HR Effectiveness Holds It All Together

How we'll help you with HR effectiveness

While each situation is unique, our assessments generally fall into one of two categories:

• Strategic reviews, which evaluate the overall alignment of HR with the broad competitive strategy of the institution
  
• Operational reviews, which assess the effectiveness of HR's structure, staff, service offerings and administrative offerings.

At the conclusion of each of these reviews, we provide a clear set of recommendations for prioritizing, developing and implementing enhancements. We also provide consultation in implementing recommendations. As part of these assessments, we evaluate and make recommendations to develop your HR architecture, which includes analysis of your:

• Mission: Overall purpose, vision, value creation philosophy and reason for being
  
• Goals and Strategies: The priorities and imperatives/initiatives that reflect how the function will create value
  
• Guiding Principles: Shared beliefs about how the group will work together and carry out its mission
  
• Services and Delivery: Services and service delivery channels that deliver value to the organization
  
• Processes and Practices: Key processes and practices required for delivering services and achieving goals
  
• Structure: Structure necessary to carry out work, divide labor and foster productive relationships
  
• Roles and Capabilities: Role definitions that include accountabilities, competencies and interactions
  
• Measures: Metrics and measurement that focus on impact and value creation

Here's how we helped one HR team become more effective

We've helped countless clients improve their HR effectiveness in the past, including the following case study which demonstrates the care and expertise that we'll apply to your organization.

The issue

The client, a southern State government, faced a shortfall of nearly $500 million for fiscal year 2009. In order to reduce spending, the State decided to offer a voluntary buyout to employees to save $64 million in recurring personnel costs. The State planned to access up to $50 million in reserved funds to support the program.

Our solution

We were retained initially to review the program developed by the State and provide guidance on program components. The resulting buyout program offered employees a mix of incentives, including a base payment, an additional payment based on service, subsidized continuing health coverage, and an educational benefit.

Once the buyout program was announced publicly, our team developed a full project management plan, assisted the State with managing program implementation, and provided expert support to the various agencies as they built and carried out their own responses to support the overall initiative. Our consultants joined the State’s Director of Human Resources and the Director of Finance and Administration in meetings with agency directors to discuss the classifications to be eliminated, according to each agency’s business needs and savings goals. Of the State’s 43,000 employees, approximately 12,000 employees received an offer to participate in the voluntary buyout program.

We also coordinated a multi-agency implementation team to complete this initiative. We worked closely with State agency personnel to develop detailed operations plans, internal and external communications, multiple training sessions, and statewide informational help sessions for employees located outside the capital region.

The result

The voluntary buyout program received more than 2,300 applications, which resulted in the acceptance of 1,521 employees, for a recurring savings of $47 million, minimizing the need for an involuntary layoff. Within four months of the State legislature approving the voluntary buyout program, the participating employees separated from the State’s payroll, at a projected one-time cost of $38 million.

Get in touch with us today to let us help you achieve similar results with your organization.