Canadian HR Reporter

CANADIAN HR REPORTER December 14, 2015 2 NEWS Recent stories posted on www.hrreporter.com. Check the website daily for quick news hits from across Canada and around the world. WEB O N T H E the same competitor group that you had to keep eye on, if you will. Now, with the onset of both technology and innovation, we are seeing some very different business models being offered to take advantage of a possible marketplace opportunity where traditional competitive struc- tures are not the case anymore," he said. "at type of need to keep an eye on the competitive land- scape is a much more dynamic exercise than it would have been historically." People are being stretched to the limit, according to Ian Collyer, a partner at executive search firm Boyden in Toronto. "It's a far more complicated world than it was when you ran your company 10 years ago." Technology One of the big challenges is tech- nology, which is ever-changing, said King. "ere's always new technol- ogy being introduced and one of the biggest challenges is making sure that, as an executive, you fully understand what that tech- nology really can do, what the ca- pabilities are and, to some extent, not to be distracted by the actual innovation of the technology or capability of the technology but making sure it actually does align with what your business strategy is and that it actually does benefit the business," he said. "ey have to vet it properly and they also have to ensure that there's an adoption rate that al- lows for growth from that adop- tion, growth as a business." Technology is probably one of the top three issues on the agenda for leaders when it comes to in- dustries such as financial services, industrial and consumer prod- ucts, said Collyer. "Technology's actually a stra- tegic part to their business and growing their business." Companies have more data now than ever before, whether on customers or their own busi- ness, he said. "ere's a pressure on the CEOs and the understanding they have this tremendous opportunity but also the question of: 'How do we harness this? How do we harness the data we have to better drive our business?'" It's trying to sort through the hype around big data, and the promise of it, and then trying to use good data to make decisions, said Molinaro. "What sometimes may happen is it might lead someone to not end up trusting their own judg- ment on certain situations, and so that's something that will con- tinue to emerge because I think what we see with leaders is by the time they've got all the data, it's too late — they need to make decisions quickly, in real time. We'll get better as new solutions come out around leveraging big data and using the insights for effective decision-making … But, in the meantime, it's sorting through all the data points, trying to make sense of it." Staffing Overcoming staffing challenges is another issue facing business leaders, according to King. With reductions in unemployment, and particularly low numbers in some sectors, finding top talent can be difficult, he said. "What also has changed is the onset of various demographics working now in the workforce and that has certainly changed what is expected from the workforce, what they need from an organi- zation to remain engaged — the type of diversity and engagement points they require. It's certainly no longer good enough to pay well, people aren't just going to stick just to that, it's got to be so much more than that." However, there's always been a war for talent, said Collyer, who's not sure that issue is more chal- lenging today than it was five years ago. ere are certain industries, however, that have shifted their business, such as GM having a large software development team, probably because Apple is hiring automotive professionals, presum- ably to build an Apple car, he said. "ere's worlds colliding, I'll say, there's new competitors emerging that weren't around five years ago for a lot of industries, but there's also lots of new opportunities out there for these organizations." With millennials, there's a greater expectation to work with great leaders — otherwise, they'll leave, unlike baby boomers who tended to stick around even with a tough boss, said Molinaro. "Now, the pressure is people are far more mobile." Organizations are also struc- tured differently, he said. "As organizations grow and be- come more global, it introduces the complexity of matrixed or- ganizations and that adds a level of challenge for people, that adds pressure, in that more and more work is being done virtually with colleagues that maybe you haven't met before." Regulatory environment Regulatory pressures also continue to mount, according to Robert Half, with executives not only required to know the mandates affecting their business but how compliance can help a firm prosper. Industries such as financial services have seen the onset of a high regulatory and compliance environment, meaning significant challenges and costs, said King. And while people appreciate that changes were required, there is de- bate as to how much is too much when it comes to the regulations. "Potentially, is the high-compli- ance regulatory environment may- be taking way from other invest- ment opportunities because (lead- ers are) having to spend so much time and focus on that part of the organization? So… organizations are having to find a way to em- brace it and get their arms around it while still having it be part of regular business operations." And for public companies, the investment community is de- manding more when it comes to information and transparency, he said, "so simple things like an annual report package… is that much more involved and that much more detailed with regard to the organization's operations." ere's also the issue of risk, as seen in the investment industry, for example, where companies face greater complexity and scru- tiny, said Molinaro. "Everyone has a heightened sense of maybe even anxiety around some of these things be- cause… the risk is greater. And social media adds another level of pressure — Glassdoor (for exam- ple), where people are being evalu- ated publicly, companies are being evaluated, all of those little things add up and, in many cases, weren't around five or six years ago." Broader impact e work of leaders has also ex- panded in recent years, so execu- tives must draw on their business acumen to understand how their unit's decisions and performance affect the broader organization, according to Robert Half. "It's generally recognized that an organization that has healthy cross-collaboration from depart- ments and functions is seen as be- ing stronger," said King. "It is always certainly preferable if somebody in sales can have an appreciation of what that means in operations if they were to make a critical decision as a sales strat- egy, for example. From a leader- ship standpoint, that has a de- mand on them to both encourage that collaboration in their various groups." More and more C-suite execu- tives having travelled on a career path that is not so linear, right in their own function, he said. "They have often gone into other functional areas to gain in- sights so they can be a more well- rounded executive." CFOs are becoming more like business leaders, so they're more embedded in the business opera- tion and their decisions aren't just in the silo of finance, said Collyer. "It's across the business, so they're looked to be more strate- gic business leaders," he said. "The right organizations are looking to provide CEOs more exposure to the business, across the entire business, so they get operating experience. You're a true business partner; you're just not relied on as a finance person." Despite the challenges and pressures, it's important to re- member leadership roles provide opportunity and can have a real, significant impact on the success of an employer, said Molinaro. "at message needs to coun- terbalance all the messages that might freak people out about wanting to take on a role like that," he said. "It's not an easy job but it can be a great job if you're fully committed." Competitive landscape more difficult LEADERSHIP < pg. 1 Scotiabank CFO Sean McGuckin listens to a speaker during the company's annual general meeting in Ottawa on April 9. Greater investor scrutiny adds to leadership pressures. REUTERS/Patrick Doyle ACROSS CANADA Liberals say overhaul of patronage appointments to include gender parity goal Details of appointment process still unclear Calgary police say all uniformed members to wear body cameras by end of 2016 Privacy issues taken into consideration Canada job vacancies rise in second quarter Best opportunities still in the West: Report Alberta farmers, ranchers use social media to lobby against farm safety bill Group of 22,000 says family farms would be ruined Ontario reconsiders brand new medical marijuana vaporizing exemptions Had exempted users from bans on e-cigarettes AROUND THE WORLD Tunisia faces jobs challenge to fend off future jihadi attacks Better jobs, employment prospects for youth key to stability Corporate researchers allege labour abuse at ai factories Report found abuses including exorbitant recruitment fees, forced labour Japan to tackle maternity harassment, day care to slow population decline Plans to allow more workers to take time off after childbirth India opens boardrooms to women, but few mid- career dropouts return Nearly one-half of Indian women drop off corporate ladder between junior and mid-levels Fewer Americans sought U.S. unemployment aid Applications fall to 260,000 Facebook CEO Zuckerberg to take 2 months' paternity leave 17 per cent of U.S. employers offer leave hrreporter.com FEATURED VIDEO Diabetes at work: Physical and mental health challenges In part one of a three-part series on diabetes in the workplace, a Canadian HR Reporter roundtable, sponsored by Sun Life Financial, takes a look at the physical and mental health challenges that go along with diabetes in the workplace

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