3 Practical Opportunities to Solve HR's Performance Management and Development Challenges

While budget cuts and a broadening skills gap are making performance management more challenging, there are three often-overlooked opportunities you can take advantage of right now.

TL;DR: Overcome HR performance management and development challenges by leveraging three key opportunities. Focus on developing eager young talent, use intuitive HR technology, and apply big data analytics to improve talent strategies. These approaches help HR leaders build more engaged and skilled workforces.

We know there are hurdles that get in the way of talent development in your HR department - the lack of budget, the hesitation of executives to buy into new processes, managers who do not know how to have development conversations. But alongside those, there are also often-overlooked opportunities.

Make sure you are taking advantage of these three trends that can improve performance management and development.

How can HR leverage young talent eager for development?

Imagine how difficult performance management and development would be if you were trying to manage and develop a team of people who had no desire to grow, learn, or lead. Luckily, this is not an issue HR is facing today.

According to the Harvard Business Review, over 50% of millennials cite 'opportunity to learn and grow' as extremely important when considering taking on a role. This tops the list of deciding factors - over compensation and informal work environments.

And while we know that the more conversations managers have with their employees, the more engaged their employees become, research by Gallup found that only 21% of millennials and 18% of non-millennials meet with their manager on a weekly basis. The pool is there and wants to learn - now you just have to encourage teams to jump in.

How to take advantage Help your organisation focus on giving employees better-quality development conversations by providing managers with practical, easy-to-use development technology to guide that conversation. Market these HR solutions to potential employees like you are marketing a product to your customers - employees are customers who have choices too.

How does technology empower HR analysis for performance management?

A few years ago, HR departments had to rely on a lot of manual monitoring and reporting, which often resulted in messy, disorganised HR systems. Today, HR technology and systems exist to make HR jobs, including development, a whole lot easier - for the department and employees.

The learning curve has significantly diminished. Instead of sending employees on a training course to understand a system, well-designed technology requires no training. Plus, BYOD policies and low data costs have removed the barrier of access to these systems.

How to take advantage Make use of HR systems, provided they are user-centric and work for the employee or manager who will use it. Be inspired by consumer-driven applications and select technology that is easy to use and truly provides value to the person using it. Make sure users know the technology exists and give people the opportunity to access the information they need at any time, in any place, on any device.

How can big data make a difference in HR performance management?

80% of HR professionals believe that data analytics skills are becoming more important. Today, we understand that data can help us support better, more predictive hiring; identify the hidden talent within a company; connect team members to the right training tools; improve employee engagement; and reduce turnover by as much as 50%.

Do not be afraid to incorporate data into HR, just as much as it is being used in other areas of a business.

How to take advantage Implement processes that make talent management analytics a priority. Ensure you make monitoring, analysing, reporting on, and adjusting part of your reviews. You will need to be prepared to run tests and experiments to find the right way forward. Continuously get feedback from employees on your processes, procedures, and technologies - and listen to the feedback critically.

TMaaS - Take Advantage of All Three Opportunities at Once Peopletree Group's TMaaS solution combines the technology, analytics, and development conversation tools to help you take advantage of all three opportunities simultaneously - at a fraction of the cost of building it yourself. Explore TMaaS

Frequently Asked Questions

What are the biggest opportunities for HR leaders to improve performance management? HR leaders can improve performance management by focusing on three main opportunities: developing young talent eager for growth, using modern HR technology that simplifies processes, and applying big data analytics to make informed talent decisions. These strategies help address common challenges like budget constraints and skills gaps.

How can HR leverage young talent for better performance development? Younger generations, particularly millennials, highly value opportunities for learning and growth. HR can leverage this by providing managers with tools and guidance for quality development conversations. Treat employees like customers, marketing development opportunities and user-friendly HR solutions to them.

What role does HR technology play in solving performance management challenges? HR technology now offers user-friendly systems that streamline performance management and development, reducing manual effort and training needs. By selecting consumer-inspired, intuitive platforms, HR can empower employees and managers with easy access to information and tools, improving engagement and efficiency.

How does big data make a difference in HR performance management? Big data analytics helps HR professionals make more predictive hiring decisions, identify internal talent, and connect team members with relevant training. By understanding and using data, HR can create more effective and targeted performance and development strategies.