A sobering reminder of some harsh decisions that have been made already...

Over the last year, companies have cut training spending and staffing; changed training program priorities; moved to coaching, informal learning, collaborative activities, and other less costly training methods; and increased reliance on outsourcing.
One of Bersin's most popular annual studies, the 108-page 2009 Corporate Learning Factbook analyzes a wide range of metrics for corporate training, including: budgets, expenditures per learner, cost per student hour, program priorities, budget allocations, staffing sizes, staff to learner ratios, staff to total spending, technology usage and budgets, and outsourcing spending. The study is based on data collected through an August 2008 survey conducted in partnership with Training Magazine.

This year's research found that the U.S. corporate training market shrunk from $58.5 billion in 2007 to $56.2 billion in 2008, the greatest decline in more than 10 years. Average training expenditures per employee (which include training budgets and payroll) fell 11 percent over the past year – from $1,202 per learner in 2007 to $1,075 per learner in 2008. Staff resources also took a hit. In 2008, large companies employed 3.4 training staffers per 1,000 learners, down from 5.1 per 1,000 in 2007; mid-sized companies employed 4.9 staffers per 1,000 learners in 2008, compared to 7.0 staffers per 1,000 in 2007.

Link: http://www.aimvic.com.au/apps/news/StoryView.php?viewNewsStory=1106

Australian Institute of Management – News Release
Melbourne, December 1, 2008

As Australia contemplates spending about $500 million a year on the introduction of a compulsory paid maternity leave scheme, a new survey reveals that only a minority of executives believe the scheme will boost the numbers of women in the workforce.

The survey, conducted by the Australian Institute of Management VT attracted 3,180 respondents from the executive ranks of private and government sector organisations. Just 33 per cent of the survey participants agreed that compulsory paid maternity leave would ‘benefit the recruitment and retention of women in the workforce.’ The survey is titled ‘Retaining women in the Workforce’.

The Australian Government’s Productivity Commission, which has made an initial recommendation that taxpayers fund 18 weeks paid maternity leave, is now working on its final report to Government following the completion of public forums on the issue last week (final report due in Feb 09). One of the goals of the Commission’s proposals on maternity leave is to achieve ‘greater workforce participation by women’.

Respondents to the survey were 55 per cent male and 45 per cent female. The minority support for compulsory paid maternity leave as a means of boosting the numbers of women in the workforce was indicated by men (only 26% support) and women (40% support).
Eighty seven per cent of survey respondents said that ‘more needs to be done to retain women in the Australian workforce’.
“Australia’s ageing population means that maximising the retention and contribution of women in the workforce is becoming a key business imperative,” the CEO of the Australian Institute of Management, (Vic/Tas) Ms Susan Heron said.

The survey identified the most important single factor to retain women in the workforce was ‘flexible working arrangements’. The second most important factor was improved childcare support (10.0%), followed by improved career path (9.5%), paid maternity leave (7.0%), pay equity (6.9 %), training and professional development (5.1%) and other (3.4%).

“Whilst the Government’s move to consider the introduction of paid maternity leave is a welcome development, it is clear that by itself, this initiative will not significantly boost the retention of women in the workforce. Australian organisations need to embrace a broad range of measures to improve the situation.

“Our survey makes clear that greater flexibility in workplace arrangements is a key priority. The greater demand by women - and their partners – for options such as flexible working hours, the ability to work from home when required and job sharing point to the changes underway and indicate what lies ahead for Australian employers.”

Significantly, 63 per cent of participants believed that Australian organisations were not supportive of women ‘who seek to achieve seniority equivalent to their male counterparts.’

“This survey finding about lack of support for women helps us to understand why less than 15 per cent of women occupy the senior executive ranks of our major companies despite the fact that more than 50 per cent of tertiary graduates are women,” Ms Heron said.
“It is clear that Australia can no longer sustain such a poor return on its investment in tertiary education for women.”Eighty per cent of survey participants supported the view that having a child impacted ‘on a woman’s ability to achieve her career goals.’

The survey revealed that 64 per cent of respondents had never worked in an organisation run by a woman CEO (or equivalent position).

However, respondents who worked in the public sector or in the not for profit sector were much more likely to have worked for a woman CEO (or equivalent). Fifty five per cent of respondents in the public sector and 62 per cent of those working for a not for profit entity reported they had worked for an organisation run by a woman.

