People Management Archives

Women are a leading force in today’s business landscape. Yet while women represent over half the global workforce, less than a third (32%) of leadership positions are held by women.

Women are also underrepresented in high-growth sectors like technology, information, and media. This creates a double whammy, where women are both less likely to be in these sectors and may face a skills gap if they try to enter.

The People Collective (TPC)—a Slack community for HR professionals across Southeast Asia and beyond—recently hosted an in-person workshop in celebration of International Women’s Day for People leaders to discuss and learn strategies for empowering women to lead in Singapore (and across the region). Inspired by the insightful discussions and drawing on the experiences of our community, this blog explores actionable tips for women and organizations to address skills gaps and promote growth.

Understanding the Skills Gap: Beyond Metrics

Bridging the skills gap for female talent requires a deeper understanding of their needs and aspirations. A deeper skills gap analysis is needed to deliver programs and strategies that will have a lasting impact on your organization. Here’s why a one-size-fits-all approach won’t work:

Beyond Promotion Paths

Recognizing the various definitions of success and professional development is crucial for promoting growth within your organization. Panelist Wei Ching Ong, Founder of SELF, encourages us to question, “is the professional track, which is often the manager track, really what women want?”

This question highlights a potential disconnect between traditional promotion paths focused on management and the aspirations of some women. Understanding these aspirations through strategies such as self-identification surveys (more on this later) is crucial. These surveys can help reveal whether women seek leadership roles, prefer individual contributor tracks, or have specific skill sets they want to develop.

Questioning the Numbers

Metrics like promotion rates are important, but they don’t tell the whole story when it comes to addressing the skills gap. Wei Ching further emphasized the need to “question the metrics.” Gathering qualitative information through focus groups or open-ended survey questions can provide valuable insights into the lived experiences of women in the workplace. This can help uncover the reasons behind the skills gaps we see in the data.

By looking beyond surface-level data and understanding the aspirations and challenges women face, organizations can design targeted skills development programs that empower them to reach their full potential.

Women Face Different Skill Development Opportunities

A McKinsey report highlights that women are less likely than men to participate in formal training and development programs, putting them at a disadvantage when it comes to acquiring new skills. This draws an emphasis on understanding the needs, learning styles, and unique challenges of your workforce. By tapping into motivational factors, goals, and needs of your employees, you can better target skills gap analysis.

Strategies to Bridge the Skills Gap

Bridging the skills gap within your organization will require a more tailored approach than simply rolling out learning and development (L&D) benefits. The TPC community dove into specific strategies HR leaders and organizations can take to approach addressing the skills gap. Here, we take a look at various strategies from both the individual and organizational level.

For Women

Organizations and leaders certainly have a responsibility and role to play in addressing the skills gap within their teams, but women also have a stake in the game. It’s essential to have the buy-in and participation of employees to help address and close skills gaps.

Self-awareness and Aspiration Identification

Panelist VJ Posadas, Director of Corporate Partnerships Executive Education at INSEAD aptly pointed out, “The first part of the framework is really understanding oneself and whether you’re a woman or a man, it’s always who am I? Who do I want to be? Do I really want to aspire to be a CEO or a CFO, or am I happy to be an individual contributor providing value to my organization?”

Identifying individual career goals provides direction to skills gap analysis. Often, this can be supported on the managerial level, with regular 1-on-1 check-ins, routine performance reviews, and goal setting exercises to help guide employees to best understand their goals and key drivers.

Continuous Learning and Development

To bridge the skills gap, it’s crucial for employees to become active participants in their own growth journey. This can be done by researching in-demand skills for their industry and leadership role, exploring online courses, workshops, or certifications offered by professional organizations, and reaching out to managers for additional resources.

Taking the initiative to learn new skills demonstrates an impressive level of commitment and ambition, and helps get the training and resources needed to close skills gaps.

Further, embracing challenging assignments as opportunities to showcase capabilities, and seeking mentorship and guidance from experienced professionals are great ways for women to advocate for their own continuous development.

Build a Support Network

The career development path can be lonely without support. Our community agreed that seeking out support from peers and mentors is essential to growth and development. Whether it’s prompting discussions with friends, colleagues, or superiors, taking the time to ponder the challenges, desires, and strategies to skills gap analysis can help answer a lot of unknowns.

The People Collective offers a supportive network of like-minded individuals, as well as thoughtful events and workshops to help further skills development.

For Organizations

Leadership has an obligation to their talent to invest in their growth, both because it’s the right thing to do, and also because it helps promote employee engagement, retention, and productivity. The panelists and audience discussed the various ways in which organizations can address skills gap from a strategic level.

Tailored Skills Development Programs

Learning and development is a major factor in career growth and performance coaching, but not all skills development programs are created equal. When considering strategies to specifically champion women leaders, consider skills areas that have historically been pain points. For example, effective communication is essential for leadership success, and is often regarded with double standards for women and men.

“Women leaders often downplay their accomplishments or hesitate to speak up in meetings. Developing strong communication skills is essential to project confidence and inspire your team.” – Kathy Teoh, Global Strategic DEI & Belonging Director at Arcadis

From strengthening communication and advocacy skills to addressing skill gaps in historically male-dominated industries such as programming and engineering, our panel discussions highlighted the importance of tailored skills development programs that equip women leaders with the confidence and skills to navigate challenging situations and inspire their teams.

This also means understanding the learning styles that best suit your team. While some employees may benefit from group seminars or in-person workshops, others may best learn from digital training courses or one-on-one mentoring sessions.

Value Individual Contributor Paths

Wei Ching stressed the importance of honoring individual contributors as well as those that want to join the leadership track. “Some employees actually prefer an individual contributor track and that’s fine. But has the organization been designed to support growth as an individual contributor? I think more often than not you hear a narrative that you have to be a manager to show that you are making progress. But that doesn’t necessarily have to be true.”

Career paths that support learning outside of management roles allow growth across the board, and help address the skills gap beyond leadership skills. Ensure your organization is nurturing all employees, wherever they are and whatever their individual goals may be.

Data-Driven Decision Making

Like any workplace management decision, gathering data helps leadership make informed decisions that will better serve their workforce. Gather both quantitative and qualitative data on the demographics, goals, skills gap, and current abilities of your organization to best develop targeted programs to support employees.

Using this data to understand the reasons behind a skills gap can unlock a better understanding of where L&D efforts should be focused. Is it that there aren’t enough opportunities for growth? Your policies don’t support the needs of your employees? Engagement is low?

When we apply data to our decisions, we reduce the opportunity for misalignment, bias, and assumptions that can undermine our efforts to promote a more equitable environment.

Mentorship and Sponsorship Programs

Finally, consider leveraging the skills and experiences of leaders within your organization. Mentorship is valuable, but sponsorship takes championing women a step further. Mentorship focuses on guidance and advice, whereas sponsorship is about advocacy and opportunity. A sponsor is someone who can use their influence to promote you and your work to others. They can recommend you for opportunities, introduce you to important people, and speak on your behalf.

As panelist VJ Posadas stressed, “Women are over-mentored but under-sponsored. One way we can use our male privilege for allyship to make women’s work more visible is by getting men involved in being their sponsors.”

Of course, women leaders can and should continue to be coached and mentored by fellow women as their experiences are often relatable. Encouraging sponsorship programs can connect women with influential advocates who can champion their advancement.

Join The People Collective

HR professionals are setting the standard for championing women, and doing the hard work of navigating the way to successful advancement. At the People Collective, we’re committed to bringing like-minded and skilled HR leaders together to share resources, spark important conversations, and promote collective action to better the world of work. These are just some of the insights shared during a recent People Collective event.

If you haven’t already, join our vibrant community of HR leaders that make up our Slack community.

According to MIT, the future workplace hinges upon efficiency, effectiveness and balance. As businesses navigate the post-pandemic landscape, a key focus for HR leaders is building and maintaining a strong talent pipeline.

With increasing workforce mobility and changing priorities, companies are forced to adjust their workforce policies in order to remain competitive. This requires a balance between increasing efficiency and supporting employees in achieving a work-life balance. This then raises the crucial question: What constitutes workplace efficiency, and what are the strategies that companies can put in place to enhance it?

What is work efficiency?

The efficiency of work refers to how effectively and productively tasks are completed. It’s about completing tasks in a smart manner, minimizing wasted time and resources.

A common misconception is that efficiency is all about getting things done. However, the emphasis here is on quality of work. To put it simply, being efficient means producing quality work within specified timeframes, instead of simply working hard.

Why is increasing efficiency important?

No matter the size of your organization, increasing efficiency of work is paramount to achieve success and maintaining a competitive edge.

For employers

Increasing efficiency of work is a golden ticket for employers to unlock benefits that significantly impact its bottom line, workforce, and competitive edge.

In today’s competitive landscape, speed and cost-effectiveness are key to becoming an industry leader. Increasing efficiency of work becomes pivotal for growing businesses to innovate and adapt to changing market conditions.

Efficient workplaces can enhance satisfaction by reducing burnout and create a sense of accomplishment. This leads to increased employee satisfaction and retention rates. Happy employees are also likely to go the extra mile.

For employees

Implementing structured work habits can promote employee motivation and performance as mentioned above, but also fosters a positive company culture.

When employees adhere to efficient work practices, they are able to complete tasks more effectively, meet deadlines, and collaborate easily with colleagues. As a result, employees are more engaged in their work, leading to higher job satisfaction and a more motivated workforce.

Looking for more ways to improve your employee engagement?

Download our HR Calendar 2024 for inspiration!

Ways on increasing efficiency at work

The process of increasing efficiency at work often involves optimizing processes, minimizing wasted time and resources, and achieving maximum output with minimum input.

Here are 10 tips on how you can improve the efficiency of work at your workplace:

1. Organize a to-do list

Writing down tasks increases efficiency of work by enhancing the encoding process. Research has shown that when employees have a plan to complete tasks, it alleviates the anxiety caused by unfinished tasks, known as the Zeigarnik effect. This is why till this day, creating a structured to-do list remains one of the most effective methods when it comes to increasing efficiency.

Aside from prioritizing tasks, to-do lists also ensures that important items are not overlooked. An added advantage of this method is the sense of accomplishment it provides upon checking off the tasks, further boosting employee morale.

2. Remove distractions

Next tip for increasing efficiency of work is to Identify and remove distractions in your work environment. Creating a distraction-free environment enables you to enter a state of flow. This might involve turning off notifications, finding a quiet workspace, or using noise-canceling headphones.

3. Batch similar tasks together

Research suggests that productivity suffers when individuals switch between tasks, resulting in significant time loss.

An effective way to tackle this is by implementing task batching to increase efficiency of work. By grouping similar tasks together, it allows you to streamline workflows and minimize the time spent switching between different types of tasks.

For example, schedule specific times during the day to respond to emails. Instead of checking emails sporadically throughout the day, which can be distracting and disrupt workflow, you can batch this task by setting aside 15-20 minutes in the morning and another 15-20 minutes in the afternoon to respond to emails. This allows you to focus on other tasks at hand without interruptions and can result in overall productivity.

4. Take breaks

Aside from the daily stressors of our personal and professional lives, 15% of working-age adults were reported to struggle with mental health issues in 2019. This further highlights the importance of incorporating mental health days at work.

Additionally, regular breaks as short as short 15-20 minute intervals can aid in sustaining focus and reducing the risk of employee burnout. These breaks can also improve concentration and overall productivity.

5. Clean up your workspace

Next, let’s discuss the importance of organizing your workspace when it comes to increasing efficiency of work.

The Fellowes Workplace Wellness Trend Report highlights that employees value working in a healthy and clean environment. A tidy workspace can lead to a clearer mind and increased efficiency. It’s important to organize your workspace to reduce clutter and improve productivity.

This can include decluttering surfaces, ensuring essential items are easily accessible, and creating a layout that supports your workflow. By creating a clean and tidy workspace, you can enhance your focus and efficiency of work throughout the day.

6. Communicate clearly

Effective communication helps avoid misunderstandings and ensures information is conveyed correctly, leading to timely task completion. Use clear, concise and specific language when conveying your messages.

This is especially important for remote teams, where interactions are often done through digital tools such as Slack. In a remote setting, clear communication can help bridge the physical gap between team members, fostering collaboration and maintaining efficiency of work.

