A principal purpose of CRF is to identify and spread good practice. While academics and experts can offer valuable insights, significant learning can be gained from analysis and discussion of the experience of other practitioners. Here are three examples of how business needs were met - with measurable benefits - by practices that which will stand transfer to other organisations.
The wide adoption by HR of the ‘three-legged' structural model has thrown up new challenges, including how best to design and manage groups of HR specialists. We will examine how centres of ‘expertise' or ‘excellence' can live up to the promise, and work harmoniously with other parts of HR and with the business they exist to support.
Performance management encompasses far more than reward and appraisal systems. Moreover, high performance is far more than creating a collection of talented individuals. This significant project will delve incisively into what is required to create a consistently high-performing organisation.
This two-day advanced workshop aims to enhance skills in planning and conducting successful OD interventions, and address personal preparedness for the rigours of facilitating change and improvement. An authoritative workbook on OD theory and practice is provided.
CRF has been committed since its inception to boost the OD knowledge and abilities within its member companies. This workshop provides an intensive summary of critical knowledge areas, learning through participative exercises, and a workbook packed with useful insights into OD.
A practical workshop that builds on lessons learnt in the recession to identify levers that create organisational longevity - the ability to manage change and uncertainty effectively, retain a competitive edge whatever the circumstances, building on a platform of truly engaged employees.
‘Employee engagement' has been fashionable for some time, but many organisations have still not fully faced up to what is required for a convincing and lasting employer brand.
The workshop built on earlier HR research in talent management and succession and tackled the relationship between business planning and people planning.
This conference blended research, thought leadership and practical examples giving attendees the opportunity to learn, network, reflect and enjoy!
A range of challenges and issues concerning senior line-facing HR and L&D roles were sketched out, and some recommended approaches aired.
Increasingly, businesses must drive performance and innovation by managing collaboration within and across functional, hierarchical, geographical and corporate boundaries, and thus managing connectivity as a critical resource in their organisations.
A highly participative day where Gareth and Rob drew from over 25 years of research, consulting and first hand leadership experience to offer convincing arguments for the importance of this area, and how getting it right is an imperative for successful businesses.
CRF research in this area indicates that organisations continue to express concerns that the overall process does not work effectively. One significant issue is the involvement of the top team, ensuring that they are not only fully involved but also understand the strategic importance of an effective approach to talent.
We examined how four very different businesses succeed in ensuring that talent conversations take place and lead to practical outcomes.
CRF has provided workshops on OD topics for many years. In 2009 we asked Mee-Yan Cheung-Judge, a recognised international expert in the field of OD, to design and lead a workshop, in company with Graham Prentice, HR Director at Nestlé Nutrition.
Discussion of the role, shape and capabilities of the HR function has always formed an important part of CRF's work concerning organisational effectiveness. This event focused on the findings of one of our most significant pieces of research of recent years, bringing them to life via informative case studies.
Winning the battle for ‘hearts and minds' is critical to the success of any change programme, yet many business leaders fail to understand and manage the emotional dimensions of change.
With academic input, case studies from O2 and Royal & SunAlliance, and experiential breakout sessions, this workshop identified and examined the strategies, processes and techniques that can transform employees into enthusiastic advocates for change.
Building on CRF's 2006 workshop on the subject, this member symposium and research report provided an up to date perspective on managing and obtaining value from coaching and mentoring.
We examined the role of coaching in facilitating improvement and culture change in a multi cultural context and assess the influence of the strengths-based management philosophy, to understand how coaching and mentoring can make a lasting difference for individuals, teams and organisations.
As the rate of change accelerates and operating conditions become tougher, the demands placed on executives are increasingly intense. Yet many potential leaders feel ill-equipped to handle such high pressured roles.
This meeting debated the role of organisations in nurturing and planning the development of their future leaders and ask whether business schools are equipped to guide leaders of the future.
Learning is increasingly seen as a critical element in driving improved performance across an organisation.
Building on CRF's 2005 report on learning and development strategies, this workshop and related research report examined all aspects of developing and implementing a successful learning strategy, including how to create the right context and support systems, understanding trends in learning techniques and reviewing methods for evaluating the learning strategy's success.
With a high percentage of organisational change efforts failing, this workshop examined the primary causes of such failures and identified the factors that drive success.
