Using Technology to Foster an Empowered Workforce

Part 4 of our Empowerment series reveals how learning and talent management software can help organizations create “engage-able” moments and boost empowerment levels across their workforce.

In my last post on the topic of Empowerment, I examined what empowerment means for people at different levels of an organization – including general employees, line managers and business leaders. It’s a given that creating and fostering an empowerment culture requires top executive support. Otherwise, no one will take it seriously. And if that happens, empowerment soon will melt away into just another hollow slogan coming from the folks in HR.

Once there is a serious commitment from senior management, one based on walking the walk and not just some empty promise, the trick is to treat empowerment not as a separate initiative, but rather an integral piece of the company culture - and a prime HR initiative.

Next, determine any empowerment gaps by conducting employee and management surveys to benchmark where you are today and identify areas for improvement. With this valuable workforce insight, learning and HR leaders can enhance existing learning and talent strategies and create tailored, targeted employee empowerment initiatives and programs.

This can include efforts in the areas of:

• Learning and development

• Employee performance management

• Succession planning and career management

• Enterprise social networking

Creating “Engage-able” Moments

Today, for each of these areas, talent management software plays a key role in enabling an empowered workforce. For managers and employees, solutions should be user-friendly and easy to access. Tools also must empower employees with the chance of becoming immersed in professional development and performance management.

On the flip side, the organization can benefit from better intelligence and insight collected through the system and, in turn, make smarter, informed business decisions – the true focus of empowerment.

One critical reason an integrated, tailored and accessible learning and talent management system can bring measureable gains in empowerment (and along with it, engagement) is because an effective talent management system can influence any or all of the “engage-able moments” in the employee-employer life cycle. Examples occur during onboarding, goal setting and performance feedback, career discussions, senior leadership communications, and other employee-manager interactions.

Boosting Empowerment Levels

So how can learning and talent solutions be used help to boost empowerment levels in an organization?

• Leaning and Development.  Learning management can increase empowerment by delivering targeted training and development so employees can reach maximum potential. Providing easy access throughout the workforce lifecycle – from onboarding and ongoing training, to career and leadership development – allows people to continuously grow while, at the same time, driving business goals. This can include a blended approach, with classroom training, online learning and informal learning via social networking and collaboration tools.

• Performance Management.  On another front, performance management and reviews can energize empowerment because they align individual goals with department objectives and organizational strategy. Most of all, employees gain direct insight into how their performance links to business results. By automating the performance management process, managers have more meaningful – and more frequent – discussions with employees. Quite the opposite of the traditional –and dying -- annual paper-based performance management review.

Of course, integrating training with learning and development is a way to tackle skill gaps identified during the review process, helping an employee improve performance or acquire skills needed for new business initiatives or career aspirations.

• Succession Planning and Career Management.  On another empowerment front, succession planning and career management solutions allow organizations to expand succession initiatives way beyond the top executive positions. In fact, technology today is a great equalizer, reaching out to people at every level. Self-service career management tools not only make it easier for employees to control their career paths, they also can identify what skills and expertise they need to advance into new, more exciting roles.

• Enterprise Social Networking.  Finally, building an empowerment culture today requires enterprise social networking tools, which can capture “natural” interactions that occur in the workplace. That can mean:

• Enabling mentoring and coaching as part of a training program

• Allowing employees to access just-in-time information

• Building expertise that helps employers maximize performance and make faster, smarter decisions

Internal social networks also give employees a forum for sharing ideas, helping to drive innovation and allowing employees to feel connected to all levels of the company – and in most instances, even across a geographically dispersed workforce.

A Means to an End

With these types of tools in place, an organization can capture valuable corporate knowledge in a powerful, searchable, 24/7 central system. That system can identify the most active, knowledgeable community participants who may be in a critical role that was previously overlooked or undervalued, or who may be a strong candidate for other roles in the organization.

Most of all, whether it is learning, performance management, succession planning, employee career management or social networking, today’s talent management technology crosses every barrier that used to prevent a truly empowered culture. Just consider these technology-based tools for what they are, a means to an end, with the end being an empowered, and engaged, workforce.

In Part 5 – my last post in my empowerment series, I will share the five key steps organizations should take to move away from basic employment and robotic execution to a truly empowered workforce.   

In the meantime, if you’re interested in reading more about this topic, download the white paper, “From Employment to Empowerment: Why Business Execution is Not Enough” and “The Empowered Workforce: Crucial to Success in the New Economy.”