PsyMax Solutions Newsletter: Trends in online HR solutions
Increase Job Performance by Integrating Recruitment with Coaching and Development
In This Issue:
- Increase Job Performance by Integrating Recruitment with Coaching and Development
- Tri-C's Key Entrepreneur Development Center Selects PsyMax Solutions To Deliver Customized and On-Demand Human Capital Development Reports and Programs
- Human Resource News and Trends: Corporate Leaders Reveal What Keeps Them Awake at Night
- Public Eye: PsyMax Solutions in the News
1. Increase Job Performance by Integrating Recruitment with Coaching and Development
Recruiters are the face and voice of an organization. They are the first ones to learn about candidates' work experiences, strengths, and liabilities. Recruiters often understand not just whether job candidates will succeed, but under what conditions they will succeed. For example, a candidate for a sales position may have a strong probability of being a top performer, but only after he receives coaching and improves his organizational skills.
Ask yourself these questions:- Have you ever recommended someone for a job that you knew could be a very successful job performer, but only if the person received the right kind of coaching and development?
- Have you seen someone fail on a job because the organization did not have enough information about the person's relative strengths and weaknesses?
- Have you ever hired someone, but wished you had a better understanding about how to best manage him/her?
Unfortunately, the silos that sometimes exist in Human Resources organizations can hinder such important information from being shared.
Recruiters gather an enormous amount of important information about job candidates during the sourcing process. The information is relayed to hiring managers to be used during subsequent interviews. However, once the hiring decision has been made the information gathered by recruiters is usually filed and never referred to again. The departments responsible for performance management, coaching, training and development could greatly benefit from having this information.
The field of recruitment has traditionally operated in isolation from other Human Resources departments. The mission of recruiters is to fill the staffing pipeline with highly talented individuals - it is up to the rest of the Human Resources organization to coach and develop the individuals to maximum job performance. However, leading organizations are increasing their efficiency and effectiveness by adopting a holistic approach to recruitment, coaching, and development. There is a tremendous competitive advantage that can be gained by improving and integrating the information gathered during the recruitment process with the coaching and development process. This advantage can lead to reduced turnover and increased profits.
The first step to seizing this advantage is still recruiting and accurately assessing the right person. For example, in the retail industry store managers have a great influence on success. Their leadership skills have a direct impact on store operations and profits. Ineffective management results in turnover, shrinkage, mediocre customer service, and reduced profits.
Once the person is hired, the organization's job is not done. The coaching and development functions of the organizations need to support the retention of high-performing employees. Large merchants spend an average of $77 million a year in severance and other turnover costs. Research indicates that one of the top reasons employees leave their jobs is because they do not see opportunities for career growth; therefore, organizations can reduce turnover by demonstrating commitment to their employees by offering targeted coaching and development opportunities.
Borders Group, which operates 1,200 Borders and Waldenbooks stores, is an example of an organization that is combining what it learns during the recruitment and selection stage with subsequent coaching and development. Borders Group has used the PsyMax Solutions Work Style AssessmentSM (WSA) inventory as a recruitment tool to assist in the selection of its Store and District Managers since 2002. Borders Group worked closely with PsyMax Solutions to conduct a job analysis to develop a success profile of the most critical work styles required for performing these jobs. The recruiters use the in-depth WSA reports and degree of fit scores to help them select the best job candidates for their organizations.
A recent independent study published by Cornell University professors documented that the work styles in the success profile were directly related to organizational performance. The professors compared the profitability of stores staffed by managers who had high WSA inventory work style scores with managers who scored low. Controlling for other store-specific variables outside of the control of the managers, the researchers found that the stores run by managers scoring higher on four specific work style behaviors had millions of dollars more in profits (please go to www.psymaxsolutions.com for more details about the study).
Dan Smith, Borders Group Senior Vice President of Human Resources, said "Plain and simple PsyMax Solutions Work Style Assessment works. Borders' success is determined by the management team at each location, and PsyMax helps us to identify the candidates with the characteristics that we know drive sales most. PsyMax has been a proven producer." Borders Group has begun to incorporate these recruitment and assessment data with its subsequent training programs. Borders Group conducts follow-up coaching and development programs for their managers that specifically help them improve on the five work styles that have shown to be most critical for success.
