All too often, we find ourselves stuck at the table “strategizing;” a trending buzzword which simply put is the act of planning. However, the overemphasis and meticulous planning of a total rewards strategy, or anything for that matter, is nothing without taking the blueprint into action.
Granted scheming a well-conceived plan of action is integral, especially when dealing with pay. Pay is already a sensitive topic; it runs deep with emotions and impacts people's livelihoods. It’s for this very reason that organizations and their “strategic leaders” mustn’t’ sit too long at the table formulating or re-working their pay approach. A time will come when the rubber must hit the road.
Sit idle for too long and you lose the ability to attract and retain key talent. Action takes an air of confident assertiveness to press the “go live” button swiftly yet decisively. Assuming a master plan is now in place, the following are a few key "action" ingredients, igniting life into the strategy:
1. A proactive team – the individuals spearheading the initiative ideally are diverse in their backgrounds or job functions. Having this depth of representation creates advocacy, buy-in, and commitment from the entire organization. Most importantly, the “ego” must be left at the door. Team members concede that the matter at hand is not about one's self-interest but rather achieving a common goal. For instance, the collective goal is to ensure the workforce has the right pay program or incentive mechanisms to drive the right behaviors, allowing all business lines to reward in a way that is favorable to the business achieving its goals.
2. Calculated risk is a reality of life, such that we cannot predict the outcomes in every situation. Although we can play out scenarios and stress test the good, bad and ugly, eventually we have to be Ok to let go and allow the plan to run its course. Risk aversion can be an Achilles heel; if we say our employees are our greatest asset we must then invest accordingly. Fearing or prolonging a pay equity review could instead create increased disparity or, worse, deepen your liability and exposure. Ignoring employee feedback and turnover statistics, or failing to do a market review because of the time, effort and costs involved, could not only hinder your market competitiveness, but could result in a much more costly market catch up to resolve.
3. Timelines – when the due date is set then there must be enforced expectation and accountability of the participants to comply. Action feeds into a schedule of events, these pre-set dates function as markers or key milestones. Once in motion, we are continually assessing, evaluating, and pivoting as we hit these dates. The timeframe is our forward-thinking roadmap, we only turn back to learn and improve from the past.
I am certain you as readers can “strategize” many more key points of action! Think also of our employees: they too do not have the time to wait around for what will be. How can we as leaders expect action from them if we cannot deliver upon it ourselves?
Reena Paul (CCP, GRP) is a Senior Consultant with LifeWorks Compensation Consulting Team. She is passionate about all things “total rewards” and has experience in dealing with all stakeholders of an organization and strategizing optimum client-focused solutions. A lover of data and the story it tells, Reena enjoys the exploration of presenting and discussing compensation with a fresh perspective. Connect with Reena on LinkedIn, or contact her directly at [email protected].
Image source: Unsplash image with credit to GR Stocks
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