Read next:

Navigating the Digital Divide: Enhancing Remote Team Communication

7. Delegate effectively

Delegating tasks to team members can also help lighten your workload and enhance the efficiency of work within an organization.

Effective delegation not only lightens the workload of individuals but also improves overall team productivity and time management. It leverages on the existing skill set of team members while also providing opportunities for them to acquire new capabilities and knowledge. This process enhances the team’s overall adaptability, enabling them to take up responsibilities based on individual strengths and interests.

Delegation also fosters trust and commitment, as employees feel empowered to contribute meaningfully to the team’s goals and company mission. By delegating tasks to those best suited to handle them, organizations can ensure that work is completed to a high standard.

8. Establish realistic goals

Setting SMART goals helps employees maintain motivation and focus as it provides something to work towards and look forward to. They provide a sense of purpose, ownership, and pride when they are realistic.

By breaking down large goals into smaller, more manageable tasks, employees can track their progress and stay on target. This approach not only increases efficiency of work, but also provides a sense of accomplishment as milestones are achieved. Additionally, SMART goals promote clarity and alignment within teams, ensuring that everyone is working towards a common goal or objective.

Celebrating and acknowledging employee efforts when goals are achieved is equally important. This boosts employee morale and reinforces a workplace culture of appreciation and motivation.

Relevant reads:

12 Employee Recognition Examples to Keep Your Team Engaged All Year

9. Develop a routine

According to the World Economic Forum, establishing a routine can have huge benefits in both personal and professional development.

Implementing a daily routine creates structure and improves time management. It also boosts cognitive function and stimulates innovation and creativity. Studies indicate that regular work processes allows employees to spend less cognitive energy on mundane and repetitive tasks, thereby encouraging focus and creativity for more complex tasks and increasing overall efficiency of work.

10. Leverage technology

When increasing efficiency of work, you don’t have to do it manually. Use tools and software to automate repetitive tasks, manage projects, and improve communication.

For example, harnessing AI tools can help HR teams streamline processes, make data-driven decisions, and create personalized experiences for employees throughout the entire employee lifecycle.

Additional reading:

The HR Tools Growing Teams Need in 2024

Increasing Efficiency of Work with HRIS

As mentioned, tools like Human Resources Information System (HRIS) play a huge role in increasing efficiency of work. Here’s how:

Automating tasks

HRIS automates mundane, repetitive tasks such as payroll processing, leave management, performance evaluations and more. It reduces the time and effort required for these activities, freeing up HR professionals to focus on strategic tasks such as talent management, employee development, and strategic workforce planning.

Empowering employees

Some HRIS platforms offer employee self-service portals, which empower employees to access information such as payslips, time off balances and attendance records. Employees can also submit requests, and update their personal information through the portal without HR intervention, thereby increasing data accuracy and employee engagement.

Streamlined data management

HRIS helps in increasing efficiency of work by consolidating employee information, ensuring accuracy and immediate updates across the system.

Having all employee data in a single source simplifies retrieval, saving time and effort for decision-making. Another added advantage is heightened data security as access to sensitive information can be easily controlled and monitored.

Integration with other systems

HRIS platforms allow for integration with other systems, such as accounting or recruitment software, further increasing efficiency by removing the need for manual data entry and ensuring seamless information flow across departments.

Improved reporting

Last but not least, HRIS offers advanced reporting capabilities, enabling HR teams to generate customized reports on metrics such as attrition rates or training effectiveness. These reports provide valuable insights that help in decision-making and workforce planning.

HRIS reports can also assist in monitoring compliance and assessing the effectiveness of HR initiatives. With the help of comprehensive and real-time data, organizations are able to make informed decisions that drive organizational growth and success.

Building a More Efficient Future with Omni

Increasing efficiency of work is crucial for organizations that want to remain competitive and achieve their business goals. However, improving workplace efficiency is an ongoing process that requires commitment and effort from all levels of management. That’s why it’s important to have the right tools by your side to achieve maximum results with minimum effort.

Omni’s fully automated HR platform allows HR teams and managers to create customizable templates that grow alongside your business, molding to each employee’s unique needs and reducing the administrative burden that comes with managing the employee lifecycle.

Our full suite of modules supports every aspect of your business, offering an intuitive and fully customizable platform that integrates with your team’s favorite tools for a seamless and timely adoption.

Discover how Omni contributed to a 93.75% reduction in performance review processing time at Mothership!

If you’d like to learn more about how Omni’s all-in-one HR software automates the entire end-to-end employee lifecycle, saving People leaders from administrative tasks and increasing efficiency of work, book a demo with our team!

A Harvard Business Review study of six Fortune 500 companies that transitioned to remote work in 2020 revealed that the remote workday was split into two windows: an eight-hour window from nine to five, and a longer 16-hour window.

During the first window, team members overlapped with 50-70% of their colleagues, suggesting active collaboration. In the longer “off-hours” window, this overlap decreased to 10-50%. This study reflects a global trend towards asynchronous work, which has become a necessary reality for businesses.

To maintain high employee performance levels, it is crucial to understand how to establish an asynchronous work environment and keep employees engaged.

What is Asynchronous Work?

Asynchronous work is a method of collaboration where individuals work independently and complete tasks without requiring real-time interaction with colleagues. Team members can work on their own schedules, using asynchronous communication tools to contribute and move projects forward.

With autonomy and no need for real-time collaboration, asynchronous work enables remote workforces to maximize their productivity and save time and resources. Not to mention, it gives employees some control over their working hours, eliminates the pressure of having to respond immediately, and gives them time to fine-tune their work.

Examples of Synchronous Work

Synchronous work refers to a work environment where individuals collaborate and complete tasks in real-time. Synchronous work typically spans the following:

Brainstorming sessions
Live presentations
In-person or virtual meetings (like video calls on Zoom)
Client negotiations
Real-time chatting via instant messaging platforms (like Slack)

Examples of Asynchronous Work

Asynchronous remote work isn’t as cooperative, but you’ll find that some tools support both types. Asynchronous work examples include:

Writing reports and proposals
Completing individual tasks within a project
Providing written feedback on documents
Working on shared documents using collaborative tools (like Google Workspace)

Benefits of an Asynchronous Work Environment

Understanding the benefits of an asynchronous remote work environment can provide the motivation needed to make essential adjustments to your business operations. It also helps you identify when your efforts are yielding results.

Increased Flexibility

One of the known benefits of an asynchronous work environment is increased flexibility. Employees can complete tasks on their own schedules, regardless of location or time zone. Without the pressure of real-time collaboration, the team can focus on specific tasks without distractions or interruptions.

Accordingly, employees can achieve better work-life balance, exhibit better performance, tend to their personal responsibilities, and keep employee engagement high. For employers, it facilitates the hiring of individuals from diverse time zones, expanding the talent pool available.

Reduced Stress and Anxiety

Asynchronous work does away with the expectation that employees need to be available and responsive during fixed hours. Instead, they might be expected to respond within a reasonable timeframe (like 24 hours or 48 hours).

When employees understand that others might be offline at any time, it encourages the establishment of healthy boundaries between work and personal life. This allows remote employees to disconnect, reducing stress and anxiety. In short, asynchronous remote work promotes productive work habits and safeguards mental well-being by reducing the barrage of notifications and the risk of employee burnout.

Improved Focus and Productivity

Maintaining focus is difficult in our age of shrinking attention span, but achieving the flow state is even more elusive. This state is achieved when employees are most productive and fully immersed in their tasks, losing track of time and space. The question is, how are we able to preserve this flow?

Asynchronous work does so by eliminating constant interruptions, which means higher employee satisfaction and productivity levels. Employees can focus on their tasks without the need to respond to messages or requests while working, encouraging the flow state.

Additionally, asynchronous remote work increases productivity and focus by enabling employees to work during their most productive hours.

Greater Ownership and Accountability

Engaging in asynchronous work creates a sense of accountability in employees, motivating them to complete tasks on schedule and deliver successful outcomes.

This approach allows for seamless task handover to the next responsible individual. However, it is important to note the effectiveness of asynchronous remote work hinges on hiring individuals who are both independent and accountable.

Improved Diversity and Inclusion

Creating an asynchronous work environment removes borders on time zones and locations, expanding your access to a diverse talent pool, enhancing ethnic and racial diversity and fostering inclusivity within your company.

Moreover, asynchronous remote work supports inclusivity by accommodating working mothers, caregivers, and individuals with demanding personal responsibilities. Unlike synchronous work with its fixed hours, asynchronous work enables them to work flexibility around the clock.

Roadmap to an Asynchronous Work Environment

Now that we’ve established the benefits of an asynchronous work environment, these following steps can guide and foster an asynchronous remote work environment.

1. Assess your readiness

Consider whether your organization is ready for asynchronous work. Can you break up its business processes and assign smaller tasks to your employees individually? Are there tasks that must be done synchronously? Classify tasks accordingly.

Also, assess your employees’ readiness to work alone. Are they used to working individually or equipped for it? Which tools or resources would empower them to do so? Are they readily available?

2. Set clear expectations and guidelines

As you steer your company towards a new direction, effective communication and transparency will make this transition as smooth as possible. It is pivotal to communicate and familiarize your employees with the guidelines and expectations that will define this shift to an asynchronous remote work environment. Here are three steps to achieve this:

Define core working hours

Core working hours are the fixed times when you expect your employees to be online or onsite. These are the designated hours for synchronous work (like meetings), outside of which employees have the flexibility to work whenever they want. If you have an international team, make sure these hours are during your team’s hours of overlap.

For example, setting two key days or hours in the late mornings or midday, which serve as core periods (when there is overlap). This working arrangement gives your employees plenty of time before or after these core hours for asynchronous work and personal obligations. Similarly, you can schedule these hours to help avoid rush hours if employees work from the office.

Outline communication protocols

What does communication look like in your asynchronous work model? Decide on suitable asynchronous work tools to make communication smooth.

On top of that, set policies detailing how much time employees are granted to deliver results, implement feedback, and respond to messages or inquiries. Also, state how long employees and managers should wait before sending a follow-up message.

For instance, you can establish an asynchronous remote work protocol where employees should make edits to projects within 24 hours of receiving feedback. If they don’t confirm that they’ve received the feedback within 12 hours, managers may send a follow-up message.

Read next:

Establish meeting policies

A study found that nearly one-third of meetings are deemed unnecessary, significantly affecting the organization’s financial performance. Reducing the duration of meetings is one of the main pillars of asynchronous remote work, enhancing productivity and team effectiveness. It is important to reassess the needs and purpose of recurring and upcoming meetings.

Outline valid reasons for setting up meetings and determine which teams must attend. For instance, you can set guidelines or certain conditions for managers from holding meetings for status updates, documenting processes, providing information, or discussing other meetings, and direct them to alternative communication methods. Additionally, essential meetings should be scheduled within the core working hours, mentioned above.

To illustrate, you can eliminate meetings for project updates and instead, utilize OKR management tools to monitor progress. However, if a conversation between employees involves extensive back-and-forth and is time consuming, it may be more efficient to address it in a meeting during core hours.

Another method is to set policies for optional meetings. Instruct team leaders to attach an agenda to each meeting invitation so that individuals are able to get context before the meeting and opt out if it doesn’t pertain to them. Similarly, individuals who cannot attend can contribute input or questions beforehand and catch up afterward. Lastly, establish policies regarding post-meeting documentation, meeting agendas, and assign responsibility for these tasks.

3. Foster asynchronous communication

Once you’ve established clear expectations and guidelines, it is important to empower employees to use asynchronous communication channels. Asynchronous work prioritizes documentation and transparency over repetitive real-time communication. Therefore, having a single source of accurate information is essential for employees to easily keep track of tasks and projects.

Encourage managers to utilize unified channels for sharing insights and project updates. Similarly, motivate employees to utilize them, creating transparent communication for all. Emphasize the importance of transferring key information from emails and other tools to the designated collaborative space. These steps enhance the level of asynchronous communication within your organization.

Omni Tip for asynchronous work:
It’s crucial for managers to follow the communication protocols you have established, thereby encouraging employees to do the same. This helps create a conducive asynchronous environment!

Learn more:

4. Build trust and team cohesion

Enabling employees to work according to their preferences in terms of how, when, and where they work requires a level of trust from you and your team leaders. It is essential to empower them to make decisions autonomously.

