TORONTO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--When it comes to managing people, many organizations make important HR decisions based on instincts, doing what they’ve always done or copying competitors’ practices. Now, a handful of leading-edge global companies are breaking new ground by using evidence-based change to make critical talent management decisions, help their organizations achieve greater success and create a more engaging work environment.
In their new book, Transformative HR: How Great Companies Use Evidence-Based Change for Sustainable Advantage, (Jossey-Bass, September 26, 2011), talent management experts Ravin Jesuthasan of global professional services company Towers Watson and John Boudreau of the University of Southern California reveal how prominent global companies are redefining HR leadership by using a new approach to HR to optimize efficiency and strategic impact. By adopting five principles of evidence-based change, the authors believe organizations across the globe can make better people decisions that lead to a sustainable competitive advantage.
“Our thinking behind evidence-based change was inspired partly by the evidence-based medicine movement, which encourages doctors to determine which treatment, based on the evidence, is most effective,” said co-author Jesuthasan. “It hardly seems like a radical notion but human nature is such that people, even doctors, do not always behave with scientific rationality and rely instead on instinct and what might have worked once before. By using evidence-based change, HR is better equipped to make decisions that are based on well-grounded evidence, rather than gut feel.”
The Transformative HR model is based on collaboration of research from Boudreau and Jesuthasan, who define the five principles of evidence-based change as:
Logic-driven Analytics: The notion that one set of management criteria does not fit all leaders, especially within a diverse organization, and that these nuances must be observed to lead you to more robust understanding of how your organization can function at its best.
Segmentation: The understanding that one employee group is different from another. The next generation of HR must acknowledge these differences, communicate them, and motivate actions that reflect them for the purpose of evaluation.
Risk Leverage: Next generation HR is not simply about reducing the risk of turnover or low performance. It is also about the practice of risk leverage. It’s about knowing when – and when not – to take risks.
Integration and Synergy: A look at how the individual HR practices work together, but also how the HR processes in different units work together across the organization.
Optimization: Means investing more where it will make a big difference and having the courage to make smaller investments in less important areas and finding the right balance between standardizing and customizing.
Transformative HR provides insight based on the real-life experiences of nearly a dozen leading global organizations and features in-depth case studies of six international companies, including Royal Bank of Canada, Coca-Cola, Ameriprise Financial, and Royal Bank of Scotland.
“As HR has matured and gained stature within organizations, HR leaders have grown increasingly accustomed to rigorous human capital decision making based on metrics and analytics,” said Boudreau. “However, next-generation HR means going further, to truly embed analytical discipline and sophisticated systems thinking to create the kind of understanding that drives better strategies and better workplace outcomes. We strongly believe that evidence-based change will take HR leaders to that level.”
The book, Transformative HR: How Great Companies Use Evidence-Based Change for Sustainable Advantage, is available from publisher Jossey-Bass for a suggested retail price of $35.00. The book is available in both hardcover and e-reader formats online and at major bookstores.
More information about the book is available at www.towerswatson.com/research/4957
About the Authors
Ravin Jesuthasan is Managing Director, Global Practice Leader for Towers Watson’s Talent Management Practice. His extensive experience includes the design and implementation of workforce and people systems that align with an organization’s strategic drivers and the creation of shareholder value. Ravin has published numerous articles and led several global research efforts on the topics of labor cost management, performance management, rewards and talent management. He is a recognized thought leader and was named as one of the top 25 most influential consultants in the world by Consulting Magazine. Ravin is a frequent speaker at conferences around the world and has been quoted extensively by CNN, The Wall Street Journal, BusinessWeek, Newsweek, CNBC, and Fortune.
John Boudreau is Professor, Management & Organization, Marshall School of Business and Research Director, Center for Effective Organizations, at USC. He is recognized worldwide for his breakthrough research which addresses the future of the global HR profession, HR measurement and analytics, decision-based HR, executive mobility, HR information systems and organizational staffing and development. John is a strategic advisor to a range of organizations, including early-stage companies, global corporations, government and military agencies, and non-profit organizations. As the author of 60 books, including Beyond HR: the New Science of Human Capital, with Peter M. Ramstad, he is regularly featured in Harvard Business Review, The Wall Street Journal, Fortune and BusinessWeek. He has served as a board member of HRPS, WorldatWork, NAHR, SIOP and AOM and is a Fellow of SIOP.
About Towers Watson
Towers Watson (NYSE, NASDAQ: TW) is a leading global professional services company that helps organizations improve performance through effective people, risk and financial management. The company offers solutions in the areas of employee benefits, talent management, rewards, and risk and capital management. Towers Watson has 14,000 associates around the world and is located on the web at towerswatson.com.