Welcome to the fifth application lab in the [Re]Create Application Lab Collection. The lab includes a downloadable workbook (PDF), a video, and editable worksheets (PPTX).
Introduction
It is a truism to say, “People are our most valuable asset” — but it is also inaccurate.
First, people are not “assets” owned by the company, and talented people won’t work for leaders who treat them as chattel. Organization members (employees, volunteers, etc.) are sovereign human beings and stakeholders. As Drucker (2006) points out, we as leaders often need them more than they need us.
Second, all too often leader decisions, policies, and behaviors tell a very different story. Instead of valuable assets, leader actions often paint employees as an expense to be minimized and leveraged for maximum profit. Treating employees as an expense to be minimized is the equivalent of killing the “goose that laid the golden egg.”
People are the bridge between strategy development and strategy deployment. While we often present the strategy process activities in a sequence, in reality, the assessment of the workforce capability and capacity is also an input into the development of the strategy. Leaders of high-performing organizations view workforce members as whole people rather than cogs in a machine.
Read Chapter 5, Enable, Empower, Engage, in the [Re]Create Book.
Available on: Amazon | iBooks | Nook | Kobo | Audible (Audiobook)
Application
Objective – Understand the Enable, Empower, and Engage (E3) People concepts, components, and relationships and how they contribute to leadership and organization [re]design for sustainable excellence.
How many people with what knowledge, skills, and abilities do you need to support your strategy? In this lesson, you will apply the key E3 people concepts to your organization. Specifically, you will identify workforce capabilities and capacity for each strategic goal, and you will develop a communication plan for the critical messages essential to achieving the strategy.
Workforce Capability and Capacity Video 0:42
Objective – Identify the workforce capabilities and capacity for each strategic goal.
We start with the workforce capability and capacity. Goals are dreams if you don’t have the people to make them a reality. Do we have enough of the right kind of people to accomplish our strategy?
Strategic Goal
Identify the strategic goals from the previous lab. For example, one of our goals might be to increase top-line revenue through increased repeat and referral business due to improved customer service.
Workforce Capability
Identify the workforce capabilities needed to accomplish each goal. An example might be customer service representatives with superior interpersonal and problem-solving skills under stressful conditions. Do we currently have people like this? Do we have the “in-house” ability to train people?
Workforce Capacity
Identify the workforce capacity requirements for each capability identified. For example, you may need a total of 450 customer representatives at two different locations (countries). You may currently only have 327 such people combined between the two locations.
Repeat the process for each strategic goal. What are the workforce capability and capacity requirements, and where do you stand on those requirements?
Communication Plan Video 3:14
Objective – Develop a communication plan for the major messages essential to achieving the strategy.
Once you have the right people, the next step is to get everyone to work towards the strategy. A good communication strategy will help get people “on the same page” by communicating where we are all going and what is expected of them. A communication plan includes five key components – message, medium, sender, audience, and frequency.
Message
Identify the message or type of message. Include purpose and key content elements in the expanded description. Examples – Strategy, Strategy Update, Operations Plan, Work Plan, Employee Benefits Update.
Medium
Identify the medium or media and whether it is a one-way or two-way medium or forum. Examples – All hands face-to-face meetings, teleconference, small group face-to-face meetings, email, webinars.
Sender
Identify the sender by position – which person or persons will deliver this message. Describe the rationale for choosing these particular people in the expanded description. Examples – CEO, COO, Supervisor, SVP of Human Resources.
Audience
Identify the audience, including a profile of the typical audience member. You may have several types of audience members, and you may need to create a separate line for each. Examples – All employees, Direct Reports, Topic-specific employees, Leaders.
Frequency
Identify how often this type of message is delivered. Some messages may be regularly scheduled, continuous via 24×7 accessible media, or ad hoc, such as a one-time occurrence. Examples – Annual, Quarterly, Weekly, Daily, Ad hoc.
Worksheets
- Complete – Complete the worksheets by yourself or with your group.
- Review – Present and explain your worksheets to your colleagues and boss and get their feedback.
- Revise – Incorporate their feedback into your worksheets.
Conclusion
Unfortunately, when faced with short-sighted decisions regarding employees, all too often, one hears the excuse, “well, it is a business.” Yes, and all too often, a BAD business. When leaders use the reason that it is a “business” to justify short-term decisions that reduce longer-term performance and profitability, they are again demonstrating a lack of understanding of the organization as a system and reducing the longer-term value of the firm. It could be that they know it is the wrong decision, but they lack the courage to advocate for or do what is best for long-term performance. We need leaders who can produce short-term results without sacrificing longer-term performance — leaders who understand systems and can [re]design the organization to create value for all the stakeholders.