The people principle

Dr Wayne Brockbank*, clinical professor of business at the University of Michigan Business School, explains the ‘why, what and how’ of human resource strategy, and where companies can make the greatest gains.


About Dr Brockbank: The faculty director of the ‘strategic HR planning program’ and the ‘advanced HR executive program’ at the University of Michigan's Executive Education Centre, Dr Brockbank is also the co-director of the University’s ‘HR executive program’. Wall Street Journal and Business Week have consistently rated these three programmes as the best HR executive programmes in the United States and Europe.

The leadership challenge: direction and destination

In all forms of organisations, managers face issues and seek solutions. In the earlier part of one's professional career, one is dealing with known issues and known solutions. All training methods help professionals to migrate to handle higher responsibilities, the highest being when one is dealing with unknown issues having unknown solutions. Therefore, top leadership by nature is risky. It is this syndrome that causes people to read books, learn from others' experiences and try to emulate success formulae. This too is not easy.

The people problem in talent management

Increasingly, companies view the ability to manage talent effectively as a strategic priority.Yet our research finds that senior executives largely blame themselves and their business line managers for failing to give the issue enough time and attention. They also believe that insular "silo" thinking and a lack of collaboration across the organization remain considerable handicaps. Moreover, executives who think that their companies' succession-planning efforts are deficient don't, on balance, see talent-management processes and systems as the chief problem.

A talent shortage for European banks

European banks face a looming talent shortage. In the next five years, some large institutions will face difficulties filling positions crucial to the execution of their evolving strategies. While the best talent managers can tap strong internal contenders for such roles, many others will be forced to fill pivotal jobs with second-tier internal talent or with external candidates—a relatively expensive and risky approach for banks.

Talent Management

"We must create a society in which a person does not have to betray inner sensitivity, inner essence. Each of us needs opportunities to unfold the essence of being. Then the sensitivity becomes fountain of strength, of peace, of joy." Vimala Thakar

7 Ps excellences through strategic People & Performance – Purpose, People, Process..............

Purpose: Attunes people to organizational vision and mission.

“It’s your boat, so start rowing.”

As an individual how attuned am I to my purpose? Most of our problems arise due to not being attuned to our own vision

and mission in life.

Most organisational vision/mission statements or even DNA charts are only words, devoid of any spirit or life