Five Proposed Programs
The first program I would like to present is the employee engagement program which can help to improve business performance. Similar to High Sources, companies that have a higher level of employee involvement have a three times higher operating profit margin. It turns out that at least 50% of High Sources employees are not interested in the success of the company, are not satisfied with their work, do not see the prospects for personal and professional development, and are not actively involved in solving the company’s issues. For us, this means that employees use only 50% of their time and opportunities. Given that in High Sources about 50-60% of operating costs, excluding production, are personnel costs, it is important to get access to 50% of opportunities and direct employees’ energy to increase work efficiency (Eisenberger et al., 2016). First of all, we should start with 10-12% of the personnel who are already actively involved. They are focused on development and career growth, and they are the engines of change in the company. First of all, they should lead or become a member of a short business development project aimed at increasing sales, reducing costs, and optimizing business processes. Each top manager should be responsible for a specific top-level business process, such as sales, production, logistics, finance. They must find a project manager and form a team, which will allow gaining new experience and develop leadership skills.
The second program is the increase of internal communication by synchronizing the work of different departments, monitoring the microclimate in the team, and organizing joint leisure for colleagues. All employees should be informed about key projects and the company’s plans. This program must be focused on the increase of the efficiency of processes, so constant communication and information exchange between departments is important (Jacobs et al. 2016). To begin with, it is necessary to conduct internal research and establish what forms of communication employees consider the most appropriate and effective. Such instruments as internal chats, newsgroups, and planning tools will help to remotely access the needed documents from different departments, which will make sharing information easier (Jacobs et al. 2016). The creation of a cross-functional unit consisting of the employees of different divisions can also help to ensure internal communication.
The third program for employee retention is the adaptation of new workers. High Sources spends much time and money on hiring personnel, so it is important to make sure that new young employees will stay in the company for a long time and will work productively. An effective adaptation process will help employees feel comfortable in a new workplace and become involved in woinuickly. When the older workers in High Sources do not want to cooperate with newcomers and they do not receive adequate assistance, they try to deal with issues on their own, and the company loses potential revenue. If new employees go through a well-organized process of adaptation, they will become familiar with the new position and become more valuable to the company in a short time (Gubler et al., 2018). Familiarization with technologies, training of the basic policies and procedures, providing a functional overview of work, and mentoring significantly affect the retention of staff in the company. An older employee will also benefit from mentoring since this is an excellent opportunity to repeat and consolidate the knowledge.
The fourth program is employee training and development, which is an important component of the company’s success. It can improve productivity, managerial leadership skills, and, what is most important for High Sources, increase staff engagement. Practical training is the best option for the company since it skips the theoretical base and allows employees to master the subject quickly (Gubler et al., 2018). By practicing new skills and applying them in work scenarios, workers will be more involved in all the processes. One of the best ways to learn is by active participation, especially for the company’s employees who are over 50. Mentoring is another good option since the best learning opportunities are based on human interaction. This type of training will let older and younger employees cooperate to achieve a common goal. This can solve the company’s issue of interaction between the staff members.
The fifth program I want to offer is job rotation, which will help employees to gain new knowledge, feel their importance, establish internal communication between teams and divisions, develop new skills, and get a raise. This program will make the work less monotonous, especially for younger people, and encourage them to stay in the company longer. The divisions should not keep to themselves, and job rotation will help to raise the engagement of the workers in different company processes. Since the employees complain that their work is very structured, job rotation will give them room to think on their own and make important decisions. This, in turn, will increase business performance; therefore, job rotation is beneficial to both parties.
Job Rotation
I can name several reasons why I offer job rotation as a necessary strategy that will help to cope with the issues that the company has faced after merging. Firstly, when employees are actively developed and trained within the company, the outflow of personnel will be significantly reduced. It is important to promptly transfer key employees to a new position, upgrade, or change qualifications (Kampkötter et al., 2018). Secondly, when employees periodically change their specialization, they will avoid professional burnout. Thirdly, it is much easier and less costly to give a raise to an employee who seeks career growth than to look for a new person with the right knowledge and skills. It is harder for a newcomer to join the team, and it takes much time to adapt. Finally, when moving to another position and receiving a proper practical education within a company, an employee will master the skills, expand knowledge, and be able to work better.
