What I Learned at OSUA Personal History of HRD

Gloria Regalbuto Bentley, Ph.D.V.P. of Organizational Development

Loras College—Dubuque, Iowa

Evolution of HRD1. Warm & Fuzzy T&D

2. The TQM/SQC/ROI Era

3. Performance Analysis , Technology, Consulting

4. Performance Management and Competencies

5. Talent Management Systems

My EvolutionSheet Metal Fabricator

Fortune 500 Glassware Manufacturer

Non-Profit Research Consulting

Global Banking & Global Consulting

Retail & Global Consumer Beverage

What I Learned at OSU

1980 Ph.D. in CommunicationSchool of Behavioral Science

Operational/Behavioral Definitions of Variables

Operational/Behavioral Definitions

• Defines something in terms of the process or set of validation tests used to determine its presence and quality.

• Concepts defined in terms of sets of indicative behaviors

• Concept Developer: Percy Williams Bridgman(Source—Wikipedia . You gotta love it!)

The Best Peanut Butter Sandwich

1. Slice of Bread2. Spread Peanut Butter3. Spread Jelly4. 2nd Slice of Bread on Top

But Best? …

• Whole Wheat?• Grape or Strawberry Jelly?• Crunchy or Smooth?• Skippy, Jiff, Smuckers or Organic?• I Like Tuna? (Hate Peanut Butter)

Not a Rhetorical Question

• Training in organizations requires an answer.• Training for what?• Who will judge the results?

Back to My EvolutionStage 1

• Brokered or Designed Training Programs• Off-the-Shelf and/or Generic Skills• Served Coffee & Donuts• Smile Index = 10

… But something was amiss…

HRD MEWARM & FUZZY SHEET METAL FABRICATOR

What’s the Operational Definition

• of an effective manager?• of an effective receptionist?

Conclusion:Can’t just measure by number of seats in seats.

Back to My EvolutionStage 2

• Identified Needs• Custom Designed Proprietary Training Programs• Mapped Processes• Assigned Metrics• Calculated ROI

… But something was amiss…

HRD METQM/SQC/ROI Glass Manufacturer

The Beginning of Competencies

• Mainframe HRIS System with a skills database• Only searchable by employee, not by skill• Skills were related more to Union Training

Requirements• But the bare bones of competencies were

there…and

Performance Analysis

• Designing programs on request was premature

• To show ROI, they had to change behavior• Needed an operational measure of exemplary

performance that counted (measureable)… But something was still amiss…

What if…

• You were incredibly successful in changing behavior and the results remained the same?

• Was your operational definition wrong?• Was something else interfering with

performance at the point of application?

Seeds• Defect Identification• Defective Glass Goes to

Cullet Chute• Good Glass Gets Packed• How Big is a Bad Seed

SUNFLOWER SEED= BAD

Ceiling Lamp Shade?

SUNFLOWER SEED=OK

Conclusion• Competence is context-sensitive• Performance is dependent on environmental

factors beyond competence• If Managers learned performance analysis, I

might be out of work, but performance would improve

My EvolutionStage 3

• Challenge: Can You Calculate ROI for Managers?• Especially When the Managers are Scientists &

Engineers in a Not-for-Profit Setting?

HRD MEPerformance Analysis, Technology, Consulting

Non-Profit Research Consulting Firm

Operationally Defining CompetenciesFor Management in Consulting Organizations

I Asked:• What are the KSA’s?

(Knowledge, Skills, and Attributes)• What do they need to know and be able to do?

….I got no answer

Operationally Defining CompetenciesFor Management in Consulting Organizations

I Asked:• What do you fire managers for?– Poor proposal to contract ratio– Low billable hours

• Now I can calculate ROI for managers…but that wasn’t the whole truth…

Missing Attributes• No one said anything about Attributes– Values?– Customer Service?– Internal Customer Service?

• What are the metrics for Attributes? • Where are the Operational Definitions?

My EvolutionStage 4

• Competencies Become The Basic Atomic Structure Of Learning Management Systems

• I Can Search A Competency Data Base By Person, By Job And By Competency

HRD MEPerformance Management &

CompetenciesGlobal Banking and

Global Consulting

My EvolutionStage 4

• Competencies Are Aligned With Mission, Vision & Strategy

• In Knowledge Businesses Performance Management Is the Way You Manage the Business

• HRD Becomes More OD and Gains Credibility & Power

• Operation Definitions and Criterion References Become Metrics & KPI’s

…But

• We still don’t measure Attributes…• We talk about them• We associate values with Mission• We don’t measure them, because they’re not

tied to R.O.I. as much as Knowledge and Skill

My EvolutionStage 5

• Massive Pre-Hire Assessment of Competence, Capacity and Personality

• Sophisticated Performance Management, Organizational Change Management, Succession and Human Resource Planning

HRD METalent Management Systems Retail &

Global Consumer Beverage

My EvolutionStage 5

• Objective Setting And Key Performance Indicators (Kpi’s—A.K.A. Operational Definitions) Are Pervasive And Continuously Scrutinized

• R.O.I. Is Everywhere• Shareholder Equity is the Promised Land• When the Human Resource Executive Committee

Walks Down the Corridors of Power Together, the Walls Warp

…AND

• It’s the definition of Draconian Bureaucracy• Employee’s that were costly hires because

they were the best in the business are counting the days until they don’t have to pay back their relo package and can leave

• The Environment is Toxic• Management Styles Can Be Equated with

Dante’s Levels of Hell

George Land’s S-Curve

Corrective FeedbackSystems

Positive FeedbackSystems

Operational Definition of Insanity

“a person or organization who behaves in a way that is only functional for that person and is dysfunctional for those connected with the person or the organization”

• Looking out for my interests to the detriment of others, destroys families, organizations, communities, and countries

Karl Marx

“The last capitalist we hang will be the one who sold us

the rope”

Conclusions• When we focus on ROI, Quarterly Reports,

Shareholder Equity, we tend to forget about ROM – Return on Mission

• When we focus on Knowledge and Skills, we tend to forget about Attributes

• When we focus totally output, we ignore the values inherent in the processes

• When we focus on processes, we forget about people

The Lie and the Other Operational Definitions…

What do you fire people for?Because:• They had a bad attitude• They’re not a team player• They create a toxic environment

… and you should.

Beauty before meWith it I wander.Beauty behind meWith it I wander.Beauty all around meWith it I wander.All in a circle under the turning sky.All in a circle under the turning sky.