping and real estate. Director – People and organisation, Sherin Goh says the company is committed to a sustainable and profitable business “while supporting the wellbeing needs of our employees and society in general”. Its pension plan is currently only for Singapore-based employees. “We have reviewed carefully much analysis concluding that the current CPF savings of a typical employee in Singapore is insufficient to provide for the (retirement) needs,” says Goh. “Hence, we decided to develop and deploy our own Employee Retirement Benefit Scheme as a contribution for a better quality life after retirement.” The group does not view contributions as an extra expense, “but as a way to show our real commitment to our employees and our social responsibility. “When employees know that their company really cares for them, they have a sense of worth and job satisfaction,” says Goh. She says the employees’ response to the plan have been overwhelmingly positive. One indicator of the degree of success in terms of staff retention is that 20% of Singapore staff have been with the group for more than 10 years. The contribution rate is pegged to company performance. “This allows us to share the fruits of our employees’ efforts with them and over time, this should drive a performance culture in the organisation,” says Goh.

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HR YOUNG GUNS

Work-life Integration: Boon or Bane? In this new column, HRM featuring the future torchbearers for HR in Asia. University student Loh Cher-E says worklife integration leads to more work

arlier this year, Mohamed ElErian, head of a $2 trillion global investment firm, quit his job after receiving a handwritten list from his daughter outlining 22 important milestones that he had missed. It begs the question: when do we pile up our job responsibilities so much that one day it all blows up and forces us to quit our job? As HR professionals, the responsibility falls on us to design work-life programmes for employees, while balancing the cost considerations for a sustainable business. These programmes should meet the needs of employees and assist them in producing better results. Currently, the trend is moving from work-life balance to work-life integration, whereby employees are empowered to arrange their schedules

so that they can work during any time of the day and take time off during working hours to manage their family matters. However, it seems to me that work life integration is currently a euphemism for doing more work. Employees are encouraged to be contactable at all times and be responsive to emails, even during leisure hours. Employees are also prone to more multitasking. When you have to respond to a work email while watching a concert performance, you tend to give a quick response and hurry back to the performance. In the end, you don’t get to enjoy the concert and the quality of your work also suffers. Work-life integration is an ambitious concept but is inapplicable to everyone. Work shouldn’t be like a jealous girlfriend who requires you to be permanently on call.

What attracted you to HR? Why are you studying it?

the organisation to cover these gaps through training and feedback.

To quote Vineet Nayar, former CEO of HCL Technologies, I believe in “Employees first, Customers second.” Employees are the backbone of a company and are the ones servicing customers, so if you take care of them, they will naturally take care of your customers. HR provides organisations with the necessary tools needed to motivate and reward employees for producing value for the company.

What aspect of HR do you hope to specialise in upon graduation? I hope to specialise in talent development or performance management. I am excited by the challenge of determining the knowledge and skills gaps that an employee currently has, and implementing strategies in

The top three things you want from your HR career ? First and foremost, I would love to have the opportunity to learn and to contribute my ideas to my company. I also want to experience stimulating challenges in my everyday work, and be able to apply different strategies to each problem that crops up. Lastly, work-life balance would be a boon to a Gen-Y like me, as it ensures that I have an active life outside of work. How can I be trusted to provide employees with a healthy work-life balance if I don’t have one myself?

What challenges do you anticipate? What is taught in school is just the foundation of HR and it is up to graduates to read widely on current

Loh Cher-E Year Three double degree student in Accountancy and Business, President of NTU HR Consulting Club HR trends and continuously attend workshops to learn new skills. It is also increasingly important to have cultural awareness and sensitivity as companies become more globalised. Every country has a different work style and HR has to adapt to expatriates if they have a significant number of them.

Your HR career five years from now? I would actually like to start my own company and be able to put my HR knowledge to use in recruitment and employee engagement. Start-ups usually do not have the resources to hire HR personnel and having this skillset would be highly useful in managing my team.

Hobbies/Inspiration? I have been taking singing classes in my free time.

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Finalists Announced Soon

2014

Join us as we celebrate and reward exceptional HR people and practices at the 2015 HRM Awards. This gala dinner and awards ceremony attracts the ‘who’s who of HR’ and features world class music and entertainment.

