Automation as a Means of Increasing Human Potential: Which Traits and Skills Will Automation Help Promote in Human Workers?

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StrategyDriven Talent Management Article | AUTOMATION AS A MEANS OF INCREASING HUMAN POTENTIAL: WHICH TRAITS AND SKILLS WILL AUTOMATION HELP PROMOTE IN HUMAN WORKERS?Automation will not replace jobs outright but augment and enhance them by streamlining and simplifying certain repetitive or low-value tasks. In the case of the machine operator, manual labor and routine tasks are most likely to be automated, while management, team-building, employee training and production supervision may now find themselves moved into priority roles. Likewise, our professional’s routine and computational tasks may find themselves automated, making room for other priorities like management, employee development and technology upskilling.

When used properly, automation doesn’t kill jobs; it rearranges their structure. And in the most outcome-driven scenarios, it improves their structure by creating more opportunities for human workers to focus on high-value tasks that cannot be automated.

Another way to look at automation is as a time-creation engine: automation manufactures time. Every man-hour it takes on is a man-hour gained. That man-hour can be subtracted from a company’s balance sheet and treated as a cost savings, or it can be reassigned to a high-value task that could not, until then, be budgeted for. Thus, each man-hour assigned to a machine creates an additional man-hour that can be assigned to a capable, high-value human worker. When we mentioned that automation should be additive rather than subtractive, this is what we mean: a hundred man-hours freed by an effective use of automation could be treated as a cost saving, but doesn’t it make more sense to maximize the value of that gain in one hundred man-hours, and reinvest it in the company? Apply it to solving a problem, improving a system, building a new revenue stream, designing the next killer app?

The lowest hanging fruit in the business world is finding ways to cut costs. This isn’t to say that running a lean organization doesn’t have its advantages. Cutting costs and trimming fat in ways that ultimately help companies perform better are always wins. But the reflex to cut costs just because you can isn’t necessarily the best way to drive towards market leadership. Sometimes, re-tasking resources from low-value to high-value tasks makes more sense than throwing them away.

A case in point: digital transformation, technology disruption and the monumental task of rebuilding businesses for a 21st-century digital economy are not the types of challenges that companies can hope to address successfully by cutting costs and cutting corners. Smart, agile companies know how to unlock their own parts and move them around at will. They are modular. Job descriptions and departments evolve. IT managers at these companies aren’t operating the way they were 10 years ago or 5 years ago, or even a year ago. Every aspect of the business is in a state of constant change and adaptation. Automation for these types of companies, which are typically digital leaders, isn’t used to shrink the number of employees. It is used to free up capital to hire more people, and free up human workers to focus on more high-value and meaningful tasks.

About the Authors

StrategyDriven Expert Contributor | Olivier BlanchardStrategyDriven Expert Contributor | Daniel NewmanThis article is adapted from HUMAN/MACHINE: The Future Of Our Partnership With Machines by Daniel Newman & Olivier Blanchard. Daniel is the principal analyst of Futurum Research and the CEO of Broadsuite Media Group. Oliver is a senior analyst with Futurum Research, where he focuses on the impact of emerging and disruptive technologies.

For more information please visit https://www.koganpage.com/product/human-machine-9780749484248

Four Qualities You Want in a Potential Employee

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StrategyDriven Managing Your People Article | Talent Management | Hiring | Entrepreneurship | Four Qualities You Want in a Potential EmployeeIf you are involved in the hiring process for your company, you are very likely wise to the fact that searching for and hiring a new employee is no easy task. Along with the pressure of making sure you fill a vacancy in a timely manner, comes the task of sifting through hundreds, maybe thousands of applications to find the ideal candidates.

There are also times when the number of candidates you consider inhibits your ability to pinpoint exactly what qualities would best be suited towards the position that you are looking to fill.

Here are four specific qualities that you should look for when conducting your search for your ideal employee.

1. Excellent Communication Skills

The ability to communicate well, both in speech and the written word, sounds as though it should be a given quality in every candidate. Unfortunately, this isn’t always the case. It is important that you confirm that the individuals you employ can hold their own when it comes to communication.

The last thing you want to do is to set yourself up to have an employee who is unable to appropriately handle internal communications. If your company is like most others, the day-to-day success of your operation involves many moving parts. From office memos to updates on various projects, it is critical that all those involved have the ability to communicate clearly and concisely.

Additionally, if the position you are hoping to fill is one that involves any aspect of client contact, it would be less than ideal to have someone in that position who is unable to adequately communicate with your customers.

