This presentation looks at strategies and tactics for HR to effectively introduce change in the organization related to employee performance management processes, and technology introduction to support it. Using the example of Halogen’s employee performance and talent management software, it provides ideas and best practices around introducing change and ensuring internal adoption among end users of the system – executives, managers and employees.
Whether you are just about to launch your first process using Halogen or have just completed your 5th appraisal cycle, success is dependent on getting people to use the system. In order for employees to use the system, we need to engage them and get their buy-in!
This presentation looks at strategies and tactics for HR to effectively introduce change in the organization related to employee performance management processes, and technology introduction to support it. Using the example of Halogen’s employee performance and talent management software, it provides ideas and best practices around introducing change and ensuring internal adoption among end users of the system – executives, managers and employees.
Whether you are just about to launch your first process using Halogen or have just completed your 5th appraisal cycle, success is dependent on getting people to use the system. In order for employees to use the system, we need to engage them and get their buy-in!
You’ll learn:
Change Management best practices - how to be successful
What you can do to secure buy-in from employees
How to accelerate user adoption
Tips for communicating new processes
Before we can even begin to secure buy-in, we need to talk about Change Management. People resist change. They demonstrate attachment to how things are and resist the reasons for change. Or sometimes they just don’t buy-in because nobody has explained, “What’s in it for me?”, and they see it as another bureaucratic initiative.
Sometimes we think that a change in systems or process is not real change. It’s just about more effective tools to do the job. If you’re in a fast-paced technology aware organization the impact of new technology might not be scary – but to many people it will be. Especially if you’re making the transition from pen and paper to an online system.
Possible reasons for employee change resistance
Lack of understanding around the vision and need for changeComfort with the status quo and fear of the unknownOpposition to the new technologies, requirements and processes introduced by the change
Fear of job lossOverload of current tasks, pressures of daily activities and limited resources
Lack of skills and experience needed to manage the change effectively
Skepticism about the need for change
Organizations attempting to introduce change without a structured approach might say:
"We have a communication plan, isn't that all we need?"
"We are sending them to training, isn't that enough?"
"Can't we just tell people to do it?"
Failures to effectively plan, communicate, train and implement change management strategies can squander the benefits of change and adversely affect employee morale, engagement, and retention.
Discussing a 2007 survey of over 400 organisations across the world - “Projects with excellent change management programs met or exceeded objectives 88% of the time, while projects with poor change management met or exceeded objectives only 17% of the time." - Tim Creasey, Prosci's Centre for Change Management
Unsuccessful organizational change efforts negatively impact critical business outcomes such as employee productivity and engagement.
The impact of failures to introduce effective change can be high: loss of market position, removal of senior management, loss of stakeholder credibility, loss of key employees.
Not only is successful change management important to your organization, but also to your own personal success as an HR professional.
On June 25th, The Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM), unveiled their new HR Competency Model at their 2012 Annual Conference.
This competency model is designed to serve as a resource for HR professionals interested in developing proficiency within each critical competency, from professionals just entering their HR career to those at the executive level. In other words this competency model can help you, the HR practitioner, develop a road map to achieve YOUR HR professional goals.
At the SHRM Annual Conference this past June, the Society for Human Resource Management unveiled their new competencies for HR Success. The model is comprised of 9 key HR competencies. Two of the nine competencies strongly support effective organizational change management.
There are many behaviors noted in the Organizational Leadership and Navigation competence but 8 in particular are key to effective change.
Direct initiatives and processes within the organization with agility and to gain buy-in from stakeholders
Foster collaboration
Understands the most effective efficient way to accomplish tasks within... organizational hierarchy, processes, systems, and policies
Develops solutions to overcome potential obstacles to successful implementation of initiatives
Agility and expertise when leading organizational initiatives or when supporting the initiatives of others
Sets the vision for HR initiatives and builds buy-in from ...stakeholders
Promotes consensus among organizational stakeholders (e.g., employees, business unit leaders, informal leaders) when proposing new initiatives
Serves as a transformational leader for the organization by leading change
Of the communications competency, again there are several supporting behaviors but we saw that these 8 in particular will help drive effective change management when implementing new systems and processes within your organization.
Effectively exchange and create a free flow of information with and among various stakeholders at all levels of the organization to produce impactful outcomes
Provides clear, concise information to others in all communication formats for public and organizational consumption
Delivers critical information to all stakeholders
Ensure effective communication throughout the organization
Provides proactive communications
Demonstrates an understanding of the audience’s perspective
Helps others consider new perspectives
Helps managers communicate not just on HR issues
Implementing a successful change process with your Talent Management deployment, you will be nurturing two of the most important
HR competencies for your own professional development.
Sounds like a win/win to me!
