Tim Mullligan, Chief Human Resource Officer of the San Diego Zoo discusses the importance of building a strategic talent management plan and how it has revolutionized the zoo’s culture, making the entire organization more accountable, focused and goal driven. Since implementing the system, the society has achieved a number of benefits including establishing greater employee motivation as well as employee accountability. The zoological society’s employees are now able to see a clear connection between the objectives that have been set for them and the overall objectives of the organization, which is driving stronger overall performance for the organization as a whole.
Tim R. Mulligan, J.D., CHRO, Zoological Society of San DiegoSean Conrad, Sr. Product Analyst, Halogen Software
Renowned former head of GE is well known for his high regard of Human Resources as a strategic position within the organization. Jack also advises that when it comes to talent management “ Use a rigorous, non-bureaucratic evaluation system, monitored for integrity with the same intensity as Sarbanes-Oxley Act compliance.”Why is the HR Leader so important? 2 reasons 1. HR enables execution of strategy and 2. people are the only sustainable competitive advantage.
Our Company Talent Management: BeforeOur need for a strategic talent management planIdentifying organizational goals and prioritiesDefining HR priorities and goalsPutting the strategic talent management plan into placeTalent Management: AfterMeasuring results of talent managementQuestions
The Zoological Society of San Diego is a 3200-employee organization that operates The San Diego ZooSan Diego Zoo’s Wild Animal ParkSan Diego Zoo’s Institute for Conservation Research Organization has been around over 90 yearsNot-for-profit
Tim MulliganStrategic plan rolled out in January 2005Introduction to pay-for-performance system that is tied to goalsNeed for employee accountabilityEmployee recruitment/retention
Annual review process was not followed and employees were skeptical of its worthThe entire process was an administrative nightmare and produced little usable informationNo method to measure or report on completed employee appraisalsEmployees were not measured against goals or objectivesNo employee accountabilityNo organizational goals/objectivesNo manager goals/objectivesNo individual development plansNO BIG PICTURE PLAN FOR THE FUTURE!
The San Diego Zoo was not unique in terms of not having a plan…In April 2010 Halogen Software conducted a survey of HR professionals via newsletters and social media groups on LinkedIn and Twitter. Of over 250 organizations responding, the results showed that 55% of them did not have a format Strategic Talent Management Plan.
Companies with more mature talent management capabilities have on average 18% higher earnings, 54% greater net profit margins, and greater return on equity and assets than their counterparts without mature capabilities. Hackett Group
There’s also an abundance of recent research that is showing that organizations who invest resources in their talent management processes are outperforming their peers.
This framework for a strategic talent management plan boils it down to 6 Basic steps in the planning process.
It was crystal-clear that HR needed its own strategic plan, including a detailed Talent Management PlanWhat were our goals and priorities over the next 3 – 5 years?How were these tied to the Society’s goals? Strategic plan?
We were pleased to see that in the same survey we conducted noted previously, 100 percent of the respondents indicated that their organizations set high level goals.
Identifying goals, from the BOTTOM UP is critical to alignment and ensuring that everyone is rowing in the same direction.Although most organizations have top level goals – the key is getting employees engaged in accomplishing them.Culture and goal settingStrong culture creates a common mindsetGoal setting ensures that the specifics are laid outClear set of competencies ensures that you have the skill set to reach your goals
Vision: To become a world class leader in connecting people to wildlife and conservation.Detailed a new, aggressive list of our company’s strategic high-level goals and priorities.Also highlighted many changes and/or new initiatives to our current business model.
