TM - April 2008 - (Page 20) [foundations] by Kate DCamp H H The New Loyalty istorically, loyalty has been a major factor in retaining employees. The reciprocal bargain that supports employee loyalty is dependent on a secure career that will provide some advancement, fair compensation and a good working environment. When large established companies first began using layoffs to resize in the face of global competition, the reciprocal nature of the loyalty bargain was revealed as an illusion. Companies could not afford to promise security beyond the means of their businesses to deliver. dividualized degree programs. What can employers offer that optimizes employee potential when there is not a consistent approach that will work with all or even most employees? Employers have a number of options to leverage the individualized interests of each unique person. Short-term international rotations were used successfully in the GE Consumer Finance business (now called GE Money) to give global exposure and perspective to employees around the world. The simplicity and adventure of a three-month rotation assignment abroad was more appealing than relocating to many people, and administratively simpler and less costly than expatriate projects. A try-beforeworking hours. Logging all of the hours worked across the company, which I witnessed at GE and we added at Cisco, served to create positive competition and was a tangible reminder that the organization itself was doing good. The common element in these approaches is employee choice. The challenge for employers is to create an environment where employees’ ideas are heard and matched to a company need through developmental learning assignments or projects. Job swaps are another potential approach, as are personalized rotational programs that create exposure to core areas of the business but allow each participant to customize the experience. For instance, if multidisciplinary experience is important to develop general management capability, why not let an individual plan an assignment to get exposure to sales or operations? However, to create an environment with the flexibility A good example of this is the auto industry. Jobs were secure and paid well, with good benefits, but this structure was ultimately too expensive to stand up to global competition. For a time, large U.S. automakers lost touch with consumer The challenge for employers requirements, at least is to create an environment in part due to the inwhere employees’ ideas ternal momentum of years of success, are heard and matched to which can block ina company need through novation. In addition, developmental learning advancement came to a halt at some point assignments or projects. for virtually everyone, and since advancement and learning were intertwined, development in you-buy approach to new roles or assignments also could increase the organization also stalled. employee willingness to get back So what will replace loyalty? With into the learning mode without the greater competition among em- risk of the unknown, which is a ployers for a shrinking pool of tal- barrier to internal movement. ent, can companies create an environment that makes people want to A Cisco program that allows highstay and also to continue learning potential employees to rotate into a and contributing their best ideas full-time philanthropic project has and efforts? This challenge is made provided employees with a fresh more difficult by the ubiquitous perspective, including how to work learning environment the next gen- with minimal resources. Further, by telling the stories of those who eration is accustomed to. have participated in the program, Few employees will tolerate highly the talent initiative creates pride structured developmental career that extends beyond the participaths or standardized curriculum. pants and into the organization. Universities have evolved to address Both GE and Cisco showed strong the new generations’ expanse of in- support for volunteering by allowterests with interdisciplinary or in- ing employees to volunteer during About the Author Kate DCamp is the senior executive adviser at Cisco. She can be reached at editor@TalentMgt.com. to be reciprocal in matching employee interests to company needs, we will need to begin experimenting immediately. Find an executive interested in alternative employee development approaches and co-develop a pilot program. Share the successes and what was learned with the rest of the organization. Creating new loyalty requires experimentation, and diving in will work better and certainly faster than the planning and administration required for traditional standardized programs. 20 April 2008 talent management magazine www.TalentMgt.com http://www.TalentMgt.com
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