Here we outline what we feel are Five Best Practices for Successful Change Management
1. Involvement.
2. Communicate,
3. Training.
4. Feedback –
5. Stay the Course.
Change is inherently unsettling for people at all levels of an organization. All eyes are on the leadership team for guidance and support when organizational change occurs. For change to be successful, the key stakeholders must model the way. The senior leadership team must visibly embrace the new approaches to motivate and challenge the rest of the organization.
C-Level Communication Is Key. At the highest level, it is vital that C-level executives do more than "buy into" the system. It is imperative they establish and continue to communicate the link between top corporate goals and the business process transformation everyone is expected to support. For example, if an organization’s goal is to “support the talent development of our employees through professional development, career development, and improved performance management”, it must be made clear why the change in the performance management process is fundamental to the overall success of the organization’s Talent Management Strategy. High performing, fully-engaged employees are more likely to stay with an organization that provides a best in class talent management experience.
If there is minimal indication of senior management willingness (and that’s common) try to build pockets of success in the middle and bottom of the organization.
Identify “change agents” and engage people at all levels in the organization.
Find stakeholders who appreciate innovation. Try and identify those key ‘innovator’ individuals as they will be essential in personally advocating for the change on a local level.
It is vital you get the message across, and you continue to do so until change is complete.
Communication that fails to engage employees and to inform them of the reasons, processes and expected benefits of major organizational changes can lead to lack of employee buy-in and, ultimately, failure of change initiatives.
The best change programs reinforce core messages through regular, timely communications that are both practical and encouraging.
TIP! Get a small sample from your target population involved right at the start, during the planning for the system or process or whatever it is that you are going to change. Get their buy in and at the same time get informal “change” champions who will form the short list of your formal champions once you are ready to make the change happen.
Over-train whenever possible prior to launching new technology or a new process. Training early allows employees to build greater skills and confidence which in turn reduces stress and resistance.
In addition to understanding the new technology or process, managers need to be trained on the skills that will help them manage resistance to the change initiatives. Skills that can help managers “manage change” include: team building, coaching, feedback, setting priorities, negotiating priorities, stress management, dealing with conflict, systematic problem-solving and effective delegation.
Provide employees with information, tools, and other resources to ease transition.
Recognize and celebrate victories and progress along the way. These early wins increase individual support for change while also having the benefit of helping to sway the attitudes of change-skeptical employees.
Communicate progress, milestones and successes to reinforce the change and to foster teamwork and camaraderie.
Highly visible rewards are a great way to reinforce the organization’s commitment to the change. Likewise, disciplining people who stand in the way of change will reinforce the organization’s commitment to the change effort.
Any new process left unmanaged or improperly measured deteriorates over time -- there are no exceptions. If leaders wish to institutionalize change, the change must become part of the organization’s culture. Change cannot be viewed by employees as the “flavor of the month.”
Every organizational change program should include a robust measurement and evaluation strategy to monitor end-user adoption. For example usage reporting, HR/IT Service desk calls/open tickets related to the new process; administering surveys on regular intervals to assess stakeholders’ use and satisfaction with the process; conducting focus groups with cross-sections of end-users to determine what’s working well and where additional support is required; and collecting anecdotal feedback from face-to-face meetings with divisions/teams, meetings with business unit leaders, and other venues.
By tracking this data you will know who is regularly using the new processes and tools, and who has yet to make the transition effectively.
The other element of regular contact post-implementation is feedback. Your users will have valuable information about what elements of the new process or technology they’re like and where there could be improvements. Gather this information and make the necessary changes to your process along the way.
Also plan to provide feedback on outcomes that the new processes and system have delivered e.g. key business metric improvements such as higher % completion rates, number of manager hours saved preparing and conducting performance reviews, an increase in the frequency of feedback, number of hours saved on HR administration of the process.
This confirms that this was an initiative with ROI, business value and purpose – and not just more overhead.
Now that you have some tips on successful change management, let’s talk about getting buy-in!
Now that you have some tips on successful change management, let’s talk about getting buy-in! Really, we want buy-in! Buy-in signifies the commitment of interested or affected parties to a decision (often called stakeholders) to 'buy in' to the decision, that is, to agree to give it support, often by having been involved in its formulation.
Example: What is the ultimate performance management goal?
Performance management process to be seen as a natural and essential part of work
People to associate performance reviews/appraisals with learning more about what works and what doesn’t
Valuable feedback that keeps us on the right track
Continuous improvement of business success
Employees to feel pride, confidence, anticipation, curiosity and excitement….