To establish a successful asynchronous remote work system, set accurate and effective key performance indicators (KPIs) so that managers can oversee projects while allowing employees the freedom to work independently. Over time, witnessing positive outcomes will build trust in the process and among team members, boosting employee morale.

Team cohesion refers to the ability of a team to collaborate effectively toward a common objective. Building a cohesive team requires members to have a close relationship and trust one another. Understanding the significance of team cohesion in asynchronous work is important, as it entails setting clear goals, defining individual tasks, promoting personal accountability, and ensuring successful project delivery.

5. Continuously adapt and improve

As you move towards fostering an asynchronous work environment, it is beneficial to utilize KPIs for tracking performance, analyzing time spent in synchronous meetings, and other relevant metrics.

Additionally, seek employee feedback via employee engagement surveys and other tools designed to protect their well-being. This approach allows you to assess what strategies are effective and which ones require improvement, while also providing valuable insights.

However, it also presents new challenges that could require adaptation. For example, you may designate eight to ten in the morning as core working hours, only to observe an increase in absenteeism or presenteeism, along with a decline in productivity and engagement thereafter. Through employee surveys, you may discover that ten to noon could be more suitable as core hours.

By experimenting with different approaches until you find the optimal solution, you can cultivate the asynchronous work culture you aspire to achieve.

Read next:

Paving the Way to Success in an Asynchronous Work Environment

Embracing an asynchronous work environment can bring about numerous benefits to an organization, including increased productivity, flexibility and employee satisfaction. By encouraging employees to work at their own pace and schedules, organizations can tap into a diverse talent pool and accommodate different working styles and preferences.

All-in-one HR software like Omni provides support for creating an asynchronous work environment through communication, collaboration and performance tracking tools. Omni helps you track, analyze and gain actionable insights from performance data through an automated and digitized platform. Easily and quickly gather the data you need so you can spend more time on the strategic planning necessary to drive business outcomes.

Our full suite of modules provide support for every aspect of your business through an intuitive and fully customizable platform that integrates with your team’s favorite tools for a seamless and timely adoption.

By leveraging Omni’s automated processes and embracing asynchronous work practices, organizations can build a more agile and resilient workforce, primed for success in today’s dynamic business environment.

To join the 83% of Omni customers who have unlocked new, actionable insights after using our modern HR software solution, book a demo with us today!

Retaining your top talent is crucial, but there are times when employees need to move on. Whether they choose to leave or their departure is initiated by the employer, the notice period holds significant importance.

During this time, various factors come into play, such as the impression your departing employee will leave behind. Negative feedback from former employees can severely impact your company’s reputation, with studies showing that 50% of potential candidates won’t apply to a company with a bad reputation.

On the flip side, retaining these employees to avoid negative word-of-mouth isn’t advisable either. A Forbes study revealed that disengaged employees have a 15% lower profitability for a company, which equates to 34% of a disengaged employee’s salary.

If we consider the average salary of $47,000, your company could be losing nearly $16,000 per disengaged employee per year. This shows the importance of considering letting disengaged employees leave, either voluntarily or through termination. In this article, we will guide you on handling their departure with the right ways and measures of implementing the notice period.

What is a Notice Period?

A notice period is a predetermined amount of time that an employee needs to serve before leaving an organization. It’s mandatory for the employee to serve this period whether the employer decides to file for termination or the employee resigns. The process ensures a smooth transition of responsibilities without any hassle as the employer gets enough time to find a replacement while the employee searches for another job and prepares for his departure.

Types of Notice Periods

Some notice periods are clearly specified by the government, while others differ based on the employment contracts. Let’s have a close look at each one of them:

The local labor laws or government regulations set the statutory minimum notice periods. It states the number of days employees are supposed to work after resigning or being fired legally. It typically depends on the weeks, months, or years the employee has spent with the organization. The higher the number, the more the duration of the notice period.

Therefore, the length of the service and reason for termination are two factors that influence the length of statutory minimum notice periods.

Contractual notice periods

These notice periods are highlighted in the employment contract and agreed upon at the time of hiring. The duration is set based on the common understanding between the employer and the employee. It can be higher than the statutory minimum notice periods but cannot be lower in most cases. At the time of termination or resignation, the agreed-upon terms stay solid and must be complied with by both parties as they are legally binding.

Probationary periods

A probationary period is the trial period at the beginning of employment. This period helps the employer and employee understand whether the job fits well. Many organizations typically have a probation period of three to six months. However, the time can vary depending on company policies and industry standards.

During this period, the employee’s performance is evaluated against predefined standards, while the employee gauges their long-term alignment with the company.

At the end of the probation period, the employer might confirm the employee’s permanent position. Similarly, if the employee sees the organization fit, he accepts the offer. If not, he might negotiate or decide to leave the organization. However, the employer has the right to terminate the employment during probation with a 1-2 weeks notice.

Termination with cause

When you are associated with an organization, there are certain things in the company policy you do not cross or violate. If you do, the employer can issue your termination without any further notice. Some common instances where this happens include theft, harassment, insubordination, repeated violations of company policies, or failure to meet deadlines and other job responsibilities.

If the employee has received a fair share of warnings, the employer can issue a termination with cause. However, for it to pass through, the issue should be well-documented to withstand any legal battle. If there is no clear clause for termination, the employer must provide a notice period.

Garden leave

Garden leave is when employees must serve their notice period away from the workplace. They are formally employed but do not contact clients, customers, or colleagues during this period.

Employers typically put employees on garden leave when they are trying to protect the company’s interests and sensitive information or maintain stability during transitions. These leaves are generally issued to abide by the contractual laws and agreements.

How Long is a Notice Period?

The length of a notice period varies based on different factors, such as employment contracts, company policies, and labor laws in the relevant jurisdiction. Depending on the employee’s position within a company, it can range anywhere from one day to a couple of months.

Higher-level employees generally serve more extended notice periods as they need time to successfully transfer knowledge and responsibilities. In most cases, the duration of the notice period is clearly stated in the employment contract. If not, the employment act of the region stands firm, and both employer and employee shall fulfill the legal requirements of the notice period.

For instance, in Singapore, if there’s no pre-agreed notice period, the duration depends on the length of service as stated by the Ministry of Manpower (MOM):

For less than 26 weeks of service: 1 day notice period
For 26 weeks to less than two years: 1 week’s notice
For two years to less than five years: 2 weeks’ notice
For five years or more: 4 week’s notice

Employers have the freedom to set more extended notice periods than the ones mentioned above. However, they cannot go for shorter notice periods than the mandated period set by the MOM.

Factors in Determining a Notice Period

The duration of a notice period is dependent on a number of factors such as legal requirements, seniority, company policies, and more. Let’s take a look at all such factors:

Legal requirements

In many jurisdictions, there are legal requirements specifying the minimum notice period that employers must provide during termination. These legal requirements vary based on labor laws and categories of employees.

Employment contracts

Employment contracts set the overall terms and conditions for the period of employment as well as post-termination or resignation. Many contracts clearly specify the duration of notice required by either party to terminate the employment relationship. This duration can vary based on the employee’s role, seniority, and length of service. It also clearly states the consequences of failure to provide notice, such as penalties, forfeiture of benefits, etc.

Any sort of negotiation regarding the notice period generally happens during the formation of the employment contract. Employers may offer longer notice periods as a benefit or incentive, while employees may demand a shorter one for flexibility. But the clarity on the process, obligations, and duration in the employment contracts ensure there are no disputes in the future.

Employee role and seniority

Employee role and seniority play a crucial role in determining the notice period as the duration of the notice period increases with the levels in the organization. The higher the level, the more critical the job role is and the longer they are supposed to serve the notice period. Due to this, proper negotiation is crucial before coming to a mutually agreed decision.

Employees with higher levels of seniority often have critical job roles that require longer periods for transition. They cannot simply leave as a lot of high-level decisions lie in their hands which require effective delegation of responsibilities. It is also a way of acknowledging their long-term commitments and contributions to the organization. Therefore, the impact of the job role on the organization is a major factor in the duration of the notice period.

It’s worth mentioning that the current retirement age in Singapore is 63. Employers can choose to terminate employees who are approaching this age. However, according to the Retirement and Re-employment Act, employers must offer re-employment to eligible employees from age 63 up to 68.

Industry standards

Employers often look to industry competitors and peers to determine the ideal duration of the notice period. It becomes easier to set the duration when benchmarking against similar organizations within the industry. For example, let’s say there is a standard of one to three months notice period for technical roles based on seniority and tenure. You can consider this and use it in your negotiations. Similarly, industries with lengthy training requirements may have longer notice periods to account for the time needed to train replacement employees.

Company policies and practices

Company policies exist to ensure consistency and fairness in the treatment of employees. When determining notice periods, companies may set policies that apply uniformly across all employees to ensure equity in the termination process. Such policies are often set with specific business objectives in mind, such as minimizing disruptions and ensuring smooth transitions during employee turnover.

Let’s look at some things that could be stated in company policies regarding notice period:

“All employees are required to provide a minimum notice period of 4 weeks before resigning from their position.”
“The company reserves the right to place employees on garden leave with immediate effect in case of breach of company policies or code of conduct.”
“Employees may request a waiver of the notice period under exceptional circumstances, such as acceptance of an offer for immediate employment elsewhere.”
“The company reserves the right to request a longer notice period from employees in certain circumstances.”

Many more such clauses are put in the employment contract to give employees clarity on every situation that might fall through. With such clarity, you avoid unnecessary disputes at the time of resignation or termination.

Employee performance

Many organizations go for performance-based notice periods where employees with consistently high performance levels are entitled to shorter notice periods. Based on their performance reviews, employers identify the ones with consistently good performance. Similarly, those with lower performance levels must work for more extended periods.

It’s crucial to recognize and appreciate employees who show great dedication and commitment to the organization. You can also give bonuses as incentives to employees with high-performance levels, as it leads to enhanced employee retention.

Business needs

Your business needs play a crucial role in determining the notice period. More extended notice periods are required during periods of high workload as organizations require sufficient time for knowledge transfer and replacement recruitment. Project deadlines are another focus area, as you should set the notice periods such that current projects do not suffer from unnecessary delays.

There are many external factors such as changes in market dynamics, trends, and technological advancements. Notice periods are set to keep up with all these changing requirements.

Employee turnover rate

Industries with high turnover rates generally go with shorter notice periods as they require agility in fulfilling vacant positions. Shorter notice periods are also appealing to employees. Due to this, employers often offer these periods to attract and retain top talent.

Cost remains another factor for shorter notice periods as high turnover rates incur significant costs associated with recruitment, training, and onboarding of new employees. Shorter notice periods help mitigate these costs by minimizing losses caused by prolonged vacancies.

If your employee turnover rate is consistently increasing, it’s time you put managers into action to improve your employee work review, quarterly or annual. It’ll help you understand the areas of improvement better to ensure enhanced productivity and retention.

Understanding the Relevance of Notice Periods in HR

Notice periods are highly relevant for both employers and employees for the following reasons:

Smooth transition: the notice period ensures a smooth transition in both situations, whether the employee resigns or is terminated. It gives the required time to find a replacement, complete pending projects, and transfer responsibilities.
Continuity of operations: notice periods give employers adequate time to fill vacant positions. This leads to minimal disruption of workflow and sudden gaps in productivity while ensuring enhanced employee engagement.
Legal compliance: notice periods often have legal implications and are governed by employment laws and regulations. Adhering to these requirements helps employers stay compliant with labor laws.
Employee protection: just like adhering to notice periods protects employers from the law, it protects employees from unemployment. It gives them enough time to search jobs, arrange finances, and negotiate terms of departure.
Employer-employee relations: handling notice periods keeping in mind the needs of both parties helps build strong employer-employee relations. It preserves the company’s reputation and shows current employees how much the organization respects its people. Giving constructive feedback should also be prioritized to ensure no employee leaves with hard feelings.

Proactive Measures in Implementing Notice Periods

While implementing notice periods, employers must focus on all areas that lead to a content departure of employees. Whether it’s providing incentives, helping in smooth transition, or effective communication, employees should leave the organization in a manner that ensures positive word-of-mouth. Here are some proactive measures you can take for the same:

Clear communication

No one wants unnecessary disputes in the organization during notice periods. To ensure that both parties have clarity on how the process will follow, give clarity during the onboarding process. Communicate the details about the notice period, including the duration, conditions triggering its initiation, and any specific procedures to follow when giving notice.

