A lot of times people ask me why I blog, tweet, share stuff online. They think I am wasting my time. But its is because of such sharing that I have discovered and learned more than other people who look forward to learning as a formal "event" that they or their employer has to pay for.
Online sharing of ideas and opinions are like a dialog and often helps in helping you think about an issue in more clarity after the discussion than you had before. Connecting around learning online also leads you to discover content in various types from text, to documents, to slides and videos.
Hyperlinking makes online content dependent on what the user needs rather than what an author or trainer wants to convey. It gives the adult learners an option of going deep into a subject or to keep it at a surface level.
When you share your skill you also ensure that others look at you as an authority, if they find your content compelling. People can vote with their feet and leave when the value of that content falls, when better people start sharing their content too!
So Guatam really answers the question people have asked me.
Gautam is Platform Evangelist and India Marketing Lead at BraveNewTalent and blogger at Gautamblogs.com. He specializes in the areas of HR, Organization Development and how businesses can leverage Social Media for Organizational Learning and Employee Engagement.
Monday, February 13, 2012
Thursday, February 9, 2012
How to Understand the Big Picture
This quick post is really for those HR professionals who are not at the VP, EVP, or CHRO level.
Make sure you see the big picture in your organization and not be fixated on the lower level HR issues you deal with on a daily basis. To do this you need to understand the "Big Picture" and understand the cornerstones of the strategy, technology corridors your company plays in and the frontiers your organization will play in and blaze new trails.
So how do you do this when you are confronted with the day-to-day issues and projects you have to deal with to meet your VPHR's or CHRO's objectives. I found that the best way is to make sure you and your fellow HR staffers understand the strategy from a grass roots basis. What do I mean from that, here is what and how to do it:
A quick word to the wise - be aggressive, assertive, and intelligent on how you get the information without making waves along the way.
Make sure you see the big picture in your organization and not be fixated on the lower level HR issues you deal with on a daily basis. To do this you need to understand the "Big Picture" and understand the cornerstones of the strategy, technology corridors your company plays in and the frontiers your organization will play in and blaze new trails.
So how do you do this when you are confronted with the day-to-day issues and projects you have to deal with to meet your VPHR's or CHRO's objectives. I found that the best way is to make sure you and your fellow HR staffers understand the strategy from a grass roots basis. What do I mean from that, here is what and how to do it:
- make sure you staff meetings have on the agenda the overall strategy of the business,
- ensure that your head of HR also provides a detailed map of how the company intends to address each strategy component, and how that effects your direct HR responsibility,
- understand completely what the competitive issues are and how the organization will address them,
- make sure that the cornerstones of the organizational strategy is linked to your division or line of sight responsibility, and
- make sure that the managers and superiors you manage have the same understanding.
A quick word to the wise - be aggressive, assertive, and intelligent on how you get the information without making waves along the way.
Tuesday, February 7, 2012
Can You Hear Me Now? The Impact of Social Media on Your Workforce
Can you hear me now?
That ubiquitous phrase made famous by Verizon became quite apropos at the end of 2011. After the most embarrassing debacle in history of marketing/pricing, Verizon was forced to backtrack, put their tail between their legs, and somberly walk away from what they thought would be another revenue steam.
Netflix was faced with the same situation in mid-2011.
What was the major connector to both of these events? What was the determining factor that drove them to make an immediate u-turn? The answer: social media.
Time magazine’s Person of the Year for 2011 was the protester. What drove the protest throughout the world that drove their movement? Again, social media was the key.
Two of the most driving forces going into 2012 are social media (and the power of it), and the employee, regardless of the level of engagement.
The pendulum has swung
That ubiquitous phrase made famous by Verizon became quite apropos at the end of 2011. After the most embarrassing debacle in history of marketing/pricing, Verizon was forced to backtrack, put their tail between their legs, and somberly walk away from what they thought would be another revenue steam.
What was the major connector to both of these events? What was the determining factor that drove them to make an immediate u-turn? The answer: social media.
Time magazine’s Person of the Year for 2011 was the protester. What drove the protest throughout the world that drove their movement? Again, social media was the key.
Two of the most driving forces going into 2012 are social media (and the power of it), and the employee, regardless of the level of engagement.
The pendulum has swung
Sunday, February 5, 2012
What is the Future of Human Resources
HR plays a critical role in any economic environment and most critical in a recessional economy. The keys to success are: stay close to the CEO, make sure your HR strategy is aligned with corporate strategy, stay close to your customer base, add value by testing the theories of the company, products, and services, know the business inside and out, understand the dynamics of the organization, know the managers, don't rest on laurels, think outside the box, don't get caught in administration, and most of all be real so the organization embraces you and your HR team.
I am sure each of you have additional comments on how to make sure your future in HR is bright and secure. Don't take anything for granted and make sure you make an impact on the business daily.
