Workscape Institute

Historically, with every New Year, I’ve started my blog with a series of sweeping predictions. It’s an approach that always seemed logical – out with the old, in with the new. And it did make sense until this past year – 2009 – the year when everything that we previously knew to be true, no longer held credence.

Follow up:

The economic outlook for 2010 is rosier; however, most organizations are still smarting from the past year. Yet, companies know it’s now or never to review strategies and take steps to exit survival mode and position for competitive success. And, when it comes to their workforces, step one is engaging the old before seeking the new.

Let’s examine the workplace dynamic under which most companies have operated in 2009. Some had to make unanticipated workforce reductions; others had to put critical hiring plans on hold. Reduction in forces (RIFs) and overall uncertainty weakened employee morale, unseated the progress of key projects, and battered worker loyalty. Now, with an economic recovery on the horizon, companies will look to hire, not fire. Employment opportunities will increase, especially for top-talent and career-climbing high potentials. After hunkering down in 2009, no organization wants to lose its top performers to a competitor.

Before this trend potentially impacts your company, you need to make sure that better communications between managers and employees are in place. Enabling this critical practice with technology can accelerate the effectiveness of process. The right performance management system can serve as the appropriate daily communication platform. This enlightened “365/24/7” mode of performance management maximizes the process, changing it from an annual evaluation interaction to collaborative engagement. Flight risk is diminished when valued employees are regularly interacting with managers and other team members against set goals that are clearly defined.

So, instead of making predictions for 2010, I’ll offer this one tangible piece of advice. Leverage technology to manage employee performance daily, not annually. After the lessons learned in 2009, none of us can afford to let an entire year go by without continually calibrating our employee goals against our organizational requirements.