Talent Edge Weekly - Issue #124

Covers The U.S. Supreme Court’s June 24 decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, pre-quitting behaviors, the 9-box talent review, workforce planning, and the C-suites role in wellbeing.

June 26, 2022

Welcome to this week’s issue of Talent Edge Weekly—the weekly newsletter for human resources practitioners, bringing together insights about work, the workplace, and the workforce from various sources.

If you find value in this issue or any of its resources, please share them with your network by using the social media icons at the top of the newsletter.

Have a great week, and I look forward to sharing more ideas in next week’s Edge!

Brian 

Brian Heger is a human resources practitioner with a Fortune 150 organization and has responsibilities for Strategic Talent and Workforce Planning. To connect with Brian on Linkedin, click here.

THIS WEEK'S CONTENT

  • How Organizations Are Responding to Roe vs Wade | Various Sources | Shares a few examples of how organizations are responding to The U.S. Supreme Court’s June 24 decision to overturn Roe v. Wade.

  • A Measurement Scale of Pre-quitting Behaviors | People + Strategy | A 13-item survey that helps managers measure the extent to which employees on their teams are a high-retention risk.

  • It’s Not About the Boxes: The 9-box Grid and What Really Matters | The Talent Strategy Group | Marc Effron | Covers ideas on how a tool's ability to differentiate employee potential is less about the "number of boxes" and more about whether the tool facilitates an accurate conversation about an individual's potential. Three bonus articles are provided.

  • Two Resources for Driving Strategic Workforce Planning Through Scenario Planning | Xplane and Gartner | Provides a one-page template and 60+ questions that can be used as organizations envision and prepare for possible alternative futures they may face.

  • The C-suite's Role in Workforce Wellbeing | Deloitte Insights | Shares ideas on how executives can improve workplace wellness by first developing a more accurate understanding of the wellbeing needs of their workers.  

THIS WEEK'S EDGE

The U.S. Supreme Court’s June 24 decision to overturn Roe v. Wade has profound implications for organizations and their workers. And while these implications are many and far-reaching, a few of the HR-related implications range from: a) the impact on how employers will change employer health benefits to b) the ability to recruit workers, especially those whose organizations are based in states that will ban abortion immediately or very quickly with Roe overturned. Regarding the former, a few examples of organizations that have responded include 1) Amazon said it would cover up to $4,000 in travel expenses each year for non-life-threatening medical treatments, including abortions, beginning in January.  2) Google not only announced that its U.S. benefits plan and health insurance will cover out-of-state medical procedures that are not available where an employee lives and works, but also Googlers can apply for relocation without justification; nonetheless, “those overseeing the process will be aware of the situation.” 3) Apparel maker Patagonia said it would cover abortion care costs for employees, as well as training and bail for those who “peacefully protest for reproductive justice.” With many Chief People Officers continuing to play a more significant role in shaping and articulating their organizations’ narrative on environmental, social, and governance (ESG) issues, they will need to guide company leaders as they make and communicate decisions about this critical topic.  

I mentioned in a post last week that employee retention continues to be a top concern of many leaders. In that post, I shared a template by Jo-Ann Garbutt that includes 18 questions managers can use to raise their awareness of the factors that influence employee retention risk. A few sample questions include: 1) Do I invite and encourage contrary views to my ideas from this person? 2) Do I understand why this employee has chosen to work here and not at another company? 3) Do I understand if the working environment fits well with this employee’s personal and career needs? To supplement that tool, here is another resource that helps managers assess employee retention risk. The tool, The Cues of Turnover Scale (CoTS), is a 13-item survey where managers indicate the extent to which they have observed certain behaviors of the employee during the last 2 to 3 months. Using a five-point rating scale (from 1=strongly disagree to 5=strongly agree), managers rate employees' on behavioral statements such as 1) Their work productivity has decreased more than usual, 2) They have acted less like a team player than usual. 3) They have expressed dissatisfaction with their current job more frequently than usual. As a benchmark, employees with average scores of 4.2 or higher have a risk of turnover more than two times the typical employee. Even if managers don’t complete the assessment, the statements bring awareness to the behaviors that often precede an employee's decision to leave an organization.