Moreover, give clarity on the repercussions of not complying to the necessary requirements. With such clarity, employees can make informed decisions about their departure timeline, while employers can redistribute work and find suitable replacements. It also gives employees the time to ask any questions regarding the notice period policies or procedures.

Exit interviews

Exit interviews are crucial to gathering feedback from departing employees. It’s becoming increasingly important to understand why employees leave an organization, as research suggests that nearly 38% of employees quit within the first year of employment.

With exit interviews, you give them a chance to share their experiences, insights, and reasons for leaving the organization. It’s an excellent way of identifying the areas of improvement in your organization. Mainly because people are more honest with exit interviews, and you get a clear picture of what’s not working.

You can then use the information shared during these interviews to improve the employee retention rate and overall company culture. But to make that happen, you need to ask the right exit interview questions. Here are some ideas:

Reason for leaving: What factors influenced your decision to leave the company?

Job satisfaction: Did you feel adequately supported by your manager and colleagues?

Work environment and culture: Were there any aspects of the company culture you feel could be improved?

Growth opportunities: Were you provided adequate support and training to grow in your role?

Leadership: How would you rate the effectiveness of your immediate supervisor or manager?
Suggestions for improvement: What would it be if you could change one thing about the organization?

While asking the right questions is essential, ensure you create an environment where employees feel comfortable sharing their feedback openly and honestly.

Learn more:

When an employee leaves an organization, a lot of responsibilities require reassignment. This is crucial to ensure essential tasks and projects continue without interruption during the notice period and beyond. Start by identifying responsibilities and the burden of work to assign interim or permanent replacements. As you transfer the responsibilities of one individual to the other, ensure you give proper training.

Along with that, ensure the successful transfer of knowledge and expertise from departing employees to their team members or successors. This involves documenting procedures, sharing core insights, and providing training. When there’s a transition involved, you also need to communicate with stakeholders, clients, and external partners about the upcoming transition. Once you successfully conduct the whole process, do a post-transition review to identify and work on areas of improvement.

Provide incentives

Employees tend to get relaxed when they are serving the notice period. This might become a hassle for managers who still need to finish work. That’s where incentives are essential for facilitating a smoother transition and motivating employees to fulfill their remaining obligations.

Looking closely into the needs and preferences of the employees is crucial when designing incentive programs for the notice period. Let’s now get into the details of some common incentives you can offer:

Bonus or additional compensation for employees who fulfil their notice period obligations satisfactorily.

Retention bonus for employees who agree to stay for an extended notice period.

Continued access to benefits such as healthcare coverage and gym memberships during the notice period.

Flexible work arrangements for departing employees, such as remote work options during the notice period for better balance.

Additional paid time off or vacations to facilitate a smoother transition and give them time to attend to personal matters.

Personalized thank-you gifts as a token of appreciation for their service.
Access to outplacement services such as resume writing assistance, job search support, and networking opportunities to help departing employees find jobs easily.

While it might seem counterintuitive to provide so many incentives to someone leaving the organization, it shows current and future employees that your organization values its people. It increases their loyalty and enhances your organization’s reputation.

Leverage performance reviews

Performance reviews can help employers set notice period expectations and smooth the transition process. It also gives employees a chance to voice their issues in fulfilling the remaining obligations as both parties have clarity on what needs to be done.

Such collaborations don’t leave room for potential obstacles during the notice period. Moreover, it also allows employees to connect individual performance goals with transition goals. When goals are linked together, performance and motivation to succeed eventually excel.

Learn more:

Make your employees feel valued and engaged, and witness the rise in productivity. The same goes during the notice period when you involve employees in discussions related to notice period policies and procedures. Seek their input on improving the transition process, addressing concerns, and ensuring a smooth handover of responsibilities.

The employees who successfully fulfill the notice period obligations should also receive recognition and appreciation. Acknowledge their contributions during exit interviews, team meetings, or send personalized notes. Keep an open communication channel where employees come to you with any concerns they have while you ensure progress is on track.

The Power of Streamlined Notice Period Management

Notice period is a critical phase that allows for a smooth transition when an employee leaves an organization. It provides time for both the employer and employee to prepare for the change and ensures a proper handover of responsibilities.

HRIS plays a key role in managing notice periods efficiently by automating processes, tracking timelines, and facilitating communication. Omni is your comprehensive solution that enables a seamless and efficient offboarding experience.

Omni’s all-in-one HR management software allows you to seamlessly update employee records, communicate to relevant stakeholders and departments, and facilitate the entire end-to-end offboarding process in one, easy to use system, putting an end to silos and miscommunication.

Omni brings teams together, fostering collaboration and transparency by enabling smooth communication across departments, ensuring everyone is on the same page throughout the offboarding journey.

With Omni, you can say goodbye to manual paperwork and administrative tasks with streamlined workflows and automated reminders to carry out every step of the offboarding process; from initiating offboarding requests to managing tasks, documents, and access revocation, and even starting the recruitment process to backfill open positions.

Ready to take your offboarding to the next level?

Constructive feedback, often framed as negative feedback, is one of the many challenging aspects of HR duties. Yet mastering how to give constructive feedback can help improve communication, advance employee’s skills, drive productivity, and reduce friction within teams.

The People Collective (TPC), a Slack community of HR leaders across Southeast Asia and beyond, recently hosted a conversation in Singapore where HR experts and industry leaders discussed a variety of HR topics, including navigating how to give constructive feedback. HR pros shared best practices for addressing areas of concern in the workplace to build a culture of honest and open communication that fosters growth and improves performance.

Here we explore strategies and philosophies of how to give constructive feedback, as told by seasoned HR leaders.

Give it in real time

Among the list of to-do’s for how to give constructive feedback, timing sits close to the top. While constructive feedback can be delivered at any time, doing so in close proximity to the event or behavior you’re correcting for can deepen its effectiveness.

Rather than collecting information and a list of improvements for employees, offer redirection in the moment. This provides an essential context that will help employees best understand what needs correction and how to improve.

“In a hybrid world, you have to be deeply intentional about how you check in and the various layers you check in for. And we use the word clarity a lot and clarity is actually what eventually creates belonging, creates productivity, creates motivation.”
Projjal Ghatak, CEO of Onloop

Understand what motivates each individual

Speaking of motivation, garnering a true sense of what drives your employees will write your playbook for how to give constructive feedback. Communication styles and drivers will vary from employee to employee, and it’s essential for managers and HR leaders to understand how these styles differ from employee to employee.

For example, one employee may be driven by career growth opportunities while another by collaboration. An employee driven by career growth will best receive feedback framed as an opportunity to advance, such as, “this report you’ve put together is a good starting point, but I see room for improvement that can better align you for the track of [desired role]. Let’s discuss the steps you can take to improve this deck and develop the skills that will help you progress.”

Whereas an employee who is motivated by collaboration may be better suited for an approach as such, “this report is a good starting point, but I’m seeing some blind spots that fail to address what the Product team will need to support this project. Let’s discuss how you can shift your lens to create a deck that covers a more holistic approach.”

Similarly for HR dealing with founders and the c-suite, a CEO motivated by the bottom line will be more bought in to recruit additional employees if HR frames the shortage as a productivity and resource drain rather than an employee engagement or burnout issue.

The difference in how to give constructive feedback comes down to how you position the feedback to meet individuals where they’re at and appeal to what motivates them.

“At the end of the day, feedback is about perception. How your feedback is received is what will make all the difference in its effectiveness.”
Yao Lim, CEO & Founder of Easy Consulting

Check for bias

When discussing how to give constructive feedback, the awareness of performance appraisal biases is a must. While bias is often unconscious, there are steps HR leaders and managers can take to protect against bias creeping into feedback.

First, understand the various types of biases. Here are the most common bias within performance management and assessment:

Recency bias: This occurs when more weight is given to recent events or performance, overshadowing earlier accomplishments or improvements.

Halo effect: This bias involves allowing an employee’s performance in one area to influence the overall evaluation, leading to an inflated or deflated rating.

Leniency or strictness bias: Some managers may consistently rate all employees as either high performers (leniency bias) or low performers (strictness bias), regardless of individual performance.

Confirmation bias: This occurs when managers focus on information that confirms their pre-existing beliefs about an employee rather than considering a comprehensive range of evidence.

Central tendency bias: Managers may avoid giving extreme ratings and instead opt for average ratings, leading to undifferentiated assessments that do not reflect variations in performance.

Similar-to-me bias: Managers may favor employees who are similar to them in terms of background, personality, or work style, leading to biased evaluations.

Gender bias: Unconscious biases related to gender may influence how managers assess the performance of male and female employees, potentially leading to disparities in ratings.

Cultural bias: Cultural differences may impact performance evaluations, with managers unintentionally favoring individuals from similar cultural backgrounds.

Attribution bias: This bias involves attributing an employee’s performance to internal factors (e.g., effort or ability) or external factors (e.g., luck or team dynamics) in a way that may not be accurate.

Availability bias: Managers may be influenced by easily accessible information, giving more weight to recent or memorable events rather than considering a comprehensive performance history.

Next, develop strategies in your performance management practice to help you remain objective. Here are 4 tips to implement when considering how to give constructive feedback that is free of bias:

Focus on specific and demonstrative examples rather than generalized statements
Establish clear and objective criteria for evaluating performance
Consider multiple perspectives by gathering input from colleagues or team members
Choose language that is neutral and avoids subjective terms

“We experience a lot of managers who want to reward solely on output, but people are more than output. Some people are extra valuable employees, not because they produce some significant amount, but because they’re good at relational management within the team and they kind of create the glue that holds that all together. They themselves may not be the one solving the biggest problem or working the most hours or producing the biggest thing, but they help the rest of the team continue to do that. That makes that person very valuable. Don’t overlook those people, they’re in every company.”
Projjal Ghatak

Constructive feedback is often (incorrectly) described as negative feedback. Yet the correct approach to how to give constructive feedback is to take a well rounded approach, meaning you should address both wins and losses, strengths and weaknesses, positives as well as negatives of employee performance. In fact, one of the best ways to deliver constructive feedback is through the ‘sandwich method’ which is to offer two positive comments on either end of your ‘negative’ feedback. Here’s an example:

“Great job in today’s meeting, you were well organized and made the data easy to understand and follow. I noticed you interrupted some of your colleagues during the open discussion, something to be mindful of in the future, as it’s important to collaborate and allow room for other’s input. Thanks for your hard work, and well done on the summary points and next steps you sent out afterwards. You have a knack for sharing information and setting actionable goals for teams.”

Sandwiching is a great method for how to give constructive feedback, as it helps round out the information provided, letting employees know not only where they need to improve but also honing in on the areas in which they excel, which is equally important for development and performance.

“There’s a lot of data that being specific about strengths-based positive feedback is super important. So when someone does a good job, they usually get told, good job and move on. That is actually terrible for someone’s performance because what drives performance is having a strong understanding of your superpowers.”
Projjal Ghatak

Encourage self-feedback

While self-feedback may feel counterintuitive when asking how to give constructive feedback, it’s often a strategy that gets overlooked. This form of evaluation transcends the conventional boundaries of feedback mechanisms, acting as a mirror, reflecting your employee’s contributions, accomplishments, and challenges, while offering a pathway to continuous development.

Employees craft narratives that highlight their achievements, portraying their unique perspective on their journey within your organization. This process fosters a sense of accountability and ownership, facilitating a deeper understanding of their roles and fostering personal growth.

Self-evaluation, when used in conjunction with the above methods, can help crack the code on how to give constructive feedback that is well-rounded and effective for lasting performance improvements.

“When we have people regularly observe and reflect on how they do, the insights that you can gain from that are often even more meaningful than what you would get from peers or managers.”
Sara Fisher, Group Head of People & Culture at MoneySmart

These strategies for approaching how to give constructive feedback are just some of the insights shared during the community event hosted by The People Collective. If you haven’t already, join the dynamic community of HR leaders for more actionable insights and HR resources.

How Omni Helps HR Leaders Navigate Performance Management

The question of how to give constructive feedback will continue to have its nuances, but with the right methods, paired with the right tools, you can be on the path to effective performance management and a culture of clear and open communication.

Omni’s all-in-one HR management platform helps HR leaders and managers leverage technology to improve the effectiveness and overall efficiency of the performance management process, as well as how to give constructive feedback. The data obtained from performance management tools provide deep insight into performance patterns that traditional manual methods cannot provide, helping share constructive and objective feedback to fuel your team’s growth.

