Newsletter trans_m Octobre

Management of Change and Development Leadership – Performance – Customer Focus

news October 2009

2 Joy and anxiety 3 What employees wish for Interview 4 Hogan Assessment Systems Inside trans_m

Human-Resources Management Now is the time for a high-performance culture Where’s the economy going to go? All companies are affected by the current state of it, irrespective of what business forecasts say. Competition is getting tougher. As a result, each company is faced with challenges never seen before, in particular in human-resources management. This is the time to have skilled staff in the right place.

to? Are they true ‘top performers’? Any change causes uncertainty, unease, fear and loss of confidence. Therefore it is only logical that any organisation is no more capable than its executives and staff are.

What specifically are the priorities in this group of managers and staff?

We deal with people and the changes they are faced with in an environment in transformation. 1. Communication and availability, i.e. to provide The issues at stake are a matter not only of capacexplanation repeatedly and to inspire the feeling of being understood and listened to. ity but also of swift adaptability of staff and executives to the new setting. The objective is to 2. Strengthening middle management because, maintain, if not increase, the capability of the once it has coped with the change, this group entire organisation. will be essential in generating sustainable change among staff.

3. Consistent and fair job review and appraisal Specifically, HR management is required to processes.

1. consistently promote the concepts of perform- 4. Walking the talk, consistently implementing the measures announced. ance and staff commitment; 2. identify top, middle and low performers, define development action and recruit new staff if This is how you will manage to inspire your execnecessary; and utives and staff even in a period as challenging as 3. strengthen middle management as well as get this. At the same time, you will set the course for top performers involved in cross-divisional your company’s journey towards a high-performance culture. projects.

All of the above is designed to pave the way towards a genuine culture of performance evolving into one of high performance.

trans_m coaches companies and organisations in processes of transformation.

Let’s take a look at the group of middle managers and staff. What’s happening in this group? Do they really think and act the way you would like them

Rolf Erny, MBA, Managing Director, Chairman of the Board, r.erny@transm.ch

trans_m AG Querstrasse 4 CH-8304 Wallisellen E-Mail office@transm.ch

Editor’s Comment All of us are very much preoccupied with the implications of the current economic situation and the prospects for the near future. Executives are challenged to come up with scenarios and revise them at short notice, and circumspectly navigate their organisations through the current period. It is now crucial to develop new, viable and sustainable solutions.

Appropriate relations with staff and executives are fundamental in this situation. It is essential to be consistent in applying the key processes of selection, development, appraisal and promotion of performance.

Resorting to tried and tested HR processes and communicating in an all-encompassing manner, you will be certain to make sure that your staff and executives remain full of drive and commitment in pro-actively contributing to the success of your company.

As far as the need for development is concerned, trans_m is no exception. We are happy to welcome to our ranks Mrs Margrit Brüngger, who joined us on June 1st 2009 to take charge of Office Management.

What’s more, we’ve been a competence partner for Hogan Assessment Systems since August 2009, offering support in implementing and applying a unique tool of evaluation. Read more about it on page 4.

Yours truly, Rolf Erny

October 2009 Newsletter

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What you will find at www.transm.ch The trans_m website provides full information on the comprehensive range of services we offer. As a new feature, electronic files of our service descriptions are now available for downloading from www.transm.ch. Apart from standalone services, we devise tailor-made leadership, performance and customer-focus projects.

It is our ambition to work with you to find a specific solution that will give you a sustainable benefit. www.transm.ch

Reading recommended by trans_m Teamwork is an essential driver in successful companies. Effective teams may give a company a comparative edge. The book entitled “Overcoming the Five Dysfunctions of a Team” is a practical tool for leaders and managers to build and promote teams. The author describes the five most common causes of dysfunction in teams and uses case studies and practical exercises to demonstrate how teams can achieve top performance. * Patrick Lencioni – “Overcoming the Five Dysfunctions of a Team – A Field Guide for Leaders, Managers and Facilitators”.

Jossey-Bass Books, San Francisco 2005.

155 pages. ISBN 0-7879-7637-7.

