Remuneration’s role in fostering diversity and inclusion

Remuneration is a fundamental element of the employment transaction. While employers devise many ways to use their remuneration offers to attract top talent, is it possible to also attract and support inclusion and diversity?

It’s prudent to assess the current state of your remuneration offers. To help, ask yourself these three questions:

 

Do certain employees fall through the pay gaps?

Before you can determine where you are at in terms of pay inequity, it’s a good idea to gauge the overall environment. Insightful reports such as IML ANZ’s National Salary Survey and supplementary reports can assist in this matter.

Then, analyse the situation within your organisation. Do certain people or groups suffer from a significant gap in pay? Make a candid assessment as to whether this is due to factors such as age or gender. Are all employees truly being compensated based on their ability to perform tasks?

 

How strong is job equity in your organisation?

Are some employees being overlooked for particular roles due to age, gender or cultural background? Companies should consider evaluating gender and minority representation across various jobs and levels within the organisation. If too many of the same people are occupying similar roles or sit within the same areas of the leadership hierarchy, there may be a need to update talent development plans accordingly.

Encouraging leaders to sponsor or coach the next generation of leaders is another way to promote job equity. Is there an opportunity to train-up a team member who is a potential leader but is otherwise held back due to age, gender or culture?

 

Do you view remuneration holistically?

Remuneration goes beyond just pay. It also includes all the benefits employees can expect to receive. The concept of total rewards looks at other benefits such as development, rewards and opportunities for promotion. How readily available are these to your entire workforce?

Finally, to directly influence diversity and inclusion, organisations could introduce rewards that relate to promoting D&I in the workplace.

 

With careful planning, candid assessments and strategic actions, your organisation can enjoy a heterogeneous and fair workplace to the benefit of all.

Bullying, harassment and abuse are workplace hazards too

By Karyl Estrella MIML

 

Genuine human concern and a duty of care means for most managers maintaining a safe workplace is a must. Hence offices are fitted with fire systems, first aid kits and evacuation plans are set out. We do everything in our power to eliminate safety hazards. However, if we think about what a workplace hazard is it’s really anything that could cause potential harm, injury and illness to your people. So, beyond trip, slip or electrical hazards, psychological and emotional risks should also be removed.

Compared to most common hazards, psychological and emotional threats, such as bullying, harassment and abuse result in more severe damage to the employee’s wellbeing. Even more of a concern is that it may not always be easy to detect.

Managers and leaders play a crucial role here. According to Safe Work Australia, one of the central reasons for the occurrence of bullying and harassment in workplaces is the lack of managerial regard for creating an emotionally and mentally safe work environment. Clearly, this is a significant concern for all managers and leaders.

 

A danger hidden in plain sight

This issue is magnified when we consider the impact of the workplace on an employee’s life. In the 12 months preceding March 2018, the figures reveal Australians spent 20 billion hours at work.

Creating a safe environment becomes even more critical given the current state of Australian workplaces. Alarmingly, the Australian Human Rights Commission reports that 23% of women and 16% of men have experienced sexual harassment at work.

If employees are spending the majority of their time in an environment where they do not feel safe, it will no doubt affect their engagement, productivity and loyalty to an organisation. Even worse, is that the effects of bullying, harassment and abuse have far-reaching impacts on how they function within society.

 

A solution is imperative

There are some ways workplaces can respond to these severe hazards. These include:

  • Setting clear guidance. Implement a zero-tolerance approach when it comes to bullying, harassment and any form of gross disrespect in the workplace. Your policies should support this through clear guidelines and consequences for offenders.
  • Offering information and support. Supply all employees with clear information on what they should do if they observe any form of abuse in the workplace. Provide support services for employees who have experienced bullying, harassment and violence – regardless if it’s at home or work.
  • Walking the talk. Leaders in the workplace must be role models of respectful behaviour. By setting the tone from the top, you build an environment where people feel they are safe from abusive behaviour.

 

Embrace the right outlook

Empowering managers and leaders with the skills, knowledge and courage to create a positive influence on our workplaces – and society – is at the heart of what we do at IML ANZ. That’s why we’ve focused our Leadership Outlook 2019 series on creating safe and respectful workplaces. We’ve partnered with White Ribbon to deliver a national series of thought-provoking and practical workshops.