I am sure each of you have additional comments on how to make sure your future in HR is bright and secure. Don't take anything for granted and make sure you make an impact on the business daily.
Monday, January 30, 2012
High Velocity Culture Change
Most managers are not good at cultural change especially when they are the front line to lead changes in the organization. Changing the culture in an organization is hard, heavy duty, and battle intensive for those responsible to lead that charge. Most managers do it as well as employees by taking the lead from their managers because the have to. Not that they want to but it is part of the survival process in an organization.
I would recommend the following if you are the person(s)/group(s)/executive team leading this major effort to keep pace with the changing environment, business, and any successors and/or assignees in an acquisition:
I would recommend the following if you are the person(s)/group(s)/executive team leading this major effort to keep pace with the changing environment, business, and any successors and/or assignees in an acquisition:
- Use methods that are not standard operating processes - this will make people operate out of their existing cultural orientation;
- Change should be guided by where the organization needs to go rather than laborious cultural analysis and metrics. Make sure that the new highway for change is "clear to all employees" and that managers "get it and preach it"
- Blow up current understandings, destabilizing the organization so they have to move in a different direction. This will provide new energy in the organization;
- Each facilitator/manager/group/executive team member has to show that they care more;
- Change the reward system and the milestones along the way so people understand there is a payoff for the change;
- Communicate more than ever and often, clearly articulating the logic, acknowledging the changes, and their effects along the way;
- Promote what you want the end result to be and how it will affect the organization, revenues, and profits;
- Make sure the people feel free from the old system;
- You need to expect that there will be people who will not buy into the new culture, loosing some valuable human capital along the way;
- Make sure all employees are involved; set up project leads - interdisciplinary and cross cultural
- Blow up the bureaucracy along the way making structural changes that fit the final cultural goal;
- Lead by example and as in Field of Dreams, "they will come(follow)";
- Bring in new people and do not trust loyalty too much;
- Make sure each manager/group/executive team member surrounds himself or herself with strong supporters;
- Encourage people to think and act differently about their job, customer, and each other that builds on the culture you are creating;
- and finally make sure that you train people, re-orient the organization.
I hope this helps for those of you that have to change and lead cultural change in your organization.
Monday, January 23, 2012
Ten Top Reasons Why Large Companies Fail To Keep Their Best Talent
Having worked in a large international company for many years I can attest to these reasons because I saw it first hand in my 20 years of experience. Needless to say I did preach as did my contemporaries that these issues had to be overcome through strong leadership from the HR team. So here they are:
- internal and corporate bureaucracy;
- creating leadership opportunities for top talent to lead projects or teams;
- poor performance reviews and where top talent sees and hears poorer performers getting the same reviews;
- no career discussions taking place at the manager level ;
- priorities and strategies continues to change taking the focus off talent management;
- micro management and telling people how to do their job taking away accountability at the talent level;
- top talent not having the ability to associate or work with other top talent ;
- not seeing the vision of the talent management process, or should I say no process;
- management not being open minded where top talent's ideas cannot be heard ;
- no knowing who the real boss is, bailing out your superiors and not getting credit.
Top talent has to assume some responsibility and it is not all one sided. HR really needs to drive the process, have the accountability and responsibility to manage the process, and work with the CEO and executive team in developing career paths for the top talent. If these reasons are not addresses, YOU lose the competitive edge in retaining your top talent and attracting top talent.
What are your thoughts?
Thursday, January 19, 2012
10 Best Companies for Leaders: How Focusing on Leadership Development Creates a Competitive Advantage
January 18 2012 by ChiefExecutive.net
Chief Executive names 2012′s Best Companies for Leaders
Since 2005, Chief Executive and Chally Group Worldwide have been releasing the “Best Companies for Leaders,” a list of corporations who lead the pack when it comes to leadership development. These companies generate significant market share, make leadership development a high priority despite time and financial pressures, and their executives spend more personal time mentoring leaders. This year’s top company is Procter & Gamble, led by CEO Bob McDonald.
The Top 10 Best Companies for Leaders are:
- Procter & Gamble, Robert McDonald
- IBM, Virginia Rometty
- General Electric, Jeffrey R. Immelt
- 3M, George Buckley
- Southwest Airlines, Gary C. Kelly
- ADP, Carlos A. Rodriguez
- PepsiCo, Indra Nooyi
- Cardinal Health, George S. Barnett
- Caterpillar, Douglas R. Oberhelman
- Discovery Communications, David M. Zaslav
Wednesday, January 18, 2012
When Your Data's In The Cloud, Is It Still Your Data?
Your contract with a cloud provider should have language clearly affirming your ownership of your data.
By Thomas J. Trappler
Computerworld - When your data resides on a cloud provider's infrastructure, your ownership rights could be compromised. For example, what's to prevent the cloud provider from deciding to access your data and use it for its own purposes? That's why any contract for cloud services should include language clearly affirming your ownership of your data.