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Human-Resources Management Joy and anxiety are magnifying glasses In times of economic uncertainty, people are often faced with the existential question of what they can really rely on. Very few employers are in a position to guarantee job security for the near or medium-term future. The days of such guarantees definitely seem to be gone for good.

And yet, when people are robbed of certainty, they are no longer capable of high performance.

This is fatal, especially in times of difficulty.

How can a company escape the crisis if its staff is incapable of high performance? So the real question is how to create certainty in times when hardly anything seems certain anymore.

between the lines more than from actual statements made. It is therefore indispensable to refer to things that cannot be communicated for the time being.

Certainty may also be created by a show of complete control in extraordinary circumstances. Employees surviving job cuts observe very carefully how lay-offs are handled. In this process, human aspects are more significant than material ones.

The big questions are what approach the management chooses and what type of comments are made about those laid off. In a nutshell, it is a matter of how much respect the company demonstrates for the individual.

What are the drivers of certainty as perceived by staff?

Certainty is a subjective thing, a personal feeling. In the current situation, it pays off to adopt a conThe only way to create it is through trust. Granted, scious approach to planning and controlling comtrust is just as subjective, but it is measurable and munication and action. An outside perspective will controllable. One of the most important drivers of produce important impetus and new ways of lookstaff’s trust in the company is its culture of com- ing at things. We have long-standing experience munication. In the final analysis, it’s the recipients in coaching in difficult processes of transform­ who decide whether or not communication is suc- ation. We will be pleased to assist you with advice cessful. Therefore it takes a great deal of mutual in your current situation. exchange, knowledge of the needs of the different target groups, and trade-offs regarding the Sandra Fischer Christen, effect of communication through various chan- MSc UZH, Psychologist, Consultant, nels. Choice of tone and media selection have a s.fischerchristen@transm.ch strong impact on how information is interpreted.

Gerhard Romanescu, Communication covers anything you do, Certified Sales Manager, including comments you don’t make.

Sales Director, With regard to communication, it is often ignored g.romanescu@transm.ch that it may be just as decisive what you omit to say. Depending on how much recipients trust the sender of a piece of information, they may fill the communication gaps with hypotheses of their own.

Frequently recipients will read and interpret

trans_m AG Querstrasse 4 CH-8304 Wallisellen E-Mail office@transm.ch

October 2009 Newsletter

Human-Resources Management What laid-off employees wish for …

In newplacement consulting, we experience the greatest possible variety of how people respond to being laid off. Meeting with persons who have just received the news of losing their jobs, we are most directly confronted with all sorts of emotions. While some say they are speechless, others remain calm and collected, pointing out that they had sensed it coming or even expected it. In such situations, the first thing we need to do in consulting is to establish as firm emotional grounds as possible to make sure the laid-off adopt a positive attitude entering the process of job application.

We have come to understand that the way a company communicates is extremely important for coping with the events, also to those laid-off.

Co-operation between HR management and newplacement consultants at an early stage is a sound basis for optimum coaching in a process of

lay-offs and the resulting changes of career. This is how we can contribute our experience and know-how, proposing solutions appropriate to the situation prevailing and designed to provide genu­ ine support for people undergoing a change of career. Group newplacement may be the best solution in specific circumstances. We have had excellent experience with our workshop on successful change of career, with the groups involved developing a positive attitude and allowing for individuals to receive specific preparation for their change of career.

Most employees welcome newplacement programmes offered to them. They consider them an opportunity to learn new things, to challenge themselves and to tackle the next steps towards a new job (or self-employment) with the help of professionals. They will learn to prepare for the jobapplication process in the best possible manner,

draft up-to-date application documents, receive support in personality development and benefit from the consultants’ network. This is why it is worthwhile adding to the programme some workshops and training sessions on specific issues.

Should you be about to introduce change with regard to human resources, we will be pleased to assist you in devising a tailor-made programme to perfectly suit your needs as much as the needs of your employees.

