Talent Edge Weekly - Issue #255

Scientific studies on work from home, 5 company examples of talent and workplace practices, metrics for high potentials, scenario planning and workforce planning, and women in the workplace.

Author

Brian Heger
August 25, 2024

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Welcome to this week’s issue of Talent Edge Weekly!

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THIS WEEK'S CONTENT

Below is a quick overview with links and brief descriptions of the topics covered in this issue. If you're interested in my deep dive, including bonus resources, you can read the full newsletter.

Also, check out my job cuts tracker & Chief HR Officer hire of the week.

Let’s dive in! ⬇️

THIS WEEK'S EDGE 

REMOTE AND HYBRID WORK

Summarizes the emerging scientific research on WFH and hybrid work to help leaders make decisions based on facts versus opinion.

Over the past several months, I’ve shared research from the emerging scientific literature on remote and hybrid work to help leaders make more informed return-to-office (RTO) decisions. In this context, this new paper by Marc Effron significantly advances the discussion by anchoring the debate around work-from-office (WFO), work-from-home (WFH), and hybrid work in robust scientific evidence, moving beyond mere opinions. It dispels four common myths about WFO preferences, such as the misconception that CEOs who prefer WFO are control freaks or that RTO mandates are solely about real estate. The paper examines how different work arrangements impact five key areas: performance, creativity, innovation, work relationships, and collaboration. For instance, studies show mixed results on performance, with some indicating decreased productivity in WFH settings, especially in certain roles and industries, while others find little difference or even gains depending on the context. WFH may weaken work relationships and reduce employee networks, though this varies. Limited research on collaboration suggests a potential decline in quality in WFH settings. The article provides greater detail on each of the five outcomes. While research on WFO and WFH is still emerging, the more familiar HR practitioners are with scientific studies, the better they can influence business leaders to make decisions based on evidence rather than opinion or anecdotal information.

HR AND WORKPLACE PRACTICES

My one-page summary showcasing how 5 organizations have implemented various talent and workplace practices—from internal talent marketplaces to new ways of working.

Staying informed about how organizations implement various talent and workplace practices is crucial for inspiring improvements in our own approaches and learning from their experiences. However, with so many topics to explore, finding relevant case studies can be overwhelming. To help fellow practitioners navigate this landscape, I’ve created this one-page cheat sheet highlighting five distinct examples from Johnson & Johnson, Booz Allen Hamilton, IBM, Novartis, and AT&T. Each case study offers unique insights and practical examples of HR and workplace practices, such as AI and skills, internal talent marketplaces, AI in HR, mental health benefits, and new ways of working. For example, IBM's AI-powered AskHR digital assistant now handles 94% of HR FAQs worldwide, reducing task completion time by over 75%. AT&T optimized its tools, processes, and ways of working using employee survey feedback, saving 3.6 million hours and over $230 million over the past 3.5 years. Novartis found that normalizing discussions about colleagues' struggles, regardless of severity, increased participation in mental health support programs by up to 8%. This summary will help you quickly identify the examples most relevant to your interests. To access the source documents, click on the company logos in the PDF.

TALENT REVIEWS AND METRICS

My cheat sheet of example metrics to assess how effectively an organization identifies, develops, and retains its future leaders.

Assessing the impact of an organization's talent review process on key outcomes is crucial for effective talent management. While talent reviews drive many results, a critical focus should be on high-potential (HiPo) employees—specifically, how well the process identifies, develops, and retains future leaders. Here is my one-page cheat sheet of nine example metrics related to HiPos. These metrics might not be an exact fit for your organization, but they offer a solid foundation to build on. For example, HiPo Performance Consistency tracks the stability of HiPo employees' performance ratings over time, especially as they take on new roles or responsibilities. Purpose of the metric: ensures that HiPos continue to perform at a high level, even as they face new challenges. Another metric is the HiPo Assignment Success Rate, which measures the percentage of strategic or high-visibility projects led by HiPo employees that are completed successfully—on time, within budget, and achieving objectives. Purpose of this metric: measures the effectiveness of HiPos in delivering key assignments, indicating their readiness for more significant responsibilities. Since these metrics are examples and not an exhaustive list, you can use your judgment to determine what will work best for your organization.

WORKFORCE AND SCENARIO PLANNING

My one-page worksheet for thinking through workforce planning responses to different scenarios.

Strategic workforce planning (SWP) is one of the most requested topics from Talent Edge Weekly readers, with interests ranging from how to get started to leveraging technology and managing SWP in an evolving business environment. Regarding SWP in an uncertain business environment, one practice that organizations increasingly rely on is scenario planning (SP). SP is a practice that helps organizations envision, describe, and plan for possible but uncertain and alternative futures. These scenarios are informed by factors such as economic growth, labor market conditions, and the introduction of new technologies, to name a few. While SP has varying levels of sophistication, even basic discussions around scenarios and responses can help organizations prepare. With this as the backdrop, you can use my one-page editable worksheet to answer critical questions: What is the most likely scenario we will face? What are the key elements of the workforce plan for this scenario? What are two alternative scenarios? What indicators would signal that an alternative scenario is more likely? How will our workforce plan adapt if an alternative scenario occurs? Though SP is more nuanced and complex than outlined here, practitioners can begin by developing a narrative using this worksheet for guidance. Finally, it’s crucial that business scenarios originate from the organization's strategic planning process to ensure workforce plans are grounded in realistic assumptions.