In today's organization, companies are spending fewer and fewer hours providing coaching and development. Each hour is valuable and precious. Border Group has been able to save costs and streamline its coaching and development efforts by focusing on these four critical work styles. Borders Group has concluded that using the PsyMax recruitment tools to help select managers and guide their development has a significant return on investment. The results from this study are an illustration of how companies can benefit from integrating information gathered during the recruitment phase with on-going coaching and development.
2. Tri-C's Key Entrepreneur Development Center Selects PsyMax Solutions To Deliver Customized and On-Demand Human Capital Development Reports and Programs
The Key Entrepreneur Development Center, affiliated with Cuyahoga Community College (Tri-C), recently added PsyMax Solutions' on-demand development report and interactive programs to its entrepreneur development program. Participants in this innovative program will be given the opportunity to complete PsyMax Solutions' Work Style AssessmentSM inventory. The "Developing Your Potential" report, one of a number of PsyMax Solutions' reports available, will be shared with each participant.
Anne Hach, Director of the Key Entrepreneur Development Center, recently said, "At Tri-C we want to help people be better entrepreneurs because we believe it is a vital part of building better businesses. We chose to partner with PsyMax for the depth of information and insight found in their "Developing Your Potential" development report. Also, PsyMax will be doing research with us to identify some key indicators of the success characteristics of successful entrepreneurs. Creating the opportunity for entrepreneurs to understand their work style behaviors will allow them to recognize and build on their strengths and develop their weaknesses, making them stronger business leaders."
3. Human Resource News and Trends: Corporate Leaders Reveal What Keeps Them Awake at Night
A recent poll by the Ken Blanchard Companies reveals top concerns of human resource executives and leaders. When asked to identify their top concerns, training and human resource leaders and other business executives revealed that their top challenges include developing potential leaders, enhancing managerial and supervisory skills, selecting and retaining key talent, dealing with competitive pressures and the shortage of skilled labor.
Human resource executives and leaders were asked to respond to the following questions:- What are your organization's top management challenges?
- 58% of the 500 participants cited developing potential leaders as the number one management challenge.
- 53% cited selecting and retaining key talent as the second most difficult management challenge.
- What are your organization's top employee development challenges?
- 61% responded with developing managerial and supervisory skills as the top major concern. It is also interesting to note that in all three years, the top five concerns in the development area all relate to soft skills, while the bottom three relate to job function or more technical skills.
Universally, results of the survey indicate that flourishing in today's business climate is anything but easy. While rankings of management concerns shift from year-to-year, one thing remains constant — overwhelmingly, people issues take center stage.
Source: Ken Blanchard Companies
4. Public Eye: PsyMax Solutions in the News
- PsyMax Solutions Featured in Inside Business Magazine's Feb 2005 Issue.
The story titled "Finding the Right Fit" discusses how Danny Vegh's is using the PsyMax Solutions Work Style Assessment Hiring the Right People selection report and Interviewing for Excellence interview guide to find better candidates and save on HR costs. To receive a copy of this article, please contact PsyMax Solutions. - Steve Becker, Senior Vice President of Human Resources with Sterling Jewelers to Speak at PsyMax Solutions Breakfast Series.
Steve will discuss the attributes of a winning high-performance culture in the work place. This event will be held at the PsyMax Solutions corporate headquarters in Cleveland, Ohio on May 24, 2005 at 7:30am. Register for this Breakfast Series event. - PsyMax Solutions to Exhibit at the fast-growing HR Star Conference.
The HR Star Conference will be held in Cleveland, Ohio on July 27, 2005. Register for this event.
About PsyMax Solutions
PsyMax Solutions offers an on-demand and integrated Human Capital website that provides world class assessment, interviewing, development, coaching, career, and 360° reports and programs for employees and managers. The PsyMax Solutions product suite is based on the work of psychologists who have conducted and written reports for over 20,000 managers. Our product suite generates results equal in quality, but at a fraction of the cost.
The PsyMax Solutions product suite is ready for immediate use without time-consuming and expensive consulting and IT set-up costs. In minutes you can create your own customized Human Capital website and use our integrated product suite to align your recruitment and development processes. To learn more about PsyMax Solutions, please visit us on the web at www.psymaxsolutions.com, e-mail us at info@psymaxsolutions.com, or call us at 866.774.2273.