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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, you can read the full newsletter.

• Measuring Skills in the Age of Agile Work | Mercer | Shares insights on approaches for validating skills within a workforce.

• Boost Your Team’s Productivity by Hiring Force Multipliers | Harvard Business Review | Josh Bersin shares how organizations can go beyond adding headcount and focus on strengthening overall capacity.

• Succession Planning: Role Criteria Evaluation Worksheet | Brian Heger | My worksheet to evaluate five aspects of role criteria for succession planning.

• Research: Performance Reviews That Actually Motivate Employees | Harvard Business Review | Research on how performance review formats, particularly narrative feedback, impact perceptions of fairness. Includes bonus resources.

• How Integrating DEI Into Strategy Lifts Performance | MIT Sloan Management Review | Provides a framework for bundling eight different types of DEI practices to achieve better outcomes. Bonus resources shared.

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

Brian

THIS WEEK'S EDGE 

SKILLS

Measuring Skills in the Age of Agile Work | Mercer

Shares insights on approaches for validating skills within a workforce.

As organizations increasingly focus on skills-based talent management, many are exploring how to validate the skills of their workforce effectively. This Mercer article outlines three ways organizations are validating skills but suggests combining these approaches for a more comprehensive view: 1) Inferred Skills Method: AI-based software tags skills from data like job history and profiles, sometimes estimating proficiency; 2) Rated Skills Method: Employees, managers, and possibly peers rate skill proficiency; 3) Validated Skills Methods: Includes measures assessing behavioral skills, and methods allowing skills demonstrations in simulated or real environments, often for technical skills. Each approach has unique considerations, with organizations choosing based on their need for directionally accurate versus absolute measures. Drawing on findings from a pilot study featured in my recent book chapter for the SIOP Professional Practice Series, Strategic Workforce Planning: Best Practices and Emerging Directions, I noted that AI-based inferences can serve as an effective starting point—especially with valid data sources—as they broaden the scope of identified skills and provide a scalable way to initiate skill identification. However, it’s important for managers and employees to validate these inferred skills, enhancing accuracy. For more on skills validation, I am resharing a 56-page playbook by the Business Roundtable Multiple Pathways Initiative, with Chapter 2 detailing workforce skills assessment.

Read Mercer article

TALENT ACQUISITION

Boost Your Team’s Productivity by Hiring Force Multipliers | Harvard Business Review

Josh Bersin shares how organizations can go beyond adding headcount and focus on strengthening overall capacity

Many organizations rely on a “hire to grow” mindset, assuming increased headcount will drive growth; however, this approach often overlooks the power of what Josh Bersin calls "talent density"—the impact of hiring and nurturing individuals who amplify team productivity. In this new article, Bersin proposes three strategies to foster a talent-dense workforce: 1) Shift the recruiting focus to evaluate how each new hire will elevate team performance by challenging hiring decisions to ensure new team members add significant value; 2) Assign people to roles that fully leverage their strengths, creating opportunities for employees to develop in ways that benefit the organization; and 3) Offer competitive or above-market compensation to attract and retain high-impact performers who deliver exceptional results. For the first strategy, recruiters are encouraged to move away from the “Amazon fulfillment center for people” mindset by challenging hiring managers on how candidates will contribute beyond their individual roles and impact broader team dynamics. A few questions that I suggest recruiters ask are: a) In what specific ways do you expect this candidate to enhance team productivity or bring new capabilities to the team? b) How will this hire support or elevate the skills and strengths of the existing team? c) If we could only make one hire this year, would this candidate be the top choice for advancing our team’s goals? Why? The article has implications for workforce planning since it focuses on shifting from simply headcount planning to increasing workforce capacity.

Read article

SUCCESSION PLANNING

Succession Planning: Role Criteria Evaluation Worksheet | Brian Heger

My worksheet to evaluate five aspects of role criteria for succession planning.

Succession planning remains a priority for many organizations, yet HR leaders still report challenges in strengthening overall succession capabilities. While various factors contribute to gaps in succession strength, one area worth evaluating is whether the criteria used to identify and assess successors for key roles are truly the most relevant and critical. To support these efforts, I’ve developed a one-page worksheet that helps organizations evaluate succession criteria across five areas: 1) Business Context. What are the critical outcomes and deliverables associated with this role, not only now but in the future? 2) Success Metrics. What indicators and outcomes would reflect effective performance in this role? 3) Critical Experiences. Which experiences best prepare someone for this position? 4) Skills. Which skills are most vital to achieving high levels of performance in this role? 5) Legacy Qualifications to Question. Which criteria have become less relevant yet still carry weight in the assessment process for this role? (This section helps identify outdated criteria that may no longer be necessary for success). While succession planning involves much more than outlined in this worksheet, this resource can serve as an initial planning tool to identify opportunities for refining succession criteria, enhancing successor identification, and supporting development that can accelerate readiness.