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IN PERSON LYNN PUA

Head, HR and Administration, Southeast Asia, Jardine OneSolution

How many years HR experience? I have 20 years of HR experience.

Why HR?

My passion for HR has remained since I started my HR career, regardless of people or function; and I enjoy the endless learning curve through dealing with people and work.

Why Jardine OneSolution?

As a member of Jardine Matheson group, Jardine OneSolution has the privilege to leverage on the group’s extensive knowledge of the region and long-standing collaborative relationships. This provides a solid foundation for the company to develop its technology business and stay ahead of the game. Our belief in ‘People First, Performance Later’ plays a part in creating an encouraging environment that keeps our people going and strengthens our position at the forefront of the industry.

Biggest Achievement?

Personally, I have attained my Master of HR Management and fulfilled my continuous learning journey in HR. In working life, my achievement is being a strong influencer to my team members and business partners so that they become successful in life, especially those who develop and manage both their work and people effectively. No other satisfaction is greater than receiving appreciation notes from them.

After hours?

Besides quality time with family, I frequently catch up with friends over coffee. Finding time to exercise regularly and doing community projects are also part of my outside-office activities.

Family?

I sought to perform well in both my professional and personal roles. Together with my husband and two teenage children, we always make sure we have at least a family day weekly where we will dine at our favourite place and have open conversation. Family bonding is an eminent culture for us and we have a shared holiday together at least once a year.

BOOK REVIEW

Getting the big things right E

ver experienced working on a big project where a sizeable number of employees involved? If you encountered a plethora of problems due to the top-down project management techniques, this book could be the ultimate remedy. It offers a comprehensive guide to executing big and complicated projects on time, and on budget. Author, Dr Jeff Sutherland says the most important thing to understand is the “Scrum”. This comprises of a structure around the learning process, allowing teams to evaluate both what they have produced and crucially, how they formulated it. The Scrum structure channels how teams actually work together and provides them with the necessary equipment to engage in self-organisation and quickly enhance both the speed and quality of work, paving the way for surging levels of heightened productivity. Sutherland describes the step-by-step process concisely, elaborating on how Scrum works and how it can be formulated to work for anyone in any firm. The book’s chapters include discussions on:“The Origin of Scrum”; “Teams”; “Time”; how “Waste Is a Crime”, and why organisations should “Plan Reality, Not Fantasy”. Each one concludes with a small feature, “The Takeaway”, where the author succinctly draws out key pointers for readers to tap into and incorporate into their own planning. Laden with practical case studies derived from all types of firms, the book will enable readers to grasp successful management techniques and the ability to accomplish tasks despite their significant size and structure.

Title: Scrum: A revolutionary approach to building teams, beating deadlines and boosting productivity Author: Dr Jeff Sutherland Publisher: Random House Business Books Price: S$ 27.99 (before GST)

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TALENT

LADDER

Jasmine Lau

Director of HR, Chocolate Asia-Pacific, Barry Callebaut

Jasmine Lau has recently been appointed HR Director for the chocolate division of Barry Callebaut in Asia-Pacific. Prior to this move, Lau spent a decade working at Corning Incorporated. While she felt completely at home in her prior role and treasures her time at Corning, Lau said she could not pass up the opportunity to join Barry Callebaut. Lau said she was immediately drawn to and strongly identified with Barry Callebaut’s “entrepreneurial spirit”, one of the company’s core values. The new role offers her the opportunity to partner with Barry Callebaut’s management team in its quest to grow the company’s presence in the region. She brings 18 years of HR experience. During her career in Asia Pacific, she has had both regional and global responsibilities, and has worked as both an HR generalist and business partner. At Barry Callebaut, she is contributing to several initiatives including a global HR transformation project, a regional employer branding programme, and other special initiatives. “By promoting our ‘great place to work’ programmes, I believe we can raise Barry Callebaut’s profile as a preferred employer in Asia-Pacific,” said Lau. Lau is committed to helping Barry Callebaut make progress towards its strategic goals. By growing the talent pipeline, adopting and creating new HR management tools, she is confident that Barry Callebaut can grow and increase its profitability in the region.

