Transformative HR: How Great Organizations Use Evidence-based Change to Drive Sustainable Advantage

285 Pages·2011·1.24 MB·English

by  John Boudreau

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More praise for Transformative HR
“With its focus on the power of evidence-based change,
Transformative HR takes the practice of effective talent man-
agement to a new arena. The principles it presents incorporate
the best of HR fundamentals and offer a new level of sophisti-
cation for today’s human capital leaders. Backed by real-world
examples and written by two of the most respected thinkers in HR
today, Transformative HR is a must-read for HR leaders.”
—Edward E. Lawler III, director, Center for
Effective Organizations and Distinguished Professor
of Business, University of Southern California; author,
Management Reset: Organizing for Sustainable Effectiveness
“This book highlights a critical area for successful HR profes-
sionals and business leaders, bringing science and rigor to
the decisions that organizations make about talent. At the
end of the day we all have to make choices, and Boudreau and
Jesuthasan provide us with the road map for ensuring that those
choices deliver the greatest value to our organizations.”
—Stephen J. Cerrone, PhD, executive vice president,
human resources, Sara Lee Corp.
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Transformative HR
How Great Companies Use
Evidence-Based Change for
Sustainable Advantage
John W. Boudreau
and
Ravin Jesuthasan
with Towers Watson
with valuable assistance from David Creelman
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Copyright © 2011 by John Boudreau. All rights reserved.
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Boudreau, John W.
Transformative HR: how great companies use evidence-based change for sustainable
advantage / John W. Boudreau and Ravin Jesuthasan with Towers Watson. — 1
p. cm.
Includes index.
ISBN 978-1-118-03604-4 (hardback), ISBN 978-1-118-10249-7 (ebk),
ISBN 978-1-118-10250-3 (ebk), ISBN 978-1-118-10251-0 (ebk)
1. Personnel management. 2. Leadership. 3. Organizational change. I. Jesuthasan,
Ravin, 1968– II. Towers, Watson. III. Title.
HF5549.B77265 2011
658.3—dc23
2011021817
Printed in the United States of America
first edition
HB Printing 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
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Contents
Acknowledgments ix
Introduction: The Promise of Evidence-Based Change xi
Part One: The Five Principles of
Evidence-Based Change 1
1. Information Overload or Persuasive Analytics? 3
2. Where Are Your Pivotal Talent Segments? 27
3. Risk: Is It Just a Four-Letter Word? 49
4. Your HR Portfolio: Is It Less Than the Sum of
Its Parts? 77
5. “Spreading Peanut Butter” or Optimizing
Investments? 95
Part Two: Six In-Depth Cases
of Evidence-Based Change 113
6. Royal Bank of Canada’s HR Partnership 115
7. Coca-Cola Combines Passion and Rigor 135
8. Khazanah Nasional’s Pursuit of Nation Building 149
9. IBM’s Workforce Management Initiative 169
10. Ameriprise Financial Reinvents Its HR Function 185
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vi CONTENTS
11. Royal Bank of Scotland Proves People Matter 203
Conclusion: Refl ections on What We’ve Learned 221
Appendix: Summary of Lessons Learned 233
References 241
About the Authors 243
Index 245
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To my family and colleagues, who inspire me every day
with their random acts of generosity
—John Boudreau
To my parents, Daniel and Karuna, who invested so much in me; to
my wife, Maureen, whose encouragement and support
made this book possible; to my children, Nadia and Daniel,
who inspire me every day
— Ravin Jesuthasan
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