Performance Management Principles during Compensation Review Process

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Last week we discussed how to incorporate project management principles, such as a work breakdown structure to make many HR initiatives more efficient and effective.  In addition to a WBS, there are many additional tools that a formal project management methodology relies upon to ensure successful projects.  Another key planning tool that is beneficial across many business domains is rolling wave planning.  In HR, there have been many times I have been faced with what seemed to be either an astronomical task or project that left me wondering where to start and how I was going to complete all of the perceived requirements.  How long would I need resources? How can I estimate costs so far in advance with so many unknowns?  With over 60 tasks, where do I start? 

I recall the first time I managed the annual review process in compensation for the first time; I was overwhelmed with the process for over 1500 employees and complex approval processes.  Rolling wave planning is an excellent project management tool that allows you to manage a project in smaller components. For instance, there were many components of the annual compensation program that I was simply not certain of at the start of the annual review.  In fact, many of the initial tasks that I needed to complete would actually dictate the amount of work to be done in later phases.  Rolling wave planning allows you to map out deliverables at the highest level for the entire project without necessarily identifying all the tasks involved knowing that as the project progresses, the tasks might change. It is an excellent bird’s eye view of the total project.  As the project components are completed, and additional information is known, a more comprehensive WBS can be created, costs associated with task completion can be clearer, resources needed and schedule requirements become clear which is also known as progressive elaboration.

Why is this beneficial for HR?  HR can be in a much better position to quantify resources, costs and schedule for completion.  How many times in HR have you been able to specifically quantify how much it costs to complete a task or specifically for how long?  How about being able to benchmark year over year if your processes are improving or declining in terms of cost effectiveness and timely delivery?  With this type of information, HR can become much more strategic and effective as a service provider by benchmarking its own level of service to the employees it provides services to.

By incorporating even small project management tools, over the course of time, HR will be better able to manage complex projects and tasks with greater efficiency which in turn increases overall service effectiveness.  Contact us to discover more.