Connecting people in talent management
November 2010
Profits with principles Alex Snelling, International Recruitment & Talent Director at The Body Shop, talks entrepreneurial culture and ethical business Also in this issue:
20
Feet on the ground
34
Keeping track of talent
42
Right talent, wrong place
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Connecting people in talent management
November 2010
Main features
Profits with principles Alex Snelling, International Recruitment & Talent Director at The Body Shop, talks entrepreneurial culture and ethical business Also in this issue:
20
Feet on the ground
34
Keeping track of talent
40
Right talent, wrong place
COVER: Profits with Principles
RECRUITMENT: Feet on the ground
20 RETENTION: Keeping track of talent
34 14
CAREER MANAGEMENT: Right talent, wrong place?
Alex Snelling, International Recruitment & Talent Director at The Body Shop, talks entrepreneurial culture and why the ethical company doesn’t believe in talent boxes.
42
Sunday. Now available seven days a week.
November 2010 | The Grapevine 3
Contents 31
RETENTION at a glance
A look at recent RETENTION news 33 LEADERSHIP INSIGHT Chris Parry, Managing Director of Leadership at Kenexa, examines the importance of responding to the ever-changing business environment. 36 WORK-BASED LEARNING ANALySIS Following the Browne Review proposing reforms to university funding, Leah Brown, Work Based Learning Marketing Manager at Middlesex University discusses the benefits of work-based learning
39
CAREER MANAGEMENT at a glance
A look at recent CAREER MANAGEMENT news 41 CAREER TRANSITION ANALySIS
41 Regulars
19
RECRUITMENT at a glance
A look at recent RECRUITMENT news
8 NEWS
25 RECRUITMENT SOFTWARE INSIGHT
» How will the Equality Act affect HR? » The other side of online recruitment
Chris Bogh, Technical Director, eploy, discusses how to get the best from a new breed of recruiter
10 LIGHT BITES Talent management professionals share their top tips, career tales and views on why talent matters 13 PROBLEM SOLVER Two experts answer the question: “How can I build a pipeline of future leaders at my organisation?” 46 LONDON HR CONNECTION Gail Cartmail, Assistant General Secretary at Unite, looks at the importance of trade unions and HR playing a joint role in modern Britain
HDA looks at the implications on Public to Private career transistions following Octobers spending review
26 INTERNATIONAL FOCUS Executive search news from around the globe 27 TALENT MANAGEMENT INSIGHT Sue Brooks, Managing Director of RPO and talent management specialist at Ochre House, looks at tackling the European talent dilemma 29 ASSESSMENT & TESTING INSIGHT Jeremy Pemberton-Pigott, Managing Director, PreVisor-UK talks about employer branding
47 CITy HR ASSOCIATION Julie Skinner, Managing Director of JJ Associates discusses the ongoing skills shortage in the City 48 EMPLOyMENT LAW
» Recent employment law headlines » Stephen Levinson, Partner, RadcliffesLeBrasseur, shares details of an employment law case 50 A DAy IN THE LIFE OF... Frank Douglas, Group Human Resources Director, Transport for London
4 The Grapevine | November 2010
36
33
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Editorial Comment
Advisory Board Therese Procter HR Director
John Goldberg Director of Executive Talent Acquisition
As we go to press with this month’s magazine, in October, the Christmas decorations have already begun to appear. Quite why we are so determined to push ever-onward remains a mystery, and Halloween, Bonfire Night and even
Tom Crawford
the end-of-year office party seem set to
Head of Internal Communications & Engagement
be trampled in the retailers’ stampede
Tanith Dodge Group HR Director
towards raising Christmas sales. Why can’t we appreciate what we have? On that note, our Retention feature this month looks at internal talent databases. By knowing what you’ve got,
David Fairhurst
you know what you will need. A good
Rachel Denning
database means that you can get on
Executive Director, Recruitment and People Development, EMEA
Senior Vice President, Chief People Officer
Andy Hill
Jim Richardson
with managing your existing workforce, appreciating and stretching the good people you have, while still keeping an eye on the future. The future for some talent though lies away from your business, or it will do if you keep them in the wrong role. In our Career Management feature this
Global VP of Resourcing
Head of Front Office Resourcing
Mark Sandham
Dr. John Mahoney-Phillips
month we’re looking at what happens when you have undoubted talent that just doesn’t fit. Whether it is a cultural clash, a case of having too little diversity, or carrying staff that the recession forced into the wrong role, it may be that your talent is not where it should
Global Head of HR Operations & Integration
be – somewhere else.
Event for HR and Talent Management Professionals Thursday 17th March, Vinopolis, London
EG2011
Stephen Sidebottom Global Head of Organisational Design & Development
Global Head of Human Capital
Donna Catley Vice President, Talent & Resourcing - E&P
Event for HR and Talent Management Professionals Role of the Advisory Board Our panel of advisors contains some of the most influential figures in global talent management today. Chosen from a wide range of industries, their 7KXUVGD\ 0DUFK WK opinions help to shape 9LQRSROLV /RQGRQ the content of the magazine to make it the most authoritative and respected talent management publication available.
:LWK RYHU D GHFDGH RI GHOLYHULQJ XQLTXH WKRXJKW SURYRNLQJ HYHQWV (* LV VHW WR 6 The Grapevine | November 2010 LQVSLUH HQJDJH DQG SURYLGH XQULYDOOHG QHWZRUNLQJ RSSRUWXQLWLHV
3ULQFLSDO VSRQVRUV
You get more than just a Sunday. You get a month of Sundays. Appointments. Now online every day. www.thesundaytimes.co.uk/appointments
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NEWS
How will the Equality Act affect HR? 90% of the Equality Act 2010 has been implemented, combining nine of the past few decades’ anti-discrimination laws. Brought into force on 1 October 2010, the Act aims to clarify the laws covering equality and discrimination, but questions have risen over whether it really makes things simpler for businesses. A mixture of rights and responsibilities have remained the same, changed and been extended, while others have been introduced for the first time. According to a new report by the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC), the average gender pay gap in 2009 was 16.4%, with women over 40 earning 27% less than their male counterparts. The new Act allows more transparency around pay, making pay secrecy clauses unenforceable. This will protect employees who choose to discuss their pay with each other for the purposes of uncovering discrimination. One of the new regulations is extending protection from third party harassment, whereby employers are potentially liable for harassment of their staff by people they don’t employ.
8 The Grapevine | November 2010
Viewpoint According to Audrey Williams,
Theresa May, Home Secretary
Head of Discrimination Law at
and Minister for Women
Eversheds, “Labour ministers had
and Equality, adds: “In these
hoped that employers would
challenging economic times
voluntarily reveal information
it’s more important than ever
about their gender pay gap,
for employers to make the
promising further regulations
most of all the talent available.
only if voluntary reporting
When a company reflects the
did not take off. However,
society it serves, it’s better for
Eversheds’ survey suggests this
the employer, the employees
may have been something of
and the customers, so being
a pipe-dream, with only 13%
a woman should never be a
of employers saying they will
barrier to being treated fairly at
publish the data voluntarily.
work.
“Many employers will have
“This move towards
had to change their equality
transparency is just one part
policies to reflect the fact that
of the Equality Act, which also
the Act increases the scope for
makes it easier for businesses
organisations to be held liable
to comply with discrimination
if one of their employees is
law by streamlining the equality
harassed by a third party, such
laws, and provides more
as a customer, service user or
protection to disabled
supplier.”
people.”
What’s next? The Act will also see new powers for employment tribunals. When an employment tribunal finds that an employer has discriminated against an employee, the tribunal will be allowed to make recommendations that could affect the whole workforce. For example, calling for harassment policies to be implemented more effectively instead of being restricted to measures that will benefit the employee who brought the action. Eversheds’ research finds that 75% of HR professionals fear that the Equality Act will lead to an increase in tribunal claims. The firm advises that employers could protect themselves against claims by training managers and staff so that they understand what is and isn’t considered acceptable. While 57% of employers have responded to these concerns by upskilling their workforce, 29% of HR professionals have no plans to implement training procedures. While the Act is bound to provide support and protection for employees facing discrimination in the workplace, it poses a number of issues for HR – not only in implementing it effectively but also in the number of claims it could trigger. Organisations need to prepare for the worst and hope for the best, carefully reviewing their existing procedures and ensuring that they are line in with the new Act.
NEWS
The other side of online recruitment Justine James, Director, talentsmoothie, comments: “It’s
stand out in these circumstances.� Brownstein told The
not being underhanded in the
Grapevine: “As the job market
recruitment process, more being
gets more competitive, I think
opportunist and any efforts made
that people will do everything
by candidates to demonstrate
they can to make themselves
their capabilities rather than
more attractive to employers. And
just write about them must be
that means utilising technology in
welcomed by recruiters.�
especially innovative ways.
Matt Alder, Founder,
“I believe that it’s win-win. For employers, it demonstrates
competitive market for job-
that a prospective hire can think
seekers, with fewer jobs around
creatively and knows how to
and, paradoxically, it’s increasingly
use the latest technology. For
tough for employers to persuade
prospective hires, the internet is
the top talent to move companies
a cost-effective (and often free)
and join them. It makes perfect
way to project the right image
sense that individuals and
of oneself to potential
organisations will get creative to
employers.�
S WINN
Because everyone’s different, we tailor lots of different health cash plans
TH CASH AL 2010
PLAN WIN
SH PL CA
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GR O UP
Metashift, adds: “It is a
BEST HE
Viewpoint
The rise of the internet and online social networking has opened up new avenues for employers and job seekers to gain an advantage in the recruitment process. However, this presents a number of challenges to the resourcing community - not only in keeping track of these individuals using inventive ways to stand out from the crowd, but also in how they react. Should an individual be lauded for adopting left-field methods to get a recruiter’s attention, or should they be disregarded for not going through the traditional recruitment channels? As technology evolves at a rapid pace, so too do the methods in which candidates can seem attractive to potential employers. HR departments need to stay on their toes and keep track of these developing ways job seekers are trying to promote themselves, lest they miss that individual who is perfect for that hard-to-fill position.
20 NER 10
Recent reports have emerged in the press of both employers and candidates using opportunistic methods to stand out in the job-hunting process. Early last month, German marketing firm JVMN gained access to Facebook Places before its local launch, creating tags for their rival ad agencies’ locations. When an individual checked in, a message would appear on their mobile device, linking to JVMN’s jobs page and announcing that they were hiring. Earlier this year advertising executive Alec Brownstein set up an independent project called The Google Jobs Experiment. For six dollars, he bought Google adwords for five agency bosses he wanted to work for – searching their names produced a link to Brownstein’s online portfolio and the message, “Googling yourself is a lot of fun. Hiring me is fun too.� He got four interviews, two offers and one job.
What’s next?
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November 2010 | The Grapevine 9
LIGHT BITES
The views of the talent management industry
themselves than any organisation that may employ them? The first step has been to articulate clearly the values of the organisation and to understand how these feed through to how we want all our people to behave. Next, we search for the very small number of new graduates who can convince us that – in addition to their consistent track record of academic success – they can demonstrate the emotional intelligence that they will need to lay the foundations for leadership within McLaren. We see growing evidence that by selecting people who operate effectively as both internal and
Why talent matters
external ambassadors, we are growing a core group
Winning consistently is not easy. At McLaren we all
work for McLaren and will visibly and comfortably
extraordinary levels of discretionary effort that will
aim to lead the field in every one of the organisation’s
align their demonstrated values with those of the
continue to see McLaren win again and again.
activities – within both the sporting business and our
company. Ironically, part of the talent management
Yes, talent management matters, but developing
successful portfolio of commercial operations. We are
agenda is also aiming to ensure that the people who
innovative approaches to selection, and not just
driven by a strong set of values and the culture of
are not successful are also favourably impressed by
accepting the conventional wisdoms takes talent
the company demands that we never compromise
the quality of their experience when dealing with
management a step further.
on these - identifying and recruiting the talent
McLaren and its associates. We want all the people
that will prove to be ‘best fits’ within this uniquely
who do work for us to be our ambassadors, and we
challenging environment is something that is always
want many more people to be advocates for us and
at the forefront of my mind.
share hopes and dreams of success with us.
Graduate recruitment is a good example of
How do we identify the McLaren ‘best fit’ talent
how – by going the extra mile – we aim to identify
from the best engineering graduates in the world,
people who, as well as being highly qualified in
especially when dealing with members of ‘generation
their specialist area, will also be genuinely proud to
Y’ who – allegedly – are more concerned about
of immensely talented and hard-working individuals who will be able to cope with inevitable change, be resilient under pressure and consistently deliver the
Patrick Bermingham Group HR Director McLaren Group Ltd
Career tales I love my job because ...
challenging aspects can prove to be the most
I never cease to be amazed and inspired by what
rewarding and I never tire of meeting staff out in
our staff manage to deliver in the most challenging
operational areas.
of circumstances, whether that’s getting thousands of casual staff on site to look after 300,000
I got to where I am today by ...
people a week at Royal Ascot, or multi-service site
never underestimating the value of sheer hard
management within our London business hub.
work. When you are completely engaged with the
It’s not just the scale and range but the continual
company you work for (and after nearly 20 years
level of quality that we provide consistently. My job
I still can’t imagine wanting to work for anyone
is made so much easier because Sodexo doesn’t
else), that passion for what we do has driven me
just pay lip service to recognising that its people
to want to achieve the best for all. Although I have
matter. We make a genuine commitment to
spent the last ten years in HR, my background is
recognising that it is only through developing and
operational and I do recognise that that perhaps
working with exceptional people and teams can
gives me stronger business credibility. It is the
you deliver exceptional performance.
nature of the business that, when necessary, everyone contributes to get the job done, and
The most challenging parts of my job are…
it helps the credibility as a HR professional in the
making sure I keep in touch with all the units that
organisation when you can provide emergency
we have responsibility for. This covers 250 sites
cover managing a hot plate service, as I was able
across all of the UK and Ireland, with 5,000 staff.
to do recently – there’s nothing like getting back
Having said that, as is often the case, the most
to the floor!
