Building of discussion group template 13 03 11

1. Dear ,<br />I wanted to thank you for accepting my invitation to be connected on Linked In. <br />My objective in reaching out to you is to share the fruit of 24 months of independent research on employee engagement that I have completed and which I feel offers a good global & cross-cultural starting point for a “new way forward” for individuals like you and me wanting to help each other and our organizations to succeed in today’s emerging post-crisis global environment and economy. There is no catch; you don’t have to do anything you don’t want to – I am just sharing my research with you by putting it at your “virtual” disposal for consultation whenever you desire.<br />As well as you, I invited various other members from the following discussion groups that I am involved in to be “LinkedIn”:<br /> Eurodisney Opening Crew 1992 - CEO Dilemma & HR Dilemma - Bilingual Professionals (French/English) - EAPT (European Association of Psychological Type) - Global Leader 2.0 - MBTI Professionals - Corporate University and Learning & Development - Old Stamfordians - Sociocracy - The MBTI/Myers-Briggs Type Indicator Assessment - L’Observatoire des Tendances - Organization and Development Network - The Walt Disney Company Alumni - Top linked HR Professionals – Chief Learning Officer Magazine – Connecting Retail HR – Disney – France Business & Professional Network – Learning & Development Professionals – RH Info – Linked HR – HR & Talent Management executives – Theme Park Professionals.<br />To date over 600 plus group members have accepted my invitation; all of whom have consequently received this communication. To date (updated 13 03 11) the reach of our cooperation has the following potential in terms of regional and industry access: <br />Regional Access Top locations in your network: Your region: HYPERLINK quot;
http://www.linkedin.com/search?search=&sortCriteria=R&keepFacets=keepFacets&facet_G=fr%3A5227quot;
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Find users in this regionquot;
Paris Area, France<br />5% 1. HYPERLINK quot;
http://www.linkedin.com/search?search=&sortCriteria=R&keepFacets=keepFacets&facet_G=us%3A70quot;
quot;
Find users in this regionquot;
Greater New York City Area<br />3% 2. Paris Area, France<br />3% 3. London, United Kingdom<br />2% 4. San Francisco Bay Area<br />2% 5. Greater Chicago Area<br />Your connections are in 258 locations but your network gives you access to 1,636 additional locations, including: United States - Baltimore, Maryland Area - Kansas City, Missouri Area<br />Fastest growing locations in your network: Paris Area, France - Greater New York City Area London, United Kingdom<br />Industry Access Top industries in your network: Your industry: Human Resources<br />11% 1. HYPERLINK quot;
http://www.linkedin.com/search?search=&sortCriteria=R&keepFacets=keepFacets&industry=96quot;
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Find users in this industryquot;
Information Technology and Services<br />10% 2. Human Resources<br />5% 3. Staffing and Recruiting<br />4% 4. Marketing and Advertising<br />4% 5. Management Consulting<br />Your connections are in 115 industries but your network gives you access to 147 additional industries, including: Market Research - Semiconductors - Security and Investigations<br />Fastest growing industries in your network: Information Technology and Services Human Resources Management Consulting<br />My quest and research started two years ago, in March 2009. As the Director of Mobility, Communication and Learning for the Hertz Corporations post-transformation global Customer Experience Program where my brief was to integrate both the Human Resources team & Employer of Choice branding initiatives and the Global Customer Experience Branding initiatives in order to engage a corporation in a new customer experience - a best in class experience for all involved. <br />However, when the Hertz Corporation laid off 4000 employees worldwide in January 2009, I along with 3999 others was literally whipped out to sea by the brewing global economic crisis. Taken by surprise, but both inspired and motivated by the Customer Experience Vision championed by Hertz I decided to continue to work on employee engagement in what has become a long sabbatical that has allowed me to turn my 2009 engagement strategy into a concept that I have baptized Human Sigma Made in France. The building of my concept started back in May 2009 on Facebook following my return to France after having being certified in the Interstrength Method with Dr. Linda Berens’ and her team in Huntington Beach, CA. I have been fortunate enough to engage over 1000 of my former friends and colleagues from the Walt Disney Company, the Hertz Corporation, Truffaut & Photo Service in the evolution of my thinking and consequent realization of my vision and work http://slidesha.re/gP5K4f.<br />Presented as an animated video with written comments, Human Sigma Made in France, http://slidesha.re/bqRrbL uses modern technology to bring to life the culmination of different lessons learned from the various work experiences I’ve had across the world and in very different companies and cultures.