During each session, a panel of local leaders will share real-world experiences and discuss:

  • Best practice approaches to support employees who are experiencing domestic violence, bullying or harassment in or out of the workplace
  • Knowledge and skills in applying a strategic, evidence-based methodology drawn from White Ribbon’s work with organisations on the Workplace Accreditation Program
  • Strategies to support staff which minimises risk and promotes a supportive workplace culture
  • Resources and tools to assist in creating a safe and respectful workplace
  • Practical case studies to work through key learnings from the sessions

We all deserve to feel safe. Join us for an event that will help transform workplaces, leadership and society.

Visit managersandleaders.com.au/leadership-outlook-2019/ for locations, dates and to book.

Karyl is IML ANZ’s content producer. Contact her for queries regarding the IML ANZ blog and quarterly magazine, Leadership Matters.

Mind the gap

By Anthony O’Brien

The latest IML Gender Pay Report reveals that if you’re a female working in a C-Suite role, you could be earning as much as 15% less than your male colleagues.

The report presents findings based on an analysis of pay differentials from 2014-2018 between male and female full-time employees within the Australian workforce. The research considers different employment levels and job families ranging from administration to general management. The analysis uses IML’s National Salary Survey, updated in October 2018, and data collected from 460 organisations across Australia, covering more than 250 job roles.

The research doesn’t reflect casual or part-time workers, or maternity leave which explains differences between the IML report and the gaps reported by government organisations such as Workplace Gender Equality Agency (WGEA), according to report author, Sam Bell FIML, General Manager, Corporate Services and Research, IML. The full-time total remuneration gender pay gap based on WGEA data is 22.4%, meaning men working full time earn, on average, nearly $27,000 a year more than women working full time.

WHY THE GAP PERSISTS

According to the IML report, the C-Suite pay gap fell to 9.8% three years ago after a high of 14.7% in 2014. But over the past three years, the gender pay gap for C-Suite roles climbed steadily and is now approaching the levels of five years ago. Bell explains that isolating the reasons for the widening gap at the C-Suite level is challenging. “There are probably more female managers in lower-paying industries. However, our research measures like-against-like job levels and job families, so more female executives working in lower paid industries doesn’t explain the C-Suite gap thoroughly.

“That there is a 14.6% difference in like-against-like general manager salaries is certainly an eye-opening statistic that organisations need to review.”

Libby Lyons, Director of the WGEA, says, “The gender pay gap is a symptom of a broader issue. It reflects the fact that women’s work is traditionally undervalued, and women are often paid less than men.

“As a nation, we need to be talking about what is behind the gender pay gap – the barriers women face in the workplace that cause the gender pay gap.”

WHERE THE GAP IS CLOSING

If you’re seeking work in an industry with closer to equal pay, then look no further than information technology (4.6%) and engineering and science (4.8%). That said, in 2014 the IT pay gap slightly favoured women (-0.1%), and the difference was only 0.3% for females working in engineering and science. On the flipside, the salary gap for women in finance and accounting improved from 13.7% down to 7.1% over the past four years.

IT continuously rates well for women’s pay rates because it’s a result driven industry that typically doesn’t differentiate between male or female employees, notes Bell. “The salary gaps in finance and accounting have dropped because there is greater awareness of gender diversity issues in that profession because of CEOs such as former Westpac boss Gail Kelly.

“That industry was heavily male-dominated, but with high-profile CEOs like Kelly championing the issue and taking it head-on, the pay gap almost halved in the past four years.”

ADDRESSING THE GAP

Paul Jury, Managing Director of Australia for global HR executive search firm ChapmanCG, resolutely believes there should be no excuses for gender pay gaps. He elaborates, “Moreover, there’s plenty of research indicating that up to 70% of employers report they have policies in place to support gender equality.

“With the gender pay gap, it is all heading in the right direction, but the speed of improvement is still too slow.”

Personal biases can come into play particularly where objective measures of performance are deficient and create incidences of gender gaps in promotions and pay, reasons Jury. “For senior roles, some managers without access to objective data may tend to promote and reward people they like and whom they perceive are more like them.

“While unconscious bias is hard to rewire, more training, education, and awareness within an organisation can help to mitigate its impact on gender diversity, promotion and pay. This includes putting in place guidelines, along with checks and balances within a business to minimise the gender pay gap.”

Bell agrees more investment in educating managers about gender equality issues is required. “Educating managers who hire staff that pay gaps are not acceptable is a start,” he reasons. “And the fact that skills, experience, and qualifications should be paid for, irrespective of whether a recruit is male or female.”

From a leadership perspective, Bell believes an organisation should have a gender pay gap policy or statement in place that all managers “understand and take seriously”. WGEA research indicates that actions to correct like-for-like gender pay gaps are three times as effective in reducing overall pay inequities when combined with reporting to executives and boards. Bell says, “There’s a lot of large Australian companies that are certainly taking all these steps. All of them probably have a statement from a leadership level, whether it’s CEO down, saying that pay gaps won’t be tolerated.”

