Talent Edge Weekly - Issue #35

Welcome to this week’s issue of Talent Edge Weekly - the weekly newsletter for strategic human resources practitioners, bringing together talent and HR insights from various sources.

This week's Edge covers the following resources:

  • The CEO Churn Ahead: What Boards Must Face NOW About CEO Succession Planning | DDI

  • Women in the Workplace 2020 Report | LeanIn.org

  • How to Be Great at People Analytics | McKinsey

  • Stop Training Employees in Skills They’ll Never Use | Gartner

  • A Transformation of the Learning Function: Why it Should Learn New Ways | McKinsey

  • 2020 Benefits Strategy and Benchmarking Survey: Executive Summary | Gallagher

  • Webinar: Track Labor Market Trends To Compete for Talent | Gartner

If you enjoy content like this, you can access additional articles and resources at www.brianheger.com

If you find this issue to be of value, please share the newsletter link or any of its articles with your social media networks. To share an article summary, you can click the “share” icon located below the summary.

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Have a great week everyone!

Brian

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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 EDGE

Even during regular times, succession planning (SP) can be a challenge for many organizations. These challenges can range from lack of successor development, misidentification of successors (false-positives), turnover within the succession pool, lack of successor diversity, and even getting SP the attention it deserves. However, the pandemic has cast a spotlight on SP's criticality as firms strive to ensure both the short and long-term viability of their organization. And although it appears on the surface that organizations are giving SP its due attention, this DDI article warns that a mass exodus of CEO and other C-suite members is coming. It notes that "2019 marked the highest year on record for CEO departures, outpacing turnover even during the depths of the recession in 2008 and 2009. As 2020 began, January saw record CEO departures, setting the tone for an even more disruptive year. But as the pandemic and economic fallout began, CEOs stayed put." As we continue to move into a new business environment, many organizations may find that there CEO and C-suite succession bench is at risk. The article elaborates on six things that Boards' get wrong about CEO succession and offers five SP practices that an organization's Board can adopt now to reduce its risk, a few of which include 1) Declare C-suite succession as a top tier business strategy,  2) Make context a part of scenario planning--or answering the question "Who is ready for what?" and 3) Demand objective and predictive data in CEO and C-suite succession. Organizations can use these and other insights to determine their risk and develop an SP strategy that sets them up for long-term success. 

Although the COVID-19 crisis has been challenging for most employee/workers, one worker segment that has faced unique challenges is women--especially mothers, senior-level women, and Black women. According to the annual Women in the Workplace study from LeanIn.Org, one in four women is considering downshifting (working in a reduced capacity) their careers or leaving the workforce due to the pandemic. This year marks the first time in six years of the annual report that the researchers found evidence of women intending to leave their jobs at higher rates than men. Concerning senior-level women who said they are considering stepping out of the workforce or downshifting (beginning on page 24), almost 3 in 4 of them cited "burnout" as the main reason. Women with children were three times as likely as fathers to be responsible for most of the housework and child care amid the pandemic. The report also indicates that Black women are less likely to feel supported at work during COVID-19. "Black women are less likely than women overall to report that their manager has inquired about their workload or taken steps to ensure that their work-life needs are being met, and only about a third say their manager has fostered an inclusive culture on their team." Several other ideas are discussed, including the impact of the pandemic on women with disabilities. This 63-page report should propel organizations to take bold and proactive actions to address the heightened challenges that many women are facing during this time.

