Portable Skills A Human Resources perspective.

Overview Portability is ? Company Employee point of view Skills evaluation Skills transference Tangible and Less Tangible skills Summary

Portability Portability is? Portable is defined as... “capable of being carried or moved about” – Organization Human Resources Benefits and HR Systems Administration – Function IT and Human Resources – Industry Retail and Telecommunication – Culture Japan and the US

Market Trends 51 Corporations were among the 100 largest economies in the world. – Wal-Mart’s revenues are greater the Indonesia’s GDP (SHRM Workplace Forecast ) – 1. General Electric, 2. Mircosoft, 3. Exxon Mobil, 4. Wal- Mart, 5. Citigroup..17. Vodafone (FT 500 May, 2002) Large companies have tailored visions and values There is a frontier for Corporations but not for Nations – Corporations will have a continuous growing demand for critical skills and will meet the needs of a highly particular work force to acquire the skills A trend against multinationals

What do the trends mean for the demand for skills? The demand for cross fertilization will continue to increase – Economic, social, and cultural cross fertilization will continue – The Public Policy Institute of California “the brain drain may be evolving into a brain circulation The barriers to fertilization will also continue to increase – There are peoples who are disengaged from the changes – Nationalism is a response to change (France, the US) And this means: Companies will expect the employee to be an individual who has demonstrated initiative Companies will be more interested in individuals who have demonstrated skills

What are the Skills? Commitment Flexibility Change management Leadership / Ownership Team builder / member OD Comprehension Technical / analytical Specialist Ethics / Social

Tangible vs Less Tangible Tangible Technical Specialist Less Tangible Change management Commitment Flexibility Ethic / social  Leadership/ Ownership  Team builder  OD Comprehension  Analytical

Evaluating the skillset All skills can be evaluated. 1. Technical and Specialist– easily measurable, but look for examples 2.Commitment – length of time at previous company, in function, etc. - this can have positive and or negative implications 3. Change management and flexibility– can be supportive of the commitment and or completely contradictory again dependent on circumstance

Evaluating the skillset cont. All skills can be evaluated. 4.Team building – what role on teams, could yet again be contradictory to prior skills 5.Leadership/Ownership - less tangible but no less measurable, to be comfortable with the ownership of decisions 6.OD understanding – looking at the cross fertilization of business individuals need to understand organizational structures 7. Ethical social strengths are needed to work with complex situations

Summary Continued frontiers and growth potential in the multinationals Ongoing potential for conflict The market drivers create the supply and demand for the skills Only the ability to move from one environment to another differentiates successful portability skills The skills are more and less tangible but always measurable. Portable skills are invaluable to both companies and employees