Human Resources Management 1.docx PDF

Hello, hello everyone. So, all of you, of course. The session in English of Stefano Cera is \"Stephen Wax\" which can sound better and more powerful than Italian, okay? But anyway, my name is Stefano, and I am very happy to share this module with you. This is the first time that we meet because I ha...

Hello, hello everyone. So, all of you, of course. The session in English of Stefano Cera is \"Stephen Wax\" which can sound better and more powerful than Italian, okay? But anyway, my name is Stefano, and I am very happy to share this module with you. This is the first time that we meet because I had the opportunity to meet some of your colleagues, for example, during the \"Leaders of Tomorrow\" module. I met some colleagues from different Master\'s programs, but today is my first time with you. First of all, I want to briefly introduce myself. I have been cooperating with Rome Business School for quite some time. I had the opportunity to start collaborating with our business school after the end of the pandemic situation in October 2020. So, a long time ago---this is my fourth year together with Rome Business School---and I am involved especially in some Master\'s programs. For example, the Project Management Master\'s was my first, which I became involved with more than four years ago. I am also involved in a second Master\'s in Human Resources because I had the opportunity to work---I have\... Okay, I heard a noise; maybe a microphone was open. Anyway, I was introducing myself, and I had the opportunity to work also in the Master about Human Resources. These are my main involvements in Master\'s programs, but consider also that I am involved in managerial lessons---the first lessons at the beginning of Masters and also at the end of these. Okay? Okay. Thank you very much, thank you very much. I have read the message by Geneva. Okay, okay. Yes, we know that we have people from four different Master\'s programs: Finance, Supply Chain and Sustainability, and also Pharma, okay? Then I want to introduce myself also in a more formal way. Consider that I had the opportunity to work within an American-based corporation for a long time. I worked there up to 2008. I was in the training service office and was also responsible for quality assurance for my service. In general, for one of the three main branches in the Italian part of the corporation, I was responsible for activities relating to quality assurance processes for more than 600 people. Okay. In the meantime, I see in the chat that we are sharing some links in order to let other people attend this module. Anyway, from the end of my work in the corporation, I am a freelance professional in training and coaching, and I am also a speaker. In fact, I have a program on the radio here in Italy on Monday nights; usually on Monday nights, I am involved in this kind of activity. I am a trainer, I am a coach, as I told you, and I have the opportunity to work with a lot of companies---large companies, mid-sized companies, and also small ones---because I work with some companies that work with and for different companies. Of course, I have been collaborating since 2020 with our business school, and I am also a member of the national board of an Italian association called Connectance. The association is focused on training processes and especially on working for trainers. I had the opportunity also to publish some books about training. The last one, unfortunately in Italian, I published last year, and the topic is related to the use of videos and movie scenes in training activities. And because I have a real passion for movies and so on, I want to introduce myself also through three different movies. Okay, sometimes I read the messages in the chat in order to check that everything is okay also for other colleagues. My first movie, my first favorite movie, is \"The Family Man,\" because it represents very well my being as a father. Okay, I have two sons, Matteo, 19 years old, and Riccardo---or better, Matteo and Riccardo. \"The Negotiator\" is a wonderful movie about negotiation, but this was also my first movie that I used in training activities a long time ago. Consider that I started to deliver training courses in 1998. The third one, \"The King\'s Speech.\" First of all, it is a true story. Second, it is my favorite movie in public speaking because my topics in working with people and with different organizations---my favorite topics are related to soft skills in general and in particular to effective communication, and also, why not, negotiation, but public speaking, storytelling, and presentation design. Okay, that\'s enough to introduce myself. But I am here today to talk about human resources management, and I had a wonderful opportunity when I worked in the corporation because, considering that I was on the staff of the human resources manager in my company---because I was a trainer and also responsible for quality assurance---I delivered a lot of training courses, also in some onboarding activities. Okay, consider that onboarding is one of the most important parts---one of the most important topics---in human resources management, and not today, but on Thursday, we will have the opportunity also to work on onboarding, induction, and acclimation---that are the first processes during the life of a newly hired person. And because I was involved in this kind of activities, I also have this kind of experience in working with people. I was a company mentor, a tutor, and so on. And another of my real passions at work is also to support people to develop their talents. So I am here also to talk about my experience in mentoring, in tutoring, and in supporting the talents of other people. Very good. Let\'s start with the module index. As you know, we will have two different parts---the first one this afternoon, this evening also, from 6 pm to 9 pm---and the three main topics that are related to human resources management are related to processes of human resources management and responsibilities. Consider that we have seven different processes, and today we will see and we will check every kind of process that is involved in the management of human resources. Of course, we have not only processes but also some specific responsibilities, considering that some of them are related to specific responsibilities of the human resources manager and staff, and some of them are shared with the service delivery responsibles. Okay, so we have some responsibilities that are in charge of human resources management and their staff; some of them are instead shared with service line responsibles. Point number two: recruitment and selection. In particular, today we will talk about the