Emerging Trends for Organisational Success Part 3: Designing Our

Emerging Trends for Organisational Success Part 3: Designing Our Workplaces

Narelle Dickinson

Jul 28, 2019

We’ve got the staff, we’ve got the work, so how can organisations structure themselves to deliver the best business outcomes? What are the features of excellent leaders moving forward, and what technologies can they access to manage their HR processes most effectively and efficiently?

“Future-ready” Leadership

A few key themes emerge about modern leadership models. Clearly, organisations must discover ways to ensure their leadership teams reflect the diversity of the society in which they do business – in regards age, ethnicity, sexuality, disability, mental health, gender and so forth. The best leaders will not emerge based on their membership in the “boy’s club” but through their demonstrated capacity to lead through change, embrace ambiguity and uncertainty, and understand and integrate modern practices of digital, cognitive and AI technology.

In recent research conducted by Chandler Macleod People Insights, the most pivotal skills to employee perceptions of leadership success included culture and engagement, vision and future focus and relationship building. This shows that a leader’s ability to effectively drive and shape culture can make or break an organisation, and align a workforce with their specific vision and strategy.

Research shows that diversity is poor amongst Australia and New Zealand’s current business leaders, and 50% of staff feel that their leaders are biased in favour of people who look, think and act like them. Given the full-time gender pay gap is still almost 15%, modern and emerging leaders can choose to help close the diversity gaps by finding role models who reflect social diversity and by ensuring that equal progression opportunities exist for everyone. The gap will also be reduced through strategies such as greater digital fluency, strategic career ascension and immersion in opportunities presented by new technology.

The leaders of tomorrow will need to demonstrate their ability to lead with influence in environments of complexity and ambiguity. They will manage their human workforce by supporting them with machines and technology, and they will be able to do this quickly, efficiently and when necessary, remotely. These new competencies for leaders which reflect success will include promotion of transparency to help engender trust and respect with staff. Modern performance management indicators will demand more the traditional KPIs such as driving strategy, delivering financial results and managing operations. The future focus will include capacity to work collaboratively, and emerging KPIs will demand outcomes achieved through close interaction with other leaders: even at the C-suite.

Teams – the whole is more than the sum of its parts

New expectations for organisations include team-based thinking embodied at the following 5 levels:

The Ecosystem: team-based thinking serves the organisation, its customers and partners and society generally
The Organisation: the construction of networks of teams promotes collaboration and empowered decision making
The Team: teams can be selected to promote agility and collaborative work models. This can drive the shift from hierarchies to cross-functional teams, with leaders learning how to operate in a team and help teams to engage with each other, including building programs and incentives to support “teaming”.
The Leader: there is growing demand for organisations to select and develop leaders who can drive their team with a growth mindset which promotes an iterative, open, inclusive and effective environment. The success of team based organisational models to improve performance has been demonstrated through Cisco and Google where senior leaders are available to move easily and quickly between projects. Collaboration at senior leadership levels is promoted and employee mobility is facilitated to place the right person on the right team at the right time. Reward structures can be created for C suite (and below) which incentivises effective collaboration and promotes influence and impact through team-based achievement which is celebrated regardless of job level or title.
The Individual: there is a shift in focus for individual team members change from “climbing the ladder” to experience-based growth. Team members are relying on learning and rewards to look beyond succession and performance management structures.

HR and technology

It’s a “no-brainer” that the impact of technology on business will grow but in 2019, 65% of Deloitte survey respondents indicated that their HR technology is performing “fair” at best. Organisations are demanding HR technology which is natural, easy and integrated into the work environment. AI is on the rise, and HR software requires ease of use and smarter analytics.

Organisations expect the following features from their HR systems:

Better employee experience

Real time data and dashboards and consolidated view

Better data and workforce highlights

Easy to use, including ease of updates

Cloud-based systems as a strategic HR function

Increased HR tech innovation

Lower cost

So, what does all of this data and technology mean for the employee experience at work? Emerging technology provides the capacity to review an individual’s experience within the organisation at every point from hire to retire. We can expect to see a move away from “deep-dive” annual or biannual engagement surveys to “pulse” surveys undertaken at more regular intervals. HR technology can enable experience survey as a continuous chain of events and interactions, providing increased connections to the “moments that matter” to employees.

Of course, this does raise the question of how data might be collected and how it can be used. Some analysts are predicting the use of text analysis which can “read” survey responses, work emails and so forth to assess workplace sentiment to certain situations. Others are predicting the increased use of emotion recognition software from video/live streaming of staff at work in order to provide insight into their emotional states. Others foresee the use of “wearables” of biosensors (think Fitbits or Apple watches) to help monitor the mental state or stress levels of staff. Sound like science-fiction? Think again. Recent media reports have recently described the dismissal of a staff member who raised the ire of his employer by refusing to release his biometrics as part of a new sign-in system. Whilst in Sweden, thousands of people have had microchip IDs inserted into their hands to give themselves access into homes, offices, concerts and even to access social media. So, in the world of HR, where will the limits of techno-ethics lie? How much data is too much? Can we be certain that all data will be used appropriately? And what does this mean for individual employees as well as the organisations in which they work? Time will tell but we’d love to hear what you think!

