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What is it about February?
Somehow it has become everyone’s least favorite month, and that makes sense – the holidays are over, there are hints of spring in the air in between bitingly bitter snowstorms (or, if you’re in a warmer state, nights when it gets all the way down to 50 degrees), and we devoted an inordinate amount of time talking about Punxstawney Phil’s shadow.
While all of those are valid reasons for ranking February last, the reality is February wears us down because we have so much work to do in a slightly shorter timeframe. Now that all the stakeholders are back from vacation, focus on deliverables has returned with a vengeance and everyone wants their work done NOW.
We are feeling this same pressure at IA, but in all the good ways. To drive success as work pace quickens, the team has focused internally:
- Transparency: We’ve spent time talking about how we’ll talk. We pride ourselves on our transparency with clients and each other but want to make sure we are setting appropriate boundaries and norms.
- Structured Check-ins: Because we are busy, we sometimes struggle to stay focused on both short-term and long-term goals. We decided to start using a simple tool to track progress during our regular 1-on-1s. It also allows us to share questions and concerns through a weekly pulse survey, which helps drive the transparency we want to continue to foster.
- Wellness: Like many organizations, we use Slack for quick conversations. This year we launched a wellness channel, which has become a fun way to share what the team is doing outside of work. We’re learning more about each other’s goals, such as running a marathon (or two), using a ski lift without killing ourselves, and climbing 94 floors of a skyscraper in Chicago. It’s been a fun, low-pressure way to stay motivated.
- Encouraging vacations: Anyone who has worked on a small team knows it can be difficult to get away for a much-needed break. Add people who are incredibly passionate about their work and you get a team that doesn’t take enough time off. We have focused on making sure our colleagues get the time away they need, while assuring them the work will still get done.
As we continue through 2020, we are proud that the team is focused on each other’s success and wellbeing just as much as the success of our clients.
—Mark
Founder/managing principal, IA
Update on the War for Skills
Last month, we shared our 2020 focus on the War for Skills. We continue to see a lot of chatter around the topic and have started our research into the current landscape.
On April 16, Mark Stelzner and Mary Faulkner will be presenting their preliminary findings during a webinar hosted by Human Resources Executive. Sharing initial output of their research, they will offer new insight into the market’s rapid evolution from the decades-old “War for Talent” to the growing and global “War for Skills”. Whether you manage people or technology, this session will provide a glimpse into a new era of work that demands a common taxonomy and foundational rethinking of, a) how work is produced and sustained; and b) how workers are assembled, rested, and reskilled.
Click here to register for the webinar.
Voice of HR
Virtually Perfect? IA weighs in on the realities of virtual teams
Because the entire IA team works remotely, we asked the team what they thought about the arrangement and pulled together our internal findings that can be helpful for any virtual team.
Where You Can Find Us
IA is excited to be featured as speakers/presenters in some of the industry’s most thought-provoking events, including:
- March 3, 2020: HR Innovation and the Future of Work – Hacking HR’s Global Online Conference and Workshop, Creating the Business Case for HR Transformation
- April 14, 2020: The War for Talent webinar, HRExecutive.com
- May 13, 2020: UNLEASH America
- June 9-11, 2020: Select HR Tech Conference
On Our Radar
We aren’t the only ones interested in the war for skills and how it will impact both people and work. This month we’re sharing some of the more interesting articles related to the topic:
- The debate about requiring college degrees in job postings has been going on for awhile. This HBR article from 2017 (!!) points out the fallacy of degree inflation and challenges organizations to think in a different way. It will be interesting to see if we are still having this discussion in another three years.
- For employees looking to expand their skill set, micro-credentials might be the way to go. This article from BBC-Worklife looks at the benefits of focusing on shorter, faster learning options to respond to the rapid changes in the business landscape.
- And finally, let’s talk about so-called “soft skills.” Mursion and the Empathetic Workplace partnered up to create a virtual reality program to help people practice difficult conversations. It’s a fascinating preview into where learning and development may be heading.
About IA
IA is a boutique consulting firm focused on HR transformation.
Our seasoned team of professionals brings deep domain experience and Fortune 1000-ready tools to help you capture the functional, operational, financial, technical, legal, regulatory, and strategic impacts of your transformational HR initiative.
Because we’ve worked with all kinds of organizations (large and small, public and private, domestic and international), we have a cross-functional, strategic perspective. And we’re not scared away by big, messy problems.
Learn more at ia-hr.com.
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