first point and also the second one. Why? Because recruitment and selection are the beginning of the work of human resources management, and these two are very important in general about the entire life of the company, and in particular processes related to human resources management. Point number three, as I told you, is related instead to onboarding and retention. Why onboarding and retention? Let\'s see that we have seven different processes, and we could have lots of different perspectives, little focuses on processes about human resources. Of course, because we have three hours today, three hours on Thursday, I propose to you---and I am proposing to you, and I will propose to you---some, not all processes, but in particular processes that I consider really important, or at least that are important at the beginning of the life of a newly hired person and also in the meantime. Because at this moment I am working also with some, I don\'t know, labor agencies, and I have the great opportunity to know some specific data about motivation and about retention. Consider that at this moment, retention---probably in Italy but not only in Italy---is the real big challenge for companies, okay? How to retain talents and how to retain people, because we are witnessing a specific phenomenon through which not only younger generations---I don\'t know, Gen Z and Millennials especially---but also the older generations---for example, Boomers, for example, Generation X---okay, I believed I was a Boomer, but in reality, I\'m not a Boomer because I was born in 1965---that is the first year of Generation X up to 1981. So it can sound very strange the fact that also older people, people like me, for example, in companies and small people, decide to leave, to quit the company, even if these kinds of people have no specific alternative. That\'s why retention---for me, but not only for me, of course, but for companies especially---is the real challenge at this moment, and that\'s why I want to propose to you also this specific focus. Okay, HR processes and responsibilities: recruitment, selection, and onboarding and retention. These are the three main points that we will talk about in these two modules---in this module, in these two specific classes. What about today? The contents of today. First of all, the importance of human resources management---in some parts I already talked about it, but I want to focus on some specific points also because I just want to know your ideas. We are many today, so I prepared also some specific surveys through Mentimeter in order to give you the chance to talk about and also to write something and to make your considerations about some points. First of all, human resources management. Second point about today: HRM and its functions---main functions of human resources management, of course. Then responsibilities, and also we will start to talk about the phase of HR planning, selection, recruitment, of course, and so on. These are the four main points about today. So let\'s start with the importance of human resources management. First of all, of course we are many, okay? But I ask you to write what is for you a brief definition. I tell you that I will not have the opportunity to read each comment, but I ask you because you are many. I want to create a sort of interaction between us: what is human resources management for you? What does it mean in your idea? I don\'t want a scientific definition---quite boring---but just your idea in terms of, I don\'t know, a keyword or some keywords if you want, brief sentences, whatever you want. And I promise that I will read some sentences or some definitions or some keywords. Please share in the chat, and I will wait some minutes in order to collect some contributions, and I want to read some contributions. Maybe not because we have no time, because we are too many, but just to have your idea about human resources management, okay? \"Managing the organization\'s employees through hiring, onboarding.\" Okay, Maria. \"How to have a good relationship with employees?\" Yes, Maria, because it\'s a specific process even to choose the best people to work with. I want to---okay, \"to choose the best people to work with, contribute their best to them.\" Yes, choose the best people---selection, recruitment---that is a specific process. Later we will see all processes, of course. Eddie: \"Management of talent is involved, getting the chance, supporting and development.\" Thank you very much. Leadership. Very good, leadership. Leadership is a specific skill---for me, it\'s more than just a skill, okay? Because it\'s a sort of integration of\... Wait, this is another story, this is another master, this is another kind of lesson, but leadership---I like this kind of contribution because, in effect, I think that human resources management is one of the real leaders within the organization, directly checking and working on some processes, and not indirectly through the work also of service line responsibles. Thank you, Dalia. Andrea: \"Enable leadership.\" Yes, again. \"Retain and engage\"---retain and engage. So, something more about leadership, Andrea. Thank you. \"Management of selection,\" Rejan---sorry, I hope to pronounce it the right way---\"manages the employees\' experience, HR workforce-related functions.\" Okay. \"In charge of recruiting,\" yes. \"Of taking care,\" yes, because it\'s a specific process about taking care of people. \"Sourcing for talent,\" yes, Carl. Alexander: \"Leveraging, coordinating, developing resources\"---best, yes, this is Carl Alexander. Another specific process, thank you very much. Alessia: \"Being able to manage your processes related to people.\" Thank you. Dimitris: \"Actually is a business partner.\" Okay, maybe about the role of HR management, I think, Dimitris. Thank you. \"Strategic approach to managing\"---okay, that is the first part of planning. This is important in planning activities, as we will see later. Antonio: \"Capacity to hire,\" of course. Thank you, Antonio. Martina: \"Hiring resources.\" Jasper: \"Managing everything\"---yes, contracts. Jasper, industrial relations is a specific process. I am very happy because we are focusing on all seven different processes, and so, very good. Arianna: \"Ability to manage people.\" Alma: \"Ensures the employees are seen as human beings---are this value?\" I hope that all companies can consider this as a real value, because in my experience sometimes it\'s not so---the right value to which companies work for. Thank you, Alba, for your important contribution. Maria: \"Optimizing employee potential, growth, and success.\" Alejandra: \"Victoria: enable people and companies to be at peak performance---support and development again.