The UIC and the HEC School of Management organised a 2-day event for the Human Resource Directors of the railways worldwide. The objectives of this event were as follows:

 Examine the global changing environment and its impact on the rail sector
 Gain new insights into corporate strategy and its translation in terms of strategic human resource management
 Share with experts and colleagues in the HRM field some of the challenges and best practices in managing change in the rail business
 Examine the role and benefits of executive education and leadership development, with a special focus on the successful HEC-IRSMI Senior Managers Programme.

The programme combined interventions from experts and business leaders with interactive sessions during which participants were able to share experiences and practices from their companies. The event was hosted by HEC, one of the world’s top business schools, an appropriate setting for exploring the significant contribution of leadership development in addressing the current human resources challenges of the rail sector. The event was also an opportunity for participants to create links with other HR professionals in the same business.

On the first evening prior to the conference, participants heard Moncef Cheikh-Rouhou, a member of the adjunct faculty of HEC, on the challenges for firms in a context of globalisation.

The conference then began the next morning with a presentation by Charles-Henri Besseyre des Horts, Associate Professor of Human Resources Management and Organizational Behavior at Groupe HEC and Toshiba research chair in “Mobility and Organization”. He spoke of the evolution of the HR management function from personnel administration to a role increasingly oriented towards providing added value as a partner to management, and more recently as a marketer of diversity. While the HR functions of many firms remain focused on providing tools for management, the more progressive ones are involved in business strategy and helping to improve organizational decisions. There is a move from bureaucracy to adhocracy, with emphasis being placed on the longer term, on flexibility and on the development of talent. HR managers are contributing increasingly to improving core processes such as knowledge management. Managing talents and dreams has become strategic and a primary source of competitive advantage for firms, in particular as concerns the younger generation. The focus is on the development of the strategic human resources of the firm as well as on improving leadership capabilities. At the same time, both the development of the collective competences required to work in network organizations and the leveraging of individual competences and potential at all levels of the organization remain essential.

Jean-François Pilliard, VP of Strategic Human Resource Management at the Schneider Group, then described the way in which the human resources function is organized at Schneider Electric in such a way as to contribute added value as a strategic partner. Key points include the fact that the HR function is highly decentralized in order to adapt to local needs. The manager is the first HR manager, the HR function providing the necessary tools and services. The employee is considered responsible for his/her own development. Both significant external changes and internal events have led to an evolution in HR strategy, including an explicit strategy to attract and retain talent. This includes establishing an appropriate environment through ’total reward’ , that is, all of the tangible and intangible elements of the work experience, including work/life balance, corporate culture, and opportunities for personal development. It is also based on instilling a talent management mindset by fostering leadership capabilities such as coaching, mentoring, empowerment, and sponsorship. In addition, Schneider has set up a competence management system involving anticipation through a 3 year plan, regular review, and a focus on key competences in which there are gaps for the future.

The participants then divided into sub-groups to exchange among peers on the practices and key success factors for talent attraction and retention. Key points that emerged from the discussion included the importance of non-financial elements in the attraction and retention of talent. In particular, the image of the company and the industry were considered a significant factor, given that in many cases rail companies cannot compete with the private sector on financial compensation. In this respect, it was recommended that the rail companies adopt a more offensive approach to communication about the industry, for example by exploiting its role in sustainable development. The social image of the railways was also emphasised, with the example being given of work with suburban populations in France to encourage them to join the SNCF. A further key point concerned the need to introduce a new type of management in rail companies, including the involvement of line management in the retention of competent staff, the use of project management to provide interesting work, and the setting up of good career management processes. In many cases, the capacity to offer a broad range of skill development options was a plus in both the attraction and the retention of talent. Participants also highlighted the importance of working conditions - such as safety, work-life balance, a family-type culture and of personal recognition. The role of the HR function was emphasised, notably in the identification and development of talent in each individual, of any age, and in the establishment of policies, tools and processes to map competencies, increase individual and collective knowledge at all levels and capitalise on experience, for example through mentoring.

Bertrand Moingeon, Deputy Dean for Executive Education and Academic Development and Professor of Strategy at HEC, then made a presentation on the subject: “What lies behind the Learning Organization?” . He explored why knowledge management is important for organizations, how we can conceive of learning in an organizational context, what are the main obstacles to be overcome in creating a learning organization, and how HR professionals can contribute to building such organizations. In particular, a number of illustrations were given of the mental biases and collective dynamics that obstruct learning: the difficulty to accept different perspectives, the “not invented here syndrome”, jumping to conclusions based on our interpretations of scarce data, collusion with the status quo, and so forth. The notion of double-loop learning was examined as a means to find new solutions to recurrent problems. The ways in which firms come to translate this idea into strategic innovation was illustrated with examples from Swatch and the security transport industry. These firms managed to think “out of the box” in order to develop a new strategy in a mature business or to interrupt a vicious circle that exposed the firm to considerable risk. In conclusion, the HR function has a role in creating learning organizations, capable of detecting and correcting error or gaps by seeking alternative views and revisiting preconceived ideas.

Jack Stahl, former CEO of Coca Cola and of Revlon, gave a presentation the following morning on the subject of partnership between HR and management to build capabilities in firms. Jack has held various leadership positions during his 22-year career with Coca Cola, including 5 years as president of the company’s North American group and then a period as head of the global corporation. He was then appointed CEO for Revlon where he served for 5 years. He has recently published a book on leadership which draws on his experiences as a CEO and distils his knowledge of the skills necessary for effective leadership, “Lessons on Leadership: The 7 Fundamental Management Skills for Leaders at All Level (Kaplan, 2007).

The discussion focused on Jack’s multi-dimensional model for capability management and particularly his experiences of its implementation at Revlon, which he had to bring from crisis to recovery. Key learnings included the need to first focus on execution or getting the process right - in order to break a vicious cycle. While action planning is important, it is preferable to focus on 5 to 6 key actions and not fall into the trap of hyperactivity. It is crucial to listen to the customer to discover and tackle problems with products and the relationship another means to break the vicious cycle. Other constituencies such as employees should also be listened to, and HR has a significant role in that area. HR can also sell ambitious objectives to people, while ensuring there is a process for dialogue and that people are not penalised for falling short of those objectives. In addition, in one of the cases discussed, the company announced a dream of being a top 100 company for quality of work life, another area in which HR has a significant part to play. Direct communication is another priority, particularly in a crisis situation. In one case, the leader got involved in dialogue with people at all levels of the company, through weekly letters and open meetings. He also kept track of the details of implementation. This approach was intended as an example for other managers to follow. The visibility of the leader or manager also involves making visible and celebrating the successes of teams. A further role for HR is in translating strategy into action in building strategic competencies, through training, the provision of the necessary environment for development, and the design of the reward system that recognises the results generated by those skills. Executive education was said to be an important part of skill development, by exposing people to different points of view and alternative frameworks, giving them a space in which to experiment and try new behaviours, and boosting their energy levels. One final important message was to start where your organization is at and take the situation into consideration, whether when defining a communication strategy, choosing a focus for HR actions, adopting a leadership style, or deciding whether to give priority to improving a particular department or working on transversal processes.

The last session of the conference was devoted to the HEC-IRSMI Senior Managers Programme. Laocine Kerbache, Academic Director of the programme and professor of Operations Management and Information Technology at HEC, described the programme content, the team projects done by participants, and the link to HEC’s Executive MBA programme, which participants can convert to upon completion of the Senior Managers Programme. In order to provide some first-hand feedback on the course, Soren Dam Hanssen of the Danish railways described his experience as a participant and the way the course fits in with the HR strategy of his company as well as with the current challenges of the rail business.