The fact that level administrative positions in the research area are sourced externally, not from Alternate staff, negatively affects the overall business performance. In successful companies, vacancies are closed primarily due to internal reserves. Only employees for entry-level vacancies that require special knowledge and skills are recruited from the outside. The remaining vacancies are usually open to all employees. The company must organize additional training and establish mentoring by experienced colleagues to guarantee the employees’ growth in a particular field (Kampkötter et al., 2018). If the company plans to reorganize departments or open new business areas, the process will be less painful if the staff will be well-trained and can work in various fields. Besides, job rotation will create a personnel reserve and in the future, the company will need less time to select the right person and close the vacancy (Kampkötter et al., 2018). The replacement of an absent employee is another advantage of this program since it is easy to assign additional duties to another specialist without searching for a new one for the short term.
Before starting to implement this program, we should convey the meaning of job rotation to the staff. If they do not understand its essence, they can negatively perceive the news about the changes in the arrangement of employees. It is important to answer all the questions that arise and develop feedback. Rotation is the process that needs to be built voluntarily (Hakenes & Katolnik, 2017). Employees may send applications, indicate the position in the department where they want to study, and move forward. We should develop the system of internal selection among specialists and place all vacancies on the internal website or the bulletin board. Additionally, we should monitor employees, find out from their supervisors who match a particular position. After collecting information and compiling a list of employees who can be rotated, it is important to conduct an in-depth assessment of professional, personal, and business qualities.
Step-by-step implementation of the program will allow redistributing responsibilities between the employees in a proper way to make it beneficial to both sides. First of all, the company should report to employees that job rotation is now an organization’s value. It is extremely important to convey this idea to the employees, focusing on its advantages and disadvantages (Hakenes & Katolnik, 2017). Otherwise, they will begin to resist the change, which can lead to negative consequences. Another step is creating an expert group of leaders and assigning its representatives to consider the best ways of promoting rotation. Employees from various divisions will be included in the working group and discuss how to represent the right value that reflects the importance and need for rotation. This expert team must determine how to integrate horizontal rotation into the existing corporate culture, and how to link the procedure with other fields, such as training, the existing reward, and the punishment system. Employees have to understand the fact that if they successfully participate in rotation within the company, they will be encouraged.
The next important step is conducting seminars and career counseling for employees. This will prepare specialists for rotation and eliminate the negative attitude that may arise. The staff will understand the meaning of innovation and the goals that will be achieved. Seminars or lectures can be conducted by members of the working group, who will determine the frequency of job rotation as well. If the company often moves specialists from one position to another, there will be no success, because it takes much time to get used to another team, and a person must master new skills (Hakenes & Katolnik, 2017). Staff rotation is a complex process for both parties, so the optimal frequency of movement is no more than once a year.
Motivation is an important part of job rotation for both newcomers and old staff. Employees who do not have the right qualities should have incentives in the form of categories and grades. For example, when workers attend seminars, successfully pass exams, participate in rotation, and show decent results, they will get a raise. The company may also announce that horizontal or vertical career growth is not possible if the employees do not participate in rotation, because they will not acquire additional knowledge and skills (Gubler et al., 2018). Internal communication must be well established and all employees must be informed about everything related to staff changes.
Job rotation can become the High Sources’ value, but this program needs to be wisely implemented so as not to cause a powerful resonance. Negative-minded employees can leave the company if they decide that they are not properly promoted. However, if the responsibilities are correctly redistributed, it will be possible to reduce the staff, thus increasing salaries for the existing employees and saving on further labor costs. When rotating, it is advisable to take into account not only the opinion of the employee but also the heads of units. Clear internal communication on the rotation process will save the company from many existing problems, including increasing staff turnover and dissatisfaction with salary and monotonous work.
References
Eisenberger, R., Malone, G. P., & Presson, W. D. (2016). Optimizing perceived organizational support to enhance employee engagement. Society for Human Resource Management and Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology, 2, 1-22.
Gubler, T., Larkin, I., & Pierce, L. (2018). Doing well by making well: The impact of corporate wellness programs on employee productivity. Management Science, 64(11), 4967-4987.
Hakenes, H., & Katolnik, S. (2017). On the incentive effects of job rotation. European Economic Review, 98, 424-441.
Jacobs, M. A., Yu, W., & Chavez, R. (2016). The effect of internal communication and employee satisfaction on supply chain integration. International Journal of Production Economics, 171, 60-70.
Kampkötter, P., Harbring, C., & Sliwka, D. (2018). Job rotation and employee performance–evidence from a longitudinal study in the financial services industry. The International Journal of Human Resource Management, 29(10), 1709-1735.