\" Thank you, Victoria. John: \"Manages staff from entry to separation/retirement.\" Yes, Maria. Serena: \"Strategy for hiring---general outlook of recruiting to improve.\" Okay. Thank you, Geneva, \"working with people through hiring, training.\" Okay, in the chat. \"Value for the company by ensuring satisfaction.\" Okay, this is another important process. Sometimes I read very quickly because we are ready to talk about some points, okay? But I stop when I see a new process that is important to talk about. Thank you, Vincent: \"No idea, everything related to people, workspace, volunteering.\" Thank you very much, because I think that you focused on the seven different processes in human resources management. You focused through your contributions on your own words---this kind of different processes. Later, I want to share with you these processes. Okay, let\'s return to the presentation and slides. Just give me one minute in order to return to the slides. What are the dreams of an HR manager? As you told me, hiring the right person for the jobs, and this is the first challenge, okay? Securing---main challenge---experience, low turnover, and third point, having your people doing their best. I think that, as a summary, these are the main dreams in terms of the main processes that are involved. In fact, I could say lots of your contributions were focused on these kinds of goals, these kinds of objectives: hiring the right person, experiencing low turnover, and having people doing their best or reaching peak performance. Well, now I ask you to transform your definitions into some keywords. Consider that I have been collecting since a long time the ones during different intakes, because I started, if I remember well, two or three intakes ago. Ah, yes, two people. And today I ask you to define your three keywords---only three keywords, no more---to summarize human resources management in terms of processes, in terms of responsibilities, in terms of, I don\'t know, goals, objectives, whatever you want. But it is important in order to have a sort of vocabulary of human resources management that I want to share with you. And I give you some minutes. This is the QR code, okay? Dimitris, if you want, you can use the chat; otherwise, I ask you, if you can, of course, to use the Mentimeter. Okay, no problem, no problem, Dimitris, no problem. You can lengthen also the answers in chat, but because I am interested in having this general cloud later, of course I want to share with you this vocabulary that I have been building for a long time. I give you the opportunity to respond by scanning the QR code with your device, and you can have access. Otherwise, I give you also the link if you prefer to have the link, no problem. Just give me, okay, minutes. I want to write in the chat, link. Link is the same as---otherwise, you can have also this other way to access---you can go to this site: menti.com. Okay, thank you, thank you, answer. When you access this page at got.com, you can insert the code 8731923. Note that you have three different ways, but the page is the same. Okay, so I\'ll wait a few minutes. There are many of us, so I\'ll wait a few minutes to give you enough time to respond, and then I want to share the results with you---not only yours but in general, since the beginning of this workshop that I started, if I remember well, some time ago. Okay, I\'ll wait at least two or three minutes. We have a lot of participants. Okay. Okay, Alejandra, don\'t worry. It\'s not necessary to respond that you have done it; it\'s important that you do it. Don\'t worry. Don\'t worry. Okay, because I see---of course, I cannot see who responded, but I can see the number of people responding. Okay. Yesterday 18:32 Okay. Yesterday 18:32 Okay. We started with, if I remember well, about 105 members, and now we are 227. So I\'ll wait a few minutes. Okay, I\'ll wait two or three minutes to give all of you time to respond, because in this word cloud, we have some important keywords. Of course, all keywords are important because they are your choices, but by collecting our information, we see that we have some frequent answers. Okay? Hello, everyone. Okay, another two minutes. Let me count the answers in the chat: one, two, three, four, five, six\... Fifteen, fourteen. Okay. Another two minutes. Okay, I see your messages. Okay, so we are more than before. If I counted well, we have 40 people responding. Okay, another minute, and then I want to share the results with you. Because through this word cloud, we can also see the different inputs---the different keywords and the most important keywords that all participants, not only you today but also in the other sessions, consider as really important in human resources management. Okay? Now, I want to share the results with you immediately. I\'ll share the screen. Okay, this is the screen. I don\'t know if you know Mentimeter; it\'s a typical tool that I use in my online activities to conduct good surveys. Well, we have important results from this activity. This is a word cloud with a lot of different responses. Consider that we have more than 700 responses from more than 240 people responding. Okay. In the middle, we find the most important keywords about human resources management, according to your responses and also the responses of your colleagues. In particular, we have some keywords that we already used: training, recruitment, people, support, development, organization, relationship, hiring, performance, and so on. We have the most important keywords that are related to some specific parts of human resources management processes. The part related to the beginning of the life of a new person within the organization is selection, recruitment, hiring, and so on. Another important process is called learning and development, because if the beginning is very important in order to hire the right person for the right job for the right role, it\'s also important to keep and maintain motivation, satisfaction, and so on. In the next part of this module on Thursday, we will also see the different mechanisms of motivation that can facilitate or not facilitate the dynamics of retention and satisfaction, of course. So training and development---learning better and development---are related either to adding something new, for example, to reskill for some specific reasons and specific roles, but also as a part of professional growth and professional development of skills. Okay, so training, recruitment, support, development---support just to give this kind of assistance. In companies, I was an internal mentor. Consider that we have some differences, and some companies consider mentors and tutors in different ways. I was a