A look at current trends and data
Article Type: Research and results From: Strategic HR Review, Volume 8, Issue 1
Sara Nolan
Story 1
Lessons to learn from China’s managers
The Global Management Challenge research report from the Institute of Leadership & Management says Western managers should be paying attention to Chinese managers as they will soon be running the world’s largest economic superpower. However, Western managers face challenges in understanding their increasingly successful counterparts in China.
The report is the result of research carried out among managers in four of the world’s leading economies – UK, USA, France and China. The research explored fundamental questions about management across the globe, such as what makes a great manager, what are managers good and bad at, how well do you understand managers in other countries, how good are your fellow managers and what improvements would make you a better manager?
According to the results, China’s managers are a formidable group of executives driving forward the Chinese economy. However, they are deeply misunderstood by managers in the West. In order to deal with competition from China, the report states that managers in the West need to pay more attention to how and where China’s managers excel and seek to improve their own performance in those areas. The media often paints a poor picture of business in China, but China’s managers see themselves very differently. They are ethical and principled and they value team working and, above all, wisdom and knowledge.
Other findings from the report include:
The ideal manager is determined to get things done, has good communication skills, general knowledge, wisdom and the ability to learn, takes responsibility and enjoys good relationships with others.
By their own admission, few managers live up to this ideal. Managers are good at being customer focused and at teamwork. They are not particularly good at the more challenging aspects of people management, such as motivation and managing poor performance, or keeping up with cutting edge thinking and practice.
The mismatch between the ideal and reality is a challenge that managers across the globe need to address. They must regularly re-evaluate and profoundly question the relative importance of those characteristics and attributes that they associate with good management, in light of changes in the world of work and how other nations manage, and adapt accordingly.
There are signs that Western managers may be growing complacent in critical self-appraisal of their competencies and their approach to management education. Managers in China, on the other hand, are clear about the areas in which they need to improve.
For more information
Visit www.i-l-m.com
Story 2
Change management a key feature of transformation programs
The results of a survey by management consulting firm Booz & Company shows that change management has become a mainstream part of most transformation programs and is no longer poorly understood by the majority of senior executives. The global survey, which was conducted in January 2008, included over 350 senior executives who led major transformation programs in organizations with more than 5,000 employees.
According to the survey, the most common reasons for undertaking a transformation program are performance improvement (79 percent) and cost cutting(62 percent), followed by the desire to improve customer service (51 percent). Change management work streams are now implemented in 82 percent of cases, with the same proportion of respondents declaring the programs as having had a positive impact on business performance. However, most companies say that, with hindsight, they could have done better, and respondents wished they had implemented all of their people initiatives more fully and earlier on in the program.
Although other program elements were also reported as contributing to success– such as program management and substantive strategy and design –high levels of staff resistance were reported, showing the importance of attending to people factors. Findings included:
Front line staff are significantly more resistant to transformation programs than senior leaders – with almost one in two front line staff being resistant as opposed to only one in four senior leaders.
Senior management in North America was perceived to be less resistant than in Asia and Europe; middle management in Europe was perceived to be more resistant than in Asia and North America.
Ashley Harshak, principal at Booz & Company, comments:
The second generation of change management will focus on the “how”,rather than the “what”. The attitude of the organization’s leadership is key and they need to inspire people to adopt new ways of working,skills and behaviors. HR departments also need to act as enablers to underpin this – for example using learning and development programs and the strategic use of recruitment and reward.
For more information
Visit www.booz.com
Story 3
Moscow the most expensive city for expatriates
The Worldwide Cost of Living Survey 2008 from Mercer places Moscow as the world’s most expensive city for expatriates for the third consecutive year. Mercer’s survey covers 143 cities across six continents and measures the comparative cost of over 200 items in each location, including housing, transport, food, clothing, household goods and entertainment.
Tokyo is in second position climbing two places since last year; London drops one place to rank third; Oslo climbs six places to fourth place; and Seoul is in fifth place. Asunción in Paraguay is the least expensive city in the ranking for the sixth year running. Moscow is almost three times costlier than Asunción as, contrary to the trend observed last year, the gap between the world’s most and least expensive cities now seems to be widening.
Factors influencing ranking
Yvonne Traber, a principal and research manager at Mercer, says:
Current market conditions have led to the further weakening of the US dollar which, coupled with the strengthening of the Euro and many other currencies, has caused significant changes in this year’s rankings.
She adds:
Although the traditionally expensive cities of Western Europe and Asia still feature in the top 20, cities in Eastern Europe, Brazil and India are creeping up the list. Conversely, some locations such as Stockholm and New York now appear less costly by comparison.
Our research confirms the global trend in price increases for certain foodstuffs and petrol, though the rise is not consistent in all locations. This is partly balanced by decreasing prices for certain commodities such as electronic and electrical goods. We attribute this to cheaper imports from developing countries, especially China, and to advances in technology. Keeping on top of the changes in expatriate cost of living is essential so companies can ensure their employees are compensated fairly and at competitive rates when stationed abroad.
She continues:
In some cases, cost of living increases may be correlated to countries with a high rate of economic growth. Companies may assign high priority to expansion in these economies but may have to deal with inflationary pressures due to competition for expatriate-level housing and other services, as observed in our surveys.
For more information
Visit www.mercer.com
Story 4
Companies moving towards selective outsourcing approach
Employers are continuing to take a selective approach to outsourcing their HR technology and functions rather than relying exclusively on a single provider,according to a survey from consulting firm Watson Wyatt. The company’s 2007 HR Technology Trends Survey of 182 US companies found that many companies expect to do more outsourcing in the future, in areas such as health and welfare programs.
Richard Hubbard, director of Watson Wyatt’s US technology and administration solutions practice, comments:
Over the last few years, we’ve continued to see tremendous growth in selective outsourcing. The economic strains some companies are facing will only add to the reasons to choose selective outsourcing. Selective outsourcing provides employers a lot of flexibility and helps them keep their options open.
Few companies (21 percent) automatically look to outsource programs, with the majority of companies (63 percent) turning to their internal or enterprise resource planning systems first to deliver HR services.
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