Horizon Point Consulting

Author: Mary Ila Ward

  • 3 Things Business Leaders Can (and Should) Do to Help Marginalized People

    3 Things Business Leaders Can (and Should) Do to Help Marginalized People

    This year, I have the opportunity to take part in Leadership Greater Hunstville. This program focuses on educating and equipping business leaders to also be community leaders through intense exposure to all facets of the community.

     “Human Services Day” took place this week.  It focuses on understanding the needs of the community and the not-for-profits that help meet these needs, many of which focus on helping marginalized people. The day began with a poverty simulation (CAPS), and we spent most of the afternoon hearing from a variety of not-for-profit entities in the community.  One of the not-for-profit leaders participating said that there are estimated to be between 1600-2000 not-for-profit organizations serving the community in just Madison County which currently has a population of around 375,000 people. 

    I was shocked by this number. I was also shocked at how little was said about business leaders/employers doing what employers should do best- employing people- to combat the systematic issues in the community that many of the not-for-profits we heard from sought to address.  It seemed like that focus was on the business community giving the nonprofits money and possibly volunteer hours.  What about providing meaningful employment and living wages? 

    I think business leaders can make one of the biggest impacts on marginalized individuals by focusing on employment and employability.  This should create a sustainable and far-reaching impact.  

    Here are three things to consider in doing so as seen through quotes of leaders that have spoken to us throughout the Leadership Huntsville experience: 

    1. “Get in the arena.” First, hire people on the margins. Whether it be someone with a physical or mental disability, someone with a criminal record, the single mom that has been living in generational poverty, or the veteran, etc. make an active effort to connect with these individuals and meet them where they are to offer employment. 
    2. “Breaking down barriers is the role of a leader”.  There are multiple barriers that prohibit marginalized people from getting employment and sustaining it.  The poverty simulation we participated in placed a large emphasis on the barriers of transportation and childcare.  My role in the poverty simulation was that of a 20-year-old mother of a one-year-old trying to go to college and work part-time.  Due to the fact that childcare for a week cost more than I could make part-time in a week, I was “forced” to leave my one-year-old with my nine-year-old brother in order to go to work and not have to pay for childcare.  In a world where I actually have a one-year-old son and nine-year-old son, I would never leave my nine-year-old to have to keep my one-year-old while I worked, but I don’t have to worry about earning enough money to feed them both.  What would you do? As business leaders, we need to think long and hard about how we can address these barriers and examine what role providing living wages plays in this. 
    3. “Think to ask. You need to know the story to lead.” Breaking down these barriers requires a knowledge of the barriers and understanding that, yes, sometimes poor choices have created those barriers, but also many barriers go well beyond issues of choice and behavior.  Provide compassion and empathy to those you employ and seek to employ by asking what challenges they face and why. Then help connect and provide resources to address the issues.   Sometimes the help to address the issues is simply an understanding of the issue.  I’d encourage all business leaders to find a way to connect with someone who is a part of the marginalized population and spend regular (weekly) time with them one-on-one.  You’ll learn a lot and grow a lot as a leader. 

    As the founder of Manna House told us to kick off the day, “God didn’t ask me to quit this to do that,” speaking of her experience to continue to work full-time as a government contractor and open Manna House to help address food vulnerability in the community.   Her story was impactful.  My hope is business leaders realize they don’t have to quit their day job to impact the most pressing issues in our community.  In fact, their day job is probably the best way to address them through an effort to hire and retain people on the margins, providing meaningful work and living wages.   I would dare to say we’d need a lot fewer non-profits and a lot less government programs if we all did this. 

     

    How are you making an impact through your business leadership? 

  • Are There Differences in What Women and Men State as Career Needs and Goals?

    Are There Differences in What Women and Men State as Career Needs and Goals?

    “Grow in my current role.”& “Personal growth.” 

    “Financial security.” & “Growth in earnings.”

    These are two sets of responses gathered working with our clients and with Horizon Point and MatchFIT team members when posing the question, “What do you want out of your career?” as a part of our Leaders as Career Agents Process. 

    Which pair do you think came from men and which one do you think came from women?   

    Although not a scientific study, I have seen over and over again how the majority of men focus on the financial aspects of career growth and plans whereas women focus on getting intrinsic satisfaction from that growth.   Both men and women cite impact and influence on others in career growth fairly equally as I’ve seen it.

    There are a million reasons that play into these differences and similarities I would venture to guess, but I think the reality of this is important. 

