Development Plan
Guidebook
A Guidebook for Competency Enhancement
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1
Development Activities by Competency
Relationship Orientation ................................................................................................ 3
Continuous Learning ..................................................................................................... 5
Tolerance for Stress, Ambiguity and Change................................................................. 7
Strategic Business Perspective ..................................................................................... 9
Change Management .................................................................................................. 11
Communication and Influence ..................................................................................... 13
Quality Process Orientation ......................................................................................... 15
Customer Value Creation ............................................................................................ 17
Compliance ................................................................................................................. 19
Coaching and Consulting to Clients ............................................................................. 21
Planning and Organizing ............................................................................................. 23
Team Building ............................................................................................................. 25
Resource Management .............................................................................................. 27
Cross-team Collaboration ............................................................................................ 29
Performance Management (Building Systems) ............................................................ 31
Visioning and Alignment .............................................................................................. 33
Partnership Building .................................................................................................... 35
Performance Management (Developing the Work Environment) ................................. 37
Technical Expertise ..................................................................................................... 39
Product/Service Development and Refinement ........................................................... 41
Product/Service Quality and Delivery .......................................................................... 43
Organization Design, Development and Effectiveness ................................................ 45
Process Facilitation ..................................................................................................... 47
Resource Mobilization and Coordination ..................................................................... 49
Business Process Reengineering ................................................................................ 51
Business Management ................................................................................................ 53
Human Capital Maximization ....................................................................................... 55
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2
RELATIONSHIP ORIENTATION
Develops positive relationships by making others
feel their concerns and contributions are
important.

Establishes rapport easily with others.

Listens attentively to others’ perspectives.

Accurately assesses interpersonal cues (e.g., verbal and non-verbal).

Uses personal energy and positive attitude to persuade.
Development Activities:

Look for strengths in team members and seek opportunities to assign tasks that best leverage
these strengths.

Develop relationships with people in other workgroups or departments by contacting people
you don’t know well and setting up an informal introductory meeting (e.g. lunch, coffee
break, etc.).

Identify strategies for overcoming barriers to good working relationships with your
colleagues; set goals for improvement. Seek assistance from HR or others who might
provide you with objective feedback.

Practice separating the “issue” from the “person” to better address problems.

Prepare for meetings and strive to increase the quality of your contributions.

Take a personality assessment/inventory (e.g. Myers Briggs Type Inventory) to develop an
understanding of personality styles and how style affects your own success and the success
of the team.

Maintain active involvement in establishment of team strategies, goals and decisions.

Perform in an assignment that requires working collaboratively with others, forming and
sustaining a team, and/or coordinating the efforts of multiple teams.
3
Relationship Orientation
Books:
Alessandra, Tony, Michael J. O’Conner, People Smarts: Bending the Golden Rule to Give Others
What They Want, Pfeiffer & Company, 1994.
Baker, Wayne E., Networking Smart: How to Build Relationships for Personal and Organizational
Success, McGraw-Hill, 1994.
Bjorseth Lillian D., Breakthrough Networking: Building Relationships That Last, 1996.
Decenzo, David A., Sharon O’Neil, Human Relations: Personal and Professional Development,
Prentice Hall, 1996.
Goleman, Daniel, Emotional Intelligence, Bantam Books, 1997.
4
CONTINUOUS LEARNING
Proactively seeks performance feedback and
identifies approaches to improve own and others’
performance and learning.

Proactively defines and pursues personal development goals.

Learns from both positive and negative experiences.

Continuously looks for new ideas and approaches to improve personal and team
effectiveness.

Seeks and applies new information and concepts quickly.
Development Activities:

Seek projects or assignments inside or outside of the organization that require you to learn
new skills or strengthen existing skills.

Become familiar with how you learn and your learning style. A good way to begin to
understand how you learn is to do a self-assessment such as the Learning Styles Inventory.

Spend some time defining your work priorities and values and how this applies to your
personal/professional vision.

Solicit feedback, remain open to input and make adjustments based on ongoing feed back in
order to meet your goals and priorities.

Continuously review the literature of your profession and reflect on how what you have
learned applies to your experiences at work; share what you’ve learned with others.

Teach a mini-course on an area that you have a special interest or expertise in. Consider
publicizing the mini-course beyond your immediate work group.

Serve as a resource to others in your area(s) of expertise; become an active mentor for your
team and/or new employees.

Begin (or enhance) involvement in professional associations and societies within your field.

Create a personal development plan. Include goals/objectives, resources required, and time
frame; collaborate with your manager in the development of this plan.

Complete a competency assessment and determine competencies to focus on initially (3-5
competencies are generally enough to focus on at any one time).

Look for patterns in your behavior that impede success. Consult with an expert in human
behavior to brainstorm methods for changing those patterns.
5
Continuous Learning
Books:
Brookfield, S. P., Developing Critical Thinkers: Challenging Adults to Explore Alternative Ways of
Thinking and Acting, Jossey-Bass, 1991.
Pieters, Gerald W., The Ever-Changing Organization: Creating the Capacity for Continuous
Change, Learning and Improvement, 1999.
Senge, Peter, The Fifth Discipline: The Art and Practice of the Learning Organization,
Currency/Doubleday, 1994.
6
TOLERANCE FOR STRESS,
AMBIGUITY AND CHANGE
Demonstrates flexibility in applying different
approaches to changing work demands.

Adapts readily to changing work demands.

Works cooperatively with a wide variety of people.

Shifts focus smoothly and quickly among competing activities.

Maintains composure under pressure.
Development Activities:

Ask a person whose judgment you trust to observe your behavior in various situations and
give you feedback on how you could have behaved more effectively.

Take a college course or other workshop on human relations, stress management or change
management.

Think of different ways to respond to a situation, then use those alternative responses; note
how being able to use different approaches increases your effectiveness.