10 The Grapevine | November 2010
Sarah Perry Human Resources Director
The views of the talent management industry
LIGHT BITES
If I could change one thing... Dan Kerkel Head of Corporate Communications
I would change the way HR is integrated into the business. I would begin by hiring HR people with strong business backgrounds and would expect the HR team to include a substantial number of employees with front line experience and who have developed and executed business strategies. Alternatively, those without this experience would occasionally be immersed into line positions for secondments
Top tips
Peter Macalik Vice President of Human Resources
of up to 6 months. Ultimately the goal would be to increase HR’s business acumen to improve both their understanding of business and their credibility among people with strategic and operational experience. Nothing is more frustrating to the line than an HR person with little or no business
Achieving a balance between people and processes can be difficult. Bosch sticks to its core principles when facing this modern challenge. 1. Long-term - Forward thinking ensures adaptability to an ever-evolving business landscape. This was crucial during the recent economic crisis as we looked for the right business opportunities and the correct choices to maintain high staff retention. True to our slogan “Invented for Life”, we will continue to manage resources while developing innovative and quality products that last. 2. Offering opportunities - A central element of ‘thinking long-term’ is also about investing in young people. Each year, Bosch offers work placement opportunities to selected university students alongside our comprehensive graduate programme. By engaging with young people, we don’t just aim to generate interest within the company, but open their eyes to the opportunities of a career in science, technology or engineering. We want the recruitment of young applicants to be a creative process. It’s about saying to new people that when they join Bosch, it’s not just about the specific job, but more about joining a company with a clear vision of the future with career opportunities. 3. Develop talent from within - Recognising talent from within the company is key. There are many product ranges across various divisions of Bosch. This diversity allows us to encourage internal promotion and create opportunities for cross-divisional transfers. This provides staff with a broad range of knowledge and skills that are very valuable. 4. Resource utilisation - Great value should be placed on the decades of expertise that retired associates have acquired over the years. The Bosch Management Support program (BMS) uses this knowledge by assigning retired staff to projects of limited duration.
experience condemning actions that fail to conform to unilaterally drafted policies. This is the most significant credibility killer for HR. HR deserves a permanent place at the strategy table, not just formulating people strategies but also giving a valuable perspective on business strategies. As no one member of the top team can accurately predict the future, the more information available at the conceptual stage, the more robust the strategy will be. Ultimately, strategies must be executed by people and the HR professional can offer an invaluable gap analysis to aid the execution. A further requirement would be for HR to continually move up the value chain of the business by developing strategies and ideas with the line to reshape the future agenda to one with collective buy-in. This would kill off out-dated processes, build alignment and transfer ownership from HR to the line. These are three simple but perhaps radical tactics to more fully integrate HR into the business. But there is one more: the HR team should be physically located within other operating areas ensuring that they are involved in everyday frontline activities.
5. Communication - Following every HR process means nothing if you forget to communicate with your staff. It’s about the balance between the human element of what we do and following the right company processes at all times. For example, promoting communication through regular associate surveys and appraisals, allows both staff and employer to discuss any work-related issues they wish.
Tell us your views: editorial@executive-grapevine.co.uk
November 2010 | The Grapevine 11
LIGHT BITES
The views of the talent management industry
Book
of the month Beyond the Boys’ Club by Suzanne Doyle-Morris PhD
Image attributed to sxc user: spekulator
Review by Janet Davies, Chief Executive myexecutivecareer.com
12 The Grapevine | November 2010
I imagine that every career woman over
business savvy, to how to raise your profile
40 wishes that a book like this had existed
both inside and outside of your organisation.
when she were 20; every woman starting
Most importantly, she engages her readers
out today can be grateful now it does.
on the importance of how to proactively take
It is a practical, ‘take no prisoners’ look
control of their own career progression and
at what it takes not just to survive, but
gain recognition and respect without having
to thrive as a woman working in a male-
to become ‘one of the boys’. The message
dominated field.
throughout, however, is very clear: it doesn’t
You will be glad to know that it is not some
matter who you are, you and you alone are
man-bashing bible of feminist rhetoric but a
responsible for your career. No one will do it
thoughtful and often humorous look at the
for you but you don’t need to do anything
strategies woman of all ages need to know,
unnatural or fake to get on.
understand and exploit if they are to rise to
While most of the ‘career-makers or
the top of their chosen professions today. To
breakers’ apply equally to both men and
explore and ground these strategies in real
women, she asserts that men are just
life, Dr Suzanne Doyle-Morris, a qualified
much more adept at acting faster on these
academic and a practising coach, conducted
strategies and hence are rewarded with a
in-depth interviews with 21 of the most senior
disproportionate number of the top positions
‘been there, done that’ women from a range
- which is certainly borne out by our own
of backgrounds in organisations like Microsoft,
experience at myexecutivecareer.com. It also
PwC, Accenture and Deloitte, as well as senior
makes another one of the more important
academics, a barrister, an archaeologist and
running themes of the book – that having
a diplomat.
a mentor is vital to career success – all the
It’s a great read for men or women
more poignant; the earlier women have access
interested in their own personal development
to effective mentoring support, the better.
or those who want to attract and nurture
Most importantly, she concludes, building an
top talent in their organisation. Throughout
effective internal and external network and
the book she shares their experiences (the
the confidence and self-esteem that brings
triumphs and the disasters), and their
is what really helps women to reach senior
essential tips for success on everything from
levels, bring in clients and ultimately get them
how to increase your self-confidence and
‘Beyond the Boys’ Club’.
What’s your favourite book? Contact us: editorial@executive-grapevine.co.uk
PROBLEM SOLVER
Problem Solver “How can I build a pipeline of future leaders at my organisation?”
In addition, you can inspire your stars of the
High quality information, guidance and
Gary Inman
future to share ideas and experience with each other,
cost-effective talent identification and talent
Assessor, Investors in People
integrating an element of social learning into the
development process are a prerequisite to any
leadership development process.
recruitment or learning system. Employers and
In terms of formal training, you’ll need to build
candidates need the right facts, they need to make
common understanding among all prospective
the right choices and decisions about their futures,
leaders of the organisational strategy, values and
career choices, performance gaps and learning
For any organisation, smooth business depends
required behaviours. Workshops and training
solutions. Organisations should systematically review
on smooth succession planning. That’s never
sessions also provide opportunities for exploring
their practices and approaches to recruitment and
more important than when it comes to
typical scenarios, role-playing behaviours and issues
learning and make use of the full range of recruiting
leaders: no company wants to lose a senior
or concerns.
and training methods. Assuming that one model
manager and be forced suddenly to hunt for
These are all steps that can help you start building
of recruitment or training is suitable also assumes
candidates to fill the position, especially with
the leaders you will need tomorrow from the talent
that current practices suit every circumstance –
the economic environment limiting the ability
you have today. However, there is no single ‘right’
which is simply not the case. The focus should
of many organisations to recruit externally.
approach, and no set style; different people respond
be on improving the service, making the learning
Every organisation needs a clear, proactive and
and develop in different ways. The key is to ensure
and recruitment models the centrepiece of the
practical process for developing the leaders of
that you know what you are trying to achieve and
company’s talent strategy. Shaping platforms that
tomorrow, even while current incumbents are
who you are trying to achieve it with, so you can
cultivate how talent is identified and grown and
in place.
tailor your programme and development plans
being flexible in your approach to development –
The starting point must be clarity over where
accordingly. This can help you build a pipeline of
using online assessments, measurement and virtual
the organisation is heading and what the leadership
talent that can make smooth succession plans a
learning – all have great merit in the move towards
of the future might look like. What skills will be
reality.
a more effective blended talent identification and
needed? What experience will be required? What
growth.
behaviours will leaders need to demonstrate? On
Sue Westhead
the basis of this blueprint, you can begin analysing
Client Relationship Manager - Management & Leadership, Development Processes Group (DPG)
where the raw talent or potential might lie within your organisation. The talent you identify will need development plans and support. Putting those plans into practice will normally require a blend of organic, on-the-job
A historical weakness of growing the talent pipeline has been in the positioning of responsibility in the organisation. Capability depends not just on training in good leadership skills, or recruitment, but the effectiveness of the talent pipeline and this has to be owned by the organisation’s leaders, who also ensure all managers are held accountable for talent
The ability to find the right talent, develop
management. One way to embed accountability is
The first element centres on giving individuals
it and deploy it effectively requires strategic
to ensure any talent processes being delivered are
gradual exposure to new activities and responsibilities
positioning and the innovation of new models,
understood by the organisation’s leaders and are
relevant to the leadership blueprint you have drawn
products, channels and mindsets. The big
effectively cascaded, as senior leaders are crucial
up. In doing so, you can start to build their skills and
challenge for HR is two-fold: how effectively
in fostering learning across the organisation and
experience, while testing their mettle and identifying
does talent management and learning happen
can be the key carriers for change. Measuring and
new development areas at the same time. You can
in the organisation as a whole, and how do we
understanding the organisation’s performance and
also inspire them with the vision the organisation
change the way in which talent transformation
its ability to improve at a group level also helps
has for their future, strengthening commitment and
and individual performance is identified and
reduce the barriers that may, if not addressed, limit
enthusiasm as a result.
measured?
the effectiveness of talent development models.
learning and formal sessions.
November 2010 | The Grapevine 13
COVER FEATURE
The Body Shop
Profits with Principles The Grapevine arranged to meet Alex Snelling
operates in over 60 countries, including Namibia,
at The Body Shop’s newly refitted Oxford
Slovakia, and Monaco, and with 40 years’
Street store. The flagship’s pleasant, tidy,
experience is hardly a start-up. In their acquisition
ethically sourced design is suggestive of an
of the company, L’Oréal took on well-established
open farmers’ market, and, if successful, could
green credentials and have done little to alter
soon be rolled out into the other 2500 stores.
what is a very successful, specific – even niche
Looking at the new range of organic unctions
– brand. In the UK at least, The Body Shop is the
in their prime position on the sustainable wood
pre-eminent ‘ethical’ chain, and although many
shelves, it almost seems like the good vibes
competitors have rightly embraced the idea of
are advertised more than the products. This
giving something back and producing sustainably,
is The Body Shop after all though; metaphors
the sense remains that The Body Shop got there
with growth, ethics and nurtured development
first.
form the basis of the business and the brand,
The company’s lasting and consistent presence
both consumer and employment, and Snelling
across well-heeled streets is largely due to
is the man tasked with ethically harvesting the
Anita Roddick’s leadership. Though the famed
talent to sustain it.
environmentalist and human rights champion
Those ethics, vibes and the organic range are of
passed away in 2007, her continual work with
interest to talent professionals for more than beauty
the company that she founded in 1976 produced
purposes. Three years ago, L’Oréal bought The Body
a clear and resilient brand and culture that any
Shop. In the past, the global cosmetics industry had
employer would crave.
Alex Snelling
been criticised by The Body Shop’s founder over its
Snelling explains that, although he joined
International Recruitment & Talent Director
testing policies and business practices. Her business,
following Roddick’s death, her presence within
meanwhile, has always seemed the antithesis,
the business, continued by her husband, still plays
retaining an air of the small start-up, carrying its
a part in the corporate culture.
message of ‘doing good’ from its initial opening to today, despite the new ownership. But The Body Shop is a global brand. It
14 The Grapevine | November 2010
“I think that, three years after Anita died, you do feel that drive to understand as much as you can,” he says, “so I read books to see where she
The Body Shop
was coming from. The brand today has been so
Ethical thinking “Our philosophy is that looking good stems directly from feeling good. Where legislation allows, we encourage our employees to learn new skills through our Learning is of Value to Everyone (LOVE) initiative. By funding a range of training courses, events and health treatments, we aim to enhance our staffs’ sense of wellbeing.” The Body Shop
COVER FEATURE
wellbeing: “your development might mean a
infused with that spirit that I think she would
lateral move, an international move, it might
be absolutely for what we’re doing even though
mean learning on the job or a training course.”
she’s no longer here. We have asked all employees
Self-improvement features heavily. The biggest
to sign petitions, to go out and campaign on the
skills gap in graduates is a lack of self-motivation,
streets, or at the Houses of Parliament, and I think
explains Snelling: “Anita Roddick started The
she would be absolutely behind that.”
Body Shop in 1976 and made £130 on the first
The Body Shop doesn’t go for talent boxes,
day. Eugène Schueller began L’Oréal by mixing
Snelling says. “You use the big, obvious tools –
hair colourings in a sink in 1907. “Managers are
the fact that you have to designate your staff
responsibe for channelling and managing that
and point to high performers – and then you are
spirit, but you want managers skilled enough
suddenly doing talent management. That isn’t
to let the entrepreneurs be left to do their own
right for The Body Shop. We need something
thing.”
less black and white, more organic and more
Browse the online jobs forums for accounts
individual. You do want clarity and having a forced
of employees past and present and one theme
choice can be very healthy for managers, but our
remains consistent across the globe: people join
focus is on self-esteem, and all of these systems
the company because it makes them feel not only
struggle to make something happening or being
good, but gives them meaning. Not many private
put in a box a good story for the employee.”
sector businesses could say that.
