Developing People Makes Good Financial Sense
3 September 2008
As Economic challenges loom, many organisations are looking for ways to cut costs. Frustratingly, this is against a backdrop of staffing difficulties causing many organisations to either run short-handed (and lose even more people) or to bust their budgets for advertising, agencies, and the like.
How can organisations handle this? It's my belief that, more than the ability to recruit, it is the ability to retain quality people that can make or break businesses.
Herzberg's classic theory tells us that people will strive initially to achieve certain "hygiene" needs (working conditions, salary, etc) because they are unhappy without them, but the motivational effect of this soon wears off. We often fail to appreciate that people are only truly motivated by being able to reach for and satisfy factors such as achievement, advancement, and development - these represent a far deeper and longer-lasting level of motivation and fulfilment.
This is critical in helping us to understand why people may stay with an organisation for years when there will always be somebody, somewhere, willing to pay them more. We must ensure that not only are the hygiene factors met but, crucially, the high level motivators are also present.
Obviously, many organisations spend time training their people in both technical and non-technical skills to keep pace with change and to develop them for future roles.
There are, however, a number of other possibilities.
These include the less formal techniques like coaching and mentoring, on the job training, further study, and even simply reading.
Then there are appraisal systems, which should help to increase motivation. These are great in theory but often do not add the value which they are capable of. If there is insufficient effort or skill brought to bear in design or implementation, then appraisals will be more demotivating than motivating.
Many organisations ensure that supervisors see it as a part of their role to develop their teams. This, in turn, means that the supervisor needs to be appropriately trained to understand staff development and its effects on both the organisation and employees.
An employer may obtain an HR presence (even on a part-time basis), not so much to handle day to day things like administration (though this can be a part of their role) but more to work with supervisors and employees alike to ensure that needs are being met. They can also help organisations understand how to develop staff for future roles (talent management and succession planning). This type of presence "on the ground" can be invaluable - legal helplines are great for compliance but they are no substitute for working face to face with people.
There is no easy solution, but the principle is simple - engaging with your people, and helping them to develop, makes sound business sense. Need convincing? Check out the financial performance of the "Great Place to Work" Top 100 against the FTSE 100.
Bruce Christie is a Partner with Facilitators International, responsible for the Facilitators People Excellence team. He can be reached on 0141 572 8489 or via email at bruce.christie@facilitators.co.uk
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