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For many in the world of business, October is a month in which the leaves of business start to change colour and a balance needs to be struck between planning for the end of the current year and the inception of the New Year.
At the same time, many talent management projects are being launched with the aim to bring them swiftly to fruition before the start of the Christmas holidays; therefore, October is traditionally one of the busiest months for Propel International. This year proved to be no exception to the rule, and we have seen the initiation of many high-profile projects. Furthermore, the preparations for the UAE and UK HR Summits are in full swing while the design of Propelinos – Life Skills Beyond Schools programme – is going to be finalised. The full programme will be launched in both London and Dubai in January 2020 while the first pilot will run in November. |
The absolute highlight for me personally though was to be nominated for the second year in a row as the L&D Training Provider of the Year by the Middle East Future Workplace Awards.
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PROPEL AROUND THE WORLD
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UK
With 2019 fast drawing to a close, the UK office has been considering some of our clients’ trends and needs so that we can better serve them in 2020 and beyond. Three of these core areas for us are around executive assessment, understanding self, and emotional intelligence. For executive assessment, we supported one of our clients to have tailored assessment approaches for three different levels of their organisation. This meant they could run their own recruitment campaigns through LinkedIn, drawing on their network, and invest the money they would have spent with a recruitment agency on in-depth assessments. This helped them understand the candidates and their fit in much more detail. In terms of understanding self, we are really focusing on organisations’ true source of competitive advantage – their people. Our programme helps people understand how the mind works, which enables them to think more clearly, manage their mental state, and ultimately, have more positive work outcomes. Lastly, our new online training for the MHS EQ-I 2.0 tool will help organisations to develop the emotional awareness and intelligence of their people. Emotional intelligence at work is hugely important at all levels as it affects how we understand our own emotions and conduct ourselves, along with the impact this has on others. For managers and leaders, it is also a predictive indicator of how effectively they lead and manage their teams. NEW ZEALAND
Of particular interest to Propel New Zealand’s clients over the last month have been the concepts of self-care – deliberate activity to take care of our mental, emotional, and physical health; and resilience – the capacity to recover quickly from difficulties. With work stress continuing to impact our lives and technology making it easier for us to work 24/7, many of our clients are increasing their focus on these important elements of wellbeing. Propel New Zealand’s Management Development Programme includes a recognition of these new work pressures and provides strategies to support resilience at work. We introduce Stephen Covey’s Circle of Influence and Control as a tool to help participants recognise that they have more control or influence over the stress in their life than they think. Participants are supported to plan actions that will reduce their stress and focus on self-care. These may include self-defined boundaries for when they will prioritise family, leisure or exercise – without checking work emails! We also suggest the introduction of a gratitude journal as a resilience enabler. Studies have found a range of benefits to the simple act of writing down the things for which we are grateful — these include better sleep, fewer symptoms of illness and increased happiness. Keeping a gratitude journal forces us to pay attention to the good things in life we might otherwise take for granted. This provides individuals with perspective about what is important and increases optimism, which supports resilience. |
AUSTRALIA
It is now our third month since launching Propel Australia. As we continue to engage and introduce Propel to the market, we are extremely encouraged by the feedback from clients, partners and associates alike. In particular, the Talent Portal is generating a great deal of interest for both its comprehensive range of assessment options and for the customisable reporting it offers. We have had very encouraging preliminary discussions with key organisations in the aged care and disability employment sector. Recent changes to government legislation in these sectors have created opportunities by providing consumers with more choice about who they elect as a provider. With increased competition comes the need to drive efficiencies; Propel is collaborating with them to explore using assessments to attract and select staff who are aligned with the organisation’s mission and therefore to the betterment of the communities they serve. Other ongoing client discussions include leadership development and graduate programs capability. SPAIN
Propel Spain continues to expand its footprint in the Spanish market, most recently through an invitation to participate in Corporate Learning Day ‘19 in Madrid. This major HR event was held around Learnability and the future of corporate learning in a digital context. Many of our clients attended the event and shared some of their experiences regarding viral and social learning, mobile and micro learning. The focus was on the necessity to design and create an innovative corporate training journey in line with their strategy and how to reskill some of their employees to face the digital challenges and become life-long learners. MIDDLE EAST
At Propel Middle East, we are delighted to see a clear trend towards developing internal coaching and mentoring expertise across organisations in the region. Whilst the purpose and approach vary from lighter-touch experiential learning and workshops through to fully-fledged ICF Accredited certification, the intention and appetite for establishing an internal alumnus of expert coaches is clear and certainly being well received by their colleagues. Career Coaching is emerging as a particular priority as companies prepare for the ‘future of work’ and look to develop a growth mindset and career self-efficacy in their talent. Similarly, we are experiencing a renewed interest in Mentoring Programs which are being implemented with the right support and scaffolding to ensure expertise is consistently and sustainably shared and skillsets developed. |
THE VALUE OF PROPEL
Every day, Avon brings beauty to the lives of women all over the world. At Avon, beauty means finding the right lipstick shade for a customer; providing an earnings opportunity so a woman can support her family; and enabling a woman to get her first mammogram. Beauty is about women looking and feeling their best. It’s about championing economic empowerment and improving the lives of women around the world. Avon is a company steeped in tradition, grounded by its core values and principles as well as its vision "to be the company that best understands and satisfies the product, service and self-fulfilment needs of women – globally."