Observe and analyze the behaviors of potential role models (e.g. mentors, top performers) in
different situations.

Learn and practice a set of stress management and/or relaxation techniques and use them
regularly.

Strive for a workable balance between work, family, and other commitments.
7
Tolerance for Stress, Ambiguity and Change
Books:
Allen, David, Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity, 2001.
Eliot, Robert S., M.D., A Change of Heart: Converting Your Stresses to Strengths, Bantam Books,
1994.
Mackoff, Barbara, The Art of Self-Renewal: Balancing Pressure and Productivity On and Off the
Job, Lowell House, 1993.
Whyte, David. The Heart Aroused: Poetry and the Preservation of the Soul in Corporate
America, Currency/Doubleday, 1996.
8
STRATEGIC BUSINESS
PERSPECTIVE
Identifies and addresses the critical needs of the
overall business.

Maintains focus on future business opportunities and obstacles.

Continuously develops ideas for leveraging human resources for competitive advantage.

Makes sound business decisions based on limited, complex, or contradictory information.

Develops, presents and tracks HR strategies based upon an analytical business case (e.g.,
reduce risk/cost, improve productivity/profitability).
Development Activities:

Learn about scenario planning; develop scenarios for your business unit or team for one,
three, and/or five years into the future.

Read about your area of business and try to think of value-added new product/service
offerings.

Conduct informal research on a company in another market with the same or similar
characteristics as your own company to see what new or different practices they are using;
determine the feasibility of adopting them and foster implementation.

Learn more about innovation techniques, such as brainstorming, storyboarding, and mind
mapping, and apply them in your work setting.

Speak with executives and managers in your area/or other areas about the business to gain
insights into the key drivers of the company.

Have monthly meetings with individuals from a variety of levels within different areas to
promote cross-organizational knowledge sharing.

Participate in a project or task team outside of your normal range of responsibility.
9
Strategic Business Perspective
Books:
Dixit, A., and B. Nalebuff, Thinking Strategically, W.W. Norton and Company, 1993.
Schwartz, Peter, The Art of the Long View, Currency/Doubleday, 1996.
10
CHANGE MANAGEMENT
Generates innovative ideas and applies change
best practices to ensure impact of key initiatives.

Encourages innovation and exploration of non-traditional ideas from team members.

Helps customers anticipate and plan for the effects of organizational change.

Proposes change initiatives required to address current and future business needs.

Helps employees identify the personal benefits of change efforts for their work setting.

Applies best practices for maintaining momentum and eliminating barriers to change.

Evaluates change efforts over time and develops new strategies for renewing or deepening
the change.
Development Activities:

Support change initiatives led by others; find ways to make new ideas work in your area.

Use “change tools” that prescribe a systematic approach to implementing change.

Draft change plans which spell out the change vision, the current state of the organization
and what must be done to reach the future state.

Proactively plan communications about change initiatives; build awareness of change goals,
communicate progress, and foster collective ownership of the change process.

Record trends being responded to by other functional areas, how they might impact your
area or how your function might become a leader in responding to trends.

Serve as “change champion” for initiatives within the organization; list the behaviors that
exemplify the envisioned change and practice those behaviors.

Put together a change strategy which prioritizes change activities based on business needs,
integrates the people component into business solutions, identifies associated risks and
details necessary resources and skills.
11
Change Management
Books:
Harvard Business Review on Change, Harvard Business School Press, 1998.
Bridges, William, Managing Transitions: Making the Most of Change, 1991.
Drucker, Peter, Managing in a Time of Great Change, Truman Talley Books, 1995.
Kanter, R.M., Barry A. Stein, Todd D. Jick, The Challenge of Organizational Change: How
Companies Experience It and Leaders Guide It, Free Press, 1992.
Kotter, John P., Leading Change, Harvard Business School Press, 1996.
.
12
COMMUNICATION AND
INFLUENCE
Creates a team environment in which information
flows freely and decision-making is based on a
win-win philosophy.

Proactively presents problems to appropriate people in an honest, non-judgmental manner.

Responds appropriately to others’ concerns.

Ensures that all team members understand key messages.

Uses appropriate influencing and negotiating strategies for varying situations.

Identifies situations when planned communications strategies are required (e.g., markets
ideas and products effectively).

Develops and delivers communications (both oral and written) with clarity and desired
impact.

Uses information and insights from diverse constituencies (e.g., line managers, HR contact,
other functional groups) to build organizational buy-in for initiatives.
Development Activities:

Accept assignments that require written and oral communications (e.g. project proposal
writing, report writing, presentations, etc.).

Check clarity of communications by asking others to summarize what they believe you’ve
conveyed.

Volunteer to teach a course, seminar or workshop on a topic with which you are familiar.

Whenever you can, plan communication in advance -- create an outline and format that you
intend to use, focus on conveying messages, not on explaining or describing events or
processes.

Offer to recruit at college campuses or at career fairs.
13
Communication and Influence
Books:
Harvard Business Review on Effective Communication, Harvard Business School Press, 1999.
Booher, Diana, Communicating with Confidence. McGraw-Hill, 1994.
Cialdini, R.B., Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion, Quill, 1993.
Decker, Bert, The Art of Communicating: Achieving Interpersonal Impact in Business, Crisp
Publishing, 1997.
14
QUALITY PROCESS
ORIENTATION
Constantly focuses on the continuous
improvement of products, services and
processes.

Eliminates unnecessary work and all non-value-added activities.

Identifies cause/effect relationships and addresses root causes of problems wherever they
exist.

Applies cost/benefit principles in deciding on best approaches to work.

Continuously improves key work processes; develops better, faster, more efficient ways of
doing things.

Identifies and shares best practices.
Development Activities:

Learn to apply quality principles to human resource interventions.

Participate on a product development team or Reengineering team.

