1. Strategic Talent Development
WD-40 Company
Strategic
Talent Development
Garry gives an overview of the journey we’ve been on, starting in circa 1997 when he became CEO, to create a learning organization, and why that was strategically important.
Association for Talent Development
January 19, 2016

2. "The earliest and most basic definition of community - of tribe - would be the group of people that you both help feed and help defend." Sebastian Junger's Tribe

3. Succession & Innovation Ceremony & Celebration
Circle of Safety
Learning & Teaching
Succession & Innovation
Ceremony & Celebration
Specialized Skills
Providers
Warriors
Community & Belonging
Values
© 2015 The Learning Moment Inc. All rights reserved. Do not duplicate

4. Strategic Talent Development
Our First Principles of Talent Development
Translating Strategy to Organizational Design
Translating Design to Talent Requirements
Catalyzing Individual Commitment
Leadership’s Accountabilities
Measuring Progress
Stan gives an overview of the talent development elements and how they fit together.

5. 1. Our First Principles of Talent Development

6. We Believe in Individual Accountability
Each Tribe member is accountable for their own future, nothing is “owed”
We invest in people who demonstrate that they will invest in themselves
We teach accountability and we expect it
We employ the spirit of the “Maniac Pledge”

7. The Maniac Pledge
"I am responsible for taking action, asking questions, getting answers, and making decisions. I won't wait for someone to tell me. If I need to know, I'm responsible for asking. I have no right to be offended that I didn't 'get this sooner.' If I'm doing something others should know about, I'm responsible for telling them."

8. Talent Development is an Opportunity, Not a Right
All programs are voluntary to attend All levels in the organization can participate; we do not segregate participants by position in the hierarchy of roles and responsibilities Participants must still achieve expectations and goals; no “slack” for participating Tribe members must express their interests, curiosities and ambitions, then demonstrate that they have earned the support

9. We Teach People What and How to Teach
Talent development is the accountability of every leader who has responsibility for the livelihoods of others Therefore leaders must know the principles of human development in a business context, and how to apply them

10. 2. Translating Strategy to Organizational Design

11. The Flow of Organizational Design
VALUES
STRATEGY
GOALS
FUNCTIONS
METRICS
RESULTS
All organizations are founded on certain values, which change slowly if at all over time. Then the business strategy is the set of methods that the organization’s people employ to create economic sustainability. Those strategies then get translated into goals and objectives. Functions are then designed which are necessary to conduct the actions that hopefully make progress towards achieving those goals. Metrics are the “dashboard” instruments that tell the organization if it actually is making progress by its functional efforts. The results are then evaluated to determine if strategies need to change or stay the same.

12. PERFORMANCE EXPECTATIONS
VALUES
STRATEGY
GOALS
FUNCTIONS
METRICS
RESULTS
POSITION
DEFINITION
PERFORMANCE EXPECTATIONS
COMPENSATION
A leader’s responsibility is to participate in the design of strategy, the definition of goals, the description of positions that serve the functions necessary, communicating expectations that are measured by the chosen metrics, and to apply the rewards and corrections based upon the results achieved.
LEADERSHIP

13. HIRING SETTING EXPECTATIONS TRAINING COACHING
LEADERSHIP
HIRING
SETTING EXPECTATIONS
TRAINING
COACHING
Key elements of leadership in this cycle is to first hire well, then set expectations well, then train people who need the basics, then coach people who are ready to apply those basics to new situations. The manner in which the leader interacts with staff determines whether or not the staff actually improves.

14. 3. Translating Design to Talent Requirements

15. Competency-based Position Definitions
What is the purpose of the role? Why does it exist? What results is the role accountable for? What are the problem-solving requirements for the role? What are the knowledge, skill and ability requirements for the role? What are the developmental opportunities for the incumbent within the role?
Garry describes how we focus on competencies and demonstrated abilities through ongoing performance metrics. Years of experience and education can be initial indicators, but actual results and evidence of abilities are the criteria for success and advancement. “We earn our right to be in the company every day.”

16. Job Evaluation Factors
Account-ability
Jobs exist to achieve an end result
Output
Problem Solving
To achieve this end result, incumbents must solve problems, create methods, analyze metrics and apply judgment to make good decisions
Process
Know-How
This requires knowledge, skills and abilities consistent with the scale and complexity of the results to be achieved
Input
Accountability is listed first as it answers the core question of the why the job exists – what is it’s purpose, what would the organization be missing out on if this job didn’t exist
Jobs exist to solve problems and/or achieve results which is problem solving
You use your knowledge to solve problems – you can only solve problems based on the knowledge you have
Another way to think about it is as different parts of a car:
Accountability is the load the position carries
The load is carried by the chassis which is the job knowledge
What makes use of the chassis is the engine
These factors are described in every position description. These factors are those which are used to determine labor market value (using the Hay system).

