Human Resources Issues for Senior Management
Issue link: https://digital.hrreporter.com/i/343811
20 Executive Series Digest hrreporter.com BOARD OF DIRECTORS CEO or is identi ed as a possible CEO successor, the organization is set up to have one "winner" and multiple "losers." ere has been signi cant investment in all of the potential successors — is it OK to just accept that the "losers" will likely leave because they wanted to be CEO? Is there a way to have all CEO contenders identify multiple career objectives in addition to CEO? CHROs need to broaden their sightlines beyond supporting the board human resources committee with traditional approaches to talent and succession management. ey need to use the opportunity to engage both the senior leaders in the organization and the board committee chairs in planning that is more future- oriented, consid- ers new and di erent scenarios, and looks at creative approaches to developing, engaging and retaining the best senior leadership talent for the organization. ese human capital assets represent a signi cant investment over a long period of time. Mitigating the risk of losing that invest- ment is well worth the attempt to think outside the box. Karen Gorsline is SCNetwork's lead commentator on strategic ca- pability and leads HR Initiatives, a consulting practice focused on fa- cilitation and tailored HR initiatives. Toronto-based, she has taught HR planning, held senior roles in strategy and policy, managed a large decentralized HR function and directed a small business. She can be reached at gorslin@pathcom.com. Directors are people too – poor meetings bore them By Dave Crisp (Organizational E ectiveness) W hile listening to SCNetwork's blue ribbon panel outline what executives do wrong in board presentations and how the relationship between CHRO and board members should be evolving, I was most struck by the bits of human nature that get in the way. One might think the most e ective communication occurs at the top end of companies — otherwise, how could everyone else be ex- pected to be clear and deliver results? e panel unmasked the deep aws behind that assumption. Almost all of the discussion revolved around the importance of simple, clear communication when conveying information, regard- less of the audience. Ideally, presentations would also address the audience members' individual points of view or interests (perhaps prejudices or predis- positions might be more accurate). Back in the day, high school teachers would slightingly refer to this as a need for "spoon-feeding." Of course, it just makes sense to put information in terms listeners want. It's not really spoon-feeding but good business. Without careful preparation, the panel noted, board members will dri o , tune out, not understand their roles, make assumptions, ask o -topic questions or derail the conversation — sometimes for no reason other than they're frustrated by too much information or too little, or lack of clarity or a sense they're being bamboozled or kept o topic by their executive team. It's human. And on the executive side, noted the panel, some CEOs purposely ood the board with information to keep them too occupied to ask good questions the CEO doesn't want to answer, or to drag board members into decisions the CEO wants, without regard for listen- ing to what these wise people — whom they supposedly carefully selected as advisers — have to say. Been there, seen that. ese problems are the same sorts of communication issues at every level of an organization. Would we expect any di erent just be- cause the entire future of a business, everyone's jobs and livelihoods depend on working e ectively together, or because board members were speci cally recruited to add value via their opinions? When meetings go wrong at any level, there will be people who simply react, whose behaviour becomes more retaliatory or oriented toward "Take over, do it my way" instead of being helpful. Get any group of people in a room and it's not possible for each and every one to have things ow as they personally would have them. at may mean people engaging in power struggles, tuning out or expressing frustration. Whoever is in charge of a meeting, whether it's the CEO, board chair or a lower-level leader managing a team, she has to walk a ne line between allowing and encouraging full discussion versus guid- ing and keeping everyone on track. e more powerful the attendees, the more egos in the room, the more di cult this becomes. As the panel noted, only ongoing dia- logue and conscious planning pave the way for productive discus- sion, which is the sole purpose of any meeting at any level. Only one thing makes meetings at any level productive — once again, we recognize that is collaboration, today's newest imperative. It's good to see senior board experts acknowledging and promoting that. It's great if you can get everyone in your organization working on this basis. Every project gives growing managers a chance to prepare. If they all do, then eventually there will no longer be a need for sepa- rate sessions on what makes board or executive meetings e ective, everyone will bring that knowledge with them as they are promoted up the line. Dave Crisp is a Toronto-based writer and thought leader for Strate- gic Capability Network with a wealth of experience, including 14 years leading HR at Hudson Bay Co. where he took the 70,000-employee re- tailer to "best company to work for" status. For more information, visit www.balance-and-results.com. All execs must master art of influencing the board By Trish Maguire (Leadership In Action) A s corporate governance becomes more complex and regula- tory compliance grows increasingly challenging, companies need boards to help them meet more than just basic strategies. Consequently, being able to e ectively in uence the board has become a critical capability — and one that is no longer the sole re-