Identifying Skills Needed for the Future

Challenge

How does a company cope with increased competition and downturns in the market to succeed in the competitive global marketplace? This is the challenge recently faced by a small European pharmaceutical company.The company was profitable for many years and had a stable work force, but changes in the market put profit margins under severe pressure. In the past, change came gradually, but the company now saw the need for a major reorganization that included more efficient working methods and changes in staff.

The company needed to identify which of the current employees had the skills necessary to handle the change and face the challenges of the future. And, the company had brought in new senior managers, compounding the challenge. Not only did the new managers not know their employees, but employees became increasingly fearful of what the future would hold for them.

Solution

The company hired PDI to help determine what work would look like for the company’s future employees. The team built simulations based on a “day in the life” of a fictitious company all aimed at predicting what the client’s manufacturing operation would look like in two years. The process copied the demands of the new manufacturing management roles in the future, and PDI designed exercises that identified and measured the skills required in future manufacturing.

PDI ran a series of development centers based on the work activity critical to future success. The center’s activities included a simulation where the participants interacted with an “external customer,” an appraisal/coaching meeting with a “subordinate,” and an in-basket exercise which, among other things, required them to take much more responsibility for decision making and prioritizing than they were used to. Senior management from the client organization and members of the PDI team observed the sessions.

Result

PDI’s development centers were very successful. By comparing the competency levels of current employees with what would be required in the future, the company knew what skills current employees needed to keep up with the changes. Employees created development plans based on the findings.

Senior management, along with employees actively involved in the assessment and development process, understood the need for significant changes to their manufacturing practice. Junior management began to take the initiative by introducing change, taking responsibility for the development of people on the shop floor, and embracing quality action plans rather than waiting for senior management to provide guidance.