If you missed part one and two of our emerging trends or organisational success series, you can read them here:

Re-imagining the Nature of Work

Adapting How we Work

If you loved this article, why not check out the other articles by our Senior CMPI Consultant Narelle Dickinson:

Using resilience to build happier and healthier workplaces

4 key changes for improved workforce resilience

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If you’ve been looking for ways to make the hiring process easier for your business due to finding yourself overwhelmed with the administrative and operational processes associated with hiring and onboarding new employees, outsourcing your recruitment and talent acquisition activities is a great way to streamline your tasks, and save your business both time and money. Here are the ways working with a recruitment agency may benefit your organisation. The benefits of outsourcing recruitment processes In the fast-paced business world of today, businesses are constantly looking for ways to streamline their operations and improve their efficiency. One area where outsourcing operations has become increasingly popular is recruitment processes and talent acquisition. By entrusting this responsibility to a recruitment agency, businesses can benefit from reduced costs, improved quality in talent, and more time to focus on their core business activities and objectives. Outsourcing to a recruitment agency also allows companies to access a larger talent pool due to recruiters being able to leverage their expertise and networks to find the best candidate for the role. Outsourcing recruitment processes and talent acquisition is a smart investment for businesses looking to save time, money, and resources while still being able to attract top talent. How to find the right recruitment agency for your business Finding the right recruitment agency to partner with can be a daunting task. With so many agencies to choose from, it is important to select one that is experienced and reliable. A good recruitment agency will have a clear understanding of your business needs and objectives, and the type of candidate you are trying to attract. The right agency for your business will take the time to get to know you and your company culture and will align with your business values and ethos, which will ultimately allow them to present you with top-quality candidates that go above and beyond your expectations. Don’t be hesitant to ask for case studies and references as this will give you more insight into their success rate and the quality and breadth of services they offer. By partnering with the right recruitment agency for your business, you can trust that you’ll find the best candidate for your business needs, without the stress of taking the process on yourself. Maintaining a relationship with a recruitment agency Continuous monitoring and assessment of the performance of the recruitment agency is pivotal to ensure that the partnership is providing the anticipated results. Evaluating the relationship should be an ongoing effort involving not just reviewing the immediate outcomes such as the quality of candidates, timeliness, and cost-savings for the business, but also looking at the long-term indicators such as employee retention rates and the satisfaction of the hiring manager. Essentially, looking at these metrics will offer insights into whether the recruitment agency has a good understanding of your company’s needs, culture, and expectations. Over time, any patterns or trends that emerge through monitoring these metrics can help you refine your recruitment strategy and provide a more productive relationship with your recruitment agency. Re-evaluating your partnership with a recruitment agency If the recruitment agency your business is working with no longer aligns with your business objectives or simply fails to deliver satisfactory results, it might be time to re-evaluate the business relationship. Before deciding to stop using a recruitment agency, or to change agencies, ensure you communicate your concerns and expectations with your account managers. If performance doesn’t improve, consider looking elsewhere- one ill-fitting relationship with an agency doesn’t mean there isn’t a better fit elsewhere. Look for agencies with a proven track record in your industry, ask about their company culture and values to ensure they align with your own, and get a clear understanding of their candidate screening process to see how they differ from others. Remember, changing agencies can be a significant step towards business objectives, so take the time to make sure that your next choice will be a more effective and beneficial partnership. Looking beyond the hiring processes of a recruitment agency Taking into account the additional services provided by a recruitment agency and its affiliated brands has the potential to add value to your hiring process. For instance, a company may have sister brands specialising in in different areas than what you were initially looking for such as executive staffing, temporary staffing, or different specialist industries, which can greatly broaden your options in the hiring process. Furthermore, some agencies may offer additional services such as onboarding support, HR culturing (not sure what this one is), managed services, business consulting, or technological services that can assist in enhancing your overall recruitment strategy and employee experience. Looking at the full scope of a recruitment agency’s services and the strength of their affiliations can be a significant aspect to consider when choosing a recruitment agency to partner with. There are many benefits to outsourcing your company’s recruitment processes through the right recruitment agency. By considering your business’ needs and establishing a strong relationship with a recruitment agency, your business can benefit from access to a sizeable talent pool and network, and an increased speed for filling open positions. Taking the time to find the right fit for your business, as well as evaluating all of the offerings of the recruitment agency, and their affiliates, and monitoring the progress can ensure not only great results for your hiring strategy, but also benefit your business by saving you time and money. Why choose Chandler Macleod? With our history as Australia’s first business psychology firm, the ability to assess your candidate and employee potential is at the heart of what we do, and we treasure the value this can add to your business over the longer term. By understanding your needs and the requirements of the role, our consultants use our BestFit Assessment tools to provide you with confidence in your hiring by delving deeper into the candidate's psyche. Beyond the recruiting stage, Chandler Macleod Consulting delves into understanding your employees’ lived experiences. By teaming up with our human and organisational behaviour experts you can help your employees and business achieve their full potential. Chandler Macleod is part of RGF Staffing APEJ, an ecosystem of brands that work together to create opportunities for life, using digital tools and solutions for insights and processes, putting the individual at the core. Find out more about what RGF Staffing APEJ can offer your business.