For a more specific idea of the communication skills that you should be keeping an eye out for, check out this comprehensive list that the experts at Habits for Wellbeing put together.

2. Advanced Degrees

Not only does the fact that your potential employee has an advanced degree demonstrate a certain level of commitment to the industry in which you both work, but it also shows that this individual has the ability to learn and improve. Furthermore, it also indicates that they have a desire to continue to do both of those things.

Depending on the type of business that you are in, there are particular degrees that seem particularly appealing to employers. Generally speaking, if someone has an MBA, for example, that means that the person you are considering has spent time developing critical skills that will come in handy in the business world.

Don’t be deterred by a candidate who has earned their degree in a less traditional manner, either. More and more students are earning their advanced degrees online, for instance. Prominent and accredited schools like Suffolk University Online MBA can be trusted to have properly educated those who go through their programs.

3. The Right Attitude

The right employee should also come with the right attitude. Remember, this person is going to become a part of your company. You might be in a situation where you will be working side by side with this individual, and in that case, you don’t want to hire someone whose attitude doesn’t fit the bill or your company.

On the other hand, you might be filling a position in another department from yours. In that instance, you want to avoid any potential for future friction amongst other employees.

There are also certain characteristics that tend to make for a good employee no matter what line of work you are in. Does this person seem like they have ambition? Are they positive-minded and pleasant to be around? All of these things are important to consider particularly when you are in the interviewing part of the hiring process.

4. Staying Potential

The last thing you want is to fast-forward to six months from now only to find yourself having to fill the exact same position once again. It is important to find someone who is in it for the long haul. This simply comes down to asking for an honest estimation of the candidate’s dedication to the job you are offering.

Does this person have any long-term plans that might inhibit their ability to stick around? Do they have all the skills that it takes to be a success in this position? If not, you might risk that person falling short of fulfilling all the duties that the job requires of them. In that case, they might be the ones ultimately deciding that it isn’t a good fit.

5 Employee Training Tips for Smoother Operations

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StrategyDriven Managing Your People Article |employee training tips|5 Employee Training Tips for Smoother OperationsIt’s the start of the year, which means you might be onboarding new employees soon.

In order to make your new employees comfortable and get operations running smoothly, you need to train them well.
This article will give you five employee training tips so that your new employees will feel at home in no time.

1. Communicate Well

Good communication is at the heart of any relationship, and that includes employee-boss relations.
It’s important you communicate to your new employees what is expected of them.

Give them clear instructions on daily, weekly, and monthly tasks. If they’re not performing well, communicate early so they’re aware of the problem.

To enhance business communication, use a website like Slack where you and your employees can communicate professionally.

2. Start Small

Beginning a new job can be very overwhelming.

Your new employee is dealing with both the social and mental strains of starting at a new company.

Don’t feel like you have to teach them everything in one sitting. Microlearning and microtraining are great ways to give your employees the information they need in small doses.

This short training time ensures they can stay focused on the information all the way through the training and that nothing falls through the cracks.

3. Try Team Bonding

It’s important that your new employees feel like they can acclimate to your workplace.

They will feel happier at work if they can form bonds with others.

Take your staff out for a team bonding exercise. Try an escape room or another activity that causes everyone to put their heads together.

Bring in lunch for your new staff once a week so everyone can bond over sandwiches. It’s a nice gesture that will show your new employees that you care.

4. Make Welcome Folders

It’s true, we live in the digital age where almost everything is online.

Still, it can be nice for new employees to have learning materials to hold in their hands.

Make them a welcome packet with all the information they need to survive at your company. This packet can be something they take home and study at night so they’re up to speed on their role at the company.

5. Check-In

Be a good boss and check-in on your new employees regularly.

Your senior employees know what they’re doing and don’t need to be asked, but your new employees most likely have questions.

Sometimes they might be too afraid to ask a question out of fear of sounding stupid. Be sure to assure your new employees there are no stupid questions and ask them how they’re doing regularly.

Now You Have the Best Employee Training Tips

These employee training tips will take your new hires from novices to experts quickly.

Remember to include your new employees in team bonding activities, communicate well, and check-in on how they’re doing.

Want more information on how to succeed in the workplace? Check out our other articles for more tips on how to run an effective business.

Employee Training Tips for 2020

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StrategyDriven Managing Your People Article |Employee Training|Employee Training Tips for 2020Employee training in many different industries follows a similar pattern. There’s book learning – we give our employees handbooks or guides so that they can read more about their jobs and learn more about our companies. And shadowing – new employees buddy up with a more experienced member of staff, or trainer, to learn on the job, watching, copying and learning from other members of your team. There’s no doubt that these methods are effective. We do learn from reading and copying other people. But, they aren’t the only ways to learn.