Keep it simple: Decide what you need from the process. Don’t add steps that don’t provide useful information
Communicate clearly: employees must understand why performance reviews are important, their role in the process, what they need to do, and when they need to do it
Set the tone at the top: Senior leaders need to lead by example and take the process seriously, for themselves and for their direct reports
Set cascading goals: An employee’s individual goals and objectives should be aligned with overall organizational goals and objectives
Link pay to performance: Use performance evaluations as an opportunity to reward top performers and their accomplishments
Provide training: Managers can benefit from training on how to provide meaningful feedback and give objective ratings
Ideas for training:
“Lunch and Learns” that highlight features and benefits of the software can be done throughout the year
Mini 3-5 minute training sessions at management meetings
Provide support material such as how-to videos, quick reference guides, and frequently asked questions (FAQs).
Ensure fairness and objectivity: if subjectivity or consistency is an issue, have 2nd Level Managers or HR review appraisals from across the organization.
To get a complete view of employees’ performance -- Use Halogen’s Multi-Rater, Feedback Central or Third Party Feedback tools to collect from various sources
To inject meaning into the process, focus on getting employees, managers, and leaders to see performance management as an opportunity – to improve performance, set and accomplish goals, share challenges, provide and obtain feedback, and develop careers.
Your performance management process can be an important tool for aligning your workforce and driving employee high performance. Yet in many organizations, managers and employees do little more than pay lip service to the process. It's not uncommon for companies to report participation rates as low as 25-30%.
And even those with higher rates often don't reap any organizational value from their performance reviews.
There are lots of reasons why managers and employees alike disengage from the performance management process, including:
Find the process is too long and time consuming
Don't understand the process
Don't know where to find the forms or how to use them
Perceive little value for themselves from the process
See little impact from the process
Feel uncomfortable giving feedback and/or setting goals
Feel like spectators rather than participants
Don't get the information they want and need
Don't feel the feedback they get reflects their performance
Don't see any value in the process for them
View the process as subjective
1. Streamline Your Process and Forms to Make Them More Effective (Extended for speaking version)
Often managers and employees disengage from the performance management process because it's unwieldy. The process may be too long and complex or may be unknown or misunderstood. Your performance appraisal forms may too long, complex, inflexible, or hard to use. It's not uncommon for managers to complain of having to spend hours on each appraisal to do them well — precious time they can't afford to redirect from their primary duties.
Start by examining your process and forms. Optimize them for ease of use and to ensure they provide the information you need to effectively manage your workforce. Eliminate any steps or sections that don't provide value.
Once you've streamlined your process and/or forms, make sure to provide comprehensive communication and training on the new way of doing things. Change without supportive education and explanation usually fails to take hold.
2. Train Managers on How to Give Effective Feedback, Set Engaging Goals and Deal with Conflict
When people feel ill equipped to perform a task, they tend to avoid it. Many managers have never been taught how to give feedback on performance, how to set goals, or how to deal with conflict or performance issues. Yet these are far from innate skills.
Address this challenge head-on with training. Ensure the learning is practical, with hands-on exercises or even role-playing to help managers get comfortable with these skills. Companies tend to see the best results when this training is done at least once per year, to refresh and/or deepen everyone's skills.
3. Make Writing Appraisals Faster, Easier, and More Meaningful
Save managers and supervisors significant time, and improve the quality and consistency of feedback with Halogen’s comment helper text and coaching and development tips. All are easily customized or extended, and text can be checked for spelling and language sensitivity to keep appraisals error free.
New for v11.2 - Feedback Central
Some exciting changes have come to Journal Notes with the introduction of Feedback Central. Feedback Central takes journal notes further, providing organizations with the ability to configure multiple types of feedback. Administrators can easily configure, manage and most importantly, organize feedback shared within their organizations. Feedback Central expands Journal Notes beyond the previous options for managers and employees and now allows peer-to-peer as well as human resources-to-employee interactions.
Feedback Central also provides the ability for the employee and manager to easily pull feedback directly into their performance appraisals to provide direct support for ratings and comments. Feedback can be attached to goals, development plans, competency sections and individual competencies (long and short rating scale only).
A year can be a long time and people have a tendency to remember the here and now. By reviewing feedback received over the year, managers are able to be less subjective and provide a more meaningful appraisal.
4. Engage Employees with Self-Appraisals
Employees often complain that performance appraisals are done "to them". They are simply recipients of feedback and goals. They feel they have no voice or influence in the process. And so they disengage.
You can give each employee an active role by having them complete and submit a self-appraisal before their manager completes their appraisal. This could include not only a review of their past performance, but a drafting of goals and development plans for the coming year.
This exercise has been shown to drive much higher employee engagement in the performance management process, but also greater engagement in the employee's performance and development. It helps the employees feel they have a "voice" and can influence their ratings, goals and development.
It also helps managers to better prepare for performance conversations with their employees as it gives them insight into their employees' perceptions and flags any differences.
