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Case Studies
Organizational Effectiveness and the Results Accelerator™
Situation
A middle-market size organization had undergone several changes at the leadership level in recent years, employee engagement was fragile, and there was a sense by the new leader that the organization was operating just as it had several years earlier. The leader engaged The People Advantage to assess how well-positioned the organization’s people management functions were related to its strategic direction and to build a change plan.
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Solution
The People Advantage used the Results Accelerator™ methodology to guide the process of identifying the biggest opportunities for improvement. Working with the leader of the organization, we identified the general areas of concern, such as culture, organizational structure, training, processes, etc… Then we gathered data by looking at policies, procedures, and other documents, and interviewing employees. Following a detailed analysis, The People Advantage presented our top 20 recommendations to the leadership team and facilitated the development of a multi-year change plan. Throughout the entire project, The People Advantage managed a communication plan that ensured employees understood the purpose of the work, including a roll-out of the non-confidential items in the change plan.
Results
The organization has been diligent in implementing the plan and engagement has improved as a result. In addition, communication between the leadership team and employees has improved and role clarity and accountability have increased.
Performance Management
Situation
The leader of a middle-market size organization was dissatisfied with their approach to performance management. Although they went through the process of goal setting at the beginning of the year, there was little correlation between employee ratings and how well the organization performed. In addition, there was confusion about how the organization defined performance and the role that behaviors should play in performance evaluations, coaching, and discussions. The organization engaged The People Advantage to facilitate the development of a performance philosophy and to advise on redesigning and implementing a new performance management approach.
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Solution
The People Advantage worked with the leadership team to develop their performance management philosophy, which created the foundation for all aspects of the new approach. We also facilitated the development of a new performance management tool and process. More rigorous goal setting was conducted. Management and employee training were put in place to help shift the culture. At the end of the year, The People Advantage facilitated a leadership roundtable, where the team discussed actual performance scenarios and how they planned to handle the evaluations.
Results
A more holistic view of performance was established, as evidenced by the discussion that occurred at the roundtable and an increase in the distribution of performance ratings. As a result, there was a stronger alignment of employee ratings and overall organizational performance.
Compensation Management
Situation
A school district in Ohio was experiencing significant financial pressure, the need to increase district performance, and community pressure to manage salary expense. Anticipating future hiring activity at the leadership level, the Superintendent and Treasurer engaged The People Advantage to help establish a performance-based compensation structure for director and administrative roles in the central office.
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Solution
The People Advantage worked with the Superintendent, Treasurer, and Board to define the principles of a Pay Philosophy that could be used to determine how salary ranges should be established and managed over time and how individual salaries should be managed within those ranges. We identified specific criteria that helped define the districts that should comprise the market and analyzed the pay for positions among those districts. We established the preferred pay position relative to the market. Based on this information, we established position-based salary ranges and a methodology for how experience and performance should affect individual pay placement and movement within those ranges.
Results
The district has experienced turnover of two-thirds of its leadership team and has used the structure to determine the appropriate salary for the new leaders. In addition, it renewed several contracts and used the structure to guide salary decisions. The community’s concern about the lack of a salary management methodology has been addressed. The new approach ensures that there is stronger alignment between pay and performance.
Strategic Planning
Situation
A school district was undergoing a significant amount of change among its leadership, including a new Superintendent. At the same time, financial and legislative changes necessitated a clear focus on the most important priorities. A strategic plan existed but had become outdated and was not being used. The Superintendent engaged The People Advantage to facilitate a process to help the leadership team become stronger faster and to set the direction of the organization for the next three years.
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Solution
The People Advantage facilitated the development of a new strategic plan using an approach that was specifically designed to accelerate the assimilation of a new leadership team. A new Mission, Vision, Beliefs, and Strategic Plan were created. The plan was developed by the leadership team and then refined through several community meetings. The plan has four areas of focus and several strategic priorities within each. These strategic priorities link to the school’s operating plan.