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As part of its ongoing transformation, Avon chose Propel International to partner with them to bring greater rigour to its recruitment processes. Avon was already using psychometrics in recruitment but saw an opportunity for greater alignment with the brand, for greater cost savings and simplicity, and to increase the global consistency of its processes. Together we created online assessment profiles to recruit for three levels of the organisation: Entry level, Manager and Senior.
“Working with Propel has allowed us to use multiple psychometric tools from different providers in a cost effective and simple way. Working with Propel has been a brilliant partnership - they are incredibly responsive, listen to your needs and work with you to find the best solution.” |
PROPEL EVENTS
Propel to Exhibit at Leading HR Events in the Middle East and the UK
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Propelinos Programme to Launch in Dubai and London
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Propelinos is a well-structured, high-quality, engaging yet impactful programme created by psychologists and specifically designed to equip youngsters between the ages of 6-11 with important life skills beyond school. The programme will cover 4 important life concepts:
Each concept will be taught over a period of 4 weeks, one 2-hour session in a week for each sub-module, with the overall programme spanning 16 weeks. |
The Propelinos Pilot:
The Propelinos Pilot, which will only consist of the Growth Mindset concept and its modules for a span of 4 weeks, is launching on Thursday, 14 November in:
The Official Launch of the Propelinos Programme: The 16-week Propelinos programme will officially launch in January 2020 in London and Dubai. If you are interested in involving your youngsters in our Propelinos Pilot or in the full 16-week programme commencing January 2020, please visit our website at: https://www.propel-international.com/propelinos.html. |
MEET A PROPELLER
Why are you passionate about Propel?
There are three reasons why I am passionate about Propel. First and foremost, from the day I joined the team, I could feel that there is so much passion and a strong commitment to deliver nothing but best-in-class solutions to our clients. These solutions are carefully tailored to meet the specific needs and expectations of our clients. Moreover, in almost 10 years since Propel first opened its doors, we have tried hard to establish a reputation as a dependable and trustworthy partner for our clients. I cannot help but feel proud that our hard work and dedication are acknowledged by winning awards and accolades. Finally, I am passionate about Propel because Propel believes in upskilling Propellers. There are plenty of chances to learn new skills and to apply it in real-life business situations. There is a strong gratifying feeling when you come home after a long day of work knowing that not only have you made the life of your client easier, you have made a better version of yourself. |
What do you believe is the biggest challenge in talent management today?
I believe that one of the most pressing issues in Talent Management is how to address the varying priorities, goals, and needs of a multi-generational workforce, which is mainly composed of baby boomers, generation X, and millennials. To add more complexity, generation Z will also be entering the workforce. I personally believe organisations will have to deploy different approaches to cater to these differences and the one-size-fits-all approach will soon be consigned to history. A concrete example of this generational difference can be seen from many managerial positions that are appointed for millennials. This could spell havoc for many of them as many are not prepared or equipped with the required emotional quotient and people skills to effectively manage a team as EQ and leadership skills tend to come from years of experience and maturity on the job. This is an area where Propel can come in and help to alleviate the gap. Our solutions that blend science, technology and a people aspect are well-positioned to enhance individual, team and organisational performance and can be applied on various levels such as individual contributor, manager, and leader levels. What is your advice when it comes to talent assessment and development?
I often see that many organisations sign up for coaching programmes or go through the development journey just for the sake of ticking the box without really knowing what it is they need. Often, the employees are left wandering and wondering what it is expected from them. I believe that ensuring employees are clear about what is expected of them and the path that has been designed for them will help them reach their personal and professional goals. When employees comprehend a particular purpose, they are more likely to achieve or exceed their set objectives. When confusion is present as employees go through a development programme, you will see there is a visible lack of engagement and motivation to really bring their best selves out. Hence, having a clear communication plan and reasonable expectations from the very beginning will significantly increase the effectiveness of the talent management agenda. I am proud to say that this is one of the areas where Propel really excels. Not only do we listen to what our clients need, we also coach them along the way, and this is what makes Propel stand out. |