Learn and use process-mapping techniques and apply to a current business process or
opportunity.

Take on assignments that require process improvement skills.

Identify people who you consider to be effective group participants. Watch what they do
and note their techniques/behaviors.

In group meetings, observe who is participating; help all individuals be heard and have the
opportunity to participate.

Use your knowledge of personality/work styles to help balance participation in group
meetings.
15
Quality Process Orientation
Books:
Chang, Richard Y., Continuous Process Improvement: A Practical Guide to Improving Processes
for Measurable Results, Chang Associates, 1994.
Davenport, Thomas H., Process Innovation, Harvard Business School Press, 1993.
Eckes, George, Making Six Sigma Last, John Wiley & Sons, 2001.
Eckes, George, The Six Sigma Revolution, John Wiley & Sons, 2001.
Melan, Eugene H., Process Management: Methods for Improving Products and Service, McGrawHill, 1993.
16
CUSTOMER VALUE CREATION
Responds to customer’s needs in a manner that
provides added value and generates significant
customer satisfaction.

Maintains focus on customer’s key needs.

Closely monitors customer satisfaction and changing needs, and updates approaches based
on feedback.

Looks for ways to add value for the customer by improving his/her own processes.

Helps customers determine how to access and interpret meaningful information for decisionmaking.
Development Activities:

Perform an internal customer needs analysis or develop a customer service survey to obtain
feedback for improving service.

Collaborate with an internal or external customer team in developing business strategies.

Make an effort to be visible in your customers’ work areas.

Serve on a cross-functional task force that deals with external customer-related issues.

After you have concluded your business with a customer, follow up with him/her to make
sure to the interaction met their expectations.

Meet with internal customers informally on a regular basis (e.g. quarterly) to build and
strengthen your relationships.
17
Customer Value Creation
Books:
Desatnick, R.L., D.H. Detzel, Managing to Keep the Customer, Jossey-Bass, 1993.
Schohl, J.T., Achieving Excellence Through Customer Service, Best Sellers, 1996.
Whiteley, Richard, The Customer Driven Company, Addison-Wesley, 1993.
Langevin, Roger, Bill Christopher, Customer Focus: A Strategy for Success, Crisp Publications, 1998.
18
COMPLIANCE
Applies an understanding of key legal precedents,
policies, and practices to protect the interests of
the organization and individual employees.

Challenges policies or practices that don’t make sense.

Monitors internal and external changes in law, policies, and practices to define and confront
risk to employees and the business.

Provides advice to others about potential human resource risks (e.g., EEO issues,
compliance, business ethics, etc.).
Development Activities:

Become involved in researching and recommending new human resource policies or
benefits in order to gain a deeper understanding and improve ability to translate to
colleagues or clients.

Make a list of the major policies and practices your department offers; determine the
rationale for and benefits of each so you have a clear understanding of them.

Keep track of current legislation/regulations that could impact employees and policies;
review and become prepared to interpret to others.

Conduct periodic review sessions about key legal issues with your peers, human resources
personnel, and company lawyers.

Establish and communicate underlying legal or ethical rationales when making difficult
decisions on the job.

Conduct periodic group discussions on difficult ethical issues.
19
Compliance
Books:
Blanchard, K. and N.V. Peale, The Power of Ethical Management, Ballantine Books, 1996.
Cheeseman, Henry R., Business Law: The Legal, Ethical and International Environment, Prentice
Hall, 1997.
Emerson, Robert W., John W. Hardwicke, Business Law (Barron’s Business Review Series), Barrons
Educational Series, 1997.
Fick, Barbara J., The American Bar Association Guide to Workplace Law: Everything You Need to
Know About Your Rights As an Employee or Employer, Times Books, 1997.
Jacobs, Roger B., Cora S. Koch, The Legal Compliance Guide to Personnel Management, Prentice
Hall, 1993.
20
COACHING AND CONSULTING TO
CLIENTS/CUSTOMERS
Provides appropriate advice, feedback, and
development resources to improve the
effectiveness of individuals and teams.

Provides honest, behavioral feedback to customers about performance development
opportunities and problems.

Tailors development suggestions (e.g., training, learning opportunities, key experience) to fit
individual, team and organizational needs.

Provides advice that leads others to act in new, more productive ways.

Uses good judgment sharing information and maintaining confidentiality.

Leads efforts to reconcile significant differences between employee and business needs.
Development Activities:

Practice giving feedback that is specific and behavior-based; avoid feedback that is
personalized or judgmental.

Seek out role models for good coaching and consulting skills; watch role models in action or
work together on a project to learn their techniques.

Seek out opportunities to mentor others.

Develop a system for providing constructive feedback to members of your work group.

Establish or participate actively in an executive coaching process.

Find a coach or mentor with whom you work well. Outline goals with your coach or mentor,
and periodically revise/update these goals to ensure that the relationship continues to
provide value.

Develop support groups both internal and external to HR to test new ideas and concepts.
21
Coaching and Consulting to Clients/Customers
Books:
Hendricks, William, Coaching, Mentoring & Managing, Career Press, 1996.
Hudson, Frederic M., The Handbook of Coaching: A Comprehensive Resource Guide for
Managers, Executives, Consultants, and HR, Jossey-Bass, 1999.
Kinlaw, Dennis C., Coaching for Commitment: Managerial Strategies for Obtaining Superior
Performance, Pfeiffer & Company, 1993.
Mink, Oscar G., Owen Q, Keith, Barbara P. Mink, Developing High Performance People: The Art of
Coaching, Addison-Wesley, 1993.
22
PLANNING AND ORGANIZING
Systematically plans a course of action for self
and others to ensure the accomplishment of
specific objectives.

Systematically gathers and analyzes pertinent information to plan a course of action.

Sets objective standards and develops goals or objectives that can be measured concretely.