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Rakesh Rana

HR Business Partner and Talent Acquisition Lead – Asia-Pacific, Murex

Rakesh Rana is the new HR Business Partner and Talent Acquisition Lead at Murex Southeast Asia; a leader in software development for trading, risk management, and processing. Prior to joining Murex Southeast Asia, Rakesh was with Barclays Technology Center Singapore for four years as a Recruitment Manager. “It was an exciting role as my key challenge was to build and grow the Singapore and China operations,” said Rakesh. “Murex has given me a great opportunity to make a difference to the way HR runs and delivers the transformation with a focus on strategic business.” He has a very traditional background in talent acquisition as he started his career in a senior level search firm. He moved into corporate recruiting in 2004. Over the last 13 years, he has dedicated his time to clients in the technology and financial spaces and recruited for a wide variety of roles. Rana says he is passionate about the opportunities that the changing recruiting landscape holds and what that means to talent attraction within today’s world of collaboration, knowledge sharing and learning. “Murex is very dynamic, innovative and people centric organisation,” he said. “As a HR Business Partner and Talent Acquisition Lead for Asia-Pacific, our focus will be to build and sustain a culture of entrepreneurship, team work and innovation.”

Michael Vaz

Director Global HR Development, Service & Attitude - Luxury & Upscale Brands Accor Hospitality, Accor

Michael Vaz has just relocated to Singapore to take on a new role as Director of Global HR Development, Service and Attitude for Accor’s Luxury and Upscale Brands (which are: Sofitel, Pullman, MGallery, Grand Mercure, and The Sebel). After a 13-year stint in Dubai, followed by one year in China, Vaz’s new role in Singapore involves the creation and delivery of brand-driven learning programmes and techniques that support an optimal guest experience strategy. This new HR Development function supports more than 300 hotels and resorts globally through the new Global Marketing Team for Luxury and Upscale Brands, which also recently relocated to Singapore. Vaz has been a keynote speaker at various HR and Leadership conferences across Dubai, China, Vietnam, and Malaysia, presenting a host of topics including “Engagement and Productivity: Two Birds, One Stone” at the HR Career and Talent Development Conference in Dubai last year. Vaz was previously the Regional Director of Talent Development and Training for Sofitel Luxury Hotels Greater China, and prior to that held various corporate and senior leadership learning and development roles in Dubai with renowned hospitality companies including Starwood Hotels – Luxury Collection, Le Merdiien and Emaar – creators of Burj Khalifa, The Address Hotels , Emaar Leisure, and Armani Hotels.

HRCLINIC How can HR directly help the CEO and top line management achieve the company’s business objectives? he Shilla Duty Free is owned and operated by Hotel Shilla, one of Samsung’s affiliate organisations. Being in the travel retail industry, we believe in providing the best possible customer satisfaction. We believe that well-trained employees are one of the most important factors to achieve our business goals. As a strategic partner of the business, the HR Team focuses on the following three factors: hiring the best employees; providing a seamless education; and offering competitive compensation and benefits. To secure good talents in the retail industry, HR diversifies the root of hiring. We do not only hire locals; we go on overseas recruitment drives to find and secure the most suitable candidates for the business. To provide continuous training to all our staff, HR diversifies classes depending on job scopes, the

level of hierarchy, and the length of work. On top of it, The Shilla Duty Free continuously provides product knowledge training for frontliners to meet and exceed customer expectations. In addition, we provides employees who obtain a higher score of customers’ satisfaction with incentives to encourage motivation. Last but not least, we focus on a competitive compensation and benefits package to boost the morale of our employees, by allowing them to provide superlative service to customers.

Sanghyun Lee

Manager of HR department, The Shilla Duty Free

Ask our HR experts. Email your questions to sham@hrmasia.com.sg

Head of Human Resources, Singapore

Manager, Learning & HR Manager Organisational Development

› US Industrial MNC › Strategic HR Business Partnering › Rewarding, Challenging And Hands-on Role

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› EPC Company › MNC › Industry leader

A global organisation, our client has an immediate need for a consummate HR Professional to lead its people agenda and administration function for its Singapore operation.