The good news is that well-established cloud vendors are beginning to include language along these lines in their standard contracts. For example, section 10.2 of the Amazon Web Services contract states:
"Your Applications, Data and Content. Other than the rights and interests expressly set forth in this Agreement, and excluding Amazon Properties and works derived from Amazon Properties, you reserve all right, title and interest (including all intellectual property and proprietary rights) in and to Your Content."
It hasn't always been this way with cloud computing, but as customers have voiced their ownership requirements, providers have made improvements in this area. As the cloud continues to evolve, if customers clearly state their needs, then smart cloud providers will listen and respond.
Other columns by Thomas Trappler
- When your data's in the cloud, is it still your data?
- Cloud adviser: Where's your data?
- Making sure your cloud provider can protect your data as promised
- Where there are clouds, there's lightning (and other cloud disaster tips)
- Why physical security matters, even in the cloud
- The Cloud Contract Adviser: Making sure your information is secure
- The Cloud Contract Adviser: Know your provider's infrastructure
- The Cloud Contract Adviser: Service-level agreements
Depending on the nature of your data and how it's processed in the cloud, it may also be necessary for the contract to include language affirming your institution's ownership of the results of any processing of its data that occurs while on the cloud provider's system.
With ownership clarified, the next step is to identify the limitations on how the cloud provider may use your data. In most cases, you'll want to limit the provider's use solely to that which is necessary for it to fulfill its obligations under the contract. It is also prudent to specifically exclude the provider from any mining of your data.
Be ready for the divorce
Once your data and processes have moved to cloud, you become more dependent upon the provider. You could be locked into its services, a situation that increases the cloud providers leverage over you in negotiating contract terms.
I know this sounds like advising someone to find a divorce lawyer before getting married, but to mitigate the risk of vendor lock-in, you need to plan in advance for the eventuality that you may decide to switch to a different provider or bring your data and processes back in-house. With this in mind, the contract should state your rights to access your data on an ongoing basis. Specifically, the contract should:
- Describe the process by which your data will be returned, whether done midterm or upon contract termination.
- State the amount of time the provider will have to turn over your data.
- Define how long after termination of the contract your data will remain accessible.
- Quantify the cost to you (ideally none) to export your data.
- Specify that the data must be provided in a commonly used format that is pertinent to your expected needs, and not in a proprietary or otherwise inaccessible format.
Other access issues
When codifying your rights to access your data, be sure to consider emergency situations. For example, e-discovery obligations to preserve, collect and produce data for litigation-related discovery actions can be more difficult to comply with when your data is in the cloud, because you do not have direct control. Yet your failure to produce pertinent data in a timely manner can result in significant fines. This risk can be mitigated by contractually requiring the cloud provider to establish mechanisms by which you can retrieve your data within a specified time frame.
Finally, the contract should obligate the provider to destroy your data after termination of the contract and should specify the manner in which this should be done, the time frame for doing so, the need for the cloud provider to produce certification of destruction, and your right to audit.
Monday, January 16, 2012
Peopleclick Authoria – A Perfect Merger or Act of Desperation?
Today, Authoria announce the merger with Peopleclick to create Peopleclick Authoria. Bedford Funding, the private equity firm that owns Authoria is spending $100 million to acquire and merge the companies. I’d love to say I had my crystal ball out when we recorded the Bill Kutik Radio Show a few weeks ago and predicted further market consolidation but this wasn’t one of the acquisitions I would have predicted. Nonetheless, I do believe it is an early indication of what we can expect in 2010 – market consolidation.The Good News
On paper, the merger makes sense. It now puts Peopleclick Authoria as the #3 vendor in terms of market share (with Taleo #1 and SuccessFactors #2). It also brings together one of the deepest talent acquisition vendors (Peopleclick) with one of the most robust talent management vendors (Authoria). Although Authoria can claim talent acquisition capabilities today (via the acquisition of Hire.com), they are primarily limited to salaried recruiting only. With Peopleclick, they now add hourly and contingent recruiting, onboarding, EEO/compliance solutions, candidate relationship management (CRM), and vendor management capabilities. Peopleclick also give Authoria global presence which they really didn’t have previously. As I recently noted, Peopleclick was newly recognized on the Gartner e-Recruitment Magic Quadrant, a significant accomplishment for the company.
From a pure financial perspective, assuming Peopleclick is a profitable, $60m revenue company, the $100m investment appears to be money well-spent. Considering Taleo paid $128 million, or a 2.8x multiple of revenue, for Vurv 2 years ago (yes…I understand the market was much different 2 years ago), a 1.6x multiple for Peopleclick makes great financial sense.