Optimizes the use of time and resources to achieve desired results (e.g. selects and applies
proper tools to the task).

Monitors and tracks planned implementation to ensure desired outcomes.

Adjusts plans as new information becomes available.
Development Activities:

Establish methods for keeping track of your work and accountabilities (e.g. setting personal
deadlines, recording due dates and appointments in a time management calendar, etc.).

Analyze your work on a weekly basis and determine your priorities for the week; plan, in
detail, the work you want to complete on a daily basis.

Take on the role of managing meetings and develop best practices for effective and efficient
meetings.

Plan the next day’s activities at the end of each day.

Explore a variety of time management principles to maximize your efficiency.

Develop and use agendas for meetings, conferences and presentations.

Ask others for suggestions/coaching on time management and organization techniques that
work for them.
23
Planning and Organizing
Books:
Frame, J. Davidson, Managing Projects in Organizations: How to Make the Best Use of Time,
Techniques, and People, Jossey-Bass, 1995.
Williams, Paul B., Getting a Project Done on Time: Managing People, Time and Results,
AMACOM, 1996.
Wright, Robert J., Beyond Time Management: Business With Purpose, Butterworth-Heinemann,
1996.
24
TEAM BUILDING
Develops a team environment in which members
participate, cooperate with and support each
other.

Facilitates the development of team norms and values collaboratively with team members.

Contributes to a team environment that balances individual initiatives and team
accomplishment.

Shares successes with team members.

Supports decision-making and accountability at the lowest appropriate level.
Development Activities:

Use team building exercises in team meetings.

Solicit and promote discussions among team members; try to ensure that everyone is given
“air time.”

Run a team visioning session; prepare content and methods carefully.

Continue to refine procedures for Sharing data, information and decisions among team
members.

Serve as a member of a team or task force and actively contribute to team strategies, goals
and decisions.
25
Team Building
Books:
Chang, Richard Y., Success Through Teamwork: A Practical Guide to Interpersonal Team
Dynamics, Chang Associates, 1994.
Dyer, William, Team Building: Current Issues and New Alternatives, Addison-Wesley, 1995.
Robbins, Harvey, Michael Finley, Why Teams Don’t Work: What Went Wrong and How to Make it
Right, Peterson’s Guides, 1995.
Syer, John, Christopher Connolly, How Teamwork Works: The Dynamics of Effective Team
Development, McGraw-Hill, 1996.
26
RESOURCE MANAGEMENT
Specifies and negotiates for critical resource
needs.

Specifies critical resource needs required to meet organizational objectives.

Negotiates with key stakeholders and functional counterparts to obtain required resources
when appropriate.

Maximizes the use of resources to meet business objectives (e.g. materials, technical
support, people, budget).
Development Activities:

Develop appropriate hiring criteria and match potential candidates against the profile;
develop and apply similar criteria to staffing internal project teams.

When developing plans, make lists of the resource requirements and compare to similar
projects.

Make sure there are specific action plans for each project that supports a business objective.
Track milestones frequently and reflect on progress.

Test plans with your team to brainstorm anything that could go wrong.

Ask a knowledgeable professional to help you set up budget templates to track the financial
progress of your projects.

Use project management software such as Microsoft Project to organize projects,
resources, accountabilities, etc.
27
Resource Management
Books:
Fitz-enz, Jac, Human Value Management: The Value-Adding Human Resource Management
Strategy, McGraw-Hill, 1990.
Fitz-enz, Jac, Jack J. Phillips, A New Vision for Human Resources: Defining the Human Resources
Function by Its Results, Crisp Publications, 1999.
Quinn, James Brian, Intelligent Enterprise: A Knowledge and Service Based Paradigm for Industry,
The Free Press, 1992.
Ulrich, David, Dale Lake, Organizational Capability: Competing From the Inside Out, John Wiley
& Sons, 1990.
28
CROSS-TEAM COLLABORATION
Ensures integration and cooperation across
organizational boundaries.

Ensures that various groups collaborate effectively.

Actively promotes teamwork and information sharing across boundaries.

Generates and leverages "win-win" strategies to gain support from others outside the team
for key goals.
Development Activities:

Attend meetings of other business groups in your organization. Look for opportunities to
understand their business problems and issues and to offer HR services and support when
helpful and strategic.

Create cross-functional process maps for the core services/products in your organization.
Use these maps to identify current and potential cross-functional disconnects, and determine
where HR can be a strategic business partner and cross-function facilitator.

Conduct HR team “organization focus sessions” where designated HR team members
assume the role of another group/function for the purpose of gaining a better “out of role”
perspective and identifying ways to partner with that group/function. Learn about the
group/function of interest by performing some of the aforementioned activities.

Serve as a member of a business team outside of HR and actively contribute to team
strategies, goals and decisions and maintain involvement in team activities.

Perform in an assignment that requires getting work done through other people, forming a
team, and coordinating the efforts of multiple teams.
29
Cross-Team Collaboration
Books:
Berber, Mel, Cross Cultural Team Building: Guidelines for More Effective Communication and
Negotiation, McGraw Hill, 1996.
Lindborg, Henry J., The Basics of Cross-Functional Teams, Quality Resources, 1997.
Parker, Glenn M., Cross-Functional Teams: Working With Allies, Enemies and Other Strangers,
Jossey-Bass, 1994.
Parker, Glenn M., Team Players and Teamwork: The New Competitive Business Strategy, JosseyBass, Inc., 1996.
Shonk, James H., Team-Based Organizations: Developing a Successful Team Environment, Irwin
Professional Publishing, 1996.
30
PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT
(BUILDING SYSTEMS)
Ensures that performance enhancement tools and
processes are applied consistently across the
organization.

Clarifies performance expectations collaboratively with others (e.g., roles, responsibilities,
standards, and goals).