<br />My reason for sharing is twofold; firstly I want to share the passion for human resources, employee engagement & storytelling that I learned from my 13 years spent with the Walt Disney Company both in the US http://slidesha.re/ebpAuL and in France http://slidesha.re/hwLpVk ; secondly, I wanted to share with you the findings of my work and the concept that I have come up with that I have baptized, Human Sigma Made in France as well as those at the source of the various ideas and approachs that I have closely studied and integrated into my concept “Human Sigma Made in France”:<br /> Holacracy (www.holacracy.org) <br /> Dr. Linda V. Beren’s Interstrength Method (www.interstrength.com/blog/7) <br /> Sociocracy (www.sociocratie.unblog.fr/) <br /> The MBTI tool and Jungian psychology (www.osiris-conseil.com), <br /> Gallup’s Human Sigma and Behavioral Economics (http://slidesha.re/hXFhxX) <br /> Daniel Pink and his best-seller “A Whole New Mind” (www.danpink.com). <br />Human Sigma Made in France also integrates the many lessons learned from The Hertz Corporation where the Myers-Briggs Type Indicator or MBTI was used in Europe as a potent means of bettering cross-cultural communication, self understanding and teamwork. The MBTI was introduced in Hertz France and as an engaging way of accompanying the transformation of a non-English speaking corporate culture http://slidesha.re/dMbLZx; a transformation orchestrated globally by the Hertz Corporation, headquartered in Park Ridge, New York. <br />Human Sigma Made in France uses storytelling skills to integrate the balanced scorecard concept and new 21st Century Corporate Vision, Mission and Value statements and uses Linda Beren’s Interstrength Method www.interstrength.com to provide the “self discovery” & dynamics necessary to unanimously engage and integrate stakeholders into a constant employee/customer process of “live learning”- an experience often referred to as the reality of our daily lives or more rationally as the day to day in and outs of “Customer Experience” & “Work life”. Incidentally, this is the same work life that employee engagement research informs us that “the actors” are screaming out to be a part of and that requires managers at all levels to become skilled storytellers. An article I wrote for a recent Portfolio International Newsletter will give you further information on this subject http://slidesha.re/f0tjAA.<br />There are some very interesting new paradigms being proposed around the world by different schools of thought that address the change that is needed in how we can run our companies (governance) in the emerging, post-crisis “new global economy”. Remember what Thomas Friedman said about Globalization 3.0 (which started with the millennium bug) in his book “The World is Flat? (http://slidesha.re/dIRr6a). Tom said that Globalization 3.0 is all about “the individual” - individuals can for the first time ever sell their skills and achievements and work anywhere in the world by engaging themselves with whomever they want and all by creating a win-win situation for all involved. Human Sigma Made in France is my vision and my ideas that I offer as a starting point for some form of global discussion amongst a broad representation of Group Members or stakeholders (http://slidesha.re/eOqDbU).<br />The Art and Skill of Storytelling………………….Once upon a time on the 14 September 2005, a car rental company changed forever when the Ford Motor Company confirmed its intent to sell its Hertz rental car subsidiary to a group of private investors in a deal valued at €15 billion ($US 19 million). The sale made was one of the largest ever to a group of equity firms and allowed Ford to cash in on one of its most valuable assets as it faced falling profits in its manufacturing operations. Ford received $US 5.6 billion in cash for Hertz which was at the time the largest car rental company in the US as well as being the only global car rental company – a laureate that Hertz has maintained to date.<br />This sale put Hertz, a company that had been owned by public corporations for much of its 87 year history, under the control of three private equity investment firms: Clayton Dubilier & Rice, the Carlyle Group and Merrill Lynch Global Private Equity. To finance the deal, the investors used $US 2.3 billion in cash and assumed the remaining amount as debt. <br />Now Hertz is a 90+-year old company with a rich legacy of industry leadership and service and with a “new mission” to be the most efficient, high quality, customer focused company in the rental markets the company serves and moves into. In support of this mission, the company has undergone a 3+year worldwide reorganization program (which commenced at the beginning of 2007) in order to operate more efficiently, as well as further improve customer service and employee satisfaction.<br /> Measure 2011 – read the transcript of Hertz Global Holdings conference call and CEO Mark Frissora’s comments at recent presentation of Hertz Global Holdings 2010 and 4th quarter results in February 2011. http://slidesha.re/dVau3a.