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Strategic Consulting & Programs

In economic slowdowns, organisations faced with a complex set of workforce challenges revert to a variety of actions to deal with them.

Introducing the 8 Step Strategic HR methodology

The Energesse Strategic HR methodology provides organisations with an agile and customisable master framework to address complex strategic workforce issues for the most holistic, integrated and efficient outcomes. Published in our book ‘People Strategy & Workforce Optimization, these 8 steps systematically address strategic HR planning and execution. From having researched, observed and worked with thousands of senior executives, HR leaders, managers and front-liners across multiple industries, we believe this is the fastest, cost-effective approach to improve people outcomes and support long-term organizational growth as well as margin improvements (cost savings). 

The authors have also studied other proven methodologies from thought leaders, consulting firms to HR tech companies over the years. In this regard, many of the tools and techniques from Systems Thinking, Lean, Six Sigma, Strategy Management System (Balance Scorecard) and Agile have been uniquely combined, adapted and applied to the context of strategic HR planning. The 8 Step methodology can also be applied as a ‘deep dive’ program to address specific workforce issues, such as workforce shortages, restructures, productivity optimisation or developing performance management capability. 

This methodology also incorporates contemporary practices in data science and people analytics, as well as how to integrate that with the growing adoption of HR Information (Human Capital Management) Systems across organizations of all sizes and industries. This is particularly important in providing a competitive advantage for organisations seeking to obtain efficiency and outcome benefits using data-driven decisions, as well as remain competitive for talent.  

Differentiators from other Strategic HR Planning Techniques

1. More contemporary for the modern era and tough economic times.

As there are significant pressures to do things cheaper, faster, better and easier, (CFBE) this methodology strongly facilitates those objectives. This is particularly useful for managers who want to produce quality strategies, but also have limited capacity i.e. time-poor. In some of our case studies, we have achieved up to 90% planning time efficiency using this methodology.

2. Practically applicable for HR leaders and managers who have teams with a variation in HR management maturity stages.  

Some consider this methodology more suitable for SMEs, however, the tools have also been highly valuable for teams within mid-tier and large enterprises. The method is therefore adaptable and scalable to suit the size, industry and complexity of any individual’s role as well any team’s or organisation’s capability.

3. Flexibility of application to different types of workforce problems.  

The methodology can be scaled up or down, to focus on a whole-of-organisation portfolio of people strategies, to the specific problems such as workforce shortages, layoffs, productivity and so on.

Several case studies of successful implementations are covered below.

Portfolio Re-engineering & Workforce Optimisation for a Leading Research Organisation

Energesse implemented a research optimisation project with a leading research organisation in Australia. The organisation was under increasing pressure to deliver more tangible outcomes beyond existing KPIs against a backdrop of reduced resources and funding uncertainties (i,e. do more with less). Energesse helped the organisation optimise their resources (time, people, money) relative to strategic and environmental opportunities. The methodology involved market trends analysis, evaluation of the project portfolio against multiple complex variables, strategic prioritisation of benefits versus risks and the development of a strategy that re-engineered value to optimise ROI. This enabled the client to optimally deploy resources to programs, projects and initiatives more productively with the highest potential returns to the organisation.

Strategic Planning and Resource Alignment at a Federally-funded Commissioning Organisation

Energesse led a project to help a Primary Health Network (federally-funded commissioning authority) to ensure that all services in the district were strategically aligned to resource optimisation, funding, consumer experience in the community (one of the largest populations in the state). The project utilised leading instruments and indicators to measure consumer experience (satisfaction), stakeholder funding, key outcomes and financial variables. The project resulted in realignment of programs and initiatives to improve workforce productivity, wellbeing and overall  performance of services in the region in line with the needs of the local community.

Clinical Workforce Engagement and Measurement at a Private Hospital

A private hospital needed to measure satisfaction levels in a segment of their clinical workforce, with a detailed gap analysis and provide recommendations for improvement.  The hospital engaged Energesse to design and deliver a survey for their 300 junior doctors. We helped design the survey and enabled the capture of quantitative and qualitative data. A high response rate of 50% was successfully achieved. 

The report of outcomes provided an in-depth understanding of the effectiveness of their training program as well as root cause factors that influence the experience of rural training versus urban training. An unexpected outcome was that when the ratings were benchmarked against Australian public hospital programs, the private hospital training program fared better. Energesse provided targeted improvement recommendations for their training program and other career development opportunities to engage this specialised workforce segment.

You can also access our book here or contact us to inquire about information relevant to your current needs.