Develops a team culture in which members provide feedback and support the development
of others.

Helps managers create, communicate and consistently apply performance development best
practices.

Ensures that individual performance plans are aligned with organization strategies.

Discusses performance problems in a supportive, straightforward manner.

Provides mentoring, “stretch” job experiences, and visibility to others.

Matches leadership style to the needs of individuals and teams (e.g., directs, coaches,
collaborates, delegates appropriately).

Motivates others through appropriate rewards and recognition.
Development Activities:

Develop performance management systems which measure against individual, process and
organizational goals; avoid potential for sub-optimization of organizational goals in efforts
to meet individual and process goals.

Familiarize yourself and your group with the implications of your organization’s
performance and pay practices by conducting employee focus groups to gather feedback on
such practices.

Become involved in the design and implementation of a new compensation or rewards plan
or conduct a competency-based workforce assessment and present an analysis along with
your recommendations.

Identify problem areas where the use of outside performance management experts would be
most effective; determine criteria for selection of external experts.

Start an informal peer recognitions program; create preprinted “kindness cards” with room
for a personal message making it easy for employees to hand a coworker an impromptu
acknowledgement or thank-you for a job well done.
31
Performance Management (Building Systems)
Books:
Fuller, Jim, Managing Performance Improvement Projects: Preparing, Planning, and
Implementing, Pfeiffer & Co., 1997.
Rolstadas, Asbjorn, Performance Management: A Business Process Benchmarking Approach,
Chapman & Hall, 1995.
Swanson, Richard A., Analysis for Improving Performance: Tools for Diagnosing Organizations &
Documenting Workplace Expertise, Berrett-Koehler Publishing, 1996.
32
VISIONING AND ALIGNMENT
Creates and communicates a vision of the
organization that inspires and aligns the
workforce.

Creates a vision or picture of the organization that motivates others to superior performance.

Builds buy-in for strategies across organizational boundaries.

Articulates how individuals can align their actions with the organization’ s vision.
Development Activities:

Lead a visioning workshop to align your team with business goals and ensure that vision is
clearly understood by team members.

Seek appropriate opportunities to encourage individual investment in the realization of the
vision by assigning tasks that can best be executed given each member’s unique strengths.

Pursue more formal speaking opportunities in your organization, the community and
through professional associations.

Create a communication plan and strategy for disseminating the vision; the plan should
account for key stakeholders and audiences, key events and timing, and the appropriate
modes of communication.

Develop “inspiration scenarios” with your team about what it will be doing five years from
now.

Start team meetings by asking team members to share something they did recently which
relates to the vision.

Regularly solicit feedback from your team members and others concerning their perceptions
about the impact and consistency of your messages; when soliciting feedback, look for the
surfacing of key words or phrases contained in your vision messages as an indicator that the
vision is understood.

Compare the organization-wide business plan and vision statement with the HR
department’s plans and vision to ensure alignment.
33
Visioning and Alignment
Books:
Albrecht, Karl, The Northbound Train: Finding the Purpose, Setting the Direction, Shaping the
Destiny of Your Organization, AMACOM, 1994.
Labovitz, George, Victor Rosansky, The Power of Alignment: How Great Companies Stay Centered
and Accomplish Extraordinary Things, John Wiley & Sons, 1997.
Lewis, Patrick C., Building a Shared Vision: A Leader’s Guide to Aligning the Organization,
Productivity Press, 1997.
Tregoe, Benjamin B., John W. Zimmerman, Ronald A. Smith, and Peter M. Tobia, Vision in Action,
Simon & Schuster, 1990.
34
PARTNERSHIP BUILDING
Generates alliances with the internal and external
partners that enable the human resource function
to supply appropriate products and services to its
customers.

Establishes ways to encourage or institutionalize teamwork across groups/functions.

Applies appropriate "make vs. buy" criteria for outsourcing of HR products and services.

Builds a strong collaborative win-win relationship with partners to deliver on key goals.
Development Activities:

Schedule 10 minutes each week to make a call to a key stakeholder within the organization
that you haven’t connected with in a while or wish to know better.

Develop (and review) specific communication plans for key interventions.

Make a habit of creating a list of key stakeholders and their positions on strategic issues in
order to address in advance or anticipate concerns; use team meetings as an opportunity to
role-play persuasive and mutually agreeable solutions to stakeholders’ concerns.

Build your corporate-wide networks using informal meetings such as business breakfasts,
brown bag lunches or casually soliciting opinions.

Communicate the value of what your team provides on an on-going basis to customers.

Develop HR vendor relationships and obtain vendor product knowledge to create a feasible
and informed approach to HR where HR services (e.g., outplacement, exit interviews and
analysis, employee surveys, etc.) can be successfully outsourced where appropriate.

Represent the company in the industry/marketplace by actively participating in industry
symposiums, taking leadership positions in industry associations, speaking at industry
functions and publishing articles in industry journals.

Perform in the role of trusted advisor and counselor who tests a key business leader’s
thinking and actions, confronts the problematic personal behavior, and helps the person with
his/her own professional development.
35
Partnership Building
Books:
Ashkenas, Ronald N., The Boundaryless Organization: Breaking the Chains of Organizational
Structure, Jossey-Bass, 1995.
Betwee, Juli, David Meuel, Building Strategic Relationships, Jossey-Bass, 1995.
Lipnack, Jessica, Jeffrey Stamps, The Age of the Network: Organizing Principles for the 21st
Century, John Wiley & Sons, 1996.
Lewis, Jordan D., Partnerships for Profit: Structuring and Managing Strategic Alliances, Free
Press, 1990.
36
PERFORMANCE MANAGEMENT
(DEVELOPING THE WORK
ENVIRONMENT)
Actively supports an organization culture that
maximizes individual and team empowerment and
performance.