An entrepreneurial culture is one of Snelling’s
“Our employer brand is very, very, very strong,”
main objectives. What he describes as a career-
says Snelling, “and one of the projects for the
long philosophy is growing junior management,
next couple of years is to catch that imagery and
“rather than buying off-the-shelf,” and he is
make it go further. We’ve got a retail graduate
pleased that the company is setting up a retail
scheme in the UK that attracts people who are
academy focusing exclusively on training and
very values-driven, who want what they do to
development for store personnel. “In retail
mean something – that thing about feeling good,
particularly,” he says, “there is always a direct
‘I work for an organisation which does good in
link between the calibre of the people and the
the world, which touches people’s lives.’”
quality of the product or brand.”
Values remain key - the International Values
This attitude demands a focus on development,
Director sits on the Executive Board – but success
tied into the brand’s familiar attitude towards
remains a goal of the business. The better the November 2010 | The Grapevine 15
COVER FEATURE
The Body Shop
talent Snelling brings in, the more money it makes, and the more of that there is, the more it can invest in the right causes. One of the company’s most recent recruitment initiatives is a referral scheme – PREFERRED - where for every assistant store manager and store manager application received in-store a tree is planted. Successful referrals net the employee responsible up to £400. “You have to come up with programmes to grow the business in line with the values”, says Snelling, “that makes people more comfortable with them and ready to embrace them.” However, running The Body Shop as a commune was never Roddick’s intention. The company is a modern, international retail brand with €1.2 billion in sales in 2009, and though Snelling may have begun the interview in a farmers’ market, we are soon discussing the recruitment possibilities on his Android phone. “One of the key recruitment drivers is the quest for being part of this very connected world. My phone is connecting me to Facebook, almost in real time. When we think about generation Y we see a powerful opportunity and we have a very lively online presence. Although executive search is as strong as ever and LinkedIn hasn’t caused a revolution, the risk that you sent out a message and someone who wasn’t interested didn’t see it for six months has gone. It’s changed from a phenomenon to a ubiquitous tool.” Snelling notes the variety of recent innovations in the recruitment marketplace, particularly with fixed fee providers offering a more flexible model: “with a brand like The Body Shop, half the world applies and you spend until midnight every night for two weeks going through CVs to find a good one,” he says. “The fixed fee providers who sell
competencies, potential, performance, track
that,” he says. “If you look at the numbers there
on or broker online recruitment sites are taking
record and attitude, not qualifications. I have a
is an explosion at the moment in Asian students
some of the pain out of large-scale recruitment
degree in History and I’m in HR – we’re pretty
coming to study in Europe, and one of the things I
and giving me a much quicker route to market.
open-minded.”
was doing with L’Oréal in France was hiring those
Contingency search should be concerned by that.”
A recent recruit himself, Snelling only joined
students in a developed marketplace, giving them
from L’Oréal in January this year. What attracted
several years’ experience then popping them back
him most to the role – his first
into an emerging market.”
to focus on retail so heavily
L’Oréal is aiming to reach one billion new
– was its international scope:
customers in the next few years, and though The
“I have had UK-facing roles,
Body Shop is an independent brand, there’s no
I’ve had roles that are facing
doubt they will be seeking a good chunk of that
Europe, but never a totally
target audience. Recruiting across the world is a
global
he
key priority as markets develop, and the deal with
explains. “Getting to grips
L’Oréal, seen in this light, makes sense. While
“I think it brings fresh ideas. At the end of
with the people challenges in Wake Forest over
the French giant can profit from the image of
the day my job is to attract, recruit and develop
in the USA, in the Singapore office, it’s been
its smaller partner, as well as its sales, The Body
the best people at The Body Shop. They are not
fascinating.”
Shop gets increased funding and access to the
“We’ve got good, solid businesses in the UK, USA and Europe, and the next ten years is all going to be about China, South America, Eastern Europe, and making sure that we’ve got the talent in place to resource that”
role
before,”
all lined up in our competitors, thankfully, so
Emerging markets for talent are primary
financial clout of the French cosmetic juggernaut.
if you are a bit more imaginative you just find
targets for Snelling and his team. “We’ve got
This means that new products like that organic
people.”
good, solid businesses in the UK, USA and Europe,
range can be developed quicker, new markets
Snelling recalls an experience at L’Oréal where
and the next ten years is all going to be about
can be leveraged, and the message espoused by
he hired a brand manager for Suzuki quad bikes
Asia, South America, Eastern Europe, and making
Roddick can potentially influence a much larger
into a division covering haircare: “It’s about
sure that we’ve got the talent in place to resource
organisation and a much larger market.
16 The Grapevine | November 2010
Finance, HR, Procurement & Supply Chain www.archermat.com 01753 754333
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Promoting Employment Relations and HR Excellence
Recruitment A look at recent Recruitment news
TUI Travel appoints Group HR Director The international travel group has announced a replacement for Bill Logan. After 12 years with TUI Travel, Logan is retiring and has been replaced by Jacky Simmonds. The former Deputy Group Human Resources Director took over at the beginning of last month and will also become a member of the Group Management Board (GMB). Logan will remain within an advisory role through 2011. Simmonds joined TUI as a Human Resources Manager, moving from The National Magazine Company in 2000.
BT to create 4,000 jobs as it aims to make UK better connected The telecoms giant has announced that it will be creating 4,000 jobs as part of a project to provide faster broadband to some parts of the country. Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly are set to become better connected through the project, which was supported by European funding. BT also aims to protect a further 2,000 jobs through the £132 million project, providing benefit to thousands of businesses.
Google ranked most attractive employer Universum has released this year’s global talent attraction index for companies with the strongest employer branding. The World’s Most Attractive Employers 2010 surveyed nearly 130,000 career-seekers with a business or
at a glance
eg.1 Recruitment Survey
Do you think recently redundant public sector employees will find jobs easily within the private sector?
57% of you said ‘No’
43% of you said ‘Yes’
eg.1 executive search
400 The number of call centre jobs being created in the UK by Santander
85% of the newly unemployed are looking to move to the private sector according to Hays
engineering background in order to decide which global corporations talented employees most wanted to work for. For the second year in a row, Google came number one in both business and engineering.
Most read Recruitment articles online:
Recruitment insights To read the latest recruitment insights from
» RBS announces replacement for Roden » Former BSkyB and BT HR exec joins Bupa » TUI Travel appoints Group HR Director » GlaxoSmithKline talent management leader joins KPMG » New HRD for Aviva To read more visit... www.thegrapevinemagazine.com
Visit: www.thegrapevinemagazine.com November 2010 | The Grapevine 19
Feet on the ground
Image attributed to SXC user: ilco
RECRUITMENT FEATURE
Feet on the ground in foreign markets How do you manage a search abroad, and who do you use?
and it falls down when they are not prepared or able to listen, or if the local firm isn’t pushing back hard enough and speaking plainly when there is a problem.” Boyden’s model has locally owned offices operating independently, but under a shared umbrella. With some clients moving back into internal search, Renwick’s team are angling their assignments more as consulting cases than sales. “Because we are local people and have all been around or were born here, we tend to know the local cultures and the local atmosphere a little better than international firms,” he says.
When you are moving into a new region,
Though flying into a new region to brief the
Online recruitment network Viadeo is different
recruiting the leaders to take it forward can
search firm is common, it is often unfeasible for
in every country it operates. “For our strategy
be a serious headache. Without your own feet
a client to have personnel constantly monitoring
it’s fundamental to have local teams,” says Pete
on the ground, do you bring in talent from
the longlist. But are there dangers to this kind of
Crosby, the company’s COO Europe. “You have to
known sources and plant them into a new
‘fire and forget’ search? As Brian Renwick, Boyden
understand the local market, local politics, local
(and hopefully) complimentary culture? Do
Asia Managing Partner and member of Boyden’s
labour markets, and headhunters just sending over
you use a search firm from home to find the
Board of Directors explains, “a lot of international
some guy from Paris won’t really help.” When
right talent from within your new market?
clients just come in for interviews, relying upon us
you are in the UK, or Romania, or Poland, you
Or, do you find a local firm and hope they can
to bridge the gap between their knowledge of the
aren’t in ‘Europe’, these countries are incredibly
gather not only what your business needs,
market and ours. Very often the local people will
different.”
but a list of local candidates that fit it?
judge people differently to the international client,
20 The Grapevine | November 2010
Crosby explains that the Mexico City office was
set up by hiring a local executive from Viadeo’s network and leaving him to pick the rest of the team. “You have to have local knowledge and local people can only be chosen by local executives,” he says, “In India, when you make a major hire, or merger, or acquisition, you consult astrology. On our site, we have star signs, so that people can check that on the first page, which
“Because we are local people and have all been around or were born here, we tend to know the local cultures and the local atmosphere a little better than international firms,”
is normal for them. It is very easy to be in a new region suddenly, but you have to respect local practice and tradition. Globalisation has obscured the fact that localisation is extraordinarily difficult, and what works well in your home territory is not necessarily going to work so well in another.” Dominic Monkhouse is the UK MD at hosting provider PEER1 and is responsible for all international recruitment. He agrees that cultural difference never goes away: “I’ve interviewed very different people in the USA, and I’ve interviewed people for jobs in the UK who are South African, Indian, Scandinavian, German, French, Dutch, all living here.” However, senior talent is often international, and advances in technology mean that as
RECRUITMENT FEATURE
Feet on the ground
business, undertaking more strategic activities that are not local to that market. You just have to be considerate about expats, and have people who are culturally sensitive, have done it before and understand the differences, as well as the similarities.” If you want to know about your recruiter, look at how they recruit. “The monolithic international firms can afford to post consultants from around the world, and they do,” says Renwick. “A lot of them employ all kinds of different expatriates and nationalities and they will be offering their clients exactly the same service in every part of the world at similar prices and conditions.” In new markets, off your PSL, you deal with at least one unknown between the talent pool and the headhunters themselves. Although global firms offer consistency, whether that always allows Image attributed to SXC user: ilco
the specific quality of a local boutique needs questioning. Monkhouse adds that the challenges with recruiting seem to occur regardless of how far away the search firm is, or where the recruitment drive is occurring. “In Cape Town, or Sophia, or in the UK, it doesn’t matter, people think we are weird and over-demanding,” he explains. “We’ve boundaries become increasingly permeable,
working regularly in Geneva and Dubai, Kumar
just used a big international firm to hire a new SVP
international candidates are becoming increasingly
explains that being a local player there “can give
of Sales in America but ended up with a guy we
accessible. “People will have researched me
you tunnel vision.” Although offices have been
knew anyway. I was horrified by how poor some
online as well as the company,” he explains. “I
considered, she says, “the benefits have never
of the shortlist were, I came off calls wondering
interviewed a guy this morning who said ‘I have
seemed to outweigh the costs.” She points out
if I’d spent a worse dollar and forty minutes in my
read about you and I would like to work for you.’
that flying in also means objectivity, confidentiality,
life. But then,” he says, “there is a guy we’ve used
Five years ago, nobody said that to me, and now
and commitment, on top of a bigger talent pool.
in the UK for eight years, with probably half the
it happens all the time.”
“We recently looked for a managing director role
people we’ve hired coming through him.”
Different business models require different
in Kuwait for a European institution,” she says,
As long as your recruiter understands both
talent, whether they focuses on homogenised
“who wanted the individual to be based in Dubai
global and local needs, success should be
personnel or hyper-local roles. Megha Kumar, a
already. That was unrealistic, like looking for a
forthcoming. ‘Firing and forgetting’ is a great
consultant at headhunter HB International, doesn’t
needle in a haystack.”
idea, but the blend of global resources and
agree that search needs to be local. “Candidates
eBay Classifieds Group’s employee base has
local knowledge is the zenith of expensive,
can assume wrongly that a locally based candidate
grown almost tenfold in the last three and a
well-resourced executive search. However, adds
will have local experience. Also, you could want
half years and operates businesses in over 20
Monkhouse, “even the big firms go on LinkedIn.
to move talent internationally in five years’ time
countries. The company’s Senior Director of
Look, we’re on the internet, I can post my own job
– you’ve got to be able to cross-sell, and relate to
Human Resources Aileen O’Toole, believes that,
ads, I have that international reach. Satisfaction
the international business upwards, as well as the
“while it’s preferable for someone to have the
is about differentiating between firms, and
local business downwards.”
local language and the local affinity, it’s entirely
particularly getting real help with your recruitment
doable to have international talent in a local
process from consultants, whoever they are.”
HB are headquartered in London, and though
We focus on executive search for the Financial, Banking and Commodities sectors. Our unique knowledge, combined with our methodology ensures that we offer an outstanding quality of service at all times
Telephone: +44 (0)20 7290 5560 22 The Grapevine | November 2010
http://www.hbinternational.co.uk
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Head of Talent
FULL COLOUR VARIATIONS
Jim Richardson
Laurence Barrett
There are two full colour variations of the Merlin Logo. One is on a blue background and the other is on a white background. Whenever possible Merlin blue (Pantone 072) should always be used. If it is not possible to use Merlin blue, the four colour breakdown below is acceptable.
Global Head of 5HVRXUFLQJ *%0
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Pantone colours (for print use)
Tea Colaianni
Pantone Blue 072 C
Pantone 116 C
Pantone 1375 C
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Group Human 5HVRXUFHV 'LUHFWRU CMYK 0,15,100,0
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RGB 28,58,133
RGB 245,212,0
RGB 227,168,55
Pantone Blue 072 C
RGB colours (for screen use)
CMYK 0,40,80,0
RGB 28,58,133
3
RGB 245,212,0
+5 'LUHFWRU Pantone 116 C
Pantone 1375 C
CMYK 100,90,0,0
CMYK 0,15,100,0
CMYK 0,40,80,0
RGB 28,58,133
RGB 245,212,0
RGB 227,168,55
RGB 227,168,55
Daryl King
Head of Organisational 'HYHORSPHQW (0($ Pantone 116 C
Pantone 1375 C
&RQIHUHQFH SDUWQHUV “Round up the usual suspects�? Those days of executive search are o
Norman Broadbent, our global industry specialists bring blue sky th to every search.
