Canadian HR Reporter

CANADIAN HR REPORTER January 23, 2017 12 EXECUTIVE SERIES Full-on talent management Giselle Kovary, president of n-gen People Performance, regaled the Strategic Capa- bility Network with a rapid-fire, highly informative and entertaining presenta- tion on getting, keeping and growing a multigenerational workforce. As Kovary's delivery unfolded, I was struck by how much it looked like really good, fully baked talent management — regardless of age. She demonstrated that all employ- ees seek the same things. Univer- sally, we all want to work with, for and among people who value and respect us. We want to contribute to something larger than our- selves, and work for organizations and people who warrant our trust. To achieve that, employers need to be transparent, responsive and partnering with employees, all of which looks a lot like great talent management for anyone. e big insight is that age co- horts are just another diversity that intersects with other diversi- ties. As such, to successfully inte- grate the cohorts, organizations need to use best diversity prac- tices — communicating expecta- tions, and modelling and reward- ing the right behaviour. HR has a role as a champion and advisor, but the heavy lifting must be done by the managers of people who will need advice on identifying and adjusting how they relate to this staff diversity, without com- promising other organizational values or goals. I wonder how much of the inces- sant hand-wringing over the mil- lennials is really the death throes of monolithic, one-size-fits-all people policies. Once upon a time, people policies were a means to finding efficiencies within an as- sumed homogenous workforce — the 20th century mindset of man as machine part. But the centrifugal forces of the early 21st century — the collapse of the social contract, loss of faith in institutions and technology — have driven em- ployee relations with their orga- nizations away from the universal toward the individual. e bleeding edge of that trans- formation remains "Jill Manager," a team leader who must work with one more potential force of divisiveness. So be it. Managers of people can now lean less on policy. ey are more often called upon to use their judgment and discre- tion, make decisions (even the hard ones) and go to action with the mantra "fair but not equal." Managerial effort should now bend more towards getting the most out of individuals, rather than finding the lowest common denominator of the team. The assignment and monitoring of work, assessing effectiveness and coaching need to be individually calibrated. Importantly, in this diverse world, managers need to be extraordinarily self-aware, and consciously check their biases at the door. Honestly, though, for all of this, was it not ever thus? Michael Clark is director of business development at Forrest & Company. Forrest is an organizational transfor- mation firm with 30 years' experience in developing the organizational and leadership capacity in organizations. Michael Clark Organizational Effectiveness as well as accept accountability by cultivating an environment of transparency, responsiveness and partnership — from recruitment to retirement. "For us, transparency means being open, honest and forthcom- ing with your motives and inten- tions," said Kovary. "(Employees) need to understand the value that they bring." In terms of responsiveness, employee opinions need to be actively solicited and responded to in a timely manner alongside the proactive management of expectations. Meanwhile, partnership recog- nizes that all employees are inves- tors in the organization, seeking a return on their investment, she said. Looking through a generation- al lens, HR leaders need to build programs that align to various identities, said Kovary. "You are that voice internally, saying, 'ese are why these prac- tices matter,'" she said. "And the reason why senior leaders care about this is it impacts the bot- tom line." Practically, this could lead to several strategies. "We don't suggest you cre- ate four different strategies," said Kovary. "When you think about recruitment… (it's about) how do you tell that story that might appeal to different generations? What key messages do you use? What language? Medium? How can we be transparent about your workplace culture?" Orientation should be a process used to set new employees up for success through an approach highlighting partnership, while retention could be aided by the constant evaluation of organiza- tional rewards practices to ensure they resonate with staff. Finally, manage talent with ap- propriate learning and develop- ment alongside mentoring. "A lot of leaders still question that," she said. "Should we be spending the money if people are going to leave?" "Well, we are going to have a much more transient workforce and people are coming in and out of that workforce as they see fit." Solicit opinions 4 GENERATIONS < pg. 10 HR leaders need to build programs that align to various identities. Managerial effort should now bend more towards getting the most out of individuals. EmploymentSource™ Works as hard for you as you do for your clients Our premier employment content on WestlawNext® Canada is integrated with relevant case law, legislation, expert commentary and legal memos, allowing you to manage your practice in the most efficient way possible. It's the complete mix of resources you need to confidently advise on compliance, defend occupational and health and safety charges, or prepare successful dismissal or termination strategies. 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