Employee Engagement: Outsourcing Providers Get It

I finally listened to my first two Bill Kutik radio shows and I’m glad I did (replays are available online).  Two weeks ago, Bill interviewed Mary Sue Rogers, General Manager of Global HR, Learning and Recruiting for IBM, who shared her perspectives on HRO.

More recently, Bill interviewed Rudy Karsan, CEO of Kenexa, for his views on balancing work and life and the nature of how jobs are changing with insights from his recently co-authored book titled “We: How to Increase Performance and Profits through Full Engagement.”  Research findings cited from global employee surveys and company case studies revealed three essential elements that keep employees engaged and productive: pay, purpose and passion.  During the interview with Bill, Rudy noted a January 2010 study which indicated that 45% of employees were disengaged.  That figure is now a staggering 84% (Ouch!).  Just think of the productivity that would occur if companies could make that 84% engaged.

To measure employee engagement, Rudy states that companies must first measure employee engagement though employee surveys.  Once those results are compiled and analyzed, conversations on how to improve need to occur with employees.  Having managed employee programs including employee satisfaction for a global telecom for a few years in my prior life, I can attest to all the amazing things that happen when employees become engaged!

Another important element in employee engagement is to analyze employee actions and anticipate trends before they become major problems.  In her discussion with Bill, Mary Sue emphasized the wealth of workforce information that is already inherent in HR data warehouses and systems.  An experienced HRO vendor can help connect the systems, provide the HR analytic tools, and even assist in building an engaged employee base, which is critical for success in an ever-changing global business environment.

An example of another HRO provider walking the talk is HCL.  Vice Chairman and CEO Vineet Nayar penned his management philosophy in his 2010 book titled “Employees First, Customers Second,” which says it all.

So, why aren’t more companies actively trying to ascertain employee satisfaction?  I could write my own mini novel on all of the excuses organizations give, but rather I’ll simply say just do it.  If you have the resources and the commitment, employee engagement can be managed internally.  But, if you don’t have the bandwidth, talent management providers such as Kenexa and OchreHouse have the capability to help.  In either case, companies must be committed to the process, from senior leaders down to first line supervisors.  If you don’t have the commitment to doing anything with the results, then my advice is don’t bother measuring to begin with as you risk disengaging employees more.  As an organizational leader, which side of the 84% do you want to be on?

Gary Bragar, Lead HRO Analyst, NelsonHall

Employee Management 101 and HRO Provider Value-Adds

In prior blogs I’ve written about low levels of employee satisfaction and confidence in their employer, and the negative impacts these can have on an organization in terms of lost talent, potential revenue loss and certain additional hiring expenses.

Sadly, employee confidence isn’t increasing. In fact, according to the Kenexa Research Institute, employee confidence decreased, yet again, in Q1 2010. In the twelve countries tracked, all but Spain declined in the first quarter of this year.

With that in mind, I found an article entitled, “Prevent Exit Interviews” in the April 2010 issue of Talent Management magazine very interesting. The article essentially says that to help increase employee retention, supervisors should be conducting “stay interviews” – or what I call Employee Management 101 – with their employees. These are frequent one-on-one meetings with employees to ask how things are going, gauge satisfaction, ask what the company can do to help, etc. Unfortunately, during economic downturns, many managers avoid such meetings because they fear they won’t be able to deliver on employee requests. However, hiding their heads in the sand simply creates more problems and exacerbates employee dissatisfaction. The article suggests simple things managers can do, such as tell employees how much they are valued. And when they ask the “what can our company do to help” question, there will in nearly all cases be at least one thing an employee wants that the company can provide!

So how can an HRO provider help? I certainly don’t advocate having providers replace a manager’s direct and continuous discussions with employees. However, proactive initiatives by HRO vendors can help identify employee concerns and provide managers with insights into how they can address, eliminate, and/or lessen them.

There are a variety of HRO providers assisting their clients with this type of support. For example, Kenexa, an RPO provider, also provides performance management solutions and conducts employee surveys to increase employee engagement. And U.K.-based RPO provider OchreHouse focuses not only on recruiting but also on key aspects of talent management including engagement, development and employee retention. It conducts employee satisfaction surveys, and has a “Keep in Touch” program wherein recruiters periodically contact new hires several months into the job to see how things are going and ask if there is anything they can do to help. OchreHouse also conducts exit interviews to find out why people are leaving. Although too late to retain the exiting employee, the feedback, along with recommendations on how to retain talent, is provided to the company’s hiring managers.