ACCOUNTABILITY COUNTS

Using market data such as IML’s National Salary Survey is another prudent step towards minding the pay gap says Bell. “Employers must understand what the market is paying for a C-Suite role or line manager and it shouldn’t matter whether someone is male or female.”

Another critical way to strengthen employer accountability would be to end pay secrecy, according to Alice Orchiston, an Associate Lecturer in Law at the University of Sydney. To this end the federal Australian Labor Party announced in September last year that, if elected, it will legislate for the introduction of publicly available company-specific gender pay gap data. In an opinion piece for academic journal The Conversation, Orchiston wrote: “If women discover they are earning less than their male counterparts for the same jobs, their legal avenues for pursuing equal pay are limited. It’s difficult to prove and costly to litigate.”

Orchiston continued, “Requiring employers to make their pay records publicly accessible or accessible to employees across the same organisation would create greater transparency and a basis for women to assess their pay, which in turn could facilitate negotiation or legal action.”

READ THE FULL REPORT

The IML 2018 Gender Pay Gap report can be purchased at managersandleaders.com.au/national-salary-survey

The past, present and future of maternity leave

By Andrew Fenlon

As a society it’s really important for us to have a steady stream of ‘the next generation’ coming through. The alternative is a society which is steadily aging – and as a result contracting. Governments understand this and have given various incentives to assist in the cost of having children over time.

Currently, the largest financial burden relating to child birth and child caring is carried by women. It is estimated that women having children earn 20% less than the average. Conversely men having children, with their partner undertaking the primary caring for the children get a premium of 15% (not really sure why!) compared to the average.

There are some programs which aim to help women through maternity – such as paid maternity leave and the option for 10 ‘keeping in touch’ days. Unfortunately, these are often not enough – or lack promotion, awareness and consistency.

The position is made worse by some terrible employment practices such as:

  • Making pregnant women redundant either before or during maternity
  • Making the ‘keeping in touch’ days either unknown, difficult or impossible to use
  • Not holding the person’s role open for them so that they cannot return to their previous job
  • Not providing any return to work program for returning mothers
  • Not supporting flexible work – often by requiring a role to be filled 100% by one person working nine-to-five.
  • Upon returning to work should the woman request to do the role part time, often no one is hired to fill the other days, thus the woman does the entire role, in fewer days and is paid a pro-rata salary

Hopefully your organisation is better than this – but we see many instances of the above!

It is no surprise, then, that many women, once having children, do not return to their previous employer. They either look for part time work which might support their caring responsibilities, or they decide to set out on their own.

Caring doesn’t finish when the maternity period stops. Children need support and assistance for many years after being born (in fact many parents still have children living with them into their 20s!) This support includes regular care – but also the unexpected demands when a child is either sick or had an accident. In many instances (personal and professional) the assumption is that the mother will continue to cover the bulk of these duties.

The negative impacts on women because of this approach are significant:

  • They can lack confidence (because they have been out of the work environment for an extended period)
  • They can get caught in a ‘poverty trap’ – the net earnings are less than the cost of child care – so they stay at home or are in a ‘break-even’ scenario
  • They earn less – and this continues throughout the rest of their career
  • They are more likely to work in part time jobs that are below their capability
  • They are often overlooked for promotion into management roles
  • They accumulate less superannuation
  • There is an increased chance of homelessness in older age

Society suffers too. It is estimated that if women could be fully engaged in the workforce, then there would be a 20% increase in GDP. This is larger than any other single sector – it’s three times the size of mining!

As Australians, we need to reconsider where the burden of birth and child-caring lies. The main economic beneficiary is society (children grow up, consume and pay taxes!) – so society should bear more of the cost.

If we want to continue to have a vibrant country where the creation of the next generation of Australians is supported – we need to change things. Fortunately, there are examples from overseas and some forward-thinking organisations that we can use to help us.

A start could include:

  • Recognising that the financial burden of bringing up a child should not all fall on the shoulders of the mother. The father and society need to bear more of the effort and cost
  • Having more open-minded workplaces that allow men to look after their child. Removing the stigma around a man asking to be home with their child
  • Working to the point where child care is substantially funded by the public purse – just like childhood education
  • Providing realistic and enforceable (on the manager) options for the ‘10 keeping in touch days’ (which might well be part days to assist the mother with her caring duties)
  • Ensuring that men are supported by their organisations to be more available for their children – two weeks of paternity leave doesn’t even begin to scratch the surface
  • Ensuring women cannot be retrenched just because they become pregnant
  • Ensuring mothers have the right to a reasonable return to work plan (which might need to be over a period of years) to their previous job
  • Ensuring flexible working options are available to everyone as a default
  • Ensuring organisations offer management positions either as flexible roles or as job shares

I’m not saying that these changes will totally address the current maternity chasm, but if we can start to make these changes, we’ll all be better off!