Access template

PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT

Research: Performance Reviews That Actually Motivate Employees | Harvard Business Review

Research on how performance review formats, particularly narrative feedback, impact perceptions of fairness. Includes bonus resources.

Performance management and performance reviews are critical for driving business results. However, a new article highlighting a study in Academy of Management Discoveries reveals that review format significantly influences how feedback is received. Involving simulated reviews with 1,600 U.S. workers, the study found that narrative feedback—rich in context and personalized analysis—was viewed as the fairest, particularly for employees with room to improve. Narrative feedback allows managers to highlight strengths and development areas, fostering understanding, while numerical ratings tied to bonuses are also seen as fair for their clarity on performance-reward links. In my experience, many organizations already combine ratings with narratives; in fact, The Talent Strategy Group’s 2023 Global Performance Management Report found that 90% of companies use ratings. As organizations continue to improve their performance management capabilities, they can focus on driving excellence in the fundamentals, such as helping employees and managers set a few challenging goals, articulating why those goals are important to the organization and how they help to deliver stakeholder value, using quality metrics to measure progress, and providing high-quality ongoing feedback that drives goal achievement. Regarding ongoing feedback, I’m resharing my infographic with 24 questions managers can draw from to enable more effective one-on-one performance check-in discussions with direct reports.

Read HBR article

DIVERSITY, EQUITY, INCLUSION

How Integrating DEI Into Strategy Lifts Performance | MIT Sloan Management Review

Provides a framework for bundling eight different types of DEI practices to achieve better outcomes. Bonus resources shared.

Diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) remain top priorities for many organizations, yet organizing DEI efforts into a cohesive strategy and narrative remains challenging. This new article offers a framework for grouping eight types of DEI practices to create a more unified approach and achieve better outcomes. Among the areas highlighted are: Strategy Bundle, which integrates DEI into the organization’s mission and goals, with policies and plans that embed DEI in functions like talent management and customer engagement; Governance Bundle, which emphasizes leadership and accountability, including roles like DEI councils empowered to implement DEI practices; and Recruitment Bundle, which focuses on attracting diverse applicants through outreach to minority-serving institutions, partnerships with professional organizations, and targeted advertising in underrepresented communities. For more resources on DEI, check out my DEI playlist, which features five articles and resources, including a 61-page report from the World Economic Forum with various examples of how organizations approach their DEI practices.

Read article

MOST POPULAR FROM LAST WEEK

SUCCESSION PLANNING

Succession Planning: Tackling 3 Critical Challenges | Brian Heger

My new infographic addresses three fundamental challenges in succession planning, such as lack of succession depth.

Here is my new infographic that addresses three fundamental challenges in succession planning: 1) Lack of succession depth, 2) Lack of successor readiness, and 3) Turnover in the successor pool. For each challenge, I've outlined sample metrics that help identify potential issues, along with actionable recommendations. View my post about this resource on LinkedIn.

Access infographic

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.

A few job cuts announced this past week:

• Freshworks Inc (NASDAQ: FRSH). The customer-engagement software company announced it is cutting 13% of its global workforce, affecting approximately 660 employees by the end of the year.

• iRobot Corp (NASDAQ: IRBT). The robotics company, known for its Roomba vacuum, announced a layoff of 105 employees, or roughly 16% of its workforce, as part of a restructuring effort disclosed in an SEC filing.

• Nissan Motor Co. (OTCMKTS: NSANY). Japan’s third-largest automaker announced it will cut 9,000 jobs and reduce global production by 20% as part of a significant restructuring plan to tackle market challenges.

 Click here to access all listed announcements.

CHIEF HR OFFICER MOVE OF THE WEEK

This past week, 11 new Chief HR Officer announcements were posted on CHROs on the Go, my subscription-based platform tracking movement in and out of the CHRO role. This week’s CHRO move of the week is:

• Lloyd’s (LONDON, UNITED KINGDOM)—the global insurance and reinsurance marketplace—announced the appointment of Nathan Adams as Chief People Officer, effective early 2025. Adams will report to CEO John Neal, succeeding Sara Gomez, who will retire at year’s end. Adams, a seasoned HR leader, was most recently the Chief People Officer at Aviva Investors, with prior senior roles at Barclays and Arcadia Group. ​

Never miss another Chief HR Officer announcement. Subscribe to CHROs on the Go with a monthly or yearly subscription and gain immediate access to +4000 (and growing) CHRO announcements, including hires, promotions, resignations, and board appointments.

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FROM ME ON LINKEDIN

THE BEST OF OCTOBER 2024

Did you miss the “Best of October ” issue of Talent Edge Weekly? If so, check out issue #267, which includes 17 of the most popular resources from the month. Thank you to Perceptyx for sponsoring this Best of October issue!

Read the Best of October

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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.