You can’t read the paper without hearing about layoffs all over the world. That means that HR leaders are undoubtedly trying to answer the difficult and painful questions about who goes and who stays. And in the absence of integrated, actionable data about people, there’s only one way to do it: with a fire drill.
We’ve all been there — spreadsheets, dozens of e-mails, lots of tough meetings all culminating in a list based on some objective, but mostly subjective criteria. Worst of all, it’s obsolete about 3 days after it is created — which means if it happens again (for some companies that day has already come), the process starts over.
Now I recognize my professional bias — buy some of our software and we’ll make that easier for you. Duly noted. But here’s my question: will HR leaders facing these fire drills stand up and fight for the improved process and technology to make it better the next time, or will they simply forget the pain, and start the process over again?
Because remember this — you need data today about who to keep in tough economic times — and when things inevitably improve, you’re going to need data about who can help you capitalize on those opportunities. Will this be the time that organizations really commit to this process? Hard to tell…..and of course I want to know because it will speak to demand for the products that we sell that will help make it happen.
What does it look like in your world?
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2 responses so far ↓
Naomi Bloom // January 16, 2009 at 8:51 pm |
Larry, I am not sanguine about how aggressively the HR community will make the case for improved data management, especially as it relates to talent management, in the face of the worst economy that even I have ever seen. If past recessions are any indicator, spending on HR technology beyond the most administrative, headcount-based ROI business cases (and we all know that such business cases are very long in the tooth) isn’t likely to increase during this one. That said, a lot has been spent over the last few years on the kind of software that really does help management make wiser decisions about who to keep now, how to engage and develop those we do keep, and who and how to unleash them when opportunities improve. Naomi
Dale Henry // February 6, 2009 at 11:14 pm |
Larry, if HR can clearly & effectively make the case that the current environment/situation isn’t a ‘current cost cutting issue’, it’s instead a ‘performance (and leadership) issue with a cost CONSTRAINT’, then HR might get more attention. Because we all know the reality is the layoff IS the ‘fire drill’, but after it’s over management is left to deal with the ’smoldering remains’. You still need to run the business effectively and do all that was required prior to the layoff.
But without that level of leadership, they will just be the ones to ‘go run and get us whatever data we have’, and their budgets will be cut more than others (after they’re done executing the layoffs, of course.)