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Welcome The majority of respondents (81%) in CRMindustry.com's "2008 Trends in Customer Relationship Management (CRM)" survey are happy with the overall performance of their CRM technology vendor. The research, conducted in November - December 2007, surveyed high-level CRM executives representing a range of industries. The data gathered provides valuable insight into the issues and challenges important to those responsible for CRM in their organization. To get a complimentary copy of the executive summary, as well as view the graphs, click here... |
February 11, 2008  |
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| Yahoo Plans 1,000 Layoffs, Sees Growth as Profits Fall
Other findings from the survey include:
Tech salaries have slowly, but steadily increased over the last five years since average salaries declined in the early part of the decade. In 2007, average tech salaries increased 1.7 percent, following a 5.2 percent increase in 2006. 2006’s increase was driven by an almost 9 percent climb in the average contractor salary. In 2007, contractors still had the largest gains at 3.7 percent (for a salary of $93,017) while full-time workers experienced a 1.7 percent rise ($72,003). Technology professionals continued to be in high demand in 2007, with an annual average unemployment rate of 2.1 percent, ranking far below the national annual average of 4.6 percent, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.
Telecommuting has been a growing trend in the United States since about 2000. About 37 percent of U.S.-based and international companies now offer flexible work arrangements, with the number of those programs growing at a rate of 11 percent per year, according to the Society of Human Resource Management. Several studies have touted the health and morale benefits for flexible workers, but Golden's research suggests that their co-workers tend to find the workplace less enjoyable, have fewer emotional ties to co-workers and generally feel less obligated to the organization. While reasons for the adverse impact on non-teleworkers are varied, it possibly is due to co-worker's perceptions that they have decreased flexibility and a higher workload and the greater frustration that comes with coordinating in an environment with more extensive telework, Golden says. He added that with a greater prevalence of telecommuters in a work unit, non-telecommuters find it less personally fulfilling to do their work. But by ensuring greater face-to-face contact between co-workers when all employees are in the office and granting greater job autonomy, employers may be able to counter these problems, according to the study published in the journal Human Relations.
Top Eleven Ways to Increase Employee Loyalty 1. Measure Employee Engagement - Start measuring employees' passion about work and the work environment by issuing an employee satisfaction survey. Employee satisfaction surveys using a scale of agreement (a Likert Scale) provide a quantitative measurement that can be combined with open-ended comments to identify opportunities to make employees happy. 2. Identify What Employees Like - By gathering compliments through employee satisfaction surveys in addition to concerns, your company can find out if its engagement efforts make a meaningful, lasting contribution to employees. 3. Help Employees See the Big Picture - Employees want to feel that they are contributing and making a difference. Help your employees to see the big picture and how they contribute to a functioning whole. This will also empower employees to make decisions and improve employee satisfaction. 4. Use Training to Increase Confidence - Managers who cut training budgets to save costs do not understand how service delivery and morale can suffer as a result. Employees need training to do their job confidently and to facilitate career advancement within the company. 5. Establish Mentoring Programs - Train and encourage seasoned employees to be mentors. A mentoring program can facilitate dynamic skill growth through an organization and foster a sense of community while improving employee satisfaction and employee engagement. 6. Promote Team Building - Encourage team building activities among employee groups to create trust and acceptance. Strong, loyal teams provide one level of acceptance, and teamwork between departments provides another. 7. Build a Supportive Environment - Often, dissatisfaction with wages and benefits masks problems that relate back to acceptance by a team or manager. Employees may need help with coping skills, problem-solving skills, tactics for handling difficult situations, or expressing their personal feelings. 8. Don't Be Afraid to Tell the Truth - Respect your employees through degrees of transparency. Communicate how your business is really doing on a quarterly or semi-annual basis. Give your employees information to understand shifts in corporate policy due to the economic or competitive environment. 9. Retrain or Get Rid of Bad Managers - One bad manager can pollute multiple layers of an organization. Poor managers bring down employee morale, which spills over into the engagement level of customers. 10. Recognize Employee Contributions - Recognition from a supervisor of at least two ranks above an employee makes a meaningful, engaging difference in employee morale and employee loyalty. 11. Use Technology to Manage Employee Engagement - Technology is available to help you go beyond a single employee satisfaction survey annually or an email link on the company Intranet. Enterprise Feedback Management systems can be used to centralize employee satisfaction surveys and employee feedback and track both qualitative and quantitative information. Third-party systems provide for employee anonymity, which encourages open and honest employee feedback.
The survey of almost 600 ISSA Members from industry sectors as diverse as Financial Services, Entertainment and Government also found:
Most organizations are optimistic regarding employee development for 2008. Generally, people are optimistic about the future, but specifically, the two most common reasons for optimism in 2008 are an increase in support from senior management and a heightened demand for training and development:
While many of the most impactful activities for 2008 are the same as they were in 2007, there are a couple key differences — learning management systems (LMS) and knowledge management have each become more important. The LMS is fast becoming the single most important learning technology investment for companies. Nearly 50 percent of companies will in invest in their LMS to upgrade existing systems, consolidate into one LMS or integrate with other talent management solutions. Knowledge management is used to capture processes, skills and context often lost when experienced employees retire or change jobs. Thus, knowledge management is increasingly important as companies face the challenges presented by aging (and soon-to-retire) baby boomers. However, the most important activities continue to center around competencies, leadership and instructor-led training (ILT).
The business is only about 20 years old, which means there are still hundreds of thousands of small businesses that haven't yet hired a PEO -- and plenty of room for this boom to continue. Small businesses outsource cumbersome and time-consuming human resources chores to PEOs, such as administering payroll or making workers comp payments. PEOs generally charge a percentage of the client's payroll for these services. The average NAPEO member's client has 19 employees, but increasingly, larger companies are signing up, ranging from accounting firms and high-tech companies to manufacturers and government. The trade association estimates gross revenues rose from $53 billion to $61 billion this year. (It defines gross revenues as total receipts, which can include billings for payroll and employment related taxes and insurance.) PEOs cover around 2 million workers, NAPEO estimates. The trade association has 400 PEO members operating in all 50 states, accounting for an astounding 90 percent of the industry's revenues. In this slowing economy, PEOs are a bargain; they can help companies hang on to valued employees, for instance, by helping owners achieve better benefits.
The findings also suggest traditional incentives are a higher priority today: While the popularity of benefits surged, the number of financial executives who feel telecommuting and flexible work schedules are the top draw fell 20 points, from 33 percent in 2003 to 13 percent in 2008. The survey was developed by Robert Half International, a staffing services firm specializing in accounting and finance, and conducted by an independent research firm. It was based on telephone interviews with more than 1,400 CFOs across the United States. The survey results further suggest that rising medical costs have increased the value workers place on healthcare benefits options, and employers need to respond accordingly. Companies that do not provide comprehensive employment packages, including competitive compensation and insurance programs, risk losing top job candidates to other opportunities, says the company.
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| What to Do After a Layoff
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 Dismissing an EmployeeBy Harvard Business School Address While no one likes to be the bearer of bad news, managers are sometimes faced with the difficult task of having to dismiss an employee. In this book, you'll learn how to effectively manage a dismissal — including making key decisions before, during, and after the critical event. Handled skillfully, dismissing an employee can set your team — and your company — on a positive new path. More books can be found in the RecognizeServiceExcellence.com Required Reading section: http://www.recognizeserviceexcellence.com/ |
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