We combine our market analysis and industry experience with a real unders of what people can do, ensuring the right solution for corporate challenges
Our clients rely on us to appoint the right board and non-executive tale get competitive excellence and profitable growth. For us, that’s what ex search is all about. And that’s what we deliver, all around the world.
Search consultants who listen, think, advise – and deliver competitive excellence through
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MERLIN ENTERTAINMENTS GROUP CORPORATE GUIDELINES
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Clouds on the corporate horizon You need blue sky thinking.
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RECRUITMENT
Poacher turned gamekeeper A new breed of recruiter Many
their
Others, which were originally designed for specific
evolve without the fear of losing features that are
recruitment function by hiring their own
organisations
are
shaping
users, have been shoe-horned to offer additional
essential to your processes.
professional agency staff. Chris Bogh, Technical
functionality.
Give your recruiters a head start by giving
Director of applicant tracking and recruitment
eploy however, has always adopted a forward-
them the tools they are familiar with in an agency
software company, eploy® considers how to get
thinking approach and designed a web-based
environment. These will allow them to post
the best from this new breed of employee.
solution from day one. As a result, it provides the
jobs to job boards and your website or to utilise
The recruitment landscape has changed forever.
flexibility to rapidly create tailored Career Portals and
contact management tools and communicate with
Like so many business sectors it has evolved to
online solutions that offer a wide range of features
candidates easily. They will also allow candidate CV
address the local and global challenges facing
for its users. For example, should your business offer
information to be extracted intelligently and stored in
the industry, however, what has emerged is a
temporary and contract-based work, you may require
your database quickly with minimum administration
stronger and much fitter model that is benefitting
the functionality for your candidates and hiring
and offer sophisticated search tools to view ordered
from innovative technology to deliver the results
managers to fill in and authorise online timesheets.
results clearly – tools that are essential for building
organisations now demand. And this is quite simply
This delivers significant benefits to any organisation
a talent pool and developing your own in-house
finding the best person for the job as cost-effectively
looking to make the best use of temporary workers
recruitment talent.
as possible.
and contractors.
®
Finally, ensure your chosen software is future-
Part of this natural evolution has included the
It can also be used with RPO arrangements
proof. eploy® is built on a strong foundation and
hiring of professional recruiting staff from agencies
to manage the interaction and administration
offers the strongest customisable ATS solution for all
– people whose skills and experience from the
between the recruiting organisation and its
areas of the HR and recruitment marketplace. It has
‘other side of the fence’ are now being harnessed
agencies. At its core, eploy®’s applicant-tracking
been designed to offer one fit for purpose solution
to drive the internal recruitment processes for those
software offers immense functionality and is
that can easily grow with the needs of the business
companies that used to be their clients. With these
used extensively by businesses with in-house
and be cost-effectively adapted to take advantage of
new perspectives and skills available to the Human
responsibilities. This flexibility extends to third party
new technologies – not everyone can say this.
Resources operation, you may need to consider how
interaction. Dedicated “Hiring Manager” or “Vendor
To find out how eploy®’s recruitment technology
best to maximise their intrinsic capabilities. And
Management” portals can be added to your website
is being used by forward thinking companies such
part of this answer is choosing the right applicant-
quickly to allow agencies to offer their services or
as TOTAL, T-Systems, Kier, British Heart Foundation,
tracking and recruitment software that is purpose
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Your professional recruiter will expect a high
As your recruitment needs change, your
degree of flexibility in a software system, which
application will also need to be updated. Your
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access and use and designed to do the job from
losing the ability to be upgraded, allowing you to
the ground up. Many solutions including traditional
take advantage of new innovations. This flexibility
HR systems have tried to adapt their offering to
will give your professional recruiters the tools they
address this requirement through bolt-on software.
are familiar with and allow your hiring function to
0800 073 4243 or visit www.eploy.co.uk
Chris Bogh Technical Director
November 2010 | The Grapevine 25
RECRUITMENT
International focus
International focus News from around the world New Partner for Heidrick & Struggles The international leadership advisory firm has announced a new partner within its Financial Services Infrastructure Practice in New York. Dan Mullin will join the highly specialised practice that combines the experience of Heidrick & Struggles’ global financial services team with the expertise of the global functional practices. Mullin will be required to deliver regional and global executive search and leadership development services across the sector. Commenting on the appointment, David Boehmer, Partner - Financial Services, Heidrick & Struggles, says: “Dan’s deep sector knowledge, impressive operations experience and first-hand perspectives on the complex and ever-changing infrastructure issues financial firms must manage, make him exceptionally suited to join our team. He will be a tremendous asset to clients and colleagues alike, and we are pleased to welcome him aboard.”
Korn/Ferry appoints new Client Partner The
executive
recruitment
firm
has
strengthened its search capabilities within the consumer markets. Juan Luis Betancourt joins Korn/Ferry’s Global Consumer Practice as a Client Partner, and will be based in the firm’s Miami office. He joins from Heidrick & Struggles in New York, where he was a member of its consumer practice. Throughout his career, Betancourt has worked with a number of the globe’s leading blue-chip retail, consumer packaged goods and hightechnology companies such as Puma and Procter & Gamble. Tierney Remick, Global Market Managing
Managing Director for the firm’s Zurich office,
announced that it has opened an office
Director – Consumer, Korn/Ferry, comments:
and brings with him experience of working
in Dubai to serve as the base for its Middle
“Juan brings to Korn/Ferry hands-on, senior-level
as a senior executive in the IT, Travel and
East business. From the new offices, located
experience and strong operational and talent
Transportation sectors. He replaces Dr. Max
centrally just to the north of the Dubai
management credentials while working with
Schnopp, who is taking on the role of Managing
International Financial Centre (DIFC), eg.1 will
many top retail and consumer goods companies
Partner for the firm.
continue to provide services to the Professional
throughout his career. His deep knowledge of
Chris Clarke, President and CEO, Boyden
key trends and issues driving today’s consumer
World Corporation, comments: “Armin’s deep
market, and strong international experience, are
experience guiding our clients with strategic
Andrew Gray, Managing Director, eg.1,
a solid combination that will serve our clients
hiring decisions will be a strong asset for
says: “This shows not only our dedicated
well.”
Boyden. In addition, his experience with non-
commitment to the region, but is also a
executive boards will also provide a valuable
testament to our global ambitions. Our
Boyden appoints MD for Zurich office
perspective for our global team.”
The executive search firm has announced the Swiss-based appointment of Armin Meier. Meier has been appointed to the position of
26 The Grapevine | November 2010
Services, Technology, Corporate and Financial Services Industries.
commitment to do exactly what we promise is always unwavering, and now we’re excited
eg.1 opens new office in Middle East The executive search consulting firm has
to expand upon our track record in the Middle East and continue to deliver great work.”
European talent management insight
RECRUITMENT
Tackling the European talent dilemma In
Image attributed to Flickr user: garryknight
this trend and found that over 80% believed this approach was key to driving business value, however revisiting those same employers one year on only 20% had managed to successfully transform their HR function based on this concept.
the first of a series of articles and interviews Sue Brooks, Managing Director of RPO and talent management specialist Ochre House, looks at the challenges facing employers in one of the world’s most complex talent markets - Europe A continent under threat? As it looks, finally, as if Europe is not going to fall off the economic cliff that it teetered on the edge of in late 2008 and early 2009 its citizens will consequently continue to live in one of the world’s wealthiest regions. But Europe’s future is not looking bright. Well behind the USA in terms of labour productivity and well ahead of it in terms of labour cost, we’re also having to face up to a definite shift of economic power and potential to the developing world and in particular to the new powerhouses of India and China. At the same time, changing demographics, generational shifts, globalisation and new employment models mean that employers must consider how well their talent acquisition and retention strategies enable them to meet these challenges and how they can drive a more strategic approach to talent management. Barriers to change Change of this magnitude does not come easily. Innovators are facing considerable challenges as they seek to transform HR practices and traditional perceptions of HR across the region, not least of which is the lack of board-level support to drive the change required. Corporate boards still focus on what HR can contribute immediately to the bottom line by cost-
cutting and increased controls rather than invest in its ability to deliver longer-term business value through a strategic partnership with the business. A talentcentric organisation can only exist with the support of the board. Many business models continue to be based around a country as an individual business unit, driven by it’s own P&L. Budgets are built at functional level with funding for talent acquisition often driven by a zero-based budgeting process managed on a transactional basis by hiring managers, making it impossible to leverage a strategic approach to talent and people practices. Systems, infrastructure and processes are highly fragmented, localised and fiercely defended along with increasingly uncompetitive labour laws. Many HR functions have seen their budgets considerably reduced while needing to deliver increased efficiencies and effectiveness. Little wonder that many senior HR professionals across Europe voice private despair about the scale of the challenges ahead. The rise of HR partner communities and strategic partnerships as a possible enabler to change The concept of business partnering appears to be gaining ground as a model to drive more strategic value, restructuring HR into three more focused areas: 1. Strategic partners: working with the executive team to ensure the business makes the best use of its people 2. Centres of excellence: small teams of specialists working to deliver competitive advantage through areas like talent, diversity, and development 3. Shared services: the transactional services like payroll (managed in-house, or increasingly through outsourced solutions) In 2009 Ochre House surveyed over 100 leading employers across Europe to better understand
The most common characteristics of the models that they had built were as follows: 1. A clear, long-term vision for talent management with defined measures of success built around business value 2. HR models based around the development of a value-driven strategic core with a well-developed business partner community 3. Centralised resourcing budgets to leverage strategic approach and benefits across the region 4. The development of external strategic partnerships to access expertise with commercial models based on shared risk and reward The changing face of outsourcing In recent years the predominant driver for organisations in outsourcing has been cost reduction, a factor which has come even more to the forefront as the global recession deepened. Traditional recruitment process outsourcing models have sought to deliver cost savings by increasing efficiency through scale and standardisation, primarily a “same for less” approach that has delivered largely operational value. Operating models have increasingly focused on low touch and remote delivery as providers looked at ways to decrease costs as a principle differentiator. Ochre House is part of a new breed of partner that has set out to challenge this market trend. The emphasis is on achieving both increased efficiency and effectiveness through innovation, expertise and the integration of talent acquisition into a client’s broader talent management agenda. The operating model is high-touch, embedded and fully integrated delivery models through partnership and collaboration with a commercial framework based on shared risk and reward, to deliver strategic value in line with business goals. In the next article in December’s Grapevine we will be taking a closer look at how one of Europe’s most ambitious companies is facing up to the continent’s particular talent management challenges. If you would like to contribute to the debate by taking part in one of our regular think tanks and workshops, simply contact Prashanie Dharmadasa at prashanie.dharmadasa@ochrehouse.com for more details www.ochrehouse.com
November 2010 | The Grapevine 27
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Assessment and testing insight
RECRUITMENT
Employer Branding -Measure the Status of the Candidate Journey Question 2. How would you rate the ease of understanding the instructions for this assessment? •
Majority of respondents considered the instructions used in this assessment to be comprehensible, with 82% stating that they were easy or very easy to understand
•
No individuals reported having difficulty understanding instructions
•
Results indicate that the instructions were perceived to be presented in a straightforward, clear and concise manner
2
Question 5. After completing this assessment, my impression of XXXXXXX as a company is: •
Most respondents (82%) stated that the assessment had positively affected their prior perception of XXXXXl, with over half (59%) viewing the company as considerably more favourable.
•
NO individuals stated that the assessment had a negative impact on their perceptions of XXXXXX
•
This suggests that the rigour of the recruitment process had a positive influence on the candidate experience in relation to their opinion of the company’s reputation.
3
Case Study: Global Graduate Recruitment
There are many chat rooms and articles on
asking candidates to complete assessments
the web that talk about candidate experience
remotely, and the increase in home computers
In a study carried out by PreVisor in
and increasingly recruiters are realising that
and broadband has made this a convenient
May 2010 with one of its clients for global
a bad experience can be communicated
option. Recruiters should continue to monitor the
graduate recruitment, a series of short, well-
virally online, to devastating effect.
candidate experience through this stage. There
placed questions were interspersed through
It is more common these days for candidates
are a few key ways to achieve a good experience
the assessment process to help measure key
to apply for jobs via a company website, with no
through what is, for some, an unnerving stage
metrics. 82% of respondents stated that their
direct contact with the recruiter or company at
of the process.
assessment experience had positively changed
the early stages. From the very first touchpoint
Placing a company’s logo and colour scheme
their perception of the company with over half
on the jobs page of an organisation’s website,
on the testing platform gives the candidates a
(59%), viewing the company as considerably
perceptions and opinions are being formed to
sense of continuity and strengthens the company
more favourable. No individuals stated that
create a candidate experience. The candidate will
brand. Good, clear instructions should be given
the assessment had a negative impact of the
spend some time filling in a job application form
about what a candidate is being asked to do,
company. With 86% of respondents perceiving
before asking: “what next?”
as well as an explanation of how much time
the assessments to be relevant to the role they
the
they should set aside and whether there will
had applied for we can see the candidates viewed
candidate’s wish to come and work for your
be sample or practice questions first. But it is
the assessment as an applicable and valid part of
company and also how it might affect their
also important that the candidate can see the
the overall recruitment process. On this occasion
opinions as a customer. Word of mouth of a
relevance to the role that they are applying for.
there were no measured negative candidate
bad experience can spread locally and affect
Assessments designed to be relevant to the job
experiences, however if there had been, recruiters
your ability to get good candidates to apply. A
stop candidates dropping out.
would have been able to respond by changing
The
candidate
experience
affects
bad experience through the process can mean good talent might drop out. From the first stage,
their recruitment mix to improve the candidate Measuring the Candidate Experience
experience.
even if automatic responses have to be used, it
So how do recruiters know how each stage of
To find out more about new methods and
is helpful to make the message personal so that
the recruitment process is affecting the applicant?
technology for delivering an enhanced candidate
the candidate feels important.