Establishes a work environment that supports individual and team empowerment.

Matches leadership style to the needs of individuals and teams (e.g., directs, coaches,
collaborates, delegates appropriately).

Leads team efforts to design structures that support the organization’s vision and strategy.
Development Activities:

Delegate specific initiatives to your HR team, then establish clear performance standards
and expectations and hold team members accountable for results.

Conduct a special off-site event with the team focusing on how to improve team
performance; maintain the momentum of the special event by providing ongoing feedback
and development tips to team members on a frequent basis.

Solicit perceptions from team members of your recognition and rewarding of exemplary
performance, autonomous functioning, and creativity; follow up on any missed recognition
and reward opportunities.

Get team members individually involved and invested in their own development by
generating and tracking competency development plans collaboratively with team members.

Use multi-rater assessments as a way to provide developmental feedback to your team –
provide expert coaching (i.e. outside firm or professional coach) to individuals as
appropriate.

Set up a process and structure for leadership succession planning to ensure deep bench
strength of leadership talent.

Conduct a work environment survey and set up a change team to address the issues
uncovered by the survey results.
37
Performance Management (Developing the Work Environment)
Books:
Marshall, Edward M. Transforming the Way we Work, AMACOM, 1995.
Lawler, Edward E., High Involvement Management, Jossey-Bass, 1991.
McLagan, Patricia, C. Nel, The Age of Participation: New Governance for the Workplace and the
World, Berett-Koehler, 1995.
Pinchot, Gifford, Elizabeth Pinchot, The Intelligent Organization, Berrettt-Koehler, 1996.
Scott, Cynthia D., Dennis T. Jaffe, Empowerment: A Practical Guide for Success, Crisp Publishing,
1991.
38
TECHNICAL EXPERTISE
Acquires and applies professional/ technical
knowledge, skills, experience and judgment to
accomplish results, serve customers better and
contribute to the organizations intellectual capital.

Provides advice to others that applies the most current information regarding HR trends, the
business environment, and the customer organization.

Identifies and appropriately adopts new HR methods or technologies that match
organizational needs.

Ensures that key technical requirements for projects/products are identified and understood
by the HR team.
Development Activities:

Read technical articles related to your profession to keep up-to-date on HR trends and
technologies.

Attend conferences related to your profession.

Use your team to learn about new HR methods; set goals for what the team should learn and
have each member take responsibility for presenting to the team.

Identify current and potential gaps in HR-related expertise pertinent to your organization;
research training opportunities in order to fill gaps.

Increase HR credentials and credibility by participating in recognized HR certification
programs. (ACA, SHRM, etc.)

Make a substantial technical contribution that requires high personal initiative and
ownership and yields specific technical results with recognized impact on the business.

Lead a group responsible for developing or customizing an HR product or service for an
internal or external customer.

Participate in a technical assignment that deepens knowledge and understanding of a
specialized HR sub-function (i.e., compensation/benefits, recruiting, etc.) and requires the
application of specific technical knowledge and best practices.
39
Technical Expertise
Books:
Burrus, Daniel, and Gittness, Roger, Techno Trends: Twenty-four Technologies That Will
Revolutionize Our Lives, Harper Business, 1994.
Butteriss, Margaret, Re-inventing HR- Changing Roles to Create the High Performance
Organization, John Wiley & Sons, 1998.
Rothwell, William J., R.K. Prescott, M.W. Taylor, The Strategic Human Resource Leader: How to
Prepare Your Organization for the Six Key Trends Shaping the Future, Davies-Black Publishing,
1998.
Stolovitch, Harold D., Erica J. Keeps, Handbook of Human Performance Technology: Improving
Individual and Organizational Performance Worldwide, Jossey-Bass, 1999.
Ulrich, David, Michael R. Losey, Gerry Lake, Tomorrow's Hr Management: 48 Thought Leaders
Call for Change, John Wiley & Sons, 1997.
40
PRODUCT/SERVICE
DEVELOPMENT AND
REFINEMENT
Collaborates with the HR team to produce
products and services that are tailored to the
customer’s needs.

Creates programs, products and/or services that match customer’s needs.

Develops best practices and quality standards for all HR interventions.

Collaborates with customers to anticipate and develop HR products to address emerging
or hidden needs and opportunities.
Development Activities:

Perform a customer needs analysis to determine high-impact products/services for your
customer(s).

Map your customers’ key processes with a customer team and determine where and how
HR products and services would best fit or be customized to meet the customer’s needs.

Develop a customer service survey to obtain feedback for improving service.

Conduct a SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, Threats) analysis of your HR
services to your customer; based on your analysis, develop approaches to improve
services.

Participate in customer problem-solving meetings when possible and appropriate.

Spend time researching new HR products, innovations and performance standards that
exist outside of your HR organization.
41
Product/Service Development and Refinement
Books:
Bacon, Frank R., Thomas W. Butler, Achieving Planned Innovation: A Proven System for Creating
Successful New Products and Services, Simon & Schuster, 1998.
Glynn, William J., Understanding Services Management: Integrating Marketing, Organizational
Behavior, Operations and Human Resource Management, John Wiley & Sons, 1995.
Hooks, Ivy F., Kristin A. Farry, Customer Centered Products: Creating Successful Products
Through Smart Requirements Management, AMACOM, 2000.
42
PRODUCT/SERVICE QUALITY
AND DELIVERY
Manages product and service delivery to ensure
high levels of customer impact and satisfaction.

Provides full support for HR products and services to maximize customer impact.

Constantly upgrades and simplifies HR products and services to meet evolving customer
needs.

Customizes and adapts products and services to meet the special requirements of
individual customers.
Development Activities:

Develop customer satisfaction training for HR team members to ensure that their
customer satisfaction skills and knowledge are sufficient and that customer satisfaction
messages are consistent throughout the HR organization.

