HR news this week: Productivity, retention, and an exclusive interview with Cornerstone OnDemand

HR Leader’s roundup for this week involves productivity: how it’s costing the economy, and how to improve yours. We also touched on tech’s role in retention, and an interview with Katie Ballantyne from Cornerstone OnDemand on virtual coaching.

Reduced productivity to impact both economy and individuals

According to The Sydney Morning Herald (SMH) on 15 November, reduced productivity could cost the Australian economy billions and the average person thousands.

SMH said: “A slowdown in the nation’s productivity rate is threatening to make every Australian thousands of dollars worse off, almost double the size of the long-term budget deficit and drive up government debt.”

According to SMH, the productivity rate prediction by the treasury was cut by 1.2 per cent. If these trends continue, by 2033, the government believes the economy will be $60 billion less than expected. If the estimates are true, this reduction will be around $2,000 for every person in Australia.

SMH noted that Andrew Leigh, assistant minister for competition, said that companies need to win market share to curve these results.

“That might lead to more research and development, the importation of good ideas from overseas, or adopting clever approaches from other industries. Whatever its source, innovation is vital to growth in productivity and living standards for Australians,” said Mr Leigh.

Wear shoes, work harder

A fun hack HR Leader discovered this week is that wearing shoes while working from home can make you more productive.

A LinkedIn post by associate VP at Ditto PR, Sharlys Leszczuk, outlined how clothing can affect productivity.

“How I dress has a direct correlation to how I work. Being comfortable is important – but if I need a motivation boost that an extra shot of espresso won’t give me, I make very deliberate changes to how I dress in order to ensure my best output,” said Ms Leszczuk.

There is a science behind this. An article by Well+Good on 16 October, noted that according to clinical psychologist and ADHD specialist, Marcy Caldwell: “The shoes may be triggering people’s brains for productivity because traditionally, they wear shoes when being active and productive.”

Dr Caldwell continued: “So if your shoes are on and you get moving on one task, it will be easier to do another. This is why it can be helpful to keep your shoes on when you get home – it keeps you in productive energy rather than switching into relaxation mode.”

How tech can assist in retention

The Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) published an article this week outlining the ways that tech can improve retention.

In light of the “great resignation”, these are 10 ways that the right software can help retain staff, according to SHRM:

1. Assess worker satisfaction and feedback.
2. Recognise and reward employees.
3. Make flexible work solutions workable.
4. Hire the right people from the start.
5. Foster stronger connections at work.
6. Foster work life balance.
7. Offer pay that is competitive and fair.
8. Offer professional development.
9. Foster better feedback from managers.
10. Improve the onboarding experience.

In conversation with Katie Ballantyne on virtual coaching

The HR Leader was invited to the HR Innovation and Tech Fest Australia. There we spoke with the VP for product and customer experience at Cornerstone OnDemand, Katie Ballantyne.

Ms Ballantyne discussed if coaching can be as successful when done virtually: “Most coaches weren’t meeting face to face with people, even pre-pandemic, they were engaging in their craft in a virtual way. So, you’ve got this skill set that is so transferable, and that you’re going to be able to use in a hybrid world.”

“It’s a really wonderful investment that you can make in managers … doesn’t matter whether you’re in person, you’re remote or you’re hybrid, whatever your work model is going to be, it’s just as flexible as you need it to be,” said Ms Ballantyne.

Note from the editor: Please note that HR Leader was invited to the HR and L&D Innovation and Tech Festival 2022 as a guest of Cornerstone OnDemand, but has not been paid to promote the event by Cornerstone OnDemand.