As people analytics (PA) continues to be a capability that many organizations leverage to make better and faster business and talent decisions, this McKinsey article provides ideas for doing so. The authors spoke with 12 teams from some of the largest global organizations about the value that PA brings to HR. The conversations with these PA teams revealed a set of six best-in-class practices that have helped to propel the teams’ impact, success, and continued growth. These practices fall into three main categories: 1) data and data management, such as having "full ownership of their data repositories, allowing them to rapidly test new ideas, iterate, and reduce dependencies on enterprise-level technology resources." 2) analytics capabilities, including the "ability to translate strategic challenges into analytic questions and use evidence-based practice to interpret insights derived from the analytics, engage stakeholders, and ultimately propel business changes,"and 3) operating models, where teams align themselves well against organizational priorities while maintaining space for open experimentation and innovation. Several other insights are provided, including two that can help PA teams understand where they are today, where they want to be, and how they can continue to evolve. They include: 1) Exhibit 1 "5 steps of People Analytics Team Trajectory" 2) Five questions that PA teams can ask themselves, including How does the organizational context influence the mandate of the PA team? For other ideas on PA, you can check out two books: Introduction to People Analytics: A Practical Guide to Data-driven HR | Nadeem Khan and Dave Millner; Data-driven Hr: Use Analytics and Metrics to Drive Performance | Bernard Marr

Before the COVID-19 pandemic, many organizations would likely agree that the pace at which skills continue to change has drastically accelerated. In fact, in the LinkedIn 2020 Learning Report (conducted prior to the pandemic), 51 percent and 43 percent of Learning and Development (L&D) practitioners had planned to launch upskilling and reskilling programs, respectively, in 2020 (page 31 of the report). These trends will continue to accelerate in a post-pandemic world. Although HR and learning leaders may have plans in place to close skill gaps, according to this article, "HR is often wasting time and effort on irrelevant learning that won't ever be used to further the business or the career of the employee. Instead, HR leaders need a dynamic skills strategy that enables employees to learn and apply desirable new skills quickly and effectively." The article provides three suggestions that enable organizations to apply a dynamic approach to skill development that delivers a better ROI. They include: 1) Sense shifting skills in real-time. Anticipate skill shifts as they are occurring — rather than trying to predict the future. 2) Develop skills at the time of need by going beyond traditional L&D tactics like classroom training and e-learning libraries, and employ existing resources (e.g., content, people, etc.) to develop new skills solutions at speed. 3) Enable employees to make skills decisions dynamically by developing two-way skills transparency between the organization (e.g., what skills it needs, no longer needs, etc.) and the employee (e.g., current skills and interests). Gartner indicates that such a dynamic approach can result in workers applying 75 percent of what they learned compared to 37 percent from traditional and predictive techniques. If you have interest in the topic of upskilling, you can check out Shelley Osborne's new book, The Upskilling Imperative: 5 Ways to Make Learning Core to the Way We Work

Learning and Development (L&D) functions have always had an opportunity to demonstrate its value in a "business-as-usual" environment. However, amid a pandemic and in a post-pandemic world, there is a significant opportunity for L&D organizations to deliver business value in a world where a) jobs have been redefined, b) skill requirements have changed, c) ways of working have been altered, and d) employee preferences have shifted, to name a few. However, "rather than being regarded as one of the most forward-thinking functions in an organization, leading it through a learning transformation, many feel that their L&D functions struggle to keep up with the needs of their businesses." The article argues that L&D functions must undergo a transformation and adopt an agile operating model to deliver significant value to their organizations. To do so, L&D must overcome some of its challenges, including that many (not all) L&D functions today : 1) are overly stable—to the point of rigidity, 2) have their own key performance indicators, which are not necessarily linked to overall business goals. 3) focus on what is meaningful to them rather than on broader organizational goals and associated key performance indicators, 4) have cumbersome legacy platforms and systems that slow down the response rate to changing business needs. To overcome these and other challenges, the article argues that "L&D function needs to strike the right balance between stability and dynamism, assembling the components that will create a stable backbone as well as the dynamism needed for the function to keep pace with an organization's learning needs." The exhibit in the article shows an excellent summary of how organizations can build both stability and dynamism into all elements of an L&D function: its strategy, structure, people, processes, and tech and systems.