mentor in general. According to my experience, mentors are people who are within the same organization, who work within that organization but are not related and are not within the same sector, field, or area of the people who are your mentees. Okay, you can be an area leader; you can be the mentor for a person within another field within the same company. This is called mentoring. And in my experience, I see that mentoring is used in this way---not only in my company at that time but also in my activities and my work as a consultant and coach. I see that this is also a good way to consider and to work with people within the same company. A different thing is to interact as a tutor. A tutor can be, for example, a person who is outside the company, who sometimes can be involved, like I was involved in some organizational academies in order to deliver some coaching sessions. For example, consider that also within Rome Business School, especially for executive master\'s for your Italian colleagues involved in executive master\'s, I deliver some coaching sessions, and in a sense, I can be considered as a tutor. Why? Because in delivering these coaching sessions, I work with your Italian colleagues in order to have an interaction about some specific points---I don\'t know, career advancements, advice about different aspects of professional growth and career, and so on. But mentorship and tutorship are sometimes considered as similar, but note that some companies consider mentorship and tutorship in different ways. Mentors are internal figures within the company; tutors are outside the companies. But together, both mentors and tutors work to support the development of talents of people involved---acting as a coach, acting as a counselor, acting as your consultant. I don\'t know. But it\'s important; this kind of work is important for supporting talent development. But we have also other kinds of keywords, because in the middle, we have the most frequent answers. But we have also other kinds of keywords---for example, problem- solving. Some of you before in the chat told me that one of the key roles of a human resources manager and his or her staff, of course, is to work for people, in taking care of people. In fact, this is also a specific process within human resources management. So problem-solving is also something that is related either to solving some specific problems of human resources but also in solving problems related to the work, okay? Some problems about contracts, for example, and so on. That\'s why I appreciated a lot your contributions, because you covered lots of different processes that in some cases we see also within this cloud. Let me check also without glasses in order to see better: talent acquisition, of course; to be supportive, yes; management, talent, selection, relationship, emotional intelligence---wow, a big issue because emotional intelligence, for example, is a tool by which not only human resources managers but also service managers, service line managers, deliver coordination, can deliver leadership about people and for people. Motivation is another important pillar of the work for people, and in fact, in the next part, we will talk about motivation and retention, because motivation and satisfaction, which are two linked specific topics, are very important in terms of retention---how to retain people. Okay? So motivation, study, selection are directly involved in this part of things. Relationship---yes, of course, relationship. Why? Because relationships are related---sorry for the repetition of words---at least in two different processes within human resources management, as we will see later. Conflict resolution---why not? Maybe it\'s not the most frequent answer, but it\'s an important keyword. Conflict resolution---consider that in 1989, I just want to write also this, I love the book titled by two different American authors called Lax and Sebenius. They wrote a wonderful book about negotiation. As I told you, I started to teach negotiation topics and negotiation skills. The title of this book is \"The Manager as Negotiator,\" and this is an important book related not only to negotiation but also to the art of leadership. Consider that, just to give you an example, at this moment in Italy, lots of courses are focused for managers, for leaders, to act as a coach. It seems that coaching, tutorship, mentorship can become a real skill for managers and leaders, according also to some specific studies and research. Leadership is another important part in which you can apply some coaching techniques. We have other responses. So you have seen some changes. Okay, training and recruitment are considered other important keywords. Let me see: onboarding---yes, another important keyword. But about this word, I don\'t want to give you some more information because it will be a specific focus, and we will have a specific focus on that part on Thursday. Okay? Thank you very much. We have a lot of different important keywords and interesting keywords. This is just a way for me to involve you, and later I want to involve you again for other kinds of reflections. But now I want to return to the presentation in order to have, okay, and to give you two simple definitions. Okay, I chose two definitions that are quite large, quite wide, in order to let a lot of things enter within a box related to human resources management. By Stone (2005), where HRM is related to managing people within the employer-employee relationship. So it\'s something important in terms of relations, and it involves also the productive use of people in achieving the organization\'s strategic business goals and the satisfaction of individual employee needs. So the keywords, according to this kind of definition, are relationships between employer and employees, the productive use of people, and also the satisfaction not only of the company\'s needs and organizational needs but also individual needs. The second definition that I want to share with you is by Carbery and Cross (2018). It\'s quite simple and is related to perspective: HRM is a long-term perspective which focuses on the links between personnel functions and their contributions to organizational goals. It depends, it depends. That\'s why I told you that HR management processes---some of them are delivered directly by human resources, some of them are related also to a sort of cooperation, collaboration with service line managers. Because, of course, consider that it depends on a lot of things. I want to tell you a story. At this moment, I am a freelancer, and I work with different kinds of companies---large companies, medium companies, and also sometimes small companies. Yesterday 18:50 I work with