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Welcome to the November newsletter. This month we're bringing some interesting news to you including self assessment tools, course recommendations, book recommendations, and a great free giveaway. Since we last wrote we've been involved in development and delivery of leadership development programmes, training HR professionals in Malaysia, running conferences and executive and business coaching... see more below. Dealing with the Downturn Over the last few months, many of my colleagues have recently written articles about how to deal effectively with the downturn and I have had many conversations with people about how we should be responding as businesses. If there's one theme that stands out for me, it is investment, while of course, managing costs as effectively as possible. Companies that invest in growing their relationships, their key people and networking and marketing will be the ones that position themselves effectively, for when the upturn comes. With human capital, the long term demographic trends are that labour will remain scarce because of the aging population and boomers retiring, whilst being replaced by much smaller cohorts of workers. Ever increasing demand for and mobility of talent is a long term trend too, that will impact us all over the next 10-15 years. Given this, it's critical to think through how we can maintain and even grow our human capital investment in the face of economic recession, so we can position ourselves as effectively as possible to take advantage of the upturn and not be left behind when it occurs. Stratus works with organizations to achieve their objectives through alignment of and investment in their greatest asset - their people. In businesses today, over 80% of our assets are intangible and of these assets the value of our human capital can be significant - in fact for most of us, it is the heart of our business. Regardless of this it is often treated as a cost, rather than an asset we need to grow and of course in these challenging times, there is a risk that we will do this even more with poor, though not immediately obvious consequences. We are currently inspired by one of our clients, who operates in a sector which has been affected quite badly overall by the downturn, but who is busier than ever, because of their strong focus on delivery and their investment in relationship building over the last ten years both with their clients, potential clients, referrers and their team. It's been a clear example to us of the power of investment in the right things through good times and bad to grow a strong and sustainable business. For more on how to manage in a recession read the HBR articles: 'Moving Upward in a Downturn' by Darrell Rigby and 'And if the Good times Stop Rolling? Dealing with a Downturn' by Tom Brown. Our experienced team can work with you to ensure you attract, align and retain the best, and we also provide services in organization redesign and outplacement support. Contact us if you are interested in discussing these » Employment Branding and EVP - Attracting and Retaining Talent We recently delivered a 2 day workshop in Malaysia to HR professionals on defining and developing their Employment Value Proposition and Employment Brand in order to attract and retain talent. The Malaysian government is undertaking a transformation initiative for business and part of the initiative included having a clearly defined Employment Value Proposition as they are aware that competition for talent is global and attracting and keeping the best and brightest remains a challenge. We had a fantastic two days with participants from the energy, telecomms, professional services, govt and transport sectors and it was great to see the commitment from key Malaysian organizations and the Malaysian government to improving the way they attract and retain people. Support for Business Owners, Professionals or Creatives It is easy to forget or minimise as individual business owners or busy professionals our need for support and we can become cut off from valuable ideas, support and coaching from others without realizing it. I have recently been involved in establishing and supporting a couple of "Mastermind" groups that provide a regular forum for a supportive group of peers to act as sounding boards and wise counsel to each other. I have seen how powerful and effective it can be to accelerate both peoples' and businesses' development and provide much needed support. These groups can be useful for either professionals in a similar field, creatives or business owners. If you are interested in being part of such a group and can identify some fellow colleagues you would like to meet with we can provide assistance with group establishment and facilitation. Contact us to discuss how we can help » It could make a big difference to you in 2009! Free Stuff! If you are interested in commencing a coaching engagement or have a team member you would like to be coached, we will provide a complimentary first session and a free LSI assessment valued at $750. The Life Styles Inventory (LSI) developed by Human Synergistics International. It is one of the most commonly used tools for leadership development in Australasia and is a powerful tool which identifies the underlying thoughts and motivations that guide an individual's behaviour. Often referred to as personal styles, management styles and leadership styles, these represent the essence of an individual's effectiveness. The quality of an individual's thinking and behaviour contributes greatly to that person's work performance. Fortunately, your people have the power to change ineffective thinking and behaviour - the kind that can paralyse an individual's effectiveness. But first they need to know if what they're doing now is supporting or detracting from quality performance. The Life Styles Inventory (LSI) is based around the Human Synergistics Circumplex, describing constructive, passive/defensive and aggressive/defensive behaviours. You or your team member will receive an LSI report, self development guide and will be fully debriefed around the results as part of the coaching engagement. If you found this newsletter useful, please forward it to someone else. Wishing you all the best in the run up till Christmas. Regards Gabrielle Young www.stratusconsulting.co.nz |
 Gabrielle presenting Employment Branding and EVP workshop in Malaysia
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