Lastly, Charles Jones, Managing Partner for Bedford Funding, and now Chairman and CEO of the combined company, has a strong track record for acquiring and merging companies. If you really think about it, Peopleclick Authoria is the merger of 9 companies (6 with Peopleclick and 3 with Authoria) with a total investment over $130 million in venture investment.
The Bad News
The merger of Peopleclick and Authoria appears to be primarily a financially-driven merger. Private equity firms like Bedford Funding focus on finding undervalued companies, putting in place some operational and financial discipline, and reselling those companies or assets at a premium.
Although they are now have arguably some of the deepest best of breed solutions for talent acquisition and talent management, the two products couldn’t be more different. Most of Authoria’s products have recently been re-platforming their solution with a J2EE-based architecture (Authoria Communications has yet to be migrated to the new platform). Authoria 10x, the new platform, has a streamlined and intuitive user experience.
Conversely, Peopleclick is built on a .NET architecture and the discrete products have gone through varied levels of “modernization”. Peopleclick’s usability, although intuitive, are process-driven and require significant user interaction. Over the past few years, Peopleclick has some useful innovations including contact management, onboarding, interview scheduling and social network integration. The core recruiting management engine though is still dependent on the deliberate complex that still overwhelms most recruiter or user. What all of this means for either company’s customers is that Peopleclick products and Authoria products look different, act different, deploy different and demand a completely different user experience. It also mean the distinct architectures will have integration challenges and longer-term cost implications.
No doubt the companies have very complimentary functionality and Peopleclick Authoria will get into many short-lists due to their “RFP-ready” capabilities (“RFP-ready” meaning they can now checkbox the capabilities listed in most generic RFPs out there). The question, though, is will the depth of capabilities meet the needs of today’s buyer that demands a simplified and unified experience across all talent processes. The combined Peopleclick Authoria is a technology stew. Although both product lines are designed with multi-tenancy in mind, I would consider both vendors to be more hosted providers than true SaaS vendors. Peopleclick Authoria will need to support many product lines, and many versions of those product lines, deployed uniquely across many customers. Peopleclick Authoria will be challenged to economically support new innovation and deep customer support for all combined products! The company has yet to share how they intent to integrate the product lines but considering it has taken Authoria 3+ years to re-platform their solutions, it would be a safe bet to assume the products will remain independent on their separate technology stacks and integration will be at the surface only. While many other vendors will be focused on deepening the unification of their modules, building capability to support emerging “blended” talent management capability such as talent mobility and planning, and innovating in new areas such as social collaboration, Peopleclick Authoria will be focused on the often painful process of blending two companies and the unique complexities of their underlying technology.
Authoria is getting a great customer base and an annuity stream that I’m sure became very attractive to Bedford (and as was similar with Sumtotal’s private equity buyers). But with the talent management market continuing to be a replacement market and talent management buyers become increasingly demanding and cost-conscious, it will be no small task to successful managing the combined Peopleclick Authoria.
Will Peopleclick Authoria be good for customers? Please share your thoughts and comments.
Wednesday, January 11, 2012
The 50 Best Places To Work In 2012
It’s that time of year again: Glassdoor has released its list of 50 best places to work in 2012! The list, “Best Places to Work — Employees’ Choice” is the fourth annual employee’s choice awards for best companies to work for. Below, see the companies and corresponding ratings.
- Bain & Company: 4.7
- McKinsey & Company: 4.3
- Facebook: 4.3
- MITRE: 4.1
- Google: 4.0
- CareerBuilder: 4.0
- Slalom Consulting: 4.0
- REI: 4.0
- Trader Joe’s: 4.0
- Apple: 3.9
- General Mills: 3.9
- Rackspace: 3.9
- Salesforce.com: 3.9
- United Space Alliance: 3.9
- Dow Chemical: 3.9
- Chevron: 3.8
- Southwest Airlines: 3.8
- National Instruments: 3.8
- Wayfair: 3.8
- Citrix Systems: 3.8
- QUALCOMM: 3.8
- SAP America: 3.8
- Costco Wholesale: 3.8
- J. Crew: 3.8
- Procter & Gamble: 3.7
- Fluor: 3.7
- Reachlocal: 3.7
- Johnson & Johnson: 3.7
- Monsanto Company: 3.7
- NetApp: 3.7
- Morningstar: 3.6
- Intel Corporation: 3.6
- Disney Parks & Resorts: 3.6
- Starbucks: 3.6
- NIKE: 3.6
- Cleveland Clinic: 3.6
- Coach: 3.6
- Ernst & Young: 3.6
- Sephora USA: 3.6
- Groupon: 3.6
- Goldman Sachs: 3.6
- Intuit: 3.6
- Accenture: 3.6
- Nordstrom: 3.6
- PricewaterhouseCoopers: 3.6
- Eli Lilly: 3.6
- MTV Networks: 3.6
- Scottrade: 3.5
- NVIDIA: 3.5
- FedEx: 3.5
by on JANUARY 10, 2012
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