By interspersing the assessment process with
experience call PreVisor on: 0044 (0)1344 742813
Following the application some candidates
survey questions about the candidate’s views,
or visit www.previsor.co.uk
talk about a “black hole” where their application
perception and experiences, a valuable picture of
seems to disappear with little or no response.
management information can be gleaned about
This can be overcome by using an applicant
how successful the recruitment campaign is and
tracking system (ATS) with automated responses
also provides a useful indication of where the
letting candidates know that their application
recruitment process can be optimised.
Terri Gillfedder
has been received. More companies now are November 2010 | The Grapevine 29
360feedback feedback 360 online.fast. fast.simple. simple. online. fromappraisal360 appraisal360the the from 360feedback feedbackspecialists specialists 360 If successful delivery and smooth running of your If successful delivery and smooth running of your 360 projects is important to you then speak to us 360 projects is important to you then speak to us first. first. Instant Signup – to get you up and running in Instant Signup – to get you up and running in minutes minutes t Self Managed – user friendly control panels to t Self Managed – user friendly control panels to administer your own projects administer your own projects t Off the shelf competency frameworks – or t Off the your shelf own competency – or bring bespoke frameworks version bring your own bespoke version t Online service - no special software required t Online service -web no special required just standard browsersoftware and email just standard web browser and email t Free phone and email support - to keep t Free phone and email support - to keep things running smoothly things running smoothly t Free support materials - to help your t Free support materials - to help your coaching programme coaching programme t Management Reports - to help target your t Management - to help target your organisationReports development effort organisation development effort
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Retention
at a glance
A look at recent Retention news Starbucks offers new development opportunities for staff
Online Retention Survey:
Do you think your organisation has an issue retaining its top talent?
The international coffee chain is offering its UK staff a variety of training opportunities to develop their skills. Starbucks is giving employees the chance to earn a Image attributed to Flickr.com user: d’n’c
range of NVQ qualifications and management training at Ashridge Business School. John Hayes, Skills Minister, Starbucks UK & Ireland, comments: “Work-based learning and training is vitally
83% of you said ‘Yes’
important in ensuring that we achieve a highly skilled and competent workforce. This is why our current skills consultation is looking to develop a truly lifelong approach to learning, nurturing sustainable economic growth and social renewal.”
17% of you said ‘No’
Coalition Government restricting tax relief on high earners’ pensions The Treasury has announced measures to raise billions each year to cut the budget deficit. From April 2011, the annual allowance on tax-relief for pensions will be cut from £255,000 to £50,000. The move is expected to affect over 100,000 UK workers, the majority of which (80%) earn above the £100,000 threshold. The measures revealed by the Government are expected to generate £4 billion per year and will be put towards reducing the budget deficit.
Failure to retain talent costing UK businesses billions The extent to which UK businesses are having to expend on departing staff has been revealed by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC). According to the study from the professional services firm, the cost of replacing a competent employee equates to approximately a year of that individual’s yearly salary. Using the current national resignation levels and average annual salary in the UK, PwC predicts that the country’s businesses are losing around £42 billion each year due to lost talent.
Source: www.thegrapevinemagazine.com
4.5 million The number of employees that want to work from home on a regular basis but are not allowed, according to the Trades Union Congress (TUC)
Most read Retention articles online:
» One in five workers not allowed to work from home » Starbucks offers new development opportunities for staff » Face-to-face communication remains at heart of employee engagement » Failure to retain talent costing UK businesses billions of HR professionals think senior managers lack “essential” » Majority leadership skills
£6.9 billion worth of bonuses are set to be received by City workers during 2010, says the Centre for Economics and Business Research (Cebr)
To read more visit... www.thegrapevinemagazine.com November 2010 | The Grapevine 31
t t t
CHPD is now powered by
RETENTION
Image attributed to Flickr.com user: Tambako the Jaguar
Leadership insight
The dangers of ‘birds of a feather’ According to Chris Parry, Managing Director of Leadership at Kenexa, the biggest threat to organisations today is not the economic downturn, technological advancements or changing customer needs, but how they respond to those changes. Darwin is often misquoted as proposing the
contradiction. We like people who are like us.
towards certain styles, this doesn’t mean the team
‘survival of the fittest’. What he actually
Leaders tend to recruit in their own (psychological)
should change (necessarily) but it does alert the
put forward was ‘the survival of the most
image. Recruiting people who think like you,
organisation to the fact that it may need to watch
responsive to change’, in other words, the
behave like you and respond like you is extremely
for certain gaps or tendencies within the team.
fastest and best at evolving to suit new
hard not to do, because you won’t end up
In summary, be careful that agreement on
conditions.
thinking, “this person is just like me”, you’ll think,
a course of action is not convergent thinking in
This is an important lesson for business. But
“this person is good, right, personable.” And say
disguise but instead the best possible option. In
first, let’s look at how this works in nature. Female
what we like – we often recruit and promote on
short, make efforts to ensure that diversity of
peacocks recognised that their offspring were more
personality.
thought – as well as diversity of race, gender and
likely to survive if they could inherit their father’s
Thinking similarly makes for an easy life of few
strong resistance to disease. The way that male
arguments and more action. The serious risk is
age - are fully represented at all leadership levels
peacocks demonstrate their health is with stunning
that you result in poorly considered and less sound
tail feathers. Consequently, the females were drawn
decisions. Thinking divergently makes for more
The Kenexa Research Institute Christmas Lecture
to these males with the stunning tail feathers.
conflict and may take longer, but ultimately leads
on 2 December 2010 will be looking at the issue
Had all male peacocks decided to do this with a
to better decisions. On a first meeting you may
of diversity in the context of leadership and
little jig (something their customer base simply
find these divergent thinkers difficult to get along
organisational design. Places are limited, but
doesn’t like – ask any female peacock) then we
with, but if you persevere you can form an excellent
for more information, email
would have none of these stunning birds around
partnership. The best partnerships are formed on
Jodie.evans@kenexa.com.
today. Fortunately some experimented with a
points of difference, not similarity.
in your organisation.
slightly gaudy tail, which did the job tremendously
A simple check on the leadership styles of
The leadership experts at Kenexa, were
well. The result: the species is alive and well. The
management teams can provide a valuable
formerly the Centre for High Performance
same applies to organisations. If the whole board
insight into the risks of convergent thinking in an
Development (CHPD).
responds to a downturn in the economy by coming
organisation. Kenexa’s Leadership Orientations
up with the same ideas, then there is a real risk
Questionnaire (LOQ) can help to find out just how
that a new ‘fancy tail’ opportunity is missed and
diverse the team’s thinking styles actually are. Are
performance falters.
they predominantly far-sighted or near-sighted?
The challenge for leaders in organisations is that
Are they detail-conscious or detail-averse? Are they
the diversity argument leads almost to a perfect
factual or intuitive? If there is evidence of a bias November 2010 | The Grapevine 33
Talent databases
Image attributed to SXC user: rodvs
RETENTION FEATURE
Keeping track of talent What role do talent databases play in succession planning?
planning, and performance management,” comments Jeffrey Berk, Chief Operating Officer at web-based learning evaluators KnowledgeAdvisors. “From a metric view, there are practical, reasonable, credible ways to measure these processes so they can be managed better. The data can come from evaluations, surveys, tests and assessments. As a result, quantifiable performance metrics can drive decision-making. Data is neutral and non-emotional and helps prioritise limited resources when making difficult decisions.” The information stored in these databases
Two years ago, facing financial uncertainty
Businesses were being called upon to sustain, or
provides the foundation on which organisations
that quickly became unprecedented economic
even improve, their level of investment in training
can identify their high potentials and succession
meltdown, UK organisations were given an
despite the onset of a global financial downturn,
plan for leadership roles. Without effective talent
unlikely call to arms - invest more in your
underlining the intrinsic link between organisational
mapping, HR are in the dark – unable to understand
workforce. Despite a deteriorating economy,
success and a skilled workforce. Talent databases
the skillsets of their workforce and the dormant
intense budget constraints and the possibility
form a crucial part in the development process, a
potential they hold. Claire London, Head of
of significant cutbacks, employers across the
point expanded by Chris Phillips, Vice President –
Talent, Workforce Development & Compliance,
country were urged to shy away from slashing
International Marketing at management solutions
Cambridgeshire & Peterborough NHS Foundation
training budgets and to continue developing
provider Taleo: “If you have certain business-critical
Trust, explains: “If you can’t measure it, you can’t
their workforce. In an open letter published in
roles then you want to be constantly managing and
manage it. That’s the bottom line and the reason
the national papers, leading industry figures such
developing a talent pipeline because if you are unable
that being able to identify the who, the what, the
as Sir Stuart Rose (former Chairman of Marks &
to find those people it constrains your growth. Talent
where and the when is so critical.
Spencer) and Sir Michael Rake (the BT Group’s
profiles offer users the ability to have a single view of
“Now we have a number of different systems
Chairman) signed an open letter entitled Now
all of their talent in one central place, enabling more
and technologies at our disposal, which can make
is the Time to Invest in Skills. It argued that the
informed decisions right from the top to every layer
such a difference in being able to understand where
country’s workforce would guide the economy
of management.”
we can put people, who’s got what skills and who
from recession to recovery, and that: “When
Talent databases provide a central point of
markets are shrinking and order books falling, it
reference for HR professionals to analyse their entire
is their commitment, productivity and ability to
workforce’s skillsets and pinpoint which areas are
One such example of an organisation using
add value that will keep us competitive. Investing
lacking or where individuals can be developed further.
these systems to effectively measure, manage
now in building new skills will put us in the
“Talent management involves recruiting, learning,
and develop its workforce’s skillset is Channel 4.
strongest position as the economy recovers.”
competency management, engagement, leadership
Its internal talent management approach, entitled
34 The Grapevine | November 2010
can use them, what the sort of pipeline for talent is, all kinds of things.”
RETENTION FEATURE
Image attributed to SXC user: Leonardini
Talent databases
Grow, enables its HR department to talent map
reputation, as the business is seen as an employer of
nation faces a skills shortage that is damaging their
across the entire organisation. The system is aligned
choice by individuals internally and externally, but it
ability to respond to the economic recovery. The
to the learning and development strategy and is
also has knock-on effects for the bottom line. Ralph
problem for HR departments is balancing the need
aimed at upskilling and developing staff in two areas
Brasker, Head of Product Marketing, Stepstone
to upskill workers with the relatively small amount
that were pinpointed as critical – leadership and
Solutions, explains further: “Internal talent pools
of senior positions employees are able to move
cross-platform thinking. Jo Taylor, Head of Learning
encourage processes such as internal mobility and
into. London believes that in the current climate
and 4Talent at the broadcaster, comments: “Grow
career development. A lot of enterprises identify
there isn’t a growth in roles to plan people into:
enables us to look at where there are skills gaps,
both external and internal talent pools and define
“turnover is down and the opportunity to develop
where there are development needs and helps us
specific processes around internal candidates and
our business in the way we could have two years
to strategically align our learning and development
career plans. Having an internal talent pool helps
ago has changed. We have to be careful about
strategy to the talent needs of the organisation.
you to limit the external recruitment costs and
succession planning in the current climate and
Besides looking at potential risk areas, we’re able to
improve internal career development. Why hire
not to give people false expectations. It’s about
look at transferable skills that you might have a need
externally if you have the perfect internal candidate
managing those skills gaps and shortages effectively;
at the time for, such as strong project management
in-house already?”
you’ve got this data but need to be clear about
skills. I’m sure across the organisation there will
Two years on from the skills open letter the need
be lots of people that have project management
for developing staff is as important as ever - a recent
experience, so Grow allows us to utilise our talent in
survey from Capita Learning
a much more strategic way and avoid silos.”
& Development suggests
Focusing on developing an organisation’s
that 70% of the country’s
existing talent base has positive effects on corporate
business leaders believe the
what is achievable within the resource framework that we’re working in.”
“If you have certain business-critical roles then you want to be constantly managing and developing a talent pipeline”
November 2010 | The Grapevine 35
RETENTION
Middlesex University
Proposed university reforms will stimulate innovative CPD programmes Leah Brown, Middlesex University Work Based Learning Marketing Manager investigates the opportunities
Mags Thomas, Toshiba Tech HR Manager, feels that work-based learning has made a substantial difference to the performance of her team. With technicians constantly out on the road and support staff working at a range of levels, the flexibility of the project-based approach has been a perfect fit for Toshiba Tech. Sharing the stage with Michael Portillo at a recent networking event, Thomas described how, “as an HR professional, having the opportunity to say ‘yes you can’ is not to be missed. Work-based learning has created a culture shift across the team; I am now surrounded by active problem solvers and merchants for change.’ Model for the future
The recently published Browne Review into
proportion of school-leavers are likely to opt for
university funding proposes reforms which
an extended approach to gaining qualifications,
Given the proposed university reforms, work-
will bring hope to HR directors struggling
starting their careers before or in tandem with their
based learning has the capacity to become a
with diminished budgets.