A respectable organization with strong presence internationally, our client seeks an experienced Learning & Organisational Development expert to join their Singapore team.

As a strategic HR business partner to leadership team, you will participate in business strategy development, maximise organisational performance and take lead for M&A related organisational and people issues. You will develop and implement HR strategies and programs particularly in workforce planning, talent acquisition and development, employee relations, etc. to support attainment of business objectives.

Reporting to Head of HR, you will develop, review and implement Learning & Organisational Development strategies including talent development and management, leadership development and employee engagement. You will work closely with business leaders to provide solutions that strengthen the competitive advantage and enrich internal talent in support of the organisation’s business objectives and growth. As a Change Agent, you will design and drive employee engagement initiatives to ensure smooth assimilation into the culture.

You will perform full HR Spectrum including development of policies, talent management negotiation of employee remuneration package, employee relations etc. Prepare employees for assignments by establishing and conducting orientation and training programs; Ensure planning, monitoring, and appraisal of employee work results by training managers to coach and discipline employees; scheduling management conferences with employees; hearing and resolving employee grievances; counselling employees and supervisors. Maintain human resource staff by recruiting, selecting, orienting, and training employees.

You are degree-qualified with minimum 8 years relevant experience in senior strategic HR leadership roles in MNC. Those with demonstrated ability in stakeholder management, dealing with ambiguity in a highly matrix work environment, and pre and post merger & acquisition HR related experience coupled with strong project management skills are preferred. You are a leader with coaching and mentoring skill, are hands-on and possess excellent interpersonal and communication skills. Reference number: MH/JD47728 Contact person: Maureen Ho (Reg. No. R1105976)

You are degree qualified with minimum 6 years of dedicated Learning & Organisational Development experience with a good mix of operational and strategic exposure. Experience working in a demanding and matrix reporting environment is preferred. You are hands-on, energetic, and possess excellent interpersonal, communication and project management skills. Reference number: MH/JD47740 Contact person: Maureen Ho (Reg. No. R1105976)

You are degree qualified with minimum 8 years of solid hands-on HR generalist experience. You must have demonstrated capability in performing a hands-on role and stakeholder management. Highly operational and strategically-minded, you are a strong communicator with the ability to work independently in a demanding environment, and possess excellent communication and interpersonal skills. Reference number: OL/JD25163 Contact person: Oka Lee (Reg. No. R1216022)

1143/1014

Your Human Resources recruitment specialists To apply, please go to talent2.com and search for respective reference number. For a confidential discussion, you can contact Maureen Ho or Oka Lee for the relevant position in our Singapore Office on +65 6511 8555  linkedin.com/company/talent2

Allegis Group Singapore Pte Ltd Company No. 200909448N EA Licence No. 10C4544

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HR Roles in Asia Frazer Jones exclusively focuses on the global HR & Search market and our specialist teams recruit across the full HR spectrum for local, regional and global positions, for all levels and industries. If you are looking for your next opportunity, please do not hesitate to get in contact with a member of the team.

HR Business Leader (FS) . Malaysia This leading financial institution with a strong business model globally is currently seeking a Senior HR Business Leader that will support the senior leadership team. To be successful you must have over 10 yearsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; experience as a HR BP. Ref: NR 174658

Head of OD & Talent Management . Singapore

As a global leader in the Pharmaceutical field, this business is looking to continue its expansion. This role will support the implementation of the global TM & OD strategy in the region. The candidate should have at least 5 yearsâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; experience in OD. Ref: NR 183216

HR Director . Singapore

This global engineering firm is currently expanding its operations across the region. This role has been created to design, develop, implement and execute HR policies and procedures across various business within the region. Ref: NR 192941

L&D Manager . Singapore

This billion dollar retail giant with a worldwide presence has exciting growth plans for Asia. Currently looking to appoint a Senior L&D Manager in Singapore to support the business across SE Asia. This is a newly created, L&D set up role. Ref: NR 189991

