Simpler Answers
Get the 'right people on the bus'.
Align corporate goals and objectives with individual employee's performance standards and development plans.
Ensure the organization is using it's compensation budget to reward the right employees and encourage the desired behaviors.
These are just some of the many truisms we hear, write, and repeat that attempt to describe what most organizations are striving for in their quest to increase performance, improve financial outcomes, and help sustain and grow the enterprise in the near and long term. Over time numerous technology solutions have been developed to help organizations achieve these and other lofty goals. And over time, the list of specific features and capabilities of most of the generally available solutions on the market have expanded to encompass more workforce processes, include support for more discrete talent related transactions, and provide better and faster access to analytical data that surrounds and is generated by these processes.
In fact, if we organized a 'feature and function' scavenger hunt on the floor of the expo hall at the HR Technology Conference there is likely not any specific talent and workforce management capability that some vendor could not support. Dynamic 9-Box generation with variable axis? Check. Standard reports describing cost and quality per hire? No problem. Integration of the traditional applicant tracking system with the social web? Everyone is doing that now.
No, the arms race for 'features' in some respects is pretty much over. The result? Everyone won. Or soon will. No doubt about it, the set of solutions available across the spectrum of HR and talent management processes has never been wider, better, and more impressive. If you can imagine it as an HR or talent pro, you can have it. Ignoring for the moment the very real, and troublesome nits about costs, complexity of integrations, maturity of the organization to actually adopt or at least adapt to the leading practices that many of the current solutions profess to support.
So in an environment where (almost) anything, and everything is possible, how can organizations and leaders ensure that they are making the best decisions around what technology solutions to invest in, and ultimately deploy?
How about by taking a longer and harder look at more simple technology solutions? What? Simpler solutions? Ones that don't necessarily have the ability to check 'Yes' on that 89 page performance management capability RFP you just issued? Ones that don't always demo the best, that perhaps lack the flash and sizzle of some others? Solutions that take a 'less is more', or perhaps more accurately a 'only the features that are truly needed are included' approach to development and deployment?
The fundamental questions that most businesses need to answer are, at their core, relatively simple. Find the right people for the jobs. Align their activities with big-picture goals. Give them a chance to develop and grow. Make sure managers and employees can engage in a positive and constructive dialog to not only improve individual performance, but to raise the level of achievement for the organization overall. They are fundamental questions that usually have pretty simple answers. Sure, I know what you're saying - if the answers were truly that simple, why don't all organizations get it right? Why are so many workplaces talent management practices lacking? I think that is perhaps a discussion for another time, but I will say this - applying unnecessary technological complexity to these problems won't make them suddenly easier to solve. The best BI analytic dashboard, if supported by data from sketchy talent management processes, is ultimately worthless.
Yesterday at the HR Technology Conference I spent time with people from two of the solution providers that I admire most in the industry, Halogen Software in the more 'tradtional' talent management space, and Rypple, who are sort of in a unique (because they pretty much created it) position as a provider of recognition, coaching, and feedback tools. Talking with them again today I was reminded why I admire them so much - their solutions are defined as much by what features are not included as by what ones are included. They both are focused on providing tools that support these fundamental business needs, while not trying to carpet-bomb the user (or really the buyer), with a litany of excess and largely unneeded features. Both help organizations answer simple questions with simple answers.
When considering your business issues, and evaluating potential technology providers, the key questions of 'What features have you killed?' and 'What capabilities have you purposefully omitted?' might prove more valuable that the 89 pages of 'Yes, yes, yes' answers from that RFP.
Read MoreBypassing HR for an Interview
I’m working on an project where I spend a fair amount of time talking with people who are looking for work. It’s interesting to talk with them because they invariably ask me, “How do I bypass the human resources department in the interview process?”
Ouch! Is this the perception of HR? I flashed back to my days in the corporate world. I thought we did a pretty good job of welcoming candidates and we followed up with every person who applied. Every single one. But then I read articles like “Ten Things Human Resources Won’t Tell You” and realize maybe candidates are right.
Sometimes human resources can be its own worst enemy. HR can be known for creating rules, policies and procedures that only make lives easier for human resources. HR needs to realize that, if it makes a candidate jump through a bunch of unnecessary hoops to get an interview, the candidate will figure out a different 
way. That way will probably be to bypass human resources.
If managers think human resources is creating a lot of bureaucracy that’s holding up progress in terms of getting people hired, they will gladly take a call directly from a candidate. Managers aren’t interested in all of the paperwork it takes to hire someone. They just want a great employee who will work hard for the company.
Now to stick up for human resources pros (because I am one), there are some parts of the recruiting process that are there for a reason. And it’s important to understand those components and follow the process.
If you want to bypass HR, you run the risk of getting on the bad side of HR before ever getting hired. This is not a good place to be. Ever want to tick off an HR pro – don’t follow one of their policies. It’s a “do not pass GO, do not collect $200” moment.