Browne’s brief
studies. Universities that have already built up an
mainstream higher education model for individuals
was to identify the means by which a fairer,
employer engagement track record will be well
while also being an effective
more sustainable university sector could be
placed to lead the sector.
employers. Employees would be able to contribute
created. After 12 months of comprehensive
CPD tool for
to the cost at undergraduate level by accessing
research and consultation, his review proposes
Employer engagement and Work Based
their student loans, while employers develop the
a market model created by placing spending
Learning
capabilities of their workforce through work-based
power in the hands of students, including
Over the past 20 years the Middlesex University
learning projects. Such individually negotiated
those in full-time work, who would be lent the
Institute for Work Based Learning has partnered
partnerships need only last as long as required by
money to pay for their university education.
with a wide range of employers to create bespoke
both parties. Awarded credits are not lost when
The current cap on student numbers would be
CPD programmes. Practical projects with specific
employees change workplaces.
removed and the upper ceiling on course fees
learning objectives are designed to fit within the
If this scenario is extrapolated, it is possible
substantially raised.
scope of each participant’s role. This ensures
to imagine a time when a large proportion of
Much of the early criticism levelled at the review
that project outcomes support the organisation’s
CPD across the UK is managed through work-
centred on the increased debt burden for graduates
operational objectives. The appropriate academic
based learning frameworks. Market forces would
of traditional post-A-level degrees. Although
credits are awarded on the successful completion
encourage employers to develop ‘commitment
undeniably true, the much more positive and
of each project.
The Institute has developed
to work-based learning’ policies as part of their
far-reaching benefit would be a responsive sector
a qualifications framework which provides a
HR strategies. Such policies would attract bright
which develops a greater range of innovative,
structure for building up credits towards university
school-leavers who opted for the extended, low-
vocationally focused programmes. Not only
qualifications. Previous learning, including informal
debt work-based learning route through higher
will loans for part–timers encourage increased
on-the-job learning, and existing qualifications can
education. Similarly high-flyers keen to continue
participation by working mature students, a
be assessed for inclusion.
developing their expertise would be attracted by
36 The Grapevine | November 2010
Middlesex University
RETENTION
the prospect of using work-based projects to add
roles, organisations report high levels of employee
has developed the suit of postgraduate qualifications
to their qualifications.
engagement. The development of reflective and
in Workforce Assessment on behalf of the Chartered
Current activity
problem solving skills generally leads to positive
Institute of Educational Assessors. The programmes
While multi-contribution learning partnerships are
behavioural shift. Organisations benefit from the
are designed for those who take responsibility for
still a minority, the Institute’s activities are centred on
originality that arises from self-directed learning. Paul
assessing the performance of others within the
four key areas:
McLaughlin, Head of Learning and Development,
workplace and lead to professional recognition by
Ministry of Defence Police and Guarding Agency, is
the Chartered Institute of Educational Assessors.
• Accreditation of in-house programmes
clear: “What is crucial for us is that the organisation
“The programmes provide quality assurance for
• Developing bespoke cohort programmes for
benefits directly. We want our staff to up-skill and
large organisations that rely on members of staff to
focus on projects that will result in recommendations
accredit the outputs of their colleagues,” he said.
organisations
• Provision of professional practioner
qualifications
that we can implement.” Senior mangers from the Hewlett Packard
• On-going research Accreditation
Ongoing research
Outsourcing services took part in a Masters level
The work of the Institute’s research centre has
work-based learning programme specifically designed
made a significant contribution to developments in
for them by the Institute. The Director of Financial
the field of work-based learning both in the UK and
Middlesex University provides an assessment
Services Industry EMEA, Hewlett Packard Outsourcing
internationally.
and accreditation service for employers wishing to
Services, was drawn to work-based learning as it
accredit their existing in-house training programmes.
provided the means of unlocking the knowledge
Successful accreditation is the result of a rigorous,
of the team and pushing their business initiatives
quality-assurance process.
beyond the intellectual capability of competitors.
“Knowing that the successful completion of a programme will be rewarded with academic credits
The macro view The benefits to individual organisations that choose work-based learning as the backbone of their CPD programmes is evident. In macro terms the UK
Professional practitioner qualifications
must make the most of the proposed freer higher
and a certificate baring the Middlesex University logo
Work-based learning is equally appropriate for
education market if we are to keep our reputation for
is a great motivator,” says Paul Dougal, HR Manager,
individual learners, particularly those who have
creativity, along with our place amongst the world’s
at Hannaford.
developed a high level of on-the-job knowledge
leading knowledge economies. Organisations that
and skill. Recognised by Trinity College London,
plan for the future by leveraging the benefits of the
the professional practice suite of qualifications are
freer higher education market will be well placed to
The starting point for discussion with clients is
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to recognise the expertise that already exists within
dancer Olivia Jenkins enjoyed her BA Professional
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developed further. Being customer-led is crucial;
life as a dancer with her love of learning. Achieving
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the qualifications will mean that she can go on to
the business development team
Institute has developed in partnership with clients
undertake higher-level studies and diversify later in
E:business@mdx.ac.uk
are designed to support their business objectives.
her career. The professional practice qualifications are
Bespoke cohort training programmes
Organisations report an improvement in
also popular with those working in emerging fields
productivity from employees that have undertaken
where qualification paths and awarding bodies have
work-based projects.
not yet been established.
With learning designed
to emerge within the familiar setting of existing
Newly arrived Australian academic Peter Bryant November 2010 | The Grapevine 37
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Career Management at a glance A look at recent Career Management news
BBC’s Director of People steps down from executive board The broadcaster has announced significant changes to the structure of its boardroom.
Online Career Management Survey:
Is being made redundant an issue that currently concerns you?
Mark Thompson, the BBC’s Director General, will be implementing the restructure to streamline management boards and take steps towards the corporation’s target of reducing its senior manager paybill by 25% by the end of next year. As a result, a number of directors have stepped down
33% of you said ‘No’
from their position on the executive board including BBC’s Director of People Lucy Adams. Thompson comments: “My objective is simplification – simplifying reporting lines, simplifying structures and reducing the number of senior managers.”
67% of you said ‘Yes’
Redundancy fears still at the “forefront” of employees’ minds
Source: www.thegrapevinemagazine.com
Findings from The Protection Gap survey commissioned by Abbey Legal Protection (ALP) reveal that over a third (36%) of senior managers and almost half (42%) of executives without management responsibility identified redundancy as an existing concern. Despite this, 29% of UK CEOs claim to have no work concerns at all. Only five per cent of them labelled redundancy as a worry.
468,000
Lloyds Banking Group announces 4,500 UK job cuts
Private sector jobs could be lost due to the forthcoming state spending cuts within the next four years, according to PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC)
By the end of 2012, Lloyds Banking Group (LBG) is planning to cut 1,600 permanent jobs across its UK IT and operations divisions. Furthermore, the bank is planning to cut 1,150 UK-based temporary and contractor roles and move a further 1,750 roles offshore. LBG confirmed all affected employees have been briefed by their line manager and that the relevant unions were consulted prior to this announcement.
Most read Career Management articles online:
» Lloyds Banking Group announces 4,500 UK job cuts » Cabinet Office revises redundancy offer for civil servants » HP to cut over 1,000 UK jobs » Thomas Cook spending review to result in redundancies » BBC’s Director of People steps down from executive board To read more visit... www.thegrapevinemagazine.com
7.5% The amount Orange and T-Mobile’s UK workforce will be reduced by as a result of the company’s merger
Outplacement insight
To read the latest Outplacement insight from Right Management visit: www.thegrapevinemagazine.com November 2010 | The Grapevine 39
HDA are a Talent Management and Transition Consultancy that develops long-term relationships with clients across the private and public sectors, and has done so successfully for over 30 years. Organisations work with us because we are thought leaders, we use innovation and pragmatism to deliver against their objectives, we offer client relationship flexibility, we have an uncompromising outcomes focused approach to everything we do, and we keep our promises.
C = 50 M = 0 Y = 15 K = 5
In the Career Transition area of our business, we are working on a number of large scale projects that span the width and breadth of what we callCthe = 0Transition M = 60 Life Y = Cycle© 40 K = 30 (see diagram). We are suggesting that outplacement is not, of course, the only area of organisational transition support where we can achieveCpositive ourK = 40 = 0 Mimpact = 100 with Y = 70 clients’ employees. We take the wider view, so whether that means assessing what good looks like in order to help us make challenging people decisions, or whether we need to empower managers with the tools they need to drive through change, and even re-engaging those people in the wake of transition, we can help. Please contact us if you have any questions on this topic, and in particular if you feel your business could do with a bit of TLC! HDA is a shareholder in and founder member of CareerNet International (CNI) (http://www.careernet-international.org/), a network of career transition management and outplacement firms across Europe, North America, South America, Asia and Australasia. Via CNI, we seamlessly support international career needs, adopting local best practice standards, delivered by local experts. HDA partners with Hemsley Fraser (http://www.hemsleyfraser.co.uk) to offer exclusive access to a comprehensive selection of vocational training options across a range of its outplacement and coaching programmes. HDA’s Hemsley Fraser catalogue provides access for people in transition to approximately 250 vocational training programmes in 11 learning categories. For more information, contact Luke Butcher at HDA: Golden Cross House, 8 Duncannon Street,Strand, London, WC2N 4JF luke.butcher@hda.co.uk / T: (0) 207 484 5065
HDA
Public to Private Sector Career Transition – What are the implications following the 20th of October’s Comprehensive Spending Review announcement?
CAREER MANAGEMENT
may be impacted by this week’s CSR announcement, and who are contemplating the very personal impacts over the coming months and years, is to consider the following very personal questions: • Am I scared about a volatile future and do I prefer the stability I know, or do I see change as an opportunity to develop myself and take my career forward? • Do I actively embrace change now (eg. taking any voluntary redundancy offered), or play wait-andsee? • Do I prefer the stability of what I know or do I embrace embarking on a steep learning curve? • What is the optimal direction for my career based on my strengths, weaknesses, interests, objectives and commitments to my family? • What do I have to offer elsewhere in the public sector, or in an alternative sector, whether private or charitable – do I have transferrable skills?
Image attributed to Flickr.com user: Trodel
• Do I prefer being an employee or do I anticipate the benefits of being my own boss, albeit that I may not have been my own boss before? • As a public servant, with a strong commitment to service, can I contemplate a commitment to commercial objectives and attention to business rather than service drivers – ie. Turnover growth, profit maximisation, brand development, etc. Career Transition partners are well-placed to coach In the last financial year (2009-2010), the UK
• Education: in the short-term Education sees less of
organisations and individuals to contemplate and act
public sector budget deficit hit a record £155bn.
the ill effects of the recession. It is over the long-term
upon the answers to these questions.
October’s Comprehensive Spending Review
though that a reduction in spending will be realized,
HDA has worked with thousands of people
announcement by the Chancellor, George
meaning the equivalent of more than a 50% drop in
transitioning their careers within organisations, within
Osborne, is the result of a Treasury-led process
funds available by 2014-15.
sectors, within industries, internationally, and out of
to allocate resources across all Government
• In addition: the state pension age for men and
employment into a meaningful and economically active
departments, based on Government priorities,
women will reach 66 by the year 2020, saving over
retirement. During this time we have assisted and come
while aimed at protecting the economy.
£5 billion a year starting at the end of the next
across many successful people who have effectively
parliament. However this implies a longer working
transitioned from public sector to private sector roles,
in Parliament are:
life for many, and hence more competition for future
to become significant commercial contributors. We
• Whitehall: £6 billion of Whitehall savings, and the
job opportunities.
have also assisted them to have effectively transitioned
The headlines from last month’s announcements
core Cabinet Office budget will be reduced by £55
What this means to millions of public sector staff
from public sector to charity sector roles.
million by 2014/15;
and career public servants is that over the next four
For help and advice around Career Transition,
• Foreign Office: savings of 24% via a sharp
years, it is anticipated that almost 500,000 jobs will
please contact Luke Butcher, Director, HDA Associates
reduction in the number of Whitehall-based diplomats
be lost from the UK public sector. At a secondary level
by email on luke.butcher@hda.co.uk.
and back office functions, though the Department for
of course, this means both tougher times for those
International Development's budget will rise to £11.5
private sector businesses with business models largely
“We are very interested to hear opinions from
billion over the next four years;
devoted to supporting public sector contracts, and an
senior people (in the HR community and more
• Police: spending will fall by four per cent each
added strain to the benefits system. A volatile period
broadly) who have successfully experienced this
year of the spending settlement, while avoiding any
follows.
transition, or who have public sector to private/
The Government is confident, however, that
charity sector opinions and success stories that they
• MOD: the defence budget will reach £33.5 billion
the private sector (large businesses, SME’s and self-
would like to share. We intend to further develop
in 2014/15; implying a saving of 8%, and including a
employment) will continue to fuel the economic
our world-class online career transition service by
confirmed reduction of service personnel;
growth that will assimilate the majority of those
adding a series of online videos on the topic, and
• Local Government: cuts to local government
transitioning from public sector roles.
HDA will be delighted to incorporate interesting
reduction in the visibility of police on the streets;
opinions and referenced ‘success stories’ in our
budgets equating to 25% over the next four years,
Career public servants very often cite a commitment
with overall savings in funding to local councils of
to public service and ‘Public Sector Values’ as the
7.1%, together with an end to the ring-fencing of
reason for their chosen career, in addition to relative
all local government revenue grants from April next
stability and relative job security, (particularly under
Please contact us if you have an opinion that you
year. This will be in conjunction with the devolution of
New Labour), an attractive and stable benefits and
would like to share with us on this topic. We look
financial control to councils in order to support 2011-
retirement platform, and a clear succession path. The
forward to hearing from you. Clayton Glen, CEO,
12 reforms to local services.
challenge for public sector staff, who feel that they
HDA Associates: clayton.glen@hda.co.uk
articles, case studies and briefings.
