“Don’t be a victim,” Jack Welch tells SHRM Annual Conference attendees
These are the most challenging times in most of our lives. We need to recognize the critical importance of HR, especially now, said Laurence G. O’Neil, president and CEO of the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) in his opening remarks at the 61st Annual Conference and Exposition in New Orleans. Speaking to more than 10,000 conference participants, O’Neil said, The measure of our success is not only in how we perform when times are good, but when times are tough.
Change can happen to us, or through us, said O’Neil. HR professionals can be its architects or its victims. I don’t see any victims in this crowd, he stated, in a sentiment echoed by keynote speaker Jack Welch, legendary chairman and CEO of General Electric Company for more than 20 years. Don’t be a victim, said O’Neil. Stand up and get a voice.
You have to have the guts and the stuff to make sure you’re important in the organization, Welch told conference attendees. And while he was somewhat heartened to see the number of hands raised when he asked how many in the audience were valued by their CEO as much as the chief financial officer, the numbers are still too low, he believes. Damn it, it’s not enough. We’ve got to fix that, Welch said in an interview-style format with Claire Shipman, senior national correspondent for ABC News’ Good Morning America.
For HR professionals to be taken seriously, they have to deliver, Welch said. Get out of the picnic, birthday cake, insurance form business, he continued garnering loud audience applause. None of you can have people wondering where they stand, so put in development plans and rigorous evaluation plans to make it better. This is the best way to prove HR’s ROI in an organization.
Welch’s remarks were dominated by thoughts of the recession. Welch told attendees that they would be challenged in the up-turn more than they’ve ever been challenged before. In preparation, he told attendees that many companies are turning to tools they hadn’t used before to keep their employees happy, such as flexible work arrangements. It’s important to take care of your best, said Welch. Entrepreneurship is the big trend right now, he said. The economic situation has lead employees to think ‘I don’t want to do this anymore. I want out.’ So do what you can to keep your stars happy so they don’t leave when things get better.
Welch encouraged HR to come out of the recession better than ever by:
Communicate like hell. In a time like this, you have to communicate like you’ve never communicated before, Welch encouraged attendees. People must feel the excitement of tomorrow instead of the pain of today. You can only accomplish this by talking honestly about both.
Reward the right behavior. HR professionals can help their organizations get out of the small-term crisis box, Welch said, by rewarding the right behavior. You get the behavior you measure and reward, so if you reward short-term…don’t be surprised if you don’t get long-term thinking, he said. Organizations that reward sales volume, for example, shouldn’t be surprised when their profits don’t match their sales volume—they’re getting what they reward.
Review your compensation plan. I guarantee your compensation plan is stale, said Welch. It’s probably the same as you had in 2007 and that doesn’t account for the bailout, the economic crisis, the new presidency, etc. The whole world has turned upside down. Welch encouraged attendees to review how they are rewarding their people.
Embrace innovation. Right now, everybody’s talking about changes they’re making in response to the economic crisis, said Welch. But you can only benefit from the crisis if you have a culture of innovation. He explained that employees need to understand how any changes you’re going to be implementing will impact them. Welch questioned, What’s in it for them to buy-in to the change?
Build trust. Welch emphasized the importance of building trust—trust of HR and the organization. The recession is leaving a bad taste in the mouths of employees working in corporate America and Welch urged HR professionals to make their companies more informal by stripping away bureaucracy if they want to keep star performers from leaving once the recession ends.
Reprinted with permission. © CCH
(Submitted July 2009)
<p>“Don’t be a victim,” Jack Welch tells SHRM Annual Conference attendees These are the most challenging times in most of our lives. We need to recognize the critical importance of HR, especially now, said Laurence G. O’Neil, president and CEO</p>
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