Using the GE and Goldman Sachs approaches to leadership as reference points, Steve Kerr presented a number of models for managing corporate transformations and discussed the role top management must play to ensure their change efforts are a success.
The Age of Fluidity - HR's Challenge
The inter-action between demographics, globalization and regulation is creating a fluid market environment in which, the old dictum ‘structure follows strategy' has been turned on its head.
This half-day workshop delivered by Prof Amin Rajan looked at some of the key issues that HR need to address to help their businesses succeed in these ever-changing days.
While many are now talking about HR Leadership as the next paradigm guiding the HR profession - beyond the ‘strategic partner' - few have actually defined it.
This full day workshop attempted to do just that, with Professor Patrick Wright of Cornell University presenting the HR Leadership framework he has developed following 7 years of research.
Participants worked through discussions and exercises designed to enable their development of an analysis and action plan for leading - rather than following - business strategy.
Talent Management (TM) is intrinsically linked to all aspects of an organisation's business strategy, including financial performance and brand perception. Yet so many organisations still struggle to identify and successfully implement the right approach.
This workshop reviewed a range of research and resources; including case studies from Nestlé and Cisco, to rethink the accepted approach to TM. Participants were encouraged to share their experiences to identify alternative solutions and practices.
Whilst many businesses implement organisational change programmes, selecting the appropriate model and managing its implementation to a successful conclusion can be challenging.
Bill Pasmore, a leading international authority on managing change, led a two-day residential workshop held at Ashridge Business School. He worked in tandem with June Boyle, BT's Group OD director, to guide participants through the practical process of creating successful change within an organisation.
The workshop also involved assessing change models, discussing alternative strategies and identifying techniques for managing challenges and threats.
Understanding and implementing ‘creative' and ‘innovative' practices is essential to maintaining competitiveness in a globalised economy but presents challenges, particularily for large organistions, the public sector and regulated industries.
This meeting presented a universal guide for senior management, developed by a CRF working group, identifying the people related levers and processes that enable an innovative and creative organisation.
To remain competitive, organisations must ensure they are ‘best in class' at managing talent - and ensuring that employees consistently engage with and ‘deliver' the consumer/customer brand experience.
A partnership between HR and Marketing is critical to achieving this goal, and the heads of both functions attended this workshop to work through our tool kit of processes and metrics.
As organisations look for new ways to improve both personal and organisational performance, many are turning to positive psychology and strengths-based performance management to understand what drives and motivates success.
Following on from CRF's 2006 Masterclass on Appreciative Inquiry, this workshop adopted a hands on approach to understand why and how organisations use the approach, assess process and leadership requirements and identify implementation issues for HR and senior leaders.
The dynamics driving competition and change are increasing pressure on HR functions to make a visible, value driven contribution to strategic planning and implementation at all levels of their business.
In this half day workshop Gordon Hewitt, with David Brennan, Chief Executive of AstraZeneca, invited HR Directors to rethink the basis of being a ‘strategic partner' and to assess the implications this has for the future role of HR within business.
In the face of an increasingly globalised economy, many CRF members wish to understand how to evolve successfully from a local to a genuinely global organisation.
This CRF report and meeting provided an integrated response to this question, incorporating contributions from a number of organisations on what has worked for them.
In this Masterclass, we considered the benefits and pitfalls of developing future leaders for your organisation and the ways in which this can drive competitive advantage.
Dr Henry Mintzberg challenged existing approaches and helped participants develop suitable frameworks for their organisation.
Recent McKinsey research reveals significant misgivings among senior leaders about the effectiveness of talent management practices and the failure to integrate TM within the broader business strategy.
Supported by the results of a survey of North American and European Executives conducted prior to the Masterclass, Talent expert Dr John Sullivan provided a strategic framework for integration & evaluation of TM activities including talent retention, talent mapping and performance management.
This workshop gave members an opportunity to refresh their thinking on this critical area.
We compared and debated the work of some of the top assessment companies in the leadership field to identify future winners, sharing their research and methods of assessment.
In addition, the workshop featured a Prudential Insurance case study.
We started our annual programme of events with an in depth look at the use of 'future research', the prediction of opportunities and risks that will impact the organisational model.
Drawing on a CRF member pulse survey on the subject, this workshop provided participants with tools & techniques to assess 'future research', address resultant people related-decisions and help shape operational strategy.