different kinds of companies---large companies, medium companies, and also sometimes small companies. Yesterday 18:50 Years ago---yes, in 2020, if I remember well---I had the opportunity to work within a very small company near Rome. I am from Rome, so I live in Rome center---I was born in 1965---and I worked as a consultant for a small company. Small company in terms of numbers but very large in terms of work because they work for a lot of different big companies. I don\'t know---Amazon---they\'re working in the garbage sector. So they work for some companies, for example, working also for Amazon, just to give you an idea, and also other kinds of companies, and so on, if I remember well. And I remember that I was there to talk about and to deliver a course about communication. And I entered the room in which there were 10 people belonging to different fields, to different sectors of the organization. And, of course, I had also a manager. He told me that, yes, he was the HR manager, but in reality, he was not only the HR manager because he was ad interim---ad interim means an ancient Latin word, not Italian of course, meaning that ad interim is a temporary manager about other kinds of sectors, for example, quality assurance, for example, sustainability, for example, diversity and inclusion. So he was one who had different kinds of roles. Why a direct role as HR manager? Other---not necessarily direct---but in reality, through a temporary assignment, he became a lot of things. In this sense, as you can imagine, it was not possible to reach all kinds of goals. But it depends on a lot of different things. For example, in large companies, these kinds of definitions, these kinds of goals can be best reached. In small companies, please, according to my specific opinion and experience, I see that sometimes it\'s not so easy. It depends on the organization\'s staffing, why not autonomy, and so on---a lot of things. So the answer to your question is: it depends. Depends on a lot of things, but it\'s important to have in mind this kind of idea because even if it can sound ideal, it\'s also a tendency, a direction to work for, and sometimes can be also a good way to work for and to approach some values related to HRM. In general, I can tell you, yes, some processes are delivered directly, in terms of specific responsibility in charge of human resources management. In other cases, it depends on the collaboration, cooperation of service line managers. Just to give you an example, according to my corporation---well, not mine, of course---the company in which I worked for a long time, every kind of service had a reference point, a person that was at our disposal, working for us in terms of coordinating, cooperating with us for a lot of different services. Not 100%---in the sense that it\'s not related that all processes are delivered 100% by HR, of course, because some of them are delivered totally, some of them not totally. In this sense, if it is the sense I correctly understood your idea. Okay, let\'s return again to the\... Anyway, well, let\'s start with functions about human resources management. Very good. So let\'s return to the presentation about the functions of human resources management. I want to give you some information also through some specific videos. In fact, for you, I prepared three videos today in order to give you some information not only about the processes of human resources management but in general also about some different perspectives. The first one that I want to propose to you is a video by TED.com. This is not a very famous video, but for me, it\'s very interesting, and I invite you also to follow Patty McCord, who is an expert in leadership in organizational management and an author in HR management processes. And you can find within TED.com her two TED Talks---two specific videos that are very important. Today we have time to watch only one, but I invite you also to go to the TED.com site and to find also the other contributions by Patty McCord that I consider very important in order to give you some specific information about organizations. So it\'s good also in general about organizational development and so on, and in particular, this video that we will watch together because it\'s very interesting, especially after the changes that were caused by, for example, the pandemic situation. In fact, the title is \"Four Lessons the Pandemic Taught Us About Work, Life, and Balance,\" and because we are talking about functions of HRM and roles and later also roles and responsibilities, I think that this could be a good introduction about this aspect. Now, I share with you, of course, the link---oh sorry, the link, the screen---but I want to give you also briefly the link, okay? So for any kind of reason you lose the connection, you can have the opportunity to watch the video by yourself. Now, I share the screen. Okay. Okay, I think that\'s all. It\'s ready. Yes. I checked before. We can start: \"Four Lessons the Pandemic Taught Us About Work, Life, and Balance.\" From the world giving talks to big corporations and little bitty startups and lots of leadership teams and women\'s groups, and what I\'ve been talking to people about---I\'ve been trying really hard to convince people that we can change the way we work. But every time I do a talk, somebody comes backstage or follows me off stage and says, \"You know, I\'m so inspired by what you say. It\'s so great. It makes so much sense, but we can\'t because we\'re regulated. We cannot because our CFO says we can\'t do it. We cannot because we\'re in Europe. We can\'t because we\'re a service industry. We can\'t because we\'re a non-profit.\" And then last year came the pandemic, and the pandemic changed everything. All over the world, service people started realizing that they had to suit up and wear masks and take temperatures and wash their hands. We had to start standing six feet apart in lines. We started working from home. We started working virtually, and we started learning all kinds of things because we had to. All that muscle around innovation and flexibility and creativity that we didn\'t think we had, we had all along. And we now have realized that we can. So what have we learned? I mean, what did we learn right away? First of all, we learned we\'re not family. The family is the toddler walking around behind you in the Zoom call with the pet. The family is somebody needing their diaper changed. The family is making sure you\'re taking care of your mom. That\'s your family. This is your team. And we\'ve also learned that that separation between family and work has become this balancing act, and that when we used to say, \"Well, this is my work home, and this is my family