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Customer for Life

Posted by Jason Averbook Feb 18, 2009

Within Knowledge Infusion we have a simple way to think of each customer interaction and that is to ensure that we do anything to keep them as a "customer for life".

I had the opportunity to read about an airline; JetBlue, who vowed tonight to refund passengers money if they have been "involuntarily" let go from their job. I had to read twice to believe what I was reading. They call this "The JetBlue Promise.."

There are many that are taking advantage of the "talent depression" from a marketing standpoint, but after reading more about JetBlue's program and talking to a few JetBlue employees tonight when I landed in Boston; the company is aligned and taking a stand against what we are dealing with in the world today. I asked how they knew about the program, and they mentioned the company portal as the communication vehicle. Once again, amazing use of technology to align a workforce immediately, all in a single day. From a Knowledge Infusion standpoint, we are working with many organizations going through alignment exercises today and using portals and social software to drive communication and engagement. Great stuff that truly adds value.

Hats off to JetBlue. The employees believe, the company believes and the company is taking action.

Strategy + Execution = Success.. I will fly JetBlue whenever I can based on reading this.

Another infusion of knowledge...

Link to article

1544 Views 3 Comments Permalink Tags: economy, customer_for_life, jetblue

HR Technology Vendor Layoffs : What Does It Mean To You?

Posted by Jason Averbook Jan 13, 2009

Over the past 2 months, I am being asked incessantly if I have heard about people being laid off from HR technology software vendors. This question is interesting to me as we are seeing layoffs in nearly every type of technology product firm in the marketplace as the economy continues to soften, so why would the HR technology space be any different?

Does it mean that none of the vendors in the space are doing good?

Does it mean we should stay away from them?

Does it mean they are not investing in R&D?

Does it mean we won't get support?

The answer to all of the questions above is NO.

As vendors continue to look at what is the best mix between balancing customer satisfaction, continued innovation and financial stability - vendors will continue to make organizational changes like any firm in any industry to optimize their organizations.

Each of the vendors in the space are working hard to ensure the long-term success of their organization, their products and most importantly - the relationships they have with their clients. Will there be issues because of the layoffs, YES. Will support change because of the layoffs, YES.

Will we make it through the changes and continue to drive automation in the HR technology space, YES.

It is important to understand that the economic downturn is hitting each vendor in the space in a completely different manner. Many HR technology vendors are just doing an optimization exercise based on their pipeline, others have been overspending in certain areas such as sales/marketing and are making head count adjustments, others are truly in trouble and will not survive just like any industry in a down economy.

Knowledge Infusion will continue to cover these changes as information becomes available. Our Rapid Solution Selection process is helping many organizations today make the best decisions in the market based on information available and our predictions. Many of our clients use our Consulting On Demand services to ensure that they are getting the "insider" feedback as to what is happening with the vendors and the direction they are going before they make their decisions. If you are in the process of making vendor decisions and are looking to vet your decision, drop me a note anytime at jason.averbook@knowledgeinfusion.com

Don't panic, don't rush to decision and most of all, don't throw out what you have based on what is happening today. Those enterprise clients that continue to innovate, invest and optimize during 2009 will have a significant advantage over those that think they cant move the needle because of budgets in 09. Keep moving!!

HR Executive Magazine technology columnist Bill Kutik has an excellent article this week on this topic as well - link here

I look forward to hearing your thoughts.

Another infusion of knowledge...

2490 Views 0 Comments Permalink Tags: vendor, bill_kutik, economy, hr_technology

On Another Day of Layoffs...

Posted by Jason Averbook Nov 18, 2008

I found this post to be extremely interesting. Many of Knowledge Infusion customers are going through times right now where the balance between a down economy and the kind of talent to keep in the organization is extremely difficult. We all see the press releases on a daily basis detailing the layoffs. Bob Sutton has done a great job in a post detailing some of the euphamisms for layoffs. A few of my favorites (if you can call them that):

Adjusting to shifts in demand

Rationalizing

Rebalancing the level of human capital

All kidding aside, our feelings go out to all of the amazing talent that is caught up in this economic downturn. Most organizations do not have any idea of the talent they are losing and will find themselves at a competitive disadvantage as the economy returns and you are all working elsewhere. For organizations that have not invested in talent management solutions to help know even what talent they have before they get rid of it, what have you been doing. The need for agility will continue and it is time to begin measuring people like the less important assets in your organization.

What are some of the classic phrases you are hearing these layoffs called?

Link to Bob's post - thanks Bob for great one

Another infusion of knowledge...

1690 Views 2 Comments Permalink Tags: economy, layoffs, talent_managementagement

How CIO's are dealing with a tough economy

Posted by Jason Averbook Jul 28, 2008

From a Knowledge Infusion standpoint, this year is proving to be a record breaking year on all accounts in helping organizations drive strategic value from HR technology investments. We would be blind and short-sighted if we didnt see that all around us, organizations are dealing with budget cutbacks and much more scrutiny around investments throughout the enterprise. Organizations are continually weighing the value of core HRMS solutions vs. talent management technologies.

Please see the attached InformationWeek article on how CIO's are dealing with a tough economy. A few key points:

Few New Hires
Hold Off On Upgrades
IT Inventory of High Potential Projects

As the HR spac continues to look at investments in technology, it is more important than ever to make these investments BUSINESS SYSTEMS, not HR SYSTEMS. In today's world, don't look for huge upgrade projects or huge ERP investments, look for quick-win, low hanging fruit, value-add investments to continue.

As you continue to create business cases and budgets for 2009, where are you focusing? Where do you need assistance?

Link to article

Another infusion of knowledge...

903 Views 1 Comments Permalink Tags: roi, economy, business_case

Circuit City Swings to Q4 Profit - So?

Posted by Jason Averbook Apr 10, 2008

Today, Circuit City, a retailer in the US announced that during Q4, they achieved a profit. You might ask, so what is the big deal about this and why are you writing about it in The Infuser. Well, this one paragraph is why we chose this news item today:

The CEO, Philip Schoonover said this to a large group of investors and analysts today waiting to hear that the company was bleeding more than ever. Instead, a PROFIT and TALENT?

While the company is NO WHERE NEAR out of the weeds and has a ton of work to do to turn itself around compared to some of it's competitors in the space, hats off to the CEO today for calling out TALENT as one of the drivers that will turn the company around into the future. Too few CEO's recognize this today and even fewer call it out in public. Look for this to drastically change into the future.

A down economy? Are we in one? If so, look for even more call outs about "right talent, right place, right time." I had the opportunity to talk to a reporter from The Wall Street Journal today and one of the things that we both agreed upon was that talent management and the visibility a CEO needs is higher than ever and organizations that are not focusing on this today might as well be prepared to be in his "Losers" column weekly. This has been a strategy of Knowledge Infusion for the past 18 months when working with our customers and I firmly believe that our customers are in a better place compared to their competitors tied to our efforts.

Circuit City executives did well today to call out talent. Let's hope that they truly do have the TALENT to turnaround the organization and they can prove the talent did it. We all need many more case studies on this top of mind topic.

Another infusion of knowledge....

Link to Forbes article