WOMEN IN THE WORKPLACE

I share my playlist of 5 resources that cover different aspects of women in the workplace.

As I continue to receive requests for research on women in the workplace, I’m sharing a playlist of five valuable resources. A few of the resources include: Women in Leadership: Why Perception Outpaces the Pipeline—and What to Do About It by IBM Institute for Business Value report, revealing that gender parity remains elusive despite the feeling of progress. Women at Work: A Global Outlook 2023 Report by Deloitte. This report highlights a few positive developments reported by many working women: reduced burnout rates, declining non-inclusive behaviors, and improved hybrid work experiences. However, these challenges persist for many, and some factors have worsened. Women Are Stalling Out On the Way to The Top by MIT Sloan Management Review offers insights from a career history analysis of executives in Fortune 100 companies, showing that women tend to remain in support functions rather than key operating roles. Opening Access to The Fast Track for Career Equity by MIT Sloan Management Review. This article identifies four factors, beyond bias and discrimination, that contribute to or hinder the career progression and pay equity of women and people of color. I hope you find this playlist helpful in understanding some of the research on the challenges and opportunities facing women in the workplace. Links to all resources are in the PDF.

MOST POPULAR FROM LAST WEEK

TALENT REVIEWS

A new paper on how executives, HR business partners, and talent management leaders can support talent reviews.

This white paper explores talent reviews through a case study of UPMC (University of Pittsburgh Medical Center), a world-renowned healthcare provider, and introduces a Talent Review Maturity Model. You can also read my post about this resource on LinkedIn.

JOB CUTS AND LAYOFF TRACKER

Check out my tracker of announcements from a segment of organizations that have conducted job cuts and layoffs since the start of 2023.

Partial view of tracker on brianheger.com

A few job cuts announced this past week:

  • GoPro Inc. (NASDAQ: GPRO). The action camera company announced a 15% workforce reduction as part of a restructuring plan aimed at streamlining operations and cutting operating expenses. The layoffs, affecting approximately 139 positions, will begin in Q3 and conclude by the end of 2024.

  • Just Eat Takeaway.com (AMS: TKWY). The parent company of Skip the Dishes announced layoffs of approximately 800 Canadian employees. About 100 of these job cuts affect Canada-based workers at Skip the Dishes, while the remaining 700 are operations employees from Just Eat Takeaway.com. 

  • Sephora. The cosmetics retailer is reportedly laying off 3% of its employees in China to streamline operations amid a challenging market. The cuts include office and store staff, affecting an estimated 10% of its workforce. 

Click here to access all listed announcements.

CHIEF HR OFFICER HIRE OF THE WEEK

This past week, several new Chief HR Officer announcements were posted on CHROs on the Go, my subscription-based platform, where I track movement in and out of the CHRO role. This week’s CHRO hire of the week is:

  • Genuine Parts Company (ATLANTA, GEORGIA) [NYSE: GPC]—a leading global service provider of automotive and industrial replacement parts and value-added solutions—announced that Jenn Hulett has joined as EVP and Chief People Officer. Jim Neill, who previously announced his retirement, will continue in an advisory role until September 30, 2024. Ms. Hulett most recently served as EVP and Chief People Officer for Dollar Tree, a role she held from January 2022 to May 2024. ​

Jenn Hulett

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FROM ME ON LINKEDIN

Catch up on some of what you missed from me on LinkedIn this week:

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FROM X

ORGANIZATIONAL CHANGE

TALENT EDGE WEEKLY REWIND

HYBRID WORK

A one-page flowchart to determine a role’s feasibility for hybrid work.

The flowchart helps identify whether a role might mostly fit one of three scenarios: 1) Work activities undertaken with other people at the same time and place. 2) Activities that are performed with other people at the same time but that can be done in person or remotely. 3) Activities that are largely independent and can be undertaken anywhere or at any time.

THE BEST OF JULY 2024

Did you miss the “Best of July ” issue of Talent Edge Weekly? If so, check out issue #251, which includes 14 of the most popular resources from the month.

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RESOURCE LINEUP

​brianheger.com provides free access to +1,300 curated articles, research reports, podcasts, and more that help practitioners drive better business results through strategic human resources and talent management.

CHROS on the Go is a subscription that provides the easiest and most convenient way to stay informed about Chief Human Resources Officer hires, promotions, and resignations in organizations of all sizes and industries.

​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 6 PM EST.

Talent Edge Weekly is written by Brian Heger, an internal human resources practitioner. You can connect with Brian on Linkedin, X, and brianheger.com