home,\" and those are two completely different things---for many of us, it\'s exactly the same thing. You\'re no longer at home and at work; for many of us, work is at home and home is work, and it\'s confusing, and it\'s creating a whole different level of complexity and coordination so that we understand that it\'s easier actually to work when we can separate the work that we do as a team from the work that we do in our family. Furthermore, in order to be able to do all that, we have to recognize that we\'re all adults. And here\'s the deal about adults: adults have responsibilities, adults have obligations, adults have things that they have to commit to and do. You know that every single person that works for you, from the shop floor to the executive suite, is grown-up, but we have been operating as if they aren\'t. We operate as if only the smart adults are the people who are at the C-suite, and as we move through the organization, everybody sort of gets a little dumbed down, and the rules get a lot stricter around we have to have more control. The truth is, everybody\'s a grown-up. We can see it now. Everybody has all of these things to figure out and coordinate. And so now we\'re expecting from people adult behavior. We\'re now focusing on the results that matter, not the work. And the way we track it now is we don\'t walk by and see who\'s working; we pay attention to what people are doing. And I think that that\'s always been the best metric. And you know what? For the first time in my life, the concept of best practices is out the window. And you know what? We don\'t care what Google\'s doing because we\'re not Google. We don\'t care what some other company is doing; nobody\'s doing it best. We\'re all figuring it out as we go along, and we\'re figuring it out for our organizations, in our teams, at this time. So in order for people to deliver the right results, in order for people\'s hard work to matter, it has to be in the context of what success looks like for your organization. So if we start to think about context, it\'s really important that we think about how we teach that. If we can teach everybody in the company how to read a profit and loss statement, if we can teach them what the different teams do and what they\'re setting out to accomplish, then people within their own small teams and within themselves can figure out what excellence looks like for them. And so then we can start operating relatively independently as a whole organization because we\'re all moving in the same direction, trying to do the same thing. And there\'s a really critically important part of making that work, and that\'s communication, and everything about communication has changed. We tend to think that communication is this waterfall from the top to the bottom. Executives would tell somebody, and the next level would tell something, and we\'d go all the way down to the shop floor, and everybody would understand what\'s going on. Well, it may not have worked that well then, but it certainly doesn\'t work that well now. So now we have to recognize it\'s a different heartbeat. What has it been before, and what should it be now? How do we make sure that the messages are clear and consistent? Because that\'s how people operate---that\'s how those adults who get the freedom and the responsibility to produce great results operate best, is when they understand what they need to know in order to make the best decisions. So that communication, that skill around being a great communicator, is something that each of us needs to get better at. One of the things we have to do is think about what the right discipline is for that. If you used to communicate to your team by walking by and asking how they\'re doing or if they had heard something, you\'re going to have to schedule that now. It\'s going to have to have discipline. We\'ve got to check in with the people on the shop floor to make sure they\'re hearing what they need to hear because it\'s not going to automatically happen. One of the ideas I have is, like, just jot down at the end of every day a sense of what worked and what didn\'t work. We don\'t have to look at it for a month, but when you look back over a month, you want to look for, \"Wow, that was surprising. I didn\'t really think that would be as effective as it is.\" Or maybe it would be like, \"We keep trying to have this in-person meeting on Zoom, and it turns out that there\'s 14 people on the call and only two of them are talking. Maybe it\'s an email.\" So we have to rethink all of the ways---not just the work we\'re doing but the ways we\'re doing it. So now I\'m starting to hear a lot of nostalgia around the way it used to be. There are things we aren\'t doing now that don\'t matter. Maybe we don\'t need to go back for five levels of approval. Maybe we don\'t need to go back and do that annual performance review. Maybe we don\'t need to do a whole bunch of things that were part of the way we do business that just aren\'t making a difference. You know what? The way we used to do it not only is not the way of the future, but we\'re discovering so many wonderful things right now. Let\'s not lose it. We want to create a new organization, new workforce, excited about taking all of the things that we\'ve learned, using that muscle going forward. One of the most important things that we can do is realize the things that we aren\'t doing now---the stuff that we\'ve stopped doing---and not go back and do it again. What if we don\'t go back? What if we go forward and rethink the way we work? Thank you. Well, I think that this kind of video is very interesting for some reasons. Of course, I prepared also some slides in order to comment on this video, but I want to give you the space to write your ideas---not about the video---but about the main concepts that are related to this video. I prepared some summaries about this video with the main points, at least the points that I think could be very useful for you. But I ask you in advance to focus on the main points that you consider important within this video. And then, through the reading of your messages, and why not, we work together, we build together a general contribution. Oh yes, Dalia. Yes, consider that in this moment in Italy, we are witnessing a great restart of a new debate about smart working. And this is a very recent phenomenon. We have awful traffic jams not only in Rome---that is sort of a tradition---but also in other important cities. For example, I\'ll tell you a story about myself. Last week, I went to Venice, or a small town near Venice, and I found on the streets near Venice awful traffic. This is just an example of a phenomenon that is returning to the traditional way. Just