Create a customer report card to get feedback on your teams’ quality and delivery of
services/products.

Build a database or method of tracking customer satisfaction feedback and take action on
problem patterns.

Identify best practices for delivering high-quality products/services and incorporate
quality goals into strategic business plans.

Formulate game plans for making positive changes in key customer relationships and
develop a strategy for tracking improvements that occur.

Serve as a liaison for an important internal/external customer, providing the customer a
single point of contact which they can consistently depend on for solving problems

Participate in a customer problem-solving meeting to provide the HR analysis/impact.
43
Product/Service Quality and Delivery
Books:
Chang, Richard Y., Satisfying Internal Customers First!: A Practical Guide to Improving Internal
and External Customer Satisfaction, Chang Associates, 1994.
Glynn, William J., Understanding Services Management: Integrating Marketing, Organizational
Behavior, Operations and Human Resource Management, John Wiley & Sons, 1995.
Zeithaml, Valarie A., A. Parasuraman, Leonard L. Berry, Delivering Quality Service: Balancing
Customer Perceptions and Expectations, Free Press, 1990.
44
ORGANIZATION DESIGN,
DEVELOPMENT AND
EFFECTIVENESS
Performs work and process redesign to improve
individual, team and organizational effectiveness.

Facilitates the design of structures and reporting relationships that match organizational
strategies and goals.

Drives process definition, simplification, and integration efforts throughout the organization.

Performs appropriate work analysis and redesign to establish clear standards for excellent
performance (e.g., job descriptions, competencies, etc.).

Helps define and disseminate best practices throughout the organization.
Development Activities:

Review how “best-in-class” HR departments are structured, develop restructuring
suggestions for the HR department using sound organization design principles, implement
changes; use lessons learned when analyzing and recommending restructuring on a broader
level.

Initiate action learning, team building, process improvement and other innovative practices
to increase organization effectiveness.

Actively involve diverse groups in teams when involved in the process of selecting
resources for different roles/projects.

Learn behavioral event interviewing techniques in order to obtain better data, resulting in
better hiring and selection decisions.

Embed performance management metrics into all your HR processes in order to base
decisions around hiring, selection, management resource review, etc. on objective criteria.

Develop and use competency models for all functions within HR to help communicate
performance standards and target learning goals.
45
Organization Design, Development and Effectiveness
Books:
Burke, W. Warner, Organization Development: A Process of Learning and Changing, AddisonWesley, 1993.
Cummings, Thomas and Christopher Worley, Organization Development and Change, West
Publishing, 1993.
Davis, Margaret R., David A. Weckler, A Practical Guide to Organization Design, Crisp Publishing,
1996.
Galbraith, Jay R., Designing Organizations: An Executive Briefing on Strategy, Structure, and
Process, Jossey-Bass, 1995.
Hupp, Toni, Craig Polak, Designing Work Groups, Jobs, and Work Flow, Jossey-Bass, 1995.
46
PROCESS FACILITATION
Leads groups and teams to resolve issues and
improve their relationships and interactions.

Surfaces and reconciles differences among team members to keep team functioning
optimally

Surfaces and promptly processes key group issues, dynamics, and conflicts.

Provides recommendations that appropriately address the interdependencies that produce
synergies and conflicts among groups.

Revises facilitation approach based on changing needs.
Development Activities:

Analyze problems and risks on a current project; incorporate contingencies into an action
plan.

Seek opportunities to facilitate group sessions, placing special emphasis on reaching
consensus around group expectations, norms and values; solicit feedback from group on
overall effectiveness of session.

Practice good team management skills, (i.e., sending out agendas in advance, soliciting
constructive dialogue, avoiding premature closure, asking others to lead the team discussion,
etc.).

Seek out role models who exhibit skill in conflict management and negotiation and discuss
their tactics and strategies. Review conflicts you have dealt with and explore new
approaches to resolution.

As a team, conduct individual and/or team conflict or communication style assessments in
order to facilitate group discussions about different approaches, reactions, and behaviors;
refer back to discussion of different styles in future interactions to enable constructive
dialogue and solutions.

When testing new ideas or approaches with the team, balance offering your suggestions and
ideas with soliciting ideas from the team (i.e., avoid personal competition with the team).

Encourage team members to learn a model for problem-solving; use it in dealings with each
other and customers.
47
Process Facilitation
Books:
Block, Peter, Flawless Consulting: A Guide to Getting Your Expertise Used, Jossey-Bass, 1981.
Hunter, Dale, Anne Bailey, The Art of Facilitation: How to Create Group Synergy, Fisher Books,
1995.
Kaner, Sam, Lenny Lind, Facilitator’s Guide to Participatory Decision-Making, New Society
Publishing, 1996.
Schein, E., Process Consultation Vol. I and II, Addison-Wesley, 1987.
48
RESOURCE MOBILIZATION AND
COORDINATION
Maximizes the impact of human resources for
meeting organizational objectives.

Develops and utilizes a wide resource network to provide help (e.g., internal experts,
vendors, external consultants).

Monitors HR product and service offerings across the organization to ensure consistent,
widespread application.

Surfaces competing priorities and programs and develops strategies to address them.
Development Activities:

Become familiar with your organizational capability by developing “HR capability profiles”
for the different functions within your organization; by function/department/location, detail
number of employees, skill sets, years of experience, etc. - compare “HR capability profiles”
with projected growth and segmented business penetration plans to assess the group’s
positioning for the future.

Ensure that there are specific action plans for new projects that support business objectives;
track milestones frequently; conduct “reality tests” of plans with team to brainstorm
potential pitfalls.

When developing plans, make lists of resource requirements and compare to similar
projects; review and analyze differences and similarities.

Build a business case for all proposed interventions by laying out the costs and benefits of
the interventions.