Our tools help you save valuable time from the time-consuming manual aspects of performance management, such as sending out routine communications or tracking performance review completion. When paired with a solid performance management strategy, HR teams and managers can easily achieve high-performing and engaged teams.

To learn more about how you can leverage automation to improve your performance management cycle,

End-of-year employee reviews (also referred to as annual performance reviews or appraisals) are structured assessments employers use to evaluate their employee’s performance over the course of a year. They serve as a formal opportunity for employers and employees to have a constructive dialogue about job performance, accomplishments, areas for improvement, and career development, and are an essential component of performance management.

Unlike a weekly check-in or 1-on-1 meeting where quick feedback is exchanged, end of year reviews need to be carefully structured. This structure ensures a fair and consistent evaluation across the workforce and tamps down on performance appraisal biases.

Because they take place at the end of the year, these reviews are the perfect time to reflect on the goals set at the beginning of the year. Taking a look at how (and if) performance review goals were met offers insights into an employee’s effectiveness and contributions.

Successful end of year employee review examples include an exchange—rather than one-way feedback, use these moments as an opportunity for employees to share their perspectives on their performance, career aspirations, and any challenges they may have faced. These reviews are where recalibrations are made if needed, and employees are prepped for success in the new year.

Given the importance of these reviews and their formal structure, you couldn’t be blamed for finding them a bit intimidating. But fear not—in subsequent sections we’ll be taking a deep dive into end of year employee review examples which you can take inspiration from as you approach your own end of year reviews.

The Importance of Employee Reviews

Employee reviews are more than just a formality—they’re an essential part of all successful organizations’ talent management strategy. Here’s why they matter:

Performance improvement: Honest and constructive feedback provides employees with insights into their strengths and areas for improvement. This helps them grow professionally and contribute more effectively to your organization.

Goal alignment: Reviews offer an opportunity to assess whether an employee’s work aligns with your organization’s goals. It’s the perfect chance to celebrate achievements and realign objectives if necessary, making sure everyone is moving in the same direction.

Employee engagement: Regular feedback builds a sense of engagement and involvement. When your employees feel heard and valued, they’re more likely to be invested in their work and committed to the success of the organization.

Career development: Reviews are a natural platform for discussing career aspirations. Understanding an employee’s career goals allows for better planning and ensures that your organization can provide the necessary support and opportunities for growth.

Training opportunities: Through reviews, employers can identify areas where additional training or development opportunities might be beneficial. It allows for employers and employees to be proactive, ensuring growth in the right directions and pre-empting any course corrections that would need to be taken down the road.

Tips to Apply to End of Year Employee Review Examples

Now, we’re going to dive into a strategy you can apply to your own end of year employee review examples. Here are some tips to help maximize the impact of these important performance reviews:

Review performance frequently throughout the year: Regularly reviewing performance throughout the year can help ensure that employees are on track and there are no surprises during the end of year review.
Make your performance review a two-way conversation: Making the performance review a two-way conversation can help employees feel more engaged and invested in the process.
Prioritize objectivity: Prioritizing objectivity will help ensure that the review is fair and unbiased. Exceptional end of year employee review examples are characterized by a consistent and objective structure applied to each of your employees.
Back up your claims with examples and data: Backing up your claims with examples and data will help make the review less subjective, and increase buy-in from your team members.
Align on your expectations for employees: Aligning on expectations for your employees will help ensure that everyone is on the same page and working towards the same goals, and that they ladder up to the main organizational goals.
Leverage technology to standardize your performance review process: Using technology, such as AI tools for performance management, will help standardize your performance review process and make it more efficient. It will also centralize the data collected and help use it strategically moving forward.
Recognize and celebrate achievements: In addition to offering constructive feedback, take the time to recognize your employees’ achievements. This will help boost morale and motivation.
Clearly identify areas for improvement: Identify areas where your employees can improve and provide them with the necessary resources to do so. Don’t be vague—effective end of year employee review examples provide clear-cut, actionable feedback for employees to build on.
Provide training opportunities: An end of year review is a great time to remind employees about training available, and to brainstorm new growth tactics your team can take advantage of.
Encourage career growth: Help your employees to grow and develop their skills with training available to them. This will help them become more valuable to your organization down the road, and offer them engagement opportunities immediately.
Focus on the future: Use the end of year review as an opportunity to plan for the future. Set goals and objectives for the coming year in addition to looking back on their previous contributions.
Encourage teamwork: Encourage your employees to work together as a team. Think about how each individual is working together and make specific recommendations that help develop more effective collaboration.
Be consistent across your end of year reviews: Be consistent in your approach to performance reviews. This will help ensure that all employees are treated fairly, and the data you gather along with the goals you set are accurate and actionable.
Provide the support your employees need to succeed: Because these reviews act as a two-way exchange, it’s a great time to ask your team members what you can do to provide the support they need. This can include resources, training, and mentoring.
Be flexible when possible: While the core evaluation needs to be rigid, structured, and consistent, the approach you take with each individual can be tailored. Different employees may have different needs and require different approaches, and respond to a year end review differently. Take the individual into account when you conduct these reviews.
Encourage communication: Encourage open communication between you and your employees. This will help build trust and improve performance, as well as help fix problems as soon as they arise rather than go unaddressed.
Set realistic goals: Set goals that are challenging but achievable. Being able to actually meet goals is a major part of keeping employees engaged. Your employees hitting their targets also offers opportunities for recognition in the coming year.
Seek employee feedback about the review process: Actively seek feedback from your employees about the review process. This not only makes them feel valued but also provides insights into how to improve the process for the next year.
Address personal development: Discuss personal development goals with each employee. This can include both short-term goals for the next year and long-term career aspirations. Aligning personal development with organizational goals develops a sense of purpose.
Encourage peer feedback: Incorporate 360-degree feedback by encouraging employees to seek input from their peers. This holistic approach provides a more comprehensive view of your employee’s performance.
Highlight leadership skills: Acknowledge and discuss leadership qualities you see in your team members. For employees in leadership roles, emphasize the importance of effective leadership in driving team success, and take a look at opportunities where their leadership skills can provide additional value.
Discuss work-life balance: Ask your employees about work-life balance during the review. Understand the challenges employees might be facing and explore ways you can support a healthier work-life balance.
Recognize and celebrate adaptability: One area of assessment to put emphasis on is your employee’s adaptability to change. In a dynamic work environment, the ability to adapt is an incredibly valuable skill. Recognize instances where employees embrace change positively.
Promote inclusivity: Ensure that the review process is inclusive. Discuss diversity and inclusion efforts, and how you and your team are contributing to an inclusive workplace culture.
Plan for continuous check-ins: Emphasize that the end-of-year review is not a one-time event but part of an ongoing dialogue. Establish a plan for regular check-ins throughout the year, or discuss ways to update your existing structure if need be.
Prioritize the well-being of your team members: Show genuine concern for employees’ well-being. Inquire about their physical and mental health, and discuss ways the organization can support their overall well-being.

End of Year Employee Review Examples

There’s a lot to think about when conducting reviews, so we’ve rounded up 24 end of year employee review examples to help you draw inspiration from and incorporate into your next review cycle.

Peer performance reviews offer an opportunity for employees and their managers to get a better sense of how they work within a team, and bring a well-rounded perspective. These 8 end of year employee review examples illustrate both praise and constructive feedback to help peers improve their performance.

Tyler is a great team player and always willing to help out. He’s been essential in helping us meet our goals and hit our deadlines. Tyler always has a positive attitude and is willing to go the extra mile to successfully meet our objectives.
Nitesh is a creative problem solver and always comes up with innovative solutions. He’s been able to think outside the box and come up with solutions that have helped the team overcome challenges. Nitesh’s creativity has been super helpful for overcoming some challenging obstacles!
Xandria is an awesome communicator and always keeps the team up to date. She’s been able to effectively communicate project updates, timelines, and expectations to the team. Xandria has helped us stay on track and work more efficiently.
Ameed is very organized and always meets deadlines. He has been able to manage his time and prioritize tasks correctly. Sometimes, I wish Ameed would be a bit more of a team player and let the rest of us know what he was working on.
Erica is a great listener and always takes feedback constructively. After we talked about how her work could be improved, she took steps to use the feedback, and it shows in the quality of her work. Erica is always willing to listen and learn and has been a great team member to work with.
Amrita is a really hard worker, and her dedication is admirable. However, I find her tone to be a little unfriendly and she can sometimes be too-easily frustrated. I think working on communication would be a worthwhile goal for Amrita in the coming year.
Raj is great at problem solving and always shares interesting ideas. His ability to think creatively has been a major help in overcoming some creative obstacles this year, helping us hit our targets on several projects. Raj’s inventive thinking is a key to success on our team.
Helen is a great independent worker, and a definite self-starter. That said, I wish she would collaborate a little better, as it can be hard to work together on larger projects, or share workload when it becomes necessary.

Self-Performance End of Year Employee Review Examples

Self-performance reviews are a great opportunity for employees to advocate for themselves and bring attention to their contributions and accomplishments. These 8 end of year employee review examples illustrate the balance between self-promotion and accountability.

I have been able to meet all of my goals for the year and have exceeded expectations in some areas. I have been able to effectively manage my time and prioritize tasks to ensure that all deadlines assigned to me are met. I have been able to work collaboratively with my team to achieve our goals.
I have been able to improve my communication skills and have been able to work more effectively with my team. Owing to feedback I received, I worked to change the way I spoke with my team members, and I have been able to build stronger relationships as a result.
Over the last year I have been able to take on more responsibility and have been able to manage my time more effectively. I have been able to effectively prioritize tasks and ensure that all deadlines are met. I have been able to take on additional responsibilities and deliver high-quality work, despite the increase in workload.
Leveraging the training opportunities my manager suggested, I have been able to develop new skills and have been able to contribute more to the team. I have been able to take on new challenges and have been able to learn from my experiences. I have been able to effectively apply the skills I learned to my work.
I have been able to work more collaboratively with my team and have been able to build stronger relationships. I have been able to effectively communicate with my colleagues and have been able to work more effectively as a team. I have been able to contribute to a positive team culture.
One area I need to focus on is my organizational skills. I have found it difficult to track my tasks, and this has resulted in missed deadlines and some constructive feedback from my colleagues. I want to develop better organizational habits to avoid this moving forward.
I have been able to improve my problem-solving skills and have been able to come up with more creative solutions. I have been able to think outside the box and come up with solutions that have helped the team overcome challenges. I have been able to effectively apply my problem-solving skills to my work this year.
I am proud of learning from my mistakes and have been able to use those lessons to improve my performance this year. I have been able to effectively incorporate feedback into my work and have been able to improve my skills as a result. I look forward to carrying these lessons forward into next year.

End of Year Performance Review Examples for Managers

Managers play an integral role in employee performance, and help hold employees accountable while motivating them to grow. These 8 end of year employee review examples illustrate how to champion employees while offering constructive criticism to propel improvement.

Sully has been an exceptional leader this year, providing guidance, mentorship, and support to his team. He has been able to effectively communicate expectations and goals, resulting in a highly motivated and productive team.
Bonnie has been able to effectively manage her workload, ensuring that most deadlines are met and that her projects are proceeding efficiently. She has been able to identify areas for self improvement and is leveraging the necessary resources for professional growth.
Fares has been able to effectively communicate with his team members, providing regular feedback and guidance. He has been able to build strong relationships with his team members, resulting in a positive team culture.
Michael has not been able to effectively manage his workload, sometimes not completing tasks and missing deadlines. He has been receptive to feedback and intends to take steps to manage his time more effectively.
Diana has been able to effectively lead projects, providing guidance and support to those she works with. She has been able to identify areas for improvement in both herself and her team, and has been able to effectively communicate expectations and goals.
Cassandra needs to work on providing feedback to her team, some of whom haven’t been offered the guidance they need to succeed in their roles. She has been able to identify areas for improvement and has created an action plan to improve her communication.
Vishal has shown exceptional growth over the last year. After receiving feedback about a need for improvement in collaboration, Vishal has been able to build strong relationships with his team members, contributing to a positive team culture. His growing communication skills have helped the team stay on track and work more efficiently.
Tessa has been able to effectively manage her workload, meeting all her deadlines and working efficiently. She has been able to take on additional responsibilities and has been able to deliver high-quality work. Her dedication and work ethic have been great assets to the team.

