5 STEPS TO BUILD AN ENLIGHTENED HR TEAM IN SINGAPORE My personal reflections from reading Lenny Ravich’s

“A Funny Thing Happened On The Way To Enlightenment”

Prepared by: Sam Neo

MY THOUGHTS AFTER READING THE BOOK…

¢  I came across Lenny Ravich’s book through a friend’s recommendation and as its title suggests, the reading process was filled with loads of laughter and entertainment.

¢  What’s more important though, were the concepts that made me reflect as an individual.

¢  I appreciated Lenny’s views on how life should be taken lightly (in a positive manner), and how individuals can beat the odds with positivity.

¢  The book also sparked new ideas on how I could potentially translate the concepts at an individual level onto my profession – HR!

5 STEPS TO BUILD THE “SOFTWARE” FOR AN ENLIGHTENED HR TEAM

• Constant reflection and “see your past from a distance” Learning approach

• Get out of your comfort zone and explore Welcome unfamiliarity

• Appreciate and develop talents based on their strength and unique capabilities

Leverage on strength

• Keep an open mind and equip yourself with the essential tools to adapt

Creative adjustments

• Develop a positive mindset and grit to overcome obstacles

Endless optimism and grit

1) ADOPT A LEARNING APPROACH BY REFLECTING AND SEEING YOUR PAST MISTAKES “FROM A DISTANCE”

¢  People tend to get defensive when mistakes are pointed out.

¢  If we are able to turn “defense” into “offense” by using mistakes as learning points, it presents us with plenty of room for improvement.

¢  Laugh at your past from a distance using a third person’s point of view so that you can bypass blind spots and appreciate the lessons in life more holistically.

¢  Constantly reflect and question yourself, “What could I have done better?”

¢  However, this is not to encourage individuals to constantly dwell over the past mistakes and not get over it. Key here is to learn from the shortfalls in a constructive manner and turn them into victories!

¢  Emphasis is on building a learning culture rather than focusing simply on hitting KPIs.

¢  Introduce a culture that rewards “calculated failure” i.e. focuses on learning at its core rather than finger-pointing when targets are not met.

¢  Help people understand that mistakes are also opportunities for learning and discovery. �  Example: Considering introducing a

corporate storybook with success and failure stories as lessons for the team or even rest of the company.

�  This will also remind everyone how things should not be taken for granted and how efforts of individuals are recognized even though projects did not take off successfully all the time.

¢  Get together during retreats to discuss the hits and misses for the year. Such an exercise may seem mundane, but if well executed in an environment that values learning, it can very well help the team develop solutions and move ahead of the learning curve.

Individuals HR Teams

2) WELCOME UNFAMILIARITY LIKE AN OPPORTUNITY

¢  Unfamiliarity strikes fear in most of us. However, on the other side of the coin actually presents us with new discoveries.

¢  If we were to restrict ourselves to just what we know and remain in the comfort zone, we are basically limiting our potential.

¢  Only through embracing our fears and welcoming unfamiliarity can we scale new heights.

¢  Approach new situations with a receptive and curious mind to guide your personal exploration.

¢  Be guided by curiosity, not fear!

¢  It’s common that people prefer the tested and proven methods when working on assignments. However, that does not encourage improvements and finding new ways to enhance effectiveness.

¢  HR teams can create a culture of exploration by encouraging experimentation and rewarding it appropriately.

¢  Provide platforms for individuals/teams to work on unfamiliar situations in a safe environment. �  Examples: Case study

simulation, Disruptive strategy analysis, Hackathon.

¢  Do not shy away from challenges, welcome it and “attack” the unfamiliarity to potentially achieve a first-mover advantage!

Individuals HR Teams

3) APPRECIATE AND DEVELOP AREAS OF STRENGTH, NOT “FORCE FIT”

¢  As human beings, we all have our individual strengths and weaknesses. Even though it will be ideal to boost your areas of weakness, quick wins can be obtained more readily by leveraging on your strengths.

¢  Building on small and quick wins helps to boost confidence for longer term success.

¢  Work on your own unique strength to develop your potential to the fullest.

¢  Ask yourself, “What am I good at doing?” and “What can I do better than most people?” to get an idea of where to start.

¢  After all, one might seek to emulate the success of their predecessors, but that will only take you as far as what he/she has achieved. Work on your unique strength and enhance it further to be in a league of your own!

