A few leading companies, however, are breaking new ground by no longer viewing their workforces as single, homogenous, monolithic entities, nor as distinct demographic segments only -but rather each person as a ‘workforce of one' with unique needs and preferences. Research from our new book, Workforce of One: Revolutionizing Talent Management through Customization (Harvard Business Press, 2010), reveals that these organisations have created an altogether new way of looking at diversity. Instead of stand-alone diversity training or hiring programmes that address differences, or striving to give everyone the same employment deal to ensure no discrimination, the idea of capitalizing on differences has become so embedded into these organizations and their everyday operations that the very structure of their people practices and policies changes to flexibly adapt to the individual. The result? A more committed and satisfied workforce, much higher productivity, lower turnover, and a greater ability to attract workforce stars.
Take Best Buy, a global electronics retailer rapidly expanding in the UK, for example. Company executives knew that engaging the full power of its diverse set of employees-and winning in the marketplace-meant nothing less than deliberately creating work experiences that leverage each Best Buy employee's unique set of talents, needs, and preferences.
So today at Best Buy employees can define their own customised career paths, and they have great latitude in shaping their own jobs, allowing Best Buy to take full advantage of each employee's unique strengths. But the company also works to unleash people's passion and discretionary energy by catering to their unique interests and life goals (for example, is she a new college grad looking to rise quickly in the company, or is he a seasoned retailer hoping to grow and learn in his current position?). Best Buy employees also can largely customize their own learning experiences through new technologies like blogs, YouTube or Wikipedia-like internal applications, and other peer-to-peer learning technologies - thereby resulting in a better-skilled workforce. Rewards, benefits, and even compensation plan like long-term incentives (for eligible managers and executives) are now customized-based on what uniquely motivates an individual, fostering greater employee engagement and motivation at work. What's more, performance appraisals aren't generic checklists of standard, often ill-suiting criteria as they are in most companies; rather, they are so broadly and simply defined that they can be customized locally to the work a person actually performs. And enabling customization in things like when and where people work means that many of Best Buy's employees can work in ways that are most productive for the individual.
Best Buy isn't the only organization breaking new ground when it comes to finding altogether new ways of capitalizing on an organization's diverse employee base; organizations from Microsoft to Procter & Gamble to PepsiCo are now pursuing similar strategies. UK-based Tesco, for example, has pioneered a highly innovative way of segmenting its workforce not based on traditional demographic diversity variables only, but rather on statistically valid segments that reflect key employee motivations, values, and orientations toward work (for example, is an individual a ‘pleasure seeker' or a ‘live-to-work' employee). The organisation then offers choices tailored to these segments with respect to benefits, compensation, training, and development.
By providing the ability for each employee to customise their own work experience in a way that fits him best, these organisations are avoiding the kind of stereotyping that can often occur when assuming people of the same demographic segment want the same things. And they are radically redefining our notions of diversity programmes as well; from stand-alone diversity initiatives often aimed at a few employees only to ones highly integrated into each employee's everyday work experience. Ultimately, treating your workforce as a workforce of one capitalises on every employee's differences to improve employee performance - and ultimately, contribute to a strong bottom line.
Susan M. Cantrell and David Smith