Andrew Fenlon is the director and co-creator of Women into Leadership. He has over 20 years of international experience in public and private sector organisations. After doing some analyses on what was impacting women and their ability to become leaders, he saw a need to help women – organizationally and individually – thus Women into Leadership was born. As a brand of Fast Track Leadership, Women into Leadership has a range of programs that implement systemic and lasting change at an organizational level so more women can achieve leadership roles. It also provides leadership development programs for individuals.

Respect your elders and give them a job

By Jane Caro

I am 61 years old. That probably means that I am more or less unemployable in terms of a traditional full-time job. Should my (so far very profitable) sole trader business fail and I put feelers out for employment, I doubt I’d get a nibble.

There’s no real logic behind this fact because I am at the absolute top of my game and I am not finished yet. I have the time, the experience and the maturity to really add value but, in a way, I suspect that is part of the problem. It would take a very confident manager to hire a person like me to work for them.

 

BEEN THERE, DONE THAT

Like many skilled and experienced older workers, I am too easily perceived as a threat. There can still be a real awkwardness experienced by a younger manager about dealing with an older subordinate, almost as if it goes against nature.
It can work the other way too. Older workers, who have been there and done that, can be impatient with what younger colleagues see as a brilliant new idea but that they have seen done before, maybe many times before. I doubt there are any really new ideas, just new thinkers.

 

BLEAK OUTLOOK

For older workers who are not seeking management or senior positions, the outlook is just as bleak. The average age of ‘retirement’ for older women is 52 and 58 for men, yet the pension won’t kick in for people who are that age today until they are 67.

Given that the average woman retires with half the super of men (and most male super is also not enough to see them through old age) and a third retire with none at all, what on earth are they living on?

That is one reason I put ‘retirement’ in inverted commas. I suspect most of the people who leave the paid workforce forever in their 50s are not retiring to a life of luxury, cruising the world’s oceans, exotic cocktail in hand. I suspect they are being forced out of their jobs and are taking early ‘retirement’ reluctantly. No wonder the fastest growing group among the homeless are women over 55.

Some older workers are taking their redundancy payments and – if they have it – cash in lieu of long service leave and buying themselves a business. The number of older people I see running small franchises like lawn mowing companies, domestic cleaning services, ironing services and courier companies is revealing.

While many may enjoy their time in small business, I doubt it was their lifelong dream to do such work. For older workers who were employed in jobs that are demanding physically – plumbers, brickies, nurses, even childcare workers – their ageing bodies may simply not allow them to stay in their chosen profession.

 

TWO HINTS

Yet surely this is easily fixed? We have an ageing population – so we need to keep as many people in the workforce as we possibly can – and it doesn’t take much adjustment to do just that.

Hint 1: stop making older employees the first on the chopping block every time there’s a round of redundancies.

Hint 2: take the best qualified person for the job, even (maybe especially) if they are older.

We have young parents – both male and female – desperate to work less hours, and experienced, older workers often desperate to work more. How hard can it be to put those two together?

 

GREAT MANAGERS HIRE GREAT PEOPLE

Yes, managers must become more confident about hiring people with skills and experience that may exceed their own – but surely that is what defines the best managers? That they have the ability and confidence to hire great people and then get out of their way and let them do what they do best. And, yes, we might have to give physical workers occupations that are more sedentary.

But most of all we need to get over our prejudices about ageing and that older people are somehow lesser people – not as smart, agile or able to master new skills the way they once could. There is simply no actual evidence for that.

Business is very outspoken about diversity these days, particularly when it comes to making sure they have teams that include women, people from different ethnic and religious backgrounds or with different sexual orientation and gender identity, but the one group we still mostly shy away from are those who are older.

And, if you think about it, while all discrimination against a group of human beings is stupid, discrimination against someone simply because they have lived a little longer than you have is the dumbest form there is. After all, if you discriminate against older people, one day you may find you have been discriminating against your future self.

Jane Caro runs her own communications consultancy. She worked in the advertising industry for 30 years and is now an author, journalist, lecturer and media commentator.