Step 2 – Identify Organizational Drivers and Challenges
In order to make sure that you’re successful at achieving your goals, you’ll need to consider Identify and consider the key drivers and challenges that could impact your organization's ability to achieve its goals. Consider both internal and external challenges. These could include things like a highly competitive job market, new or changed legislation/regulations, results from an employee satisfaction survey, new technology, etc.How did this work at the San Diego Zoo?To achieve these new lofty goals, we had to ask ourselves what challenges would we face in reaching these goals?Both internal and externalExamples:Competition in our industryLabor marketEmployee engagement/satisfaction issuesLegal considerationTechnology/Budgetary constraints
Step 3 – Gap Analysis
Compare where your organization is today with where it wants to be, and identify any gaps that it needs to address in order to achieve its goals. In identifying each gap, consider also the risk of not addressing the gap. For example, if your organization has a goal to rank #1 in the industry for customer satisfaction, you need to identify your current customer satisfaction rating and the rating required to rank #1 in your industry, then identify the gap between these two. The risk of not improving customer satisfaction ratings by this degree could include a drop in market share or in sales.
Where was our organization at, compared with where it wanted to be? What gaps needed to be addressed/rectified to get there?What risk is there in not addressing this gap?Example: Succession Planning – we had no program.Gap: World leading programs had one…we did not.Risk: we could continue status quo…but really being behind the curve…lose people…not be prepared to promote from within whenever someone leaves
Step 4 – Define Your HR Priorities and Goals
Based on the goals, challenges and gaps you identified in steps 1-3, identify your HR goals for the coming year. Don’t forget to make them SMART (Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Realistic/Relevant, Time-Bound) and link them to any applicable corporate goals.When defining your measures of success, make sure you include ways to measure both the implementation and effectiveness. That is, was the initiative executed as planned, as well as did the initiative have the desired effect.
Our gap analysis highlighted many HR areas needing strategic planning (and improvement!):AccountabilityPay for PerformanceCommunication of Society goals and objectivesSMART Goal Creation for managersSuccession PlanningLeadership Development
It can be helpful to do an inventory of your current HR talent management processes to determine if you need to make any changes to these to support your goals. Identify which processes you currently have in place and the method you use to conduct/manage them.This chart shows which functions the organizations responding to the Halogen survey in April are currently performing. It’s clear from the results that while most companies are currently doing performance appraisals, compensation management and learning mangement, a significant number of companies aren’t currently implementing development planning, competency assessments, 360 degree feedback and Succession Planning in particular, although they would like to.
Step 6 – Measure the Results and Communicate Successes/Contributions
Sean ConradWith your HR goals priorities in place, it’s important to assess and measure their effectiveness and communicate the results to the organization. As you work on achieving each goal, make sure you track relevant metrics so you can report on progress and success, or take corrective action as needed. This is important to help you determine if the goal or associated initiative was effective and is worth retaining.
Recruiting ToolsJob DescriptionsOn-BoardingEmployee ProfilesGoal ManagementDevelopment PlanningCompetency AssessmentPerformance AppraisalsCompensation ManagementLeadership Development
Our survey results among a broad range of HR practitioners, (not Halogen customers) showed there were some big barriers to implementing the talent management strategy among many.It’s important to keep in mind that if these challenges are impacting your organization, we have planning tools to assist. We can provide you with Business Case and ROI Tools to address Executive buy in and budget issues, several resources about our implementation program, case studies on rapid streamlined deployments.For those concerned about not having enough resources – automation becomes even more important to successful execution.Tim – tell us about how this worked at the San Diego Zoo.
Our Talent Management Program AFTER!• Selected Halogen eAppraisal• All supervisors/managers now participating in a formal pay for performance program• Previous to implementing, only 50% of appraisals were completed – now 100%!!!• Aligned corporate goals with employee goals• Pay-for-performance culture• Accountability for managers
Other BenefitsRecruit and retain our employeesConsistent and formal appraisal process & competencies across the organizationReportingYear-round performance journalsReview Scores can be used for bonus programs
Overall Score: 50% Objectives, 50% Leadership CompetenciesPay-for-performanceScore Plugged Into Performance MatrixPosition salary range and appraisal resultsHigh Performers have capability to achieve 200 % more increase then previous years prior to pay for performance system
Positive feedback from managers and employeesManagers like being able to select objectives that their employees will be measured againstEmployees like that they now know what is expected of themSpecific questions added to employee satisfaction/ employee engagement surveysEffectively communicate the results