Benefits Leader . Singapore

This global consumer brand is relatively new in Asia, yet its growth is huge and is set to continue for the foreseeable future. This role will lead the analysis and implementation of the various benefit programmes across the region. Ref: NR 189992

Strategic Business Partner . Singapore

This leading software company has exciting expansion plans. This role is a start-up position and will be a purely strategic role working closely with the leadership team. You should have strong business acumen and experience developing organisational structures. Ref: NR 189993 For more information, please contact Nicola Robertson at nicolarobertson@frazerjones.com or Samantha Soh at samanthasoh@frazerjones.com alternatively, call the team on +65 6420 0515.

frazerjones.com @FRAZERJONESHR FRAZER-JONES

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GLOBAL HR SEARCH & RECRUITMENT

{ WE KNOW RECRUITMENT HR Leader

Regional Talent Management Manager

Recruitment Consultant

› Strong career progression within the organisation › Opportunity to make a lasting impact on the business

› Leading MNC with global opportunities › High visibility and exposure to the business

› Are you looking for a career change? › Are you looking for a career to unleash your potential?

Our client is the world’s largest provider of professional services, and an established leading global brand name in consultancy services. They are currently looking for an HR Leader to drive their HR initiatives in the Asia Pacific region. Reporting to the Asia Pacific HR Director, you will be a key member of the management team, playing an advisory role on all human capital matters and translating business growth strategy into achievable objectives. You should be a Degree qualified HR professional, with at least 12 years of experience and solid people management skills. The selected candidate will find job satisfaction in a highly engaging company culture.

Our client is a European MNC specialising in energy management products with an annual revenue of over $25 billion and 10,000 employees across the Asia Pacific region. They are currently looking for a human resources professional to drive their regional talent development efforts. Reporting to the Director of Talent, you will be responsible for all talent development programmes and initiatives from conception to implementation. The successful candidate is a Degree qualified human resources professional with at least 8 years of human resources development experience.

At Michael Page you are given the opportunity to own and develop your own business, using your initiative and ambition to make it a success. You will have personal ownership over a particular market segment, with the challenge of strengthening existing relationships and winning new business for yourself and your team. With the support of a capable team and experienced leaders, you will have the opportunity to gain exposure to various organisations, and build your reputation as a provider of expert advice and exceptional client service.

Please contact Domi Di Marco (Reg. no: R1439720) quoting ref: H2469910 or visit our website.

Please contact Ashley Wei (Reg. no: R1434529) quoting Ref: H2429380 or visit our website.

Please contact Diana Low (Reg. no: R1106207) quoting ref: H1996540 or visit our website.

To apply for any of the above positions, please go to www.michaelpage.com.sg and search for the reference number, or contact the relevant consultant on +65 6533 2777 for a confidential discussion.

Get Connected. Stay Ahead.

Specialists in human resources recruitment

Human Resources

#15102 Licence No.: 98C5473 Business Registration No: 199804751N

MICHAEL PAGE

www.michaelpage.com.sg

EMPOWERING YOUR CAREER HR Business Advisor

Manager, Total Rewards

MNC with global presence Attractive salary and benefits Regional role

Global MNC Flexible work environment Regional role

A fast growing company with extensive global presence, our client is one of the market leaders in business software for the services industry.

Our client is an established manufacturing company with global presence. Due to their continual growth, they are looking for a Senior Manager for their Total Rewards team.

In this dynamic individual contributor business fronting role, you will report to the global HR Director. As the organisation is in process of moving to an overseas shared service centre, you will act as a critical change agent during the transition and a catalyst to drive process implementation and improvement. A hands-on person who can create structure in chaos and is excited to implement redefined frameworks and standards is most suitable for this role. You will be required to liaise with people at all levels and support HR functions in APAC region.

In this newly created role, you will report to the Head of Total Rewards. You will cover extensive compensation and benefits activities with deep understanding of executive compensation, designing, implementing and executing HR strategies and framework to ensure industry competitiveness and maintain internal equity. You will be required to study market trends, salary benchmarking, job grading and amend policies when required. You will be the key focal point to lead annual salary reviews. Prior experience in unionised environment will be an added advantage.