Many organizations conduct talent reviews to uncover talent gaps, identify high-potential employees, and inform succession planning. And as noted in this new article by Marc Effron, organizations continue to grapple with what tool they should use to guide talent review discussions, including the classic 9-box of performance and potential. Marc notes that when asked what the optimal tool is for a talent review discussion, his reply is “it doesn’t matter as long as it facilitates an accurate conversation about an individual’s performance and potential.” Regardless of how many “boxes” an organization includes as part of its tool, Marc provides suggestions, such as ensuring that the definition of any one box feels unique and separate from the others and avoiding complex labels and definitions that don’t provide value. Other ideas are discussed, and you can check out some of Marc’s other articles on this topic, including 1) Potential After the Pandemic - which addresses the question: should we change how we define and measure potential to align with the changing nature of work and the workplace? 2) Rethinking Potential: Should We Search for Hidden Gems, Shy-Po’s and Repressed Performers? - touches on how to ensure that those with significant potential—but less vocal about career advancement—don’t get overlooked.  3) Six Steps to Great Talent Reviews - which dives into ways to overcome challenges to executing effective talent reviews, such as overly complex processes and no follow-up.

As organizations prioritize strategic workforce planning (SWP), scenario planning can help improve the effectiveness of their SWP efforts. Scenario planning (SP) helps envision, describe, and plan for possible—but alternative—futures an organization may face. These scenarios are generated by considering factors such as economic growth, labor market conditions, and the introduction of new technologies, to name a few. Leaders use these scenarios to determine each scenario’s talent implications and responses. Two resources that can help organizations with this effort include: 1) This previously shared one-page editable PDF by Xplane that helps organizations identify four “what-if” scenarios they may face in the future, define the “conditions” that would trigger each, and develop a response for each scenario. The four scenarios include: a) A “Go Faster” scenario for accelerated growth, b) A “Pump the Brakes” scenario for responding to a foreseeable decline in revenue and a need to conserve resources, c) A “Stop the Car” scenario where firms respond to significant shifts in strategy to ensure sustainability in the face of adversity, and d) A “Break Glass” scenario in the face of a crisis that will require significant efforts for business survival. 2) Gartner’s Scenario Implication Diagnostic provides over 60 diagnostic questions to help understand the implications of internal and external factors that can inform different scenarios. HR leaders and their teams can use these resources to determine how SWP responses will vary for different scenarios.  

Wellbeing at work is considered a top priority for many organizations. However, despite investments in employee wellbeing (EWB), many organizations have yet to make meaningful progress in this critical area. This lack of progress is being felt by employees at all levels, including nearly 70% of executives surveyed by Deloitte, who say they are seriously considering quitting for a job that better supports their wellbeing. And while executives share sentiments with the rest of the workforce regarding the lack of progress in EWB, the survey shows that executives significantly overestimate how well their employees are doing and how supported they feel by their leaders. This article shares ideas on how executives can improve workplace wellness by first developing a more accurate understanding of the wellbeing needs of their workers  In case you missed it, check out the Mckinsey Health Institute’s article, Addressing Employee Burnout: Are You Solving the Right Problem? The article covers how many efforts around wellness and wellbeing fail to address the organizational causes of burnout—one factor that undermines wellness. The authors offer eight targeted questions that leaders can use to help identify systemic causes of burnout in their organizations. 

CHRO APPOINTMENT OF THE WEEK

This past week, 27 Chief Human Resources Officer announcements were posted on CHROs on the Go – a subscription that provides the easiest way to stay informed about CHRO hires, promotions, and resignations. This week's CHRO highlight is:

To learn how to gain access to all 27 detailed Chief Human Resources Officer announcements from this past week and +1600 archived announcements, visit CHROs on the Go .

If you are already a member of CHROs on the Go, you can log in to access all announcements and site functionality.

MOST SHARED RESOURCE FROM LAST WEEK

Offers resources for accelerating a CHRO transition into a new role, such as a transition plan, questions the Board asks about talent, and considerations for evaluating the effectiveness of HR team members.

TWEET OF THE WEEK

BOOK RECOMMENDATIONS

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Partial View of Recommendations. Click Image to See All Books

OUR RESOURCE LINEUP

​​brianheger.com provides free access to +1,000 curated articles, research reports, podcasts, etc. that help practitioners drive better business results through strategic human resources and talent management.

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​Talent Edge Weekly is a free weekly newsletter that brings together the best talent and strategic human resources insights from various sources. It is published every Sunday at 6PM EST.