Unlock Employee Potential With Standardized Performance Reviews

Omni’s customizable performance review feature allows managers to design work review templates to apply to various employee performance assessments, track employee submissions, and derive critical insights to drive business decisions all in one centralized platform.

A well structured end of year review cultivates a sense of ownership and accountability among your employees, and these end of year employee review examples are sure to help you navigate the process.

As they actively participate in reflecting on their performance, strengths, and areas for improvement, they become more invested in their professional journey. This engagement not only fuels individual progress but also contributes to a more vibrant and dynamic organizational culture.

By embracing continuous improvement for your next work review and referring to the end of year employee review examples and tips provided above, your organization can empower your employees to proactively shape their growth and development. With well-structured review strategies, your employees can confidently navigate the process, unlocking their full potential and driving both personal and organizational achievements.

Performance reviews don’t have to be a dreaded task, with the right framework, guidance, and end of year employee review examples the exercise can become a useful tool in self-reflection and professional development. For more resources to improve your review cycle,

Join the 83% of Omni customers who have unlocked new, actionable insights after using our performance management module, and book a free demo with our team today.

Gen Z is the next wave of talent entering the global workforce and joining the ranks of HR leaders. Born between 1997 and 2012, Gen Z currently makes up 30% of the world’s population and is expected to account for 27% of the workforce by 2025.

But unlike the older generations, Gen Z People Leaders are primed for the shift we’re witnessing as industries work to future-proof their HR strategies. As young professionals take the opportunity to leverage their experiences, sitting at the center of the zeitgeist, Gen Z are bound to bring fresh perspectives and a unique approach to everything from managing the employee lifecycle to approaching work life balance.

The race for up-and-coming talent is on, and companies that encourage an environment aligned with the expectations Gen Z has will have the edge in attracting and retaining talent. This responsibility falls to HR professionals who are at the forefront of organizational culture, and need the ability to adapt to the inevitable changes a Gen Z workforce brings with them, setting the foundation for the future of HR.

Understanding Gen Z in the Workplace

As the newest entrants to the professional arena, Gen Z brings a unique set of characteristics and traits to the workplace that are shaping the future of HR. Like the generations before them, working with and making the most of Gen Z’s generational characteristics will set your team up for success.

Gen Z individuals are the first true digital natives (as opposed to even Millenials—most of whom grew up in a pre-Google era). They’ve grown up in a world dominated by the internet, social media, and rapid technological advancements. Notably, Gen Z is characterized by their tech-savviness, an attribute that significantly influences their expectations and preferences in the work environment.

As the first fully-digital generation, Gen Z not only embraces technology but expects it to be seamlessly integrated into their professional lives. Their digital fluency is reshaping the future of HR practices, from recruitment strategies to embracing AI tools for employee engagement initiatives.

Besides their expectation and use of technology, Gen Z is also characterized by their entrepreneurial spirit, valuing creativity, innovation, and a collaborative work culture. Being presented with opportunities to participate collectively and share their creative side goes a long way towards engaging and motivating most of Gen Z.

Gen Z’s Impact on the Future of HR and the Workplace

With a strong desire for work-life balance, flexibility, and continuous learning, Gen Z is influencing not only how work is done but the very nature of professional development and career growth.

The Gen Z workforce-entrance is catalyzing major changes in the future of HR and workplace dynamics. Values which much of Gen Z holds dear—such as a strong emphasis on diversity, inclusion, and social responsibility—are pushing organizations to reassess and adapt their approaches, and bring extra emphasis to initiatives which support and advance these values in the workplace.

The Future of HR: Shifting Trends

As times change, HR best practices must evolve alongside cultural shifts. And with Gen Z representing a rapidly growing contingent in most organizations, the future of HR needs to adapt to the trends this tech-savvy, culturally unique demographic brings with it.

The growing ubiquity of Artificial Intelligence (AI), machine learning, and data analytics is revolutionizing the future of HR. Automation of routine tasks, predictive analytics for talent management, and the use of chatbots in recruitment processes are becoming commonplace. Understanding and harnessing these tools is essential for HR professionals aiming to streamline processes and enhance decision-making. And the embrace of technology is an important first step developing the digital-native environment Gen Z expects.

Cultural Shifts and the Rise of New Generations

Gen Z is defined by the distinct ethical expectations and values they embody. Many HR professionals are witnessing a shift towards a more inclusive, flexible, and purpose-driven environment. For companies looking to attract the best up-and-coming talent, it’s necessary to align their values with those of their employees, focusing on diversity and social responsibility.

Globalization and Remote Work

The globalization of businesses means that the future of HR has evolved into a more globally aware and interconnected function. With the rise of remote work, accelerated by technological advancements and the pandemic, the traditional in-office model is changing. Successful HR professionals need to explore strategies that manage geographically dispersed teams and nurture a sense of belonging and collaboration among remote workers—something particularly important to Gen Z employees.

With all that in mind, here are the four skills you’ll need to consider essential to develop and maintain to make the most of Gen Z and their potential on your team.

Skill #1: Digital Fluency

As the first true digitally-native generation, Gen Z brings an inherent familiarity with technology. This is a valuable asset for companies keen on leveraging new tech and requires a team capable of understanding and maximizing its value.

Luckily for tech-savvy HR professionals, the digital landscape has plenty of high-value HR technologies to choose from. Understanding and incorporating these tools, from applicant tracking systems to employee engagement platforms, will help your organization attract and maintain a deep and enthusiastic talent pool.

Digital tools are also transforming recruitment processes and employee engagement strategies. From social media recruitment to gamified training, technology is changing the way organizations interact with their employees and engage with their development. For Gen Z, this approach is incredibly important as it offers a more natural and familiar environment in which they can perform their best.

But developing this digital environment is about more than setting it and forgetting it. Leaders focused on the future of HR must keep up to date with industry-specific software and platforms to remain competitive. This includes understanding the latest trends in HR technology and upgrading your tech stack when new opportunities become available.

Skill #2: Data-Driven Decision Making

While data has always been important to HR professionals, understanding and leveraging it has become central to the future of HR. Called “people analytics” this approach involves using data to understand, manage, and optimize the workforce, and technology makes tracking this information easier than ever.

But it goes beyond simply looking at the data. Leveraging HR technology that can accurately track data means you can act on the information with confidence. Relevant information includes metrics like employee turnover rates, performance indicators, and engagement scores. By looking at these numbers you can take a look at the overall well-being of the workforce.

For instance, a spike in turnover might signal dissatisfaction, prompting an investigation to improve workplace satisfaction. Similarly, high engagement scores could indicate current strategies are having the right impact, encouraging HR to reinforce these positive behaviors.

HR leaders need to understand how to align data insights with organizational objectives, putting HR in the position of strategic partner in business planning. When you make recommendations for organizational improvements, pointing to data-backed research will carry more water with leadership and have a higher chance of affecting positive change.

How to Leverage AI Tools for Employee Engagement

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Skill #3: Inclusivity and Diversity Advocacy

Gen Z are defining themselves as champions of diversity and inclusion. Crafting a workplace that genuinely embraces diversity requires more than just meeting quotas. It’s up to HR professionals and organizational leadership to encourage a culture of inclusivity, going beyond mere compliance and genuinely fostering a sense of belonging for every employee.

Recruitment serves as the gateway to diversity. You should pursue strategies that resonate with a diverse pool of candidates, from crafting inclusive job descriptions to leveraging diverse sourcing channels. By elevating your recruitment practices with the cultural shift in mind, you’ll stand to attract talent from varied backgrounds, ensuring a richer tapestry of skills and perspectives.

How Company Values Shape Your Corporate Culture

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That said, unconscious bias can unknowingly seep into HR processes. These biases can impact recruitment, performance evaluations, and overall workplace dynamics. For Gen Z recruitment, unchecked biases can lead to missed opportunities and hinder diversity, which is particularly important for innovation and adaptability. Just like the importance of staying up to date on technology trends, overcoming unconscious bias requires regular awareness training and frequent refining to ensure fairness and equal opportunities in the future of HR.

Skill #4: Agility and Adaptability

Workplace expectations change fast and frequently, which means successful People Leaders must prioritize flexibility. This involves the ability to adapt strategies, policies, and approaches in response to evolving needs, industry trends, and the expectations of a diverse workforce. Flexible HR leadership helps to maintain an organization that remains agile when responding to emerging challenges and opportunities.

A growth mindset is a fundamental trait for successful HR leaders, helping them view challenges as opportunities for learning and development. Embracing a growth mindset involves promoting a culture where mistakes are seen as valuable lessons, fostering innovation, and encouraging continuous improvement in HR processes, strategies and the technology that facilitates them.

If you want your practices to remain relevant and successful, you have to proactively anticipate and prepare for these changes. Prioritize staying informed about industry shifts, leveraging emerging technology, and developing a forward-looking approach to address the future of HR and the trends and challenges that can be expected down the road.

Nurturing These Skills in the Next Generation of HR Leaders

HR Training and Development Programs

Establishing robust training and development programs is fundamental for nurturing these skills for the future of HR. Your organization should embrace targeted programs that address digital fluency, data-driven decision-making, inclusivity, diversity advocacy, agility, and adaptability—all skills directly tied to a Gen Z friendly environment, with a forward-thinking approach that will set up leaders for success in the future of HR.

Mentoring and Coaching Opportunities

The next generation of HR Leaders can benefit from the wisdom of the leaders who came before them, and mentorship is a huge part of this. Your organization can create or leverage existing mentorship programs, connecting experienced HR professionals with those looking to enhance their skills. Coaching opportunities, whether formal or informal, should be encouraged for personalized skill development, and targeted learning opportunities. This approach also helps establish the interconnected culture which is embraced by Gen Z.

Encouraging Continuous Learning and Skill-Building

Continuous learning is a cornerstone for HR professionals. It’s difficult to overstate the importance of creating a culture that encourages ongoing education. If there’s one takeaway from this piece, it’s that HR success is dependent on a culture of adaptability and flexibility, and continuous learning helps you stay ahead of the rapid changes that are defining the future of HR.

Recognizing that each HR professional has unique areas for growth, it’s essential to incorporate tailored development plans. Taking a personalized approach that aligns with individual career goals and the specific skill sets each HR leader seeks to enhance will have a greater impact and encourage deeper engagement than a one-size-fits-all approach.

Professional SMART Goal Examples and Techniques

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How Gen Z Skills Benefit Organizations

From increased efficiency through digital fluency to more informed decision-making via data-driven practices, organizations stand to gain a competitive edge in talent management, employee engagement, and overall business strategy. And with an increased focus on social welfare and collective values, companies have the opportunity to contribute to a global good in alignment with the beliefs of their growing workforce.

Attracting and Retaining Gen Z Talent

Gen Z talent is attracted to workplaces that align with their values and offer opportunities for growth. Organizations that exhibit digital fluency, inclusivity, and agility in their HR leadership are better positioned to not only attract, but retain Gen Z talent. Implementing flexible work arrangements, providing opportunities for continuous learning, and emphasizing social responsibility are some of the ways your organization can appeal to Gen Z.

Fostering Innovation and Agility in HR

Innovation and agility are critical in today’s fast-paced business environment. Successful HR professionals are leveraging the latest digital tools, data-driven insights, diversity advocacy, and are supported by HR Leaders that encourage an agile mindset focused on innovation. This kind of approach doesn’t just happen randomly—it requires champions that evangelize the importance of a forward-thinking approach. You can be this champion in your own organization, and encourage best-practices that will benefit your workforce now and into the future.

How Omni Equips People Leaders for the Future of HR

Modern HR automation tools like Omni free HR teams from administrative cycles by automating the entire end-to-end employee lifecycle—from recruitment and onboarding to employee engagement and payroll—allowing HR to redirect their time to the strategic elements that attract and suit the Gen Z workforce.

With Omni, you gain access to data-driven insights that empower informed decision-making, as well as seamless integrations that effortlessly connect with your existing employee favored systems, making your entire engagement process more efficient and modern.

Powering Asia’s fastest-growing, modern companies, Omni scales alongside your company so you can customize and leverage the system to meet your business exactly where you are—as well as where you’re going.

With a full suite of modules to support every aspect of your business, Omni’s platform offers an intuitive and fully customizable platform that integrates with your team’s favorite tools for a seamless and timely adoption, meeting the needs and expectations of your Gen Z workforce and beyond.

