Canadian HR Reporter

CANADIAN HR REPORTER October 31, 2016 12 FEATURES Heather Ryan vice-president of HR at Federated Co-operatives in Saskatoon The 3,000-employee co-op provides support to 25,000 employees at retail co-ops O ne of the big challenges for human resources is continuing to ensure it understands the busi- ness and is aligned with business needs, accord- ing to Heather Ryan, vice-president of HR at Federated Co-operatives in Saskatoon. " ere's a lot of talk about being strategic, I know that's a model that we've taken on as being an advisory support, a business partner, but to do that, you have to actually be engaged with the business and not just implementing what you think the business needs are but actually relating to the true business needs from their perspective." With the economy, if HR isn't adding value, it doesn't have a purpose, she says. "If you look in terms of the value proposition, we fol- low the expense side, so you really have to ensure there's a value, because we talk about people being our greatest and most valuable asset, so that's the support and the leverage that I think HR has to make sure people are providing, and have the processes, practices to be able to carry out what the business needs." But that doesn't mean human resources is providing all the answers, says Ryan. "You're providing the framework, the policy, the prac- tices, the processes for the leaders of the organization to then implement because really HR, in terms of a discipline, it's all about the relationships and the credibility because you don't have that immediate line over the rest of the organization. It's really through those relationships and adding the value." With a troubled economy, it's about understanding that employers can't ride the highs and then jump with the lows, says Ryan. And one area that keeps HR busy is mergers and acquisitions, with the blending of cultures. " ere's effi ciencies and redundancies, potentially, of positions and departments and you can't just mesh cultures and expect them to work. So there's a lot of work involved in acknowledging that, the change process, and some- times… it takes more resources to do that appropriately." Metrics are also important, but they can be both a help and a hindrance, according to Ryan. "It's one thing to collect data, that's just data — it's how you can use it to analyze it and make decisions… the gold- en key is to actually be able to analyze that data and make decisions, so use it as a leading indicator rather than a lag- ging indicator." If, for example, you're looking at turnover numbers, it's about looking for trending over time and possible links to performance, she says. "Are the people that are turning over high performers? Are you not challenging them? Is it an environment situa- tion?... You can start using that (data) and analyzing it, and then you can make decisions." And when it comes to potential challenges around hav- ing four to fi ve generations in the workplace, we have to be cautious about stereotypes, says Ryan. "You may have a millennial who is totally diff erent than the stereotype, or you may have a baby boomer that loves change and adapting to technology, so it comes back to the age-old 'You need to know your people as individu- als' and balance their needs with the business needs. And have the generations learn from each other," she says. "It's about leveraging rather than 'I'm diff erent than you so I can't appreciate you.'" Looking ahead, talent development and leadership will continue to be pressing issues for HR, says Ryan. " e person that you look to the most is your team leader, your boss, your supervisor, and so HR can put in all of the processes and practices — that's our role, to pro- vide the framework — but if that leader can't lead, then you're going to have, potentially, people that are unen- gaged or don't understand or don't feel challenged. And I think that's the piece; it's the age-old 'Just because you put somebody in a management role doesn't mean they know how to lead,'" she says. "You can have all of the best processes and practices and frameworks but if you don't actually practise them and implement them, and have those supervisors, your leaders throughout the organization, able to utilize that and leverage their team, then it's going to be a non-starter." Ann Therese MacEachern vice-president of human resources at Canada Post The 50,000-employee Crown corporation is based in Ottawa W hen it comes to the bigger issues facing hu- man resources these days, a few things come to mind — but they're not necessarily new, according to Ann erese MacEachern, vice-president of HR at Canada Post in Ottawa. e fi rst is attracting, developing and retaining the right talent. e second is keeping people engaged, motivated and excited about their work. And the third is delivering measurable value to the business. "At Canada Post, we're working pretty hard to meet these challenges by ensuring everything we do is practical, it's sustainable, easy to use, aff ordable and timely," she says. For example, the Crown corporation launched a senior leadership program that provides participants with the op- portunity to work on cross-functional teams. " at not only breaks down silos but these teams are asked to provide realistic foundations on issues facing Canada Post... and we're looking at... bringing it down to the mid-management level." e 50,000-employee organization is also looking to pi- lot a new performance management program that would aim to substitute formal ratings for "ongoing and mean- ingful discussions," she says, adding people have pretty signifi cant reactions to the performance ratings process itself and it's not necessarily bringing out the best in them. "By eliminating ratings and focusing on more regular, meaningful conversations, we're fairly confi dent we're go- ing to see performance management do what it's intended to do, and not only help us drive performance but help us drive employee development as well," says MacEachern. As for a multi-generational workforce, fundamentally, people are motivated by the same things, she says. " ey want to have the chance to do meaningful work, they want their opinions heard and acted upon, they want to be recognized for their contributions, they want to grow and develop, they want to work with engaged colleagues. So rather than focus on how people diff er, (we) strive to en- courage collaboration, trust and shared purpose." Also a focus are metrics — to know what impact pro- grams are having on the business and to understand what's delivering value, says MacEachern. "But the hardest part is not just gathering metrics but turning metrics into information and really using that in- formation to provide insight as to what and how to im- prove…. We've been working on a number of initiatives where it's only with the overlay of data that you really start to understand what's truly happening and what you can do to infl uence it. Intuition and gut feel is just not enough." But Canada Post is also trying to use metrics in an inte- grated manner, says MacEachern. "We look at things like grievances, human resources com- plaints, injury frequency — and instead of looking at them in isolation, we're really piecing them together… (to) address issues more holistically and based on the root cause." As for technology, the pace of renewal has been phe- nomenal in the past 10 years, she says. " e type and speed of change is testing business mod- els and shifting the way that services are designed and de- livered and used," says MacEachern. "In HR, we not only need to know how to respond to technological shifts but how to best leverage investments in HR systems, so there are two dynamics at play: What's happening in business as a result of technology, and what's happening in the HR space." In the latter, it's about digital learning, talent manage- ment and payroll systems, she says. For example, Canada Post has seen the utilization rate for its digital learning rise from four per cent to upwards of 20 per cent, "so that's had a tremendously positive impact on our ability to deliver on some pretty important initiatives." But given the multitude of technological solutions, it's key to have a good understanding, says MacEachern. "It's easier said than done, given the speed of change, the availability of options and the costs associated with introducing new technology. So it goes without saying that those who fi gure it out fi rst are going to have a sizeable competitive advantage." And for HR to be taken seriously, it has no choice but to be strategic, she says. "Most businesses, including ours, face competitive pressures and don't have the luxury of standing still. And HR's reputation rests on its ability to forecast and antici- pate business challenges and opportunities, while we still deal with day-to-day issues, earn credibility by anticipat- ing problems and addressing challenges, and introduce solutions that are pragmatic and aff ordable. We need to speak the language of external and internal customers and provide advance and guidance that keeps value and keeps pace."

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