This article appeared in December 2018’s Leadership Matters. Exclusive to IML ANZ Members, Leadership Matters is the region’s only specialist management and leadership magazine.

Each edition includes sharp commentary, insightful features and best-practice resources – inspiring readers to become better managers and leaders.

Will ‘women in leadership’ ever be just ‘leadership’?

Female leadership enjoyed significant progress over the past decade. Surprisingly, despite more women currently occupying places on the boards of Australia’s largest companies, they remain woefully underrepresented. More than 100 ASX 300 companies still lack female board representation. Overall, less than 30% of board directors for ASX 200 companies are female.

At the C-suite level, the story is much the same. Consider: only 16% of CEOs in Australian companies are female and 70% of organisations have exclusively male senior management teams.

While the needle has moved, a lot must change before we see a 50-50 gender split at the top levels of leadership.

 

The cost of falling behind

Although the case for female leadership is so compelling, change is slow. One possible reason is that many women in leadership roles don’t hold roles that allow them to progress directly to the CEO position. Even though females are moving up the ladder, they climb a professional path that merely leads to higher ranking support roles.

The disadvantage of slow progress? Businesses miss out on the benefits of female leadership. For instance, Gallup research found that female managers outperform their male counterparts in engaging their employees. Additionally, companies with leadership teams in the top quartile of gender diversity had a 21% likelihood of enjoying above-average profitability.

Plus, a gender diverse leadership team can deliver results beyond revenue:

  • Be an employer of choice. In WGEA’s Business Case for Gender Equality, they reported that employers with policies and practices that support gender equality are better at attracting top talent. It also found employees are more likely to remain with employers who are proactive when it comes to diversity.
  • Create a stronger brand. Promoting gender diversity in leadership creates an inclusive, positive and engaging workplace. Without being weighed down by internal issues that ultimately affect productivity and performance, brands become strong.
  • Foster an innovation culture. Women representation in senior management also improves a company’s innovation efforts.

It begs the question, when will organisations realise the real cost of falling behind? More importantly, what can we do to create a business environment where female leadership is the norm?

 

Programs with purpose

If the solution rests on better development programs, then these must set high-potential women on a clear path towards top-level positions. Women will fare better amid gender-bias by developing their expertise and skills to make a practical difference in the workplace. They also need confidence in their development program of choice.

As the only professional development program of its kind in the region, Chartered Manager (CMgr) provides a pathway to leadership excellence. It gives aspiring female leaders the skills to stand out. It also helps current leaders to become better managers – equipped to respond to the changing business landscape.

 

Time for a perspective change

To shift the gender bias in leadership takes more than development. It requires a perspective change. To what extent? And does it rest solely on the cooperation of male leaders? That’s up for debate on March 8th at IML’s annual International Women’s Day event. We’ll explore if ‘her aspiration needs his cooperation’.

Purchase tickets now at managersandleaders.com.au/iwd or contact events@managersandleaders.com.au.

Sources:

AICD: Board diversity statistics

Gallup: ‘Female Bosses Are More Engaging Than Male Bosses’

WGEA: The Business Case for Gender Equality

The hidden value in developing older workers

There’s an increase in the rate of employment for older workers in developed nations. With workers staying employed for longer and workplace technology, thinking and practices ever-changing, is it time to invest in the professional development of your older workforce?

A recent study of OECD countries found that the employment rate for workers aged between 55-64 increased by 6% in Australia and 4% in New Zealand in less than a decade. Across the board, OECD countries are seeing more older workers remaining employed well past their 50s and 60s.

Given the shift we are experiencing in Australia and New Zealand, what are the benefits of addressing the development gap experienced by older workers?

 

Increased employee retention

When technology giant AT&T decided to upgrade company systems to keep up with the digital age, they took an inclusive approach. Instead of hiring new people who were familiar with new technologies, they provided training for all 280,000 employees. The result? They retained their loyal employees whose average tenure lasts up to 12 years.

Despite the common belief, older workers can and are willing to learn new skills. The key is to provide targeted training.

When you help your workforce to adapt to new technologies, you give them a good incentive to stay on the job. Not only does this mean retaining them, but also the knowledge, skills and understanding older employees have about your organisation.

 

Enriched work roles

In the context of our ageing society, older workers make significant contributions. Their active participation in the workplace means they share valuable benefits including:

  • Loyalty to the business
  • Commitment to organisational purpose
  • Well-established network of contacts

Supporting the development of older workers opens other avenues for them within the workforce. If they are enabled to move, not just upwards but also laterally, it creates employees with richer experiences.