November 2010 | The Grapevine 41
Misplaced talent
Image attributed to Flickr.com user: ilco
CAREER MANAGEMENT FEATURE
be influential in a negative way, they’ll complain,
Right talent, wrong place?
and they’ll be right, and well-informed. The last thing you want to do is leave them alone, to get bored, fed-up and go.” In business though, how often does the Little Voice scenario occur, and can a prodigious talent really be lost in the stationary department?
Is an employee still ‘talent’ if they’re in the wrong role, and is some talent not worth the hassle?
Moreover, is it the manager’s responsibility alone to identify if an individual may be better suited to a different role, regardless of their performance? “No,” says Tim Drake, Head of UK Talent Management at solutions provider
Good people can do a very good job, but
position or fallen victim to restructuring, and
Hudson; “real potential will always find a way
it is the talent manager’s prerogative
the population of misplaced talent becomes a
to deliver and demonstrate high performance,
to understand if they could be doing a
serious management concern.
whatever the barrier or block. However,
better one elsewhere. More than that,
Although having over-skilled workers may
technology can provide an objective insight
it is the talent manager’s job to see an
seem like an attractive proposition, the reality
into potential obscured by lack of engagement
underperformer and release their potential,
is very different. Richard Alberg, CEO of online
and poor line management, and technology
finding a role for the talent, rather than
outplacement and jobs site MyWorkSearch.com
can be an efficient and effective first sweep
the other way around. Many businesses
agrees: “If you have someone who is not very
for potential before the more rigorous process
have good talent, without even knowing it,
good, it’s annoying and inconvenient, so you
of engagement and retention bringing in HR
and could be losing productivity with these
manage them out. If you have someone good
and the individual.”
misplaced staff, or even fast-tracking their
and you don’t have a role for them, the only
One of the biggest challenges for most
way to losing the staff themselves.
responsible thing you can do is manage their
organisations is when it is easier for people to
exit as smoothly as possible.”
progress their career outside the organisation.
The obvious way to avoid this is by having good quality metrics alongside a
The aura that surrounds talent has an
As Matthew Parker, CEO of StepStone Solutions
deep understanding of the workforce. With
obvious influence on their colleagues. A
notes, “we’ve seen organisations hire payroll
the recession having forced people into jobs
disengaged talent can bring an entire team
clerks in one side of the business and fire
they might have avoided in better times, and
down. “The last thing you want is a talented,
payroll clerks in another. Paying for redundancy
altering the demands on existing roles, the
capable, disengaged person,”
UK is carrying a layer of individuals who may
explains Alberg, “because
be overqualified and under-motivated, or
there is a real risk that they
even in the entirely wrong sector. Add to this
will become a very effective
those people who may have outgrown their
ineffective person. They can
42 The Grapevine | November 2010
“real potential will always find a way to deliver and demonstrate high performance, whatever the barrier or block”
Outplacement advice that opens doors. $IIRUGDEOH Ă H[LEOH DVVLVWDQFH for all your employees. Designing and managing a redundancy program is never a pleasant task. DLJtĹ˝ĆŒĹŹ^ÄžÄ‚ĆŒÄ?Ĺš Ĺ˝ÄŤÄžĆŒĆ? Ä‚ Ç€Ĺ?Ä‚Ä?ĹŻÄž ĂŜĚ ŇĞdžĹ?Ä?ĹŻÄž Ä‚ĹŻĆšÄžĆŒĹśÄ‚Ć&#x;ǀĞ ƚŽ ƚŚĞ ĹšĹ?Ĺ?Ĺš Ä?Ĺ˝Ć?Ćš ŽƾƚƉůĂÄ?ĞžĞŜƚ Ć?ÄžĆŒÇ€Ĺ?Ä?ÄžĆ? Ä?ĆľĆŒĆŒÄžĹśĆšĹŻÇ‡ ĂǀĂĹ?ĹŻÄ‚Ä?ĹŻÄžÍ˜
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Continuously updated DQG H[SDQGHG 25,000 users already and growing fast.
ŽŜƚĂÄ?Ćš ĆľĆ? ƚŽĚĂLJ Ä¨Ĺ˝ĆŒ Ä‚ Ä?ŽŜĎĚĞŜĆ&#x;Ä‚ĹŻ ÄšĹ?Ć?Ä?ĆľĆ?Ć?Ĺ?ŽŜ ĂŜĚ ÄšĹ?Ć?Ä?Ĺ˝Ç€ÄžĆŒ ĹšĹ˝Ç Ĺ˝ĆľĆŒ Ä?Ĺ˝ĹľĆ‰ĆŒÄžĹšÄžĹśĆ?Ĺ?ǀĞ ŽŜůĹ?ŜĞ Ć?ŽůƾĆ&#x;ŽŜ Ä?ŽƾůĚ ŚĞůƉ LJŽƾ Ĺ?ĹľĆ‰ĆŒĹ˝Ç€Äž ƚŚĞ Ć?ĆľĆ‰Ć‰Ĺ˝ĆŒĆš LJŽƾ Ä?Ä‚Ĺś Ĺ˝ÄŤÄžĆŒ ƚŽ ĞžƉůŽLJĞĞĆ? Ä‚ÄŤÄžÄ?ƚĞĚ Ä?LJ ĆŒÄžÄšĆľĹśÄšÄ‚ĹśÄ?LJ͘ myworksearch.co.uk/employer
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CAREER MANAGEMENT FEATURE
Misplaced talent
and hiring, that’s just poor communication and organisation.” Parker notes an internal promotions situation he dealt with recently. “When we have a specific role to fill, it’s important that everybody that could be considered is considered. You have to have transparency, and everyone has to be able to stand, really get involved in the process and engage with the results.” Metrics are great at spotting performance figures and charting progress and potential. But if a person is in the wrong role, the initial progress necessary to begin forming a development plan could never appear. If an employee is disengaged and performing below the average standard, how can metrics spot that talent for an entirely different role? As Gareth Chick, Director at consultancy Spring Partnerships, notes, they can’t. “Most appraisal
processes
are
geared
towards
‘performance’ rather than seeking hidden skills and talent.” Leaving aside the facts that most appraisals are run by time-strapped managers and executed poorly, he says, “leaders need to generate a culture of possibility and opportunity, rather than exert short-term pressure.” While we are all familiar with the idea of breaking silos, internal moves should be encouraged for those not performing, as well as future leaders. “We seem to believe that it is either too Image attributed to SXC user: ilco
easy or too indulgent to recruit people who are passionate. Managers are trying to get people to perform in roles that they simply don’t find challenging, interesting, or are qualified to execute. Just how stressful do we want to make it for people?” he asks. That process may reveal that good people are not the right people. A football team cannot play with eleven of the world’s best goalkeepers,
to manage.”
“Retaining good employees today is hard
nor can a disruptive if individually brilliant player
Better managers is a disturbingly simple
enough, let alone having to determine which
be of overall benefit to the team. If you have
answer, if not an easy one, to the problem of
ones you coach out of the business,” she notes,
spotted talent, but can’t find the space for them
talent in the wrong place. If management work
“and if there are not enough jobs for the skilled
or add a stretch assignment without burning
towards understanding their staff personally,
people that only reinforces the value of talent
them out, or if your structure is extremely rigid
their background and their expertise, what
management: the people you have should
and the roles cannot be made to accommodate
inspires them and what they do without
directly correlate to business needs.”
the talent (rather than the other way around),
encouragement, the organisation can harness
then you have to encourage them to make their
these less obvious strengths.
escape.
Page-Thompson explains how robust talent profiling can iron out many of the problems with
Workforce planning is making progress in
succession planning and lost talent: “Ultimately,
When dealing with stuck, surplus talent,
this field. “We can enable organisations to take
if we want to take succession planning past
Alberg points out that metrics are useful,
a profile of their employee base and identify
an exclusive club we have to take seriously
but only if used alongside a proper talent
the opportunities those people have taken
the subtle but critical distinction between
plan: “There are capable individuals who
outside as well as inside the business,” says
succession planning – charting names – and
lack the self-assurance to recognise they
Brooke Page-Thompson, Peopleclick Authoria
succession management. It is simply impossible
could be doing more. Management needs
Solutions Consultant. “Through the talent
to have armies of organisational development
to understand what their talent picture
profile of each employee, the organisation can
professionals mining entire organisations for
looks like and any organisation with a good
get a highlighted picture of what the employee
talent, and people just get blocked by mixed
performance management system should be
brings from past experiences, key skills and
managers in a hierarchical model. People
obtaining data indicating ‘stuck’ individuals.
competencies, so organisations can do a talent
should be judged by their fitness for a purpose
Sometimes technology can be an abrogation
search for critical roles in the future as well as
or project, not by who they report to or what
of responsibility, and your managers are paid
any current gaps.
they happen to be working on this week.”
44 The Grapevine | November 2010
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Trade Unions
Trade Unions and HR Gail Cartmail is one of the country’s leading figures in the industrial relations and Trades Union movement. She is currently Assistant General Secretary at Unite. Members of the HR networking group, The London HR Connection, were treated to a fascinating presentation from Gail Cartmail at their latest meeting. Cartmail began by relating how a pre-election public opinion survey by Ipsos-MORI found significantly more people trusted trade union officials to tell the truth when compared to business leaders or politicians. With the
per cent, directly as a result of collective bargaining.
is, for instance, no doubt that unions and business
backdrop of speculation about the trade union
In 2008, Cartmail continued, nearly 250,000 union
showed incredible ingenuity during the height of
response to the much trailed Comprehensive
members were helped into learning, literacy and
the recession on issues such as short-time-working,
Spending Review and austerity measures – a
numeracy, ICT skills and CPD with support from
with hours supplemented by training backed by
potential 21st Century ‘winter of discontent’
24,000 Union Learning Reps and over 400 learning
government. Industrial activism as developed by
- Cartmail argued that trade unions and HR
centres, and, where employers have trade union
the last government, according to Cartmail, helped
professionals have an important joint role to
health and safety committees, there is around half
keep companies afloat, enabling solutions to emerge
play in modern Britain.
the injury rate compared with employers who do
from IR dialogue between management and trade
Job cuts will define the HR and industrial relations
not. Additionally, Cartmail said, many in HR will have
unions.
agenda in the short- and medium-term, she said,
worked with unions on building greener workplaces
adding that voicing concern about the damage of
and reducing carbon emissions.
She said that globalisation is this century’s greatest threat to industrial relations, presiding over a
unemployment to the economy is the responsibility
These are just a few examples, she explained, of
race to the bottom on pay and employment benefits.
of not just trade unions but economists, HR experts
where trade unions are improving the world of work
She noted the foreign takeovers at Fiat and Cadbury’s
and anyone interested in decent work and a more
- ‘the union advantage’. Yet, she said, we are still
and pointed to the subsequent job losses that this
equal society.
asked: ‘are unions too strong’? A mark of democracy,
will almost inevitably entail.
If the polls are to be believed, the majority of the
she argued, is genuinely free and independent trade
Cartmail concluded with the point that Unions
UK’s population agree the deficit must be tackled and
unions with workers having the right to exercise the
make a difference; the union advantage is of
spending cuts are necessary. But opinion is beginning
ultimate sanction – the withdrawal of their labour
mutual benefit to employees and employers alike,
to shift, said Cartmail. Those most disillusioned by
– that, to the majority, is still a last resort. In 2009,
and it is both the government’s intervention on the
the coalition’s speedy and deep cuts, according to
less than 500,000 working days were lost in the UK,
economy – in their terms, ‘reducing the deficit’ –
recent polls, are the working women whose income
compared with 27 million in 1984 and 29 million
and globalisation that are most likely to create
is currently paying for 72% of the Emergency
in 1979.
conditions of resentment and uncertainty. She
Budget.
Cartmail warns that discontent among the more
added that HR professionals and CIPD members are
Cartmail contended that there is a severe danger
densely unionised public sector will reverse this
likely to give good advice that may go unheeded
that recent proof of mature industrial relations
decline. The TUC has said it will assist unions in co-
in the hothouse of polarised national debate, and
and the positive impact of trade unions on British
ordinating industrial action if required to defend jobs
that as all public sector workers and contractors are
society and the economy may be swept aside by a
and services. With a two- or three-year pay freeze,
being told they will have to do much more, for much
debate polarised by attitudes and actions targeted
inflation between four and five per cent, VAT at
less, HR practitioners and CIPD members may also
at reducing the deficit.
20%, the OBR’s predicted 1.3 million job losses and
need a union voice as their capacity is increasingly
She then explained how, on average, union
the Hutton Review of Public Sector pensions – on top
challenged.
members earn over 12.5% more per hour than
of other austerity measures – she believes that unrest
non-union members and a fifth of all employees in
is a strong possibility.
the private sector enjoy a premium of around ten
46 The Grapevine | November 2010
But, she said, we can work together on this. There
CityHR
From talent pool to talent puddle the ongoing skill shortages in the city The political and public backlash following
are not an easy mix of skills to find!
markets. Recent indications however suggest
the global financial crisis put the role of
Risk is obviously very high on the agenda.
that job losses may well be back on the agenda.
investment and corporate bankers (and their
The regulators are scrutinising the ways in which
Nevertheless we do not expect to see this affecting
pay) very firmly in the spotlight – and not for
financial institutions are managing risk not just in
the availability of quality talent and there will still
the best reasons! However, the fact remains
terms of improving risk management processes but
be competition for the very best players.
that the financial services sector is at the very
also in terms of liquidity ratios. This has led to an
Added to this issue is an EU Directive in the
heart of our economy.
increase in demand for skills within market and
offing, which plans to defer as much as 60% of
In fact, in the recent Government Spending
operational risk. Additionally, within the corporate
bankers’ bonuses by up to five years. Half of these
Review, George Osborne said that: “Many
banking environment, employers should not
bonuses would also be linked to bank share prices.
hundreds of thousands of jobs across the whole
be lulled into a false sense of security about the
In response to the EU legislation linking the size of
United Kingdom depend on Britain being a
availability of corporate credit analysts and well-
bonuses to base pay, the draft regulations call for a
competitive place for financial services.”