So while there will always be candidates who challenge the system, the real issue is if you don’t want candidates to bypass HR…don’t give them a reason. Make your recruiting process easy to use.
Image courtesy of Dyrk Wyst
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Why I’m Going to Advertising Week
Marketing people love seminars. We love panel discussions; we love e-vites and we love grouping them together into week-long events. In fact, I could probably find a marketing event in New York City every day of the year. I attend my fair share of events – especially during Advertising Week.
The internet allows new ideas to be created and discussed instantaneously, and because of that I’ve been to very few events that I would say really brought new thinking to the table. I still go to these events with the goal of not only learning something new, but also learning other perspectives on trends in the industry. In marketing there is not always a right and a wrong, but rather an idea or insight that we believe will be successful. Understanding other perspectives or interpretations of these ideas is an important way to make strategic decisions.
You never know where your next idea or insight is going to come from. I’m going to Advertising Week this year in hopes that my mind will be sparked. Regardless of your industry I would bet that there are educational opportunities for you. Take advantage of them. Even if you don’t think you’ll learn something new, you probably will.
Author:
David Trahan is a Strategist at leading social marketing agency Mr Youth in New York, which was named one of the Top 10 Most Innovative Marketing Companies in the World by Fast Company Magazine. He currently serves on the board of the AD Club of New York Young Professionals and is an Alumni Mentor at Pace University. Connect with him on LinkedIn and Twitter or read his blog posts at GrownUpThinking.
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StepStone Solutions Partners with TalentDrive to Deliver Advanced Resume Search Capabilities
Chicago, IL and London, UK (September 28, 2010)—TalentDrive, the creator of the innovative on-demand resume sourcing technology, TalentFilter, announced today a partnership with StepStone Solutions, a global leader in Total Talent Management solutions. This partnership fuses the advanced resume sourcing power of TalentFilter with StepStone Solutions’s extensive talent acquisition solution, providing users with a seamless solution for web-based resume sourcing.
By integrating aggregated sourcing to the existing StepStone Solutions Talent Acquisition platform, users are able to search over 100M resumes online globally. This enhanced resume sourcing capability leverages the wealth of resumes online, filtering through the mass of applicants to connect users with the most qualified candidates. Due to the influx in job-seekers, thousands of resumes going online every day, and a decreased number of open positions, many companies are progressively faced with the task of streamlining the recruitment process.
“We are continually searching for new ways to bring our users the technology solutions they need to enhance their recruitment process. Collaborating with TalentDrive is a natural progression of our strategy to enable our customers to attract and hire the best talent. Increasing the capability of line managers and HR professionals to reach the best talent from the users’ desktop is key to making our customers successful. We look forward to the results our customers will gain from this offering.” said Matthew Parker, CEO of StepStone Solutions.
“As hiring begins to return to normal levels, we’re seeing companies begin to take the necessary steps to update their recruitment capabilities. StepStone Solutions is a proven and leading source for global Talent Acquisition and Talent Management solutions and we are pleased to integrate our sourcing technology into the StepStone Solutions platform. This partnership aligns with our mission to provide advanced sourcing capabilities to an increasing audience of both domestic and international customers,” said Sean Bisceglia, CEO TalentDrive.
About StepStone Solutions
StepStone Solutions delivers world class technology for finding, recruiting, retaining, managing and developing people. Our global talent acquisition and talent management solutions are available in many languages, with seamless, internet-based access. With the support of our experienced professionals they can be quickly and reliably implemented anywhere in the world, using SaaS or on-premises delivery, to give rapid return on investment.
Over 1,600 organizations in 50 countries rely on StepStone Solutions every day to improve their business performance, build effective talent strategies, and to help their people have more effective, enjoyable and rewarding careers. StepStone Solutions operates in 16 countries and employs around 550 people. Its global customers include Carlson Wagonlit, France Telecom, Deloitte, Deutsche Telekom, Heineken, Lufthansa, Kruger Products, PUMA, and Virgin Atlantic.
For more information see: www.stepstonesolutions.com
Product information: www.stepstonesolutions.com/solutions/
Read our blog at: www.stepstonesolutions.com/communitypost
Take the Talent Strategy Assessment at: www.talentstrategyassessment.com
Try our Business Case Builder: www.stepstonesolutions.com/impact-tools/en-gb/bcb.
Read our research on talent management in 2010: www.stepstonesolutions.com/eiu
About TalentDrive
TalentDrive is the creator of the leading online resume aggregation search engine, TalentFilter. One of the easiest to use sourcing tools on the market, TalentFilter is available exclusively through TalentDrive’s 30 API partners. These partners and access to over 300,000 global users makes us the most widely adopted resume search and candidate marketing API. TalentFilter sweeps and unifies thousands of paid and free resume databases into one location, using sophisticated matching and filtering to rank results. Integrated with more job boards than any other sourcing tool, TalentDrive has been nationally recognized in The Economist, BusinessWeek, CNN Money, CBS Radio, U.S. News and World Report, ERE, and one of ASA’s Top Tools of the Year for 2010. One search, one location, one technology. Thousands of sources. For more information, visit www.talentdrive.com.
