When Huntel Global invited me to speak to senior business, human resources and analytics professionals at their Talent Science conference – “How Data Analytics Builds a Better Workforce” — I thought I could mine proven analytics solutions from my retail banking background.
After all, the life cycles of customers parallel those of employees. It’s difficult to say that you truly understand your employees, and that’s not dissimilar to how we feel about our customers.
So I tapped my proven methodologies from retail banking customer analytics to present: “How to Profit from Leveraging Customer Life Cycle Segmentation Frameworks for Employee Life Cycle Management.”
It’s All About Connecting the Dots.
I have built my career on the passionate belief that you can take methodologies that are already proven in one domain, or one industry, or one function, and you can successfully apply them to other domains or industries.
I have spent years designing ways to better understand customers. Only through better knowing others can we truly feel empathy – “the capacity to understand what another person is experiencing” from within her frame of reference.
Here’s where data and analytics help us connect the dots, where as leaders, data helps us better understand our employees. In a recent article on HBR.org, “Why Compassion Is a Better Managerial Tactic than Toughness,” (May 7, 2015) the author cites research to conclude:
“We are especially sensitive to signs of trustworthiness in our leaders, and compassion increases our willingness to trust. Simply put, our brains respond more positively to bosses who have shown us empathy, as neuroimaging research confirms. Employee trust in turn improves performance.”
And, of course, improved performance leads to profitable business growth. By grasping a better understanding of employees through life cycle management, we can be more compassionate and foster loyalty and productivity.
I’d call that a win-win.
I learned a lot from a great line-up of global leaders at the Talent Science conference, and I hope sharing my proven analytical methodologies helps others to find ways to better understand our employees and groom them for leadership.
What do you think of taking what you know works in one industry or domain and applying it to another? Take a few minutes and see the details of what I’m talking about in this video.
And then ask yourself if you’re willing to take an innovative approach.
