PIHRA Scope - Winter 2008 - (Page 21)

Identifying career paths not only promotes retention, it also demonstrates an employer’s willingness to invest in their workforce. Offering opportunities to develop individwo ual talen promotes employee engagement while providing nts the orga anization with a renewable business resource. Lever raging transferable skills and harnessing the power of redeploy yment is another green strategy that organizations can implem ment to reduce hiring costs and increase morale. This is es specially true during mergers, acquisitions, company res structuring, or other types of business changes and unce ertainty. Often, when an organization downsizes in one area, there is a need to ﬁll positions in another area. For example, an insurance underwriter who is being downsized may be able to contribute certain quantitative skills in another department, such as accounting or ﬁnance. While the skill set may not match exactly, the foundation is there and the time needed to fully ramp up to becoming a productive contributor to the group will be shorter. Since the employee already possesses important knowledge of the organization and its culture, he or she can focus more immediately on the nuts and bolts of the ne position than an outside hire. Some basic trainew ing on new computer programs or other key differences between the employee’s old and new departments, as well as the support of a mentor, manager, and/or co-worker, can make th difference between a worker facing termination he and a worker feeling protected and valued by his company. w Resp ponsibility for creating this nurturing environment is shared by HR, organizational leadership, and line managers. h db Studies indicate that an employee’s level of engagement is directly affected by the quality of the relationship with his or her manager. In fact, a recent analysis of the 12 leading studies on the subject of employee engagement by The Conference Board found that all studies, all locations and all ages agreed that the direct relationship with one’s manager is among the strongest of drivers. Implementing programs to help managers become more effective leaders helps employees feel valued, more engaged in their positions, have better morale and become more committed to the success of the organization. Implementing programs to help individuals nearing retirement age explore their options will also enhance an employer’s ability to retain these workers and minimize exposure to talent shortages. Diversity is also an important building block for the workplace of the future. In the environment, diverse ecosystems are less vulnerable and more sustainable. Similarly, organizations that have a diverse workforce will be more resilient and better able to position themselves as employers of choice than those that do not. Employee diversity provides a depth and breadth of talent drawn from different cultures, backgrounds and skill sets, increasing the value of a company’s goods and services. Diversity also demonstrates to prospective employees that the company respects and values the unique experiences and perspectives offered by each member of its workforce. RETENTION, RE-ENGAGEMENT AND REDEPLOYMENT — THE THREE R’S The “greening” of the workforce is, like all other “green” movements, an exercise in sustainability. With slowing economy and a seismic shift in demographics as the baby boomers are replaced by millennials, the companies that ﬂourish will be those that maintain a corporate culture where retention, re-engagement and redeployment — the “new three R’s” — are an integral part of every level of management. ■ ©2008 Lee Hecht Harrison CERTIFICATION PREPARATION COURSES FOR • • • • • Classe schedule in anhatt n Classes scheduled in Manhattan hedu Beach, ntario Orange nd rvine. Beach, Ontario, Orange and Irvine. tar ne. Othe Othe professi nal certifi atio Other professional certification ssi erti tio er preparati course available, oo preparation courses available, too. rse ses abl ble, Se websit fo deta ls: See website for details: webs for www.chapman.edu/enhanc www.chapman.edu/enhance hap an. n.e RECYCLE YOUR WORKFORCE, USING BOOMERS AS MENTORS AND PART-TIME WORKERS Workforce turnover is increasingly becoming an issue as baby boomers plan to retire. Career development will undoubtedly be an important facet of recruiting and retaining young talent, but employers should also focus on the needs of their aging workers. Many members of the baby boomer generation are not looking for a quiet retirement and a pension, but rather to continue an active lifestyle. Taking advantage of potential retirees’ knowledge, experience, and interest in part-time schedules can be a perfect mix for a company facing both employment shortages and a tight bottom line. Strategies for retaining these workers include providing alternatives for career continuation such as part-time scheduling and opportunities to mentor younger workers. We ls offe SHRM’s ssential of We also offer SHRM’s Essentials of HR lso Management vervie course or in Management overview course for line iew managers managers nd upervisors and ho e ew managers and supervisors and those new to nage uper d th field, upplemente with al for i law. the field, supplemented with California law. eld, el uppl ted CHAPMAN UNIVERSITY COLLEGE E X T E N D E D E D U C AT I O N 379200_ChapmanUniversity.indd 1 Winter 2008 PIHRAScope 21 e 4/22/08 9:21:56 PM http://www.chapman.edu/it

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of PIHRA Scope - Winter 2008

PIHRA Scope - Winter 2008 Contents Message from the CEO What’s on the Legislative Horizon in 2009 HR Concepts Dysfunction Doesn’t Make Cents The Three R’s of Environmental Sustainability PIHRA Calendar Scope on the Districts PIHRA’s New Members Index to Advertisers

PIHRA Scope - Winter 2008

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