Leaders should also explore whether developing older workers enables them to hold multi-faceted roles. It’s important not to restrict them to tasks that they have already mastered but not shock them into a completely different job.

 

Decreased economic pressure

The Australian Human Rights Commission reports that just a 3% increase in workforce participation for workers aged over 55 would boost GDP by up to $33 billion. The reduced pressure on the government to support our ageing population is vital for economic stability.

At an organisational level, developing older workers with the aim of keeping them active in the workforce, also adds up financially. Higher retention means less hiring costs and maintaining highly productive, and committed employees all positively impact the bottom line.

Delivering a fantastic experience: Learning that gets results

Professional learning doesn’t have to be dull. Rewrite the rules and you’ll have happy, engaged team members that stick around, says learning and development specialist Samantha Mueller.

By Emma Mulholland

Anyone who has worked in retail knows the biggest challenge is attracting and retaining talent. That’s where Samantha Mueller, Head of Learning and Development at Fantastic Furniture comes in. Her secret? Delivering a fantastic experience from day one onwards. If you can delight team members from the start you’ll have skilled, engaged team members that want to stay and progress in the business. Since she joined the well-known retailer Fantastic Furniture in 2016, Mueller has focused on delivering learning solutions that are aligned to the business objectives and mission to ‘Make Life Fantastic’.

“I love the brand – it’s a fun, vibrant and dynamic place to be,” she says of the company, which has come a long way in its 30 years. What started out as a single stall selling plastic garden furniture at Sydney’s Parklea Markets now comprises 75 stores, two Australian manufacturing factories and more than 1,200 employees.

A brand refresh in March has played up the company’s fun, cheeky approach to the market and has brought significant changes, including plans to grow the business and a refresh of its employer brand and values.  But what could have been a challenging time for the team and business has instead been an opportunity to engage and innovate? Here, the Head of Fantastic Furniture’s Learning and Development team tells Leadership Matters how they pulled it off.

Collaborative approach

“I’m collaborative in my approach — I look for ways to involve others and leverage the diverse experience of our team,” says Mueller, who started at the Sydney office after stints at Dick Smith Electronics and international beverage behemoth Lion. “My background is in leading operational

teams but over time I’ve morphed into L&D roles. I’ve always been passionate about L&D because of the positive impact it can give individuals and the business. I’ve seen the impact when L&D is not a priority – it has a negative impact on engagement, turnover and growth.”

Investment in roles like Mueller’s are becoming increasingly common in the retail sector — a shift she puts down to the modern workplace, where employees are after more than just a pay cheque. “Just like customers, who want more value and a better experience from retailers, our people want more from us too: more input, more opportunities and a greater employee experience,” she says. “Businesses that aren’t focused on that are the ones that get left behind.” But strong engagement brings its own challenges.

In the case of Fantastic Furniture, where team members are encouraged to take ownership of the brand, any organisational change involves collaboration with the team.

“The brand refresh was not about changing direction but showcasing who we are and what we stand for,” says Mueller. “Our teams are extremely passionate about the business, so the change management approach was critical. We took every opportunity to seek input on decisions that impact the team. For example our marketing team flew retail team members to Sydney so they could be part of designing their new uniforms. Taking this collaborative approach enabled the team to prepare for change and contribute to outcomes that impact them.”

Learning that benefits team member and the business 

Before embarking on a new project, Mueller asks herself one question: how will this make life fantastic for the team and business? “With the rebrand, we reviewed our L&D programs to align core programs to business objectives. In the past two years we’ve rebuilt our induction and foundation programs with an emphasis on ensuring our team has a fantastic experience through every touch point.

“We launched our accredited training through ‘Fantastic eCademy’, enabling team members to complete their Certificate III in Retail and progress their careers within our business. We’ve also enhanced our online platform ‘Learning Lounge’ to improve how we communicate and deliver learning on a national scale. We’re focused on delivering solutions that benefit both team members and the business,” says Mueller.

Mueller’s team recently revamped the online (World Manager) platform which is accessible to team members via desktop and a smartphone app. The online platform is used to deliver learning and communications, as well as manage a peer recognition program. They’ve also created social forums for team members to share updates and provide feedback. “We’re leveraging technology to enhance the learning experience,” says Mueller. “For me it’s about creating something that our team want to participate in and be part of.”

Experience is everything

When in doubt, Mueller asks herself: “How will this create a fantastic experience?” For example, during a review of Fantastic Furniture’s customer service training, she let the retail teams take the reins, asking them: “How can we deliver a great experience for customers?” In the end, they came up with a ‘Fantastic Customer Experience Program’ that involves a unique six-step approach.

