1
proactive approach to what???
pro·ac·tive or pro-ac·tive (pr-ktv)
adj.
Acting in advance to deal with an expected difficulty; anticipatory
thus a proactive approac is an anticipatory approach...
since u have posted it in staffing,posting a related article for more try googling
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Evaluating performance »
Acquiring and retaining talent »
Deccan Herald » DH Avenues » Full Story
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Acquiring and retaining talent
A successful recruitment strategy is always multi-pronged. Endless recruitment advertising is likely to result in limited success at best, says PURNIMA DAS.
Optimism is in the air as the spectre of high unemployment recedes slowly. Employees who clung on to their jobs for dear lives and swallowed all slights and unfair treatment (perceived and real) are now beginning to look at the recruitment advertisements with renewed interest. Professionals from all spheres are waiting to collect year-end bonuses and then make a switch.
Pent up demand for change is likely to explode, and hiring managers will be facing critical challenges of finding talent to replace vacant slots as well as fill new roles that growing business activities will create. All signs are pointing towards a tight labour market in 2005.
As the HR Manager who is responsible for manpower planning and resourcing, what should your strategy be to deal with the impending exodus and the tight supply of talent? The first step to take would be a thorough assessment of your retention strategy. Your performance evaluation exercise may be a long way off, but now is the time to think long and hard about employees in your organisation who have performed well over the past few years.
These employees may not have received the promotion / recognition / salary increment due to them, because of poor company performance or company-wide wage freeze. These high performers have paid their dues to the company in lean times, and are now waiting to be rewarded for their patience. The need to be recognised for loyalty and performance is universal, and exists at all levels of the organisational hierarchy.
Proactive approach
HR should take a proactive approach in addressing this issue. Continued efforts to economise on salaries will result in high achievers getting disillusioned and leaving the organisation, perhaps just for a few hundred dollars of increment. This is a great shame - the cost of losing years of skill and knowledge and then recruiting and rebuilding those skills far outweighs any original savings.
An equally common grouse (and a strong reason listed for seeking change in employment) is the lack of a clearly defined career progression path, and management’s indifference to employees’ career aspirations.
Although career development plans are routinely discussed and performance appraisals are conducted annually, usually there are little follow-up actions; leading to these exercises being viewed as mere formalities. Typically HR and immediate superiors sit up and take notice of an employee’s career aspirations only when he/she resigns. Clearly that is a reactive approach and will usually fail.
Prevention is better than cure.
Apart from pursuing proactive retention strategies, hiring managers still need to prepare for stepped up recruitment needs of their organisations.
An active job market has its pluses and minuses. On the plus side, professionals are not as cautious but are willing to consider new opportunities. On the flip side, talented professionals are in greater demand and will be selective about who they join.
Brand promotion
Actively promoting your company’s brand will only get you so far. You have to be perceived as an employer who will meet the varied expectations or aspirations of the talent pool you wish to attract.
An employer renowned for investing in its employees, promoting work life balance, having a culture of career progression, and meeting the development and growth aspirations of its employees will ultimately win the talent attraction race.
A successful recruitment strategy is always multi-pronged. Endless recruitment advertising is likely to result in limited success at best. Your own employees are your brand ambassadors!
Employees who are satisfied and engaged will have no hesitation in recommending their network of contacts to you. If the skills you seek are in short supply locally, you may consider recruiting from the region. Your regional offices could be deployed to assist, or you could engage the services of an executive search firm that has extensive presence in the region.
There will be times when you will have niche positions to fill and will be looking to hire from specific industries or even from your competitors. However, you may discover that prospective applicants may either not be actively seeking a new job, or may be reluctant to apply to you directly. An executive search firm that understands your business, and in which you can place your trust, can be an effective partner in these situations. You should be careful in selecting the firm you wish to partner with.
The professionalism with which your search assignment is handled will speak volumes of you as well. The reach, contacts and network of the firm, as well as their in-depth understanding of your business, will determine the success of the search project.
Having a strong partnership and a relationship of trust with a search firm can go a long way in your organisation reaching out and attracting the movers and shakers of your industry.
These people will in turn have a tremendous impact to your bottom line, and hence make you, the hiring manager, look good.
In conclusion, preparation is half the battle won. Win over as many existing staff as possible, work with line managers to forecast their talent needs for the coming year and strategise on the approaches you will take to fill positions of different levels.
The groundwork you do now will allow you to view the economic recovery as a source of joy and not a headache!
The author is the Managing Director India BTI Consultants, a leading Executive Search and Resourcing company. E-mail:
From India, Mumbai
pro·ac·tive or pro-ac·tive (pr-ktv)
adj.
