Reviews:

“Solving the Productivity Puzzle is a very engaging, readable and innovative book in trying to find a solution to a businesses’ poor productivity. The book highlights the important role of HR involving the productivity puzzle [...] this is a must read for any HR professional.”

—Professor Sir Cary Cooper, 50th Anniversary, ALLIANCE Manchester Business School, President of the CIPD

“This is a much anticipated book and it has been well worth the wait. Tim has a refreshing honesty and optimism about how we can transform our approach to work and all the challenges that it brings. He has that special ability to be insightful, analytical and fun, all at the same time. I couldn’t put it down - you shouldn’t put it down.”

—Rene Carayol MBE, author, TV presenter, executive coach

Description:

An engaged and productive workforce is essential for organizational growth and business success.

However, record levels of disengaged staff, a lack of motivation and employees feeling that they lack the necessary skills and support to excel at their jobs is putting this in jeopardy. HR practitioners are ideally placed to address these issues and boost productivity at every stage of the employee lifecycle to improve individual performance and drive business results.

Solving the Productivity Puzzle is a practical guide for all people management professionals to address the challenge of stagnating people productivity. It covers how to embed learning and development activities to ensure that employees feel equipped with the skills they need to meet their goals, motivate a workforce made up of six generations with competing priorities, develop an effective workforce planning strategy to make sure the right people are in the right place at the right time, with the right motivation in the organization to build a company culture that allows people to thrive.

Solving the Productivity Puzzle also includes expert guidance on how implement change to opportunity in the workforce, track and measure productivity and how to leverage new technologies to support employees. Including case studies from global organizations including Accenture, Aetna, Apple, Google, IBM, and SAP. This is essential reading for HR professionals needing to supercharge productivity in their organization for both employee and business success.

Key features at a glance:

• Provides guidance on how to effectively motivate and engage a multi-generational workforce with competing priorities
• Explains how to embed learning in the business to ensure staff have the skills needed to meet personal role and organizational goals
• Includes case studies from global organizations such as Accenture, Aetna, Apple, Google, IBM and SAP
• Shows how to develop an effective workforce planning strategy to ensure the right people are in the right roles in an organization to ensure business success
• Shows how to use people data and new technological developments to track and measure workplace productivity and support employee development

Contents:

List of figures

Introduction

Chapter 01. The future is more malleable than you think • The emerging challenges facing organizations and people today • The technology tsunami • The shrinking workforce • The stressed-out workforce • The skills development treadmill (is speeding up!) • The motivation and engagement gap • The wrong people, wrong place, wrong time dilemma • The avalanche of data dilemma • The machines are coming (look busy!) • The productivity paradox • References

Chapter 02. The productivity paradox: the peril and the promise • The value of productive people • Engaged people do more stuff, better • Creating drive in the workforce • Autonomy • Mastery • Purpose • Rewards re-invented • Workforce employee experience and well-being • Innovation: the engine driving engaged people and greater productivity • References

Chapter 03. People engagement, innovation and performance – PEIP • Work smarter, not harder – it’s OK, really • Working smarter is doing more • Working smarter is not working to the deadline • Working harder can make you sick • Smarter data can be more insights • The integrated human capital lifecycle is working uber-smart • PEIP: solving the productivity paradox for driving peak people performance • HR operating model • Tools and technology • Mindset, behaviours and skills • PEIP unpacked • Right people • Right skills • Skills forecasting – aka skills anticipation • Right place, right time (strategic workforce planning) • Right motivation • PEIP – bringing it all together • References

Chapter 04. Turbo-charging the future • Five trends to ride, now • The ageing workforce is not ageing so fast anymore • Gender balancing and the power of female/male co-leadership • Create innovation with ‘different brains’ • Harness the intelligence of the machines • Digital at home, digital at work • An (abbreviated) history of the human resource information system (HRIS) • Fast forward to the modern HRIS of the 21st century • Digital at work, finally! • References

Chapter 05. Making the case for change • The optimists’ case: it’s a strong one • What is an effective ‘case for change’? • The human point of view • Technology • Economic viability • What do you want to do? Articulate your case for ‘why now?’ • What outcomes are you seeking? • What are the pros and cons? Risks, challenges, opportunities • What is the business case? Qualitative and quantitative benefits • Who are your stakeholders? The decision makers • What is the cost of doing nothing? The monetary and opportunity costs of no change • What is your roadmap for change? Proposed options and scenarios to get from here to there • Identifying the benefits of PEIP • Simplification and modernization • Actionable insights • Intelligent processes and technology • Employee engagement and experience • Total workforce management • Quantifying the value of PEIP: the business case • The PEIP business case: what does good look like? • Quantifying PEIP • Developing a roadmap: getting from here to there • Step 1: Programme vision • Step 2: The critical goals • Step 3: The implementation strategies • Step 4: The tactics • Step 5: Potential roadblocks • Step 6: The milestones • Step 7: Management and accountability • Beating the transformation odds: key success factors • References

Chapter 06. A workplace revolution – are you an optimist or a pessimist? • Seize the moment – or let it pass? • The role of small to medium-sized organizations • The public sector role • Engage talent to join ‘the mission’ • PEIP for public sector roles • Political will to drive PEIP in society • The private sector role • Know • Plan • Engage • Invest • Measure • The human sector role • Optimist or pessimist? Your choice • References

Index

About the Author:

Tim Ringo, Chartered FCIPD, is a senior executive, board advisor, author and popular conference speaker, based in London. Ringo’s nearly 30-year career in HR management consulting and HR software gives him a unique perspective on how engaged people harnessing smart technology is transforming the world of work.

He is the author of Solving the Productivity Puzzle (Kogan Page, 2020) and the co-author of Calculating Success (Harvard Business Review, 2012). He is currently writing his next book, The Accidental Globalist.

Most recently he was Vice President, SAP SuccessFactors. He led SuccessFactors HR Advisory Practice for Europe, Middle East and Africa.

Previously he was Vice President and Global Leader of IBM’s Human Capital Management (HCM) consulting practice. He led a team of more than 1500 Human Capital consulting professionals around the world. He joined IBM Global Business Services in 2006 after 16 years at Accenture, where he was Executive Partner in Accenture’s Human Performance Service Line.

He graduated from The Ohio State University, with a Bachelor of Science in Business Administration, majoring in Finance. He also studied English Literature at Ohio State and New College, Oxford, England.

Target Audience:

This book is for any HR professional.