To launch the program, the regional area leaders came up with a competition, ‘Share your Fantastic Customer Experiences’. Team members were encouraged to post on an online forum about the fantastic experiences they were delivering to their customers. “Team members immediately began posting videos, sharing success stories, singing and acting out the Fantastic six process for engaging customers,” says Mueller. “The results were amazing. We got the highest usage and click throughs we’ve ever had on the forums and two months following the launch, Fantastic Furniture recorded its highest-ever net promoter score (NPS). Customers are having a fantastic experience in stores and NPS results are continuing to increase”. The benefits are ongoing. Engagement and posts on the forums have continued and the social sharing aspect has proven to enhance the teams learning experience.

Fantastic Beginnings

Mueller says that a fantastic onboarding and induction is one that is structured, personalised and well supported: “First impressions count and we’ve found that our ‘Fantastic Beginnings’ program helps new starters get up and running quickly because they know what to expect and what path they’ll follow in their first three months.”

On day one, new starters receive a Fantastic Welcome Pack, customised by their leader, which includes a guide to help them navigate their first three months. The leader also has a guide to support them with the onboarding and induction process.

“I’m a big believer in a blended approach so we’ve incorporated online learning with on-the-job activities and check-ins along the way,” says Mueller. “We utilise our platform to capture how people are tracking.” From there, the team member and leader have regular check-ins, so they have a chance to connect, share feedback and set goals.

Pathways to progress

When Mueller surveyed team members to find out what they wanted from L&D, one thing stood out: opportunities to learn and progress. And so the Fantastic eCademy was born: a nationally accredited, nine-month program. Over the past 12 months, 100 team members have completed the program, attaining a Certificate III in Retail. “What’s great is that our leaders, including CEO Debra Singh, get involved in the graduations and make a big effort to recognise the achievements of our team,” says Mueller. “Demand is such that over the next year we will look at adding higher qualifications to the mix, including Certificate IV or Diploma level qualifications.”

A clear organisational pathway makes it easy for employees to know what skills and behaviours will assist them in progressing to their next role. Recently Mueller, launched the ‘Fantastic Leadership Pathway’. The pathway has four defined levels of leadership – from The Ace (high potential team members and first-time leaders) through to The Visionary (those at general manager and executive level) – each level is identified by a particular set of skills and behaviours.

Team members are encouraged to take a proactive approach with their development and are supported with an online toolkit. The toolkit contains training resources and links to external sources, including leadership books such as Georgia Murch’s Fixing Feedback. “Two months after the launch we had more than 500 downloads, which is significant because it shows that both leaders and team members are proactively using it,” says Mueller.

“I’ve just launched ‘ACE Leadership’, our first national leadership program aligned to the leadership pathway. It’s a six-month program designed to support new leaders to raise their profile and take ownership of their personal brand. We’ve had more than 130 ACE leaders enrol in the program. I’m excited to support their journey and progression in our business.”

Measuring success

Mueller’s team will evaluate the leadership program over the coming year, assessing the participants’ career progression and the take-up among the company’s high-potential team members. Every project her team launches is evaluated to assess if intended outcomes have been met. Mueller’s team is fun and down to earth but also commercially focused. “It’s important to be able to demonstrate the value L&D adds to the business,” she says.

“We always look at the return on engagement and investment. For example, with our Customer Experience Program, we looked at participation and leader feedback, as well as our NPS, sales and upsells. We compared results before and after the program.”

Since Mueller joined Fantastic Furniture, employee retention has increased 14 per cent. When asked what makes her such an engaged member of the Fantastic Furniture team, Mueller doesn’t hesitate: “What really stands out for me is the genuine care, commitment and investment in people. I’m supported and empowered to deliver on our mission to Make Life Fantastic”.

Are We Doing Enough to Support the Mental Wellbeing of Our Workforce?

There is no denying that the contemporary business environment is taking a toll on the mental wellbeing of our workforce. Roles are no longer as permanent as what they used to be, there is a constant pressure to upskill and organisational change is never far around the corner. Understandably, this creates uncertainty and places additional pressures on employees. So, what are we doing to support mental wellbeing?