to share the last part because we are actually in the middle of figuring out how we should communicate between two teams most effectively in my company. Jasper, consider that, of course, today we are talking about human resources management, but because I also deliver some modules in HR management master\'s about, for example, hybrid work, and when we talk about hybrid work and also the tools by which different people, different teams all around the world can communicate within the same company, we encounter some specific misunderstandings. Consider that I usually also, in the first years of the new century, was involved in lots of different communication with my colleagues in India, in Europe, in the Middle East, and so on. For example, I was within the EMEA region---Europe, Middle East, and Africa---so this can become a real challenge because you miss a lot of signals, a lot of things that are very important in communication, in terms of timing, of body language, in terms of use of voice, and in terms of different cultures. Thank you, Jasper. The crisis amplified the necessity of fostering a culture of trust. Yes, Agata, very important, this point where we should give employees autonomy to make decisions, recognizing their capability to manage their work. Consider that this can be a good way to define also a new approach to leadership. When I talk about horizontal leadership, we talk about some values that are related exactly to this kind of thing, and this could be---I say could be, not is---a specific innovation. This could be very useful for organizations. Thank you, María Jimena. The importance of communication, of people learning to work in teams as a sort of waterfall from top management to the different levels of organization. But people are adults, says Patty McCord, so they are good at working for themselves and working for their life. So sometimes we have some thoughts about people that are not true within organizations. The gift lately is being the gift. I don\'t see a difference between yesterday, today, or tomorrow, apart from the logistics. Well, Agata, there is a difference. Consider that, for me, the main importance of this speech is related not to the things that she says but to the questions that she asks. Of course, this is an opinion, and I respect this opinion because, for me, it\'s also a way to interact among us. Sometimes I can consider a video important for other people, but it\'s important just also to define some things that could be important, and for me, in my opinion, this kind of video is interesting not in the things that she says but in the questions that she asks, that could also be a way to have another kind of direction. Yes, we have way too many meetings these days due to remote work. Thank you, Kat, and thank you, Isadora. The people\'s points of view and work-life balance, yes, and the importance of the right to be disconnected when they finish working. Unfortunately, yes, lately, since some companies are trying to go back. Yes, Isadora, this is also my opinion, but this could be a new beginning or at least a new way to start again to rethink the organization. Alejandra, thank you. Of course, Isadora, Alejandra. I like that she mentioned we are all grown-ups. It\'s interesting not to be strict as you go down. So a very important concept: communication, and now it needs discipline but also means involving your employees and giving them the opportunity to communicate. For different companies, have coaches---it's sad to see how many bosses are very narcissistic and avoid results. I smile because I had a boss that was quite narcissistic, and believe me, I learned a lot from him---just not to be like him, for example. Like the ideas; it\'s achievable, unfortunately, in few companies. Yes, I like most also the fact that she says we are not Google, even if Google is often cited as a big example about a lot of things. But as a challenge for all companies to have this kind of application or at least try to apply this kind of thought, people to find out themselves also about the fact of work, because in my opinion, even if this was in general an important approach by people, a lot of people became more aware about this fact---not only Generation Z but also older generations, for example, generations like mine. Started to manage time correctly, started to recycle value, relationships there. Pandemic underscored the importance of mental well-being. That\'s why this is also---and now we see this kind of process. We have a specific process in which welfare and well-being are involved. Demetrios: We\'re witnessing now the gap in leadership. Yes, Demetrios, and this is another fact. That\'s why leadership and HR management are so close, because in reality, even if we are talking about HR management, we talk also about the different kinds of leadership styles for managers, for service lines---not only HR management. Education as a means to build a stronger team, one that is working towards singular organizational goals, is admirable. Building trust and fostering an environment of respect for the intellectual results each team member brings with them is absolutely vital. Yes, Demetrios. We need to adapt. That\'s why, for example, adaptability is an important point. So that is related either to organization or to people. It\'s related to general change and the differences. Yes, of course, Agata. For example, we are assisting also---I tell you about my experience with Italian companies---why when I worked in the corporation, I had more experience outside Italy---that is a big, big challenge, especially for medium and small companies. Andrea: I think COVID caused the peak in the hype curve for remote working. I think that now the comeback is just a disillusionment phase that will allow us to deal with these new ways of working in a more natural way. I don\'t know, Andrea, but this could be a good approach, even if I see different kinds of trends about the satisfaction or not satisfaction with hybrid working. So we have different numbers and different rates of satisfaction. We need to be flexible. And I think, John, that we learned how to be flexible and to adapt to a big, big challenging situation that was the pandemic situation. I like also the fact that we are talking about different things now, because you told me something Yesterday 19:17 Now because you told me something Yesterday 19:17 about the changes, the changes of the pandemic situation. Now I ask you to think about the main changes in dealing with human resources that were influenced and we are living after COVID. Now I ask you to write in short what are for you the main changes---the video was a sort of introduction to this part---what has changed about human