Frequently Asked Questions
- How will my company benefit from being involved?
- What are the costs of being involved in the Human Resource Competency Study?
- What are the objectives of the HRCS?
- Who is conducting the HRCS?
- What commitments must we make to be involved in the Study?
- What should each HR participant in the study expect?
- What should each HR associate in the study expect?
- What language are the surveys in?
- How will confidentiality be protected?
- Do I have to take the on-line survey in one sitting? Can I save my results and continue later?
- Who will receive what information from the survey?
- How will HR participants receive their reports?
- How many people from my business can participate?
How will my company benefit from being involved?
The results will help you and your colleagues by comparing your individual and collective competencies against global benchmarks. Building on this base, you and your colleagues will then be able to prepare competency-based developmental action plans for yourselves and for your department.
Professionals from participating companies will also be invited to attend a one-day feedback conference in which the results of the study are reviewed and current trends in HR strategy are examined.
What are the costs of being involved in the Human Resource Competency Study?
The Ross School of Business at the University of Michigan and The RBL Group fund the cost of the survey and report administration. The one-day feedback session may have a nominal fee to cover material costs and logistics. Hence, companies and their participants contribute very little out-of-pocket expenses.
What are the objectives of the HRCS?
The Human Resource Competency Study is designed to track the major trends in the field of human resource management and to help HR professionals and departments add greater value to their businesses. The HRCS examines two major themes:
1. Explaining the competencies that characterize the most capable HR professionals. The primary research question that we intend to answer is: “What are the competencies and practices that distinguish HR Professionals in high performing firms from those in low performing firms?”
2. Explaining the relationship between business strategy and HR practices including how HR practices vary by industry and by alternative sources of competitive advantage.
Who is conducting the HRCS?
The Human Resource Competency Study is sponsored by the Ross School of Business at the University of Michigan and The RBL Group with assistance from Regional Partners around the globe.
The HRCS is directed by Dave Ulrich, Wayne Brockbank, and Jon Younger. These directors have combined to write dozens of books and hundreds of articles about the field of human resources and have shaped the role of HR professionals for over 25 years.
HR Executive Programs at the Ross School of Business been rated by The Wall Street Journal, Fortune and Business Week as the “best” HR programs in North America and Europe since 1991. This study exemplifies Michigan’s on-going commitment to identify best practices in the field of Human Resources.
What commitments are involved for participation in the study?
Responsibilities.
Company: Identify five or more HR professionals in the organization to participate in a 360-degree survey. Individuals may come from the corporate level or other organizational units.
Senior HR Executives: Communicate with the HR participants stressing the importance of the study, informing them of the company’s involvement, and request that they participate.
HR participants: Designate four to eight Associate raters to complete the survey and request that they participate. The survey will take about 30-45 minutes to complete.
Benefits
Companies with at least 4 HR participants will receive a company report comparing their results to the global benchmarks. Companies with fewer than 4 participants will still receive individual reports and be able to join in a regional feedback session.
HR Participants with at least 4 Associate Raters will receive an individual report with their results compared to global benchmarks. Individuals with fewer than 4 raters will still be able to join a regional feedback session.
Participants and other employees from your company will be invited to attend a regional feedback session. In these sessions we will share the studies major findings and discuss new and future trends in HR.
What should each HR Participant expect?
Each HR Participant in the study is asked to do two things:
1. Complete a 30-45 minute survey examining their own capability as an HR professional
2. Identify 4-8 “Associate” raters. Associates are individuals who are familiar with the participant’s work and capability as an HR professional. Associates can include peers, subordinates, and clients, and should include their supervisor.
3. HR Participants should encourage their Associate raters to complete the survey. In order to qualify for an individual feedback report, the HR Participant must complete a self-assessment and receive feedback from at least four Associate raters. It is recommended that the HR Participant identify 4-8 (or more) Associate raters to ensure that at least four Associate raters provide feedback.
What should each HR Associate expect?
Each Associate rater in the study is asked to complete a confidential assessment of the HR Participant. The survey assesses the HR Participant’s work and capability as an HR professional. The survey will also assess the role that HR plays in the Participant’s business.
The survey will be conducted through a secure web-based instrument. The Associate survey is expected to take approximately 45 minutes to complete.
Individual feedback reports for the HR participants will present aggregated data to protect the identity of the Associate raters. Associate raters will not receive an individual feedback report. However, they are encouraged to discuss any additional feedback with the HR Participant once the HR Participant receives the feedback report. Associates are also invited to attend the regional feedback session.
What language are the surveys in?
The HR Competency Study is available in the following languages:
English
Spanish
Portuguese
Chinese
How will confidentiality be protected?
All surveys are processed on a secure website independent of the participating companies. Data will be sent directly to the HRCS team for analysis and only members of the HRCS research team will have access to individual results. Individual participant reports will be sent to the individual only, not to the Company Liaison or Senior HR Executive of the company. Results will only be presented at an aggregate level to protect the identity of Associate Raters and Participants.
Do I have to take the survey in one sitting? Can I save my results and continue later?
You do not have to finish the survey in one setting. Each survey will have a unique ID and password allowing a person to save and return to a survey at a later time. The survey takes approximately 35-45 minutes to complete. For security purposes, once you complete and submit the survey, you are unable to go back or view the results.
Who will receive what information from the study?
HR Participants with completed ratings from at least 4 Associates will receive an individual feedback report. The individual feedback reports compare the individual participant’s data against benchmark data. Associate rater data is presented in aggregate to protect anonymity. Individual participant reports are only sent to individual participants, neither to their supervisor nor Senior HR executive. Participants have the only copy of their individual reports. Companies with at least four completed participants will receive a company report. The company report compares the company’s averages global averages and will discuss new trends in HR. Only the Company Liaison will receive the company report that may then be distributed to their staff.
How will HR participants receive their reports?
Company and individual reports will be sent prior the regional feedback sessions in the first quarter of 2012.
How many people from my business can participate?
We limit the number of participants from a business unit to 20 (not including raters). This ensures that we don’t over sample from a single organization. For the purpose of this study we define “Business Unit” as follows:
“Business Unit” refers to the operational unit and level of organization where the participant focuses attention. For example, “business” may be a plant, department, branch, division, functional group, business unit, cost center, corporate, etc. Your business does not mean the human resource function, but the business the participant serves as a human resource professional.
To illustrate: for an HR professional who is a Director of the North American Sales Division for the ABC Company, her “business” would be “North American Sales.” Her business would not be the name of the industry nor “ABC Company.” However, if the participant serves the Corporation, his or her “business” would be the name of the company.
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