As companies around the globe manage the distinct perspectives of three generations,it has become increasingly important to level the cultural playing field and find common ground between employees. There are lessons to be learned from Emotional Intelligence Master Trainer, Ed Hennessy, who broadly brings to bear his expertise in using EI skills to make the workplace a cohabitable environment for everyone.

Kelly Blokdijk, Talent Management Professional at TalentTalks, joins HCI to demystify succession planning and break down how firms should be approaching this challenge. Blokdijk begins with a basic definition of succession planning, an explanation of why it matters and some current examples in the market to illustrate her point. Next, Kelly explains how a holistic understanding of succession planning in relation to talent acquisition and development benefits the firm. Kelly follows up with an exploration of promoting talent for experience or potential and the pros and cons for each. Blokdijk wraps up the conversation talking about how often succession plans should be revisited each year and how the evolving workforce is changing how we should approach succession planning.

AJ Thomas, Director of Talent Development and Engagement at Nimble Storage, joins the HCI for a discussion on the state of Millennials in the workplace. AJ starts with some background info on Millennials and how firms can leverage these talents. Next, Thomas explores the difficulties some organizations report in managing Millennials and offers some advice to connect. AJ follows up with an overview of the shift towards more transparency in compensation and finishes the conversation with some prescriptions for improving employee engagement.

Beginning with looking at how rewards and recognition strategies have changed over the past decade, Melissa Van Dyke of the Incentive Research Foundation takes an in depth look at rewards and recognition specifically the key factors that when properly implemented, can help to foster lasting employee engagement.

In this follow-up podcast to HCI and ICF's Signature research, Building a Coaching Culture, we discuss important tips to consider as more organizations implement coaching skills in their day-to-day performance management and employee development programs.

Work4’s Ron Yazetti joins HCI to share the secrets to leveraging social media for the firm’s recruitment strategy. Ron starts by explaining how firms should choose their voice for social media and the pros and cons of tailoring your voice to your audience. Next, Ron dives into how to keep up with Facebook’s shifting algorithm for organic reach and when firms should shift into using Facebook ads to reach candidates. Ron closes out with some pointers on how to reach passive candidates for niche roles.

HCI sits down with Dan Lapporte, Senior Manager of Workforce Information Management at Kaiser Permanente, to explore the role analytics should play in supporting the business. Dan begins by sharing how HR can leverage an analytics program to show value to the C-suite and how to set up some easy wins. Dan follows with an explanation of what makes data meaningful and the role data scientists can play. Dan finishes the conversation sharing some resources so members can stay up to date and explores some coming trends to analytics.

Jeff Jasnoff, Senior Vice President of HR at Kindred Healthcare joins HCI to shares his case study of deploying assessments to overcome human capital challenges. Jeff begins by explaining the issues he was facing and explains the steps Kindred Healthcare took to select, deploy, and evaluate behavioral data to improve their talent concerns. Leveraging the data to improve onboarding, communication, and development Jasnoff shares his up to date results. Jasnoff finishes the conversation sharing ideas of how he would like to use behavioral data next.

How can an organization capitalize on, and perhaps more importantly, drive informal learning opportunities between and among employees? These questions and more are discussed in this HCI podcast interview with Turner Broadcasting Systems, Inc., Devin Dreher. Through careful study and strategic pilot programs, Devin has been able to make informal learning stick at Turner.

How can gamification help you? Richard Landers, Assistant Professor of Industrial/Organizational Psychology at Old Dominion University, joins HCI for a discussion on how gamification or even just elements of gamification can benefit HR. Landers explains how where to start and some common game elements to leverage. What role do mistakes play in learning? What is a “flow state” and how can you maximize it? What’s coming next in gamification? Find the answers to these questions and more in this HCI podcast.