    If you are a leader facilitating some type of solicitation of this type of information, I would encourage you to help balance these discussions if they are weighted more heavily towards financial or personal growth needs by asking open-ended questions like:

    • Tell me what your thoughts are on your current compensation and where you’d like to see yourself move throughout your career in terms of pay and rewards?
    • Tell me about your personal growth and learning goals?  What would you like to be exposed to? Who would you like to learn from and what would you like to learn?
    • How do you see yourself giving back to the organization and others throughout your career? 

    Finally, as a leader, take ownership in helping people understand what they are worth and driving them towards the learning and development that helps them reach their financial needs and desires.  Engage in helping people feel comfortable talking about both. 

    What differences have you seen, if any, between what women and men state as career needs? 



  • 7 Things to Consider in Wage Fairness

    7 Things to Consider in Wage Fairness

    Pay disparity has long been a topic, most notably with discrepancies in pay between women and minority groups.   The #metoo movement and #blacklivesmatter movements have brought this issue even further to the forefront.   And rightly so. 

    Payscale published its annual Gender Pay Gap Report in March, stating that, “Since we have started tracking the gender pay gap, the difference between the earnings of women and men has shrunk, but only by an incremental amount each year. There remains a disparity in how men and women are paid, even when all compensable factors are controlled, meaning that women are still being paid less than men due to no attributable reason other than gender. As our data will show, the gender pay gap is wider for women of color, women in executive-level roles, women in certain occupations and industries, and in some US states.” 

    The report is definitely worth a deep dive to read if you have a chance.  

    If your organization is concerned about pay disparity, what should you do? It starts with considering all the factors that go into determining pay:

    1. Consider what your organization values.  What creates value for your organization by creating a competitive advantage?  These are compensable factors.   As another Payscale report states, “It’s also perfectly reasonable to pay people in the same position differently as long as the compensable factors are justified and aligned with legal requirements.” 

    2. Consider time.  Years of experience overall and tenure with the organization are important factors that affect pay. 

    3. Consider performance.   Performance can and should affect pay.  Make sure you have a documented and systematic way of measuring performance that can justify and backup pay differences. 

    Examine your wage data.

    4. Conduct a pay equity analysis.   A professional in the field can help you conduct regression analysis to see what factors are contributing to pay disparities if any, and if these factors are based on protected classes and/or on factors mentioned above like years of experience, compensable factors, etc. 

    5. Get your legal team involved.  I know, I know, I hate to call the attorney too unless it is absolutely necessary, but it is necessary here.  This can help you do a pay equity analysis under attorney-client privilege, and based on what you discover, help you chart the right path forward. 

    Finally, consider ways you can help to combat systemic issues with pay disparity: 

    6. Consider policies and “norms” that impact gender or other demographic factors like race differently.  A documented reason for macro gender pay disparity issues is tied to women leaving the workforce altogether or seeking more flexible work opportunities to raise children.   Considering how your organization can retain female talent during child-rearing years is an important consideration for individual organizations and for the entire economy on a macro level. 

    7. Teach advocating and negotiation skills to women and minority groups.  I personally believe one of the reasons women and some members are of minority groups are paid less is because they don’t ask for what they are worth.  There is evidence to support this (and there is evidence that contradicts it).  Helping people understand the market for their skills and experience and giving them the confidence to stand for what they are worth and ask for it is empowerment at its finest.  I’ve found that many people just don’t know what they don’t know when it comes to the knowledge and skills needed to advocate and negotiate, so they just don’t.  Over a lifetime, this could mean a substantial difference in lifetime earnings. 

    Are you concerned about pay fairness and pay disparity at your organization?

  • 8 Steps to Take if Your Compensation is Out of Line with the Market

    8 Steps to Take if Your Compensation is Out of Line with the Market

    2020 has been a year of polar opposite reports about compensation from our clients.  Some have implemented hiring and pay freezes, even laid people off, while others have more business than they know what to do with and are concerned they are losing people because their wages are not competitive with the market.  

    So, what do you do if you are concerned about the market competitiveness of your wages?