As an organizational leader or supervisor, what are you doing to help retain your talent, whether on your own or with the help of a third-party provider? We’d like to hear!

Gary Bragar, Lead HRO Analyst, NelsonHall

Conflicting Job Growth/Job Loss Reports – What are HR and HRO to Do?

As reported in the March 31, 2010 edition of USA Today, a just-released ADP report said employers slashed 23,000 private sector jobs in March 2010, while the median of estimates from 35 economists surveyed by Reuters for the ADP report was for a rise of 40,000 private sector jobs during the month. Economists expect The Labor Department’s closely watched month employment report, due out on April 2, to show employers added 190,000 jobs in March.

While the ADP report only covers private sector jobs and the Labor Department numbers could be somewhat inflated as many temporary workers were hired to conduct the 2010 census, this is still a huge delta. Did we lose jobs in March? Did we gain jobs in March? What will happen in Q2, Q3 and Q4 2010 in terms of hiring? The answer is…there doesn’t appear to be much more than murky answers.

What is clear, however, is that we all know job growth is coming, even if we’re not certain when it will really begin and then stabilize. And apologies for this focus in another of my blog postings, but it is so important to the health of the economy, the job market and indeed the survival of many organizations…astute companies know they will need to begin hiring again to meet demand as consumers start spending more. But really smart organizations, particularly mid- and large-sized companies, are starting to prepare now by seeking the help of external recruiting process outsourcing providers that can build a ready talent bank to fill jobs when requisitions are approved. These forward-thinking companies know one of the keys to competitive advantage is an ongoing search for top quartile talent to tap when they are ready.

Evidence of this proactive and front-loaded talent search is demonstrated in The RightThing’s March 29 announcement of seven new RPO contracts Q1 2010 with companies including Homesite, Nationwide and CUNA Mutual. And there indeed has already been hiring in some pre-Q1 2010-signed contracts. For example, The RightThing hired 500 employees in North America, South America and the U.K. for five existing pharmaceutical clients during Q1, and 2,100 new hires in Q1 for seven clients expanding call center operations.

And additional recruitment contracts were awarded during the last quarter to companies including Hays, Kenexa, Manpower, OchreHouse, PeopleScout, Pinstripe, CPH Consulting, Capita and Kelly Government Solutions.

So while there are conflicting reports on job growth or job loss today and into the near future, we know the growth will come. As a buyer, are you ready now?

Gary Bragar, Lead HRO Analyst, NelsonHall

Hays and SourceRight Solutions: A Different and “Right Time” Global Recruitment Alliance

On March 16, 2010, Hays plc and SourceRight Solutions announced a strategic alliance to offer global talent acquisition solutions. The two vendors will provide customized recruiting services to clients around the world, including in the U.S., Canada, Europe, Middle East and Asia. Over the past couple of years other partnerships have been formed to offer global recruiting solutions including: Pinstripe and OchreHouse, The RightThing and Alexander Mann Solutions, and KellyOCG and IBM. So what makes the Hays/SourceRight alliance different from the rest of these partnerships?

This alliance is similar in that recruiters can be provided in-country, but Hays and SourceRight Solutions are also offering solutions that will encompass:

•  Recruitment process outsourcing (RPO)

•  Managed service programs

•  Professional contingent workforce services

Hays and SourceRight will tailor recruitment solutions that can include any combination of the above, including by industry and geography, and which can be delivered by dedicated account teams with 4,500 recruiters around the world.

Further, this more highly customized and comprehensive recruitment services alliance may be coming to market at just the right time; during the recession, permanent recruiting has been largely on hold and many buy-side organizations have been utilizing temporary hires and contingent workforces due to uncertainty of their business outlook. Tailored, multiple option recruiting solutions should open many doors between Hays/SourceRight and buyers looking for a combination of permanent placement and temporary staffing assistance from the equivalent of one provider across geographies. 

I continue to believe – as I wrote in my 2007 and 2009 global RPO market analysis reports – that global presence and the ability to partner to provide global recruiting services are critical success factors for providers in the talent acquisition space. While the global recession, which resulted in staff reductions and temporary hiring freezes, has somewhat impeded the uptake, I strongly believe the time is right for a buy-side adoption increase, especially for highly tailored, comprehensive recruitment solutions.

Gary Bragar, Lead HRO Analyst, NelsonHall