To learn more on how Omni can help you meet the future of HR, access a customized free demo for your team!

In order to stay ahead of the stiff competition to attract and cultivate talent, Human Resource professionals are on a perpetual quest for tools that not only assess performance but forecast and nurture employee potential. One of these is the 9 box talent review model, a framework growing increasingly popular for its ability to seamlessly assess present achievements while considering future capabilities.

As companies increasingly recognize the importance of strategic performance management, the 9 box model stands out for its help of HR professionals navigating the complexities of workforce development while future-proofing HR. Its rise to prominence reflects a paradigm shift in how organizations approach talent assessment and planning, placing an emphasis on a forward-looking perspective that aligns individual growth with broader organizational goals.

Here, we’ll take a look at the origins, components, and practical applications of the 9 box talent review model, giving you the tools to boost your talent management.

Understanding the 9 Box Talent Review Model

The 9 box talent review model, characterized by a 3×3 grid that assesses employees based on both their performance and potential, is proving to be a reliable partner for developing HR strategies. We did a deep dive on the 9 box grid in a previous blog, but keep reading for a high-level overview and tips for implementing the method into your performance management.

What is the 9 Box Talent Review Model?

The 9 box talent review model, conceived by McKinsey & Company, is a cornerstone of modern talent management strategies. This visual matrix helps evaluate employees along two dimensions—their current performance and future potential.

The grid, made up of nine distinct boxes, acts as a guide for making strategic decisions that resonate across an organization. Each box, placed through the intersecting axes of performance and potential, defines a category of where an employee is performing at the time of the talent review, and where their growth potential lies. The 9 box grid is an important element for shaping development paths, succession plans, and broader talent management frameworks and helping to identify and shrink employee performance gaps.

The Role of 9 Box Talent Reviews in HR

Beyond the immediate task of evaluating performance, use of the 9 box talent review model offers HR professionals a panoramic view of where employees are at in their development.

The success of this model lies in pinpointing high-potential employees, providing a methodical approach to performance appraisal, and acting as a compass in succession planning. In essence, this model becomes a strategic ally for HR professionals, aligning talent strategies with the overarching objectives of the organization amid the performance management cycle.

Benefits of the 9 Box Talent Review Model

The 9 box talent review model isn’t just a handy visual aid for performance tracking—it’s proving to be a catalyst for transformative HR practices. Its advantages include enhancing decision-making processes by offering a clear and holistic representation of how employees are truly operating in their function.

This clarity empowers leaders to make informed choices regarding promotions, training initiatives, and paths forward for their workforce. Beyond its strategic value, the model is a great tool for employee development. By illuminating areas for improvement and growth, it helps HR professionals create a robust talent pipeline. Application of the 9 Box talent review model ensures a continuous infusion of skilled employees tailored to meet the evolving needs of the organization.

Tips for Effective Management with the 9 Box Talent Review Model

As organizations strive for precision in assessing employee performance and potential, meticulous preparation (through talent reviews) and insightful interpretation of results become indispensable. This is where the 9 box talent review model really shines—it offers a holistic view of talent that is difficult to achieve with more conventional talent review techniques.

Preparing for Talent Reviews

Successful talent reviews require considerable preparation. HR pros know best the importance of a comprehensive data collection and analysis, diving deep into key performance indicators, project outcomes, and leadership qualities. This thorough examination builds the foundation for understanding employee performance, allowing for informed decisions during talent reviews.

Simultaneously, the process involves the definition of clear criteria for performance and potential. This allows for a structured assessment which provides a transparent framework for evaluating employees against predetermined benchmarks and is fundamental to the success of using the 9 box talent review model. The clarity established in this phase allows evaluators to align their assessments, ensuring a fair and comprehensive analysis that will ultimately inform strategic HR decisions.

The Total Performance Review Kit

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Conducting the Talent Review

Active involvement from key stakeholders—employees, managers, and HR—is necessary for the success of the talent review process. In this phase, it’s important to consult a variety of perspectives, akin to 360 degree feedback, to ensure a nuanced evaluation of each employee’s contributions.

The 9 box talent review model demonstrates its value by allowing evaluators to assess each employee’s position on the matrix, and make decisions based on this information. This collaborative approach not only develops alignment with predefined criteria, but also ensures a well-rounded evaluation that reflects the diverse insights of the stakeholders.

Upholding fairness and objectivity throughout the review process is crucial, contributing to the reliability and credibility of the assessments. Use of the 9 box grid in this phase allows for a comprehensive view of each employee, allowing HR professionals to make strategic decisions for talent development.

Interpreting the Results

Interpreting the results of a talent review goes beyond merely placing employees on a matrix. It requires evaluators to strategically identify employee performance gaps and strengths within the organization, and create a plan for positive change. This phase becomes the foundation for setting realistic goals and action plans for both individual employees and the team as a whole.

Leaders, informed by the unique positioning of each employee on the 9 box grid, can strategically plan for succession, development, and overall organizational growth. This phase transforms the 9 box talent review model from a static assessment tool into a dynamic strategic resource that guides the organization toward future success.

Communicating Feedback and Action Plans

Providing constructive feedback is the cornerstone of the 9 box talent review model. The focus in this phase is not only on celebrating employee strengths but also clearly addressing areas for improvement. This approach ensures that employees have a realistic view of their career trajectory, developing a culture of openness and continuous improvement.

The creation of individual development plans based on this feedback further instills a sense of direction and purpose among employees. It becomes a driver for motivation and engagement, helping to align individual aspirations with organizational goals.

What is a PIP? A Guide to Creating and Using Performance Improvement Plan

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Ongoing Monitoring and Review

The culmination of the talent review process doesn’t mark the end—rather it denotes the beginning of an ongoing cycle. Continuous monitoring and review are essential for tracking progress and making adaptive changes when necessary. This adaptability is especially important in fast-paced organizations where talent needs can rapidly evolve.

Regular check-ins and updates ensure that the 9 box talent review model remains a dynamic and responsive tool aligned with the changing demands of the business landscape.

Shrinking Employee Performance Gaps Through Analysis and Continuous Learning

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The integration of the 9 box grid into performance reviews represents a strategic approach to employee evaluation. Here’s how applying this matrix to performance reviews enhances the overall talent management process:

How 9 Box Grids support performance reviews

Holistic assessment: The 9 Box Grid provides a holistic view of employees, allowing for a comprehensive understanding of their contributions. Rather than focusing solely on past achievements, it incorporates future potential, providing a more nuanced perspective for performance reviews.

Strategic alignment: By using a 9 box grid in performance reviews, organizations can align individual performance with broader strategic goals. This ensures that evaluations are not only based on individual achievements but also contribute to the overall success and growth of the organization.

Identifying development needs: The grid helps in identifying specific areas of improvement for each employee. Whether it’s enhancing technical skills, leadership capabilities, or strategic thinking, the grid guides performance discussions towards actionable insights for development.

Combining performance data with potential assessment

Informed succession planning: Integrating performance data with potential assessment is crucial for succession planning. The 9 box grid aids in identifying high-potential individuals who can be prepared for leadership roles, ensuring a smooth transition and continuity in critical positions.

Talent pipeline development: It allows organizations to proactively develop a robust talent pipeline. By understanding not only how well an employee is performing currently but also their potential for growth, companies can strategically nurture and develop their talent pool.

Balanced decision-making: Combining performance and potential data enables a balanced approach to decision-making. It helps avoid situations where high performers in their current roles may not necessarily be the best candidates for future leadership positions, promoting fair and objective assessments.

Tailoring performance reviews to individual development plans

Personalized growth paths: The 9 box grid facilitates the creation of personalized development plans. For employees positioned in the high-potential category, the focus might be on leadership training, exposure to strategic projects, and mentorship opportunities. For those excelling in their current roles, the emphasis could be on skill refinement and specialized training.

Continuous feedback loops: The grid encourages ongoing conversations about development. It provides a framework for continuous feedback, allowing for timely adjustments to individual development plans based on changing circumstances, organizational needs, and the evolving aspirations of employees.

Employee engagement: Tailored performance reviews contribute to higher employee engagement. When employees see that their development plans are personalized and aligned with their career goals, it generates a sense of investment from the organization in their professional growth, leading to increased motivation and commitment.

Manage Performance with Precision Through Automation

Implementing performance models such as the 9 box grid into your performance management strategy is an impactful effort towards team effectiveness. Yet performance management requires additional systems and strategies to build enduring change within your organization.

Leveraging automation allows you to streamline your processes while gaining actionable insights for continuous improvement and team effectiveness.Through leveraging the power of automation, Omni allows HR teams and managers access to performance data that drives targeted approaches and informs methods like the 9 box grid to swiftly address performance gaps and fostering growth within your organization.

Our comprehensive and highly customizable performance review capabilities arm your team with the tools necessary to maintain regular performance analysis, and keep employees informed and motivated year round.

To join the 83% of Omni customers who have unlocked new, actionable insights after using our performance management module, book a free demo with our team today.

You may dream of growing your mid-sized business or increasing its production, or you simply want to expand your team. With all company growth comes a need for a robust HR team to keep things running smoothly behind the scenes. From time-consuming recruitment efforts to ever-evolving local, state, and federal labor laws, the pressure to keep up with workforce needs and compliance efforts can be a lot for a growing organization.

A Professional Employer Organization (PEO) can be a useful tool for companies looking to expand their reach without growing their HR team.

According to the National Association of Professional Employer Organizations (NAPEO), “Small businesses that work with a PEO grow 7 to 9% faster, have employee turnover that is 10 to 14% lower, and are 50% less likely to go out of business.”

Keep reading to find out exactly what a PEO is, how it works, how it ensures business growth, and to understand the potential drawbacks of working with a PEO.

A professional employer organization— also referred to as an employee leaving company—is a service that allows small and mid-sized businesses to outsource their HR administrative functions. Such Human Resource outsourcing forms what’s known as a co-employment arrangement—in which a business and a PEO share certain employment responsibilities.

A PEO can offer an array of HR solutions ranging from the most basic to more in depth. PEOs are equipped to handle the following functions:

Payroll management
Benefits administration
Regulatory compliance assistance
Skills training
Tax filing
Employee handbook drafting
Data analysis in real-time
Employee onboarding

In a traditional HR and employment management model, employers maintain full responsibility and control when it comes to managing employees. In a PEO arrangement, the service provider becomes a co-employer (the administrative employer), assuming agreed-upon employee-related responsibilities and liabilities.

When you outsource such operations, you still remain the worksite employer. This arrangement allows you to dedicate more time and energy to your core business operations, enhancing your services or products.

PEOs are particularly beneficial to small and medium-sized companies. They might have limited HR expertise or systems that can’t support payroll or HRIS on a large scale, all areas in which such service providers can help.

The Pros of Using a PEO

To determine if investing in a PEO is worth it, you should learn about its advantages and determine how these benefits may align with your business goals.

Cost Savings and Efficiency

Economies of Scale

NAPEO says, “The return on investment of using a PEO, in cost savings alone, is 27.3%.” This is possible thanks to the economies of scale—the cost advantages you enjoy when you streamline the production process.

Outsourcing HR functions helps you focus on your core business operations, which makes them more efficient and reduces errors, saving organizations time and resources.

In addition to the basic HR functions that a PEO supports, some services provide organizations with real-time insights and data analytics that help employers better understand their employee’s performance. This information can be used to address employee performance gaps, set performance goals, and improve team effectiveness for more profitable outcomes.

Streamlines HR Processes

PEOs help streamline HR processes by leveraging expert knowledge and technology to perform functions such as recruitment and payroll processing. According to Gallup, the cost of replacing an employee can range from 50% to 2x the employee’s annual salary. By outsourcing recruitment to a PEO, organizations reduce their overhead costs as they grow their team.

Whatsmore, PEOs allow HR teams to offload administrative functions that take up valuable time. The time saved by leveraging a PEO can be used to focus on more strategic functions, helping organizations become more profitable.

Access to Expertise

HR and Compliance Knowledge

With a PEO by your side, you gain access to its expert knowledge in global HR and compliance. PEOs offer HR services including recruitment, payroll, and tax management in your target countries. PEOs support and partner with your existing HR team to help fill knowledge gaps for management outside of your host country.