To be successful in this role, you should have a degree in any discipline with 8 years of relevant work experience as HR Generalist/HR Business Partner/HR Advisor, preferably in a technology company. You must have a proven track record in communicating and consulting with business heads and employees at all levels in the region. Candidates with change management experience in a MNC environment will be preferred for the role.

To be suitable for this role, you must have a degree in Human Resources/Finance/ Management or in any other relevant discipline and 7-8 years HR working experience in a fast paced MNC environment with 5 years in a C&B role. You should be precise, meticulous, diplomatic, analytical and discrete in handling confidential information.

If you meet the above criteria, please email your detailed CV in word format to priya_prakash@kellyservices.com.sg. Your interest will be treated in the strictest of confidence.

If you meet the above criteria, please email your detailed CV in word format to priya_prakash@kellyservices.com.sg. Priyadarshni Prakash EA Personnel Registration No. R1325491

Priyadarshni Prakash EA Personnel Registration No. R1325491

Kelly Services, Inc. (NASDAQ: KELYA, KELYB) is a leader in providing workforce solutions globally. For more than 35 years, Kelly in Singapore has been partnering the finest

local companies, key government agencies as well as some of the world’s most respected multinational companies to deliver the best talent in the market. Kelly’s centralised recruitment hub makes nearly 8,000 placements in Singapore last year. Complementing our general staffing capability, Kelly also offers great expertise in the sourcing of specialised professionals across technical disciplines such as Engineering, Technology and Science, as well as functional specialties for Finance, HR, Sales & Marketing, Procurement and Banking.

kellyservices.com.sg

Kelly Services (Singapore) Pte Ltd | EA License No. 01C4394 | RCB No. 200007268E

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Headquartered in Singapore since 2003, Kerry Consulting is Singaporeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s leading Search & Selection firm. Our consulting team is the most experienced, and amongst the largest, in the ASEAN region.

We offer positions in the following sectors: Banking & Financial Services Commerce Finance Engineering & Supply Chain Healthcare & Life Sciences Human Resources Legal Sales & Marketing Technology

Kerry Consulting celebrates 10 years in Singapore since 2003

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TO APPLY: Please submit your resume to the consultant email address listed, quoting the job title and reference number. We regret that only shortlisted candidates will be contacted. For further information on each job, visit the short URL

www.kerryconsulting.com | Returning the Human to Resourcing

HR Business Partner (FMCG)

Senior Resourcing Officer (Financial Services)

HR Business Partner (Real Estate Management)

Global FMCG One of Worldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Best Multinational Workplaces Salary circa up to $90K

Global Growing Bank Newly Created Position Salary Circa up to $60K

Real Estate Management Dynamic and Highly Motivated Environment Salary Circa up to $96K

Reporting to the ASEAN HR Director, this role is responsible for the HR function of the manufacturing operations in Singapore, based in Tuas mill.

This global bank is one of the largest financial services companies in the world that provides financial and strategic solutions for the increasingly diverse and sophisticated needs of its clients. As part of its expansion in Singapore, there is an opportunity to bring in a new team member to join the team and support the Recruitment/Resourcing function.

Our client is a leading global MNC and the worldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s largest facilities management company. Innovative and exciting would best describe the business that they are in. Due to a changing organizational structure, they are now looking for a driven HR business partner to further deepen the HR function of their operations.

You will partner HR business partners and hiring managers in answering recruitment needs. You will apply direct sourcing methods such as job portals, social and professional networking sites, partner with institutions and research new ways of sourcing for candidates.

Reporting to the Head of HR for Singapore, you will provide business partnering support and consulting to line managers on HR issues such as talent management, compensation and benefits, employee relations and ensuring that issues are resolved by outlining options and making recommendations.

