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Employee
Productivity According to the Annual CEO Summit held recently at Greenbrier by the members of the Business Council, a group of active and retired CEOs from hundreds of Blue-chip US companies, "rising wage and benefit costs were the most worrisome inflationary pressure on the economy." An article in Wall Street Journal on Thursday, May 11, 2000, "several (CEOs) emphasized that rapid productivity advances continue to help insulate their companies form the full impact of rising wage and material costs." Ralph Larson, Chairman and CEO of Johnson and Johnson and the current Head of the Council, noted that his company had been able to triple its business in the past ten years while only increasing its workforce by 15%. How has the growth of your organization's business compared to the increase in cost of the labor force? Are you getting the increased productivity from those who are hired? The labor force and its productivity is one of the key issues of the 2000s. Due to an increasingly tight labor market, we can expect the cost of wages to continue to increase. If care and diligence is not applied to hiring the right people, ensuring they fit the job, and providing an environment where they are motivated to not only stay, but also be productive, the problem will only get worse. The only way to hedge against a continuing tightening labor market and increasing labor cost is increased employee satisfaction and productivity. In most organizations, the productivity gains from automated information and production systems have leveled out or will only improve slightly in the future. Now that increases from technology have peaked, the real productivity increase has to come from people. This means that decisions have to be made quicker, implementation has to be better, and results greater. Another factor that must be considered is the higher expectations of customers. All this translates into an environment where customers want it perfect, customized to their individual needs, and almost instantly or on demand. While increases in expectations could put additional stress on staff, it is important for upper management to create an environment of fun and celebration of success for its employees. Many companies can't afford to give lavish bonuses or huge prizes, such as a new BMW for staying one year, and still remain competitive. This can be prohibitive for companies to give such bonuses or prizes. Employees are realizing once their basic financial needs are met, they much prefer a positive work environment where they feel valued and can achieve their career objectives. How is your organization doing in getting and keeping human capital? According to Department of Labor, for some companies, up to 70% of their asset value is employees. Do you have a plan for hiring the "best" talent for the business's needs? Do you know how to identify the best talent for your needs? How do the employees feel about their jobs, the work they do, the company, upper management, and the work environment? Have you conducted a confidential and anonymous survey to find out what employees really think and feel not just what they are willing to tell management? Is there a system of appraisal and evaluation that rewards for performance and provides accountability for non-performance? Recently during an interview for Association Management Magazine, a publication of the American Society of Association Executives, I was asked whom the OUTLAW GROUP had assisted to reduce turnover and what the results were? To provide the answer to this question, we examined clients we were currently working with and found the results were even more impressive than we thought. One start up company in Dallas with just under 100 employees, which incidentally employees a significant number of part-time employees that tend to be short-term, had a significantly reduced its turnover rate. By using our holistic and integrated approach of hiring and retention the client dramatically reduce their turnover from an annualized level of 397%. In July of 1999 we began with an Employee Attitude Survey to uncover the areas of need using these approaches: Improving Hiring Practices, Increasing Rewards, Improving Performance Feedback and Improving Management Skills. We were then able to reduce turnover to 45.8% for January through April. Traditionally, these had been the highest months. Even when terminations of part-time employees were evaluated and equated to an annualized turnover rate of 137%, which will continue to decline. Not only did the result of the effort produce lower turnover but also better employee performance, increased customer satisfaction, and a record-breaking year start for the year. As the job market continues to tighten, we can expect employees to demand more of their companies and exhibit less loyalty. However, it appears that employees, more than ever before, move because of the quality of the job and work experience, rather than for salary, compensation or career potential. Be
sure the needs of employees in your organization are being met or
they will find an employer who will.
For more information on how to book Wayne for your next event contact us - Click Here Outlaw Group, Inc. 900 Johnnie Dodds Blvd. Suite 115 •Charleston, SC 29464 • 800.347.9361 • fax 843.881.1758 • info@outlawgroup.com www.outlawgroup.com ~ www.wayneoutlaw.com ~ www.smartstaffing.net |
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