A PEO’s knowledge helps your organization navigate dynamic federal and state labor laws while It keeps your business compliant with various tax and payroll regulations.

Your Guide to Managing Payroll Hong Kong

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PEOs provide comprehensive benefit plans that encompass a full suite of insurance coverage, including general liability and workers’ compensation, along with other requisite insurance types based on each employee’s place of residence. Notably, PEOs undertake complete liability for the employment arrangement on behalf of the client company.

This goes beyond routine benefits such as health and dental. PEOs can help your employees navigate unique benefits native to their country of residence such as the Hong Kong Rental Reimbursement Scheme or Absentee Payroll Singapore.

Enhanced Employee Benefits

Attracting and Retaining Top Talent

Well managed benefits and lower prices are a direct advantage to both employees and employers. Comprehensive benefits are a key driver for talent acquisition, and are an effective way for organizations to demonstrate their employee appreciation.

By offering quality benefits and tailored assistance for employees in your target region, you help improve the likelihood of employee retention, further boosting productivity and business outcomes.

Competitive Benefits Packages

PEOs utilize their extensive reach and network to engage in negotiations with leading insurance providers to secure all-encompassing benefit packages for employees. This approach enhances the accessibility of healthcare plans for smaller businesses and allows them to extend competitive and appealing benefits, which, in turn, help in the attraction and retention of top talent. PEOs often offer an array of plans, encompassing health insurance, dental and vision care, retirement plans, short-term and long-term disability coverage, life insurance, and accident insurance.

Risk Mitigation and Compliance

Assistance With Legal and Regulatory Compliance

Working with PEOs makes them legal and tax-related employers, which means they assume the legal responsibility and manage risks when it comes to regulatory compliance.

As mentioned, their knowledge of federal, state, and local labor laws and tax standards enables them to keep your business compliant and evade fines and penalties with ease.

PEOs can help you create an employee handbook, accurately file employment tax forms and deposits, refer you to legal agents, prepare for compliance, handle immigration requirements such as the Singapore Employment Pass, and comply with sick leave and state worker classification laws.

If you partner with a certified PEO (CPEO), that means it meets the strict legal requirements of the IRS (for US based employees), meaning a CPEO can pay federal taxes for you, and potentially help you avoid instances of double taxation.

Improved Compliance Tracking and Reporting

PEOs play a pivotal role in guiding organizations through the complexities of tax regulations, employment laws, and healthcare mandates. They help ensure that businesses remain in compliance with local regulations to prevent any potential fines or penalties. Moreover, PEOs are responsible for the maintenance of comprehensive HR records and documentation, thereby guaranteeing that all essential records are readily available to meet compliance requirements. These records include personnel files, employment contracts, and documentation related to employee benefits.

The commitment to compliance is a continuous endeavor, as PEOs monitor any changes in regulations and promptly adapt their processes to align with them. This proactive approach helps businesses in addressing compliance challenges, thereby reducing the risk of incurring penalties.

The Cons of Using a PEO

Learning about the drawbacks of this co-employment model is just as essential as understanding its many advantages. Get acquainted with the cons of PEOs to best assess if this model is right for your organization.

Lack of Control

You’ll inevitably give up some control over your business if you outsource select services. After all, it’s the PEOs name that is listed on your employees’ paychecks. However, a PEO only takes on the services that you decide to outsource—mainly HR functions and risks.

In other words, you’ll remain in control of your staff and day-to-day business dealings, making operational decisions for your business. You’ll decide on work hours, pay rates, and schedules, as PEOs don’t replace your internal HR team, they only support to streamline administrative tasks.

With PEOs you’ll relinquish control on functions such as choosing benefits providers for insurance, tax filing, payroll administration, and any other administrative duties you’ve opted to enlist your PEO to handle.

Cost Considerations

PEO fees can vary, usually contingent on the number of employees in your workforce and the specific services you require. Many reputable companies will give you a cost analysis upon request. According to industry experts, the estimated average PEO costs typically range from 2% to 12% of total wages.

It’s important to consider the overall cost of in-house HR administration, including the potential revenue loss due to the time taken from your core business activities. In many cases, the expenditure on a PEO can be highly beneficial, potentially saving your company up to 35% on HR costs compared to what you might spend if you opted not to utilize a PEO for outsourcing payroll and HR functions.

Industry-Specific Limitations

Although PEOs typically give you better healthcare insurance rates and workers’ compensation rates, some businesses may not qualify for their group plan or you may need to pay more than if you choose traditional management. The bottom line is that PEOs tailor their services to your specific business needs, which means varying quotes. It’s best to talk with PEO providers to determine if services are a good fit for your industry.

How Can Omni Help International Teams?

Omni makes it easy to support employees across multiple countries, time zones, and currencies.

Our centralized document management solution makes gathering the necessary data required to apply for employment passes, rental schemes, and other country-specific initiatives seamless and timely. With customized workflows and automated reminders, HR can help empower employees to manage the deadlines and documentation requirements for applications. And centralized documents and real-time data makes it easy for employees to access salary information and produce reports and documents necessary for verification.

Offering a comprehensive payroll solution tailored to various countries specific requirements with features like support for HKD, SGD, and MYR, automated tax calculations, and managed contributions, Omni can help HR teams simplify their payroll processing and ensure compliance with ease.

Additionally, Omni’s customizable dashboard allows your teams to set and manage calendars pre-loaded with country or region specific holidays and timezones, seamlessly onboarding individuals in various locations.

Book a demo with our team to learn more about how Omni can support your international workforce.

The global market size of outsourced services was worth over $90 billion USD in 2019, doubling its value since 2000. With the rise of outsourcing, it’s only natural to question how you can source talent in the global market without establishing other bases around the world.

Many seamless solutions are there to help your business expand, such as a global employer of record (EOR), facilitating hiring and streamlining the recruitment process in foreign markets.

In this article, we’ll explore EORs, elaborating on their advantages and disadvantages to help you decide if an EOR is the right model for your business.

Defining an Employer of Record (EOR)

EOR is a third-party agency that takes on the legal responsibility of hiring, recruitment, payment, management, and HR processes on behalf of your company. In other words, they serve as the registered employer for oversea’s employees while you remain in control of the day-to-day operations.

It’s crucial to note that EORs don’t replace your HR resources (they only augment them) to help you manage your recruits. In that sense, they support a company’s goal of international expansion.

An EOR helps businesses of all sizes to employ talent from around the world, working across international borders with extensive knowledge and resources about various local markets and employment laws.

So what exactly falls under the responsibilities of an EOR? Simply put, EORs have the legal authority to conduct tasks pertaining to employment, immigration, benefits, and payroll, which are as the following:

Running background checks on potential candidates
Drafting, issuing, and maintaining locally-compliant employment contracts
Providing work visas and permits according to local laws
(such as helping navigate and apply for a Singapore employment pass)
Onboarding employees in the country you’re recruiting from
Withholding payroll costs and taxes from employees
Issuing wages and administering benefits
Managing timesheets and leave allowance
Terminating contracts when necessary
Compliance with offboarding and termination labor laws

To appreciate the weight that an EOR takes off your shoulders, let’s go back to a time when your only option was traditional employment. Maybe you’re running a company in APAC and want to expand your business operations to Guatemala.

You’d need to establish a subsidiary in that country, register your company with the local government, comply with local employment laws, handle taxes, insurance, and banking. If you wish to further expand to another country, you’d need to start that process all over again.

In other words, EORs make it easy for organizations to expand beyond their local borders while ensuring compliance with local laws and regulations.

The Pros of Using an EOR

EORs can open up a wealth of opportunities for organizations looking to expand their network of talent and business operations.

Global Expansion and Compliance

If you dream of your business expanding worldwide, that’s exactly what EOR is designed for. It facilitates global expansion by eradicating the need for a local entity in the foreign country, a process that consumes time, effort, and money.

Thanks to this employment arrangement, you pass on the logistics to the EOR who becomes responsible for negotiating complex international employment laws and negotiations. They empower you to tap into the international talent pool.

Speed and Flexibility

It can be weeks or even months before you hire international talent the traditional way. With an EOR, it can take only a few days, rendering this the fastest method of building a global workforce. That’s because you can skip establishing an entity in the foreign country you want your business to operate in. Also, EORs have a preset entity and on-call network of employees to help you dip into a well-trained talent pool.

After their recruitment, this system saves you the time needed for HR processes. You won’t need to spend hours processing and paying taxes in the different countries that your company employs in.

Even better, an EOR allows you flexibility in the size of your workforce. So, you can scale up or down your team to accommodate the workload and skill sets needed.

This flexibility is perfect for companies with fluctuating and project-specific needs. It’s also ideal for those who want to test the waters before they commit to a particular talent pool. Without the commitment of establishing an entity, you’re free to do so.

Risk Mitigation

The fear of breaching international labor laws will dissipate as another entity assumes full legal responsibility for compliance. An EOR is well-versed in the regulations for international employees and can evade penalties, fines, and legal disputes.

This is a more convenient arrangement than co-employment for business owners who are just delving into the international market, as a co-employment model holds companies partly responsible for legal compliance.

As for the international employees, they also enjoy a reduced risk since they feel at ease working under a local staffing agency.

That’s because this entity will withhold the right taxes, handle employee benefits as required by the law (such as paid, maternity, and sick leaves), compensate workers in cases of worksite accidents, and plan insurance policies.

Focus on Core Business

When you hire an EOR, you outsource administrative tasks. They carry out the onboarding process, prepare hires for the job, have their individual payroll software, and handle payment for all the employees they help recruit. This takes a significant amount of work off of HR’s plates, allowing you to focus on more strategic initiatives such as building company culture and closing performance gaps.

Shrinking employee performance gaps

Learn more

As a business owner, you still maintain control. This efficient and productive employment process enables you to truly focus on your core business operations, as you have the resources and time to do so.

The Cons of Using an EOR

Understanding the downsides will help you determine if EOR is the right choice for your company.

Cost Considerations

If you’re recruiting many employees, the cost of an EOR structure can add up. You might be paying a premium to the EOR-providing service along with additional costs for issuing benefits for a big workforce.

On the flip side, if you are running a smaller team, paying for an EOR can have the opposite effect, saving you administrative and management costs (particularly in the setup phase!)

Not to mention, EORs can help you avoid penalties for labor law breaches thanks to their in-depth knowledge of local regulations.

Loss of Direct Control

While EORs help administer your payroll processes, it comes at a loss of control for your HR team. EOR providers operate on their own pay schedules that may differ from your organization, resulting in EOR managed employees being paid at a different frequency than local employees.

Consider the payroll process and insurance policy of your EOR before committing to them if this is a concern. You’ll find processes and policies stated in the service agreement.

Complexity in Global Operations

It’s common to face communication and coordination issues when you globalize your team. Whether it’s a cultural barrier, language barrier, or time difference, many factors can make communication a challenge between local and international employees.

This draw-back isn’t so much a result of utilizing an EOR as it is the growing pains of a global workforce. Much like managing a hybrid workforce, global organizations need to prioritize culture and ensure communication and expectations are clearly outlined and nurtured to remain aligned across teams.

How Can Omni Help International Teams?

Omni makes it easy to support employees across multiple countries, time zones, and currencies.

Book a demo with our team to learn more about how Omni can support your international workforce.

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Ways on increasing efficiency at work

1. Organize a to-do list

2. Remove distractions

3. Batch similar tasks together

4. Take breaks

5. Clean up your workspace

6. Communicate clearly

7. Delegate effectively

8. Establish realistic goals

9. Develop a routine

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Examples of Synchronous Work

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Benefits of an Asynchronous Work Environment

Increased Flexibility

Reduced Stress and Anxiety

Improved Focus and Productivity

Greater Ownership and Accountability

Improved Diversity and Inclusion

Roadmap to an Asynchronous Work Environment

1. Assess your readiness

2. Set clear expectations and guidelines

Define core working hours

Outline communication protocols

Establish meeting policies

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5. Continuously adapt and improve

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Termination with cause

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Factors in Determining a Notice Period

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Industry standards

Company policies and practices

Employee performance

Business needs

Employee turnover rate

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Proactive Measures in Implementing Notice Periods

Clear communication

Exit interviews

Effective transition planning

Provide incentives

Leverage performance reviews

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The Power of Streamlined Notice Period Management

Give it in real time

Understand what motivates each individual

Check for bias

Get specific about both positives and negatives

Encourage self-feedback