Offering your staff a more extensive range of training can help them to improve. More instruction can help new employees to settle, and older members of the team stay on top of their game. If you are looking to boost performance in 2020, some of these training tips and ideas could help.

Microlearning

Often, the problem is that we try to learn too much, too quickly. We struggle to take it all in. We overwhelm our minds. Many managers are guilty or overwhelming employees with new processes or information that they need to learn, and we often give them a relatively short amount of time to do it.

Microlearning can be much more effective. Give people small amounts of information, and give them the time to process it, before moving on. Spend time teaching in small chunks, utilizing coaching, testing and other teaching methods, and breaking everything down as much as possible.

Keeping lessons and training sessions short can also increase information retention. Nowadays, we have very short attention spans. We’re used to scrolling through social media feeds, reading very short statements and watching micro video clips. We’ve gotten used to accessing information in this way, and so our brains struggle to cope with more.

Lose the Dull Team Meetings

Team meetings can seem like an effective way to give all of your employees the same information in one go. It can seem as though this would save you time. But the majority of team meetings are exceptionally dull, and the majority of staff hate them. So, lose them. Have short daily briefings and one on one training sessions instead. If you do need a team meeting, keep it short, and try to make it fun.

Play Some Games

Sometimes, people forget things. Often, simple things. They just slip out of our minds. You might even find that many members of your team forget the same things. Creating games like bingo or puzzles with a crossword puzzle maker can help them to remember. Simple games like this can boost memory and increase knowledge retention.

Keep it Personal

Everyone learns differently. Getting to know your staff members, and learning more about how they work can help you to offer personalized training.

Create Training for Personal Time

More of us than ever are working from home, or on the move. Your team members might be reading training manuals on the train, and not at a desk. Tailor your training to suit this. Record podcasts that they can easily listen to on their commute, or film short videos that they can easily watch on their phones.

How To Create A Productive Office

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StrategyDriven Talent Management ArticleSometimes it’s hard to stay focused when you’re at work, especially if you’re inside a stifling office space on a warm day. Of course, you’d always rather be somewhere else than at work, but what you can do is make your working environment more appealing, more fun, and a productive place to be. If you’re an office manager and you’re considering making changes to the place in order to boost productivity, then your first port of call should be to ask your staff members. Once you’ve got a good idea of what needs changing, and you’ve assessed the suggestions, you can then get to work.

Refurbish

If your office space is looking outdated and is showing signs of wear and tear, then now is the time to consider a complete refurbishment. As long as your budget permits it, gut the entire office in favor of new flooring, freshly painted walls throughout, new and improved desks and chairs, and a reworking of the oppressive overhead lights. Pile the accumulated waste into a dumpster provided by a Dumpster rental Phoenix, so that it can be disposed of responsibly. Clean out your office and strip it back to basics to rebuild an attractive and productive environment.

Encourage Socialization

When it comes to decorating, try and create communal spaces that encourage your team to talk to each other and build relationships. When designing the staffroom, opt for large long couches so that the team has to be convivial and sit next to one another. Prepare group work, and ask that small teams work together to create a final result. Praise the teams for their effort and consideration of others.

Improve Air Quality

Without proper air ventilation, it’s very easy to become unfocused, tired, and to overheat – all of which aren’t going to help your team in trying to be as productive as possible. So, install new ventilation units if the current ones are somewhat lackluster, and keep plants in every available space throughout the premises. After all, not many people object to flowers, fresh greens, and other plants that keep the air clean. Having said this, always makes sure to ask about allergies before adding foliage around the office.

Offer Tea And Coffee

If you work in an office, you’ll understand the importance of caffeinated beverages to power you through the morning. Recognize that your team work hard to achieve their targets and reach their goals, so help them along the way and offer free coffee and tea whenever they might be in need of a pick-me-up. Create an inclusive, friendly environment for your employees, and you might just find that productivity increases tenfold.

Have An Open Door Policy

Your employees need to know that they can approach you whenever they need to discuss something. So, with this in mind, consider operating an open door policy whereby you’re on hand whenever the need arises. Tell your staff that you care about their welfare, their opinion, and possible suggestions about how the office is run and how the company performs. If your team know that you’re there to offer assistance and help them, then they should feel more relaxed, understood, and willing to work hard.