March 2011 Issue 1

Social media technologies are frequently

demonstrating their power in bringing

together disparate groups of people through

sharing ideas, desires, and taking action for a

common cause whatever the risks.

There are a growing number of organisations

looking to leverage social media to help

deliver the pace of change and innovation

required in these difficult economic times.

It is calling for a collaborative leadership style

which taps into the depth of talent, sentiment

and passion that exists within every organisa-

tion. This is not to say that senior leaders are

bereft of ideas, but it makes good business

sense to tap into the creative talent pool,

usually ignored and un-harnessed, to create

an ideas repository.

This approach will challenge leaders to be

more open and give up some control in order

to allow this talent pool to have meaningful

influence on the direction and decision-

making of the organisation. It should be

embraced, rewarded and encouraged to

develop new workable ideas to increase

profitability and service levels; provide a

shining light for the future of the organisation.

At O2 they have established an in-house

social network, FanBook, which is “The social

network specifically designed so people

repeat, reinforce and value the behaviours

that lead to the delivery of our customer

promise” (Glenn Manoff). They also have an

“Ideas Bank” that encourages a hot bed of

ideas to improving customer service and

introducing new products.

For those organisations having to move

through an intense period of transition,

needing to review their strategy and business

model, what have you got to lose by asking

your people “What do you think” and then

acting on their advice or better still

empowering them to take action thereby

owning the change?

Glaxo Smith Kline announced their Graduates

Payback Programme, committing to recruit the top 50-100 graduates, and pay off their student loans.

GSK are looking to develop their own high potential

talent pool that can deliver the next generation of

scientific innovation, maintain their leading position

and competiveness in their target markets.

This announcement highlights a growing trend in

organisations who are realising that the traditional

recruitment process is not working for them. They

recognise there is a need to commit to proactively

investing in young talent and high potentials as a key

part of delivering their business strategy.

From our experience in working with clients in

establishing talent pools, we have seen up to 40%

cost savings, with significant improvements in

quality and performance over a two year period.

Our practical set of best practice guidelines for

planning and executing a successful talent pool

program includes:

•Identify the skills and competencies required to

support your 3-5 year strategic plans and cultivate

these in your high-potential employees through

structured development

•Establish and develop a large number of

promotable employees for all key areas in your

organization, not just for leadership and senior

management positions.

•Ensure it includes the building networks of market

intelligence on talent operating outside the company

using employees to also look for the right talent and

make referrals

•Increase employee engagement and

retention; employees who are part of a talent pool

are more likely to stay with an organization.

•Proactively work to be ready at any point to fill key

roles throughout the organization

Quantifiable benefits of strategic focused succession

planning:

•Reduces organisational risk of talent turnover and

business interruption

•Improvement in employee morale and

engagement levels

•Enhances employee development and its impact

•Expediting goal achievement

•Improved earnings and performance

Developing High Potential

Contents

Cultivating Change;

Socialising Ideas

Developing High

Potential

Making Leadership

Transitions Work

Making Social Media

Work For You

Cultivate Talent

Engaging Talent, Building Trust, Inspiring Change www.cultivatetalent.biz

Cultivating Change;

Socialising Ideas

For more information about Cultivate Talent or any enquires on how we could help you

then please contact:

Adrian Woodstock Mark Thompson

adrian.woodstock@cultivatetalent.co.uk mark.thompson@cultivatetalent.co.uk

Tel: +44 (0) 7769 650960 Tel: +44 (0) 7917 305290

•How these goals relate to their own area

and business unit

•Review current challenges facing the

organisation and their business unit

•Understand each others’ motivations,

values and working styles

•Agree scope and authority for the new

role

•Building an effective network to support

them in delivering key goals

•Agree key objectives and measurements

for success in their new role.

Underpinning this, the new leader should

formalise an action plan, including a “First

90 Days” schedule, before they start,

which can be discussed and agreed by the

leader and their Line Manager in advance.

This plan will formalise the commitment

by the Line Manager to actively coach and

support the new leaders approach, and

gives them a clear mandate with which to

lead.

This approach will help ensure that they

make a positive impact from the outset

and create the right momentum to im-

prove performance with a clear strategy in

place. It should also reduce the risk of

failure and the costs associated both for

the company and individual’s career.

When leaders take up a new position in the

organisation, regardless of their seniority

or talent, they are vulnerable in their first

few months, because they lack the detailed

knowledge of the challenges facing them.

Research shows that it is vital to

create momentum in the first few months

or face an uphill battle for the rest of their

tenure and evidence shows that 40% of

senior executives are seen to fail within the

first 18 months.

To make these transitions more effective,

both for internal promotions or new hires,

we would recommend the Line Manager

should meet with the person before they

start in their new role to cover the

following:-

•Review strategic goals, vision and values

of the organisation

Making Leadership Transitions Work

Making Social Media Work For You When people talk about social media, we

think of the top 5 sites Twitter, Facebook,

YouTube, Beebo & Flickr though there are

well over a 100, many with millions of sub-

scribers and their own specialist audience

profiles. In the business area, LinkedIn

continues to grow in statue as ‘the’

network for professionals to promote

themselves and their businesses.

This huge landscape offers instant

connection to millions of people and is the

Holy Grail for many businesses to attract

new customers, increase sales and the

entrance ticket to the kingdom of cool. It

can deliver true value if the messages are

part of an integrated strategy delivered

across multiple platforms. It’s great for

engaging customers in new initiatives,

getting responses to competitions or

special events. Used like this the social

media can deliver the conversation

between customers and your brand.

It works best when this conversation

drives an action, where the business looks

vital and fresh, promotes the idea that “we

should all be part of the activity” and

“belong to the tribe”. This approach has

been effective for large leisure technology

companies like Apple and Virgin. However

you do not need to be a giant to get huge

benefits from using social media but it

needs to be part of your strategy and your

messages match your customers’ profile.

The problem is that it is content hungry

and, just like normal conversations, if what

you have to say is not interesting then no

one will listen. Too many companies dip

into it without a clear goal or don’t spend

the time needed to really build a profile.

To make it social media work for you:

• Have a clear agenda and plan carefully

how it is going to be delivered

• Research the market. Many sites cater

for particular groups and interests so use

the most appropriate to your needs

• Make the time or hire a social media

professional to deliver the strategy for you

• Deliver communications that engage and

drive an action

Use it smartly it will help build your brand

profile. Use it poorly and you will be left

t w i t t e r i n g t o y o u r s e l f . . .

because no one else will be

listening.

Gerald Elliott, MD

EP Brand Communications

WWW.Epbrandcomms.wordpress.com