resources management after the COVID situation? For you, what are the main influences, the main impacts on human resources management for you after the COVID situation? Flexibility in remote working? Of course, yes. Flexibility, adaptability, we already said, and other things. Managing hybrid work situations? Yes. Oh, so we already encountered---we already met, right? If I remember well, Gorka, because I remember your name in a module that I delivered, so maybe we had the opportunity to answer to it. Julia: Value of mental health and work-life balance, yes, an important point. Work-life, remote working, performance-based outcomes. Dalia, this is another important approach---performance-based outcomes. I just want to stop, why? Because believe me, I work as a coach also with middle managers. Believe me if I tell you that lots of middle managers today are still involved in not checking people, because people, for example, some days in the week, they work in smart working. So the main worry for them is the fact that people are not in the same building. But in reality, the main point is how to delegate, the shift about checking, controlling, and having people, and thinking it\'s not in total control. Because this is another important point that for me was a great impact after COVID. That\'s right, performance-based outcomes are for me so important. Desire to spend more time out of work? Yes. Working from anywhere in the world? Yes. Well-being, remote working, different work lives, increasing productivity---somewhat, because consider---thank you---because some companies, but in general the approach to smart working, and according to some research, smart working is not so good in increasing productivity, for example. But according to other kinds of research, and I can tell you also here in Italy, we are seeing specific satisfaction by employees about the use of smart working, or lots of research, for example, well-being and work-life balance and so on. Eva: The importance of the person itself and not the person being a worker only, so more space to humans, we could say. Well-being programs, better time management, even if, Alejandra, I can tell you that for some people, the fact to work in smart work, in hybrid work, has become also a specific point through which people work more. For example, some managers decided to fix or organize some meetings early morning or late in the evening, for example. So some people complain about the fact of having wider hours to work. Viewing people crying---yes, Isadora, because it has changed also the way by which people and HR organize HR, for example, interviews, why not? Employees are now able to travel a few days per month. Some organizations---yes, lots of organizations, a lot of companies. For example, according to my experience with Italian companies and also organizations about the public administration, lots of companies have this kind of organization---one day each week, they work in so-called smart working, which is a sort of telework. Consider that I first, in my company, used telework in 2002, because in my team I had two people among the twenty that I worked with. Two people were in telework, and we had usual conversations through phones, but one day a week, Friday morning, they came to our office in order to have a general meeting with all people. Just to give you the idea of organization in 2002, more than 20 years ago. The magazine \"Social Movements During the Pandemic\" has pushed---yes, also this is a big important point, especially after the pandemic situation. I see---I am witnessing here in Italy also this important point, and a lot of companies now start to have, for example, D&I---diversity and inclusion---responsibilities. So HR is focusing on creating a more inclusive workplace and addressing systemic inequalities. In fact, thank you, Demetrios, because this is another specific process, as we will see in a few minutes. Automation of administrative tasks and digital tools for training, recruitment, payroll, and remote onboarding. Demetrios highlighted the urgency of companies to have HR IT divisions, because sometimes HR tasks and IT tasks and roles are not so well recognized or at least assigned temporarily, why not? Employee assistance programs, yes. Improvement of communication technology systems, which I said, yes. But I would prefer---we could define more technology but also more strategy in using technology. For me, the use of communication and also the use of technology sometimes has important aspects about strategy. Increasing reskilling---yes, because soft skills, especially for some companies, have become very, very important for people. Meetings now take place only if necessary. John, I see some companies---for example, corporations---every six months, at least two times in the year, they organize some specific team-building activity just to let people meet. Of course, it\'s not something that can substitute working presence, but can be good also to work in order to create a sense of belonging. And I see---and this is another important impact after COVID for me---is increased the number of team-building activities in which organizations, companies, decide to invite, to meet, to let attend a lot of people in order to create this sense of belonging. So this is an important point. Some budget about training sometimes, but often, is spent in organizing this kind of thing. So in this sense, even meetings, in-person meetings, are not considered as necessary, but in-person team-building is considered necessary in order to create or at least to keep and maintain this sense of belonging. Probably encouraging companies to hire more suitable persons for a specific position all over the world. Yes, this is another important point, another important impact. Local remote working as a way to reduce costs for the company---less electricity---yes, lots. A lot of companies decided not to have general and big places to work, but they decided---some companies have decided to use small buildings. So this is a great cost-saving, for example. Juliana Maducci: Engagement activities to improve culture, new approaches regarding people\'s lives and personal issues, yes. And reskilling---employees, HR is now investing in training programs to help employees adapt to new challenges post-COVID, especially artificial intelligence, machine learning courses. Yes, this is another important impact. Very good, very good to all of you. As you see, I want to involve you in order to build together according to your experience, your perspective, your focus, and sometimes I intervene in order to give you also not only my perspective but also my experience with some companies as consultant, coach, trainer, and so on.