Acting in advance to deal with an expected difficulty; anticipatory
thus a proactive approac is an anticipatory approach...
since u have posted it in staffing,posting a related article for more try googling
Comment on this article
View Others' Comments
Other Headlines
Evaluating performance »
Acquiring and retaining talent »
Deccan Herald » DH Avenues » Full Story
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Acquiring and retaining talent
A successful recruitment strategy is always multi-pronged. Endless recruitment advertising is likely to result in limited success at best, says PURNIMA DAS.
Optimism is in the air as the spectre of high unemployment recedes slowly. Employees who clung on to their jobs for dear lives and swallowed all slights and unfair treatment (perceived and real) are now beginning to look at the recruitment advertisements with renewed interest. Professionals from all spheres are waiting to collect year-end bonuses and then make a switch.
Pent up demand for change is likely to explode, and hiring managers will be facing critical challenges of finding talent to replace vacant slots as well as fill new roles that growing business activities will create. All signs are pointing towards a tight labour market in 2005.
As the HR Manager who is responsible for manpower planning and resourcing, what should your strategy be to deal with the impending exodus and the tight supply of talent? The first step to take would be a thorough assessment of your retention strategy. Your performance evaluation exercise may be a long way off, but now is the time to think long and hard about employees in your organisation who have performed well over the past few years.
These employees may not have received the promotion / recognition / salary increment due to them, because of poor company performance or company-wide wage freeze. These high performers have paid their dues to the company in lean times, and are now waiting to be rewarded for their patience. The need to be recognised for loyalty and performance is universal, and exists at all levels of the organisational hierarchy.
Proactive approach
HR should take a proactive approach in addressing this issue. Continued efforts to economise on salaries will result in high achievers getting disillusioned and leaving the organisation, perhaps just for a few hundred dollars of increment. This is a great shame - the cost of losing years of skill and knowledge and then recruiting and rebuilding those skills far outweighs any original savings.
An equally common grouse (and a strong reason listed for seeking change in employment) is the lack of a clearly defined career progression path, and management’s indifference to employees’ career aspirations.
Although career development plans are routinely discussed and performance appraisals are conducted annually, usually there are little follow-up actions; leading to these exercises being viewed as mere formalities. Typically HR and immediate superiors sit up and take notice of an employee’s career aspirations only when he/she resigns. Clearly that is a reactive approach and will usually fail.
Prevention is better than cure.
Apart from pursuing proactive retention strategies, hiring managers still need to prepare for stepped up recruitment needs of their organisations.
An active job market has its pluses and minuses. On the plus side, professionals are not as cautious but are willing to consider new opportunities. On the flip side, talented professionals are in greater demand and will be selective about who they join.
Brand promotion
Actively promoting your company’s brand will only get you so far. You have to be perceived as an employer who will meet the varied expectations or aspirations of the talent pool you wish to attract.
An employer renowned for investing in its employees, promoting work life balance, having a culture of career progression, and meeting the development and growth aspirations of its employees will ultimately win the talent attraction race.
A successful recruitment strategy is always multi-pronged. Endless recruitment advertising is likely to result in limited success at best. Your own employees are your brand ambassadors!
Employees who are satisfied and engaged will have no hesitation in recommending their network of contacts to you. If the skills you seek are in short supply locally, you may consider recruiting from the region. Your regional offices could be deployed to assist, or you could engage the services of an executive search firm that has extensive presence in the region.
There will be times when you will have niche positions to fill and will be looking to hire from specific industries or even from your competitors. However, you may discover that prospective applicants may either not be actively seeking a new job, or may be reluctant to apply to you directly. An executive search firm that understands your business, and in which you can place your trust, can be an effective partner in these situations. You should be careful in selecting the firm you wish to partner with.
The professionalism with which your search assignment is handled will speak volumes of you as well. The reach, contacts and network of the firm, as well as their in-depth understanding of your business, will determine the success of the search project.
Having a strong partnership and a relationship of trust with a search firm can go a long way in your organisation reaching out and attracting the movers and shakers of your industry.
These people will in turn have a tremendous impact to your bottom line, and hence make you, the hiring manager, look good.
In conclusion, preparation is half the battle won. Win over as many existing staff as possible, work with line managers to forecast their talent needs for the coming year and strategise on the approaches you will take to fill positions of different levels.
The groundwork you do now will allow you to view the economic recovery as a source of joy and not a headache!
The author is the Managing Director India BTI Consultants, a leading Executive Search and Resourcing company. E-mail:
From India, Mumbai
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Proactive Brochure.pdf
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