Horizon Point Consulting

Category: Talent Management

Read our blogs in this category for stories and best practices from real clients and real research on Talent Management.

  • Learning from K-12 Educators

    Learning from K-12 Educators

    “Naturally, everyone must find a way to earn a living wage, but the paycheck should not be the only motivation. Employees who are confident in their abilities and somewhat comfortable in their workplace can be highly productive. Please note that my sentence said ‘somewhat comfortable.’ We must become a bit uncomfortable to grow professionally.” 

    This is a quote from a K-12 Career Counselor in our latest Continuing Education Class for Facilitating Alabama Career Development: Assessments & Resumes. For the last couple of years, our team has been working with K-12 career developers throughout the state of Alabama, and one big takeaway has been the need for assessment and resume skills that meet students where they are but also challenge them to stretch. As this educator says, “We must become a bit uncomfortable to grow professionally”. How can we support students AND make them a bit uncomfortable…in a good way? 

    In our continuing education class, we test some assessments ourselves, and we review others using sample reports. We explore free and paid tools, formal and informal. Which would you guess our K-12 educators prefer to use? Turns out – all of them! 

    “I feel that in the interest of time – I only focus on interest and do not include values. The more I read and learn – I think I’m going to pick a few assessments for the students to take and send the results to me for meetings…working to complete a portfolio”

    Our educators work with vastly different children with their own wildly different learning abilities and preferences. What works for one may not work for another. What makes one uncomfortable (in a good way) may not be challenging enough for another. Couldn’t the same be said for us grown-ups? Just as educators provide a variety of learning tools for students, HR and Training professionals should and do provide a range of professional learning opportunities that explore hard and soft skills and allow for light to heavy self-evaluation and awareness. 

    “The company that provided our training gave us several personality assessments, skills assessments, and work-based values assessments in an effort to help us learn how to ask questions and determine what was important to our students and how to use that information to help them develop their own plans for success, not only in college but in other areas of their life.  To be honest, at first, I was somewhat skeptical of this, but after seeing this method work in how to approach students and co-workers, I am a believer. I have seen it work MANY MANY MANY times with wonderful results.” 

    So here’s what we can learn from our K-12 educators: 

    1. Be willing to be uncomfortable 
    2. Try formal and informal assessments 
    3. Engage in a variety of learning experiences 

    What steps are you taking to grow personally and professionally, just like our children and teenagers are doing? 

  • 3 Reasons to Give and Take Extended Leave

    3 Reasons to Give and Take Extended Leave

    Today I’ve been back at work for one week. Back at work after four weeks of extended personal leave. I could write a full-length novel about the why, how, who, and what of my semi-sabbatical experience. The short version is: every employer should give extended paid leave, and every employee should take it. I’ll give you three reasons.

    1. We are People First. 

    People First is the single most important Horizon Point mantra. We live it and breathe it every day. That’s how we got here – this place in time where each of our team members is taking 4+ weeks of extended leave for rest and renewal. Our Founder, Mary Ila, took one long look at us during a quarterly planning meeting and saw a team of women who had forgotten that we, ourselves, are People First. The buck stopped there. 

    Our boss got vulnerable with us about her physical, mental, and emotional health (all deteriorating), and we got vulnerable right back. All of us called to the foreground our very real symptoms of Too Much Syndrome. Too much COVID-19 uncertainty, too much schedule changing, too much brain fog, too much or not enough of everything else. In that quarterly planning meeting, we came back to ourselves, saw our very real burnout staring us in the face, and landed squarely on the realization that we are just people. 

    Workplaces are made of People who have basic needs and who will predictably burn out without periods of rest. 

    2. Extended leave clears the fog. 

    On my second day back at work, I attended a Mental Wellness workshop with a local entrepreneurial center that specializes in woman-owned small business creation and growth. This particular workshop focused on the brain science associated with stress and anxiety. Join me on the journey for a moment. How many of these physiological symptoms have you experienced in the last week? 

    • Taut muscles
    • Fatigue
    • Hasty decisions
    • Foggy thinking
    • Negativity 
    • Worrying
    • Irritability
    • Indifference
    • Apprehension
    • Depression
    • Insomnia
    • Restlessness

    As I sat in that room, I thought back to that quarterly planning meeting. I thought back to snapshots of my personal and professional life and saw every. single. one. of these symptoms. That good ole 20/20 hindsight sure did hit differently this time. 

    When I look at this list today, only 2 or 3 resonate. My four weeks of paid leave literally gave me new life. The sun came out, and the fog lifted. I’m a better version of myself, which benefits me personally of course, but also benefits my work team. Giving employees an extended moment to clear the fog breathes life into the organization. 

    3. It’s time for a paradigm shift. 

    Some of you are ready to give and/or take extended leave. You’re willing and able and ready. Here are 6 Steps for Planning and Implementing Effective Extended Leave. 

    Some of you are not. I know that paid extended leave is a luxury. I’ve heard time and time again how lucky I am, how lucky my team is, to work for a company and a leader with such a philosophy. 

    The thing is, we shouldn’t be so lucky. Our company shouldn’t be so different, so unique. This model of People First and the option of paid extended leave should be commonplace. As workplace and community leaders, we can and should shift the paradigm. It has to start somewhere, so why shouldn’t it start with me and you? 

    A month ago, when asked, “How are you?”, I would’ve (not so jokingly) said, “I’m surviving, but not thriving! Haha.” Ask me today, and I’ll tell you how much I’m thriving. How much my mind has healed. How much better I’m sleeping. How much of my personality came back. How much healthier I feel, physically, mentally, and emotionally. 

    Extended leave was a blessing for which I’m immeasurably grateful, and now I’m on fire about spreading the wealth to others. It takes a village. Will you join me? 