The
rounded relationship managers. There is already a
maximum ratio between salary and bonuses which
changing landscape of regulatory reform though
short supply of these particular skill sets and while
will lead to banks having to completely restructure
is leading to demand for a whole new breed of
this may be masked by the fact that lending activity
their pay policies. Already we are seeing several
professional in areas such as risk management,
has remained at a low level, once that changes the
institutions pay part of any bonus in share options
compliance and regulation – all key to ensuring
shortage will become even more acute.
which cannot be vested for between three and
that the UK remains competitive as an international
Additionally, with investment banking and
five years. As a result banks are unable to buy out
capital markets underpinning the redevelopment
contracts as readily as in the past and movement of
In compliance for example, we have a double
of the financial sector, it is imperative that we have
talent is already becoming more restricted.
whammy. Firstly, there is a shortage of people
the right talent available to enable an effective
Taking all of this into account it is clear that the
with the right technical skills around not only the
adaptation to this changing environment. Within
shortage of talent will have to be carefully managed
general areas of compliance and regulation but also
treasury functions for example, the development
with banks looking at tracking, development and
the hot potato of corporate governance and how
of foreign exchange e-trading platforms is evolving
retention. In addition, this is a global marketplace
that is managed within a banking environment.
so quickly – particularly among some of the more
and it is very easy for candidates to pursue their
Secondly, while, historically, the compliance role
‘boutique’ players who are now joining up to
careers internationally. If we are to keep our very
may have been viewed by the front office as a
develop new platforms – that it is difficult to
best skill sets in London we need to act now to
hindrance to executing business, today the function
see where the real talent lies. Consequently, the
reinforce the City’s reputation as the premier
is far more of a business partnering role – a role
importance of having a recruitment strategy which
financial centre. The wait-and-see approach just
that needs to be front office-facing and solutions-
helps you to track and map that talent network
isn’t an option.
led. Again, this is a rare commodity. Technical
is crucial.
financial services centre.
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ability, an understanding of complex corporate
We saw a real feeding frenzy for talent within
governance and competencies such as relationship
the investment banking sector in the first half of
banking recruitment specialists JJ Associates
management and collaboration across the business
the year, driven by a recovery in equity and debt
www.jj-associates.co.uk November 2010 | The Grapevine 47
EMPLOyMENT LAW
Employment law DRA scrappage putting businesses at risk, warns IoD The Coalition Government’s plans to abolish the Default Retirement Age (DRA) will have a detrimental effect on businesses. This is according to the Institute of Directors (IoD), who argue that without required redundancies it will lead to forced dismissals, bringing with them a negative effect on morale, management time and business performance. The IoD feels that without having retirement as a reason for releasing older underperformers, this will demotivate managers, colleagues and those let go. The IoD also argue that the abolition of the DRA will result in people being released earlier than 65 and suggest that instead of abolishing the DRA completely the government should gradually increase it in conjunction with the average life expectancy.
Ex-MP pays £35,000 for bullying office manager Former Labour MP Jim Devine has been ordered to pay £35,000 in legal fees after a period of harassment towards his former office manager. Devine originally persuaded a friend to conduct a hoax call to Marion Kinley enquiring about her salary. He then addressed her himself to explain the enquiries were due to allegations that they were having an affair. After a day Kinley discovered it was all a lie and then wrote a letter of grievance and signed off sick. The ex-MP continued his malicious falsehoods by telling Kinley’s colleagues that she wasn’t at work due to enquiries into fraud that were a result
of a gambling addiction. Devine didn’t attend the tribunal and Kinley was favoured on all counts.
Union debates CBI’s strike law proposals The lobbying organisation for UK business has called for changes in employment law in order to prevent a predicted increase in strike action. The Confederation of British Industry’s (CBI) report entitled Keeping the wheels turning: modernising the legal framework of industrial relation calls for measures to be put in place that will tighten ballot rules and allow businesses to run smoother during industrial action. The study suggests that, due to the Coalition
Stephen Levinson Solicitor and partner
Government’s spending cuts, more strikes could take place in the public sector and so ballot thresholds, increased noticed and wildcat strike preventions should be put in place. As well as this, CBI wants to legalise agency temporary workers during strike periods – which has been illegal since 2004.
60% of wealthy individuals plan to keep working and “shun” the idea of a retirement age, according to research from Barclays Wealth
Wednesday. The letter was delivered on Thursday but the employee was away. She had travelled to London to visit her sister who had just had a baby. She returned home late on the Sunday and made no enquiry about post. It was only on the Monday she asked about the post and her boyfriend’s son produced it from “among his homework papers.” And the letter was then read. The employer argued at one stage that the dismissal was when the letter was written and posted, as that was when the conduct was accepted as
Can you be dismissed without your knowledge? This was the issue
repudiating the contract. At a later stage they said that it was when the
confronting the Supreme Court in Gisda Cyf v Barratt [2010] UKSC 41.
employee had had a reasonable opportunity to read the letter.
The employee was dismissed summarily for inappropriate behaviour at
The decision went in favour of the employee. The Supreme Court was
a private party (tantalisingly unspecified). A disciplinary meeting was
firmly of the view that what was required was actual knowledge and not
held and the decision deferred. The employer notified the employee by
deemed or constructive knowledge which might have been applicable had
letter that she had been summarily dismissed. The date was important
this been a commercial contract.
because the time limit for bringing an unfair dismissal claim runs from
The Court might have decided differently had it been held that the
“the effective date of termination”. This could have been the date the
employee had been away deliberately to avoid receiving the letter. No such
letter was written and posted, the date it was delivered or the date
finding was made. The court was also influenced by the fact that dismissal
it was opened and read. The significance was that if it had been any
is a momentous event for the employee and the period to bring claims is
time but when it was opened and read the unfair dismissal claim was
relatively short.
presented out of time. What had happened was that the letter was expected on a Thursday. The employee knew it was coming and it was sent by recorded delivery on
48 The Grapevine | November 2010
So if you are an employer and you need to be certain that an employee is aware of dismissal the best advice is to hold a face-to face interview and avoid any doubt.
INDEX OF COMPANIES
INDEX of companies Abbey Legal Protection............................................. 39
First Choice................................................................IFC
myexecutivecareer.com.............................................12
ACAS............................................................................18
Frazer Jones................................................................19
MyWorkSearch....................................................42, 43
Advorto........................................................................ 21
Google..................................................................... 9, 19
Ochre House.............................................................. 27
Antal International.......................................................19
HDA............................................................................. 40
Orange......................................................................... 39
appraisal 360.............................................................. 30
Hannaford................................................................... 45
PEER1.......................................................................... 21
Archer Mathieson........................................................17
Hays..............................................................................19
Peopleclick Authoria...........................................42, BC
Armstrong Craven.......................................................19
HB International.......................................................... 22
Previsor.................................................................28, 29
Association of Executive Search Consultants........ 45
Healthshield...................................................................9
Pricewaterhouse Coopers..................................33, 39
Barclays Wealth......................................................... 48
Heidrick & Struggles.................................................. 26
QVC..............................................................................11
BBC............................................................................. 39
Hewlett Packard......................................................... 45
RadcliffesLeBrasseur................................................ 48
Bosch...........................................................................11
Hoggett Bowers..........................................................19
Right Management.................................................... 39
Boyden..................................................................20, 26
Hudson........................................................................ 40
Said.................................................................................6
BT........................................................................... 19, 34
Human Factors International ................................... 35
Santander....................................................................19
Cambridgeshire & Peterborough NHS Foundation
Insala........................................................................... 38
Sodexo.........................................................................10
Institute of Directors................................................... 48
Spring Partnerships . ................................................ 42
Investors in People......................................................13
Starbucks.................................................................... 33
JJ Associates..............................................................47
Stepstone Solutions............................................35, 40
JVMN..............................................................................9
Sunday Times................................................................7
Kenexa...................................................................32, 33
TalentLens................................................................. IBC
KnowledgeAdvisors................................................... 34
Taleo............................................................................ 34
Korn/Ferry ................................................................. 26
The Body Shop.............................................. 14, 15, 16
Lloyds Banking Group . ............................................ 39
T-Mobile...................................................................... 39
London HR Connection............................................ 46
Toshiba........................................................................ 44
L’Oréal.............................................................. 14, 15, 16
Trades Union Congress............................................. 33
Marks & Spencer........................................................ 34
Transport for London................................................. 50
Trust............................................................................. 34 Capita.......................................................................... 35 Centre for Economics and Business Research...... 33 Channel 4.................................................................... 35 Chartered Institute of Educational Assessors........ 45 City HR Association....................................................47 Confederation of British Industry............................. 48 CTPartners...................................................................19 Development Processes Group................................13 eBay Classifieds Group............................................. 22 eg. 1........................................................................ 19,26 Elements......................................................................19 eploy...................................................................... 24, 25 Equality and Human Rights Commission..................8 Eversheds......................................................................8
– editorial – business writer chris erasmus ONLINE STAFF WRITER Dion Dassanayake Senior Editorial assistant Rachel Leigh editorial Assistant CALUM DI LIETO Senior GRAPHIC & web DESIGN Ross Anthony GRAPHIC DESIGN VICKY ODELL
McLaren.......................................................................10
TUI Travel.....................................................................19
Metashift........................................................................9
Unite............................................................................ 46
Middlesex University ................................................ 36
Universum....................................................................19
Ministry of Defence.................................................... 45
Viadeo......................................................................... 20
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November 2010 | The Grapevine 49
A DAY IN THE LIFE OF...
A day in the life of…
Frank Douglas Group Human Resources Director
had normal service except for a minor delay on the
the Transport Commissioner, have declined taking
District line due to a signalling incident.
their performance awards in 2010. We find a solution
This week our newly hired graduates start their
with the letters that allows us to ensure they reflect
careers in TfL. We held a welcoming reception for
the culture of the different operating modes that we
them at the London Transport Museum and I was
have.
the opening speaker. I congratulated them on being
Next, I’m off to a meeting of the Strategic Executive
chosen into one of the best graduate programmes
Group. This is the direct report to the Commissioner of
in the transport sector. We retain over 80% of our
TfL, Peter Hendy, which meets quarterly to discuss the
graduates after five years. I advised them that they will
key strategic issues facing the organisation. Today the
never be alone at social gatherings once friends know
Human Resources item on the agenda is a discussion
they work for TfL. With over 1 billion journeys a year,
regarding the impact of the new Equality Act. Given
we have touched the lives of most Londoners at some
that we had been anticipating most of the legislative
point, in any given year. After wishing them well, I dash
changes for the last year, I was glad to inform the
back to my office for a 10:00am meeting.
Executive Group that TfL was already ahead of the
There I attend a meeting to discuss the strategic
game and the Act would have very minimal changes
issues facing our Capital Projects Directorate. We
to our policies. In addition, we also discussed the fact
have a capital programme in excess of £10 billion to
that TfL has been in the forefront of conducting Equal
upgrade the Underground; this is, outside of the oil
Pay Reviews (EPR). We have conducted three EPR’s
companies, probably the largest capital expenditure
since 2004 and plan to conduct another in 2011. As
programme in Europe. As such, we want to make
such, the debate about mandatory or voluntary EPR’s
sure that we have the right organisation structure and
would not impact us. Indeed, a report written for the
leadership capabilities to execute this programme. I
government by independent think-tank Opportunity
constantly remind external commentators that while
Now identified TfL as an ‘exemplary employer’ for how
we received a large amount of public funding, we
we are or were tackling the (gender) pay gap. We also
employ some engineering staff that could just as
discussed implementing a ‘best practice’ approach
My day starts at about 6:30am when I turn
easily be working for us as building a dam in China
to adhering to our policies related to Hospitality and
on the radio to listen to the major ‘talk radio’
or a high-speed railroad in California. Therefore, we
Gifts.
station in London. There is rarely a day where
have to ensure we are world-class in all aspects of our
At around 4:00pm I have a meeting with the
transportation in London is not in the news.
Capital programmes, including our reward structure
Chairman of the Chartered Institute of Personnel and
Between the new Barclays cycle hire scheme, a
and leadership capabilities.
Development (CIPD). I was appointed to the board of
recent strike on the Tube and the potential impact
In between meetings, my reward team would
the CIPD in May am was meeting with the board to
of the Spending Review – Transport for London
like an unplanned ten minute meeting. We are in
get a better understanding of the strategic challenges
(TfL) rarely is not in the news. As a result, I get
the process of notifying our senior managers of their
facing the CIPD and how I could contribute in my role
a good feel for what is on our customers’ (the
performance-related pay this week and we need to
as a Non-Executive Director.
travelling public) mind. I then head down to catch
resolve some issues related to the distribution of over
After a couple of hours of reviewing emails,
the District line train into St. James’s Station.
1,200 letters. In recognition of the current economic
I am then off to the annual awards dinner held by
Every morning there is an operational update from
climate and as part of TfL’s £5 billion efficiency drive,
Race for Opportunity. I board the District line train at
the London Underground operations team at 08:30am.
some senior staff salaries have been frozen for a second
11:00pm, to head home and start all over again in
I dial into the conference call and today the network
consecutive year and TfL Chief Officers, along with
the morning.
50 The Grapevine | November 2010
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