Which of the eight behaviours to you think are key to your future development?
I've just been doing some learning on Organisational Development. It's got me thinking about what qualities we need in HR (now and in the future) to support Organisational Development.
According to the DPG plc Organisational Development Participant Pack (page 19, accessed 19th February 2014):
(In Organisational Development)...Different stakeholders assume different roles in each phase, and these roles take different forms, including:
- Facilitator
- Partner
- Adviser
- Challenger
- Consultant
- Coach
- Devil’s advocate.
This list provides some interesting thinking about what qualities we need in HR to develop our organisations.
The challenger challenges thinking and “the why” behind each development. It’s as important as the devil’s advocate who delves into the “what if” thinking. This curiosity is required at all levels of seniority in our organisations. Involvement with our people at every level should provide them the opportunity to and engage them in asking these vital questions. Capturing and making good use of this “workers knowledge” and expertise throughout the process from at least diagnosis through to evaluating and institutionalising change is essential in my view. Our people are essentially “advisers”. We should consult with these experts at all levels to assist with diagnosis and with designing, planning and implementing interventions. After all, they become the facilitators, partners and coaches who embed these developments in our organisations.
So what does this mean to HR?
The eight behaviours of the CIPD Profession Map are perfectly aligned to help us play our part in developing our organisations. These behaviours represent the qualities we require. The curious nature of our approach and the collaborative approach we need with our people is after all what's required. Being good coaches, mentors and skilled influencers driven to deliver are required to embed change with long lasting results.
As part of our life long learning commitment in HR we should strive to continually assess our own individual practice against these eight behaviours to identify where more emphasis or further development is required.
How does this fit with you? Which of the eight behaviours do you think are key to your future development?
Replies
Hi Ady
I've been using the HR Map & Behaviours over the last year or so & have found it really useful to identify development points in myself.
I think things like being personally credible is important but i don't think it is something that you can learn from a book overnight. It's definitely comes with time in a particular role. I think the key for me is once you have established some credibility then you need to keep it!
My main one is probably Courage to Challenge - i'm not the most assertive person but i do think that there's a time and a place for being assertive. Like you if i know i have to either propose an idea/solution that may not be popular or if i have to challenge someone elses proposal i always try to do some research beforehand to justify my thoughts, which usually helps my confidence when responding to questions.
I'm also a really indecisive person (no i'm not, yes i am, maybe haha) and I'm a reflector, which is definitely something i need to work on. Sometimes situations call for a response or decision there and then, so i need to learn to be able to do that. It's not necessary all the time but it would be a helpful skill to be able to have when required!
Jill
Hi Jill,
Thanks for your comments. Some great points and I agree that the profession map is useful in identifying areas for development. I'm with you on the decision making (I think I am. I'll get back to you later on that - yep a reflector too!)
I agree totally that think personally credible comes with experience. One of the things I've learned over the past couple of years is it's also about making sure people know you as being credible. It's about building reputation. It's something we carry within our department brand (more on that on this link).
I remember a time that it dawned on me that whilst we were doing some great stuff as a department, we weren't really shouting about it. A few appearences of projects on board reports, using our company magazine and online news channel (there's an example on this link) and we were soon blowing our own trumpet. I know I'm personally not a great fan of blowing my own trumpet, but I think sometimes you have to so that people actually recognise your credibility.
It's similar to curiosity, which my manager has highlighted as one of my development areas. We had a great discussion on this. Whilst I am curious, often as a reflective (Myers Briggs Introvert) type person, I often just "get it" on my own. That's particularly been the case where things have dove tailed nicely with my CIPD studies and I haven't really felt the need to be curious. However, on it's own, my internal workings can't be mind-read by someone else and if that curiosity isn't present in my observable behaviour and I'm not actually asking the right questions or bringing my understanding into conversations, there's a huge risk. Who would be able to actually work out whether it's because I just "get it" already or it's because I'm just not bothered to be curious. Nowadays, I tend to verbalise my curiousity so that it is an observable behaviour in the conversations that I have.
So those two points have been great learning points; PERSONALLY CREDIBLE and CURIOSITY.
Ady
I tend to be quiet in the way I work.
My team just works efficiently and we meet all our objectives and some. We never need to escalate issues as we plan our work and deliver to plan.
So we mostly lie under the radar.
I feel that I now need to work harder at getting our outputs noticed, not for myself but so that my team get some recognition for their hard work.
That "getting it" thing is frustrating isn't it. I think you have to not just "get it" but also confirm that you get it, in order to let those who need to know, know. (Which is probably annoying for others, so perhaps a tactic to be used only when you really care.)
