Tell Us Your Name and What You Currently Do?
My name is Elie Georgiou-Botaris and I am the Practice Leader at Towers Watson Middle East. My focus is on Talent Management and Organizational Alignment.
Tell Us About Your Background?
I have been in HR my entire professional career, spanning around 35 years in operational, strategic and Consulting HR roles, in the EMEA Region.
What Is Your Specialist Skill?
Human Resources/Talent Management and Development.
What Is The Best Learning and Development or Talent Management Strategy You Have Implemented?
The best learning and development/talent management strategy we have implemented is one that has been derived from and closely aligned to the business strategy of the client organization, where investment decisions have been made based on critical needs and pivotal roles identified in the organization.
Can You Take Us Step-by-Step Why It Was a Success?
The reason behind the success of such strategy was its full alignment to the business needs in order to respond to the actual skill/competency needs and gaps that were identified as crucial for the organization’s business success.
The first step was to identify the behavioral (core and leadership) and functional competencies that were critical to the business, its success and growth, as well as being critical for building and sustaining its competitive advantage.
These competencies were then communicated and positioned by the top leadership as the minimum behavioral and performance standards that the organization required its employees to demonstrate, in order to reflect its values, corporate culture and internal capabilities.
The next step was to incorporate the behavioral and functional competencies into the various HR programs and systems, such as the Performance Management System, Reward System, Career Management, Leadership Development, Succession Management, as well as Staffing and Recruitment.
This integration of the behavioral and functional competencies into the key HR programs, coupled with a regular competency-based assessment for existing staff and job candidates/ new hires, provided the organization with a clear view and more focus on what areas needed development or upgrade in the short, medium and long-term, with better alignment to the business strategies and the specific current and future job roles.
Hence, it provided the organization with clear guidance regarding what and where to invest in the area of training and development to ensure an immediate and high return on their investment in their people, at all levels and across the various employee segments.
What Do You Recommend Our Readers Do With This Strategy?
This strategy has been proven to work successfully within organizations of all sizes and types, especially when carefully planned, clearly communicated and fully implemented.
Such strategy will guarantee full alignment of people development to the business needs, more focus on developing identified competency gaps and wise investment decisions by top management in developing critical needs for pivotal roles within the organization, for a high return on their investment.
How Does Your Company Help Organizations?
We consult with organizations to assess their current structure and situation through an HR audit and identify/prioritize critical areas for improvement and/or development.
We also develop their Talent and Reward strategies, their organization structures that are aligned to their mandate, conduct strategic workforce planning, develop job and career architectures, as well as the various required Talent and Reward programs such as competency
frameworks, reward structures and systems, performance management systems, succession management systems, career management frameworks, learning and development frameworks, leadership assessment and development, communication strategies and change interventions, in addition to building an integrated HR technology platform to host all these programs and systems.
We also support organizations in implementing, managing and maintaining these new systems by building their internal capabilities through knowledge transfer, during and after project development.
How Can Our Readers Find Out More About Towers Watson?
Readers can learn more about Towers Watson and our full range of programs and service offerings by visiting our website: www.towerswatson.com and exploring the Towers Watson Middle East webpage, or by contacting our Regional Office for the Middle East in Dubai, the UAE at the following address:
Towers Watson Middle East FZE, LLC
Dubai Media City
Business Central Towers,
Tower A, 37th Floor
Tel. +971 (0)4 455 1700
Fax +971 (0)4 455 1701