For many organisations, a focus on mental health stops after the implementation of an EAP program that is rarely publicized and an announcement to all staff on ‘R U OK?’ day. However, some organisations are starting to think outside of the box to come up with innovative mental wellbeing initiatives. Let’s take a look at some of these new ideas…

  1. Mental Health Day: In their most recent EBA, IKEA has negotiated to provide all staff an additional paid day off each year to support their mental wellbeing. This day off is called a ‘doona day’ and there are no questions asked when taking it. If work or personal life is ever getting too much for IKEA employees, a day snuggled up in their doona may be just what they need.
  2. Puzzles: Other workplaces, such as Brisbane City Council have puzzles in employee lunch areas to encourage employees to switch off from work occasionally. Puzzles have been proven to be an effective tool for reducing stress by creating a sense of calmness and serenity.
  3. ‘Fails’ Celebrations: Mistakes and failures are an inevitable part of organisational change. However, unfortunately these failures can leave a massive toll on the mindset of staff members. Despite this, some organisations are trying to turn these fails around and have actually planned ‘fail’ celebrations. These celebrations encourage staff to collectively look back on the challenges they experienced throughout the year and appreciate that these weren’t always in their control. This has assisted the mental wellbeing of employees in these environments as it has promoted them to have a positive mindset when faced with difficult situations.
  4. Get Physical: This is one initiative that many organisations have already jumped on board with as exercise releases endorphins that promote the mental wellbeing of individuals. However, how creative is your organisation in encouraging staff members to get physical? Perhaps it could be a work social sport team, a boot camp committee or a monthly step-a-thon.
  5. Silent Spaces: One of the major causes of mental health issues at work is stress. Sometimes it just seems like there is too much work and not enough time. Whilst it would be ideal to say that all organisations should stop employees from getting stressed by making sure they never have too much work to do, this is a pretty unrealistic goal. Instead, organisations such as Commonwealth Bank, have tried to alleviate this issue by creating silent office spaces. These spaces are available to employees at times where they may need a couple of hours without disturbance in order to get their work done and reduce anxiety.

Clearly, there are so many creative ways that mental wellbeing can be supported in the workplace. It is time to challenge our current approach to employee mental wellbeing and consider what our organisation could be doing better…

Reference:

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5588550/

Does Your Position Vacancy Standout?

Advancements in technology continue to challenge the recruitment landscape. For job seekers, the internet enables them to view thousands of vacant job opportunities from typing a few words into a search engine and selecting ‘enter.’

Due to the number of opportunities job seekers now have access to, organisations must start looking at ways to make their role vacancies stand out. As silly as it sounds, recruitment is turning into a marketing function as well as a HR function. This explains why many organisations are starting to develop employer branding videos as part of their candidate attraction strategy. For example, Employment Office, Hays Recruitment, KPMG and Herbert Smith Freehills have all created employer branding videos to attract candidates. Let’s take a look at why these videos give these organisations a competitive advantage when recruiting the best talent.

Hays Recruitment

Hays Recruitment has been known to create a series of #YourHaysStory videos to attract candidates to their vacant roles. These videos focus on the competitive aspects of their employer brand to attract candidates. For example, one recent video focused on their value of career development and highlighted their extensive training programs to support employees in their career. For individuals that are ambitious and career focused, a video such as this one would be valuable in creating a desire to work for the organisation.

Employment Office

Employment Office’s employer branding video is so powerful due to its unique and unscripted design. In particular, this video capitalises on the fun-loving and close-knit nature of the work environment through phrases such as: ‘it is like a family here’ and ‘I could hug everyone in the office.’ The inclusion of bloopers in their video is also a clever way of creating a realistic job preview and developing a stronger connection between the candidate and the organisation.

KPMG

KMPG’s recruitment video also stands out as it shows a comparison between the type of people that work for them and the type of people that wouldn’t be suited to their company. For prospective candidates, this provides reassurance of the types of personalities they are unlikely to be working with and also develops a stronger insight into the corporate culture. The use of terminology, such as ‘constantly changing’ and ‘never the same’ also attract candidates that are looking for a diverse and challenging role.

Herbert Smith Freehills

The video developed by Herbert Smith Freehills places significant emphasis on their value for collaboration as well as the opportunities to go global with the organisation. Throughout the video, scenes of their high quality work environments are cleverly integrated to develop further desire from job seekers.

Evidently, employer branding videos can be a powerful tool for marketing role vacancies. However, there is definitely a right and wrong way of doing them! The videos in this article have proven that the most effective employer branding videos are ones that are innovative, focussed and genuine. When designing an employer branding video for your organisation, it is important to consider how your video would stand out and also what the key message is that you want a potential applicant to understand.

References:

  1. https://www.youtube.com/watch?time_continue=3&v=FQjVcMHueAI
  2. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VyVjYNRTnCo
  3. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mvrnzACBRHA
  4. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=atMoao0W_1w