If you experience difficulty viewing this message, please click here

www.forwardthinkinginc.com newsletter | latest edition | december 2011

I would like to take the opportunity in the final newsletter of 2011 to wish all forward thinking inc clients and friends a strong finish to the year, a restful Christmas and a prosperous New Year. The year has been an exciting one at forward thinking inc with a string of new client additions such as the British Council and Volkswagen joining our blue chip client roster. We have undertaken an enormous range of projects ranging from pure strategy assignments to value proposition development, market sizing and scoping, identity development and much more. However, the underlying theme for much of the work we have done this year has been that of helping our clients to drive and manage the changes required to increase their long term competitiveness. The context for this work has been challenging. The overall business environment has been less than positive and latest forecasts of a further 5 years of economic recession are unlikely to cheer any of us up. However, there can be no doubt that well managed businesses with a clear point of difference and a commitment to deliver a single minded strategy consistently well will continue to buck recessionary trends. Indeed, many would say that difficult times offer the perfect opportunity to think differently and break away from the pack. So, although changing the way your business works at a fundamental level is not a challenge for the fainthearted, and making those changes in a difficult environment seems scary, the current environment can actually provide the necessary stimulus for change. In the long term, any business is about its people, and the goal for every business is to maximize the productivity and effectiveness of their human capital, individually and collectively. However therein lies the challenge, because the context for managing people effectively has changed massively over the last few years. Our short feature article this month focuses on unlocking the drivers of employee productivity in today's business environment - which seems to us a worthwhile topic with which to usher in the New Year. Happy Christmas. Chris Woolston (MD)

testimonials Want to hear what people say about us? Please click here subscribe Want to hear more? Please visit our site and subscribe contact Have something you want to share? Please click here to email us unsubscribe To unsubscribe please click here A joint venture between forward thinking inc and Herman Miller forward thinking inc indigo house holbrooke place richmond surrey TW10 6UD t: +44(0) 208 939 2330 f: +44(0) 208 939 2331 Developing human capital Few would disagree with the fact that a firm's people are its principle asset and that a primary objective for any senior management team must therefore be the job of creating the conditions in which that asset can deliver value. The challenge of maximizing productivity in the workplace is certainly not a new one, though management practice still owes much to early pioneers in the area going back 100 years plus. In 'The Principles of Scientific Management', Frederick Taylor in the early 1900's first set out his 'scientific' management approach, which has held great sway ever since. The central idea was about focus, specialization and the division of labour, and today many firms are struggling to cope with the legacy of this thinking, which worked well for decades but fits less well with the way in which value is created today. Today, businesses operate in a much more fluid, connected and dynamic environment than was the case in Taylor's time. Value is created more through ideas, connections, partnerships and relationships than through the 'scientific' management of a physical production process. Rather than through the tangible, value is created out of the intangible. One thing which seems not to have changed, however, is the fact that what gets measured gets managed, so arguably finding a way to measure, understand and manage the effectiveness of the key intangible asset - people - is the big challenge for senior managers in the modern age. At forward thinking inc we have invested a number of years of research into this area, working over time with a range of academics, and testing and developing our ideas across a series of sectors and markets. Our research has led to the development of an advanced "productivity model" which we believe provides an innovative framework for businesses wishing to support employee productivity and grow the long term value of their human and relationship capital. There are seven key drivers which need to be addressed: A sense of shared purpose High levels of trust Clarity of role and expectations A high level of personal autonomy Recognition for efforts and achievement The ability to collaborate efficiently when required Physiological needs Any firm wishing to maximize organisational productivity, and drive the long term value of the human and relationship capital which are its most valuable assets, will need clear strategies and initiatives in each of these interconnected areas if it is to succeed. Should you be interested in talking with us about how to maximize your employee productivity and build the long term value of your human capital, please contact Laurence Moss on 020 8939 2330 or at info@forwardthinkinginc.com. Laurence has unmatched experience in helping large organisations to develop and leverage their talent to create value. Before joining the team at fti, he was most recently Group Head of Talent and Resourcing at HSBC and his earlier career included the roles of Global Head, People and Organisational effectiveness at ABN AMRO and Head of Human Resources at Colgate Palmolive.