      1. First, decide if you haven’t already, what your wage strategy is. Do you want/need to lead, lag, or meet the market?  Knowing your destination before you take the journey is important.  Several things weigh into this such are your budget, margins, industry, location, culture, and overall philosophy on compensation.  There is no right or wrong answer, but the key thought in all this should be what creates a competitive advantage for your organization. 
      2. Pull market data.  Here is some information on sources for data.   Not listed in this post as a source that we like to use now is Economic Research Institute (ERI)’s Salary Assessor.  One of the things we like about ERI data is you can pull it by level (1,2,3)  and by job title, which can help you hone in on comparing apples to apples with your organization’s wages.  We suggest utilizing multiple sources. 
      3. Based on your strategy, determine what is most important for you to focus on looking at the market data. If your strategy is to lag the market, look at the 25th percentile of market data as a benchmark. If your strategy is to meet the market, look at the midpoint (50th percentile) and an average of the data, and if your strategy is to lead the market, look at the 75th percentile of the market data for benchmarking. 
      4. Ask yourself: Are you out of line with the market and your strategy? 
      5. If you are below the market and your overall goal, consider how you can best bring your wages up and within the range of your market data.  This could be a one-time salary increase for certain or all positions, a percentage increase across the board in your pay ranges/salary structure, or consideration of a variable pay system that includes other forms of compensation than base pay to bring your overall compensation in line with the market.  Variable pay structures can help you bring in other considerations for payout like your overall profitability. 
      6. Consider non-monetary rewards that align with your company’s culture and philosophy.  Based on research, flexibility may be more valuable to people than monetary rewards.  Can you implement more flexible work policies that combat recruiting and retention issues because of less than average wages? 
      7. If wages are out of line with the market and your organization can’t meet the market in a way that aligns with your strategy in one overall step or change,  consider a phased-in increase to your overall salary ranges across a set period of time like every six months or every year. This can be a way to move your overall comp strategy (not just a position here or there) to get to where you need to be. 
      8. Evaluate your wages against the market more often.  The organizations we see with the most trouble with their wages not meeting the market are ones that have gone five years or more without comparing their salary and structure to the market.  The more you lag behind, the harder and harder it becomes to catch up.  We suggest looking at overall compensation structure adjustments every two to three years unless there are large fluctuations in the market in a short period of time.  You should look at individual wages for specific jobs more often, every year or so, especially if you are experiencing retention and or recruitment issues. 

     

     

    Do you need to take a look at your wage competitiveness? 

  • Values Amidst the Storm

    Values Amidst the Storm

    “Culture guides the team in their everyday work. It’s the foundation on which people make decisions and take actions.”

    The Start-Up Playbook by Rajat Bhargava and Will Herman

     

    I took my first flight in over six months recently.  Headed to Orlando to speak at a conference, I booked a Delta flight connecting through Atlanta.  

    Before I left, my husband said, “Make sure you have your mask on the whole time during the flight.  Delta has been blacklisting people for life if they refuse the keep their mask on.”  

    As their CEO Ed Bastian said, “If you insist on not wearing a mask, then we insist you not fly Delta.” Delta don’t play.  

    And neither was I going to risk not being able to fly on my favorite airline over keeping a mask on while in the air.  

    It was evident throughout the experience that Delta wasn’t playing in every aspect of their flight experience safety.  Sanitizing wipes were handed out as you boarded. No more food and beverage service as usual- you get a plastic bag complete with a water bottle, napkin (a recycled one at that), cheese-its, and biscoff.  There’s another hand sanitizing wipe in that packet too.  The way they filter air through the cabins has changed as well as the way they clean and sanitize their planes.  It’s called the Delta CareStandard. 

    But why does Delta do all this when it costs more money to do it this way in an airline industry that is fraught with more woes than almost all other industries because of the pandemic? On my flights of less than 1 hour each, couldn’t they just skip the food and beverage service and sighting safety reasons and over multiple flights save themselves a ton of money?  They were close to losing $100 million A DAY in March and $27 million A DAY in June. 

    Well first of all, they are mandated to do some things, but in general, I think it is because Delta is governed by its Corporate Values.  

    These values are: 

    • Honesty
    • Integrity
    • Respect
    • Perseverance
    • Servant Leadership

    They intertwine with the mission of “The work of an airline is, at its core, about connecting people with communities, with experience, and with each other.  Making connections is Delta’s mission…” 

    Some things you see Delta doing show their commitment to their values because of the pandemic or what they’ve done pre-pandemic include:

    • Blocking middle seats through January (booking only 60% full), not to mention all the other Delta CareStandard actions.
    • Referring to their employees as, “Our family” 
    • Using the word “We” in much of their statements for example, “We- Delta’s employees, customers, and community partners…”

    Delta isn’t perfect, but what they continually do pre and post-pandemic is seeking to live their corporate values through their behaviors, decisions, and actions.  And sometimes our true values are best seen when things are at their very worst. It’s why they consistently earn top awards and have recently taken the number one spot on the list of the best airlines in 2020. 

    It’s why I’ll continue to fly Delta even if it costs a little bit more and even if I have to connect instead of flying direct.  And it is why Delta, even though it is in the midst of a massive storm, will come out better than before.  They are experiencing the opportunity of living out the value of perseverance here and now.

     

    How is your company living out its values amidst the storm?