Connecting People & Strategy in an Era of Change
We live in challenging times. Issues such as globalisation and especially technology are rapidly transforming today’s organisations. These relentless and accelerating changes are forcing employers to develop robust strategies appropriate to the context of today’s workplace.
Your employees are integral to the successful execution of your company strategy, but in my opinion, there is often a disconnect between the two.
The key to successfully reconnecting your people with your strategy lies in three areas, all of which are interlinked:
- Clarity of strategy: Your company’s vision and purpose must be clearly communicated to encourage employee buy-in and achievement of your overall objectives.
- The role of leaders and managers: Flexible and versatile leadership has never been as important to your success, as it is now. The role that management needs to play in communicating your strategy to your employees should not be understated.
- An effective employee experience: Forrester predicts that in the face of low unemployment and higher ‘quit rates’, organisations will have to work harder than ever on the employee experience in 20191. That experience needs to be created in line with company strategy. While you can formulate a brilliant strategy with a clear vision of how it will look within your company, if it is not well managed and communicated you will fail to create a successful employee experience. As we move into 2019, employee wellbeing will also become a strategic priority within this context.
In order to succeed with effective communication and execution of the three elements, companies can use proven methodologies, approaches and tools such as:
Versatile leadership
Discussions relating to the workforce often revolve around diversity, relating to nationalities, culture and even the stages of growth within a business. Today’s workforce is multi-generational.
Within that, each generation has its own unique and very different expectations of an employer, requiring versatile and flexible leadership. Different models of leadership can be adopted to manage those expectations, such as 3E (engagement, explanations and expectations) and situational leadership. These models must be agile and responsive as the demographic shift continues – three quarters of the workforce will be millennials by 2025.2
Creating a culture of feedback
Your employees want to understand their purpose and their role within your organisation. They want to know how it aligns with the overall strategy. They demand inspirational leaders who take an interest in their development. Continuous performance management provides a culture which offers ongoing coaching, feedback and goal setting, replacing the one-off annual performance review. It offers a clear, top-down process from line managers to employees, incorporated within a framework which is aligned to your strategy.
Organisations that strategically invest in their employees are more likely to create a culture in which employees embrace innovation, transformation and a commitment to your organisational goals.
The role of technology
Technology and digital transformation is often the final piece in connecting your people with your strategy. According to Deloitte and their Global Human Capital Trends 2017 report, fifty-six percent of companies they surveyed were redesigning their HR programs to leverage digital and mobile tools and fifty-one percent of companies were in the process of redesigning their organizations for digital business models. In the 2018 survey, 70 percent of respondents predicted that workers will spend more time on collaboration platforms and 67 percent see growth in ‘work-based social media’.
To respond to these demands, companies should translate and simplify the digital transformation agenda into easily consumable cloud solutions that resonate with Employees and Managers. That’s the biggest goal for the nearest future.
Teresa Olszewska is CHRO at Gavdi Group and CEO of Gavdi Poland. Teresa is an experienced HR professional with over 20 years’ experience in the HR sector, having worked as a HR specialist across a wide range of industry sectors. She began her career as a` SAP HCM consultant and Product Manager at SAP Poland. Along with her role as Managing Director for Gavdi Poland she is also responsible for Gavdi’s group HR and Communication function.