5. Shift the Focus Away from Ratings to Alignment and Development
Too often, performance appraisals focus on ratings. Employees and sometimes managers pay more attention to the "number" or rating that is given, rather than the performance itself. This is a typical consequence when ratings are used as the primary factor in making decisions on compensation, promotion, etc.
To better engage managers and employees in the process, shift the focus to alignment and development. Use your performance appraisals to align employee goals to organizational goals, so you give employees a larger context for their work. To do this effectively, you'll need to make sure you regularly communicate organizational goals, progress and any changes in organizational priorities or direction. You should also put a focus on employee development. Use your performance appraisals to identify strengths that can be further developed or deepened, and opportunities for improvement. Make sure managers assign development plans to address all learning needs, then follow up to ensure they've been completed and have been effective in impacting performance.
To help shift the focus, make sure your forms include space for feedback, coaching and development planning. Some companies even go so far as to eliminate numerical ratings from their forms altogether. You should also emphasize the focus in all training and communications about your process.
6. Make it an Ongoing Process
When performance appraisals are a once a year event, they tend to done and forgotten. To be effective, performance management needs to be an ongoing activity. Employees need feedback, coaching, direction and development all year round. Your annual performance appraisals should simply be a formal way to capture the ongoing, two-way dialogue on performance that's been taking place all year long. Many organizations find it helpful to conduct quarterly "mini-reviews" to help keep performance management top of mind, but you can find other ways to engrain this management best-practice in your culture.
7. Communicate Your Use of the Information to the Organization
Many managers and employees don't see the value in conducting and documenting formal performance appraisals because they don't see any practical value or use for the information. They sometimes argue that they manage performance in an informal, ad hoc way, and don't need to "fill out the paperwork". So it can be important to share how your organization uses employee performance data, whether it be to:
support fair compensation adjustments
help identify and address individual or group performance issues
help identify and address learning and development needs for individuals and the organization
identify and groom potential successors
identify organizational core competencies
gain insight into employee satisfaction issues
ensure organizational alignment and progress on goals
ensure sufficient knowledge/skills/experience in particular areas
recruit critical skills
etc.
However your organization uses the vital data garnered from your performance management process, share that data, any trends, actions taken and progress made as a result of the data collection and analysis.
Good employee performance management is not an optional activity. Any organization that wants to be successful needs to be able to harness the passion and skills of its most important asset: its people. So it's important to design an effective and efficient performance management process, and engage managers and employees.
Whether it’s your first process or your 20th, communication is the key! 3 tips for success
Pilot Test any new process
Use Automatic Notifications for your Process
Create an Effective Communication Plan
1. Pilot Test any new process
A pilot test is often used to test the design of the full-scale process which then can be adjusted prior to launch. It is a potentially valuable insight and should anything be missing in the pilot test it can be added to the full-scale process to improve the chances of a successful outcome.
Tips and Tricks for Notifications
Customize the automatic notifications in the Halogen solution to suit your corporate culture
Change up the frequency of the notifications at different times in your process to accommodate shorter or longer due dates
If an employee/manager doesn’t like to receive notifications, consider turning off notifications just for them. Leave notifications on for everyone else
A communication plan that articulates the vision of where the organization wants to go and the benefits of doing so
How Halogen links to your talent and performance strategy – why you’re doing this and what you hope to achieve
The business benefits
Identify and communicate the benefits to the individual, and answer the important, “What’s in it for me?” question. For a manager this might be helping improve soft skills, such as giving feedback. For employees it can be taking control of their own career development. Show how you’re going to support them during and throughout the process, reaching them where and how they want.
Elements of an Effective Communication
Event: What expected or unexpected events warrant the need to communicate?
Message: What information needs to be communicated?
Communicator: Who is responsible for preparing, delivering, verifying receipt of, and ensuring the comprehension of the information?
Audience: Who needs the information?
Timing: When should the communication occur?
Tools & Format: How will the information be communicated?
Follow-Through: How will receipt and comprehension of information be verified?
Accountability: Who is ultimately responsible for implementing the communication plan?
Concluding Tips,
The employee performance management process costs companies significant time and money. If you're not executing them in an efficient and effective way, the cost in terms of time spent by managers, employees and HR may outweigh the benefits you realize in terms of employee performance. If the quality of your reviews is poor, your employees may not be getting the feedback and development they need to become more productive.
Training, communication and senior-level support for Halogen are KEY to promoting the adoption and buy-in among employees.
Sustaining the change is a key challenge for successful HR software implementation and user adoption. As the majority of employees will only use the HR software and the processes intermittently, they will need constant reminders of the benefits to them and to the organization. Tying the communication back to the corporate strategy and demonstrating the resulting benefits will be fundamental in sustaining the change.