We wrote the original version of “It’s the Mortar not the Bricks” in 2019 responding to a plethora of alternative HR operating models flooding into the marketplace. Our experience told us that it wasn’t HR’s operating model that was interfering in HR’s success. It was HR’s inability to…
The pandemic created a fundamental shift in where people work, followed by incendiary disagreements about the tradeoffs of where people work. Those fires have been further fanned by popular media, business media, anti-business media, social media, TikTok, surveys and academic advocates. What’s been lacking is a fact-based discussion…
It’s the first morning of your new job. You’re excited because you’ve been selected to have coffee with the CEO to ask questions about the company. She has a reputation as being straightforward and a bit impatient, so you’ve thoroughly prepared for this conversation. The barista hands you…
Each year’s Harvard Medical School graduating class includes one doctor who is ranked at the bottom of their class. To be clear, this individual was the absolute worst performer in their four years at this highly esteemed institution. Every other Harvard Medical School graduate that year had performed…
We celebrate the progress that companies have made in talent management over the last 15 years. CEOs and Boards now better understand the value of high quality talent. CHROs have built-out talent practices and the talent-building capabilities of their HR team. Yet despite that progress, even the most…
At least once a month, I show a decidedly fake version of myself to very important people who have paid handsomely for my services. The fake me may show up in a client meeting, an executive education session or during an important speech. My clients don’t know that…
The Top Line: Five Key Findings from our 2024 survey Our 2024 Global HR Census finds that a curious dichotomy describes those in the HR field.HR leaders show up as highly engaged.Many are willing to sacrifice to achieve their career goals. They care deeply about developing people and…
If you believe that better quality talent delivers better results, then you should want as much great talent on your team as quickly as you can get it. A well-run talent review is the surest, shortest path to make that happen. Unfortunately, leaders don’t always get the benefits…
Preface Dear Reader: I apologize for writing such a long report. What you’ll read in this report started with an article idea about skills-based environments. The idea was spurred by the increasing promotion of the concept by vendors and consultants and the early corporate initiatives I had heard…
At a recent dinner, a client steered the topic towards assessing the potential of talent. She asked me to share my insights on predicting the leadership potential of employees (defined as the ability to build and lead teams of increased scope and complexity to outperform the competition), to…