¢  Very often, organizational needs precedes individual needs and thus, HR tend to follow that model and seek to develop talents with that mindset.

¢  This might result in situations where talents are deemed to have reached their potential because there isn’t a supposed role required of them.

¢  HR needs to appreciate and analyze each talent’s unique competencies and help them level up. This can be done through various channels such as the potential assessment exercise, succession planning discussion etc.

¢  It is critical to constantly redesign roles and create flexibility for individuals in the key positions to grow in a multitude of ways. This will unlock your talents’ potential and allow them to be developed in the most optimal way.

¢  Constantly challenge individuals to stretch themselves and help them align their strength with their aspirations and the organization’s mission. Only through such alignment can HR truly motivate their talents to deliver more and on a sustainable basis.

¢  That said, HR should not lose sight of the deliverables for each of the key positions. Otherwise, it will defeat the purpose of such initiatives and in turn, unable to achieve the organization’s objectives.

Individuals HR Teams

4) MAKE CREATIVE ADJUSTMENTS TO ADAPT EFFECTIVELY AND EMERGE STRONGER THAN BEFORE

¢  In the ever-changing world today, it will be foolish to think that doing the same thing over and over again will yield the same results.

¢  Individuals need to keep an open mind and display the willingness to make adjustments according to the environment they are in.

¢  Creative adjustments requires: �  Unboxing the conventional

thinking to explore new possibilities.

�  Equipping yourself with new skills that may not be directly related to the assignment e.g. gamification theory, new language, theatre study appreciation etc.

¢  By adding to your “skills toolkit”, you will then have more options and be ready when called upon to adapt to new situations.

¢  HR teams must constantly challenge “legacies” and “proven methods” to adapt effectively in a competitive and fast-changing business world. �  Example: Experimenting and

conducting pilot tests to gather buy-in on newly introduced initiatives.

¢  HR teams can enhance their ability to adapt by forming a team with diverse background e.g. HR practitioners, business consultants, data scientist. This diversity will help HR teams become more well-rounded and get them ready to handle a wider variety of situations effectively.

¢  Another approach is to constantly engage with people outside of HR to draw parallels and incorporate new concepts into existing/traditional HR practices. This will set the HR team apart from the rest and bring greater value to the organization.

Individuals HR Teams

5) ENDLESS OPTIMISM AND GRIT ARE KEY TO SIEVE OUT “NOISES” AND TIDE THROUGH TOUGH TIMES EN ROUTE TO ACHIEVING THE DESIRED OUTCOMES

o  Everyone "loses their way" at some point of their live. During which, things will appear to be against you and nothing will seem to turn out right. During such times, the key survival ingredients are a positive mindset and grit.

¢  By being positive, it means generating endless optimism which will can help you persevere through tough moments that are stopping you from achieving the desired outcomes.

¢  Have the end goal in mind and constantly remind yourself what is the purpose of your actions.

¢  Be determined and not allow one failure to deter you from advancing. Celebrate small wins and take that as the foundation for greater success.

¢  Like Lenny told the judge, “I’m not leaving until I get a hug!”

¢  To overcome the stigma/stereotype that HR is a mere support function, and more so to bypass the negative inner voice that we are indeed as such, optimism and grit are once again key to staying focused.

¢  By remaining optimistic, it will help HR teams focus on the end goal i.e. a strategic partner to the organization, while reducing the negativity that affects the team en route to success.

¢  Not only should HR possess positive attitude, it is also critical to widen the sphere of influence and spread positivity organization-wide.

¢  Building on a positive mindset, it is also critical to instill grit as one of the core beliefs within the company.

¢  Grit may seem to be a common trait among startups, but there is nothing stopping bigger organizations from incorporating such a value as well.

¢  Develop a organizational-wide mindset to say “We Can Do!” rather than “We Can’t Do”!

Individuals HR Teams

ANOTHER STEP TOWARDS BUILDING A MORE ENLIGHTENED AND IMPACTFUL HR IN SINGAPORE

¢  It may be easy to incorporate the HR hardware that are "off the rack"– e.g. performance appraisal system, engagement survey. But it’s the “software” that truly drives it’s effectiveness in the longer run.

¢  The 5 key steps highlighted are the softer aspects of HR management to help HR professionals in Singapore build a more enlightened and impactful team.

Learning approach

Welcome unfamiliarity

Leverage on strength

Creative adjustments

Endless optimism and grit