SURVEY RESULTS – SOME KEY FACTS
• Only 33% of respondents believed that compulsory paid maternity leave would boost the recruitment and retention of women in the workforce
• 58% of respondents said the most important factor in retaining women in the workforce was flexible working arrangements
• 63% felt that Australian organisations were not supportive of women who seek to achieve seniority equivalent to their male counterparts
• 87% believed that more needs to be done to retain women in the workforce
• 80% said that having a child impacts on a woman’s ability to achieve her career goals
• 54% indicated that if compulsory paid maternity leave was introduced, it should be paid by a combination of ‘Govt. and Employer’
• More than 55% of respondents said that if compulsory paid maternity leave was introduced, it should be for a longer period than the 18 weeks nominated by the Productivity Commission
• 55% said that if compulsory paid maternity leave was introduced, that it should not replace the $5,000 Baby Bonus.

For further information
W www.aimvic.com.au
E lfunston@aimvic.com.au

Link: http://www.theaustralian.news.com.au/business/story/0,,24608514-14741,00.html

AS the Australian economy tilts towards recession next year, it may be instructive for generation Y to see how they are viewed.

Over the last month, Bernard Salt has run two workshops designed to elicit intergenerational views in the workplace. In both instances, he asked participants more or less the same question: describe the attributes of the perfect employee or manager.

The question as to the perfect employee was put to a group of 40 generation X middle-level managers mostly aged 30-45.

He wanted to create a truly mythical beast: the perfect Gen Y employee. What would such a person look like? How would they behave?

The suggestions came thick and fast... read on

This is well worth a read, and one which surprised me a little.
Although when you think about it, this generation are not going anything that previous ones have not either; mainly around maturity and really appreciating and understanding how humans operate work places, and how you work your role within such places...

Link: http://archives.subscribermail.com/msg/d8d6d33e7f644d9ab64fe5ce4695fe78.htm

In this recent edition of the TP Times, Tom Peters and his team are taking on the intensely topical subject of performance measures and the impact they have on peoples' behavior. "What gets measured gets done" as Tom himself has argued on any number of occasions, so the judgement about what to measure is all-important. You only have to look at some of the questionable decisions that have been taken in financial institutions over the past 10 years to see that judgement gets clouded when you get the targets wrong!

Here's a number of points of view on the vexing question of how measures drive performance, and how getting that right leads to the kind of performance we want from our people ... or not!

Also perusing tompeters.com for Tom's commentary on the subject of performance turns up these blog entries:
"The rarest of gifts: THANK YOU!"

And, a more recent one, in which the debate centers on whether markets need regulation to control excessive behavior. Very stormy! "Musings"

All links are well worth the time to read on, albeit they don't take long, especially if you are going to use the forthcoming "quiet time" to review your current performance measures... even if they are your own personal performance measures!

Link: http://www.ncver.edu.au/research/proj/nr06004.pdf

Not being able to hire people with the required skills is an obvious impediment to the productivity and prosperity of any organisation and, ultimately, to a country’s economy. An equally important concern for employers is how to keep skilled employees and how to use their skills fully.

This report, To have and to hold: Retaining and utilising skilled people by Andy Smith, Eddie Oczkowski and Chris Selby Smith, examines the ways in which Australian employers retain skilled staff at a time of low unemployment and skills shortages. It also considers the ways in which employers enhance their ability to use the skills of their people. The study analysed retention and utilisation at the organisation level. Its focus is on the role of human resource management practices, including training and high-performance work practices, in enabling employers to retain and utilise the skills of their staff.

Key messages...

ß The key driver for both skills retention and utilisation is the presence of a learning orientation in the organisation. People stay in organisations if they feel they are learning and progressing in their careers.

ß Retention or utilisation of skilled people is not necessarily improved through strategies such as increasing wages, adopting family-friendly working policies, and the use of non-monetary rewards. These things help make people feel satisfied, but they are not sufficient to retain skilled people in a tight labour market.

ß What does facilitate retention is the application of high-performance work practices such as a commitment to learning, open-mindedness and shared vision. More widespread adoption of these practices would benefit employers and workers alike.

ß Training as part of an overall learning culture, particularly nationally recognised training, is also important in retaining skilled people and making better use of their skills. This also offers opportunities for registered training organisations to work with employers to improve retention and utilisation strategies for employees.

Tom Karmel
Managing Director, NCVER

To read this rather interesting report, click here...

What we wanted to highlight to you in this report is this, developing your people is key (and that actually includes yourself also). Regardless of the size of operation or department you either manage, or are a part of, the message is the same and is just as important to a 2-person operation as it is to a 20,000-strong one.

If you have people working with you, then we encourage you to read this, digest it, and then translate it into your particular situation. If you need a hand with this, let us know...