Use appropriate competency-based hiring and selection tools when hiring to improve
success rate and accurately address human resource capability gaps.

Regularly use and encourage others to use intrinsic motivators such as encouragement, and
recognition.

Institute a coaching/mentoring program; such relationships help to foster an environment of
trust and openness which results in greater personal investment and higher performance.
49
Resource Mobilization and Coordination
Books:
Baird, Lloyd S., Managing Human Resources: Integrating People and Business Strategy, Irwin
Professional Publishing, 1992.
O’Reilly, Charles A., Jeffrey Pfeffer, Hidden Value: How Great Companies Achieve Extraordinary
Results with Ordinary People, 2000.
Phillips, Jack J., Accountability in Human Resource Management, Gulf Publishing, 1996.
Ulrich, David, Human Resource Champions: The Next Agenda for Adding Value and Delivering
Results, Harvard Business School Press, 1997.
Ulrich, David, Dale Lake, Organizational Capability: Competing from the Inside Out, John Wiley &
Sons, 1997.
50
BUSINESS PROCESS
REENGINEERING
Redefines and simplifies business strategies,
structures and processes; applies technology to
improve organizational competitiveness.

Identifies appropriate targets for HR technology applications (e.g., job posting, skills
assessments, etc.).

Demonstrates the ability to master and apply new information technology tools to HR work.

Leads customers to understand how technology can help and hinder process performance
(e.g., tradeoffs between technical and non-technical approaches).

Helps customers learn how to access and interpret information that is meaningful for
decision-making.
Development Activities:

Learn how to use techniques such as process analysis, mapping and modeling; begin to use
on every project to enhance the value added to the project and the organization.

Lead a process improvement team focusing on eliminating or reducing unnecessary work
and redundancies, reducing cycle times, and increasing compliance.

Clearly communicate your organization’s business plan so that your team can effectively
build its own strategies; routinely track and update business plans with the whole team.

Spend time with your team analyzing current problems/opportunities and developing
potential long-term solutions.

Practice asking open-ended questions to encourage the generation and sharing of ideas and
suggestions.
51
Business Process Reengineering
Books:
Camp, Robert C., Business Process Benchmarking, ASQC Quality Press, 1995.
Champy, James, Reengineering Management: the Mandate for New Leadership, Harper Business,
1996.
Davenport, Thomas H., Process Innovation, Harvard Business School Press, 1993.
Hammer, Michael, Beyond Reengineering: How the Process-Centered Organization is Changing
Our Work and Our Lives, Harper Collins, 1997.
Hammer, Michael, James Champy, Reengineering the Corporation: A Manifesto for Business
Revolution, Harper Business, 1994.
52
BUSINESS MANAGEMENT
Ensures that human resource products and
services support overall business goals.

Identifies appropriate measures to drive HR/organizational strategies.

Helps managers and employees understand how HR activities relate to the organization’s
strategic direction.

Applies an understanding of the organization’s vision of the company, products/services,
key competitors, and customers to provide valued insights to the business team.
Development Activities:

Lead a team visioning meeting or process to determine how HR can better align its
activities to key business goals.

Routinely track and update business plans with the whole team.

Network with other executives who have generated excellent strategies and plans, in
order to uncover best practices.

Spend time with your team analyzing current problems/opportunities and developing
potential long-terms solutions.

Perform in a role that provides exposure to a major business issue or change initiative
which has a significant financial impact on the overall business.

Participate as a change agent in a situation that involves rebuilding or strengthening
customer relationships and realigning or restructuring product/service delivery.

Increase your understanding of international business by finding ways of serving a
customer in another country or by integrating practices between multinational locations.
53
Business Management
Books:
Baird, Lloyd S., Managing Human Resources: Integrating People and Business Strategy, Irwin
Professional Publishing, 1992.
Fitz-enz, Jac, How to Measure Human Resource Management, McGraw Hill, 1995.
Fitz-enz, Jac, Human Value Management: The Value-Adding Human Resource Management
Strategy, Jossey-Bass, Inc., 1990.
Greer, Charles R., Strategy and Human Resources: A General Managerial Perspective, Prentice
Hall, 1995.
Phillips, Jack J., Accountability in Human Resource Management, Gulf Publishing, 1996.
54
HUMAN CAPITAL MAXIMIZATION
Develops methods for building, mobilizing and
evaluating the organization’s human assets.

Develops and implements methods for identifying and building the intellectual capital of the
organization.

Selects HR technologies and/or approaches that support the viability and profitability of the
business.

Ensures human resource products and services support both short- and long-term financial
and business metrics.

Develops programs that maximize the potential performance and creativity of every
employee.
Development Activities:

Frequently recognize and reward employees for excellent work and ideas; ensure that your
recognition activities and the comprehensive reward and recognition system are aligned with
overall business strategies.

Build a comprehensive workforce succession plan which incorporates criteria such as
experiences, education, results and competencies, as well as personal interests and goals,
where known.

Clearly communicate expectations and standards, while modeling behaviors that exemplify
those expectations and standards.

Develop a new employee orientation program designed to shorten the time required to
assimilate to the organization; consider including both formal and informal components in
the program design.

Identify the one or two employees most likely to replace you and begin coaching them on
your responsibilities.
55
Books:
Davenport, Thomas O., Human Capital: What It Is and Why People Invest It, Jossey-Bass, 1999.
Daniels, Aubrey C., Bringing Out the Best in People, McGraw-Hill, 1993.
Horibe, Francis, Managing Knowledge Workers: New Skills and Attitudes to Unlock the
Intellectual Capital in Your Organization.
Lawler, Edward E., High Involvement Management: Participative Strategies for Improving
Organizational Performance, Jossey-Bass, 1991.
Rao, T. Venkateswara, Human Resources Development: Experiences, Interventions, Strategies,
Sage Publishing, 1996.