<br />As part of the overall global reorganization of Hertz that followed, departmental functions were transformed into global centers of excellence, whereas previously the functions operated on a country or US or other regional basis. The HR function is a key example of this initiative. Previously, the HR teams in each of Hertz's company owned (corporate) countries had previously operated fairly autonomously, each with country-driven approaches to their own markets, and with RAC and HERC teams operating separately. Now, however, as a result of the reorganization of the global HR function, all HR employees from all countries across both RAC and HERC are part of one global HR team, which is organized into closely linked, pan geographic HR disciplines.<br />Hertz’s new CEO, Mark FRISSORA, (appointed July 2006) communicated in December 2006 & by global webcast to all Hertz employees worldwide, the new corporate Vision, Mission and Values and corporate objective of becoming a best-in-class Corporation and an employer of choice. Marching orders were clearly given to transform the Corporation into an quot;
Employer of Choicequot;
- in order to both attract and retain the best talent in the industry. Hertz consequently implemented on a global scale, a number of far-reaching initiatives to develop the company as a ' best in class' employer, and carefully measured employee views of progress through bi-annual employee pulse surveys. Furthermore, a specialist task force within the HR group completed a Global Employee Retention Project to address seven key areas relating to employee retention: Attracting new employees; Recruiting new employees; Integrating new employees; Rewarding employees; Growth & Career Opportunities; Managing & Engaging employees and Separating from employees. <br />I was very fortunate to have been part of this incredible Corporate and HR Transformational process, as Hertz France’s Training & Development Director (http://slidesha.re/hfKzsu) and as one of two Pulse coordinators (employee satisfaction) for Hertz France and finally as the Global Customer Experience’s employee engagement guru . Using the balanced scorecard concept and new Corporate vision, Mission and Value statements to lead, guide and inspire local workforces our objective was to create one common identity for the global customer experience program; a common identity closely aligned with the overall identity of the global organization: an identity which helped conveys to both internal and external audiences worldwide that Hertz is indeed an exciting and rewarding company to work for. <br />This experience nourished the building of my new Human Sigma Made in France storytelling concept that I am honored to share for with you and other group members as a starting point for discussing together globally a “new way forward” as to just how corporate governance and employee engagement are integrated into real-time operations in order to drive discretionary effort and employee “best place to work” initiatives; all by creating win-win experiences kindled by the intrinsic motivation of all involved. (http://slidesha.re/gUJuGL)<br />My approach to answer the question as to “just how does one actually engage a global workforce”? was guided by the Research on quot;
Best in Classquot;
Customer Experiences performed across several different industries - a study commissioned by the London Business School Summer School 2008 for Hertz; storytelling was the methodology that was to be used to integrate the customer and employee into one experience; a concept known as Human Sigma as presented by Professor John Fleming of the Gallup Organization is his book Human Sigma. The Gallup Organizations work on Behavioral Economics (http://slidesha.re/hXFhxX) was also a key business approach that inspired my concept Human Sigma made in France.<br />The desired final state (modeled after the Hertz Corporations 2005 - 2009 transformation) was a new and transformed agile and global organization that had metamorphosed itself into a quot;
Best in Class Companyquot;
and an quot;
Employer of Choicequot;
both on the inside and the outside (http://slidesha.re/fajNmw). We are Hertz, they’re not – a company where the engagement, sheer passion and incredible storytelling skills demonstrated by employees all around the world, fuels discretionary effort and engages a “global workforce” in the constant and often mundane process that can be everyday life…….a true example of doing more with less by creating a win-win situation for all involved. <br />As said David Wasserman, a partner at Clayton who negotiated the terms of the sale of the Hertz Rental Car Company with Ford back in 2005: “I think there’s no doubt at the end of the day that this was a win-win-win transaction. It demonstrates the power of private equity in helping corporations restructure their balance sheets”. Human Sigma Made in France assures the integration of people (employee and customer experience) and internal processes by engaging them in corporate strategy which is rolled out in real-time as a story.<br />Thank you for taking the time to read this mail and to look at my presentation. If your interest is sparked and you desire to learn more please visit my LinkedIn Profile Page where different aspects of my concept are presented along with my credentials (http://slidesha.re/9yxdbw) <br />I look forward to engaging you in further discussion and exchange with you at a future date. <br />Best regards and warmest greetings from Paris, <br />Simon PENNY<br />