Keolis Downer

Nikki Klinkert

I am amazed at how 2022 seemed to roll into 2023. We somehow had less time to pause, reflect, and regroup. Now with the New Year well underway, we are sure of one thing – there is a greater focus on the people space than ever before when it comes to business. In 2022, we saw the market demand for talent increase substantially both within the country and globally. Along with this came the big salary climb resulting in many riding the money wave. Now that salaries are inflated, and people have moved into higher-paying jobs, two big questions remain – what does our employee of choice look like, and how do we remain an employer of choice without breaking the bottom line?

For me, in an optimal workplace, these two items are mutually inclusive and continually impact and build on each other. Together they form the HOPE model.

We are both looking for “HOPE” employees and building a workplace that continually develops and creates “HOPE” employees.

Happy employees are engaged and purpose-driven. They believe in what we are doing even if they do not work in positions that necessarily have a full line of sight to the end goal. They have a good work-life balance. They give off that energy that positively impacts those around them.

The organisationally aligned are the rowers in your business. They identify with the culture and the values you create and buy into the mission. If your employees are not organisationally aligned, they are not rowing or rowing in the opposite direction. This means your business is not moving forward on the strategic path you set.

Performers are much different than in years gone by. They need development and to be lifted up with the right tools in hand. We have seen firsthand the damage done by simply promoting the well deserving without providing them with the proper training. We need to put the right recipe forward for reward and recognition. Money alone will not do the trick anymore, and there is much more emphasis on an intrinsic reward.

Emotional and physical well-being is of utmost importance. If employees are unwell, they are not at work, not performing, and they are definitely not happy. We need to create a culture of self-care that extends beyond the traditional workplace health and safety models. We know that legislative changes in 2023 will see a greater obligation toward mitigating psychosocial hazards and risks in the workplace. We need to be aware of the negative aspects that impact our people and mitigate them as much as possible. Only when our employees are well can they start looking out for the well-being of the people around them.

“I believe that if we focus on understanding our roles and candidates better, we will be able to ensure a greater job fit rate resulting in a workforce of HOPE. This is definitely your biggest asset yet.”

So, what is the secret ingredient that gets us to this workforce of “HOPE”? Pre-2020, the answer was creating a resilient workforce. Make sure your employees can withstand and bounce back from anything – problem solved. 2020 – 2022 showed us just how difficult that notion of “anything” can get. We experienced a global pandemic outside of anything we could ever have imagined. Our people were physically, emotionally, financially, and socially impacted. The resilience we cultivated over the years suddenly had a new minefield to navigate, and it was, in many cases, just not enough.

This moved the focus and responsibility onto the employer. Suddenly we were given this massive responsibility of ensuring that our people are not impacted. Remove the stressors, the dangers, and all the harsh bits that impact negatively on our employees. Many companies have spent countless hours and dollars attempting to remove the impact, but most have not succeeded.

The difficulty is that we do not work in bubbles and there are no isolator switches to the world in which we operate. A fitting example from our light rail industry is our Customer Service Officers. These are the men and women on the trams checking that fares are paid, providing information to our passengers, and assisting in emergencies. It would be impossible for us to completely remove the impact of the passengers they work with. Unfortunately, they will encounter physical strain from standing and walking many hours a day. They will be faced with antisocial behavior, aggression, and occasionally even violence. They may have a medical emergency onboard and need to spend significant time helping someone injured or very sick until the authorities arrive. The fact is that they will be impacted, and there is nothing we can do to take that away.

So how do we get the workforce of “HOPE” in 2023? The past has shown us that resilience or passing the responsibility over to the employer is no longer effective. I believe the key focus that will bring us results going forward is job fit. First, we must understand our roles better and spend more time creating job or position descriptions. We need more than a task list or KPIs. In a measurable way, we need to understand the physical and psychological impact of the job and the key qualities needed to excel in a particular role. We then need to spend more time during recruitment or promotion, ensuring that the candidate has the right qualities needed to withstand the impact of the job. I am 100% in favor of testing and assessment as tools to aid us in determining real job suitability. The interview process, as we know it, is no longer enough to ensure a successful job fit.

A former mentor emphasized that employees should be accounted for on the balance sheet along with the other business assets. I believe that if we focus on understanding our roles and candidates better, we will be able to ensure a greater job fit rate resulting in a workforce of “HOPE”. This is definitely your biggest asset yet.