Verizon knew that one key way to retain employees longer was showing them paths for moving up within the company.
In 2021, the company launched an ambitious tech project to provide that transparency: Talent GPS. The first phase described and grouped all the jobs and skills in the company. The next phase showcased that information and appropriate openings in a digital tool for employees.
“Before Talent GPS, I would have said that I never thought I’d be someone who stayed at a company for such a long time,” said Jennifer Taylor, principal engineer in global learning and development. “I think a lot of people in younger age groups think about moving to different companies to get a lot of exposure, but I ended up staying because I know there is that exposure.”
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CHRISTINA SCHELLING
We know the number one reason people leave companies is for development, growth and advancement. Talent GPS is a direct response to what our employees have been asking for.”
SVP, Chief Talent & Diversity Officer, Verizon
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Verizon Launched “TALENT GPS”
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5 Real-Life Solutions That Boosted Employee Experience & Saved Time
Western Specialty Contractors Made HR Data More Visible
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Senior Director, Information Technology, Western Specialty Contractors
SHAWN NICHOALDS
Managers can now approve a merit increase and update compensation changes for payroll with the click of a button. This process used to take weeks.”
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Western Specialty Contractors is the country’s largest contractor for concrete work. But data on its thousands of employees nationwide was managed in a patchwork of spreadsheets, databases and checklists.
When the company launched a new management system, it decided to take the step of pulling together all of its HR system information, as well. Their Human Resources Information System (HRIS) now shows managers and workers the details of work history, performance and compensation at a glance. Every employee in the field has a QR code visible on their hard hat that gives access to their safety and training information on the spot.
“We knew that all the data was there, but that it needed to be connected in a way that made it easy for employees and managers to use,” said senior director of information technology Shawn Nichoalds. “The project ended up being a win, win, win for our entire company.”
Chief Learning Officer, Deloitte US
ERIC DINGLER
We face a workforce that is increasingly hungry for purpose and meaning. Traditional learning and development models simply don’t cut it in today’s landscape of rapid technology change and worker empowerment.”
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To collect data about what learning and professional development their employees need, Deloitte leaders gathered more than 150,000 data points from talent surveys, conducted more than 100 one-on-one interviews with executives, did extensive market research and invested in tech tools to measure the skills needed for the future of the company.
The result was Project 120, a $1.4 billion initiative that completely changed the way training was delivered. It turned Deloitte’s competency-based, top-down curriculum into a system where employees can access information on demand, in interactive labs, with gamification.
“A training session that used to take 24 hours of in-person working time now takes just three hours, coupled with 45-second-long assets that pop up in the flow of work,” said Chief Learning Officer Eric Dingler. “Project 120 is building learning experiences that allow people to do work differently.”
Deloitte Invested
$1.4 BILLION
In Training
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Assurant
UseD Client Technology For Employees
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Chief Administrative Officer, Assurant
FRANCESCA LUTHI
We service more than 300 million customers every day with AI, machine learning and other technologies. We knew we could apply that same approach to our employee experience.”
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At device insurance giant Assurant, AI and machine learning are part of the tools the company uses daily, so they were a natural fit when the company turned its attention inward.
In 2020 the company embarked on a project to transform its People Experience Center. One piece of that project was ERIN, an AI-driven chatbot that serves up real-time HR tools and answers for employees.
“In an easy, conversational manner, employees can ask ‘How much PTO do I have left?,’ ‘What is our bereavement policy?,’ or ‘Show my pay stub,’ “ said Chief Administrative Officer Francesca Luthi. Assurant piloted the program with 1,200 U.S. employees and is now rolling it out to their staff worldwide.
TechSmith Banned Meetings For
A Month
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CEO, TechSmith
WENDY HAMILTON
The goal of the experiment was never to erase all meetings, but to shock the system and force ourselves to look hard at what didn’t need to be a meeting.”
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When software company TechSmith’s 300 employees went fully remote during the pandemic, they, like most, replaced spontaneous workplace interactions with meetings.
“We had a positive meeting culture, but we weren’t being thoughtful enough about whether something really required a meeting,” CEO Wendy Hamilton said.
So for a month, they tried holding no meetings at all. The shift forced a turn to other tech solutions for asynchronous communication, including messaging, project management and its own Snagit tool to record quick video and visual messages instead of pages-long emails.
The experiment led to a reduction in overall meetings at the company, and also the habit of “flipping” meetings, by sending pre-recorded video introductions for attendees to watch and discuss.