As many organizations reexamine their total rewards strategies in light of the pandemic, this Gallagher report helps "employers review their benefit offerings to make sure they address employees' evolving needs and, at the same time, fit within their organizations' budgets." The study gathered data from 3,921 employers from December 2019 to May 2020, as well as a series of employer pulse surveys conducted between April and July 2020. A few findings include that a) a significant number of employers plan salary freezes for management and executives (43%) and nonmanagement personnel (42%) to preserve jobs in 2021, b) more than eight in 10 employers (83%) have more strongly emphasized the role of specific benefits within total well-being, including emotional well-being (65%), leave policies (47%), medical benefits (39%) and physical well-being (36%). Also, c) 86% of employers did not reduce their health plan benefits this year, and 79% expect to offer the same coverage in 2021. Gallagher says unlimited paid time off (PTO) can be a creative way to support organizational well-being by cutting costs and motivating employees, especially those who work from home and might be struggling with delineating the lines of work-life balance. Other ideas are discussed in this 16-page executive summary report. 

THE SOUND OF INSIGHT

In this 60-minute Gartner webinar conducted on September 28, 2020, the presenters cover how the COVID-19 crisis has accelerated the evolution of skills and how static skill models are no longer suitable in this new business climate. Instead, organizations need to use "talent sensing" to quickly determine evolving skillsets and understand profiles to hire and track shifting labor market dynamics. Although the presentation is through the lens of their product, it provides useful insights regardless of the technology platform. I also include a copy of the 48-page PDF that was used during the presentation. Please note that to access the webinar, you will need to enter an email address. The webinar is worth the one-hour investment. 

OTHER RESOURCES

Book Recommendations on HR and business topics, such as:

Recommended Tools I use for my personal learning and productivity, such as two of this newsletter's affiliates:

  • Soundview Executive Books Summaries which provides 7-8 page PDF summaries, and audio summaries, on the newest ideas and strategies from the best business books. They offer both individual and corporate plans, which can be monthly or yearly. One free sample is available for download.

  • Audible, who offers a 30-day free trial where you will get two free audiobooks immediately. You get to keep the two free audiobooks even if you decide to not purchase a monthly or yearly Audible subscription.

COVID-19 Resources for HR. These resources were gathered from March through May and contain 150+ references that can be leveraged as HR practitioners continue to lead their organizations through the recovery phase and beyond

WHO IS IN THE HR JOB MARKET?

If you are a subscriber to this newsletter and searching for an HR-related role, I am more than happy to list your name, a link to your Linked In Profile, and a sentence or two that describes what you are looking for, in a future issue of this newsletter. If interested, please send me an email from the email address that you used when signing-up for this newsletter.

The following subscribers are in the HR job market:

  • Serguei Zaychenko - is looking for an Executive Recruiter/Talent Acquisition Recruiter role in the metro New York City area. Serguei worked both for large, Fortune 500, as well as small, entrepreneurial companies and thrives in hyper-growth environments.

  • Cathy Ellwood - is looking for roles at the Director and Sr. Director level in Talent Management, Talent Acquisition, Organization Development and/or Learning & Development. Cathy especially enjoys roles where she can lead in each of these areas, but it is open to leading just one. Fully relocatable (currently in St. Louis), with a first preference of Columbus, Ohio.

  • Nora Kinsela - is currently seeking a mid/senior level Talent Management/Development role in the Greater Boston area. The ideal company is one that looks to create an engaged workforce by providing career development opportunities needed for them to thrive and be their best selves.

SHARE YOUR IDEAS

While I try to read as much as I can and share resources and ideas that I believe would be of value to readers, there is only so much that one person can possibly uncover! This is where I ask for your active contribution to this newsletter.

If you have an article, report, or resource that you recommend, please send me an email at [email protected]. I would love to review it and potentially share it in a future newsletter.

And, if you have any ideas or suggestions on how this newsletter can be improved or deliver greater value (including topics you would like to see covered), please send me a note with your suggestions.

FINAL COMMENTS

If you aren’t yet a subscriber to Talent Edge Weekly and want to have it delivered to your email inbox every Sunday, you can subscribe by entering your email below.

If you enjoy this content and would like to access all issues of Talent Edge Weekly, you can do so by clicking here. You can also access content at www.brianheger.com

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I look forward to sharing more ideas in next week’s Edge!

Brian