###
Media Contacts:
Catherine Moran / Karla Winch, Brands2Life
+44 (0)20 7592 1200
e-mail protected from spam bots
Andrew Rodaway
Director of Communications, StepStone Solutions
+44 7540 666439
e-mail protected from spam bots
Alissa Gothard
Marketing Manager, TalentDrive
312-676-4204
e-mail protected from spam bots
This press release was distributed through PR Web by Human Resources Marketer (HR Marketer: www.HRmarketer.com) on behalf of the company listed above.
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CERTPOINT Systems releases the latest version of its learning platform, CERTPOINTVLS
30 September 2010, CERTPOINT Systems™, a leading international provider of integrated enterprise learning solutions, today released the latest version of its learning platform, CERTPOINTVLS 7.0. The new release extends the CERPOINTVLS offering of a single learning platform that seamlessly integrates content creation, learning management and content delivery over a full range of devices that support both e-learning and m-learning.
“CERTPOINTVLS 7.0 showcases some impressive new capabilities, especially with content creation,” explains CERTPOINT Systems CEO Ara Ohanian. “The ability to record, edit and integrate video and audio from within the platform is particularly useful, and it is all part of our aim to provide a single platform for both learning management and learning content creation.”
Version 7.0 of CERTPOINTVLS also extends the platform’s ability to deliver learning content over mobile devices such as the iPhone and other smart phones. CERTPOINT has retained its open approach to devices — the VLS platform can deliver e-learning courses, videos, tests and quizzes as well as performance support information over a complete range of smart phones and other mobile devices.
The new release has been well received by users. “It’s great to hear about the latest version of CERTPOINTVLS,” says Rob Sharpe, Director of Training at Stanley Black & Decker Inc. “As an established user of the learning platform, we know how beneficial it is to our organizational learning. We can’t wait to evaluate and install the latest version.”
Other enhancements in CERTPOINTVLS 7.0 include an updated interface for both users and administrators. The new interface, created in close collaboration with current VLS users, is designed to be more intuitive and to increase learner adoption and uptake. Another advantage of the new interface layout is faster completion of administrative processes and tasks.
Functionality in the manipulation and storage of course materials has also been significantly improved. Hierarchical access permissions, for example, make it easy to manage content creation across authoring teams. The system also makes possible the extensive reuse of learning materials — in different languages, for example, and across different delivery mechanisms such as mobile learning.
“This latest release of our learning platform continues a story that began in the 1990s,” explains Ara, “and throughout we’ve remained true to the same aim: producing systems that increase organizational productivity. That’s why Gartner recognizes us as a visionary company. We are always innovating, always focused on systems that meet that aim. They need to be fast to implement, clear to use and quick to show results. CERTPOINTVLS is trusted in over 40 countries and languages to do exactly that.”
For more information on CERTPOINTVLS 7.0, please contact Brian Baloga, Senior Vice President of Sales, bbalogaatcertpointsystems.com.
NOTES TO EDITORS
About CERTPOINT Systems Inc.
CERTPOINT Systems Inc. provides an all-in-one global learning platform, CERTPOINTVLS™, which is used to manage talent, deliver knowledge and track business results. Global leaders such as Toyota, Honda and Black & Decker use CERTPOINT’s solution to arm their employees and partners with the knowledge they need to win and retain customers. The software is multilingual and integrates Authoring, Reporting, Mobile Delivery and Web 2.0 Collaboration tools into a single LMS/LCMS solution. It quickly drives productivity across the extended enterprise and deep into sales and service channels. It is easy to use, rapid to deploy and cost effective.
Founded in 1996, CERTPOINT Systems has consistently developed and evolved the VLS platform to ensure that it provides clients with cutting-edge tools that incorporate the most recent developments in the rapidly changing online learning environment. CERTPOINTVLS is used by more than 1,000 organizations in over 40 countries and languages. Please visit the company at www.certpointsystems.com.
CERTPOINT Systems, the CERTPOINT logo and CERTPOINTVLS are trademarks or registered trademarks of CERTPOINT Systems Inc. and/or its affiliates in the United States and/or other countries. Other names may be trademarks of their respective owners. worldwide LMS/LCMS provider reveals substantial enhancements to platform
Media Coordinator
Cathryn McCarthy
516-390-8800 x5221
This press release was distributed through PR Web by Human Resources Marketer (HR Marketer: www.HRmarketer.com) on behalf of the company listed above.
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