     

    If you are an employer, and you want to explore options for incorporating extended wellness leave into your workplace, let’s work together to shift the paradigm. 

     

  • Gender Themes in Assessments: Are women really more organized than men?

    Gender Themes in Assessments: Are women really more organized than men?

    At HPC, we facilitate assessments and coaching with leaders and potential leaders on a regular basis. We work with individuals from diverse backgrounds and with both males and females. Recently, we facilitated Work Behavior Inventory assessments with a group of organizational leaders. We noticed a trend in one component of the assessment – Conscientiousness. More often than not, males scored considerably lower in conscientiousness, which measures achievement, initiative, persistence, attention to detail, dependability, and rule-following. It is worth noting that most males were self-aware.

    This prompted our team to discuss the idea that maybe there are common gender trends in assessments. Pew Research Center surveyed and published some information that was enlightening.

    According to the research, which surveyed the public on their views of leaders, the public is much more likely to see women as being more organized than men, rather than vice versa. Fully 48% say being organized is more true of women than men, while only 4% say this quality is found more in men than women (46% say it’s true of both).

    Women were also seen as more compassionate. The survey also said:

    Women have an advantage over men when it comes to honesty—one of the most crucial leadership traits, according to the public. Some 29% of all adults associate honesty more with women than men, while 3% say honesty applies more to men than women. A majority of adults (67%) say this characteristic is displayed equally by men and women.

    Read more about Pew Research Center’s findings here: What Makes a Good Leader, and Does Gender Matter?

    Regardless if there is a trend or not, we think self-awareness is key for good leaders, both male and female. During our coaching sessions, we discuss trends in strengths and areas for development and work with leaders to create a game plan for development. 

    Do you have leaders or high-potential employees who would benefit from an assessment and coaching? Reach out to us today for more information.

  • The Volunteer Venn

    The Volunteer Venn

    Q: How many volunteers does it take to plan and host a statewide HR conference? 

    A: Whatever number you’re thinking, add 10 more! 

     

    Volunteers are absolutely critical to the success of all organizations, not-for-profit or otherwise, but they are often overlooked and undervalued. Knowing this to be true, why do we volunteer? 

    I am absolutely certain that I owe much of my professional (and personal) success to volunteerism. I have been equally – if not more – challenged, encouraged, and developed in volunteer roles in comparison with paid roles. Some of my most significant growth moments were from volunteer projects. I literally would not be working in my current paid role without a volunteer connection. Every member of our professional team has served in volunteer leadership roles for community-based organizations and professional/trade associations, and each of us has gained invaluable interpersonal skills, project management experience, and so much more, specifically through volunteerism. 

    I just had the great pleasure of planning a conference with a committee of six for a statewide volunteer-led organization. We start with six for planning purposes, but on the day of, six becomes forty. Every year, almost the entire event is staffed by volunteers who give up work or personal time to stuff conference bags, hand out boxed lunches, direct people to restrooms, or whatever other tasks pop up. Mixed in with operational responsibilities, we talk and laugh and commiserate about life and work and dogs and sports. We refresh. We make connections. We learn. 

    So, the answer to the question about why we volunteer when we’re often overlooked and undervalued is really a three-part answer. I like a good visual, so here’s my homemade Volunteer Venn: 

    Through volunteer roles, we explore ourselves and grow as individual people, we experience the good and the human connection separate from paychecks and performance evaluations, and we also create and facilitate career opportunities for ourselves and others. We are better leaders at work, better family members, and better friends when we’ve learned to give of our time and resources freely and without strings. 

    Volunteers are a community. Some of my best relationships, personal and professional, were cultivated through volunteering, and I will forever be thankful for them. 

    What positive, life-changing volunteer experiences have you had? How can you start today? 

     

  • Innovations in #CareerAdvice and Recruiting

    Innovations in #CareerAdvice and Recruiting

    Unemployment rates in Alabama are slowly falling and are on track to reach numbers from the pre-pandemic job boom. In the Huntsville/Madison area, there are more jobs than there are people to fill them. As a result of a volatile job market and the workplace changes in the last year, recruiters are working through some innovative ideas for 2021.

    Would you be surprised to learn that videos with the hashtag #careeradvice have reached over 80 million views since the start of 2021? TikTok has evolved into a recruiting marketplace, where job seekers and potential employers connect in a creative way. Businesses are turning to TikTok for brand visibility and as a way to reach a broader candidate pool. 

    Organizations are also working internally to redesign jobs to be more adaptable and allow for built-in upskilling and cross-training. According to a Deloitte study, “41% of executives said that building workforce capability through upskilling, reskilling, and mobility is one of the most important actions they are taking to transform work”. Looking for some resources for upskilling and reskilling? Here are three:  

    Forbes – Why Employee Upskilling And Reskilling Is So Important Right Now

    theHRDIRECTOR – Why Upskilling and Reskilling is essential to business survival

    Indeed – Upskilling Your Employees: A Guide for Managers

    We see these two questions as critical components of innovation for recruiters and organizations this year: 

    • How can we introduce new brand visibility and recruiting strategies to reach a larger candidate pool?
    • How can we reimagine our organization chart, job descriptions, and talent management strategies to build in upskilling and reskilling? 

     

    We are currently working with an organization that found itself with fewer applicants and a low applicant-to-hire ratio. We looked closely at the hiring process, we looked at job descriptions, we looked at hiring best practices in the local market, and only then did we start to ask these same questions above. 

    You can get started now by mapping out your current strategy, reach, and impact. What’s working? What worked pre-pandemic, but doesn’t work now? How can you and your team innovate recruiting practices? Dig deep, then take the leap!