17. 4. Catalyzing Individual Commitment

18. “Don’t just mark my paper. Help me get an ‘A’!”
Garry describes his journey of growth and the philosophy embodied in this book and throughout our culture of WD-40 Company.
It’s about the ongoing dialogue, looking for how leaders can help people succeed and thrive in the organization, allowing them the safety of making intelligent mistakes and then applying that learning to future situations, being a mentor and a coach, creating a stable and sustainable, growing organization where opportunity for personal growth exists.

19. I LOVE to tell people I work for WD-40 Company 98%
Employee Engagement 93%
I LOVE to tell people I work for WD-40 Company 98%
I respect my coach 96%
I feel my opinions and values are a good fit with the WD-40 Company culture 99%
I have the FREEDOM to decide how to accomplish my objectives 92%

20. 5. Leadership’s Accountabilities
Stan outlines what we expect of leaders. We have chosen to teach people how to fish and then be accountable to do so, rather than providing tight policies and processes. We believe that leadership is essential, and cannot be learned without the ability to make decisions related to their accountabilities.

21. Tribal Leaders are Teachers First
Our Leadership Laboratory teaches leaders how to be educators through content that includes, among sixteen specific topics: Principles of Human Behavior for Leaders Principles of Adult Learning Building a Culture of Accountability Accountable Communication Engaging in the Development Dialogue Constructively Resolving Conflict Strategic Thinking Problem-solving and Decision-making
Stan describes the history of Leadership Lab (designed in 2011, based on decades of research and practical experience), implemented in We are in our sixth year of the Lab.
Leaders are expected to live our values, demonstrate caring and candor in their interactions, balance the tender heart with tough mindedness and honesty. Leaders are accountable for how well the organization is prepared for the future, and to create an organization they would be proud to hand on to others.

22. Tribal Leaders are Examples of Our Values in Action
Do the right thing
Create positive lasting memories in all our relationships
Succeed as a Tribe while excelling as individuals
Make it better than it is today
Passionately own it and act on it
Sustain the WD-40 Co. economy
Leaders must exhibit demonstrable behavior that is aligned with these values, and which others can point to as modeling leadership. Leaders must teach these to others.
Our values guide our decisions daily, employees’ performance reviews include assessments of how they have or have not lived these values, and all development efforts include them.

23. Leaders Are Accountable For…
Others’ productivity and quality of performance Creating the working environment that promotes engagement Coaching others to achieve their professional goals

24. 6. Measuring Progress
Stan describes that we are “administratively light” on how we evaluate our efforts. We don’t use participant surveys for feedback. We ask directly. We gauge repeat attendance, since all programs are voluntary. We use the Lab as well for evaluating future leaders.

25. Leadership Lab Participation
UPDATE for While we have not hired as many people as in , are enrollment for 2017 is higher than 2016, with around 60 total participants in all three series, plus two planned distributor conferences again for about 45 external participants. We bring the Lab curricula to the world of WD-40 Company, customized and adapted to local factors, such as business needs, staff profile and development priorities.
* Customized for MD market partners

26. Bench Strength
All key positions have identified candidates for succession, at varying levels of preparedness We are able to fill almost all of our roles with internal promotions; some exceptions related to new types of positions that didn’t exist previously We have made significant changes in organizational design in the last five years, without loss of momentum We have very low turnover, globally
Garry describes our succession planning philosophy that building talent strength throughout the organization is our succession planning method. Without available talent, just putting names in boxes has no effective result. Garry gives examples of successful succession and filling key roles: Team Tomorrow changes and decentralization of product development, senior leadership changes to support long-term succession (Europe, Americas, etc.).

27. Business Results In the last five years we have:
Opened two new direct markets
Hired 40% of our current global workforce
Achieved record profits in each of the last four years
Reached record share price levels, with nearly 300% appreciation since 2011
Launched dozens of new products around the world with commercial success
Maintained over 90% employee engagement
Our business results also determine how well we think we are doing in the realm of talent development.
Without strong leaders who are first and foremost educators, talent is not developed, no matter how adept they may be.

28. Questions…?

29. Appendix: Formal programs for Tribe development
Leadership Laboratory 1.0
12 courses to form a foundation
Leadership Laboratory 2.0
4 courses that go deeper into critical skills
Leadership Laboratory 3.0
Case study-driven team problem solving and course on strategic thinking

30. Appendix: Formal programs for Tribe development
Master of Science in Executive Leadership at USD
2 Tribe members/year selected from applicants
Bachelors and Graduate degree program support through educational reimbursement
Ongoing professional education conferences and seminars which are earned by Tribe members

31. Appendix: Formal programs for Tribe development
Leaders Teaching Leaders
Interested Tribe members have the opportunity to master topics and then learn how to facilitate group workshops, expanding the “faculty” of the Lab
Workshops of a specific topic of need
Dollars and $ense
Project Management
Facilitating Adult Learning

32. Appendix: Formal programs for Tribe development
Section Five of the Review
Part of the performance review dialogue
Focuses on what the Tribe member needs to learn and demonstrate to increase competency
Focuses on what the Tribe member wants to learn and what career path they wish to pursue
Establishes actions to accomplish these developmental goals