Results
The goals for the directors and the rest of the organization are linked to the strategic plan. The focus of the organization has increased, helping to articulate which issues should command resources and which should not. Because of the role the leadership team played, they have a high degree of ownership in the plan and operate as a stronger team. They also received positive exposure to the community, being positioned as the experts in their specific areas. Committees consisting of community members and staff have been formed to enhance communication and leverage expertise within the community.
New Leader Assimilation
Situation
An organization was in critical need of increasing performance and the top executive was in the process of shifting the organization’s culture. Faced with the need to backfill a very visible and critical leadership role due to a retirement, the top executive decided to take great care to hire someone from outside of the organization who could accelerate the cultural shift. The top executive engaged The People Advantage to help ensure the early success of the new leader.
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Solution
In consultation with the top executive, it became clear that the new leader would need to get up to speed and integrate into the organization in record time. The People Advantage created an assimilation plan that consisted of two elements. The first element was an overall plan that 1) identified the new leader’s areas of focus, critical behaviors, potential pitfalls, and points of leverage and 2) explicitly documented the expectations of the relationship between the leader and the top executive. Part of the plan included regular discussions between the top executive and the new leader, facilitated by The People Advantage, to assess progress and to recalibrate the plan. The second element was a new leader introduction that was essentially an interview of the new leader by The People Advantage in front of all employees. The People Advantage worked with the new leader to identify the questions in advance. They were strategically chosen to provide the audience with information about the new leader’s background, style, and areas of focus. It also provided a platform to diffuse potential misperceptions.
Results
The new leader hit the ground running. The highest priorities received the most attention in the early weeks and other employees knew what would receive attention and what would not. The open dialogue on critical issues enabled the relationship between the top executive and the new leader to start strong. The leader introduction allowed the new leader to accelerate relationships with other employees very quickly.
Process for Optimizing Expense Reductions
Situation
A large organization needed to create an expense reduction plan in a very short timeframe. The process they had used in the past was to ask all executives to unilaterally make cuts at the same percentage. The CEO recognized that the result of this approach was a set of reductions that did not optimize the overall performance of the organization. Instead, it optimized within each function. The CEO engaged The People Advantage to develop, implement, and facilitate a process to optimize reductions across the entire organization.
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Solution
The People Advantage developed a process that involved the collection of expense reduction proposals from each executive, preliminary review of the proposed reductions by the CEO, a roundtable discussion about all proposed reductions by all executives, and a final approval. To start the process, each executive was given the same scenarios that they had to satisfy with a proposal..how to reduce by X% and how to reduce by 2X%. In addition, they were given a set of rules for their proposals. In the roundtable, each leadership team member presented their proposal. The others asked questions, challenged, and expressed opinions. Following the roundtable, each executive submitted a final list of their reductions which were reviewed and approved by the CEO. The People Advantage facilitated the process and served as an advisor to the CEO.
Results
The reductions were unevenly spread across the functions, with some functions being impacted more than the others on a percentage basis. This approach allowed for core capabilities to be preserved and minimized the impact of the reductions on the overall performance of the organization.
Building Organizational Capability
Situation
The leader of the technology function for a middle-market size organization was interested in improving the value of the function to the organization and increasing the credibility of the function across the organization. The People Advantage was engaged to assess the situation and identify the primary barriers to success.
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Solution
The People Advantage helped determine that there were three primary issues to resolve and recommended solutions for each. The first issue was that the prioritization scheme for handling “tickets” (i.e. requests for technology services such as repairs, installations, technical support, application support) did not support the priorities of the business. The changes included creating new rules for prioritization and a new approach to assigning the tickets to technicians. The second issue was that other leaders in the organization had little knowledge of the volume of work being done by the technology function and how it prioritized its work. In response, the level of transparency was increased by creating a monthly dashboard that was shared with the organization and discussed at leadership team meetings. The third issue was that other leaders in the organization were making decisions about technology without taking into account the long-term implications. Decision-making protocol and an annual planning process were instituted.
Results
The increased level of transparency and sharing of information enabled the organization to better understand how decisions were made and to play a role in prioritizing. This increased involvement allowed the discussion to be focused on the needs of the business, removing tension and anxiety from the environment and increasing the credibility of the technology department.