Barbara Jakob, MSc in Mentoring and Coaching, Business Development and Senior Consultant, b.jakob@transm.ch

Interview Building trust through communication

Barbara Jakob interviewing Henrik Mansson, Senior Vice President HR of Mövenpick Hotels & Resorts Management AG

You had to lay off people for the first time in your company. How did you cope with that fact?

The reorganisation was significant this time, affecting the global business and a greater number of people. Our recently launched brand values and vision were the guiding principles throughout the process and set the tone for planning and managing the situation. Trust, transparency and care were at the centre of our process, for trustworthiness and business continuity.

speculation and misinterpretation. No information was leaked prior to the date, which is obviously key but sometimes challenging to manage.

The day of the announcement the chief executive held a short face-to-face update to all staff at headquarters, and conference calls with all unit general managers and area executives across the globe to announce the change and answer any questions. All executive committee members were highly present during these events.

Henrik Mansson Senior Vice President HR Mövenpick Hotels & Resorts Management AG www.moevenpick-hotels.com

How did you approach the change?

The decisions were rational, the process humane. What effect did the lay-offs have for your The executive committee and the chief executive remaining staff? were involved and aligned around one process, one Once the shock had settled, colleagues recognised timeline and one message. The difficult talks were the efforts that were made in line with the comall face-to-face, and scheduled to take place at pany values and vision. Several colleagues that the same time across the globe, with a senior vice were not affected expressed how well they felt president with support by myself or an area hu- the difficult situation had been handled, and that man resources executive. this had given them reconfirmation that they were with the right company. Today, the result is How did you communicate? a more constructive, transparent and more open Significant time was invested in drafting the in- dialogue. ternal communication, including a question and answer session, to ensure alignment and avoid Thank you for this interview.

trans_m AG Querstrasse 4 CH-8304 Wallisellen E-Mail office@transm.ch

October 2009 Newsletter

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trans_m: now a competence partner for Hogan Assessment Systems Each company aspires to have the best employees.

This is why many companies have adopted a procedure of routinely carrying out individual assessments when filling vacancies from a certain level of the hierarchy.

But how about lower management, professionals and university graduates? After all, they are today’s high potentials and tomorrow’s executives. At this level, selection is often made on the basis of traditional interviews. However such interviews are highly prone to distortion. To ensure effective and efficient HR selection, it is recommended to choose a professional system of evaluation.

Since August 2009, trans_m has been a competence partner for Hogan Assessment Systems.

Based on the ‘Big Five’ of personality diagnostics, this system of evaluation puts into the hands of companies a professional and calibrated set of

Inside trans_m

Margrit Brüngger Committed to serving people trans_m has entrusted me with a pivotal position between the managing director, the consultants, clients and candidates, which is the perfect platform for me to apply my long-standing experience working for an international outplacement company. With my mind set on ensuring smooth running of day-to-day business, I work behind the scenes taking care of all administrative and organisational matters. I co-ordinate schedules and strive to muster a lot of pleasure and commitment in adapting trans_m’s administration

tools to perform certain tests in the fields of development and personality analysis. The Hogan Assessment Systems stand out for high validity (of findings) and deliver information not only on an individual’s potential but also on personal drivers and risks when under stress. This is why this set of tools is also suitable for use in HR development.

In its capacity as a specialist in development and selection, trans_m will be pleased to support you in considering the use of the Hogan Assessment Systems for the purposes of your company, and to work with you to devise a tailor-made application.

For further information, do not hesitate to contact Mr Rolf Erny. r.erny@transm.ch

to considerably increased requirements, and enabling efficient implementation of business processes. The idea is to relieve the strain on the team of consultants and give them more time to focus on actual service to customers and candidates.

In my spare time, I am actively involved in a childwelfare organisation operating in Tanzania, performing both organisational work in Switzerland and on-site assignments in Africa. To take my mind off my business and social commitments, I like to sit and talk with friends or be out in the open cycling.

trans_m AG Querstrasse 4 CH-8304 Wallisellen Switzerland phone fax e-mail url

+41 43 233 32 13 +41 43 233 32 15 office@transm.ch www.transm.ch

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