I have met the odd person who I really don't understand, much as I might want to. I find that incredibly difficult to deal with. How often can you ask someone to explain something? I have come to the conclusion that these people (and i have two particular people in mind)are either purposely obtuse because they don't really get it either and they're just kidding themselves, or because they are just poor communicators and, being in an authoritative position, can get away with it. Sadly they not only get away with it but sometimes attract admiration and accolades which to me is just weird! (Maybe it really is me after all! )
Eg if you are going to have courage and challenge then this is really only useful if you can then successfully influence others after to make use of the outcome of your challenge.
If you are a decisive thinker you need to be driven to deliver on your decisions.
If you are to be a role model you need to be personally credible.
If you are curious it helps then to make use of your findings. Collaboration is going to create a benefit bigger than the sum of the parts and makes best use of your curiosity.
...well I think i see a pattern there - does anyone agree? I have a feeling it is no accident either. I wonder how many people and how much time went into developing and agreeing this pie? Lots i expect!
( I expect it is a "wheel" rather than a "pie", but i called it a pie just to try to explain what i was thinking.)
Re Influencing
I think i am good at influencing but i tend to be very open in my approach on a one to one basis. I get many things done by choosing the right person to approach first and following up. I use my influence but i don't think i am then ever credited with being the driver of any of the outcomes. ( or even being involved.)
i think i'd like to develop some better "group" influencing skills. Eg influencing "the board" or the "senior leadership team" when they are all together ( rather than picking them off one by one). This would seem to offer a potential time saving investment for me.
Re Challenging
I am fine at challenging my team to good effect. But not so good at challenging those above me in the hierarchy.
I often try to challenge, but then get stopped in my tracks by the strength of personality of those "in the driving seat" and i allow my seedling of a challenge to wither and die, rather than stand up and grow.
I think its because i don't predict the opportunity for challenge and therefore tend to be unprepared if the moment arises. I don't create my own opportunities.
I am working on it though and this week i have drafted a presentation for our senior leadership team. I am taking the challenge to them for a change. We'll see how successful this approach turns out to be.
:)
Hi Alison,
Good Morning. We're having some great discussions on here you and I... Loving this one already.
Like you, I only really came across the CIPD Profession Map when I started my CIPD studies again. It wasn't around when I did my level 3 a fair few years ago so it's new. I don't spend much time thinking about it, but it has come in useful recently when doing an assignment on Organisational Development and looking at the different roles people play in Improving Organisational Performance.
Picking up on your point that:
I can relate to that. There was a time where I pitched something new into the business. I can remember the challenges that we got back from the Exec team. It kind of left me stunned as I just hadn't thought these through. It also wobbled my confidence lots!
Brushing myself down and taking the opportunity to learn from that experience I have since adopted my approach. What I tend to do nowadays when scoping some new concept out is to carry out some research on the barriers and fears that may be obstacles for people buying in to what I'm talking about. Pre-empting the challenges I'm going to get back so to speak. I ask questions such as "What will stop this from happening, what could prevent people from doing this, what are the common barriers people will have with.... etc.
Now it's one thing to ask these questions, but it's another to get the answers. That's where the research piece comes in. There is a lot of mileage in figuring out those answers for yourself, but in my view much more value in collaborating (another behaviour on the profession map) with others to see what they can come up with and what opinion they have. A problem shared and all that!
This can be done internally within your organisation, but also externally using, for example, this community or your other contacts in the HR/HRD world. The "external" input is a great way in giving your pitch credibility. These can come in the form of written articles, results to survey's, quotes from articles and research etc.
One approach I've taken before, probably without any surprise, is to "record" conversations with these experts. You don't have to adopt this method, but it has been very useful when I've simply just played back short clips of these interviews (don't give them the full 20 minute version. They'll switch off!)
Here are a couple of these short clips of recorded interviews. Both are related to learning technology, but actually the subject could be anything you want it to be.
Have a listen and let me know.... would pre-empting fears and barriers then gathering expert opinion on those be helpful for developing your skills in challenging your Exec team?
Discussion with Mike Collins on overcoming FEARS with online learning
Discussion with Peter Dickson (X-Factor, Britain's Got Talent voice...
Ady
Hi Alison. Have a great jaded Sunday!
I would guess most would agree that each of the eight behaviours are part of our role. So this is more a question for all individually in respect to what do people feel their own top areas for development within these eight are.
I do link this up to overall organisational development. This link comes from how our own development individually in turn increases our ability for our HR functions to be better aligned to help with overall organisational development.
So the question is around which of these behaviours, individually and personally, do people feel they need to develop further.
I'll have a think now.