More info: http://bit.ly/pc-7597

More info: http://bit.ly/pc7381

Ref No: PC7577\HRM pc@kerryconsulting.com

Ref No: PC7381\HRM pc@kerryconsulting.com

This role will support the plant manager and the management team in all areas of HR, including workforce planning, budgeting, recruitment, training and development, employee engagement and performance management. You will also provide trusted advice and counsel on employee relations, compensation, team effectiveness and other issues of a confidential business nature to the plant management team. More info: http://bit.ly/pc-7152 Ref No: PC7152\HRM pc@kerryconsulting.com Reg No: R1104327

Reg No: R1104327

Compensation & Benefits Specialist (Oil & Gas Industry)

Senior Manager Total Rewards (SEA region)

Southeast Asia HR Leader (Director Level)

Global Oil & Gas Organisation Strong Career Progression Potential Exposure to Regional Initiatives

Newly Created Role Fortune 500 Organisation Salary Circa up to $200K

Leadership Role Fortune 500 Organisation Salary Circa up to $220K

This is an established Oil & Gas company with a strong global footprint. There is now an excellent opportunity to join the organization as a Compensation & Benefits Specialist. Reporting into the VP HR Asia Pacific, you will work as an advisor to business units and regional HR managers. You will analyze the job markets, benchmark job positions and align current benefits with the market data, align job grades with the various Business Segments.

This successful and growing organisation is headquartered in Singapore and has an exciting future ahead. The company is looking to make a strategic hire to ensure the further success of the business through its people and partners.

This organization is one of the leading industrial organisations in the world. It is consistently ranked as a great place to work, with exciting expansion and growth plans in the region.

More info: http://bit.ly/ft-7579 Ref No: FT7579\HRM Finian Toh / ft@kerryconsulting.com Reg No: R1104327

Reporting to the Global Total Rewards Leader and partnering closely with senior executives, this key Total Rewards Lead role will require you to oversee, manage and design the C&B policies and framework for the region. There will be a big emphasis on executive compensation and benefits packages and, long-term incentive programs, as well as stock and share plans. You will also be required to support to M&A activity as necessary. More info: bit.ly/1pP1REk Ref No: FT7399\HRM Finian Toh / ft@kerryconsulting.com Reg No: R1104310

Reporting directly to and supporting the APAC HR Director, this management role requires you to oversee and lead all HR initiatives for the senior leadership team within the Singapore operations and for SEA. With a diverse workforce, your key priorities will include performance management, compensation and benefits, recruitment, professional development and employee/ union relations. More info: bit.ly/1q9HI9t Ref No: FT7421\HRM Finian Toh / ft@kerryconsulting.com Reg No: R1104310

Licence No: 03C4828

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Human resources professionals speak to tHe experts Hr Director lead & deliver Hr best practices

Hr change manager Deliver bespoke solutions to mnc clients

This is an exciting opportunity for an experienced HR Director with at least 15 years of relevant experience from a multinational, preferably within logistics or supply chain. You must be comfortable managing a regional team and being accountable to stakeholders across cultures and time zones. This organisation is an employer of choice and you are expected to continue delivering on its commitment to best practices as it expands deeper into South East Asia.

This organisation is one of the most highly regarded consultancies for talent management and engagement. Due to the growth of their client base across APAC, an experienced HR Change Manager is sought to join this MNC. You will need to have a solid track record of HR project management. Whilst there is no need to develop new business, you must be an exceptional communicator, capable of influencing key stakeholders.

Hr Business partner (property & construction) steer business direction strategically

regional Hr Business partner asia & me Be a key partner to the business

In line with encouraging growth in the region, a rare opportunity exists for an HR Business Partner to join a reputable MNC. Reporting directly to the Head of HR, you will partner with business units to deliver across the full spectrum of HR, especially in the areas of talent management and leadership grooming. You will be a Bachelorâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Degree graduate with eight years of relevant commercial HR experience, of which five years must have been in a strategic business partnering role within an MNC setting.

This established international provider of high tech services has a strong presence across Asia. A Regional Business Partner is sought to liaise with country HR Managers across Asia and the Middle East to implement various HR strategies in alignment with business objectives. You will support the businesses with your expertise across talent acquisition, compensation and benefits and global mobility. With more than ten years of relevant experience in a managerial role, you will have handled projects related to mergers and acquisitions.

please contact ash russell, tamara sigerhall, chris lui, keith lim or sean Wong at hr.singapore@hays.com.sg or +65 6303 0721.

hays.com.sg

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